After a not-so-great sleep, I went downstairs to the hotel canteen for some breakfast. They mainly had hearty options, so this is what I got:
The hotel’s version of English Breakfast: eggs, beans, potatoes, sausage, and toast
At around 10 AM, we went to the hotel’s basement conference rooms for a meeting with the IFSA-Butler representatives about the cultural differences between the US and the UK as well as some safety tips of living in London. The safety talk was led by a very charismatic London police officer and he nearly scared the pants off everyone in the room. Although he was very friendly, we left the lecture believing we would be robbed blind everywhere we went!
In hindsight, I am super grateful that I had these lectures early in my stay than later, since it made me more aware of my surroundings and actions. I am extremely naive and completely clueless about how to protect myself or behave in a large city!
After nearly two hours of orientation meetings, we all went upstairs to partake in the hotel’s lunch.
Hotel’s lunch: pasta, steamed veggies, and mushroom chicken
We had more meetings after lunch, covering a wide range of topics from academics to student services. The program provided us with maps, pamphlets, and virtually everything we could possibly need to navigate our way around the city on our own. What would I do without them?
Selene + Abroad 