Time in the UK: 13 hours, 58 minutes.

Time in my new flat: 9 hours.

Time asleep: 4 hours 41 minutes.

Time helplessly awake despite extraneous efforts to sleep: 1 hour, 46 minutes.

Here
I am. Finally! I thought I'd write on the plane ride – I had this idea
that all the thoughts running though my head about my 5-month stay in
London would best be tackled on a 12-hour transatlantic flight. I was
wrong. My knees hit the chair in front of me, the passenger of which
couldn't stand to waste any opportunity to recline his chair (even
during takeoff) and it was unbearably hot. And I had always really
enjoyed long flights...getting there is half the fun right?!

Everyone
kept telling me how cold London would be, so I had boarded the plane in
snow socks and a handful of wool and knit layers...a mistake on many
levels. I popped two "Simply Sleep" and kicked back (metaphorically
speaking of course. I was packed in so tight I'm relatively certain
kicking was a physical impossibility).

My cab fare from Heathrow
to my university ("uni" :P) was £48 or essentially, over $100. (My
fault, I knew what to expect). But it didn't matter – despite my reflex
to cringe up and hug the door of the car every time oncoming traffic
passed us on the right or we made a right-hand turn into the far end of
the street, I was thrilled to be back.

I settled into my
on-campus flat and started to unpack. About six garments later I ran
out of hangers and stopped. None of my flatmates were home. I surveyed
the place and gathered that there was at least one girl out of the five
other bedrooms in my flat and judging from the sparse condiments and
flatware in the kitchen, they were all most likely UK students who
hadn't returned from their winter break yet.

One big empty flat, all to myself.

I
arranged as much as I could, relaxed and set to go to bed early so I
could be up in time for orientation breakfast in the morning (8am). The
only trouble is I hadn't bothered to pack bedding (instead I made sure
I had all the essentials: shoes, sweaters, books and more shoes).
Seeing as it was too late to go shopping when I arrived, I figured I'd
rough it one night and buy bedding sometime the next day. (And seeing
as my flight was surprisingly less comfortable than I remembered, I
felt no shame at all in helping myself to on of those cheap,
prepackaged airline blankets on my way out the door).

I cuddled
up in my flannel, long-sleeve pajamas and wool socks (silently praising
my best friend for giving me such a practical Christmas gift). I
wrapped my wet post-shower hair in a towel and settled onto a travel
pillow I had brought, under my "blanket" (courtesy of Virgin Atlantic).

The heat was on. I was freezing.

I
lasted 10 minutes before I jumped up, put on a heavy wool coat and
tucked my hair into a knit cap. I laid back down. Still freezing. It
wasn't until I used my other heaving winter coat as a blanket and
wrapped my legs in the airplane one that I was finally able to fall
asleep.

When the heat turned off a few hours later, I woke up –
3:30 am! I made it until 4 before I burst out of bed determined to warm
myself up with every sweater I piled on. Only four hours until
breakfast...only 3 hours and 56 minutes until breakfast...only 3 hours
55 minutes and 24 second until breakfast!

I called my parents,
checked my email, downed a cup on instant coffee made from
one-serving-size paper package I found buried at the bottom of a
welcome pack the school had given me. Only 3 hours and 11 minutes until
breakfast.

I word to the wise, always pack a blanket. ;)

(Only 1 hour and 32 minutes to breakfast!)