Blogs
The Doc is In
Good Morning World!
Hello my name is Doc Smiley—okay fine. That’s not my real name, but a wonderful nickname given by a friend and one that reminds me to keep smiling through the rainy days in London. Or that’s what I thought I would need it for, except London has been quite bright and sunny. In fact the weather has been much better than anything I’ve seen in New York this summer.
I am currently living in a home in South London, with a wonderful couple and their young son. I have a very nice top floor room that is smartly decorated (the wife is an interior designer). The first time I woke up in this room last week, I thought I had woken up on a photo set for Real Simple or Good Housekeeping. The house is situated in a quiet suburban street and it takes about 40 minutes to get to London. A commute which many of my peers made faces about, but one I don’t mind. I’ve seen more of London this way than many people I imagine. Not to mention after a week now I am using the tube without a map! That’s quite a feat.
Which brings the main point of my intro post—why have I come to London? Well, for one, I’ll be here for a year and thought that London would give me a great opportunity to work, intern, get involved in a community service organization, and it’s a very good distance from any other European city when I decide to travel. Also in London, I am taking classes at an English University, so my chances of meeting nationals and really getting into the culture here is quite high. Of course, I need to start meeting people my own age, as I know lots of older adults with kids!
I guess, this blog will be the place where I could record those challenges. I’ve purposely removed myself from the NYU bubble, and aside from two classes a week and a few day trips, I’m on my own here for the next year. I have an internship with a film and theater production company which brings new challenges each day as well (like how to understand Dutch people on the phone!? I’ve never heard a Dutch accent on the phone, and they’re quite common here!) There’s going to be the hurdle of learning to travel alone, which I’ve always wanted to do, but of course now that I’m here, I can feel my nerves shake just a little.
Well today, I should run. I’m going to take a boat to Greenwich and walk around the Birth Place of Time! I’ll cross my fingers the whole time for something magical to happen, because if there was anywhere in the world that I’d discover Harry Potter was actually all true, it’s gonna be here.
Doc Smiley.
