After another restful sleep (thanks to my late run the night before), I woke up with plenty of spirit and energy, ready to see what this day would bring.  My event for the day, beach volleyball, was not slated to begin until 2:30 p.m., so I used the first part of my day to catch up on some of my blog entries (I need the time; as you can tell, my entries are very long and detailed).  It was about 12:15 or so when I finished.  After showering, I donned my church clothes, preparing to leave volleyball early and locate this church that I have done research about.  It was going to be another eventful, action-packed day in London.

I took my ticket and travel pass and headed over to the metro station.  I made sure to eat before I made it to the station, so I would not have to pay for the expensive food at the event.  Therefore, I grabbed some delicious Subway and rolled out.  I asked the volunteers where I should go, and told me to make my way to the Green Park station.  There, I would be a short walk from Horse's Guard Parade, where beach volleyball would be contested.  After riding the Victoria line trains, I emerged from the station into a new part of London.  I gazed at the shops, took more pictures, and dodged traffic en route to the park.  Once I finally got there, I really, really had to use the bathroom.  I asked about ten volunteers until I found the nearest one, which was nested in a bustling city block called Trafalgar Square.  This is one thing that has annoyed me about London thus far.  In addition to the lack of water fountains, there are not very many public restrooms (or toilets, as they prefer to call them).  Anyway, I took lots of pictures of the square afterward, including one of a huge electronic sign that tells the time of the day and counts down the days until the start of the Paralympic games.

I managed to get through security pretty easily and eventually found myself staring at the mass of metal that made up the beach volleyball stadium.  It looked like an unfinished stadium from the outside, but the venue was actually pretty nice.  I sat pretty high up, so I had a terrific view of the ferris wheel in the middle of the city and a tiny glimpse of Big Ben.  The match I got to see featured the Netherlands against Venezuela.  Unlike the quiet atmosphere of Wimbledon, beach volleyball was chock full of entertainment!  They played music between just about every point, including some famous American songs like Back in Black from AC-DC and Party Rock Anthem from LMFAO.  During timeouts, they would either bring out some dancers in beach attire to entertain the crowd, or they would bring out the sand raking team.  This was my favorite part because every time they came out, the stadium started to play the Benny Hill theme.  It was totally British.  I also loved the fact that before certain points, the stadium would play this short southwestern tune, after which the crowd would cheer, "Ole!!!"  I watched the end of the first set, which the Netherlands won.  The Dutch players had a clear size advantage on the two Venezuelan players.  Venezuela was scrappy, however, and they were very good at defense.  They got off to a quick start in the second set and managed to hold on and win, sending the match to a deciding third set.  However, the sun had faded at this point, and it begun to rain.  It was funny seeing everyone scramble to put their ponchos on or break out their umbrellas.  It all looked very rehearsed, as if this always happens in London (which, believe it or not, it does).  I just brought my umbrella, so I opened it to protect myself.  However, due to my height, I had become a burden for the people behind me, who complained that they could not see anything.  I tried crouching with the umbrella, but it was very uncomfortable for my back and my back was getting poured on.  After a couple more points in the third set, I decided that I had my fill and left the stadium.  I stuck around for a little bit to see if the rain would subside, but with no end in sight, I began to head downtown.

Before I headed back, I wanted to make sure that I would get to see the Westminster Abbey.  I meandered in that direction and managed to find Big Ben, staring me right in the face.  It was the second Big Ben that I've seen in person in my life (the first being Mr. Roethlisberger).  I took a couple of pictures and some pictures of the Westminster Abbey before the rain started to pick up.  Thankfully, there was a metro station nearby, so I made my descent toward the train system.

After navigating through the system, I was back at good old Clink 261.  I waited until about 5:20 p.m. to see if Leslie Greer would show up because she seemed interested in attending church with me.  In the meantime, I spent time talking to Laura Jack, who had been out and about exploring.  She then left to go find chocolate, and I decided to take off and find the church early so I would not be lost.  After taking a couple of twists and turns throughout the streets of London, asking for directions along the way (some lady tried to tell me that the church was in a children's hospital...), I came across St. George's Holborn Church.  The exterior and interior were designed like an old-fashioned church building, but the service was actually more in the contemporary fashion.  The songs were very familiar to me, and the lesson was empowering (it was in the theme of the Olympic games: 2 Timothy 4: 6-8).  The people were very friendly and very spiritual, although not as ethnically diverse as what I am used to.  Still, it was a wonderful blessing to have found such a great church in the middle of London!

As I was walking back, I stumbled upon a fancy-looking restaurant called Steak +.  Actually, it did not look that fancy from the outside, but the inside was a different matter.  White table mats, wine glasses, fancy menus; I thought the place was going to be very expensive.  I was able to get an appetizer and a main course for about 10 pounds, though, and the white wine wasn't very pricey either.  The food was SUBLIME.  I had some crisp asparagus with a sweet-tasting sauce and a piece of lamb steak with mushrooms and a grey sauce with a rich texture.  It was, by far, the best meal I've had in London.  The service was excellent, too.  This sweet girl named Anniku was my waitress.  She was from Hungary, so she had a pretty thick accent.  She was a chatterbox!  She talked to me for about 25 minutes straight.  She seemed so excited when I told her I might come back later in the week.  I left her a nice tip and I left the restaurant, full and happy.

I made it back to the hostel and blogged some more in the basement.  There were a number of us down there watching swimming on TV.  We saw the 4 x 100 meter freestyle relay final, which featured the United States.  Phelps and Lochte teamed up to try to earn the US some hardware.  Phelps raced second and gave the US a decent lead over the rest of the pack.  Lochte was the anchor, but he got caught right at the end.  Therefore, the US won the silver medal, with Phelps now 0 for 2 in going for gold.  Bonnie had come down during this time and told us about our agenda for tomorrow.  We would be volunteering in the Olympic Reunion Center with impoverished children in London, AND we would be treated to a fancy banquet afterwards.  Unfortunately for the guys, that meant going out to Oxford Circus tomorrow to buy dress clothes.  I also learned that some people in the group were thinking about visiting Oxford University on Tuesday.  I thought it would be an amazing (and pretty inexpensive) opportunity, so I committed to going along.

Following all of this, I headed up to the room, finished my personal bible study (i.e. the purple book), and finished Exodus in the bible before going to sleep.  Another busy day awaited tomorrow morning

I slept EXTREMELY well compared to the night before.  I had managed to make the bed completely beforehand, and I felt so much cooler and more peaceful than the night before.  I guess my inner clock just needed time to sync up to London time (which, for those of you that are wondering, is 5 hours ahead of EST).

Anyway, I got up around 9 a.m., got breakfast, and then dressed for the day ahead.

What, you ask, was the plan for this day?

One word: WIMBLEDON!!!

Yes, from the moment I somehow managed to purchase this ticket, I knew that this would simply be a magical day.  I had a reservation to sit at Centre Court in Wimbledon, the mecca of all tennis.  Who knows who I would get to see play?  I could see Andy Murray, Great Britain's proud son who fell just short of being the first Brit to win Wimbledon since the 1930s.  I could see Novak Djokovic, a powerful Serbian player who had perhaps the most dominant year of any athlete in any sport in 2011, winning 3 grand slam titles.  I could see Roger Federer, my favorite player of all time and perhaps the greatest player of all time, winner of 7 Wimbledon championships.  Heck, I could even see some of the world's best female players, including Maria Sharapova from Russia and Serena Williams from the United States.  I just could not wait to get there and experience Wimbledon in all of its raw glory.

I got my travel pass and my ticket and made my way back toward the metro station.  I asked one of the Olympic volunteers about where to go in order to find this slice of tennis heaven.  I boarded the Victoria line to Victoria station, then had to spelunk around the tunnels until I found the District line trains hidden away from me.  I boarded one and, with the help of a young NBC intern from Chicago, was able to disembark at the correct stop.  She asked me who I was seeing, and I told her that I was not sure.  I told her that my ticket was good from noon to 8 p.m. at Centre Court.  She then responded by saying that I would probably see Roger Federer play.

OH...MY...GOSH!!!!  To see the greatest tennis player to ever live in person would be an unfathomable blessing.  I began to wonder who else would be in today's lineup.

Wimbledon was a PARADISE.  It was a tiny little town on the outskirts of London, filled with cute little restaurants, AMAZING sporting good shops with top-of-the-line tennis apparel, and even plenty of golf courses.  It was almost like a super-sized country club.  After walking for about 15 minutes, I began to approach the park.  It looked just like it had on television for all the years I have watched Wimbledon.  I could hardly wait to get inside and take my seat.  I had to wait, though, because the gate I stood in line for was INCREDIBLY slow.  Volunteers kept redirecting people passing by to go to gates 9 and 10 because they had multiple lanes and were going at a much quicker pace.  I tried to be patient and wait because it looked like I was almost through.  After another 15 minutes of waiting, however, I gave in and decided to head over to gate 9.  Thankfully, it was the right choice.  I was through the line and through security in no time flat.

I explored the interior of the park a little bit, took lots of pictures, and grabbed a bite to eat before heading into Centre Court.  All around me, there were tennis matches going on: some singles, some doubles, some male, some female, and with just about every player imaginable.  There were even some cool Wimbledon shops filled with Olympic apparel and big tennis balls used to receive players autographs.  It was seriously as if I had died and went to tennis heaven.  Little did I know how amazing it was about to get.

On my way to Centre Court, I had heard murmurs from all around me that I would also get to see Serena Williams play.

Could this day get any better???

Anyway, I went inside Centre court and took my seat in the world's finest tennis facility.  I witnessed the entire second set of a match between a highly ranked Czech player named Tomas Berdych and Steve Darcis from Belgium.  Surprisingly, Darcis pulled the upset over Berdych, 6-4 6-4.  Berdych, who had qualified for the Wimbledon final in 2010, payed a very uneven, inconsistent match, and was bounced in the first round.  Before I even had time to stretch, they brought in the next two competitors.  One of them was indeed Serena Williams, and the other was former World #1 Jelena Jankovic from Serbia.  I thought to myself, "This match could be a classic!"

Boy, was I wrong.

Serena took it to Jankovic, who must be past her prime as a player.  She won 6-3 6-1 thanks to a dominant serve and some powerful shots.  I felt so much pride rooting for my fellow American.  I also found out later that Michelle Obama attended the match in support of Serena.  I wish I had known that!  Oh well.

Because the match ended earlier than expected, I decided to walk out, stretch my legs, and check out the Wimbledon shop.  Not even ten minutes after I left, however, I could already hear clapping from inside the stadium.  I frantically ran back to my seat, where I would see my boy Roger Federer in action.  Federer, the 17-time grand slam champion, played Colombia's Alejandro Falla.  I had remembered that back in 2010, Federer played Falla in the first round, and Falla took him to five sets.  Federer struggled against Falla early, missing a lot of makeable shots and throwing away a lot of break chances.  Federer managed to get a huge break to go up 5-3, though, and managed to win the first set 6-3.  In the second set, despite being dominated by Falla's serve early, Federer broke Falla again to go up 4-3.  Up 5-3, Federer won the first three points on Falla's serve.

3 match points.  This one's in the bag, right?  In fact, I even took a couple extra pictures of Federer because I did not think the match would last much longer.

Boy, was I wrong...again.

Falla won the next five points and managed to hold serve.  Falla then proceeded to win the next three games thanks to some shaky play by Federer.  Before you knew it, a 5-3 Federer advantage with 3 match points turned into a 7-5 set win for Falla.  In the deciding third set, Federer broke Falla in the first game and won the second to go up 2-0.  Falla responded by winning the next three games and breaking Federer's serve for the third time in this match.  For the first time in the match, Federer was truly in danger of losing.

I recall a British family talking about the match behind me.  The father said to the son, "There's something relentless about Roger Federer, isn't there?"

Champions are relentless.  Champions respond in high-pressure situations.

Federer responded.  Federer managed to hold serve his next game and then broke Falla twice en route to a 6-3 5-7 6-3 victory.  Falla had given it all he had, but came up just short.  Still, the lefty Colombian had earned Federer's respect and had essentially cemented himself as a thorn in Federer's side.

I took a couple of last-minute pictures as Federer and Falla embraced in the center of the court and as Federer waved to the crowd.  The crowd was fascinating the whole time.  They were very quiet for the most part, with lots of "oohs" and "aahs" during points and some big cheers after crucial or tightly contested points.  Following this match, former world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki was supposed to play a match.  However, I decided that I had just about had my fill at that point, so I started to leave the park.  Along the way, I made a quick dessert stop for some strawberries and cream.  Yum yum yum...Berries and Cream, BERRIES AND CREAM, I'm just a little lad that loves BERRIESSSSSS AND CREEEEEEEAAAAMM!!!!!!!

...sorry about that...

Anyway, I made my way out of Wimbledon and back toward the station.  I boarded the District Line and rode it all the way back to Victoria station, where I transferred back to the Victoria Line to get to King's Cross.  I came to the conclusion along the way that the Victoria trains were much smoother and less flawed than the District trains, which would start and stop every so often and had flickering lights.  I returned to the hostel eager to share the news of my terrific day to everyone.  I wrote about half a blog and then went out to find some food when I ran into Chris, who was just completing a workout.  He told me that Allie and Katie wanted to grab a bite once they got back, so I decided to wait.

Unfortunately, the whole group of us that went got so sidetracked that it wasn't until about 9 or so that we received our meal: vintage fish and chips from Great Britain.  After eating, I shared with some of the people about my day's experiences at Wimbledon, still unable to wipe the smile off my face.  Chris told me about a men's cycling race that came right down to the very end and sounded very exciting.  In the meantime, we watched the 400 individual medley gold medal race in swimming, the first of two races between American powers Ryan Lochte and Michael Phelps.  Apparently, Phelps had just barely qualified for the final earlier in the day, so we all wondered if he was in trouble in this race.

He was.

Lochte DOMINATED the field, almost breaking Phelps' world record in the process.  I could tell Phelps was in trouble after trailing Lochte at the end of the butterfly lap.  Phelps struggled through the middle part of the race and ended up finishing in 4th place.  That was the first time since Phelps' first Olympic race in Sydney 2000 that he failed to medal.

After watching more swimming and doing more blogging, I decided to sneak a run in late.  I had not been eating very healthily to that point, and I did not want to run the next day because Sunday is the sabbath, a day of rest.  I took a huge risk in going outside in a big city in the dark, but God was with me every step of the way.  He guided me toward the busier parts of the city, away from the shady, unoccupied sections, and I was able to remain safe throughout.  After my experience, I promptly decided that I would never do anything like this again.  I showered, did some reading, and then went to bed, extremely blessed by experiences that day.  I couldn't believe there was still

07/27/2012

I had survived my first night in the UK.

Barely...

I had a very rough night of sleeping.  I thought it would be easy, granted how little sleep I received the night before.  I was completely wrong.  First off, I had not made my bed correctly, I suppose.  I spent all night using the mattress cover as the cover I slept with.  I also had half of my luggage at the foot of my bed, which was very annoying.  Second, it was HOT in the room.  The only air we got came from outside, and it was pretty warm from the sunny day we had yesterday.  I woke up in the middle of the night yearning for some water.  I slipped on some socks and bought a bottle at the vending machine in the lobby.  Much to my dismay, however, the water was carbonated.  In the UK, water is normal if it is called natural spring water or still water.  If it has the title of natural mineral water, it is carbonated.  Defeated, I took the water back to the room with me and continued my restless night.  Lastly, one of the students in the room was snoring EXTREMELY loudly during random parts of the night.  One of the other students tapped his foot to make him stop, but he continued eventually.

Without a watch or a working cell phone, I had to rely on others to get the correct time.  I woke up to see some people going outside to run.  Chris told me that it was almost seven in the morning (two in the morning EST).  Disappointed, I tried to get back to sleep, but as I stretched my legs out, I got a Charley Horse.  God was clearly telling me that it was time to get up.

Still feeling dizzy, I donned my new Team USA jacket and went outside to take a brief stroll through the city.  The morning air woke me up a bit.  I returned and went downstairs to check out the free continental breakfast they were serving.  Cereal, milk, and orange juice: this made me feel more at home.  I changed out of my pajamas after breakfast and prepared to embark on another journey with the group.  This time, our goal was to find the place where they contested archery to get a glimpse of the preliminary heats.

Everybody except Kevin, who was staying with one of his friends, and Laura, who was not feeling well, came along on this trip.  Bonnie bought us all oyster travel passes to use at the metro for the entire day.  We made it to our metro destination, and after a little bit of walking, we found the place where they were supposed to contest archery.  However, we had learned that although the event was listed as "non-ticketed," this did not mean that it was free.  Instead, it meant that it was in no way open to the public.  I would find out later on the BBC News that this was a big problem for a lot of people who were interested in seeing what they though would be a free Olympic event.

Anyway, after this misfired attempt, our next destination was the Will Call Center for Cosport, the website where I purchased all of my event tickets.  The line was predictably long, but according to Kevin, who had been in Europe for a couple of months prior to this trip, the line used to be much longer (about 7 hours of waiting or so).  The majority of the group joined the line and waited for their tickets, while those who already had tickets, like myself, decided to go look around at a shopping plaza across the street.

After splitting up, we noticed that it was starting to rain.  Two days in, I was experiencing my first shower in London.  Quite the milestone moment, huh?  Anyway, we made our way to the plaza, where there were lots of indoor and outdoor shopping areas.  I went into a cool-looking sporting goods store and looked around.  Eventually, I found a draw-string gym bag with the London Olympics logo on it and decided to buy it because my UNC bag was on its last legs.  Brenda and Katie Tiell decided to head back to the hostel, leaving me, James, Colleen, and Chris to explore on our own.  After a little bit of shopping, we found another metro station and decided to go back to King's Cross for a bit.  At the station, Chris had to leave us to go meet up with a friend of his, who was also in the UK.  James, Colleen, and I decided to find Platform 9 3/4 and get our pictures taken.  We initially thought that we had to purchase a train pass to go find it, but one of the officials turned my head toward the Platform, which stood just outside the actual train platforms.  Delighted, we all stood in line and and waited to get our hands on the grocery cart, which was halfway inside the wall.  After getting our pictures, we decided it was time to find something to eat.

We found a cool-looking pub next to the station and decided to eat there.  I had ordered some scampi and tempura vegetables.  The scampi was fried, which I kind of expected, but the vegetables were also fried.  I went up to the bar and asked if I could just have some simple vegetables because fried vegetables defeats the purpose of vegetables.  They managed to give me a plate filled with green beans, peas, and carrots.  As my fraternity brother Alex would say, "So derishus!!!"

Before we headed back to the hostel, James, Colleen, and I decided to check out the library, which was located right next to the King's Cross station.  I would say that it was a pretty big library, but compared to the Davis Library at UNC, it was nothing special (I'm so spoiled).  They had a neat exhibit right inside that listed some Olympic history and included some priceless artifacts from London's last two Olympic festivals in 1908 and 1948.  After taking lots of pictures and finding out that they did not offer free Wifi, we finally made it back to the hostel.

Leslie, my bunkmate, told Darci, Laura, and myself about a fancy-looking club that she managed to get free passes to.  I was intrigued and I thought about going there to watch the opening ceremonies later that night.  In the meantime, I put on some athletic shorts, laced up my running shoes, and blazed through the city of London during a busy Friday afternoon.  I don't know what it is, but for some reason, I really like running in the city.  Weaving through people is a lot of fun, and there's so much you can see in just 30 minutes of running.  I also found a cute little park about five minutes away from our hostel, where I did some pushups, situps, and leg exercises.  The park even had a basketball court!  Definitely going to visit it later.

After my workout, I returned to the hostel, showered, and took my laptop downstairs.  Using my new adapter, I plugged in and proceeded to write my first blog entry, all while watching a very depressing episode of Fresh Prince (Carlton had a gun?!?!?).  After finishing, I noticed that it was almost six.  Leslie had said that she wanted to meet up with us at seven to go to that club.  So, after laying in bed for a bit, I proceeded to change into some nicer clothing and wait for some others to go along.  Laura, Chris, Darci, and I all waited for a bit to see if Leslie would show, but she never did.  Therefore, we decided to look for her at the club.

We found the place, which stood out quite nicely.  Laura, who had already received a pass from Leslie, decided to go in and look for her.  She was nowhere to be found.  Laura and Chris decided to head back to the hostel and see if she was there one last time.  In the meantime, Darci found out that entry to the club would cost 20 pounds otherwise.  We caught up to the other two and said that if Leslie was not at the hostel, we would go somewhere else.

She wasn't there.  Darci was visibly upset, and the rest of us were a little worried about her (we would later find her sleeping in her bed once we returned, though).

In the meantime, we had learned of a pub called the Irish Olympic House, which cost just 10 pounds to get into.  We managed to get inside and find a corner on the second floor where we camped out to watch the ceremonies.  We all ordered drinks; I had a lighter beer called Estrella, which was very flavorful.  I also ordered an Irish club sandwich, which was cool because it required you to construct it by yourself (it was also pretty messy).  During this time, the ceremonies had begun.  They had artistically depicted the rich history of the United Kingdom, from the industrial age to the rock-and-roll era in the 1960s.  The dancers and the visual effects were all spectacular.  My favorite part of the ceremonies was when they had an orchestra playing the Chariots of Fire theme.  English actor Rowan Atkinson was in charge of playing a couple of different notes on the keyboard, and he managed to add some of his silly, Mr. Bean humor into the mix.  The ceremony featured some of the UK's most famous people, including English soccer player David Beckham, actor Daniel Craig, and various athletes such as former distance runner Sebastian Coe.  The pub cheered the loudest when the Queen appeared on the screen.

Following this elaborate display, all of the athletes from each country walked through the stadium with their fellow countrymen and women.  They started with Greece because according to Chris, the ceremonies must always start with Greece (unless Greece happens to be the host country).  Afterwards, it went in alphabetical order.  Chris, Laura, and I started to lay back while watching this, and Chris and Laura had fallen asleep briefly.  We later learned that sleeping was prohibited in the pub (let that be a lesson for all of you haha).  Anyway, after what seemed like a lifetime of waiting, we all cheered when the United States appeared on the screen.  I could definitely hear a smattering of boos from people in the pub, though.  Great Britain was the last to come through, which brought everyone to their feet.  After all the flags were placed, the torch was carried into the stadium and passed on to a group of rising British athletes.  After circling the stadium, they lit these strange-looking spires in the middle of the stadium, which managed to catch the others on fire.  Eventually, the spires rose into the air and clustered to form what looked like a giant Olympic torch.  Magnificent!!!

We all decided to leave at this point, tired and sweating from being in the pub.  As we were leaving, the ceremonies ended (fittingly) with Sir Paul McCartney singing Hey Jude.  We went outside and were blasted with fresh air.  It was actually in the 50s or so that night (definitely refreshing considering how hot it has been in NC this summer).  Anyway, we made it back to the hostel, where we all fell asleep after another awesome day in the UK.

I awoke from my very brief sleep to a stewardess that was passing out breakfast meals.  The sandwich was extremely dry and the nature valley bar almost broke my jaw, but other than that, it was a good breakfast (lol airline food).  I got out of my seat and brushed my teeth in the lavatory again, and when I returned to my seat, the captain announced that we were less than an hour away from London.  Excited, I watched the tv screen and saw the map of our travels.  The closer the little plane icon inched toward our destination, the more awake and more thrilled I became.

Finally, we landed at the London Heathrow airport.  The marathon flight was (fittingly) capped off with what seemed like a lifetime of waiting to exit the aircraft.  After disembarking, our group reunited, emotionally cheery yet physically exhausted.  We made it through customs rather easily (the group had to wait on me because I had forgotten to take my completed landing card with me) and then received our bags pretty quickly at the claim.  We waited for about ten minutes for two individual travelers, Frankie Lazarra and Derek Sanderson from North Central College in Illinois, but they never showed up.  Without cell phone service to reach them, we decided to take off for the hostel and meet them there.

We made our way down to the underground metro system.  I have been fascinated with metro systems ever since my trip to Washington, D.C. in 1998.  I looked forward to absorbing the data associated with London's system of railways (I know, I'm weird...).  The trip made me regret not filling up my water bottle while in the airport because we had to go through about a million stops before arriving at our stop.  Eventually, we made it to King's Cross, a famous train/metro station in London where a boy named Harry Potter found the train to Hogwarts through a magical portal called Platform 9 3/4.  We ignored the attraction for now and instead went about locating our hostel.  After receiving some directions from the locals, we stumbled upon the Clink 261 hostel on Greys Inn Road, right smack dab in the middle of the UK's capital city.

We went inside and met up with the rest of the group.  Derek and Frankie managed to make it to the hostel, as we had hoped, and we also got to meet the group that traveled from Newark, New Jersey.  This group included Laura Jack from Texas; Leslie Greer from Oregon State University; Darci Santella from New Jersey; Phil Hatlem, a professor from a school in Florida; and Kevin Baron, James Walton, and Zack Skove from the University of Oregon.  We got our key cards and moved into our room, an extremely small room filled with 20 bunk beds.

If we aren't close now, we're all gonna be very close by the end of the trip...

After unloading and receiving an enormous water bottle courtesy of Laura, I traveled the streets of central London with the group, looking for a bite to eat.  After about a half hour of walking, we got directions that steered us to a nice-looking pub called Lucas Arms Inn, which was less than a block away from our hostel (facepalm).  Anyway, the important thing is that we made it, and we enjoyed some great food and drink to boot.  Lacking carbs, I chose to order the lasagna and my table decided to share the garlic bread appetizer, all of which I downed with an ice-cold Guinness.  In pubs, you're supposed to go to the bar and order your food and drink; they do not wait on you like they do in America.  After our meal, Bonnie, who paid for the meal, decided that it would be fun to buy us all a couple rounds of shots.  How many teachers/professors have you known to do that for their students?  We got a couple of pics with our glasses, then took the shots, which all tasted like various flavors of Listerine.

After lunch, we made a brief stop at the hostel to drop off/pick up anything we needed.  It felt wonderful to no longer carry our heavy luggage everywhere.  Then, we headed back to the King's Cross station to board the metro once again.  Our destination: Hyde Park, the location of the official Olympic Torch Relay Concert.  After a considerably shorter ride, we disembarked and found ourselves within the confines of a huge park, perhaps London's equivalent to Central Park in New York.  It was a beautiful sunny day, and we took lots of great pictures and simply absorbed the scenery along the way.  We made it to the concert grounds as an entire group, but from there, we split up and spent our time in smaller groups.  I was in a group of four along with Chris, Brenda, and Phil.

The concert ground was sort of like a small county fair.  There were food stands surrounding the perimeter, alongside other small attractions.  There was a huge crowd of people that clustered near the stage.  They could barely be heard from near the entrance, but they were pretty audible as you got closer.  The music was interesting; it was a mix of 90's grunge-esque music with new-milennium popular songs (some in America, some in Great Britain).  I did not recognize any of the artists that performed, although I have heard some of the songs before.  All in all, I found the music to be very mediocre.

My group of four walked the perimeter of the park to see the attractions and the food stands (my feet were starting to ache by this point).  We decided to stand in line at this tent, where people were getting their pictures taken with an unlit Olympic torch (definitely a keeper).  Afterward, I decided to partake in an English delicacy: chicken and chips.  This was definitely one of the greasiest meals I have ever ingested.  Anyway, by this point, we were all starting to fade.  I located an open spot for us in the crowd to stand and watch as the Olympic torch made its way to the stage.  The guy carrying the torch arrived to a huge ovation by the crowd and to the sound of the Chariots of Fire theme playing.  The atmosphere was electric!!!  Once the torch was lit, the mayor of London, Boris Johnson, took the microphone and gave a passionate speech to the people.  He said that Mitt Romney stated that he did not think London was ready to host the games, but that the city was ready to prove him wrong.  He got the crowd even more riled up when he started talking about the other nations that Great Britain was going to beat, like France, Italy, Spain, and others (no mention of the United States...he knows, he knows).  It was cool to see how popular the mayor was among London's citizens.  After this speech, my group had unanimously decided that it was time to head back and rest.

We took the long walk and ride back to King's Cross, where we managed to find the most efficient way of arriving at the hostel.  I grabbed my toiletries and managed to locate the shower on the second floor.  The floor was extremely dirty, which made me regret not bringing shower shoes.  After washing up, I came back to the room, brushed my teeth, and finally got into bed to sleep.  After a terrific day, it was time to make up for lost sleep.

Unfortunately, this would have to come on another night

I woke up on the morning of Wednesday, July 25, with the knowledge that this would be the last time for at least a couple of days that I would get a full night's rest.  I grabbed some breakfast and proceeded to make my last-minute preparations for the trip.  I showered and packed all of my toiletries.  I sorted back and forth between what I wanted to carry on the plane with me and what I wanted to keep in my suitcases.  Finally, before leaving, I managed to (finally) activate my international student identity card (after having to fax and e-mail pictures of my driver's license and social security card twice in a week).  I got in the car and took one last look at Hermitage as my Aunt Kim drove me to Sheetz to meet up with my ride.

We arrived around 11:05.  Ten minutes later, my ride, a rec director and tennis coach from Clarion University named Lori Sabatose, arrived and picked me up.  After loading my luggage in her green Subaru, I hugged my Aunt and said goodbye, thanking her for all she had done for me the past few days.  That's why she's my favorite Aunt Kim!  We drove off, and I knew that that would be the last time in almost two weeks that I would see a family member or former friend.

Lori and drove off toward Tiffin, Ohio, where we were to meet up with half the group at Tiffin University.  We talked pretty much the whole time, getting to know each other and discussing what we were planning to see and do in London.  The ride was pretty smooth, save for some road construction on I-80 and a stop sign that appeared pretty much out of nowhere and scared the crap out of both of us.  Shaken, Lori drove slowly the rest of the way to Tiffin.

Tiffin was a cute, old-fashioned town that looked stuck in the past.  Lori and I arrived at the student union early, so we decided to make a quick stop at the new Rec Center.  It was by far the newest-looking building on this tiny campus, a campus that reminded me a lot of my dad's alma mater, Westminster College in New Wilmington, PA.  After exploring, we came back to the student union, where we explored a little bit and ran into Dr. Bonnie Tiell, the coordinator for our trip.  I tried shaking her hand and calling her Dr. Tiell, but she pushed it away, hugged me, and said, "Call me Bonnie!"

We went outside to find a bus called the "Dragon Wagon" (they are the Tiffin Dragons) waiting for us.  We met up with a few members of the group, including Chris Wolcott, Allie Quast, and Beth Clark from Tiffin University; Professor Brenda Meese from Worcester College; and Bonnie's daughter, Katie Tiell.  After introductions, we loaded up the wagon with our luggage, got a brief safety tutorial from the driver, and drove through the Ohio plains to get to perhaps the world's smallest airport in Toledo.

The drive was smooth and it gave us all an opportunity to get to know each other more.  After arriving, we unloaded the bus and made out way toward the airline check-in.  Here, we met up with three more students: Katie Scheff from Tiffin University, Rocky Sites from near South Bend, Indiana, and Colleen Oakes from the Chicago area in Illinois.  Colleen was having a major issue getting her boarding pass because someone had mistakenly left out an L in her first name (can imagine how frustrating that would be...).  She managed to get a pass to Chicago, and we made our way through security toward our gate.  After about 45 minutes of waiting, we boarded the plane (one of the smallest I have ever been a passenger in) and we made our way to Chicago.

The flight lasted just 45 minutes, but it was one of the most unique and beautiful flights I have ever been on.  The scenery was spectacular.  We flew over the plains of the midwest, which were arranged like plaid.  Then we flew over Lake Michigan, which looked every bit as majestic as a Great Lake should.  Finally, almost out of nowhere, we approached land and flew right past Chicago.  I had never been to the Windy City before, but from a distance, it looked exactly as I had always pictured it would.  We made a smooth landing, but the place had to wait on other planes before it could park at our exit gate.

The Chicago OHare airport was basically the exact opposite of the Toledo airport.  It was enormous & extremely chaotic.  We had to go through security again while poor Colleen had to make sure her luggage would go through to London Heathrow.  While standing in line for security, there was a McDonalds right next to us that taunted us with its delicious aromas.  Unfortunately, our strategy of waiting to get food after going through security backfired because there were no restaurants past the security gates.  Chris and I were forced to load up on snack food to eat on the plane.

We boarded the plane, which was about three times the size of our previous plane.  We were each given plastic packages with blankets, pillows, and headphones for the trip there.  I sat down and braced myself for what I knew was going to be a sleepless night...

After the plane took off, I decided to complete the next part of my personal bible study while watching Chariots of Fire, a fitting movie to watch prior to the games.  Early on, the plane experienced a ton of turbulence, but eventually, things evened out.  During the film, we were served a late meal.  I chose the chicken curry, which just about burned a hole in my mouth and looked like something somebody scraped off the side of the road.  I guess what they say about airline food is true.

After the film, I got up, stretched out, brushed my teeth in the lavatory, and returned to my seat to attempt to sleep.  I got about an hour of sleep until the morning crept up on us from out of the blue.

Less than two hours to London!!!

About 26 hours from now, I will be departing Toledo and on my way to the capital of the United Kingdom.

I'M

SO

EXCITED!!!!!!!!

Words cannot describe how pumped up I am to embark on this trip.  However. this excitement also translates to nervousness on many levels.  There is so much for me to remember and keep track of while I am overseas.  The only people I can rely on of the millions of people in the city are those that are going on this trip with me.  I have to carry a degree of cynicism that is largely unfamiliar to me in order to prevent being taken advantage of or robbed by thieves lying in wait.  I have to be on my own at times, too, which can be very scary in a country that I have never been to before.

All in all, I am not too worried, though, because I know that the Lord is on my side!!!  If He wasn't, I probably wouldn't have survived my last trip to Europe...

As I was saying, there is sooooo much to be excited about!!!  I cannot wait to explore one of the biggest, most recognized cities in the entire world.  There are a lot of different places to see and things to do in the city of London.  I will be going to six different Olympic events while I am there (now including archery).  My tickets and travel passes have all been safely delivered to me, which is good considering how long the lines have been in London for picking up CoSport tickets.  I have my passport, international student identity card (which still needs activated; it has been such a frustrating process), credit card, lots of cash, a global cell phone sent to me by Verizon (number coming soon), my laptop, a new converter for the outlets there, lots of nice clothes, an umbrella (gonna be a rainy Olympics), lots of travel-size toiletries, and a ton of other essentials.  In addition to events, I might go see some shows, including Shakespeare.  I might go on a bus tour or a museum tour.  As mentioned before, I will jump at every and any opportunity in my free time to maximize my experience in the UK.

I am also very excited about meeting and connecting with both the people that go on this trip and the people that will be at the Olympic Reunion Center.  I have been talking to and discussing things already with students and professors going on this trip, and I cannot wait to finally meet them in person!  I am also thrilled about the opportunity to serve as a mentor for young children during my time here in England.  I am very passionate about sports and the ideals created by the Olympic Movement, and I will do everything in my power to share these ideals with these children and give them a good foundation by which to live their lives.

The one thing that I am dreading about this trip is the plane ride to London.  I cannot sleep on planes, so the all-night ride tomorrow night is going to wreck me.  I just hope that I will have enough energy to enjoy myself at the Torch Relay concert and all of the other festivities on Thursday.

Thr, July 26 10:00 AM Group 1 Arrives London Heathrow – Picadilly blue line to Cockfosters to Kings Cross
  10:15 AM Group 2 Arrives London Heathrow – Same Picadilly to Cockfosters to Kings Cross
 
12:15 PM Approximate: Walk NE on Euston Rd/A501 – Right on Grays Inn Road to Clink 261
  Check Luggage (Rooms not Available until 15:00) – Meet K Baron & F Dove-Edwin
 
13:00 PM Late Lunch – Casa Mamma’s Italian Restaurant (339 Grays Inn Rd)
 
14:30 PM Hyde Park for CocaCola Torch Relay Concert Featuring “The Wanted” (45 min walk)
  Walk by Buckingham Palace, etc.
 
TBD  Walk to Clink 261 (45 Min)
 
 
Fri, July 27 8:15 AM Walk to Lords Cricket Grounds (45 Min)
 
9:00 AM Men’s Preliminary Individual Ranking Archery  
 
  10:30 AM Walk to CoSport (15-20 in) and pick up Olympic tickets
 
  11:30 AM Public Transport  
 
  TBD  Enjoy Afternoon/Evening at Stratford City and Westfield near Olympic Stadium  
 
  TBD  Return to Clink 261 – Public Transport
 
 
Sat, July 28 TBD  On Your Own!
Sun, July 29 TBD  On Your Own!
 
 
Mon, July 30 TBD  Day with the Olympians (Olympic Reunion Center) – Public Transport
 
 
Tues, July 31-Sun Aug 5 On Your Own

^ THIS is my current travel itinerary.  Pretty bare bones, right?  As you can see, there are quite a few "On Your Own" days planned for this trip.  These words are music to my ears!

I really like the way the itinerary is set up because there is a lot of planned activity early on, while we are still getting our feet wet in London.  We will get a chance to see a Torch Relay concert, check into our hostel (I know already that I am going to be DEAD tired that first day.  Thank you, jet lag and inability to sleep on airplanes!), attend an archery event, pick up our event tickets, and get a chance to take in the sights and sounds of the areas surrounding the Olympic Stadium.

On July 30, we will also get a rare opportunity to volunteer at an Olympic Reunion Center.  Here, we will get a chance to meet current and former Olympians, and we will also get the chance to mentor impoverished children living in London about the values of Olympism.  Olympism is defined as "a philosophy of life, exalting and combining in a balanced whole the qualities of body, will and mind. Blending sport with culture and education,  Olympism seeks to create a way of life based on the joy of effort, the educational value of good example, social responsibility and respect for universal fundamental ethical principles."  We will have the incredible opportunity to change the lives (and hopefully the fortunes) of these young people, and we are all extremely blessed to have been given this chance.

After all of this, well, I'll be making up much of my journey as I go along.  I will play much of this trip by ear, and I wish not to miss out on a single opportunity (as long as I have the finances, of course).

There are a couple of things that I am currently in the process of planning with other people.  I have managed to purchase five different event tickets for the Olympic Games.  I have tickets to see Tennis on Saturday, July 28, and Wednesday, August 1.  However, a nice woman named Laura Jack, who just graduated from the University of Texas at Arlington, has a ticket to see Les Miserables on July 28, and she offered myself and others in the group to go along with her.  I am trying to see if I can sell my first tennis ticket and purchase a ticket for the matinee because I have never seen Les Mis (plus, this ticket is a lot less expensive than tennis).  I also have a ticket to see beach volleyball on Sunday, July 29, although I might choose to sell that one because I know that there are some on this trip who have no tickets to anything.  Finally, I have a ticket to see Basketball on Thusday, August 2, and a ticket to see Ping Pong on Saturday, August 4.

I am going to be in England for two Sundays, so I plan on attending church on both of those Sundays.  Another nice woman named Leslie Greer, a rising senior at Oregon State Unversity, alerted me of a nearby Catholic church that she wishes to go to.  It will be interesting to see a big-time Catholic mass in the city of London.  Leslie and others in the group of also expressed their concerns to stay fit throughout this trip.  I hope to do lots of running and perhaps find a nice gym within the city to keep my stamina up.  I also plan on doing lots of walking during this trip, which will continue to help me stay in shape.

So much to do.  So much to see.  So little time to do it all

When I was much younger, one of my little sister's catchphrases was, "What are you trying to accomplish?"  In all honesty, this is the very first question I ask myself whenever I engage myself in any sort of activity.  Very rarely do I ever do anything for no particular reason.  God gave me so many seconds to be here on this Earth, and I plan on filling all of them with purpose and meaning.

Without further ado, here are my Top 5 goals (in no particular order) that I plan to work toward achieving while in London:

1. Network with students, professors, and other people.

- Many of my college professors have lectured the importance of networking while in college.  These lectures hold a lot of merit because there is only so much that can be inferred from college transcripts.  A piece of paper should never define a person.  However, human relationships can open the door to so many things in this world.  Students and professors from all over the United States will be going on this trip with me, and just about all of them are in a similar field of study as myself.  I also expect to meet a ton of other people (perhaps even more students and professors) while in London.  The opportunity to network on this trip is simply too great to pass up.  The connections I will make on this trip could potentially lead to jobs, future connections, future educational opportunities, and much, much more.

2. Absorb the culture of the Olympic Games.

- One of my favorite things to do while in high school was researching different colleges and universities that I could go to.  I enjoyed seeing pictures, reading about what each institution was strongest in, and even watching the university's different sports teams.  However, none of this compared to actually going to visit the institution first-hand.  My dad and I have made some of our best memories by going on trips to visit different colleges and universities.  I expect the Olympics to follow a similar pattern.  As much as I love watching the intense events, the dazzling ceremonies and the dedicated fans, I know in my heart of hearts that the Games are going to be on a completely different level in person.  I cannot wait to test this theory.

3. Explore England

- My ethnicity is entirely Western European.  I am part English, part Welsh, part Irish, and part German.  To this point, I have never been to any of these countries.  My visit to the United Kingdom will help break this streak, as well as mark down another country that I have visited in my lifetime.  One of my life goals is to visit and explore as much of the world as humanly possible, and this trip is going to be another step toward accomplishing this feat.

4. NOT LOSE ANYTHING!!!

- For those of you who do not know me that well, I have a terrible track record of losing things.  I have battled Attention Deficit Disorder throughout my entire life, and although I have gotten much better at handling it, it still rears its ugly head every now and then.  I have to be on constant alert around all these people in London, because some of them may try to trick me and steal my most important possessions.  When I went to Europe five years ago, I had almost accomplished this feat.  However, two days before we departed for the States, I let my guard down in an internet cafe and had my backpack stolen.  Unfortunately, I happened to be carrying my friend's digital camera in that bag, which I still feel terrible about to this day.  Thankfully, though, I did not lose anything of greater importance, such a wallet or a passport.  I refuse to lose ANYTHING this time around, and with the help of some friends, I think that this can be accomplished.

5. Rely on God

- I am a person who cherishes routine.  I love eating the same meals, exercising at the same time of the day, keeping the same sleeping schedule, and many other weird habits.  I also take comfort in knowing that I am near close friends and family.  On this trip, I will not have this luxury.  The people I will be spending most of my time with are people that I have never met.  There will be times on this trip that I will be all by myself in an enormous city filled with millions of people.  There are times when food, exercise, and even sleep are going to be afterthoughts.  Furthermore, there is no telling what can happen in a colossal metropolis filled with millions of people from hundreds of different countries.  This is the perfect opportunity for me to take my faith to a new level and to rely on God's might.  As it says in Psalm 23:4, "Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me..."  The Lord is my shepherd, and I will do everything and anything that He tells me to do, even in moments of hopelessness.  Through God, anything is possible!

Sometimes, it pays to be unemployed in the summer...

Despite not having a job, I have managed to keep incredibly busy this summer.  I spent a full week cleaning up and patrolling my former workplace, Craige Residence Hall, all while saying goodbye to my dear housing staff.  For five weeks, I was enrolled in two summer classes at UNC while living with one of my fraternity brothers in a dorm.  I have driven back and forth between Chapel Hill and Hickory to visit and stay with my mother and my father, visiting other family members along the way.  I have volunteered to work with children and other people my age at Winshape Camps for Communities at King's Park International Church.  I have regularly attend KPIC Sunday services, growing in my relationship with Lord Jesus Christ and looking for more opportunities to volunteer.  I have returned to my job as an assistant basketball coach with Chapel Hill Parks and Recreation, and we are currently in the heart of the regular season.  I have also returned to my favorite vacation spot in Carolina Beach, NC, with my loving family members.  I have already done so much in a few short months.

I'm just getting started...

This past week, things have settled down for me.  I have used this lull of activity as an opportunity to prepare for my impending trip to London.  I have been on this computer A LOT.  I have been slowly chipping away at the extraordinary amount of assignments that I am required to complete for this Olympic class (this blog included).  I am one page (but still a lot of information) away from completing a cross-cultural paper that compares the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and the 2012 London Olympics.  In addition to homework, I have been creating lists of things that I need to take to London (I REALLY need some USA apparel, or at least some Red, White and Blue).  I am currently waiting to receive a package with my International Student Identity Card inside (still not 100% sure what it does =P).  Once in London, I expect to receive my tickets from CoSport for some amazing Olympic events, including tennis (Wimbledon, baby!!!), basketball, beach volleyball, and ping pong.  Although my plane leaves from Toledo in 13 days, I have to be ready to leave North Carolina by next Thursday.  I am making a few pit stops along the way...

Next Thursday, I will be flying to Orlando with my father to visit the University of Central Florida, my ideal graduate school destination.  I will be there until Sunday, July 22, when I will fly back to Charlotte, but then fly to Pittsburgh, where my (favorite) Aunt Kim will pick me up and take me back to my hometown of Hermitage, PA.  I will be in Hermitage for two full days, visiting friends and family and reliving my past.  Finally, on Wednesday, Lori Sabatose from Clarion University will pick me up and drive me out to Toledo, where we will both fly to Chicago and then London.

Translation: I will be living out of a suitcase for about 20 days or so.

Challenge accepted  

In the Spring of 2011, I made one of the biggest decision of my entire life thus far.  In the midst of a terrible experience with a News Writing class, I had made the decision to change my major from Broadcast Journalism to Exercise and Sport Science.  Instead of covering sports, I wanted to become part of the action even more.  I wanted to coach or even be an athletic director at the high school or college level.  Because I had officially changed my major, I started to receive e-mails via the Exercise and Sport Science listserv from one of the department advisers.  One of the very first e-mails I received came in late August.  It was a sparsely detailed e-mail concerning a trip to the Olympic Games through another school known as Tiffin University.  To me, the rest of the details did not matter at the time.  To have ANY opportunity to go see the Olympics was more than enough for me.  I called and consulted my father about the trip and the expected finances, and we came to an understanding that I could give this a shot and apply.  So, I filled out the application, although in retrospect, I should have probably spent more time on it.  My fall semester in 2011 was one of the busiest I have ever experienced, and I had to blaze through a lot of things in order to get all my tasks done.  I managed to get all the paperwork completed and faxed in time, and all that was left was to wait.  One day, I finally got an e-mail, but it said that I would be an alternate for this trip.  Naturally, I assumed that I would not be going.  However, I got a string of e-mails a few days after gave me all the details of the trip, as well as all the contact information of everyone going on the trip.  The professor did not outright say it to me, but it appeared that I had been upgraded from alternate to participant.  The good Lord had indeed wanted me to go on this trip after all.  I don't know why just yet, but I will figure it out very soon, and I am so thankful and so blessed for this opportunity.  My motivation for applying for this trip may not seem very clear, and in all honesty, it really isn't.  But just think: if you were a rabid sports fan who was given the chance to see and learn all about the Olympics up close and personal, wouldn't you jump on this opportunity?  Plus, although I have been to Europe before (2007; I visited Italy, France, and Spain), I have never visited the UK before.  The chance to go to England was simply too much for me to pass up at the time.

Despite my lack of specific reasons for applying for this trip, the fact that I got accepted shows that God has something in store for me (and maybe for all of you who read this).  I cannot wait to see what that is