Today marked the first day of our global experience! We flew into Heathrow from Pittsburgh, and landed around 10:30 AM BST. Right away, I noticed how kind our flight attendants were. They were always checking in on us and were extremely friendly. From the airport, we boarded our bus for a 2 hour ride from London to Birmingham. We ate lunch at an adorable french restaurant called Bistro Pierre, and then walked around for a few hours exploring the city. I had steak frites for my main meal, which was absolutely delicious, followed by sticky toffee madeleine and some vanilla ice cream for dessert.
My immediate first impression of Birmingham was just how lively it is. We walked through multiple different areas of the city, and in each one, there were people of all ages out dancing, drinking, shopping, and even roller skating! Tomorrow is a bank holiday so the city was very active today, even into the night. Our hotel is located on a very busy street that is bustling with clubs, bars, and restaurants. I also noticed how many different cultures have monuments and how close together places of worship are, even for different religions. The train station even had a multicultural worship room. It was so interesting to be able to see a celebration of diversity just by walking through the city.
Another stand-out feature of Birmingham was the varying architectural styles in the buildings. Some of the buildings we saw today had a more traditional, brick feel to them, whereas others were super modern and almost looked like they came out of a futuristic movie. The city is very walkable, and even just by turning around a corner, you can discover entirely different style buildings, which was fascinating. We walked by some government buildings, monuments, and statues.
Birmingham seems to be similar to Pittsburgh in the way that they are both very walkable cities with lots of restaurants and things to do. Both have large shopping malls nearby! There’s lots of different cuisine in both cities.
It will definitely take some time to get used to cars being on the left side of the road, as well as all of the different terminology used over here. We discovered that Lay’s chips are called Walker’s crisps over here. While we were eating lunch, I kept having to remind myself that my ‘french fries’ were called ‘chips’ over here. We also have learned to ask for the nearest toilet or washroom rather than the nearest bathroom, like how we would back in the United States.
Tomorrow, we are headed to Stratford-upon-Avon for a tour, and later in the week, we will by visiting Birmingham Children’s Hospital, which is the most exciting part of our global experience in my opinion. Visiting the Children’s Hospital will be a super valuable experience, as we will be able to experience first hand how healthcare works differently in England than it does back home in the United States. I am looking forward to continuing the exploration of Birmingham with my new friends, as well as trying all of the restaurants around the city. I am also excited for Tuesday, which will be the first day we spend at Birmingham City University (BCU).