Just Touched Down in London Town

What a whirlwind of a day. In fitting fashion for a group from Syracuse, we left the U.S. on a cold, rainy day in Newark. The flight was initially delayed about half an hour, but somehow the pilot was able to make up the time and we landed at Heathrow right on time despite circling the airport for 15 to 20 minutes waiting for the runways to clear. I have no idea what he did to get us there faster, but if there's a way for flights to go faster that airlines aren't using someone's got some explaining to do.

Whole squad on point, bunch of Chris Pauls

Most of the group was able to sleep for at least part of the flight. I, for one, got about four hours of rest in the air which is a miracle in and of itself. Despite the time adjustment and the sleep deprivation, everything went smoothly at Heathrow and we were officially off on our journey.

We went from the airport to our hotel via coach bus and then had a little over two hours of free time. Some of the group took the time to get some much needed rest, while the rest of us pushed through the exhaustion and walked to King's Cross Station, which is about half a mile away. After taking a couple pictures in iconic red telephone booths, seeing Platform 9 3/4 from the Harry Potter series, and navigating our way through a crowded Harry Potter shop at the station, we realized we still had about an hour and a half until we had to meet back at our hotel.

"Why don't we try and walk to the river?" I suggested.

Takeaway number one from this trip: don't listen to me ever again. While we got to see London in its natural, non-touristy areas and really immerse ourselves in the city, a 40-minute walk each way was probably not the smartest idea at the time. Especially considering we saw Big Ben (which is still under renovations), the London Eye, and St. Paul's from afar for about 5-10 minutes before turning around and heading back in order to meet the rest of the group. Worth it? I mean, it depends who you ask. Anyways, we got to see more of London by walking and got to know each other even better along the way. That doesn't sound too bad to me.

After meeting back at the hotel, we set off as a group for Piccadilly Circus and Trafalgar Square. Traveling via London's tube system for the first time, Two of the most famous places in London, both are prime spots for tourists and bustling parts of the city. Without a doubt, we spent more time at Trafalgar Square sitting on the base of the obelisk and, for at least one of us, climbing on top of the lions that guard the front of London's National Gallery.

Moved Through London With the Eurostep

While the basis of this trip and this course is obviously learning more about the Olympics, their history, and their impact across Europe, it is always nice to have some free time and see more of the cities that we're traveling through. From there we walked into the SoHo section of London and had our taste of one of the UK's most famous dishes: fish and chips. I thought it was fine, but I also see why there aren't English restaurants popping up all over the world like Italian, French, or Chinese. Don't get me wrong, the fish and chips were fine, but if that's the best the UK has, they've got some culinary work to do.

You Can't Sit With Us

Finally, we made it back to the hotel and settled in for the night. After such a long day, we had all hit walls from the jet lag and were ready for bed. After just one day of this trip, I know two things for sure. One is that it's going to be a fantastic time with some really awesome people. The other is that Zion Williamson is not going to be a Knick.