Wow. I just loged in and realized that I haven’t posted anything here since NOVEMBER. Whoops! I’m so sorry about that. There’s plenty going on I just haven’t seemed to have found the time to sit down here and write. So I figured it was high time I did.
Life in London remains good. My day – day life is incredibly busy and my job definitely keeps me on my toes. I enjoy my students and the teaching side of my life is much less stressful than before so that’s a huge blessing.
I’ve been trying to make the most of my time here in London and explore the city as much as possible in my days off without wearing myself out. Museums here are free and plentiful so I’ve been trying to visit them on a regular basis. I’ve found that it’s more effective to go to the same museum for a shorter amount of time on more than one occassion and just focus on one area than it is to try and do it all at once. I’m getting way more out of things that way.
It’s amazing to me how many amazing things are practically right outside my front door here. In the past few months I’ve seen works of art that I’d only ever heard about or seen pictures of in text books, I’ve been to buildings that were built CENTURIES before I was born, I’ve seen relics of history from time periods my brain can barely fathom. It’s incredible really and there are days where I wake up and want to pinch myself just to be sure that it’s real.
One of the greatest benefits of being over here for me is the way the school year works. It’s broken down into three terms, each with a half term break about 6 weeks in and longer break between terms. What that means is that I’m getting a proper break every 5-6 weeks which has made a huge difference in my energy levels and my ability to teach effectively. Since I’m at an independent school, my breaks are even longer so that’s been an added bonus.
I’ve been taking full advantage of these breaks and trying to get some travel in wherever I can. In November, for example, I headed to Munich for a few days, then met up with Ali in Mainz (Which incidentally is the last time I posted in this blog – whoops). In December I went home to North America to celebrate the holidays with my family in both Victoria and California. In February, I spent a week down in Kent, renting a cottage with 4 friends and exploring the southern region of England (including places like Dover and Canterbury). I’ll be posting about those trips in much greater detail in the coming weeks, along with some pictures.
March was a really busy month for me. In addition to spending time with many of the new friends I’ve made here in London in recent months, I also managed to go to THREE plays/Musicals, and take weekend trips to both Cardiff (Wales) and Newcastle (Northern England).
My next adventure begins next week. As of this past Friday, I’m officially on my Easter Break which is nearly a month long (we go back April 27th). On Wednesday morning I leave for my next trip – I’m headed to the Eastern US to visit some cities I’ve always wanted to: Boston, New York, and DC. I’m also going to be doing a side trip up to Niagra Falls to visit a friend so it’s going to be an eventful few weeks. I have a week scheduled for NYC alone and I’m really excited about it because New York is a city I’ve always wanted to visit and it’s one I think I’m really going to love. I got a small taste of it in December when I had flight issues and was stuck there overnight, but a proper week there is going to be amazing. I’m already plotting which musicals I want to try and see while I’m there, and this one: How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying staring Daniel Radcliff (from Harry Potter) is at the top of the list!
I’ll be back in the UK on the 22nd so I’ll have another few days to relax in London before I head back to work on the 26th for an inset. Then, we have kids for only two days before a 4 day weekend due to the Royal Wedding. So we won’t be back to “normal” until May 3 which is INSANE to me. I decided to make good use of those random two days and am taking my class on a field trip to the Geffrey Museum.
In other news, the weather here is starting to get nicer – it’s actually quite sunny today and spring is definitely here (as my allergies are being sure to tell me).
So that’s the very abbreviated run down of what I’ve been up to lately. I’m working on getting pictures up so I can report back on my past and upcoming trips so expect to hear a lot more from me from now on!
I love and miss those of you back home and living far away. I hope this message finds you all well.
Small City Girl Meets Big City World 