Lovely London

My plane took off out of LAX at 6:00pm, January 22nd. The plane was a little late taking off but we had smooth sailing direct from Los Angeles to London. It is currently 2:40pm in California and 10:40pm here. I think I got a total of 4 hours of sleep on the plane ride and am staying up despite the Jet lag to beat it, this is the reason I am writing this post. I arrived in London at 12:15pm (4:15am California time). Very early morning to say the least. It took us about 3 hours to get to our residence with the group. The Tube is crazy! It accelerates at a very fast speed and if you are not holding on to the poll or sitting you might find your face in the floor. We then had to walk about a mile to find our residence for the week. Of course we got turned around and probably walked about 3 miles total. Once we were settled in our rooms we went out and explored a little. Lots of walking despite the massive jet lag. After dinner and an orientation in one of the rooms with Eugene. We went out for Matt's 20th birthday. It was a great way to kick off the semester. It is good to be here and it will definitely be a drastic change.

Little taste of London for you:
1. The cars have the right away, not the pedestrians. (Don't get hit by the cars when you cross the street. They drive fast and don't stop.) Oh! It seems like the traffic lights are only a suggestion. Not many people abide by them. They also drive on the wrong side of the road, on the wrong side of the car.
2. There are lots of words that are different here. Instead of saying:
"exit" they say "way out."
"to rent" is "to let."
"underware" is "pants."
"hungry" is "peckish."

I haven't gotten to experience much of the city but hey, I am here for 8 days. Tomorrow we are going to Westminster Abbey for church and then have the rest of the day free to explore. This will be a life changing trip. I love the people I am with and know I will enjoy seeing the history of Europe.

Best Wishes from London and God Bless,
Victoria

Here is a tip for you

Today I had a dermatology appointment and had a dentist appointment Monday. When getting ready to leave the country for 3+ months, you tend to make many doctor's appointments. Eye doctor, skin doctor, physician, dentist, etc. Let me just say it is not a great idea to have certain appointments when there is a time crunch. Today I had to have 2 biopsies done and won't find out until Monday. I have to go in Wednesday to have stitches removed. Nothing too serious but now I have another appointment to fit into my schedule.

I find it extremely hard to be patient about leaving. I want to go to Europe so bad. I have roughly 8 days until I leave and it is killing me. I want to travel. I am in the process of planning a weekend trip to Ireland with some friends. This is going to be a fantastic semester if I ever get there. I can't help but be anxious. I had some unexpected stress today but on a good note I am leaving in 8 days and I found a very warm winter hat. Isn't it cute? I LOVE IT!

Tip for the day: Do not wait a week before you leave to have any serious doctor's appointments. It will be a huge stress reliever for you.

I forgot to mention. If anyone has questions feel free to comment. I would be happy to answer any questions you might have.

God Bless,
Victoria

20 Day Countdown

Happy New Year to everyone! I cannot believe it is 2010. This year is going to be filled with many blessings. I cannot wait to see how God surprises me this year.

I have 20 days left at home before I leave for Europe. I am feeling the pressure of getting everything done and the excitement continues to build. Wednesday I spend the day with my friend Meg in Orange County who went on the Fall 2009 Euroterm trip. She continued to tell me little details about her trip and what a good experience it was. I can't help but get excited about going. I am realizing what a great experience it is going to be for me. I am looking forward to traveling and learning about other cultures. I still can't get past the fact that I am leaving in 20 days. I just said goodbye to one of my closest friends, Maddie. She is going back to school tomorrow and stopped by to say goodbye. It was so good to see Maddie and her boyfriend, Tim. The goodbyes are going to continue to get worse I'm sure but I am looking forward to getting to know everyone I'm traveling with even more. I am expecting that the 16 of us will become very close by the end of the trip. In my last 20 days, I have quite a bit to do. I was lucky enough to receive a jury duty summons and might need to report sometime this week. Even though I would find it interesting to be on a jury, the timing his horrible. Now I have a week where I can't plan to go anywhere. I have appointments right and left as well as some shopping to do. I need to get electrical converters, start packing, and read a book. I am hoping to fit in a trip to San Diego before I leave. I hope I will be able to come see some friends at PLNU before I leave.

Time is winding down and I can barely contain my excitement. I will be returning to Forest Home to work when I return next summer. 2010 is going to be a fantastic year. Europe then returning to Forest Home followed by my Junior year at PLNU in the fall... sounds like a great year to me. Bring it on 2010!

God Bless,
Victoria