Camden and Chinatown

Time is sure flying by here across the pond that I still can't wrap my head around the fact that I'm going on my third week being in London.

I feel like after the first week of packing in tourist activities I've been slacking on going downtown to see different museums or just walk around so I'm making a pact with myself to make the most of my free time.

This week though I definitely checked a few sights off my list including the Camden Street Market and Chinatown.

Me and my friends took our first bus ride last Sunday to the Camden Street Market and let me just tell you this market was unlike any market I have seen before. When I think of markets I think of cutesy little vintage clothing stands, pastries, and other delectable things. But this market was a recreation of the gothic paradise known as Hot Topic....market style. There were people covered in tattoos, with spikey hair from every color of the rainbow, sporting platform leather boots with chains. (I think you get the picture)

While it was a little intimidating at first it was exciting to get to see such an alternative community out and about. Even though its not a place I would go shopping I would definitely go back for some serious people watching.

As it is also Chinese New Years this week (Shout out to Maxine Loh!) my internship office had a dinner Thursday night in Chinatown. I should note how crazy it is to me that I can say I've now been to Chinatown in London before I've been to Chinatown in Chicago. I had some time to kill before dinner so it was fun peaking into all the different shops and walking around under the lit lanterns and decorations for the New Year.

I'm not going to lie and say I wasn't nervous about this dinner because I definitely was. I hadn't gotten to know too many people from the office that well at this point so I really wasn't sure how it was going to go. I forced myself after the first five minutes to get over being shy. It was really nice getting to know them outside of the office and let me tell you they know how to have a good time.

After dinner, in true English fashion, we headed over to the pub down the street. When I went to enter the pub the "bouncer?" asked me how old I was and to see my ID. I thought this must be some kind of trick. I started to question if the drinking age really was 18. But my 20 year old ID got me in just fine....crisis averted.

The pub was packed to the brim and lively. But I would say the place was dealing with some kind of identity crisis for if there was a top 20 chart for the  worst American songs ever made this pub was blasting it...on repeat.

The fun I had at dinner definitely continued on into the pub. I couldn't help but smile as I felt so adultlike going for a drink with people from work. I guess its just a taste for what I can look forward to when I join the real world after college!