Hello!
My name is Emily Kowalske and I’m a politics major spending the spring semester of my junior year at ICLC! My first few days here have been both exciting, stressful, and bewildering. On the day my friends and I touched down across the pond here in London, we were all ready to go straight to the beds in our new apartment. However, because it was only around 8:00 am here, we knew we had to force our eyes to stay open longer than desired and begin settling in. Although I felt like a walking zombie, one of the first things I did was grab a coffee from Pret A Manger and stroll across the iconic Tower Bridge since my flat is only about a 10 minute walk from it. We then had our first orientation over zoom which I could tell a lot of students were not looking forward to because of their jet lag, but it provided a lot of useful information for the beginning of this amazing study abroad journey. We also had an in-person orientation the next day that allowed us all to get to know each other a little better and find out more about this upcoming semester. Though this is a big change, all of the students as well as everyone at ICLC has been so nice and helpful with figuring out these first days in the grand city of London.
As someone who had never travelled out of North America before now, I knew life here would be different, but there were a few unexpected surprises. The first thing I frustratingly learned the hard way was that dryers really aren’t a thing here. Expect your clothes and towels to lose their softness on some drying racks because apparently no country does dryers like the United States. Even though my flat came equipped with a washer-dryer, no matter how long I’ve let my clothes run on the dry settings, they still unfortunately come out damp. Another difficulty that I’ve been facing is shopping. Obviously, since we were limited on what we could put in our luggage, we had to buy many essentials upon arrival. Because there isn’t one big place to go to purchase all of my necessities like Target or Walmart, I’ve had to do some exploring. For toiletries and home supplies like cleaners and paper products, I would recommend Boots or Tesco. I also had good luck shopping at Ikea for things like towels, organizers, and hangers. Coming to London I was also worried about figuring out the Tube system, however it was much easier (and cleaner) than I expected.
This first week ICLC had also planned some fun London-exploring activities that I would recommend to everyone studying here. First there was a very chilly boat tour on the Thames River. The boat took off from the London Eye and our tour guide cracked jokes as he pointed out many important landmarks such as the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben (formally the Elizabeth Tower), the London Bridge, the Tower of London, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and the HMS Belfast, amongst many other astonishing pieces of history. I also went on a walking tour with ICLC Professor Simon Whitehouse around Soho. Not only did I get to learn more about what is in that area, I also learned a lot of history, such as the fact that the area is called Soho not as an abbreviation for South (of) Holborn, but because it was a term used during the time in which that area of London was a hunting ground in the 16th century.
Overall, my first few days here in London have been quite a journey. I’ve already met some interesting people and had unexpected experiences. My general advice for current or future ICLC students navigating their first exposure to London is to take it slow, always be aware of your surroundings, utilize your resources, and trust in your ability to conquer this new adventure. Speaking of which, I would also greatly recommend keeping a journal where you can document this important time in your life. This will help you remember what you’ve done and can be a good way to organize all the flurrying thoughts and feelings that will inevitably arise.
As I have already learned within five days of being here, in this city you really never know what can happen and what’s right around the corner. I can’t wait to see what comes next!