Visiting London psychology culture|2012 London Olympic Games: Not 'that' Four Seasons

Someday, I would really like to return to London and stay in a hotel that has an elevator, air conditioning, a restaurant and bar, and all of itself on the same side of the street.

But this trip required economizing, so I was very lucky to book a room at a nice little "boutique" hotel called "The Four Seasons." Just a few blocks from the Baker Street tube station, it had almost everything I needed, and the staff were absolutely terrific in finding a room for me, even though I arrived a few hours before check-in time.

I'll write more about the hotel a bit later on, but for now, let's go back to the challenge of how to stay awake another 13 hours (till British bedtime) in order to minimize jet lag due to lack of sleep.

Goal-setting theory
Goal-setting theory and evidence, which we studied in the module Motivation and Performance, supports that goals are motivating if they are specific, obtainable and, among other things, if feedback is near-term.

My single over-arching goal and sole reason for going to London was to graduate. Once there, the goal shifted to actually getting myself to the ceremony on Tuesday morning at the Barbican Center.

So, what better sleep-postponing activity than to make certain I could find my way to the Barbican, learning the underground (tube) in the process. It's actually very easy, but since we don't have anything even remotely like it in the medium-size Midwestern city where I live, some time on the underground seemed like a wise investment. The travel books advised purchasing a 7-day Travelcard if you're staying that long and planning on going here and there on a whim -- so that's what I did. It's really the best deal, costing about $68 USD, preshipped to my home in the U.S. before departure. Not bad for a week's travel, and it also covered the bus system and part of the overground (trains).

The Barbican
For the past few years, I've watched graduation streaming live from The Barbican. But still, I was not prepared for the rush of emotion that hit when I walked through the entrance. Of course, I reacted on a personal level because that's what you do when you're about to reach out and grab a dream and still can't quite believe it.

But the Barbican is really something worth knowing about on its own merit. Historically, it's significant because it was constructed on a site most heavily bombed during World War II, in a way, not unlike our U.S. 9/11 memorial rising from the ashes in New York City.

But besides that, the Barbican is in the oldest (and most historic part) of London, which is called "The City," and it's described on the facility's Website as "Europe's largest multi-arts and conference venue, presenting a diverse range of art, music, threatre, dance, film and creative learning" and also "home to the London Symphony Orchestra."

So, I walked around bit and took in a mind-blowing exhibit that I may get a chance to describe later on, but for now, here are just a few photos.