12am Pub Night, 11 Spurs Players on the Pitch (sometimes), 10 Irish Folk Musicians, 9 Pound Mulled Wine, 8 Nights of Hanukkah, 7 on the Spurs Scoring, Six Musical Costumes (not really), 5 Scottish Football Teams, 4 Miles to Westfield, 3 Bagel Shops, 2 Cool Museums, and a Choral Concert in an Old Church
Day at the Museums (12/2)
After a long week of classes, Zoe had plans to meet her family in central today for dinner and a concert, so we spent the day in the city walking around some museums that we had yet to check out. The first stop was the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A), a museum full of galleries and historical art and culture. The V&A is a bit of a maze, so we wandered about hoping to find the Six musical costumes exhibit that had been on Catja’s list of things to see. Unfortunately, after finally finding it, the room was closed :(.
Instead, we ended up walking through rooms full of lavish jewelry including massive rings and the most outrageous broaches, the fanciest snuff boxes, and intricate tiaras. There was also an exhibit featuring fascinating paintings and artifacts from Francis Williams (~1690-~1770) and stunning photographs from Vanley Burke (1951-present). Francis and Vanley were both Jamaican British artists, and the exhibit was in honor of 75th anniversary of Windrush, which brought many Caribbean-born emigrants to the UK.
Once we stopped by the gift shop to grab a postcard for Catja’s collection, we decided it was time for a change of scenery. Our friend, Luke, had told us that we must visit the Science Museum, so we did just that. Just a block away, past a man playing a flame-throwing tuba, the Science Museum is in another grand building on Exhibition Way. After looking through the map we decided we would check out the clockwork exhibit, the jobs exhibit, and an exhibit on people and identity. It was a very fun, interactive museum! We let our inner children run wild, but we also learned a lot. Catja was fascinated by the gears in the clocks, and Zoe used her many years of robotics knowledge to help explain the mechanics of it all. #WomenInStem. We also took a survey to see which job best suited us and discovered that Catja is supposed to be a CAD technician and Zoe should be an air traffic controller. Time to change life plans!
5 o’clock rolled around fairly fast, so Zoe parted ways with Catja and headed off to a nearby pub to grab dinner with her grandfather, uncle, aunt, and cousin, who were in the city to see her other cousin’s orchestra concert. Zoe enjoyed a lovely meal (the first hamburger she has had in months!) and joined her family for the concert, before making her way back home for the evening. Catja took herself out on a dinner date and got a steak and ale pie (yum), chips (yum), and mushy peas (...eh?). She got warm and cozy with a cider and her new book before braving the chilly evening wind and taking a leisurely bus back home.
Columbia Road with Anna and Jake (10/3)
Our Great British Bagel Hunt continues! Zoe consulted her long list of bagel bakeries to try, and we decided today was the day to test the great east London rivalry: Beigel Bake and Beigel Shop, side-by-side competitors on Brick Lane. We met up with Anna and Jake for a rainy Sunday bagel brunch (stay tuned for the full review!) and checked out the many vintage stalls and shops down the iconic road. Catja had to ask Zoe to convince her not to buy a £20 white sheepskin coat that made her feel like a Hallmark holiday heroine while Anna bartered and bought a gorgeous wine red coat.
After, we walked to the nearby Columbia Road Flower Market to pick up some festive foliage for our flat (whoa my alliteration gene is on fire today, apologies!! -Catja). Before we started walking down the crowded road, we stopped by a tent full of musicians. They began playing a jaunty tune, and we all smiled and clapped. Then, an Irish dancer came out and began tapping on a wooden board next to them. Catja was enthralled and gave them a donation, as they were fundraising for Shelter, a charity campaigning for housing justice and supporting the homeless.
We made our way through the packed narrow road, stopping to admire fir wreaths, ilex/holly sprigs, baby’s breath, and countless Christmas trees. Every cafe advertised overpriced mulled wine and intoxicating coffee, and we made a pit stop on the way back so Anna and Jake could get caffeinated and try a goat cheese donut - yum!
Zoe and Catja returned home, where Catja’s cold knocked her out, and she was sneezing a ridiculous amount for the rest of the evening!
Hanukkah Night 1 (10/8)
Thursday evening was the first night of Hanukkah, but unfortunately, because of class, Zoe had to delay her celebrations to Friday. So, on Friday afternoon Zoe began cooking up some matzah ball soup, rugelach, and latkes for a small seder. As everyone else was busy that evening, Zoe had a seder for one with her dad on Facetime for the celebration. Despite this being her first time cooking seder (and it definitely not being as good as the one at home), the food was delicious and it was lovely to be able to celebrate with some family.
Hebe’s Concert (10/9)
The following day Catja and Zoe ventured out in the windy weather to hunt for fabric. We walked about thirty minutes to a shop in Harlesden that was strangely by appointment only, as we figured out once standing outside the door. Still on a mission to find the perfect fabric, we decided to continue our walk to a high street that seemed to have endless fabric stores. Little did we know that we walked all the way to White City, which is about four miles from our house. However, we did find the perfect fabric in Shepherd’s Bush, so we stopped by Westfield Mall just down the road, which is MASSIVE and weirdly a very fancy mall. At around 2, we got a call from Lucy that a few people were planning to go to the pub before Hebe’s concert around 4, so we hopped on the train and headed back home to eat dinner and get ready.
We enjoyed leftovers from the seder and Catja got to try her very first matzah ball soup. (Catja food review: I am a big fan of Hanukkah food now! Considering Zoe doesn’t like soup, she makes a mean matzah ball soup, and it was super cozy and filling. Latkes are one of the most perfect foods. And matzah with butter is delish. 10/10). Catja then spent like an hour trying to braid her hair and it ended up just simply not working at all and looking very silly. She landed on her usual hairstyle for the night.
We then took the train into central with Ginger Luke, Blonde Luke, and Lucy to grab some drinks. Ginger Luke proposed we play a riddle game that stumped us for quite a bit (What would you bring to the Island of Noel?), but we did end up solving it before Ethan arrived. We then chatted and made our way to Tesco to pick up some flowers for Hebe and a little snack for us for the concert.
The concert was fantastic! Shout out to Hebe for sounding absolutely amazing! There was even audience participation when Catja and I learned a new British carol, “Once in Royal David’s City.” We also got to sing in an exhausting rendition of 12 Days of Christmas, where each line was assigned to a group and you had to stand to sing and sit back down really quickly before the next group. It was mildly terrifying at the start but ended up being very fun.
Wanting to continue the night a bit longer, we decided to stop by another pub. We ended up chatting for much longer than expected when the clock struck 12, so we made our way home with a quick stop at a kebab shop on the high street for french fries ahem chips!
Pub Quiz with Anna and Jake (10/12)
On Tuesday, we met up with our friends Anna and Jake for one last hurrah before the new year. We finally coordinated well enough to make it to a pub quiz! With the competition VERY high (and very British), we struggled through many of the more niche questions, including naming Scottish football teams (shockingly we knew none). However, we smashed the last round as most of the questions were about recent pop culture and random American facts. Yet again, Anna and Jake’s music knowledge was unmatched and helped us get 9th place out of 12, which isn’t too shabby for a few American kids.
We finished out the week with one more stop on the Great British Bagel Hunt on Friday before Catja headed home for the holiday. Now alone in the flat, Zoe spends her days writing essays and rewatching Harry Potter movies for the gazillionth time. Catja has been spending all her time with her family and Virginia friends, also rewatching Harry Potter, and waking up early for once thanks to the time difference.
We have officially (almost) spent four months in London, and we frequently have to stop and remind each other that we are really here. We have had the absolute best four (more like 3.5, let’s not get too crazy) months of learning, making friends, exploring the city, and…making future plans to hopefully not leave? (Please send us leads for jobs that will sponsor us and help us earn £38,000+...) We cannot wait to see what more amazing adventures wait for us in 2024 and we will see you in January!
January is exciting obviously because it’s a new year (AND CATJA AND MIKKA AND GINGER LUKE’S BIRTHDAYS!), but also Madders and Micky return to Spurs for what will hopefully be a top-tier rest of the season. With Ange at the reins, we cannot wait! Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy and healthy (looking at you Madders and Micky) New Year!
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