Today was our last day in Birmingham. We started out the day getting ready with plenty of time to spare to have a nice leisurely breakfast. After, we put all of our luggage down into a locked room in the hotel. Then, we walked over to Birmingham City University (BCU) where we had two lectures and a tour of their simulation labs. The first presentation we had was on smoking and cardiovascular disease. This is an important topic of a disease that only continues to increase to the point that more people die from cardiovascular diseases than cancer. Not only did the presenter tell us more about the disease, she also had us do a quick debate on whether or not we thought there should be areas to smoke at schools and hospitals for example. This was an interesting debate, I was a part of the group who voted against it and our consensus was that it is bad role modeling. After, we were taken to a different part of the building where they had simulations labs. We got to see the labor and delivery simulation lab, CPR/Heimlich maneuver lab, the neonatal room, patient room, operating room, and EMS lab. It was interesting to see all of the different rooms and the mannequins were quite funny looking. I do not understand too much about all of the nursing labs, but it was still cool to see. Next, we had a lecture on learning disabilities nurses. Essentially, the two presenters explained what they do and the different levels of learning disabilities which are mild, moderate, severe, and profound. They also told us about the different causes for why individuals may develop learning disabilities which could be due to the mother’s illness in pregnancy, birth trauma, genetics, or illness/injury in early childhood. After we wrapped up our lectures and the tour we went and had our last lunch at BCU. Today I got a cheddar jacket potato, yogurt parfait, and a Coke. Once we wrapped up lunch we headed back to the hotel to get all of our luggage together and head onto a bus that would take us to London.

When we made it onto the bus, I originally thought I was going to sleep the entire ride there, but I actually stayed awake the whole time. It was a pretty long bus ride but eventually we got there and made it to our new hotel. It took a while for the rooms to get situated and once they did everyone got handed their keys to go into their room except for Kendall and I. The room we are in now was still being cleaned so we had to wait an additionally fifteen minutes to be able to go in our rooms. Once we finally got there, I was surprised to see how close the beds are together, and the space is even smaller than our last hotel. However, the pillows are a lot more comfortable, so I guess that is a plus. After we settled our stuff into the room, we eventually all had to head to the Pitt Alumni dinner. It was only a ten-minute walk from the hotel and all of our meals were already prepaid for. I got the Caesar salad for my entry and an ice cream apple crumble for dessert. I thought that the salad was super good, and the dessert was good as well just a bit too mushy for my liking. Once dinner wrapped up, a few others and I decided to go on a mission to get the last few souvenirs we wanted to buy. I got a pink London hoodie as my final personal souvenir and a London magnet for my cousin. The hoodie I got is very comfortable and I am excited to wear it when I am back home!

Overall, today was a good day and I am excited to explore all of London’s tourist attractions tomorrow!