Day 3 – CAPA Orientation
I took
a shower at 6:30am and got dressed in my nicer clothes, with the motto of “First
impressions are everything, Christina!!” ringing in the back of my head. I decided to not bother Keira for the
trip from Islington to Kensington so I braved it alone. With some pretty terrible cereal in my
stomach and a death grip on my purse, I headed off to the tube. Being from New
York, I’m pretty skilled at the Metro, so in actuality the tube was pretty easy
to maneuver. It was actually easier than the Metro in NYC because it had way
more signs and information clueing you as to where you should go. So, so far I
haven’t gone in the incorrect direction…but I’m sure that will change.
I
arrived to the Gloucester Rd. station and saw Keira there! So we
navigated our way to the center and made it there with 20 minutes to
spare. I’m a very punctual person so 20 minutes early on the first day was
right on time for me. The center is a very nice building in a gorgeous
location! It looks expensive at least. The rooms are air conditioned (unheard
of in the UK apparently) and there is even a little hang out and drink
soda/water area. Once it was 10:10am we were escorted
upstairs to the “Kensington Room” (one of many classrooms in the building).
Off the bat I was a little tired because of the jet lag but I was instantly
awakened by the teachers for the 10:30am-12:00pm orientation
session. There we learned about safety procedures, the staff, basic SOPs (standard
operating procedures) really. I also found out at that meeting that I had a focus session in zone 3, meaning that I’d have to pay myself to get there every day
to work instead of everyone else with a zone 2 internship who got to go for
free. That was a little annoying, according to one of the teachers I am going to get
reimbursed but not until the end of the trip…right when I won’t need the extra
50 pounds. Oh well, be flexible right?
After
the orientation session there was another orientation
session with a man whose name I cannot remember. He talked to us about the serious side of the program and how attendance was very, VERY mandatory and
how instead of buying textbooks for my course I’d have to pay 30 pounds
instead for special trips and what not. This was good news to me because for some reason I had received an
email saying that I needed to buy 2 books and I had put it off till I was in
London and I wasn’t sure how the postal system worked in this country…SO, this
was good news. The second orientation session wasn’t very long (thankfully) and
so after that we were given a break and this bit was probably the best part of
my day. Keira, Tom Hiddles and I walked in the opposite direction of the main crowd and
found a small little Italian place about 10 minutes away. Inside were squares
of pizza – not slices – pasta that was sold in bags, and cooked lasagna and
other Italian treats. I got the cheese square of pizza and it was probably the
best square of pizza I’ve ever had. The crust was so delicious and light and
crunchy tasted of polenta somehow…Along with my pizza I got a large tea (“when
in Rome”) and enjoyed it thoroughly. Everyone who worked there also spoke
fluent Italian because some people would then order in Italian! It was like I
dropped off the planet and landed in Italy. Truly amazing.
Keira, Hiddles, and I then headed back to the course building and got on a luxurious coach bus for a panoramic
tour of London that would last 3 hours. My oh my, 3 hours is a long time. I
popped in and out of sleep after hour 1 because of the terrible jet lag I was
facing. But the sights were beautiful nonetheless. One of the stand-outs was
Buckingham Palace where we couldn’t get in because of HM the Queen’s Garden
Party! There were about 100 people lined up outside in these large, outlandish
hats and very formal, yet conservative, attire. It was like a scene out of “Downtown
Abbey”. I also liked the story about how the London Bridge used to be a bridge
where old Englishmen would put the heads of traitors on stakes and place them
on the bridge, as a warning to those who enter. Quite disturbing, but also very
interesting. By the time we all got back to Finsbury Park we were exhausted. I
got some fish and chips (maybe one of the greasiest things I’ve ever put in my
body), watched a little TV, and fell asleep around 10pm.
Everyone loves James McAvoy. He's okay. haha im literally typing this with this bitch behind me. (not my images obviously)
