a learning experience

Saturday was a really fun day. In the morning a bunch of us went to Portobello Market. It’s a big outdoor market that is also a farmers’ market on Saturdays. We figured we’d hang out and look around and also get some lunch for Saturday and breakfast and lunch for Sunday. I got some great bread and cheese and grapes. But actually, one of the cheeses Hailey and I bought turned out to be really nasty, so that was a bummer. Also, it stunk up the kitchen here. Haha. But we had a really good time at the market, just seeing things and whatnot.

When we got back to London Centre we decided to work on our collages that we have been assigned for our London Walks class. It’s really cool to see all the different ways everyone is doing theirs, and I’m really excited to have it as a memento of the semester.

While we were working on our homework, Professor Ostraff (Joe) and his wife and kids invited some of us to go to Camden Town. They told us it was a really “colorful” area, and that they went a lot last time they were here for really cheap, good, ethnic food. They said they usually went when it was closing because the places lower their prices and it’s easier to haggle. We were excited since we wanted to get either Indian food or Thai that night. Joe and Melinda (his wife) and their kids, Kaleb, Ethan and Hannah went, along with some of the students: myself, Hailey, Erin (my bunkmate), Andrea, Amanda and Brian (Prof. Hoffman’s son). We had a really good time. Camden Town is so cool—there’s a really fun marketplace with tons of punky people and some interesting shops. When we ate, I was able to get chicken curry for only two pounds. It was a good-sized serving, and good tasting. We had a really good time there, and the picture I posted is from there, although it’s a picture of the river, not the crazy part of Camden Town.

Today we went to church, which was great. I love teaching the Sunbeams. They’re little hellions but they’re cool and really cute and I love teaching them. We also had our first religion class, which was good. Other than that, I’ve had a nice relaxing day, and I mostly just did some reading and stuff. If I didn’t have kitchen duty, I would have had time for a walk, but that’s okay. Tomorrow’s my last day in the kitchen so I’m excited about that.

Although I really miss home and everyone there, I’m having a really good time trying to have a good time here and learn as much as I can. Today in our meeting after the religion class Joe said, “Treat [London] as an open reference.” He told us to remember to try to grow and learn and use everything we do as a learning tool. I was thinking a lot about how everything I do here and everything I see teaches me about history, or another culture, and I’m trying to remember to treat this opportunity as a growing experience, not just a fun trip. It’s been really great, and I think that mindset makes a big difference.