First few days!

     Hello everyone! I am happy to share that I am settling into my new life in London! I have been here for a little under a week and have been busy setting up my room, finding my way around the city, meeting new friends, and registering for my courses. Classes start on Monday! I am taking courses in development studies, global health, population data analysis, and research design this semester. The campus is beautiful, a different kind of beautiful compared to Elon of course, but it is made up of a few pedestrian-only city blocks with lots of great places to sit and people watch while getting some work done. LSE is one of the most international universities in the world so every day I am meeting people from around the globe. 

    A highlight of my week included meeting my hosts from the Marylebone Rotary Club for dinner last night! John and Barbara had me to their lovely home for the most delicious meal, coq au vin with lemon mousse for dessert! The incoming president for the next year and her husband also joined us. I learned about their experience in the Rotary Club and talked about all their travel around Europe and Asia. They gave me some good ideas of places to check out when I have breaks from school. It was exciting to hear that they have hosted a few global grant scholars and still keep in touch years after their programs are over. 

Some pictures of the last few days: 

Of course, after completing my undergraduate degree in the middle of a pandemic, I couldn't have a quiet start to graduate school! I arrived in London the day before the Queen's Funeral. After some worrying about whether or not my flight would be affected, I was lucky to make it there (with all five of my bags) without any issues. My mom and I were able to watch some of the processional on big screens in Hyde Park with the rest of London. It was very powerful to see the city together to mourn their loss and witness this moment in history. 

My mom and I toured around some of the main tourist attractions in between trips to Ikea and the grocery store

On my walk to join John and Barbara, it was exciting to see a more suburban part of the city after only seeing the very busy parts of London! I will be joining them again for a classical music performance at their home on Sunday to raise money for their clubs' initiatives. 

That's all for now!