Katie's London

Katherine Rank ' 15
English & Dance Majors ||Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance (Fall 2013)

My alarm goes off 
at 6:23 AM. 

This is life in London, waking up to spend every day dancing. 

Monday through Friday. 

Dawn till dusk. 

The 35-minute commute from our flat in central London to the southeastern edge of the city becomes so normal I could do it with my eyes closed. 

Sometimes I do. 

The overground train takes me to London Bridge, then to Greenwich, where we walk into 

Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance. 

We arrive early to warm up for technique classes (ballet, jazz, contemporary, Pilates), 

then it’s lunch and time to improv, jam, and jump in any of the free studios we can find. 

Then on to academic classes- 

Choreography, Chorelogical Studies (the language and notation of dance), Dance History, Dancing Body…

By 3 PM, and some days as late as 6:30, I am exhausted, but excited at the prospect of an afternoon free from readings, essays or studying….all the hard work has been accomplished in the studios.
Most days, I go on runs along Southbank, with views of the London Eye and Big Ben becoming the norm.

My roommate and I then peruse “Time Out London” and decide which exhibit to go to, which bar to sip drinks at, which music venue to check out.

Life becomes expectedly unexpected. 

Sometimes I go on walks with no goal but to get lost. 
I ride the bus and always sit on the second level. 
I talk for an hour with a clothing designer in hip Shoreditch, 
or peruse a food market in the posh west end. 
I always bring with me an umbrella and sunglasses. 
I memorize the tube map and feel like I know the city better than where I grew up. 
Some nights, I take extra dance classes in central London, because six hours of dance in one day apparently wasn’t enough. 
I fall in love with a city for the first time. 
I drink cider, and then I drink some more. 
I say “cheers” instead of “thank you.” 
I never have trouble falling asleep. 
I have bad days, 
but I can honestly say that my four months in London 
were the happiest months of my life

Yet, it had to come to an end. 

On the last day of exams (being filmed in technique classes, presenting my choreography to a panel of tutors and a room full of students…) 

I cry because I am tired and sad and frustrated and content all in one. 

I do not want to leave London, 

but I know I have to leave. 

I smile at how happy 

I am to see my friends from Macalester. 

I smile thinking about the people I met while abroad, and how I can’t count on two hands the number of different countries they come from.
I smile that this is only one of many adventures for me in this city.
I smile because London happened, because London, in its whirlwind of markets and fashion and parks and history, is always happening. 

And for four months, I got to be a part of it.