London vs. Europe

I wanted to follow-up on a previous post regarding the Pros and Cons to London. I spoke about my favorite aspects and my not so favorite aspects of the city. In addition to this, I wanted to speak about how London compares to the other cities I visited in Europe. When I was abroad, I travelled to 11 cities in 10 countries. It was quite a lot to handle in a matter of 4 months. I definitely saw differences between London and the cities that I visited in Europe. For example, the city of London is completely English speaking, while the other cities I visited were native speaking cities. Just this little difference made my experience in each city vastly unique. I had to learn how to adapt to the culture of Prague, Budapest, Paris, and Venice in a matter of a couple of days. I didn't want to embarrass myself in these cities, so I had to observe the way people acted around me to learn how they ordered food or asked a local for directions. In London, I felt like I could go up to anyone and just ask where to go and they would point me in the right direction. The city that I had the most trouble with translations was Munich, Germany. Purchasing tickets for the subway system in Munich from the airport took years off of my life. Not one person I asked knew English or even had a clue what I was talking about. That's why I loved London so much: I don't speak any other languages, so finding my way around the city was quite easy and accessible as a foreigner. Language was one of the hardest barriers I had to overcome when traveling through European cities.

Another difference between London and the cities I visited was the food. I have to say, the food in London gets quite boring and is the same in every pub you go to. I loved how unique the food was to each city. In Paris, all I ate were Croque-Monsieur sandwiches. In Venice, I had the freshest pesto pasta I could ever imagine. In Budapest, I ate goulash soup for the first time ever (and it was amazing). I think if I had one more steak and ale pie in London, my mother wouldn't recognize me. I wish the cuisine in London was more exotic and diverse. The people are certainly diverse, but the food tended to be consistent throughout the city. It was either meals that I could find in New York or pub food. Europe is great in the way that each city's food is specific to the culture, which I didn't find to be the case in London.

Although London has many amazing aspects that attract so many visitors to the city, Europe has a rustic and authentic feel that London is beginning to lose. I think that this has to do with the fact that many U.S. business firms are focusing on the global mindset. Many firms are transitioning their national office to the U.K. This blend of cultures would never happen in Rome or Prague, where there is so much history ingrained in the surrounding area. There is so much magic in the architecture and beauty of Europe that London and the U.S. will never gain.

Clothing in London

Ever since I can remember, my mother has called me a "shop-o-holic". I love purchasing a new outfit for special occasions. There's a certain type of joy that comes in buying a new outfit for school, holidays, birthdays, etc....My mother was not too thrilled when I told her I needed a new wardrobe for London. If I was there for a few weeks, I wouldn't have bought anything new. However, living there for 4 months required a shopping trip. When I was packing for London, I stuffed a duffle bag inside my checked luggage because I knew that the shopping in London was top of the line.

My university was located on High Street Kensington. This is a very posh area that is known for its shopping. During my breaks in between classes,  I would walk down High Street and browse the shops. By the end of the semester, I had to pay $200 at the airport for my extra luggage that was filled with all the new clothes that I bought. The style in London is completely different from where I grew up in Connecticut. At home, my style is preppy, classic, and clean-cut. I wear bright colors like salmon, turquoise, pink, blue, and some neutrals. I bought a trench coat, hunter boots, and a Barbour Coat before I left for London because that is what I believed to be the style there. When I arrived in London, everyone was wearing black. Some people wore dark jeans, black nike running sneakers, and either a neutral or black top. Don't get me wrong, there were some people wearing trench coats, Hunter boots, and Barbour Coats. However, when I travelled to Scotland, the style there was much more of what I expected it to be in London.

The shops that I went to in London the most were Zara and H&M. Although we have these stores in America, the type of clothes in the European version of these stores are made with much better quality and are a little bit cheaper. My favorite pieces of clothing that I bought from Zara was a black peacoat and 3 fall patterned scarves. My favorite piece of clothing I bought from H&M was a black long sweater with leather sleeves from the Venice, Italy store.

When I came back to America, I incorporated my preppy style with my London style. This turned into me wearing my tall brown boots, dark jeans, the sweater from H&M, and my Barbour coat. I now believe that I found my style that I will wear for the rest of my life and one that is truly me.