Ruby Devine
I first arrived in London on Monday September 14th. As I write this I have only been in Europe for a little over two weeks now. I arrived at Heathrow Airport, which is about an hour ride into the city centre of London. September 14th was also the day of King’s College orientation, so I got an uber ride to my housing that is located in South London in Elephant & Castle. I dropped my bags off and then hopped onto the tube to get to orientation. The first day and into week was especially tough because I had not figured out an international cell phone option so I did not have any internet to help me if I was ever lost in the city. The orientation was all study abroad students, and the entire auditorium was packed! One of the speakers asked which country we all came from and lots of us were Americans. Orientation was somewhat helpful, but I was so tired from traveling and could barely keep my eyes open! All I wanted to do was go to sleep, but I still needed blankets and sheets for my bed unfortunately. This was another adventure in of itself, I had researched and found a T.K. Maxx (UK’s version of T.J. Maxx) location and traveled there by bus, however this one unfortunately did not sell any home goods. So I took to the streets and wondered for a good thirty minutes until I located an Argos, which sells extremely cheap home goods. Sheets and blankets in tow I planned to hope on the next bus I saw, but there did not seem to be any stops in this area of London. It was nighttime and I started to get worried, but I asked a nice man on the street, who led me to a tube station and back home. So ended my eventful first day in London!
Day Two was quite rainy and gross in London, but Ali (other UB Law student attending King’s) and I went to Buckingham Palace. The Palace was beautiful and grand, I especially enjoyed the audio listening tour, because I was able to learn much more about the Palace and its creation. Then we went to Covent Garden which is an open-air market and had dinner. Since Covent Garden is so close to some London theatres local artists come and perform for tips. While we sat and ate we got to watch a lively four-member band and two opera singers. I love all the open markets that London has to offer and I hope to explore them all. The rest of the week consisted of getting my room set up and meeting my six flatmates! Other than myself, there is a German, two Singaporeans, two French, and another American. I look forward to getting to know them all better and their various backgrounds.
My first week in London was topped off by traveling to Munich, Germany for the opening ceremony of the Oktoberfest festival! Ali and I booked a place to stay with a welcoming German lady named Judith. Her place was only five minutes walk to the festival grounds and it was very cheap. Munich is a charming city with lots of fun activities to do. Friday when we arrived, we checked in with Judith then set out to explore the city. We had lunch at an authentic German restaurant (and arguably ordered too much). Also there just so happened to be another fellow UB law student in town for the Oktoberfest as well, so we were able to spend time with him and his travel group. We all wanted to be in the tent, which the mayor of Munich comes and taps the first ceremonial keg of Oktoberfest. All the locals told us that we should arrive very early in order to ensure we got into one of the awesome beer tents, as they fill up quickly!
Oktoberfest is so exciting, everyone wears the traditional outfits, for men it’s the Lederhosen, and women wear the Dirndl. If I could change one thing, it would be that we had the appropriate attire. We were a bit tired so we actually did not arrive until 8:45 am, but we were extremely lucky because they opened a side door that we happened to be standing near! Once we were in the tent and had a seat, there was a lot of waiting as they do not start serving beer until noon. But once they do, the tent is filled with singing, laughter, and lots of beer glasses clinking! Above is a picture of right after we were served our first beers. It was such a fun experience and I hope I get to return one day.
Ruby Devine is a 3L student at the University of Baltimore School of Law. Stay tuned as she details her London life and Euro travels as she is studying abroad this Fall semester.
UBalt Law Goes Abroad 