So you're probably wondering where I am going with this. Well, shortly into the first semester of the first year, we were introduced to Pepperdine's renowned International Programs division. The school owned houses in Florence, Heidelberg, and London, with additional programs in Hong Kong, Buenos Aires, and Lyon. I'm probably forgetting some but that's besides the point that I had quite a few options. Truthfully, I leaned towards London from the beginning because: a) there is no major language barrier, b) the history and worldly culture of the city, and c) my infatuation with British rock (i.e. The Beatles).

Long story short, I was accepted in the program for London in the Spring of '06. Problem was, I received this letter in November of '04, so I had quite the anticipation time and it helped to increase the anxiousness to leave America for the first time (not counting those weekend excursions to Tijuana and Montreal).

Finally, a few days after the ball dropped and our hangovers were expunged, I was on a plane from Boston to London aboard Richard Branson's dreamchild Virgin Atlantic. Ironically, the flight from Boston to London was shorter than the trip out to Malibu. Due to the time change, however, what was an early-evening departure in Boston became an early-morning arrival in London, a fast-forward of the night, if you will. Navigating from Heathrow Airport to the house (pictured right) is another story, for another time, however. I gotta keep some fresh material!

That is it from here for now. I hope you all have a good idea of how I actually ended up in London from way back in the redundant shirt-tie-blazer-khaki days at Hendricken. I will be adding more soon!