One Week and Brighton

I arrived in England just one week (and a day) ago. In this one week I feel like I have done SO MUCH. It can't have only been one week because I've done ten times the things I do in any other week. Let's see, in just this week I have arrived safely in a new country, settled into an English home, enroled in University and chosen my classes, gone shopping in Kingston (bought a cute purse at Primark too), I've discovered my new favourite pub, tried the fish, walked around Central London (twice!), learned how public transportion works, navigated my way through a foreign grocery store, found a beautiful park to visit, met new and interesting people, and today I even went to Brighton. It has been such a fantastic week and I'm hoping for fourteen more! 

The Royal Pavilion

Did I tell you I went to Brighton today? Well, I did, and it was gorgeous! We had the most wonderful weather and the sea was just stunning. Speaking of stunning, I visited the Royal Pavilion in Brighton as well. Unfortunately, no one was allowed to take photos inside, but it was the most beautiful interior design I have ever (and probably ever will) see. This may have been the best part of today. Our guide said that once the concert room had finally been finished, the Prince Regent (later King George IV), who lived there, cried. He cried it was so beautiful, and I can't say I blame him. Even after years of restoration and missing artifacts the pavilion was glorious. complete with dragons and oversized chandeliers. 

Before the Royal Pavilion though, my friends and I visited the Brighton Pier. The view was magnificent, and inside the pier was an arcade, slot machines, and there were even roller coasters at the end of the pier. I could have easily spent a while on the pier, but we all decided to get ice cream and go for a walk along the lanes to look at the shops after we visited the Pavilion. First, the ice cream was amazing! It was called a flake and they stuck a piece of delicious, melts-in-your-mouth piece of chocolate right through the ice cream. It was outrageously delicious, so make sure to try one on your next visit! 
Next, we walked through the lanes to look at the shops. While there were some interesting shops, I was mostly fascinated with the street performers. Talented musicians really livened up the walk along the lanes. One man even sang "Hallelujah", one of my favorite songs ever.

Pebble beaches

We ended the day at Brighton by sitting on the pebbled beach and soaking up the sun. We loaded up on the bus and I was excited because as soon as we arrived back in Kingston, my friend and I intended to see 'The Taming of the Shrew' at the Globe Theatre. I dream of visiting the Globe Theater as I am such a fan of Shakespeare. However, our bus got back so late we didn't think we could make it to the theatre in time seeing as we would have to catch a train to Waterloo and then walk another half hour or so to the theatre. We just wouldn't have made it. We were really bummed of course because we already had our tickets to go. It would have been so nice too since we had to listen to the inappropriate, immature, and just plain disgusting rants of the two girls seated behind us for the duration of our ride back to Kingston. We were ready for something more sophisticated and artistic. Anyway, I am unimpressed that Kingston University sold us the tickets as part of the international welcome when the scheduled Brighton trip for internationals made it impossible for us to make it on time as it was. I am SO ready for classes to begin. I'm honestly still waiting for the University to really impress me. I've been having a phenomenal time in England though! It has certainly been a great life decision.

Fresher's Fayre is tomorrow though and I plan to sign up for as many different clubs and societies as  I can manage. I want to make sure I get involved with the University and I look forward to meeting new people. Also coming up is a day trip Greenwich and another trip to London. Then on Monday, classes begin. I certainly have plenty to look forward too!