Why can't I take the breadsticks?

Key Phrases: 30, you better work, Ke$shin' It In, Fabric, Gurl


It's the 8th, and surprise...as I sat down to write this it began to rain. Life in the UK is quiteee different than it is in America. First of all, everything is smaller and more expensive. A can of soup is equivalent to $1.50. A can of soda, which is smaller than it is in America, is still the same price as a can of Coke. Plus, nothing has preservatives so everything goes bad twice as quickly. Just for shits and giggles, I'll put up what I got at the grocery store. We went to the least expensive grocery store in the Kensington area which was about almost a miles walk from our flat. I got basic store band stuff: ground turkey, tiny chicken breast, a tiny head of lettuce, quart of milk, yogurt, clementines, pasta, string cheese, cereal, freezer bags, olive oil, French cider, a towel and some pasta sauce. It came to about 38 pounds, which I guess now is about almost $60. Oh, might I add I got proofed by the tiny Indian checkout kid at the self-checkout station I was at? I laughed out loud when Yasin asked what was happening saying I was getting proofed in the UK, after showing him my under 21 NY ID; he was quite embarrased.


We had orientation yesterday where they explained to us what our classes would be like, how we can get around, and what phrases are acceptable and quite inappropriate in London. Fanny Pack? That's a no-no. 


Yasin, Ryan and I wanted to journey out into Zone 2 of the Tube onto Camden Rd, where apparently all the 'punks' originated. In the pamphlet we received, "pregnant teenagers, punks, and peoples of all kind" gather for the night life. Most of the students from FIE, including the Marist bitties were heading into Piccadilly for their first official night out, but with a cider already in us, we were ready for an adventure. Now, to get to Camden Rd we would have had to switch lines about 3 times. Or, we could have taken our Underground station to another station and then walk. We choose the latter. We get to our stop, look at a map and get on our way. About 20 minutes of walking we realize that all we see are ethnic restaurants and bars with Asian people with Elvis wigs on singing karaoke. Definitely not the night life we were dressed for. We continue on our way down the same road feeling more and more discouraged as we go. Another 15 minutes of walking we see a woman in a sparkly dress and red shoes...so we followed her. Ryan exclaimed "Follow the bass, there the party at" and followed sparkly dress woman inside The Canal. We get to the bar and order 3 ciders. Ryan of course gets served a sprite. While his drink is getting fixed, we look around and realize that we had just walked into a 30th birthday party. Lesbians are in the corner getting a little too touchy than what we were expecting. There were a couple of corporate meetings going on, and a disco ball with really bad Florence and the Machine karaoke and dancing going on in the other corner. We tried to finish our drinks as soon as possible and get onto the next pub.
Down the next street we see that Millers is bumpin' so we decide that's our next destination. We were going to stroll right in, but we obviously got stopped by the 2 bouncers at the door. Did Yasin bring her ID? No. What did she do? Recite her birthday to the bouncer and she was allowed in. This is the 2nd time in 2 days my Under 21 NY ID allowed me to drink. We go inside and order another cider and sit down in the corner. The crowd is quite diverse, ranging from young punks to old geezers. However, the DJ is playing American country music, which took us quite by surprise. Sweet Home Alabama and Journey really got the crowd going. After half an hour of that, I went up to the DJ and told him the music was sucking and requested some GaGa. He asked where I was from and after I told him NY, his mood changed and told me to go sit down. About 20 minutes later Jay-Z's sweet loving voice began booming throughout the bar singing 'New York'. From there he began playing Beiber, Rhianna, and all the other great American hits. We obviously entertained the entire bar for the next hour. After we decided enough was enough, we ate at this random Indian all night fast food restaurant, got hit on by sleezy Italian men, then took the night bus home. Tonight, we might be hitting Fabric, London's most exclusive night club with sub-woofers in the floor. U of Wisconsin who lives in flat 2 was all about going so it'll be quite the epic blog. Saturday Fabricday. Ya gotta be high rollers to roll in Londontown with us. Ke$shin' it up!