Ethan Knox

(3-10)– Today was our Shakespeare midterm, which was stressful and annoying. We’ve been on edge all week because we’re hearing concerning news about coronavirus, and feel like we haven’t been getting told everything (everything is getting cancelled, my Greyson Chance concert being one of them). Callie Frost, the program director, was also coming to visit, and since she’s here observing classes we thought we’d hear something. That didn’t happen exactly as we all planned. Classes finished up and we all went upstairs to the flat to get lunch, hoping that everything would be fine like almost everyone had been saying.

Unfortunately, a little past lunchtime we all got an email saying that we had to return to the U.S. IMMEDIATELY. There was a little bit of frantic talking as everyone let everyone else know and people called their parents telling them everything that was going on. It was actually quite eerie and frustrating, with everyone running around, some crying a bit, others just quite upset. I think I was mainly just in shock, but I called my roommate and my mom just to let them know. It took a couple hours before any of the teachers contacted us– of course, they didn’t have any information either, but it was really frustrating to have only silence when it felt like everything was falling apart.

Some people ran out to the grocery store to escape the madness and I went with them. I grabbed a cake and some Prosecco; I don’t really know what came over me, but it felt like I had to  say goodbye somehow, or make everyone else feel better about what was going on. Maybe I just wanted them to feel like everything was normal.. I don’t know. I had a slice and a glass while we all sat in the kitchen. Some people were low and some people were high, so it was a strange mix, but I think everyone was at least a little happy just to be together. I told them that they were free to eat and drink whatever they wanted, since I wouldn’t be needing it for much longer.

Before all the craziness began, Carly and I had actually just bought rush tickets today for Come From Away. We decided that it would actually be a good thing, to get our minds off of all the craziness that was happening, so we went. We had these really good balcony seats, and so we sat down and really enjoyed the show! It’s such a good story, and although it is about 9/11, it’s also heartwarming and about coming together as a community. Considering everything that’s going on, it actually hit extra hard, because that pain about disaster hitting your home-life and you trying to get home while also mourning the life you found spoke volumes to our situation.

Anyway, it did get us out of our heads a bit, but the crash back to reality was still hard. Hopefully there will be more in the next couple of days.

(3-11)– So we woke up today and there was definitely a different vibe. Mia, Rhyana, Gianna and I went out to get teas and breakfast at this cute little shop over in Convent Garden. The crumpets were a little dry, but it was really well made, and my lemongrass tea actually warmed me up and made me feel a little better.

It was nice to go out, especially since it feels like we’re trying to get all of the London experience we can.

The rest of the flat went and did their own things, but some of us went on a little walk. We went though Queen Victoria’s Gardens, walked across the Thames, and ended up underneath the London Eye.

There was a lot of really cool little sculpture stuff, and it felt a bit like a summer day, so it was nice, especially since we were trying our best to still joke around and laugh. It was 30 pounds to get on the London Eye, but since it was a nice day and we had been waiting to do it all semester, we decided it was still a good use of our money. Here’s some cool views that we got of the city as we said goodbye:

When we got home finally (it had started getting chilly again). We realized then that we would have to get our food sorted, since a bunch of us all had just bought groceries. Marjani and Nicole (and me, of course) all decided that we should throw a little tea party with our leftovers, so we cut up a bunch of the food, made a curry, macaroni and cheese, rice, spicy potatoes and peppers, plus some other stuff. It was really delicious!

A lot of it was a little TOO spicy, actually, but it was still a really amazing dinner, and it looked pretty beautiful. I’m glad we got to do it and use up some of our food. A ton of people came over afterwards and had some drinks, and we danced and talked in the flat like nothing was going on after all. Like this whole week, it’s a little bittersweet, and its kind of hard to talk about exactly how I was feeling, but it was both really sad and nice to say goodbye normally instead of having to rush out. We went to bed pretty late, knowing that this is one of the last days here– we wanted to get the most out of it we could.

(3-12)–  Feeling discouraged today, I almost skipped Mary’s class. It really sucks what’s going on, and I don’t really know how I’m going to keep doing the work. It’s all stuff that is meant to be done while you’re living in the country, so it just doesn’t feel right. I guess we’ll see after spring break.

Anyway, I went to class because my body woke me up just in time. We talked for a bit about updates and then Mary let us out pretty early. I think she was probably just as discouraged and upset as us.

When I got back upstairs, I finished up packing and got my flight switched, finally. Mostly, it didn’t take very long, since our trip was cut short and I didn’t have as much as I had actually thought I would have had. One everything was sorted, we hung out for a bit and just did what we could together. I went around and said goodbye to everyone (jeez, it was hard– I really thought I had so much longer with them), and then went to bed early, since I have to be out by six tomorrow to catch my flight.

(3-13)– All my travel plans went pretty smoothly, although there were a couple little worries. My train to the airport took longer than I thought, and I had a lot of security to get through. After everything, I went from FSU by train to Heathrow, Heathrow to JFK (where it was crazy warm, by the way; it felt like a heat wave and I had my London clothes on, so I was sweating uncomfortably), JFK to Port Authority, and then Port Authority by Greyhound to Binghamton, where I walked back to my apartment, all with my two suitcases. It was quite the hike, and probably took around 15 hours if you add it all up. I definitely felt gross, especially knowing that there was a global pandemic starting up, and I had to touch a lot of dirty surfaces. I wouldn’t be surprised, honestly, if I had gotten sick on the way back… hopefully not, but you never know

I collapsed into bed as soon as I got here, which I must say is one of the only good things about being back. Onward, into two weeks of self-quarantine.

Adieu, London. ❤