As I am preparing for this trip to London I have created a list of Goals or things that I want to make sure I do while in London, a bucket-list for the trip of sorts. Some are London tourist goals and are related to what I did and didn't get to do the last time I visited, others have to do with the Olympics and are the things that I want to make sure I do that are related to the Games, and some are personal and are mostly related to the friends I want to see while I'm there.
This list will change and will constantly be updated so that I never run out of things to do or see while in London!
- Don't Act Like a Tourist
I believe that you cannot truly appreciate a country's culture until you leave the tourist "bubble" and allow yourself to be immersed in the everyday life of that country. This doesn't mean that I don't want to go see the sights or take a lot of pictures but instead means that I want to go beyond that and get to know the British people as well. Because, having lived in a number of places and attended multiple schools, I know that it is the people that you meet that make a place special, not the sites you see or the souvenirs that you bring home. - Have One Hell of a 21st Birthday
This will be the 2nd time I have spent a birthday in London and I hope to make this one even better than the last one (15). It falls on July 30th which is the day that we will be working with Olympic athletes and doing some service so I am excited to be involve din that. And I am also excited to be able to spend the night out in London with a bunch of friends (old and new) while also experiencing the greatest sporting event on Earth! - Attend something Olympics Related Everyday
This one will, seemingly, be hard not to do but since we are there for the Olympics I want to make sure I take as much of it in as I can. I have tickets to one event (Women's Soccer all the way up in Newcastle) but I want to also try to attend as many road races and other outdoor events as I can! Particularly the cycling and rowing events ought to be fun to watch and easy to see without a ticket! - Do Something Uniquely British Everyday
This one goes along with experiencing the culture and the people of Britain, outside the realm of just being a tourist. So whether it is eating local foods, have a drink at a traditional pub, or attending the changing of the guard, I want to make sure that everyday I do something that can be defined as distinctly British in order to fully take advantage of the time I have. - Run a Race
I have traveled abroad twice before, once to England when I was 15 and again to France when I was 18. During both of those trips I took part in a road race so that I can officially say that I am an international athlete. I won my age group while racing a two miler in England and took first overall in a 5K France so I've got a pretty good international racing record going. I want to try and go 3 for 3 while I am in London and so I want to find a local two mile or 5K that I can take part in and try and whip out another win. I'll be running almost everyday while I'm there to get ready for Cross Country season anyway, so I might as well throw a little competition in there to spice things up!
This list will change and will constantly be updated so that I never run out of things to do or see while in London!