r0semarysays

Halloween in London

Most common costumes seen in London:

1. Joker

2. Zombie Joker

3. Zombie

4. Famous people

5. Zombie versions of famous people

I asked around about what people do on Halloween here and no one seemed to be quite sure. “Some people” trick or treat. Which makes no sense, right? Doesn’t trick-or-treating have to be an all-or-nothing type of ordeal? How depressing would it be if only some of the houses you went to had candy, and some didn’t even know what you were talking about. And what do you do about all the apartment buildings? Call every single flat on the intercom and have them buzz you in? I don’t get it.

Adam and I went to a vampire-themed party. According to the flyer: “No dress code but make an effort. And no slutty witches.” It was at a squat WHICH IS LIKE SO LONDON NAHHMEAN. We didn’t have fangs so I went as a fangbanger, but no one here watches True Blood so they were like………..

Hot mess drag queen

KEBABS!

Prague & Marika’s Visit!

Day 1:

Thursday already! So excited to go to Prague with Marika! I had class till 1 and a 6:25pm flight out of Gatwick so I was racing around a bit trying to turn in an assignment, do laundry, and pack. I had stayed up really late the night before dyeing my hair and stuff so I was pretty sleep-deprived and I could tell I was barely keeping a cold at bay.

It felt really good to travel alone. I felt really independent—and like I was ACTUALLY IN EUROPE for once. London could kind of be any big city, you know? So it was cool to leave. I managed to fit everything into one messenger bag, so I didn’t have to check anything. I had gotten some Czech Crowns the day before. 100 crowns is roughly $5, a conversion that is impossible to remember so I basically just ended up spending money without thinking about how much anything cost. I cut out the Prague sections of my guidebooks so I didn’t have to bring the entire books. Even though this was not my idea I felt really crafty and organized doing it and it was helpful.

I slept the whole flight to Prague thanks to my burgeoning illness, and stepped off the plane around 9:30. The Prague airport was pretty much dead. I walked around trying to figure out the shuttle to the main train station so I could take the tram or metro to my hostel. Somehow I barely missed the last shuttle so I had to figure out the bus system. I went up to the lady at information to see if she could help me but she didn’t really speak English so I was out of luck. I went outside to try to find the bus stop—WOAH IT’S FREEZING!—but I couldn’t. I went back inside to ponder my options. I knew I would probably need some coins, so I went to McDonald’s and bought some food. I ventured back outside and was faced with this:

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Fourth Week in London

Saturday, October 1:

Woke up and went to a UCL Women’s Network brunch. Was pretty fun but didn’t really connect with anyone. Made plans to go to their fancy dress (British for costume) pub crawl but didn’t end up making it.

However I made up for being such a bad feminist by going to the Hairpin meetup that night! It was at the Royal George in Soho and was super fun and awesome.

I apologize to the respectable women in attendance for these horrible photos.

We headed to a couple different parties we had heard about but didn’t really want to stay at any of them so we wandered around Dalston trying to find something else to do. Tegan thought it would be a good idea to follow a group of hipsters who looked like they knew where they were going. This proved fruitful. We ended up at a club called Alibi which was free and a pretty fun scene and I would definitely go back there. We even ran into this DJ guy we had met at hip hop karaoke which made me feel popular.

Tuesday, October 4:

The DJ guy developed a pretty big crush on Tegan so he invited us to an event at a place called the Shoreditch House. Apparently it is a big deal that we got to go here because “that club is proper posh!” <—someone actually said that

I guess it was pretty nice inside and people were incredibly good-looking and well-dressed. But I have one question: if it’s so posh, WHY IS IT LOCATED JUST OFF OF BALLS POND ROAD?

The event was kinda lame though so we went to one of the two (yes there’s two and they’re both amazing) 24-hour bakeries on Brick Lane.

Wednesday, October 5:

Tegan and I saw a matinee showing of Melancholia today and it was kind of disturbing/a total mindfuck/a pretty good movie. Matinees are only £6!

Then we went to the 98p store which was amazing and I got tupperware for 98p, a mirror for 1.49, and three knives for 98p. Two of them have mysteriously gone missing from the kitchen.

Thursday, October 6:

We went to hip-hop karaoke again but it was a little bit weird and not mind-blowing. Then my dad came to visit!

Friday, October 7:

We slept in, made some breakfast, and headed out to Spitalfields market. I’ve been in the market for a wallet since mine got stolen.

The market was sorta closing so we poked around, then headed to Brick Lane to kill some time before the show. We ate Indian food, obviously.

Then we went and saw Blood Brothers which we both loved! It was a bit long but I liked it!

Saturday, October 8:

On Saturday we made our way to the Natural History Museum, which has to be my favorite museum in London (not a cool thing to admit but it is).

They had this moving T-rex thing that was roaring and all these little kids were screaming!!!! Haha I swear they thought this cheesy shit was real!

The Aurora of Hope - diamonds in every one of their naturally-occurring colors. Under UV light and regular light. WHO KNEW DIAMONDS COULD DO THAT??? Not me.

We went to a nice pub in Kensington for dinner. I think it was called the Royal Albert? Dad got lamb and I got halibut. Pretty bomb. Didn’t get photos of dessert as it was gone in a flash.

Sunday, October 9:

I was dragging on Sunday but somehow made it to the Churchill museum, which was boring as hell.

I had to race off to meet a friend who had hooked up a free haircut, then my dad and I met back up for dinner at this pub just around the corner from me. He had roast beef with Yorkshire pudding and I had an amazing butternut squash, goat cheese, and fig tart with grilled kale on top. I know it looks kinda gnarly in the picture but this shit was so bomb. British food done right, yo.

Bye, dad!! Thanks for the visit!

Third Week in London

Friday, September 23:

Tegan and I wandered around Shoreditch and Brick Lane and got Indian food.

I saw a Remio tag which was really random. Shoreditch is the only area in London where there is a lot of graffiti. There is a bunch of Banksy stuff which is really embarrassing to take pictures of because it’s the most hipster neighborhood in the world and Banksy is pretty mainstream, and being a tourist on top of being mainstream is the worst thing you can be to a hipster.

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Second Week in London

Friday, Sept 16:

I’ve been getting up crazy early here which is extremely out of character for me. Must be the combination of jet lag, not knowing anyone, shit internet, and a significant reduction in my caffeine intake (unwitting substitution of tea for coffee). ALSO THEY LIKE DON’T HAVE ENERGY DRINKS HERE!!!! Well all they have is Red Bull which I hate! It feels good getting up early, though.

I went to orientation in the morning and didn’t pay much attention. They gave us all this free stuff that I guess is supposed to help out but really i would’t be caught dead using it hahaha like we got these nylon tote bags that are sooo ugly and just say INSTITUTE FOR STUDY ABROAD: BUTLER UNIVERSITY on them. I can’t think of any single thing that would better communicate 1) that I have money, and 2) that I have no fucking idea what’s going on. THANKS GUYS!! I’ll blend right in with these giant STUDY ABROAD luggage tags! If I don’t use them, can I skip the “safety in London” talk?

I made friends with a girl whose boyfriend DJs all over the place. She invited me to his show that night but warned me his set wouldn’t be starting till at least 1am. Seeing as I’ve been going to bed at 11:30 every night, I wasn’t sure if I was gonna be able to swing that but I knew I should really get out and start meeting people.

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Packing & Moving In

Moved into my room. Here’s a packing list cause people do that when they blog about trips. Also PICS!

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Fuck.

No bubble tea within a mile of my house.

First Week in London

My first week in London is over! Here’s a really detailed account of what I’ve been doing! Mostly for me in 20 years, but you guys can read it too!

Day 1:

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Stuff I’m going to do in Europe

• Make videos about what I’m up to
• Blog them I guess?
• Go to Paris, Prague, Venice, Barcelona, and maybe Copenhagen
• See a play/musical
• Buy a dope raincoat
• Cook instead of eating out all the time
• Exercise
• Get a fancy European haircut

Karaoke highlights