Posted on :
17:24
| By :
Unknown
Out of all places, Why London!?
London, England has many rainy days throughout the year, it's not as fun as Amsterdam, and it's not as exotic as Thailand. I never really thought it would be the first place that I would want to go to when I was younger, but over the years, that has drastically changed. So out of all the countries in the world, why London? Well, because London has one thing that Amsterdam or Thailand will never have and that's a soccer team ( or as they like to call it "Football") called Arsenal Football club which is located in North London. London, England also currently has 6 out of the 20 teams in the Barclay's Premier league which are West Ham, QPR, Tottenham, Chelsea, Fulham, and Arsenal. So I'm going to London to watch the sport and team I obsess over.
Posted on :
16:50
| By :
Unknown
 |
| This is exactly how I feel |
Arsenal Football Club has
been around for 126 years now and I have only been around for 22 years but the
effect that the club has had on me for the last 9 years is surreal. I remember the
English Premier League was always on TV when I was younger and I would always
occasionally watch a game if I was up. My admiration of Arsenal first began
after watching them play, specifically Thierry Henry. He was the real deal and
I always tried to play and do everything like him. I wore my socks and shorts
like he did, walked on the field like he did and I even wore the number 14 when
I was younger.
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| Thierry Henry: The Legend |
Over the years, the team has become
more and more part of my life to the point where I actually stress and get
anxious if I'm missing a game. People usually like to sleep in on the weekend, but
I’m waking up around 7:30 AM and watching soccer until 2:00 PM on a regular
basis. I look forward to every weekend because of this. The results have a big
impact on my mood and will dictate how the rest of my day will go. I
have become obsessed with the team and sport and the obsession is just getting
larger as I get older probably because I don't play as much as I used to. So
the next phase in my obsession is to watch a game at the Emirates Stadium which
is their home field. I have wanted to go watch a live Arsenal game for years
now and I even told myself that I would move permanently to London just so I
could watch every Arsenal game live. Then I realized that it rains a lot and I
just wouldn't be able to handle a lot of rain. If
it wasn't for the rain and high cost of living, I would move to
London in a heartbeat. I
think what attracts me the most to the games, at least in England, is the
excitement and passion by the crowds. The songs they sing and the banter
between the fans. I have really fallen in love with that aspect of the sport
and I even find myself singing on my couch, but I think I would rather sing at
the Emirates with 60,000 other people that feel the same way about Arsenal as I
do. There's so much more to the game than kicking the ball that is also overlooked.
I really enjoy the tactical and mental aspect of the game as well. Soccer truly
is an art and it gives you a sense of belonging and togetherness whether you're
you with your own team or a bunch of strangers singing as loud as they can.
Posted on :
16:33
| By :
Unknown
I plan to go in mid august of 2014
before I start school again (assuming I get into a graduate program) for 17
days (August 15- September 1) so this would allow me to stay for 3 weekends which would allow me to watch more games. I will be graduating this June
2013 and then I’ll be coming back for a semester. After that semester, I plan
to work as many hours as possible from January to mid August so that I can go
on this trip. I would like to go during August because the soccer season begins
in mid August. The downfall about going to London in August is that August has the
second highest rainfall amount in the year so I will make sure to carry
and umbrella similar to the one in the picture. According to the soccer players and pundits,
it rains randomly throughout the day. London also usually has 11-15 rainy days throughout
a month so I need to pack my wardrobe accordingly. I will be going with my 2 best friends who I used to play soccer with. Both of them feel the same way
about soccer like I do and they both have greater travelling experience than I
do so they will be a huge help.
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Posted on :
16:25
| By :
Unknown
I will be getting a
ride from London, Ontario which is where I’m from to Toronto, Ontario. From
Toronto, I will take an Air Canada plane to London,
England. Through research, I've realized that flying from Toronto to
London would be couple of hundred of dollars cheaper than flying from
London, Ontario. I found the cost of a trip to London for August of 2013 and it
would be $1,237.26 so I'm making the assumption that the
prices will be around the same in 2014. Ideally I would like to get to London,
England around the evening so around 9:00 PM would be fine. I will probably just take a
short walk the first night, depending on how the jet lag feels.
Posted on :
16:21
| By :
Unknown
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| My New Diet |
Tea seems to be quite popular in England which I actually
really enjoy drinking since I don’t drink coffee at all. It looks like I will be going for my afternoon tea and biscuits on a regular basis during August, hopefully this doesn't become a habit I take back to London, Ontario.
It seems like I will
probably be drinking a lot of pints of beer as well since there are pubs everywhere and a lot
alcohol is usually consumed during games.Pints range
from £2.50 - £3 and prices for drinks and food are generally more expensive In London so I have to make sure to budget my money. One pub that I'll for sure check and spend a lot of time in will be The Gunners Pub. I hope to become a regular there since it's in between the Emirates and the Arsenal Tavern. I think staying a the Zenith hostel will give me a break from drinking and partying because it is a more relaxed atmosphere. I will use it as my relaxing "break" in my trip.I will also aim to try a different pie everyday whether it contains meat, kidney or fruit. It does really matter to me. I will also look to check out the London Markets so that I can buy some fresh fruit and just food in general. I generally really eat healthy, but it looks like I'm going to be eating a lot of pub food in England which I don't mind.
Posted on :
16:02
| By :
Unknown
I will get around
London using a variety of different transportation methods including the tube
(London underground subways station), bike, bus and I’ll even take a short ride
in their black cabs. I will use London's
Barclays Cycle Hire program quite a bit,
but I cannot use it too long because it does charge you a lot more as your bike
ride gets longer
but I will use them for shorter rides
around the city. I also plan to use the tub and they even have an Arsenal tube
station called the "Arsenal Tube Station" so I will definitely
be getting on that when I go to the Emirates to watch a game. And I
obviously can't travel to England without getting on the famous Double Decker
Bus. The tube is generally more expensive with the prices ranging from
£2.80-£12.20 depending on what zones you are
travelling through. The bus has a
£2.40
per use charge so it is cheaper but obviously a bit slower. I will experiment with
the different forms of transportation when I get there and I will also be
walking a fair amount because it really allows a tourist to just stop, look
around and take everything in.
Posted on :
15:57
| By :
Unknown
I plan to sleep at the cheapest hostels so that I can use
more money for food, drinks, and soccer related events. I could honestly care
less where I sleep. I'm used to sleeping and sharing small rooms with my
siblings so I wouldn't mind sharing a small space with a bunch of strangers. My
family lives in a small home where my bed and room are too small for me, but
I've become accustomed to it. As long as I have some sort of bed then
I will be fine in London. So ultimately the cheaper the hostel, the better. The
3 hostels that I will be looking to stay at will be The Arsenal Tavern hostel,
Globe Trotts Inn, and Zenith Bar and Hostel because they are the cheapest ones
I could find (between 18-20 dollars Canadian/night). I really wouldn't have to
stay at too many hostels because a lot of them have a 3-4 minimum night stays.
The hostels are all different and are all in different parts of London as well
which would allow me to explore different parts of the city. The Arsenal tavern
caught my eye right away because you can't go wrong with a hostel with
“Arsenal” in their name and they also have big screens that play games on the
weekend .More importantly; The Arsenal Tavern Hostel is also very close to the
Emirates stadium and the Gunners Pub. Globe Trotts In has a more
"homely" feeling to it which is something I would need during the
trip when I don't feel like partying so it would allow me to relax for a bit.
The Zenith Bar and Hostel is more of a party hostel because it has a bar with
happy hour specials and it is also close to many tube stations. These hostels
are all offer very different environments which would balance the trip out
nicely. They also all have free breakfast!
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