monday and tuesday activities
Things have been going well in London town. I’ve been making friends with other study abroad students, and we’ve all been sightseeing around town (though not at the typical touristy spots). Yesterday my friends and I went to Topshop to buy some warm clothes. Found a wool cardigan and some thermal leggings. Hooray!
Today I slept in (after talking to Kevin from 5-7 AM) until noon, which is great because now I feel that I’m finally getting used to the time difference (it’s 9:05 PM now, and I don’t feel tired!) Usually I’d pass out at 7 PM. This is excellent.
After waking up, I went to pick up some documents to help me open up a bank account here in the UK (none of those nasty conversion fees for me thank you very much!). I also got my cell phone figured out and activated (finally!). Once that was done, my friends and I went on a search for Chinatown. Apparently this is the only place to find Boba (AKA bubble tea). There’s a crepe/boba cafe just outside of campus back in LA, and I was craving some. My strawberry tea however, came back as more of a slushie with boba at the bottom. Not something I’m used to back in LA.
I got in contact with a family friend who just arrived in London; she is bringing a second suitcase packed with more of my things (including 4 cameras and several packs of film!). I’ll meet with her tomorrow : )
Back in October, I registered for a free shortcourse (which is a class outside of your normal courseload taken for no credit). I wanted to take History of Art part 1, as I managed to get course credit for it back at LMU. However, I was just informed that there is a time conflict with a weekly lecture that prevents me from taking this class. Oh no! Not good! Right now I’m looking through the catalogue, and the ones I could get credit for are all either full or offered during another term. Frustrating! So now I’m considering either taking a course I know will be for fun, a course that will make me a better artist/designer, or one that I may or may not be able to negotiate credit for once I return to LA. Currently, I’m leaning to one of the latter 2 choices, as they’ll serve me better in the long run… although there is a course called Customizing Your Clothing that seems really interesting : )
Tomorrow’s schedule:
- Meet up with the family friend. Hang out. Obtain suitcase. Rejoyce
- Open a bank account
- Go to my first lecture. SO EXCITED!
- Sign up for my first assignment (called a brief)
Which reminds me, CSM has a really interesting view on assignments (as I learned on Monday): they create 5 or 6 possible projects, and students choose their favorites to work on. It’s done this way so that students actually enjoy what they’re working on. I find this to be a bit impractical, especially when working in a real job for real clients that have a real hard time coming up with what they really want. But hey, it’s really fun, and I love the freedom!
I originally chose a project called Lost in the Translation, where I create a completely new written language, then transcribe something. This brief had a strong initial impact on me, however while I was walking back to my dorm I thought of one of the other briefs. It’s called Anti-Tour, and the project is to create a tour of lesser-known, less publicized parts of london. Examples include restaraunts without urinal seperators or CCTV-free areas. Each tour is to be accompanied with a map/visual guide and an audio companion. CRAZY and super-detailed. I like it, and I already have a good idea for it.
