Published by HerCampus – November 5, 2010
College is a time where we have to take advantage of every opportunity thrown at us whether it is a chance for extra credit, an internship or a bogus holiday. Ok, so Columbus Day and Veteran’s Day aren’t bogus holidays, but they aren’t the usual ‘no classes’ holidays, but when they are, we should jump all over them.
This year, I spent Columbus Day weekend in London. I saw the opportunity way back in April after learning my one of best friends was studying abroad and I knew I didn’t have classes on Fridays. Conveniently, neither did our other best friend. There Kate and I were, sitting in Boston Common Coffee Co. when we grabbed our iPhones and searched for a weekend to jump the pond that be the Atlantic Ocean for London: Round 2.
Kate, Maggie and I have been best friends since we were 2 years old. We went to preschool together and never the same school after that – three elementary schools, three middle schools, three high schools and now three different colleges. While Kate and I wound up in Boston together, Maggie chose warm Texas.
After we all graduated from high school, in early June 2008, we boarded a plan bound for London to celebrate. We would spend the following seven packed days sight seeing and doing every tourist trap imaginable.
Fast forward to this past April, when Kate and I sat drinking coffee staring at Columbus Day weekend, thinking, “if our parents said ‘yes,’ it would totally work.” Having already been once, we knew we didn’t need a full week. We’d done all the touristy things, we could go back and just hang out with Maggie who, in theory, would know the city and show us the things we missed the first time.
And, that’s exactly what we did. We looked at our schedules and made the decision to extend our weekend into the school week. We used vayama.com to book steal-of-a-deal airline tickets. We left on an overnight flight the Thursday night before Columbus Day and came back the following Wednesday.
I watched exchange rates in the months prior to acquaint myself with what I was preparing to spend. I made the decision to turn a paycheck into British Pounds at the beginning of July rather than waiting for October and it might have been the best decision I made. That way I knew I would have money for the trip and didn’t have to worry too much about what I spent in the weeks before.
We used this trip as a much needed break from school, to let loose, drop our school work and student groups, to have fun and to remember the days when the end of canceled classes weren’t around the corner.
We walked the streets near the Tower of London and reminisced about the pub on the corner where we had our first, and last, Pimm’s Cup. We marked our first night with Indian food in Covent Garden and remember the place that that didn’t bring us rice. We dressed in neutrals to blend in and avoid awkward questions as to which ‘football’ team we were backing.
Leading up to the trip, I couldn’t believe I was going. At the airport boarding the plan it still hadn’t hit me. Even being on the ground, riding the Tube from Heathrow into the city, it still hadn’t sunk in. After all, it was Columbus Day weekend and I was in London.
I’m not saying that given every day off, run to another country, but make the best of those days off because unless you go into banking or the postal system, Columbus Day will soon be spent working. For you next trip to London, here are my must-sees and dos:
Do a double-decker tour bus early. Most are hop on, hop off and good all day so use it as your transportation to get your bearings and deicide what else you want to see.
See a play. Rush tickets are available morning of for most shows. We saw Billy Elliot from the second row.
Do a museum. Most are free entrance in London; we did the Natural History Museum.
See a random monument. The Monument of the Great Fire of London is a workout in itself – you can climb 311 stairs to the top for a panoramic view of the city for a lot less than the London Eye (which is still really cool).
Do a market. This trip we did Portobello Road in Notting Hill where I got a dress and earrings that I’m in love with and we had an amazingly cheap and delicious lunch from the stands. Last time around it was Camden Markets.
Eat ethnically. Get pub food once or fish and chips, but we had some of the best Indian cuisine and Spanish style tapas with sangria on this trip.
But…
Don’t eat sushi in a train station, even if someone say’s it’s good.
While these are specifics to London, apply my points to everywhere else you travel. Mix the tourist with the adventurist and see what you come up with because soon these trips will be work, not pleasure. So, what are you doing this Veteran’s Day?