"America is a baby, really." - me "We're just teething." - my brother

I ended up having a good first weekend in Brighton ("first" after orientation, at least). On Saturday I went with my flatmate Amy and my friend from Wash U, Audrey, to Brighton. We explored the beach and the pier (there is a midway with rides, but I've heard they're pricey), and I am so happy to be so close to the ocean. I'm pretty sure I'll be going to the beach every free weekend I have once the weather turns warmer. We got fish and chips for lunch and then went shopping. Don't get too excited - my big purchases were postcards and socks. haha There are so many shops in Brighton, I'm pretty sure I could go there every weekend until June and not see them all. I saw Terre a Terre, a world-famous vegetarian restaurant that I'm excited to try (saving it for a special occasion though, because I've heard it's also pricey. darn exchange rate).

On Sunday I went with some Wash U girls and a couple other international students to Rottingdean, a nearby town where Rudyard Kipling lived for a few years. The scenery during the bus ride there was so quintessentially English - rolling green hills (I don't know how the grass is so green here, but it's definitely a different green than in the US), sometimes juxtaposed with views of the ocean. I don't think pictures will ever do this place justice... which just means that you all have to come visit me. ;-) We had afternoon tea complete with cake, sandwiches and scones with clotted cream and jam. yummm. There was also a little museum that told the history of Rottingdean, particularly during WWII and Rudyard Kipling's time there. Rottingdean was where I saw the pub that is nearly 200 years older than America, hence the conversation with my brother. Some of the buildings really did look medieval.

Some of us "expats" went to East Slope Bar on campus (the one near my flat) to watch the inauguration on Tuesday (the swearing-in ceremony started at 4:30 here, so most people were out of class by then). The place was packed - standing-room only - and not just with Americans! It sort of made me wish I could be in two places at once, because I bet the atmosphere was even more electrifying in the US, but it was still cool to experience it from another side. The Brits are big fans of Obama, too. The same bar stayed open until 3 AM on Election Day so that people could watch the results come in. Afterwards some of us went to a pub in Brighton called The King & Queen to celebrate. They have karaoke on Tuesdays. I didn't sing this time, but it's one of my goals for the semester. I'm also considering singing at an open mic night on campus - another one of the on-campus bars hosts one every Thursday. I went last night with my flatmates and some of the performers were really good!

Now my brand new, heavy duty traveling backpack is packed for London, where Wash U is sending us for a weekend orientation. I'm hoping it works well, especially after the "test runs" around the house and all the effort my parents put into buying it (including driving to Barnes & Noble to ask what color I wanted because they needed to order it by a certain time and I was too engrossed in New Moon to answer my phone... oops... thanks, Mom and Dad!). I'm leaving at 2:10 to take the train from campus to the Brighton train station, where we'll meet our guide for the weekend and continue on to London. Being the Harry Potter nerd that I am, I'm really hoping that we get off at King's Cross Station (aka home to Platform 9 3/4... yes, they actually have a photo op especially for hopeless fans like me). We're seeing Wicked tomorrow night - I'm excited to compare this cast to the one I saw in St. Louis.

Oh, one of the best parts of my week was buying tickets for Spring Awakening! Spring Awakening is a musical that I first became a fan of last spring. It's closing on Broadway this month and going on a national (US) tour that is coming to St. Louis in February. I was really upset to discover that I'd be missing it while I was abroad, until I found out that a UK version was also opening in January! I made it my mission to go, and luckily Audrey (the same girl I mentioned before, another Wash U student who is here) was interested when I told her about it. We found a weekend we can both go (February 27th) and I got 5th-row seats for 25 pounds!! SO EXCITED. Those of you who know my obsession with musicals will understand why this was on my must-do list for the semester!

I'm trying to figure out a way to share my pictures with all of you (mainly, the ones who aren't on Facebook). I'll be able to post a few on here, but I'll take way more than that. I think you have to have a Yahoo account to use Flickr. Any suggestions?