A Love Letter to My British Home

Dear London,

Thank you. Through the four months that I have lived here, you have been wonderful. You were always filled with things to do, whether that meant visiting a pub on a Tuesday night, going clubbing for free on a Wednesday night, or looking at vintage and eating delicious food at Camden Market on a late Saturday afternoon. In September of 2017, I was going through arguably one of the most difficult months of my life due to personal problems back home, in which I had no control over since I was abroad, and you were programmed with so many options for me to take my mind off of things.

I won’t deny that on some days, I wished that I chose somewhere else in Europe to study abroad. You were too much like Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and every large city in that you were very modernized and lacked the European experience (unique architecture to that particular city, small mom-and-pop shops, one-of-a-kind food I could not get elsewhere) that I was craving for. However, as I travelled more around Europe, I realized that there is nothing wrong with being as modern as you are compared to other European cities, because you are still unique in your own way. I was able to find pieces of my American hometown in your architecture, pieces of American memories in your chain stores, and pieces of American eateries through your restaurants. Undoubtedly, there were times when I was homesick and wanted some really delicious Chinese food – and you were able to give that to me. All of that would not have been possible if I studied abroad in cities like Porto in Portugal or Marrakech in Morocco, where the culture is very immersive and enriching in of its own and not of others.

You were near six airports, so that meant more options to choose from when flying out to other cities for the weekend. Living three minutes walking distance from Kings Cross Station meant I had immediate access to St. Pancras and Kings Cross train stations to go to Hogwarts, France, Belgium, other parts of the United Kingdom, and more. When I get off the tube at Kings Cross, I was always surprised by how many people got off as well, but remembered that this is indeed a thriving point of interest for many who are in London to visit. I loved the livelihood of Kings Cross, and I loved seeing people enjoying the area as much as I did calling it my home in London.

So London – really, from the bottom of my heart, thank you. Thank you for taking in and taking such good care of someone who was happy, sad, grateful, lost.

Forever yours,

Jennifer