July 17

RACE DAY!

post-race

pre-race

We took the tube to Olympic park in the morning. We had to get there early to get JT her race bib...and free snacks that were being handed out. We were off at 10:55 and JT and I got split up early on, and we just ran. The track kept pointing us towards the stadium and then would veer us off on some 2 mile detour, it kept getting my hopes up that we were almost done. Meh.

 I began walking after the 8km, and it lasted about 3 minutes before JT caught up to me. This all worked out great though, because we finished together and didn't have to try and find each other afterwards. It was great! Running though the stadium, with everyone around, and intense Olympic music playing in the background. Wow. We took tons of pictures, and JT was exhausted, but I felt like I could keep going.

We took the tube back and waited about 45 minutes before going out for "breakfast." It was 3 o'clock, but we went to The Breakfast Club in Soho and got ourselves some great breakfast.

July 16

JT and I went out towards Embankment today for the Summer Festival. We sat in the burning sun for 2 hours, and obviously got burnt, then walked around London for a while. The festival had singer/bands playing, food trucks, and market stalls. I got lemonade and ice cream, because it was dreadfully hot (at a very high 77 degrees). I'm not lying, this was the hottest, sunniest day that we've had since the second day of being in London. We were sweating and it grossly hot, and I'm embarrassed to say that, but I'm not even kidding.

The man up on stage was pulled from the crowd as a "filler" between sets. He was there because his daughter was singing later, but he was invited to do a lip sync battle versus the host. He won. It was a really great performance of Elvis.

July 15

Everybody left this morning around 7am, so I was awoken by multiple alarms. I eventually got up to run around 10, which was a very, very rough run. I'm hoping it was because I didn't eat anything beforehand, but come Sunday, I'll guess I'll find out.

I went to the JLT Re (4th largest reinsurer in the world, based on revenue) actuarial seminar today. It took me a little while to figure out which direction to turn after getting off the tube (which was running behind), but I figured it out. I looked like I fit in, and I felt like I fit in with all the other business like people I passed, it's was great.


The seminar itself was being led by one of their actuaries, Jamie. He has been studying/taking the exams for about 5 years now and it almost finished, I would say he was in his early/mid 30's. The other, dozen or so, people were students, interns, or who worked in another section of JLT. Many were interns in the analytical department, or there were a few who were employed there. One intern, was just finishing her A-levels, most similar to our high school diploma. They go to college when they are 16-18, where they complete their A-levels, then continue on to university for 4 years.

These people had been going through seminars all week, it sounds like, on subjects like reinsurance, risk management, construction insurance, etc. etc. This was the last one for the week and they only have to attend if the subject interests them. I can honestly say, of the students, I knew the most about the actuarial field, I did not, however, know how the UK went about it. In the US we only have, at most, 9 exams that an actuary can take, in the UK they are required to take 15. I d believe the UK's exams are a bit shorter and many make up 1 US exam, but still, 15 is a lot. They also do not need to be specialized in math(s), like we do in the US. It is technically not required to be a math, insurance, financial, major to take the exams in the US, but certain classes are required before taking the exams, and it would definitely help more. An intern, who is getting his degree in chemistry wanted to know if he could go through the actuarial process without having taken his A-levels, and Jamie though he could, if he wanted to put in the effort. I think in America that would be very hard to do. It was just really interesting looking at the data they create and what he does.

There was one question he asked us: A bus only has 3 stops and the time from stop 1 to stop 2 is normally 5 minutes, and the ride from stop 2 to 3 is only 5 minutes. One day the ride from stop 1 to 2 takes 6 minutes. How long with the journey take?

The majority of them though, '11 minutes,' of course, which is what he wanted them to say, I could tell. If this was all the known data, it is just a guess on how long the ride takes, but so many factors come into play that need to be taken into account. That was my first though, so I like to think I'm on the right career path, but who knows.

Later in the night JT and I went on a walk through town. We tried to take as many side streets as possible, and we ended up coming across some pretty cool areas. We made it to the richer part of the city, and we found ourselves in the "pub" district. Everyone was still dressed in their business wear just drinking at the pub, a favorite British past time, all along this particular street. It was an awesome sight.

July 14

My class is great! On Tuesday we visited the Insurance Institute of London and met with the Institute Secretary (CEO) of the Institute. She told us about what she though would come from Brexit and that France and Germany are already attempting to take over as the financial hub for Europe. We learned of the history behind the building and the financial district of the city. The building they are in is the oldest one, as it was the saved from the fires of London, but the ones around it were not so fortunate. They tell stories of how, supposedly, those that lived/worked in the building in the 1900's kicked burning cans onto the neighboring buildings so this particular one would be the supreme. They are the only insurance business in their area now, and are probably going to move in the near future. The IIL is really like a collective group of members in the insurance industry. Being a part of this association allows for networking opportunities and invitations to lectures from those higher up in the industry.

It started to downpour on our way back, and 3/5 TA&M guys didn't have an umbrella or raincoat, so they were drenched. I was responsible for getting them back to the study center, but they took the 15 minute walk to the metro with pride. They were soaked. It was hilarious. It did this constantly for the rest of the day, and at one point I was not going to run, but Alayna had gone to the gym, so I had to go. I ran for a decent 15 minutes before it started pouring again. I had my towel waiting for me, though, downstairs for when I got back. I'm really glad I don't need to constantly be wearing my glasses anymore.

Inside of Royal Courts of Justice

On Wednesday we had a fire drill, which I woke myself up for, because we knew it was happening, because the PA told Reid, who did not have to write a letter to his parents, even though he was in the building after us that last time. I'm not over it, because favoritism is not going to get her very far in the real world that she has yet to enter. I'm not a fan. Then FSU was taking a group to Westminster, but due to the fire alarm, there was about 10 minutes to get ready, which I chose not to do. I decided, that they were only going into the cathedral, which I could do on a Sunday morning while attending a service. Instead, Alayna, Reid and I watched movies and got burritos, my first one (they're special). Then, after the food coma wore off, I went on a very long run, that lasted way longer than expected, which ended up giving me blisters because I was wearing the wrong socks. I felt great though, so that's all that matters.

Courtroom inside Royal Courts of Justice

Today, Thursday, the 3 of us that were in class took a tour of "legal London." This is where all the lawyers (barristers and solicitors in the UK) come to study, intern and work. There are 4 Inns of Courts in London, and we walked through 3, and the Royal Courts of Justice. Being a apart of the Inn is similar to the Bar. In the UK, written exams were not required to study law until the 1870's. Instead, they would come and shadow others for 12 months. The first 6 months would be more like an intern, and the last 6 months they would be given their own small cases to work. It was also, and still is, required to eat 24 (now 12) meals at your Inn's dining hall. Someone used to read out scrolls of information while people ate, so they would consume food and knowledge. They no longer read while people are eating, but it is still required that one attends 12 meals a year to be considered a part of a certain Inn. Walking through the Royal Courts was really awesome, too. We couldn't take pictures, but the inside was built like a cathedral. We actually got to watch a case take place, for about 10 minutes. They were wearing their wigs and robes, of course. They are very big on traditions here. It was an overall great class.

One of the dining halls

I will also have to opportunity to sit in on an actuarial seminar Friday at JLT Reinsurance in London. My professor mentioned it, wondering if I would be interested in going to different events on days we didn't have class or ones after class hours. For this particular one he was thinking we would be gone on a trip (which we would be, but I'm not going), when I told him I would be here he sent an e-mail to them and I'm going. I'm so excited. I won't have any idea what they are talking about or what's happening, but I'll be there, even though it's only an hour, and I'm beyond excited for this opportunity. I actually called my dad right after class because I needed someone who would be excited for me to know what was going on. My roommates just thought that I was crazy...

Lincoln Inn Field

Around midnight, my friends and I sat around the BBC News channel to get updated on what happened in Nice. We were there for 2 hours. It's really sad, especially because it's becoming normal for us over here.

July 11

TODAY HAS BEEN THE WILDEST DAY OF MY LIFE. i love it.

So, I started off with a nice run then came back got breakfast, and then got ready for class. This class was in a classroom half the size of my bedroom at home, and there were 10 of us if we included the teacher. Including me, there are 2 girls (except she dropped after today, so it's just me) and, in total, 7 Texas A&M people (now 5, because 2 dropped *female included). The only other FSU person took this class back in Tallahassee, so now he's "in" this class, but is kind of doing his own thing, but still doing visits with us, at a much higher class level (RMI3011 to RMI4045).

So, we went to this museum today and looked at the "risk" behind cultures, my group of 3 had to do ours on Africa...it was an exhibit in the museum. I'm not complaining, at least we get out of the classroom everyday. Mason and Dylan (whose real name is Matthew) were my partners for this project.

The things I learned about the Texas A&M Guys

• This is the first time FSU and TA&M have partnered up for London study abroad
• The only reason they're studying here is because it's required for their major
• The only reason they're in London is because the Germany and Spain study abroad programs were full, so they had to find a way here
• They are all architecture majors, so none of these classes apply to them
• They will all graduate in December
• They do not like Obama
• They do not like Clinton
• They had a teacher from OSU that called soda, "pop" to annoy them :)
• They are really cool people and I enjoy them so much

After class I attempted to go shopping for "business casual" clothes/shoes. This store, Primark, sells the cheapest clothes, shoes, and accessories, so it's always crowded. It's awful quality, but I only needed it to last me 3 days. It took me 45 minutes to find everything I was looking for, and another 45 minutes waiting in line (even though there are 4 floors to check out from) when I decided I would work with what I've got. 

At some point I made it to Sainsbury's and got myself steak and french fries for dinner. I've decided to live it up for my last 20 some days here, and it started with dinner. After class and the Primark deal, I just needed something good, so that was it. After dinner JT wanted to go shoe shopping, but by the time we got out, most of the places were closed. In that moment, I suggested we get ice cream, which led to Ben and Jerry's, which brought us to Tesco...which did not have Ben and Jerry's, so that led me to brownies, which led me to brownie batter, which in turn led to me to making brownie batter and eating 3/4 of it tonight. 

For our project, we had to meet up to type some stuff out, so it was me and the 5 TA&M guys, that were still in the class, in the computer lab for about 45 minutes and it was great. I just cannot get over the fact that Dean stood up from his chair, and took his hat off just to shake my hand (the dainty way) and tell me his name. I felt honored. And they have a little twing in their accents, it's not too southern, but you can hear it. They made fun of me for saying "Reese's" the way that I do, but they were glad that I did not say 'crick' for creek, or 'warshing' for washing. We had one of those, 'you say it, I say it' competitions. It was great. All of this was going on while Dylan was writing our paper and I was eating brownie batter.

Then we sat with Aleesia and her family in their apartment for a while, which is always a good time. We have a 3 day weekend on the weekend of November 11 and it has already been decided that I'm road tripping it to Charlotte with them and I'm beyond stoked. The sugar rush is real tonight (and for the past 4 hours) and I just have a feeling it's going to be a great end to my first year abroad.

July 8-10

Resting on our
night walk

JT and I have just been trying to relax, for the most part, since getting back from our trip. Nothing too exciting has been happening, but we've been trying to keep busy. I've been running everyday, to get back in the game. We wanted to take a day trip somewhere, but the tickets were so expensive, so we decided we could just figure out things to do in London. On Friday we stayed in, but went for a long walk at night (gotta get those steps in). On Saturday we WALKED to the Portobello Road Market. It took us about 2 hours to get 6 miles, but it was well worth the struggle. It's a really interesting, open market, and we were given free falafels! We took the tube back though, then I ate a lot, because I earned it.

I went to church, and I can honestly say I enjoy being read to by someone with a British accent. The priest is from Portugal, I'm assuming due to his accent and the mass held in Portuguese at 4 pm, so he was a little difficult to understand. It's so weird to me that this entire hour event can occur in different countries and languages and still be exactly the same. Like Spain, everyone rushes to the front to get communion, but here at least a line was formed. The priest stands behind a little gate thing, and they kneel in a line in front of the gate/wall. He walks back and forth giving communion, while the server holds a tray underneath him (can't let even a single crumb fall). Then as people receive communion, they get up and another person takes their place. This could be where the cultural, 'Americans are always in a hurry,' aspect comes in, but I honestly felt like there was a more efficient way to complete this task. Besides that it was nice to understand what was being said, but I still found myself resulting back to Spanish for a few phrases. For example, when saying the creed, "from light to light," in Spanish is "de luz en luz," and it's one of things I could pick on to know where we were at. It's all just so interesting!

On Sunday we walked to Borough Market, which was closed, but some stands were open to celebrate Bastille Day. I guess 60% of the London population have a french background, so they had a celebration for it. On the way we watched some of the Wimbledon Championships, outside of a restaurant that was screening it. Andy Murray was the favorite here, obviously. Then, of course, we walked back. My legs are going to look amazing when I get home.

July 7

We got a great nights sleep because we didn't have any snoring or coughing, the shade darkened the room, and wet had air conditioning! It was so nice, we left the hotel around 9:30, got a quick bite to eat at Starbucks and then hopped on a flight to London Heathrow. Heathrow! This was the most brilliant part of our plan, because the tube takes us right home. No annoying buses, or expensive trains...life is good!

The flight was through British Airways, so it was a decent sized plane, and because we were flying from Luxembourg, it was basically empty. I got a window seat and the whole row to myself. The flight was only about an hour and a half, but that didn't stop them from giving us drinks and snacks (FOR FREE!). It's really different from the many Ryanair fights we've been on.

Once we got to the airport, we walked to the metro and we were home in an hour. It was glorious. Then, I realized no one was home, and the cleaning people had just cleaned that morning. It was spotless and empty and great. It was a great day.