10/4/11 ----- London, England

At the Tower Bridge 

So, as most of you know, I’ve finally gotten the chance to get out of the country for the first time since I moved here which was about ten years ago! I’m super grateful for the opportunity and being able to have my parents with me just makes it all the better since I get pretty homesick if I’m separated from them for more than like, two days! Anyways, let’s get right to business - I'M IN ENGLAND!! I've been here four days now and it's absolutely amazing!! We’re staying at my dad’s sister’s house while we’re here and they’re so great! They’ve welcomed us so completely and let us totally mess up their house with all our suitcases with no complaints haha. The first day was really laid back because I was majorly jet-lagged and basically slept the entire day when I got here. At night though, we went to Queen's Walk just to walk around a bit and see the city from afar, get some fresh air and all. It was pretty nice but I was exposed to the ridiculously crazy driving here. I mean seriously, the roads are insanely complicated and there are cars going here and there and people walking in the middle of the streets and I honestly thought I was going to get into accident every two minutes! Overall though, it was a nice little introduction to city life and got me pretty excited to see even more.

I got that chance the very next day! We went down to East London to go for Indian shopping and food which was really nice cos the stuff there is so cheap and I got some pretty cool things! We also visited Oxford Circus which is one of the most famous streets in London, mostly for its’ shopping. Some random things I found interesting throughout the day: the pound notes! I was so scared that I'd mistake them for garbage and throw them away cos they're so flimsy! I also find that having so many coins is a little weird and confusing but it’s one of my goals to learn the currency before I leave so let’s see how I do :) Also, I got to sit in the upper deck of the double decker bus!! Sorry but that's sort of a big deal you know. It’s a really relaxing way to see the city and get some fresh air at the same time. What I found fascinating while getting glimpses of the city was that it's so modern and current but then you see the parts of it that remind you of how incredibly old it is as well. It makes it really easy for your imagination to turn back time a few centuries when there were horse drawn carriages going through the streets you're currently driving through.

That night we had some relatives come over for dinner and I got to see the great differences between my dad’s side of the family and my mom’s. Living here in Minnesota, I’ve been raised only with my mom’s family who are very liberal in their thinking most of the time and are pretty westernized. I only saw very little of my dad’s side during some weddings throughout the years. However, this vacation was specifically to meet all my relatives from across the pond and I got to do just that. They’re different in the way that they’re a lot…louder? Haha but in a really, really good way. I feel so comfortable and fully at ease. Yes they’re thinking is a lot more conservative but I’ll just make sure not to get into any debates while I’m here ;) Really though, no matter how different my families from both sides are, the one thing they all have in common is that they’ve all got really big hearts and would do anything to make a person feel at home and will make sure to be there for them no matter what. What more could one wish for in a family? So cheesy, but so true :)