One Week til Departure

In one week I will be hopping the pond.  The trip finally feels real, and I can’t wait to go.  Earlier this week I finally got my flight information.  I’ll be heading out of JFK on June 30 at 9 pm along with 4 other students on the program.  We arrive at Heathrow at 9 am.  I'm looking into taking a train down to the city.

Late last week I signed up for the two guided walks that we do the first weekend in London.  On Saturday I will be doing the Nazi Blitz, and on Sunday afternoon I will be doing Roman Londinium.  These two walks sounded the most interesting to me, since I’ve already been to London I decided to avoid the more touristy, see-the-sights walks. 

The second weekend there are two day trips as alternatives for those students not going to Paris, Stonehenge/Bath and Canterbury/Dover.  They cost 20 pounds and last almost 12 hours but I’m not yet sure what all they entail as far as what sights you get to see.  I’m definitely going to do the Canterbury/Dover one, since I've not been there. I'm not sure if I’ll do Stonehenge again, I rather like Stonehenge, and would not be opposed to going back.

Yesterday I went to Barnes and Noble and bought a journal and notebook for the course.  Both are relatively small and easy to pack.  The journal is actually a miniature of the one I took last time to London.  I really liked that design, and when I saw the smaller version I thought it made perfect sense to get it, since I'll be in the same city, but for a shorter period of time.  The notebook is black spiral bound with narrow lined paper.  I will make sure to take plenty of pencils for the visits we have planned.

I also just finished up my pre-departure assignments.  I finished the second book early last week but didn’t get to the review yet.  I was busy with work and watching the SyFy show Sanctuary.  I’ll read over both reviews once more and then I will submit them.  I'm still working my way through both Thames: a Biography and London Rising, but I did finish a Traveller's History of Oxford last week.  Things are starting to come together; this weekend I will probably start packing.