Week 2 has come to an end already. Hard to believe how fast time is going by in London! We are wrapping up our second week and what a way to end it with the celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee after 70 years of service and being a part of history!

My flatmates and friends from CAPA all went out on Thursday to watch the parade. Going to major events back home in Pittsburgh was always fun and festive, but it’s nothing like London! People here love their country and their queen. Their energy is always very lively despite the lack of sleep and the many festivities. To continue the celebration, we went to tour the Tower of London on Friday and got to see the Queen’s jewels and crown! Learning about the history of this country has been fascinating and the highlight of my experience so far abroad. On Saturday we toured another museum, this time it was the British Museum. Another difference I’ve noticed in London — they love their arts, and it is truly reflected in all the museums around the city and how many exhibits there are. In the British Museum, there were over 90 exhibits and after being there for 3 hours we still didn’t get to see it all! After some sightseeing around the city, we went back to our flat and watched the concert on the live stream. To end the festivities, we went to the pageant celebration on Sunday to watch the parade, Ed Sheeran, and… the Queen!

As mentioned briefly in last week’s blog, I am taking a class called international business issues and the city of London while also participating in an internship complemented with an internship class. So far, my classes have been very interesting and have helped me to explore and learn more about London and the culture that this amazing city has to offer. The biggest difference between CAPA and Pitt is the size of the classes and the size of the college overall. At Pitt, I’m used to around 100 people for my general education requirements and about 40 people for my major classes. At CAPA, there were about 8-15 people in both of my classes. There are also too many buildings to count at Pitt, while at CAPA there is one building for all uses which was also very different for me. Other than the size of the building and the people in my classes, the school atmosphere seems about the same, especially going to school in the city.

My flat is in Islington which is about a 30-minute tube ride to the city. I live in the heart of the city back home in Pittsburgh, so I’m always used to the loud noises but here it’s relatively quiet. I also got lucky with the flatmates I was assigned to. We all clicked and got along from the start and am very excited to be able to travel around the city with them!

4 more weeks of living in London and there is still much more to explore! Be sure to stay tuned for more fun in the next week!