Late Updates...

It has been almost three weeks since I came to London for the IRES program, and I have been working in my lab for two weeks now. I realize that I am (again) the last of the IRES-ers to do a second update on the blog, and I apologize for that..

To give a quick background, the reason I am in London is to participate in a ten week full-time research experience abroad. The cool part for me is that my professor here in London is a collaborator on the project that I conduct research at Emory. So, I am conducting research on a different area of the same "bigger" project title.

The past two weeks, I have been testing many strains of yeast in different media using growth curves and killing curves, and we're trying to get some data for later molecular stuff- Simply put, to analyze the genes to better understand and for potential genetically-engineered yeast to be used as a vaccine platform. The work is very fun, and the people in my lab that I work with are very friendly. I enjoy not having the pressure of "I have class right after this experiment", which also helps me develop closer relationships with people in a shorter time!

Apart from lab-life, I have been exploring more touristy places! I have been to the Tates- Tate Britain Museum and the Tate Modern Museum- and both were awesome. I took a boat on the Thames that takes you directly between the Tates.

I went to the Greenwich Royal Observatory, which has the location of the Prime Meridian, and around area I went to see the Cutty Sark, the Old Royal Naval College, and an awesome, awesome street food market. To talk about each place and describe what I felt would take a long, long essay, so I won't do it here.

Also, my home here is a twenty minute walk to the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. I went there last week at night for the first time, and I could not believe I haven't been going here. The lights, the canal, the greens, the space all make it a perfect place to be, especially at night. And since London doesn't get completely dark until like 10:30PM, I have a great place to go for a run at night!

I am enjoying some regular life style changes, feeling more like a resident than just a visitor or tourist. I have found little blocks and streets that each have different characters. One of the blocks had a pretty inexpensive barber (~25 dollars, which is cheap for London), so I got my haircut there. Two of my housemates are chefs, so they cook at home often, which is spices up my meals without thinning my wallet too much. The church I am attending here is awesome. It is a Korean church in central London, and I especially love my small group members that have been like family to me so quickly. Also, the chocolate here is amazing, no questions asked.

 

Next week, I will be going to a Conference for two days, which is exciting. I am also planning some little weekend trips, so until next time!