I Arrived Safe and Sound in London

Well, Italy just didn’t want to let me go. Yesterday, the transportation workers decided to go on a national strike and cancelled most buses and trains. Thankfully, I was able to make it to the airport after taking a taxi and the one train heading to Bologna that day. The adrenaline rush kept me from being sad.

As I checked in, I was so nervous they were going to look at my Italian passport and say, “Wait, you’re not Italian! Please follow these officers here. Oh, and your suitcase is too heavy and you owe us a million dollars.” But that didn’t happen. Everything was fine and I went to my gate to drink my last cappuccino in Italy (for awhile).

I flew British Airways, so most people surrounding me were English. They were all grumbling how “The Italians are being so very Italian today,” regarding having to wait for their coffee, to board the plane, etc. I thought, “Just go with it.” And then I thought, “Oh, sh*t, I’ve become Italian. How will I be able to function back in efficient society?” We shall see.

As soon as we took off, my adrenaline rush subsided and I started to feel sad and a little homesick. I was OK once we got to London, where I didn’t even have to go through a human checkpoint. I have one of the new EU passports that contains some sort of special technology identifying me. All I had to do was scan the passport and have my picture taken. Or maybe the machine was scanning my eyes, I don’t know. Anyway, I wasn’t deported!

I made it to my new neighborhood, Lewisham, without a hitch. My new roommate, Alex, is really cool. He’s in publishing/a band and his girlfriend Lindsay, who just moved to Bristol for the year, is an aspiring illustrator of children’s books. There is also Steve, who I haven’t met yet, and a rabbit named Monty.

Now, I’m off to explore my neighborhood and buy bedding. Last night I slept in a sleeping bag, which left me with the icky feeling of camping, which I’ve never been a fan of.

Have a great weekend!