CEPA Study Abroad Program Blog: The London Tubes: Can You Handle Them?

If you want to make your way around London, you definitely don't want to try driving a car like you do here in America. If you want to get where you're going in a decent amount of time you better start walking! I know what you're thinking, "That's a lot more walking than I want to do!" Well, that's why the tubes were created, so we don't have to walk everywhere. The tubes were the saving grace for our feet during our time in the United Kingdom! They got us where we needed to go and we made it there 500 times faster than we would if we walked. Earls Court Station was our home base, its where we started and ended everyday. As you see from the picture below this is a lot different than the subway stations in Chicago and New York. I have only ever been in the subways in Chicago and I tell you, those are extremely dirty. The tube station here surpassed me with how clean they were. Another big difference while riding the tube compared to the subway is how quiet it is, or I should say it was quiet until we got on it. There were only two times it was loud, when we weren't the cause. The first was later at night right before the tubes closed and the locals had had a few drinks.

The picture below is the inside of the tube station at Earls Court Station.

This just shows the difference in the arctutecture and the cleanliness.

The second time it was loud was one of my most memorable experiences on the tube. Some friends and I were shopping in Oxford Circus, an absolutely beautiful place. As we were getting ready to leave we noticed many people standing around, not moving. I thought at first they were all looking up at this beautiful art work hanging above us (see picture below). As we got closer we realized that the tube was shut down! We were pretty nervous because we didn't know any other way to get home! We were lucky because we only were there for a few minutes before the tube opened back up. Once it did, it was a stampede of people. The best way to compare it to something here would be black Friday shopping. If you were in someones way, they wouldn't think twice about running you over or pushing you out of the way.
Once our group made it to the tube line we needed, we had to cram to get on the train. If you are claustrophobic, you do not want to be on the tube during rush hour or after a tube has broken down. Once on there you couldn't move. You were nose to nose with complete strangers! If one person were to fall down, it would have caused a domino effect and everyone on the tube would have been on the ground. After about a fifteen minute ride we finally made it to our destination and man were we ready to get off!

Going to London was the experience of a life time! If anyone asked me to recommend a place to travel, without hesitation I would tell them they needed to go to London and explore all of the areas around there. Riding the tubes fully emerged us into the British culture. Being part of this made me realized just how different it is from American culture to British culture. I realized that something that is the norm for us is abnormal for others. I think that this helped shape me into a more understanding person. As a nursing major I will be encountering many different cultures. It is imperative that I am able to understand the difference between all difference cultures. London was an amazing experience it was something that took you away from modern day and put you back into the 1800th centuries. All of the buildings are authentic. In America we have many steel buildings with lots of windows, in London that is very rare. The buildings are made of stone and are beautifully made. As a closely I would just like to share a few of my favorite pictures from the trip. I would encourage everyone to visit everyone this amazing city!