From VIP to ISH

Well, we're here. And we're safe and sound. That's the most important thing to know for now.


Now for a few more details. At about 7:30, the parents and I loaded the BMW with all my stuff and drove to the Indy airport. It was book-finishing trip; quite nice. Then after a passable airport salad and a tearful goodbye, I checked in. Matt and I sat together on the flight, and it flew by, literally/metaphorically. We arrived in Chicago, got our tickets at Virgin, and went through security. It was all a breeze.

Then we started a miniature wild goose chase to find a VIP lounge since I recently got a special card for some reason from my bank. It was a great way to blow a few hours before our flight. I enjoyed free beer, espresso, finger sandwiches, and fruit. It was quite nice.


On the London flight. Wow, it was so nice. I lucked out and had two empty seats next to me. In other words, I had a bed. After watching the sequel to Harold and Kumar, I snuggled up as comfortably as possible on my three-seat bed. It worked well. I woke up, rested and ready to arrive. We landed, went through Immigration (less than ten minutes), then through customs. We decided to spend a little more money and save on comfort by taking a taxi to our hostel. Expensive, but we liked it.

Got to ISH, stowed our luggage away until we could check in later, and made our way to BUNAC for orientation. We were excited that everything went so smoothly. Then, it rained on us. And we were fine because we're in London, and that's how the weather works. I'd like to think of it as a baptism of sorts. So, we made it to orientation, and that went well.

Now, here's where reality sets in. All of a sudden, we felt overwhelmed (they tell you A LOT of information) and tired. We needed to decompress and rest for a bit. So, we went back to ISH, checked into our room, and after a difficult but doable push of our suitcases, we arrived at our building and took a nice nap.

Then I got up and took a shower (accidentally in the women's...oops; it sucked nonetheless). And now I'm here, in ISH's internet cafe. Tonight, Matt and I are going to have dinner and explore. No plans; just enjoying being in London. Tomorrow, we dive into the job hunt, the bank account opening, the mobile phone buying, the accommodation searching, all of that fun stuff.