St. Paul's

We have a final exam coming up tomorrow morning. Typically, this would equate to a day spent throwing back pots of coffee while desperately trying to memorize notecards on terms like "ICSID Additional Facility." However, it's really hard to get motivated when the professor literally tells you that even if you didn't study, and didn't ever read the assignments, you could probably still get an "A."

The thing about this class, is that everything is so condensed. I'm basically getting 4 separate crash courses in US arbitration, international commercial arbitration, international investment dispute arbitration, and arbitration advocacy in 5 weeks time. Any of these subjects could easily take up a semester or two. So, it's a little overwhelming to say the least; there's no possible way you can absorb everything. As interesting as some of the subject matter is, 4 hours of class a day is pretty soul-crushing. But I suppose that's what you sign up for.

However, this didn't deter me from traveling down to St. Paul's this morning to have a cup of coffee, write down some arguments for the impending advocacy class, and attempt to review said ICSID convention. I really like going down to St. Paul's because it has a very nice open urban space, with lots of coffeeshops, cafés, and places to grab a bite to eat. It is also crawling with London professionals, who hurriedly rush about in their suits while talking on mobile phones. In my ever present quest to blend in to this city, it probably wasn't my wisest choice to wear sandals, shorts, and a Blues Brothers t-shirt. In fact, I daresay that I looked pretty much like an idiot.

Time is starting to wind down now, in a week, I'll no longer be in England. Which is, I don't know, perhaps a little bittersweet. It will be nice to be back home, to have the cultural familiarity, to be able to wear shorts without feeling like a jackass. But on the other hand, I've realized that unless I get a job with a posting in a different country, my days of extended global adventuring are probably numbered. The real world is going to start calling very soon. Which will be great; but as a person who has been fortunate enough to travel a bit, it's going to take some time to come to that realization. But I suppose that's okay. When I do decide to go somewhere, Delta apparently has my back.

Tonight I'm going to take the tube up to Abbey Road Studios. I think as a Beatles fan in London, I could never forgive myself if I didn't go. I need to walk across that zebra crossing. Since I don't have a white suit, maybe I'll just go barefoot.