To say the least, my traveling experience and first day in England has been two words: tiring and intriguing. Immediately stepping out of the airport, it still had a familiar feel to how America is, grey-toned and chilly. I thought the different ways of transportation were fascinating to see in real life. Driving on the left side of the road in cars with massive windows is intriguing to see outside of social media. After a long day of travels, we finally arrived at our first stop: Birmingham! We first went to a sports pub to have our first real meal in the United Kingdom. I decided before departing on this trip that I need to try new food that is authentic to this country to make the most of the experience. I ate my first fish and chips with mashed peas on the trip and I was pleasantly surprised by the dish. Even though it may not seem appealing to some people, it did definitely satisfy my post flight hunger.
After that delicious meal, we walked about 5 miles around the whole city of Birmingham exploring all the new places it holds for us. One thing that surprised me was how many canals run throughout the city. Before coming here, I never realized Birmingham had such an extensive canal system and it gave parts of the city a calm atmosphere despite how busy everything else felt. Walking along the canals was peaceful and seeing the narrow house boats docked along the water made the city feel unique compared to places I have visited before. The mix of the water, bridges, and older brick buildings created some of the best views we saw all day. A memorable part of the walk was visiting the Ozzy Osborne shrine on Black Sabbath Bridge. Since Birmingham is the hometown of Black Sabbath, it was really cool seeing how much pride the city has for its music history. We stopped to take pictures by the bridge and the memorial area, and it was one of the best photo opportunities of the whole day. There were multiple people walking by that seemed eager to take a picture next to his bench, which added to the atmosphere. My favorite part of all the sightseeing was the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery looking at all the historical and cultural pieces that come from this city. There were beautiful sculptures and murals created from artists from the Birmingham area.
During the walk I did notice something that stood out to me. The architecture and its setup can be very similar to the city of Pittsburgh’s. There are beautiful, old buildings that have a lot of history behind them, and on the other hand there are large, modern buildings that bring a newer feel to the historical city. In the end, my first day in England was educational but in an engaging way. I hope to try more food, see new historical sights, and take tons of pictures along the way.
