October Activities

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The month of October brought about a number of new things in my life. It first brought me close to some old friends and newly introduced family, then it brought me a deeper exposure to London as a city and culture. It brought me my first apartment outside the US, and finally, it brought me my first day at work. I don't have any sweeping statements to make about my time in October. As with most days and times in my life, it was a mix of excitement, exploration and personal development (i think "personal development" is a good word for "struggles").

At the beginning of the month, I met my mom's cousin Myra and her wonderful family. I spent a full 24 hours with them in West Sussex, about an hour southwest of London. Although Myra is Palestinian and the family spent most of their lives around Africa, I felt like I got my first introduction to English family culture. I played golf with Myra's husband Alan at a proper english club where I was forced to wear high socks (see pictures). Myra and her daughter Anna came out and walked the course with us just to keep us company, and then we picked up Anna's sister Caroline at the train station. Then the whole family went to the pub....WHAT? When was the last time you went with your family to the bar on a thursday night just to grab a beer before dinner??? This was certainly new to me. Caroline and Anna are adorable, loving sisters and daughters. The had a big embrace when they first saw each other and then held hands as they walked down the street. They would use phrases like, "oh, mummy, wouldn't that be wonderful?" and I couldn't help but smile from ear to ear throughout the night. The next day, they dropped me off in Brighton where I met Myra's son William and his wife Laura and then explored the "lanes" before heading back to London. Brighton is a fun town on the coast with a ton of character. I spent hours just window shopping and people watching. I highly recommend a day trip if you ever have time in London.

When I got back to London, i basically moved in with my buddy Marc. Two months ago, I would have said "my friend brynne's older brother Marc." But Marc has become a very good friend here and constant source of comic relief in my life. He was kind enough to let me stay in his apartment until I moved into mine later that month. He and I would grab dinner after work, grab beers after that, talk about living abroad and catch up on life and family history. By the time I got my own place, I was bummed about moving in on my own. I really enjoyed getting to know him and having a good friend around all the time.

While I was crashing at Marc's and moving into my new apartment in Islington, I also spent some time catching up with a buddy from college, Sandy, and met some of his business school friends (Ben, Thanda, and Sameer). I also met my new friend Rose. With her being from San Francisco, and me falling in love with SF over the past 6 years, we quickly became good friends. Marc, Sandy, Sameer, Ben and Thanda have all become part of my first circle of friends here in London. The fact that I have a circle of friends must mean something about developing my life here, right?

The end of October brought two pretty significant events as well. First was my very first visitor from the US. My friend Jen, an amazing girl that I met at burningman this year, came to visit for a long weekend. Having Jen here lifted my spirits after having some travel withdrawal. We explored all of London, went dancing, went to the theatre and had an all around great time. There is something about being a host that made me feel like London was my home...even just for a long weekend. When Jen left, I started work. I can't say that there was anything significant about my job in the beginning, but starting work was a sort of ending to my rediculous summer of fun. Fear not, the fun certainly does not end there.

I think my thanks for this entry goes to all of my newfound friends that helped me through one of the hardest months of this transition. Marc, Rose, Sandy, Jen, Myra and family, it may have seemed like just another lunch, dinner, beer, coffee, but your support at the beginning of this new life in London will never be forgotten.