Touchdown in London town!

I'm here! I feel like so much has happened to me since I left Aylmer that I don't know where to begin. I'll probably forget some stuff, but here goes! (P.S. It's 12:16 am here right now. We fell asleep around 6 pm, because we were dead tired. Now, it's nowhere near daylight and we're regretting that choice). I can't believe it's only 7:16pm at home.

So, on Saturday my parents and I departed from Aylmer around 3:15pm. We made good time and got to the Toronto airport around 5 pm. We met up with the other girls, and then checked our luggage. It all went smoothly up to this point. After we checked our bags, we mingled around the terminal a little bit longer. We said our goodbyes to our parents. This part was hard, but it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. I think being with the other girls made it easier.

We went through security. Of course, I was the lucky one who got chosen for extra screening. The other girls had it easy. But, after we were cleared, we went to C30, where our plane would be. We had quite a bit of time to spare, so we went and got a delicious (but somewhat expensive) airport meal. We were all hungry since none of us had really eaten that day due to nerves.

Our flight was delayed 1h10m for some reason, so we got to sit there even longer. Eventually, we boarded the plane. Take off seemed to happen pretty quickly once we boarded. As we were taxying down the runway, I got overcome with emotion, and had a few tears. I was all good once I had my moment.

Our flight was decent. We got served dinner around midnight. I chose the vegetarian option, and I got some kind of curry. It was good, but a little spicy for my tummy on that long of a flight. Luckily, I also got a salad and a fruit bowl. I slept off and on during the night, so really, the majority of the flight went by quickly. Around 8am (it was only 3am at home!), we were served breakfast of yogurt, a cinnamon bun, orange juice, and some coffee. In no time, we landed in Gatwick. It seems like a small airport. It's definitely in the countryside!

We went through international customs without a hitch, then we went to find our luggage. It was pretty simple! We exited to the main part of the airport, where a taxi driver was waiting for us, hired by our company. He helped us load our luggage, and drove us to our accommodations. It was a long drive here, actually!

We're staying at the King's Arms in Ealing. It's a super old, quaint building. Upon arrival, our room was not quite ready, so we waited in the pub for probably 20 minutes. To get to our room, we go behind the serving area of the pub, and up a lot of flights of stairs. The problem with old, quaint buildings is that they do not have elevators. With our heavy amounts of luggage, and our tired bodies, it was NOT fun. We decided not to rest, so we freshened up a little bit (it felt so good to do so), and then we took off exploring! Pretty immediately, we found the Ealing Broadway shopping centre! It was so busy and overwhelming! They have an open air courtyard with a bunch of storefronts all around. I went to Boots and got a hairdryer and straightener, and also got some food at Tesco.

After we ate some lunch, we decided to do some more exploring. So, we went for a walk through the Ealing Common, and then down a bunch of side streets, just admiring the houses. We also bought an Oyster card for public transportation. Around 6pm, we crashed. And now, I'm awake. I'm gonna try to go back to bed so my body gets adjusted to BST (British Summer Time). I'll definitely update you more with pictures when I have a better internet connection.

It's surreal to finally be here! I can picture myself really enjoying it here, especially once we get our own apartment, and I have my own space. Once I make some new friends here too, it will really start to feel like home. I miss everyone at home like crazy, but I'm glad to be here!