{"id":5079,"date":"2020-01-07T15:59:59","date_gmt":"2020-01-07T15:59:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.imperial.ac.uk\/student-blogs\/?p=5079"},"modified":"2020-02-09T09:04:42","modified_gmt":"2020-02-09T09:04:42","slug":"here-for-the-holidays","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.imperial.ac.uk\/student-blogs\/2020\/01\/07\/here-for-the-holidays\/","title":{"rendered":"Here for the Holidays"},"content":{"rendered":"

Instead of flying back\u00a0<\/span>home<\/span>\u00a0for the holiday break, I ended up staying in London. Since many of my friends were out of town or\u00a0<\/span>spending time<\/span>\u00a0with family, I was afraid that I would be unbearably bored<\/span>\u2014<\/span>\u00a0fortunately\u00a0<\/span>I found that\u00a0<\/span>London has plenty to offer displaced students over Christmas.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Christmas Markets<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

As expected from a city where the Christmas lights come out in October, London is overflowing with Christmas markets come December. Whether purposefully seeking one out or stumbling across one accidentally, I loved passing through them for the l<\/span>ights and l<\/span>ively atmosphere.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Waterloo \u00a0\"Xmas<\/span><\/b><\/h4>\n

Staying\u00a0In\u00a0Shape<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Parkrun, which facilitates free timed 5k runs in the UK, has been a key part of my fitness routine while in London.\u00a0<\/span>Shops and transit may have been shut down for Christmas, but Santa hats and elf ears were out in full force at my local park\u2019s Christmas Day Parkrun.\u00a0<\/span>Dashing (okay, jogging) around the park on a beautiful morning made me feel better about all the food I was planning to eat later, and I even managed to achieve a personal best with my time. A real Christmas miracle! <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Ready<\/p>\n

Eating<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

In addition to getting treated to Turkish food on Christmas, courtesy of my accommodation, I ventured around London to try some of the great food the city has to offer. C<\/span>urry on Brick Lane,\u00a0<\/span>sandwiches from Borough Market,\u00a0<\/span>takoyaki<\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>ramen, Malaysian\u00a0<\/span>noodles, classic pub food…<\/span>\u00a0My stomach was very happy, although my wallet less so.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Museums\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

December is a great time to visit museums and cultural centers since things are\u00a0pretty quiet. I went to the Wellcome Collection and British Library for the first time, spent a cozy afternoon at the Barbican, and saw the Nam June Paik exhibition at the Tate Modern.\u00a0<\/span>Protip: if you\u2019re 25 or under, join the Tate Collective (it\u2019s free!) to get discounted exhibition tickets.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Catching Up\u00a0<\/span><\/b>On<\/span><\/b>\u00a0My London Bucket List<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

The biggest (<\/span>or tallest<\/span>) thing on my bucket list was to check out the view from the\u00a0<\/span>Skygarden<\/span>, aka the observation deck of the Walkie Talkie building. I had a friend from home visiting, so I didn\u2019t feel too bad about embracing my inner tourist.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"View \u00a0\"View<\/p>\n

All in all, I had a quite fun and relaxing break. If you are in London alone over the holidays, not to fear: there is plenty to do, and quite a lot for free!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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