Hello from across the pond!! Its late here so I don't have much time to elaborate on everything but so far we've had a great two days! My flight in was nice, didn't get much sleep overall but I'm used to that so it wasn't too hard to trudge through the day, I think I fared far better than the other girls who aren't quite as used to it. Anyway, I got to meet a lot of the girls at the airport and chat with them so it was nice to finally meet them. We took a charter bus to the AIFS headquarters and man do these Londoners drive like mad men. I'm convinced there are no road rules here, not even the whole drive on the left side, other than just do't hit anything. So that was quite an experience. Truly surprise all the cars we see so far have all their mirrors and no dents. Even in the states the cars are scuffed and dented. We took a cab to our homestay family and got to meet them, they're absolutely a hoot and I just love the style. Our house is crammed with the four of us, three Italian boys learning English, the owners Christie and Martin, and their older daughter and teenage son. It's wild but somehow we all have spaced and even separate living room/ lounges. Christie made us a lovely little pasta dinner that we had in the garden our first night and she walked us all around the area and to the tube the next day for class. Managing the tube hasn't been that hard, its rather like the DART system back home, just bigger and more crowded. Our second day here we went to ostentation and then got a tour, our guide was absolutely wonderful and quite funny. He gave us lots of little tid-bits and pointed out many popular places. Our first major stop was Buckingham palace, man was it bumpin. Really impressive and beautiful, Lucy and I are booked for a tour to see the changing of the guards later to that will be fun. Next we went to the London tower and got to see cites were many of King Henry the 8th wives were executed, torture chambers/prisons were held, where the royal animal gifts stayed, and where they currently house the crown jewels. Back in the day the royals have been given everything from lions to elephants to a polar bear who caught his own fish in the Thames. The jewels were absolutely priceless, Insane how many diamonds and jewels go into making one crown that they wear one time for coronation and the likes. Overall it was a really neat stop, original structures and right on the river as a fortress. We also got to see some of the still intact Roman wall that originally encircled London. Finally, we rounded out the day at a pub with some pizza. It was really fun, I'm so grateful I'm getting on so well with the girls I'm with. They're great and we have a lot of the same values and interests. I think this is the beginning of an unforgettable adventure.