Introduction

October 25, 2017

Hello world! This is Emily’s and Sophia’s blog for our trip on November 3 to England. Nice to have some readers! I hope you are as excited as we are because the country once known to be so vast as to incur the saying “the sun never sets on the British empire” must have similarly vast culture.

         We are going to England as part of an educational program set up with passport travels; it is a great organization that helps students travel abroad with a guide to help further their knowledge of the country and even provides financial plans.

         We managed to get this deal in the first place because an educational program heard Sophia’s outstanding cello performance at a music competition and said they would send her to England as a reward. They said she could take along a friend, which is how I managed to get on this trip (so lucky). Another great thing is that the offer only goes for the middle of the year which means our absences are excused.

So, in conclusion, through a series of events we will be going to England to visit music academies as well as tour the country, paid for by someone that is not us, and we get to skip school.

October 12 (Additional Information)

         At Mrs. Reed’s suggestion, we checked the U.S. travel advisory for England just to be safe. Thankfully, there are no major warnings about sickness or terror attacks, (17) but we found out many interesting things from the site. One of the most important things is that the emergency number is. Of course we hope we won’t need it but it’s always good to know just in case. Some miscellaneous tips I found were the usual:

-Stay away from demonstrations just in case it gets violent

-Watch out for pickpockets in tight spaces like trains

         A few that I found interesting were that certain medicines legal in the U.S are classed as narcotics in Europe, and that the price for any health care will be 150% of the actual cost. Another thing we need to watch out for are scams, if you are going to England any time soon, this is important for you to know as well. Even aside from the classic scam emails, there are many mundane ways people can scam you that you don’t even think about. We are going to share with you some of the less known ways you can be scammed just in case any one decides to go to Europe.

         You have to watch out for what taxis you ride in because some won’t let you out or will take you somewhere far away unless you pay them. The only taxis that are definitely safe are the certified black cabs and any vans that are from a well known company.

         An extremely scary scam are ATMs. If there is an ATM in a secluded area or in a suspicious space, then don’t use it. People can steal your credit card information with it, so it is best to stay cautious. The best way to avoid this scam is to only use ATMs outside of well known banks or in places with tight security like an airport.

         Now one of the hardest scams to dodge are fake policemen, as scammers will dress up as a policeman and charge you for some obscure violation and demand a fine. It’s always hard to think straight when a potentially dangerous authority is demanding something of you, but just remember that a real cop will never ask for an immediate cash payment. Also, it can never hurt to ask with respect to see the officer's badge.

         That it all we found on scams, but there are undoubtedly many more so just remember to always keep an eye out for anything suspicious. (17) See you guys around, and don’t forget to keep reading on more about the fabulous country of England!

October 25 (Introduction)

Hello world! This is Emily’s and Sophia’s blog. Nice to have some readers, or I assume there are or you would or you wouldn’t be reading this! I would love to drag some bystanders along with us on our journey across the lands of England. I hope you are as excited as I, because the country once known to be so vast as to incur the saying “the sun never sets on the British empire” must have similarly vast culture. We are going to England as part of an educational program set up with passport travels; it is a great organization that helps students travel abroad with a guide to help further their knowledge of the country and even provides financial plans. We managed to get this deal in the first place because an educational program saw Sophia’s cello performance at All Star and said they would sent her to England to tour a few music schools, but the best part is that we will have a great deal of free time so we’ll mostly be sightseeing. They said she could take along a friend on the condition we blog about our trip to encourage students to follow music, which is how I managed to get on this trip (so lucky!). Another great thing is that the offer only goes for the middle of the year which means our absences are excused.

So, in conclusion, through a series of events we will be going to England to visit music academies as well as tour the country while skipping school and being paid for by someone that is not us while bringing you along for the ride!

November 3 (Departure date)

The English flag, a.k.a. the Union Jack, combines the
 national flags of England, Ireland, and Scotland.

         Hello readers! (7) Welcome back to Sophia and Emily’s blog on England, a country full of rich culture! Today is November 3, 2017. My friend Emily and I, just arrived in France to go to England after a nine hour flight from Houston, Texas. As we flew to Calais, France to cross the Channel Tunnel to go to England, (we couldn’t wait to cross the tunnel), we flew over the Atlantic, and the many vibrant cities in Spain and Portugal. (1)      

Political map of England.

         The Channel Tunnel was built in May 6, 1994, and is used for both freight and passenger traffic. (5) The construction of this site was so important because it significantly improved the mobility of people between France and England. (5)

         We crossed the tunnel and drove to London, the capital of England and the world's leading financial center for international business and commerce. It is a world city and is one of the command centers for the global economy (12)     

However, before I tell you about our trip, I wish to provide some background information. As the climate of England is very chilly and rainy, (4) we made sure to pack some raincoats, long pants, jackets, and long sleeves (4). Since we are Houstonians, we weren't ready for what seemed like the arctic temperature of England! Before our trip even began, our flight was delayed for four hours due to heavy rain in England. (4)

         During our long flight, Emily came up with the idea to educate ourselves on the cultural taboos of England to make sure that we didn't offend anyone. Some taboos that we found were that negotiating for a price, talking about age or salaries, and cutting people in lines (3) were frowned upon. Since we were tired, we ended our day with some American fast food at the airport, and hopped on a taxi to get to our hotel.