The past few weeks in London have been so much fun! We got to see Les Misérables on the West End, visit the Seven Sisters Cliffs, and even take a weekend trip to Paris! During the week I’ve been able to see some of the different neighborhoods in the city as well. London is also so accessible to other places, so I’ve been able to do day trips to places like Brighton and Oxford too.
Pitt in London is through CEA CAPA, and we have class in their building in Kensington. It is a beautiful area of London, just minutes away from Kensington Palace and Hyde Park. I live about a 30-minute tube ride away in Aldgate, on the East side of the city. Because they’re on opposite sides of the city, I’ve been able to see a lot more of the East End than I would otherwise.
I live with four roommates in an apartment near the Tower of London. Our flat is really nice and is close to lots of great local restaurants and shops. Because of our proximity to Brick Lane, I’ve been able to try places like Beigel Bakery, Aladin, and Morley’s (where they just filmed an episode of Chicken Shop Date with Bella Hadid)! It has been so cool to be able to walk by significant historical buildings like Tower Bridge or Shakespeare’s Globe just on the way to pick up dinner.
While I am in London, I am taking three courses: Contemporary British Film, Global Perspectives on Nursing and Midwifery, and Analyzing and Exploring London as a Global City. These courses are made up of not only lectures but also field trips which allow us to explore even more of the city. For example, in my nursing class, we got a tour of The Gordon Museum at Guy’s Hospital, and in the exploring London class we took trips to learn about the historical significance of Brixton and Greenwich. These experiences have not only allowed me to see more of the city but also let us apply what we learned about in class to real-life examples throughout the city. During the week we learned about the rich history of immigration in London, we got to visit Brick Lane in Tower Hamlets and see how different groups have shaped the cultural landscape of the area.
These courses also have much smaller class sizes than Pitt, ranging between 10-20 people, and last 3.5 hours each. Because classes are so small, participation is a large portion of our grade. Most of the classes are more discussion-based than lectures and let us openly reflect on the topics we’ve learned about. I have two classes a day Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, but I have the other two days off. This gives me the freedom to see new areas of the city during the week and have a three-day weekend to explore places farther away like Paris or Edinburgh.
