History is all around

Today my colleague and I met a contact for lunch. This isn't really the point of my story, but the name of the restaurant was Balls Brothers of London. Very good food - but very strange name.

Anyway, on our way to the restaurant, we passed old and new buildings all mixed together and I saw a lone church tower standing in the middle of a little street. Apparently it was left over from the war - the rest of it being bombed out.

After lunch, we stopped by St. Paul's Cathedral - which is unbelievable! Outside, we walked over a stone in the walkway placed there in 1897 declaring Queen Victoria's thanks to God upon the 60th anniversary of her ascension.

Later we passed St. Mary le Strand - another church in the middle of the road - but this one intact and very pretty.

Then we walked through Trafalgar Square before catching a cab back to Mayfair.

Just another day in London.

No big deal - apparently

I have always thought that the public announcements in the UK are said in such a matter of fact way, but contain very dramatic language. For instance, the airport security messages in America regarding baggage are very strict, but basically say your unattended luggage may be confiscated. In the UK, the announcement will say, "Unattended baggage may be confiscated and destroyed."

Well - today I experienced an announcement that I almost missed because it was said in such a normal way - as if it is really no big deal - happens all the time. It has kind of scared me. Are you ready? Here it is ...

"The Central Line has been suspended between Marble Arch and Liverpool Street due to a person under a train at Tottenham Court Road. Minor delays are occurring on the rest of the line."

Scary??!!

Pubs, cafes and delis

Mom has done it all now. She goes out during the day and visits various delis and cafes - trying out everything for me - and then gives me a report when I get home. Of course, she has also had some interesting conversations with a different gentleman each day as well. She attracts them here!

Today we went to a pub for dinner and it was quite good. I had Bangers & Mash and she had Braised Beef with gravy. Both were very yummy! She also had 2 gin & tonics and I had Fuller's London Pride beer - also quite good. The gentlemen stayed away at dinner - I guess I scare them away from her or it is only a daytime thing...

Ah - the modern world...

So you know I do not have a clothes dryer - an automated one that is. So I use a collapsible rack that I put up in my living room and hang the clothes on it to dry. Actually this is not too bad since I hang dry many of my clothes anyway.

But I have found that setting up house again after so many years is more difficult than you might think. Thank heaven for my friend Sharon here in London! She came over to my flat the first Sunday I was here after cleaning out her loft (attic) and completely set me up. She brought me a can opener and corkscrew, dishes and bowls, pots and pans, various utensils, a bookcase and two side tables. She also brought a hair dryer and a clothes rack(mentioned above), drinking glasses and wine glasses, and pictures for my wall. She also brought a desk chair, a duvet and pillows and even a TV and Digibox (sorta like public cable). She brought me tools and a flashlight, hangers and dish towels, and a variety of other important household items. She then gave me a gift of chocolates, champagne and candles. Most importantly, she brought me a friendly face and a cheerful welcome to this country. What an amazing and wonderful woman and friend!

Since then, I have been ordering electronics, as most all of ours from the US will not work in the UK. So I was so excited when this week my first order arrived. I now have a toaster, a telephone, a coffee maker and a microwave! I also received my modem and now have Internet access. I am starting to feel connected to the world once more!

Saturday Adventure

Saturday was so nice! Mom and I both slept in - until about 9:30 AM. I cannot tell you the last time I did that - but I would quickly give it up for an early morning family snuggle with Richard, Amber and Alexa.

Anyway, we got up late and started moving late. I thought it would be a great idea to start a load of laundry before we left for the day, but wanted to hang it to dry before we left. Not the best idea. It took the front loading washer about 2 hours to wash the load of delicates. I am not sure I set everything right on the machine. At least we ate breakfast while it was washing. Then we hung everything up to dry on a clothes rack and set off to London for the day.

First we went to Piccadilly Circus and saw a few sights and visited a bookstore called Waterstones. It is very much like a Barnes & Noble. We picked up a few books on London and then were on our way to Knightsbridge - home of Harrod's Department Store. I think this may be the greatest and most beautiful and diverse store in the world! It has a very detailed map you get when you walk in just to navigate its varied floors, halls and restaurants.


















http://www.harrods.com/harrodsstore/

Since we were hungry, we walked quickly through the food halls, candy shop and Pet Kingdom on our way to the Terrace Bar to participate in High Tea. It was extremely delicious and laid back and fun. Too bad the view was closed off to maintain warmth in the terrace. Otherwise, we would also have had a beautiful view of Knightsbridge and the park. We had little sandwiches, fantastic scones with clotted cream and strawberry jam and some of the best pastries I have ever had. Of course, we also had tasty tea and bubbly champagne as well.

After a thoroughly enjoyable tea, we headed to Toy Kingdom - the fantasy of every child. This is where I heard the story of the anatomically correct boy doll that my niece received for Christmas. This was a little weird, because I often hear stories of my sister's young children after she posts them on her blog from my mother. In this case, I heard the story from my mom before she read the blog. O-k, back to topic - we had a fun time looking through the princess stuff, dolls and doll houses. I even picked up a surprise for Alexa from Toy Kingdom.

The picture below is just the beginning of Toy Kingdom:

Next we made our way to the Discount Christmas section. (I think I may have missed telling you that Harrod's was having their once a year sale and it was the last day - it was kind of a mad house there.) I was able to snag some very cute Harrod's Bear ornaments and I have one for each family for next Christmas - sorry to ruin the surprise. I also picked up a few gifts for my mother-in-law. My favorite thing in this part of the store though was a very sequined stocking that had a Naughty on one side and Nice on the other. It was the most jeweled and ornate stocking I have ever seen - but I could not bring myself to pay 20 quid for it.

Then we decided to check out the sale in Women's Wear. It was a crowded mass of women. We saw some beautiful coats and cloaks and decided to take a look. Of course, they were brands like Pink and Armani. The sale price was still beyond us at 500 up to 1600 pounds. We decided we were out of our league.

Next we headed to the lower ground level and entered the Harrod's Souvenir area. This was far more than a crowded madhouse. For example, Harrod's has these large stuffed bears with a sweater that says Harrod's that they sell at Christmastime. These bears were all over the department store for sale extremely cheap. I think they were somewhere between 3 and 5 pounds. Anyway, in this area, sales clerks would bring the bears out in large plastic bags and themassive crowd of customers would mob them and take the bears right out of the bag before they could get to the intended table. I was honestly concerned for the sales clerk's safety. It was an amazing souvenir shop none the less, and I was able to find a few more things for Richard and Amber while we were there.
Here is the bear everyone wanted so badly:

Our last stop was the bakery on the west side of Harrod's. I picked up some tea on the way for my English friend, Sharon (I will tell you all she has done for me here in another blog). Then we wormed our way into the bakery to pick up a few European rolls Mom wanted. She said they were like what she used to eat in Germany as a child. With that done, we headed out into the normal world again.

Mom then experienced the loveliness of the crowded tube (see earlier blog for squashy details). I took a quick picture of her in Knightsbridge station and I will add it in a few days. Then we caught a fast train to Surbiton and a bus home and we quickly collapsed on the sofa - thoroughly exhausted and satisfied from our day at Harrod's.

By the way, the clothes we had hung to dry before we left were still mostly wet...

Chinese food

Mom explored Surbiton yesterday and then took me out for Chinese at a restaurant she found. It was really good food and the atmosphere was really nice too. The owners/waiters I think were direct from China. We hada little trouble understanding one of them - but they were extremely nice. We especially loved the Crispy Duck they served. I have never had it before, but I will definitely get it again.

Tonight, we are going to do a little shopping in Surbiton and probably get a bite to eat there as well. Tomorrow we will be visiting Buckingham Palace and Harrods and Sunday is still up in the air. I will keep you updated.

I'm off to lunch now at LaStrada - it's a sandwich shop.

Speaking of a nap...

Mom wanted to read a book in the reception area of our office. I just checked on her and she is officially napping.

Mom is here

Mom arrived in London safely this morning. There was a bit of a mix up with the hired car, but after a few hours of confusion, we did get it sorted out and she has since ridden the train and the tube and had a British lunch. I think she may be ready for a nap now.

A math teacher's dream word problem...

Today I experienced the joy of commuting in London during rush hour. This is extremely different than in Houston, even if you ride the bus. First, I walked half a mile to the train station. Then I caught a train and had to stand in fairly close proximity of others to my end destination - Waterloo Station. I then moved with the crowd to the underground tube queues (subway lines).

It was very quiet and everyone stood in groups in front of the doors that would open to the tube once it arrived. I must admit that I did not completely understand the need for these doors at the station until today. As I stood in what I thought to be a very short line (and I use that term loosely as it was more a group of people bunched together) of about 7 people, about 6 more people arrived and crowded around us.

Then, the tube arrived and it was packed like a can of sardines - I know that sounds cliche - but it really was packed wall to wall. The doors opened and suddenly the crowd writhed and moved and about 5 people squeezed out of the tube car one by one.
Suddenly, my little group all pressed forward as one and all tried to push their way into the writhing crowd of people. Only about 4 people made it on when the doors on the platform closed, forcing those left behind to back up.

This process continued two more times before I made it on a crowded car mashed between 3 other people - and I do mean mashed together. If I had dropped anything, there would have been no means of retrieval. It was definitely an interesting morning.

So here is the math word problem: A London tube car has a capacity to hold 50 people. A tube car arrives at the station carrying 73 people. 6 people squeeze out of the car. How many can squeeze on?

Do you think it is called the Tube because it resembles a tube of toothpaste when the people squeeze out of the doors?

Quick Update

Hi everyone - I made it to London on Saturday and am setting up house pretty well. I will give more details later as I am at work and have a million things to do!

Love you all!

Last night in the USA

So, I had breakfast with a business contact this morning and he mentioned that I was pretty calm considering the fact I would be leaving for London tomorrow. I just laughed. I guess I am pretty calm, but I think the realization has not fully set in. I am just focusing on one thing at a time.

One of the things I am focusing on is the food I will not have in London. So I am trying to take every opportunity I can to have Mexican and American food before I go. I have had Hamburgers, enchiladas, tostados, cuban sandwiches, fried plantains and biscuits with sausage gravy. Tonight is Double Dave's pizza. I think I have gained 5 pounds this week...

The other main thing I am working on is packing. Filling the suitcases is exhausting. I never knew clothes could weigh so much. I have 4 suitcases packed (Mom is helping me with the luggage allowances and bring 2 over next week.) Now I have to re-arrange them all so I can be sure each one is less than 50 Lbs. I may have to make some hard choices on what to take and what to leave behind. It is weird packing up that much stuff for just me.

Four days left - well 3 1/2...

My UK Visa came today and I am officially authorized to live and work in the UK. My plane leaves Friday night and I will be in London on Saturday. It is a little overwhelming and unbelievable - but also exciting.

At home, we are all a little anxious as we try to spend as much quality time together while I also work on packing. The hardest part will be the length of time we (Richard, Amber, Alexa and I) will be apart from each other. I will miss them so very much!

On another note, I ordered some furnitire from IKEA in the UK - just basics like a table and dining chairs and a very simple unenclosed wardrobe. Everything was fine and I submitted the order - but thought it was strange that there was no option to choose a delivery date. Apparently, you do not get an option, it will be delivered when they want to deliver it. Anyway, I submitted the order and the ETA was Jan 26 - 9 days after I arrive and 16 days from order date. Then, I received confirmation and the new ETA for delivery is Feb 2nd. I am thinking I could make a few trips to IKEA and bring it all home on the train at this rate - which I very well may do. In anycase, I will be bringing an air mattress to sleep on the first few weeks.

On the bright side, I spoke with the estate agent today and she was very nice. She is tranferring all of the utilities for me and is even supplying some interim furniture for me until mine is delivered from IKEA.

And so the adventure continues...

Tickets have been reserved

That's right, I have a ticket to London for one week from today! I better get to packing. Now I have to decide betweeen the hair dryer and the frying pan - which do I need the most...

Suggested content

My sister Joan suggested I share with everyone my most embarrassing moment. That is a little difficult as I have been in a number of situations that others may consider embarrassing, but that I consider as character building.

In any case, her suggestion did make me think of a recent event that you may find amusing. On New Year's Eve, Richard and I had a rare morning and afternoon to ourselves. (I know where you think this is going - but it isn't.) We did a little shopping and decided to go to Tommy Bahamas for lunch. As we were enjoying our lunch and conversation, I suddenly felt the need to relieve my bladder. I was single focused and rushed into the restroom and straight for the stall. I quickly tinkled and opened the stall door to head for the sinks to wash my hands.

It was at this moment that I noticed the restroom looked different than I remembered - I have been to the restroom at Tommy Bahamas before but apparently not this one. There in front of me were two urinals and in a rush I remembered that the Ladies Room is on the other side of the hall. Thankfully, there were no men in the room. I rushed out of there in the hopes that no one saw me in my bright pink jacket leaving the Men's Room.

A few minutes later, I was able to tell Richard what happened through my fits of laughter.

See - character building!

Much more interesting in person

So I just read my sisters' blogs and have decided they are much more talented in blog writing than I am. Maybe I will get better with time, but hopefully someone still finds these blogs somewhat interesting. Just don't compare me to my sisters or you may be disappointed...

I like to think I am more interesting in person than I am in my blog.

Happy New Year

I hope everyone had a wonderful long weekend to celebrate the beginning of 2009.

We celebrated Alexa's birthday also this weekend - her last one in the US for awhile. So we worked to make it memorable. The theme for this year was Build-a-Bear and Alexa really wanted a Build-a-Bear cake. Now, I do not normally bake cakes of any kind, but she begged me to make this 3D cake and even asked for it as one of her birthday gifts, so I told her I would do it.

So we brought the molded cake pan home and we purchased all of the ingredients and read through the instructions. Then, I started laughing when I added up all of the prep time and cook times and cool times and frosting times and realized that it would take me all day to make the cake - seriously - over 6 hours! But since I promised, I was fully committed.

Then we began to the work of measuring and mixing and I will say the cake batter recipe is really good. Then we baked and cooled and shaped and frosted and cooled some more. Then we glazed and sugared and frosted and sprinkled and cooled some more. When it was all done - just before the guests arrived - it actually looked pretty good - but I was exhausted!


You can tell the nose and the mouth were the last things put on the cake and my dedication to quality was beginning to fail...

If anyone wants to try this themselves, I have the cake pan and all of the instructions ready for you...