Sunday, 1 June 2014

Thank you, England.

2012: after watching the Olympic Flame Relay

Tuesday, June 1st 2010 is a day incredibly close to my heart.
Waiting in the queue at immigration at Indira Gandhi Airport couldn't have gone slower.
The nine and a half hour flight was fine, drenched with excitement.
The prospect of home made it the happiest flight I've ever been on.
We landed and I felt relief.
Getting off the plane and reading 'Welcome to London Heathrow' was wonderful.
I felt as if those 22 months, those 669 days, were worth it.
And they were.
I was home.
Never in my life have I felt so welcomed by a 17-degree, overcast day with a truly British dash of rain.

Thank you, England. My home. Thank you for everything.
The past 4 years have been incredible.

2012: Team GB spirit in Merton
2010: my beloved England flag hanging in my bedroom in Delhi, India

Thank you for..
treating us with sunshine for a couple days a year, because they fill us Brits with insane happiness
having an awesome capital city - London, the birth place of my brother (Kingston) and I (Lambeth)
having really good food - I missed the snacks oh so much
always having something funny to watch on TV
having killer public transport
having 2 airports relatively near me that can start worldwide journeys pretty much anywhere
being the home to Ant & Dec - they're my favourites
being small enough to travel around, but big enough to see huge regional differences
stocking more than 2 types of cereal at a reasonable price (cereal addict over here)
having damn good high streets
being the home to family friends I was raised around
also being the birth country of the closest friend I made in India
having one of the global centres of the industries I want to work in one day - media and fashion

1997: the day I was born, in the London borough of Lambeth. Spot the famous London landmark on the other side of the river out the window. Also, a shoutout to my rents for being rather gorgeous in this photo (much more so than me)

Thank you for the past four years...
they've led me to meet some of my closest friends
they've enabled me to see some of my favourite musicians live
I've joined a school where I feel accepted 
they've motivated me to explore around London, my home city, more than I ever did pre-India
they've seen me have incredible opportunities, such as visiting Oxford University and the BBC studios
I began a blog, and I quite like writing for it
my confidence has grown considerably
the bond I have with my family is now stronger than it was before
I've haven't travelled this much since I was a very young child
I'm so much happier than I was 5/6 years ago
they have reminded me how much I love my home

2014: the view from the InterContinental Hotel at London Park Lane, Hyde Park Corner

I can't even say how proud I am to be half British. My Mum may be from Australia, and my Dad may be from Scotland, but England will always be my home.

passport case from paperchase (here) whole 'all change' collection (here)
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1 comment

  1. Aww love this! I don't live near London but love it there and am proud to be british :)
    alicekatex ♥

    ReplyDelete

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