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 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.
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