Tuesday, 4-2-96
1:45 PM London
6:45 AM E-Town
Well, I just said goodbye to Lori. š With the help of ISA office staff & her mercedes cab driver we got her all packed into the car & off to Heathrow airport! It was really sad. It was really hard to see her go. It has been such an amazing semester…
I am on the tube right now trying to write this. There is some really drunk guy near by who won’t shut up. It is making it very hard to concentrate… I just switched cars cuz his antics were beginning to scare me!
This morning Paul, Adam, Lori, & I went to breakfast at the hotel where Paul’s parents had stayed when they visited! It was a continental breakfast & being as slick as we 4 are we snuck in & pretended we were staying there! It was fun & yummy & when we first walked in it was really hard not to giggle! At the table Adam took out his Let’s Go Britain & Ireland & we all talked like we were tourists! It was hilarious to speak of the sites we might go see & act confused about the tube etc.! š
Then Lori & I went to Whitley’s mall to run some errands. I picked up a quote book — rather a blank book from a card store & when we got home wrote some of my favorite quotes in it for Lori & gave it to her! She has always said this semester tha she liked that I had one & wrote cool quotes in it… now she has one too! š
She gave me a necklace last night which she made for me at “Topman!” It is on a purple string w/ beads & a silver letter “K”! She said I could wear it at camp & it was purple because it was our favorite color!
She also wrote me a very sweet card that I just read cuz she wanted me to wait until she left… the cover said “A friend is someone who still likes you, even when they know you really well.” How true is that?!
Well, the tube was stopped for awhile, I think cuz of that drunk guy. Some policemen even came to get him! More later
CHEERS! š
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Note from Present Day Kathy: Itās been one year and seven months since I shared my last London Semester Journal entry/blog post here (in August 2024) and seven and a half years since I began this project (in September 2018). I certainly never imagined I would not have finished sharing/reflecting after all this time and life has a way of diverting us from things we don’t prioritize. I’ve been thinking a lot about my London Semester lately, as it’s now been 30 years since I studied abroad. Also, Bob, the kids and I finally got to take our epic adventure to England last summer! So, I’ve been relishing in the many incredible experiences we had and memories that we made there together. This photo was taken during our family trip in front of 21 Pembridge Gardens, where I lived from January – April 1996, during my London Semester Abroad. It is no longer owned by ISA/IFSA and is a private residence. But, it was still cool to get to see it again. I’ve gotten to return to London three times since 1996 (in November 2019, September 2024 and June 2025) and have made a point to visit Pembridge Gardens every time.
Earlier this month I was curious where I left off and saw that this next entry was a short one, which felt like it wouldn’t be too overwhelming to jump back in with. That said, it was a bittersweet one for me to revisit being that it was my roommate’s departure day. I had loosely forgotten that (not her real name) Lori left over a month before I did. We didn’t actually attend the same school in London, during our time abroad. Thus, we didn’t have any classes together and were often on different schedules.
I believe I snapped this photo of Lori when she was packing to go home. After a semester abroad, figuring out what we could keep/fit in our luggage/bring home was a daunting task. I think Lori may’ve also sent one or more packages home, which I vaguely remember and seeing a box in the picture also supports that possibility. One of the most nostalgic things in the picture (which could be like one of those Highlights magazine search and find pages) for me are the Europa Foods bags, as that was our local/walking distance market on Notting Hill Gate, where we went most days to grab fresh food. I can still recall how yummy the fresh bread there was and how many times I would buy it while it was still warm and eat it on my walk back to Pembridge Gardens where we lived.
As I may’ve shared here previously, my London Semester was likely the height of my young adult naughtiness. Though I could probably count on one hand the things I’ve done/did back then that I am not super proud of, I also appreciate that some might consider such activities to be rights of passage and/or not a big deal. I still have three different style pint glasses that I pocketed from various pubs in London, I smoked more cigarettes during my time studying abroad then I ever did before or again (which still was not much) and then there was this incident with (not their real names) Paul, Adam and Lori at the hotel (where we were not staying/paying) continental breakfast pretending to be tourists for a free meal.
This entry reminded me that I have still yet to find my old quote book that I really enjoyed regularly adding to and sharing with others. I also recently came across a photo of a collage that I made for (not her real name) Deborah, which I recall using quotes from my old book, and that further inspired me to finally start a new one (pictured above)! I started by adding the quotes from the collage and then some from here on my blog and look forward to using it more how I used to. In lieu of it, I typically jot down quotes in the notes app on my phone.
Also, it was sweet to be reminded of the card Lori gave me before she left, which I likely still have saved somewhere. The quote on it, “A friend is someone who still likes you, even when they know you really well,” holds true! I am pretty sure I also still have the purple necklace with the “K” on it that Lori made me and it was fun to recall that, back then, we had a shared favorite color. These days orange is my favorite and purple is a close second, especially working at Northwestern University for almost 5 years now!
As I reflected on in my last London Semester Journal post, it is bittersweet that Lori and my relationship faded within a few years of our time across the pond together. We reconnected briefly at some point via social media and it didn’t stick. Maybe someday we will reconnect again and stay in touch? As my mom would say, “more will be revealed…” In the meantime, I am grateful for the memories and all that I learned from our time being roommates at 21 Pembridge Gardens in London.
My next London Semester Journal entry is a long one, so we’ll see when the spirit moves me to transcribe and share it. That said, I enjoyed revisiting and reflecting on this one.
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Reminder: Unless I’ve been given permission to use people’s actual names, in most cases I’ve removed or replaced the names of the real people who were part of my journey/experience there, in effort to protect and respect their identities/privacy in my London Semester Journal entries. I will also not share details that I think and feel are too personal for anyone I interacted with, my loved ones, and me.
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Here’s the back story of My London Semester Journals from 1996, including what prompted me to revisit and decide to share them here in 2018. And here’s a listĀ a list of the entries, which I will update as I share them.
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