Hello all, am back from camping and very thankful for modern conveniences. First things first, some of you have hinted that I am making fun of London and should be grateful that I have this opportunity. Trust me, being disdainful of London and England itself is NOT in any way my intention. If you cannot understand my humor try to take what I write with a little grain of salt and not be so sensitive. Everyday, I pinch myself because I still can't believe I am here. When I saw Stonehenge for the third time yesterday I was the only one in the car still thrilled at seeing the ancient stones standing in the distance. I understand and know how priveledged I am, bottom line.
Now, onto Devon. We, John and I, were invited to spend a bank holiday (three day weekend) with a bunch of his friends at a campsite in a little town called Axmouth, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Axmouth . It was a quaint little town with narrow streets, random sidewalks, stone buildings, and a pub that has reputably been around since the 12th century. Nearby were two seaside towns, Seaton and Beer, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seaton%2C_Devon . Yes, you read right, Beer. We ended up having a beer in Beer! Ha ha ha! But, I am getting ahead of myself. So we drove there Friday night, approximately three hours, and drove directly past Stonehenge. For me, it was my second time seeing this ancient monument but apparently it isn't much of a big deal to true born and bred Englishmen. They see it every trip from East to West England. I heard comments like, "Oh hey, Stonehenge!" or "Oh, there goes Stonehenge!" It was humorous, I guess some of us in the US feel the same way when we see the Hollywood sign, the Capitol Records building, or Mann's Chinese Theater. Not, in my opinion, that those monuments in any way compare to the age and mystic of Stonehenge. It is the just the closest comparison I can come up with when it comes to reactions. Us Californians react to those monuments very similarly to the way the English react to Stonehenge. Yeah, it's there.
So we get to the campsite and it is pitch black. Tents are everywhere. We find the campsite and van of our friends Kev and Sarah. It is all the way in the back field with the toilets being a good five minute walk away. Within ten minutes both tents are up and we are all sitting around planning what we are going to do tomorrow. A beach trip is decided and all of us talk late into the night while drinking cider. This did not bode well for my bladder which is very tiny and I soon learned that I was going to have to watch what I drank, even water or juice, because of the distance to the loo.
In the morning, after sleeping on the ground all night in a cold tent, the sun hits right where I am sleeping and shines right into my sleeping eyes. Not only that, but the smallness of the tent soon becomes apparent as the warmth of the sun turns the tent into a sauna. I cannot sleep any longer and decide to go for a walk. It is about seven in the morning and I walk up one hill of Axmouth, past an old church, and out to the riverbanks of the river Axe. I watch birds feeding, hear the river gurgling past, and just enjoy the view. There are rolling green hills, small towns with clay roofs in the distance, and clear blue skies. It looked better than a postcard!
When I came back to the campsite, people were beginning to wake up and we finally were heading towards the beach. I was excited to spend the day on the English coast, until I saw the rocks.
In Seaton and Beer there is no such thing as sand. They have rock beaches, smooth rocks of course, but rocks nonetheless. We walked for a while to get to the perfect spot. After maneuvering a few rocks I finally found a semi-comfortable position and laid out with the other girls. It was a great day, swimming, fishing, talking with Natalie and Sarah. Later on Kate and John, other John, showed up and joined us in our camping fun. For dinner we ate mackerel and watercress sandwiches, sausages, and crisps (potato chips). After a while I got tired of being on rocks though and so did John, my John that is. We left the others and sat in the pub for a while discussing different things. One conclusion we came to was that we were not camping people. I missed warm blankets, matresses, and a loo that was five feet away. I also missed sandy beaches after that day, suprisingly. :-)
As the next two days progressed and we were at the mercy of our ride, Steve and Natalie, who were very energetic and tried to put in as many activities as they could, all walking activities of course, we missed the city more and more. I think if we had been better prepared for camping, better tent, supplies for cooking, etc., we would have enjoyed it more. Finally we came home last night, loving the shower in the loo, the beauty of fish and chip take out, and sleeping indoors for a change.
Overall, I am very glad I went camping. I enjoyed the views, the hikes to a certain point (see the view of Seaton bay on the website, yes I hiked up that hill to view that point, huffing and puffing the whole way), and of course the beautiful drive through the English countryside. I have to tell you, the English countryside, the small quaint towns, they are everything you hear about and more. Everytime we go out to the country I am in awe of the views, beauty, and color. As we drove past Stonehenge for the third time I pinched myself again at being so blessed to live here. Tomorrow I meet my boss and finally see my school. Will let you know what happens and my first impressions. Hope you all are well, I can't wait for you to visit and see the beauty I live in.
Tuesday, 28 August 2007
Thursday, 23 August 2007
Shopping in London
Hello All! Well first off, I am not going to correct my grammar, english, passive voice, etc. This is my free write so deal! :-) Second of all, did you know it rains in London? Yeah, it rains alot! :-) Anyway, onto today's blog . . .
When I woke up on Friday John took me to get my cell phone and some food that I would like. I was again struck by how limited the grocery stores are in the UK. They just have food, that is it. If you want liquor you have to go to an off license store. If you want a hair straightener you have to go to a place like Argos, I'll explain about that store later. If you want aspirin, you go to the pharmacy or chemist. The UK has not yet discovered the idea of having everything all in one place like a SUPERmarket. That night a few of John's friends were in town from Bristol so we all met down at the pub, the Winchester. Back story on this pub is that Simon Pegg, the man who wrote Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, use to live in this same area and use to hang out a lot in the Winchester. He loved it so much that he based his movie pub, the Winchester, on the real one we were visiting. If you have seen Shaun of the Dead you will be struck by the strong similarities upon entering the real Winchester. Anywho, so we are all sitting in back, a lot of hugs, and welcome backs were coming my way from John's friends. I am very lucky that John has such good friends. Matt, his best friend, was not there but Angela, his fiance was. She is the sweetest woman and has made me feel so welcome. John's friend Steve was there along with his girlfriend Natalie, who is absolutely wonderful too. Then there were Al and Nick, two friends of John's who are part of a band called Electrolyte, really cool band, check them out on my MySpace. Nicola and Gid were also there, very nice people. So we all hung out, drank, ate, etc. It was good fun and I was happy to be with my new friends again.
The next day I met Angela and Natalie for wedding dress shopping. Angela is getting married May 24th. I forget what department store we were in but we walked down to the Vera Wang section of the store so Angela could try on wedding dresses. Now don't get confused, there is no way Angela could afford a Vera Wang dress, but she thought that this would be her only time to actually try on dresses, so why not Vera Wang? They were gorgeous dresses, and Nat and I enjoyed looking at different magazines, books, etc. while Angela tried on dresses. Once we were done the girls decided to take me shopping in London. I had so much fun even though I only bought some make-up at Clinique and a few things for John's sister, she is having a baby. I suggested to him that he should get her a gift and since he has no clue about baby things I offered to pick some things out while I was shopping. He, at this time, was hanging out with the guys having bacon sandwiches at the flat. We were walking down places like Carnaby Street, Oxford Street, etc. In England there are department stores and boutiques but that is about it. They are usually featured on streets called high streets. There are malls but there are not many of them. It was great to walk down these streets with my bags in hand and feel like a real Londoner.
Nat, Ange, and I stopped at a turkish restaurant for lunch. They had a deal, two courses for £6.99 Man, that was such good food. I had a feta cheese pastry as my first course, that was very tasty. Next I had a lamb pide. It was a cross between a pita and a pizza, and very good. They gave us chili oil and though I started with just a little of it, I ended up pouring out more and loving the stuff!
Alright, about Argos. The closest comparision I think I can come up with is Target. Argos has a variety of things, not clothes, but home, office, furniture, appliances, etc. I wanted a hair straightener and was informed that this was where I would be able to get it. John took me on Sunday and it was rather an odd experience. You walk in to this one room store and step over to the catalogs. You find your item, write it on an order form that is available at the catalog counter, take it to the cashier, she imputs it, and you pay for it. Then you wait near a different counter until they call your order number. Once your number is called you walk up to the counter and collect your bought items. Very strange, but sort of neat.
On Sunday I also purchased my laptop. We went to PC world and John picked one out for me. Then we took it home and he played with it, saying he was going to pimp my laptop. Boys and their toys. . . . :-) Anywho, I am now writing you from my pimped out laptop and enjoying having it.
On Monday I decided to go grocery shopping, since we had been eating out for most of the week and it was not a good idea to continue with that habit. After walking to three different small grocery stores I got so frustrated with what one had and the other didn't that I came back to the flat and ordered groceries online through Sainsbury's, one of the major grocery chains in the UK. This proved to be a wise decision because A. They deliver it rather than me carrying the bags down the street and up two flights of stairs in the rain, and B. I got everything I ordered all at once! I have officially learned my lessons about shopping in London. One rope is now mastered, onto the rest of the ropes!
Next blog . . . . weather and my camping weekend in Devon . . . Lord help me I am trying camping again! :-)
When I woke up on Friday John took me to get my cell phone and some food that I would like. I was again struck by how limited the grocery stores are in the UK. They just have food, that is it. If you want liquor you have to go to an off license store. If you want a hair straightener you have to go to a place like Argos, I'll explain about that store later. If you want aspirin, you go to the pharmacy or chemist. The UK has not yet discovered the idea of having everything all in one place like a SUPERmarket. That night a few of John's friends were in town from Bristol so we all met down at the pub, the Winchester. Back story on this pub is that Simon Pegg, the man who wrote Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, use to live in this same area and use to hang out a lot in the Winchester. He loved it so much that he based his movie pub, the Winchester, on the real one we were visiting. If you have seen Shaun of the Dead you will be struck by the strong similarities upon entering the real Winchester. Anywho, so we are all sitting in back, a lot of hugs, and welcome backs were coming my way from John's friends. I am very lucky that John has such good friends. Matt, his best friend, was not there but Angela, his fiance was. She is the sweetest woman and has made me feel so welcome. John's friend Steve was there along with his girlfriend Natalie, who is absolutely wonderful too. Then there were Al and Nick, two friends of John's who are part of a band called Electrolyte, really cool band, check them out on my MySpace. Nicola and Gid were also there, very nice people. So we all hung out, drank, ate, etc. It was good fun and I was happy to be with my new friends again.
The next day I met Angela and Natalie for wedding dress shopping. Angela is getting married May 24th. I forget what department store we were in but we walked down to the Vera Wang section of the store so Angela could try on wedding dresses. Now don't get confused, there is no way Angela could afford a Vera Wang dress, but she thought that this would be her only time to actually try on dresses, so why not Vera Wang? They were gorgeous dresses, and Nat and I enjoyed looking at different magazines, books, etc. while Angela tried on dresses. Once we were done the girls decided to take me shopping in London. I had so much fun even though I only bought some make-up at Clinique and a few things for John's sister, she is having a baby. I suggested to him that he should get her a gift and since he has no clue about baby things I offered to pick some things out while I was shopping. He, at this time, was hanging out with the guys having bacon sandwiches at the flat. We were walking down places like Carnaby Street, Oxford Street, etc. In England there are department stores and boutiques but that is about it. They are usually featured on streets called high streets. There are malls but there are not many of them. It was great to walk down these streets with my bags in hand and feel like a real Londoner.
Nat, Ange, and I stopped at a turkish restaurant for lunch. They had a deal, two courses for £6.99 Man, that was such good food. I had a feta cheese pastry as my first course, that was very tasty. Next I had a lamb pide. It was a cross between a pita and a pizza, and very good. They gave us chili oil and though I started with just a little of it, I ended up pouring out more and loving the stuff!
Alright, about Argos. The closest comparision I think I can come up with is Target. Argos has a variety of things, not clothes, but home, office, furniture, appliances, etc. I wanted a hair straightener and was informed that this was where I would be able to get it. John took me on Sunday and it was rather an odd experience. You walk in to this one room store and step over to the catalogs. You find your item, write it on an order form that is available at the catalog counter, take it to the cashier, she imputs it, and you pay for it. Then you wait near a different counter until they call your order number. Once your number is called you walk up to the counter and collect your bought items. Very strange, but sort of neat.
On Sunday I also purchased my laptop. We went to PC world and John picked one out for me. Then we took it home and he played with it, saying he was going to pimp my laptop. Boys and their toys. . . . :-) Anywho, I am now writing you from my pimped out laptop and enjoying having it.
On Monday I decided to go grocery shopping, since we had been eating out for most of the week and it was not a good idea to continue with that habit. After walking to three different small grocery stores I got so frustrated with what one had and the other didn't that I came back to the flat and ordered groceries online through Sainsbury's, one of the major grocery chains in the UK. This proved to be a wise decision because A. They deliver it rather than me carrying the bags down the street and up two flights of stairs in the rain, and B. I got everything I ordered all at once! I have officially learned my lessons about shopping in London. One rope is now mastered, onto the rest of the ropes!
Next blog . . . . weather and my camping weekend in Devon . . . Lord help me I am trying camping again! :-)
Wednesday, 22 August 2007
I have arrived!
Hello all, here is my blog about my life in London. Wow, where to begin. Alright, first things first. . . . the flight. I had Jimmie and Mom drop me off at the international terminal at LAX absolutely positive that this was where I had to be. Yep, sure enough, Jimmie was right when he pointed out Air New Zealand was back at terminal 2. Fortunately I had a smart cart that Jimmie had purchased for me to carry my two suitcases and two carry-ons, (what I am a girl!), so I was able to push them the five minute walk back down to terminal two. So it was about 88 degrees Fahrenheit and the line to check in and drop off your baggage was so long that the end was sticking out a doorway into the sun. So there I am, standing in the sun for a good five minutes, wondering why I had bothered at all to take a shower that morning.
Finally, I get up to the counter and the attendant tells me that there is a limit now to how many carry on bags I can take on. I pleaded with her saying that one bag had all of my medications, inhalers, and that they couldn't be put in the unpressurized luggage hold. I asked her if the other one, a backpack, could count as my purse. She said okay but that I might have problems at the gate.
Once my luggage was taken care of I decided to get some water. I was dying of thirst and ended up paying $2.38 for a bottle of water. There wasn't a tip jar so I gave my change to the cashier telling her to keep it since it would do me no good in England, they do not exchange change. Drinking my water I walked slowly to the gate and discovered that the woman who had taken my luggage downstairs was now at the gate getting ready to check people in. How wonderful to know that if I did have any carry-on issues she was right there.
Suddenly over the intercom they announce that our plane will be leaving about 40 minutes late. This is nothing new to me because I have never been on an international flight that has left on time. Finally, we were allowed to board the plane and get situated. I was stuck in the middle on the left hand side of the plane. The woman to my left, at the window, was Indian. The woman to my right was elderly and immediately went to sleep once she sat down.
About fifteen minutes after the plane took off the woman to my right got up and went to the restroom. She came back and took out her barf bag and began to use it as it was meant to be used. Flight attendants rushed over and spoke to her, asked her what was wrong, did she want oxygen. She nodded so they proceeded to bring her oxygen, laid it across her tray table, and hooked her up to it. The lady to my left and I looked at each other and realized we both were not going to be using the restroom anytime soon. In fact, she didn't use it until I broke down and woke up the sleeping woman to the right because I was desperate to pee. When I came back the Indian lady had taken the initiative and gone as well. Poor us, that was the only time we used the restroom in 9 1/2 hours. I slept on and off, a total of about 4 1/2 hours all together. The food was good, seats were small, but the wine was free! Oh, and speaking of the food, the Indian lady had requested vegetarian meals which were served to her and the rest of the vegetarians on the plane a good 40 minutes before everyone else. So unfair! I am sitting there smelling the food next to me while the attendants are sitting around waiting for the proper mealtime to come.
At last I am in London. It is a beautiful day, smooth landing, and just when everyone is getting up and ready to deplane the captain comes over the intercom and says that we are not being taken to a gate but will be taken to an area of tarmac, put on buses, and from there taken to customs. Apparently the congestion problems at Heathrow are very real. So we got on buses, went through customs, which was fairly easier this time since I went into the special line for work visas rather than the customs line for everyone else. I walked out to the baggage area and my luggage was already there. I grabbed that, strolled out to the waiting area and John was not there.
I waited, waited, and waited. I had him called over the intercom. I walked around a little bit, staying close to the entryway from the underground. Finally, an hour later he shows up, apologizing and hugging me, man I missed him. Turns out I was NOT in Terminal One, where all other international flights come in, and where we both assumed we would meet. I still don't know what terminal I was in but apparently Air New Zealand is in an odd sort of area both in LA and in London. John had been looking for me in Terminal One.
After a long time in the underground, which was very crowded for the middle of the day, we finally made it home and dropped off my luggage. John took me to a pub he had promised to take me to my last trip, The World's End, and I had the Cider and Black I had been craving for two weeks. All of a sudden Sublime's song Burn starts to play over the speakers and I can see it is raining outside. I was pretty content, listening to my music, LBC baby, in London, with the rain outside, and most importantly, my man by my side. Yep, this is the life.
Stay tune for my next post . . . .UK shopping and why I love American supermarkets!
Finally, I get up to the counter and the attendant tells me that there is a limit now to how many carry on bags I can take on. I pleaded with her saying that one bag had all of my medications, inhalers, and that they couldn't be put in the unpressurized luggage hold. I asked her if the other one, a backpack, could count as my purse. She said okay but that I might have problems at the gate.
Once my luggage was taken care of I decided to get some water. I was dying of thirst and ended up paying $2.38 for a bottle of water. There wasn't a tip jar so I gave my change to the cashier telling her to keep it since it would do me no good in England, they do not exchange change. Drinking my water I walked slowly to the gate and discovered that the woman who had taken my luggage downstairs was now at the gate getting ready to check people in. How wonderful to know that if I did have any carry-on issues she was right there.
Suddenly over the intercom they announce that our plane will be leaving about 40 minutes late. This is nothing new to me because I have never been on an international flight that has left on time. Finally, we were allowed to board the plane and get situated. I was stuck in the middle on the left hand side of the plane. The woman to my left, at the window, was Indian. The woman to my right was elderly and immediately went to sleep once she sat down.
About fifteen minutes after the plane took off the woman to my right got up and went to the restroom. She came back and took out her barf bag and began to use it as it was meant to be used. Flight attendants rushed over and spoke to her, asked her what was wrong, did she want oxygen. She nodded so they proceeded to bring her oxygen, laid it across her tray table, and hooked her up to it. The lady to my left and I looked at each other and realized we both were not going to be using the restroom anytime soon. In fact, she didn't use it until I broke down and woke up the sleeping woman to the right because I was desperate to pee. When I came back the Indian lady had taken the initiative and gone as well. Poor us, that was the only time we used the restroom in 9 1/2 hours. I slept on and off, a total of about 4 1/2 hours all together. The food was good, seats were small, but the wine was free! Oh, and speaking of the food, the Indian lady had requested vegetarian meals which were served to her and the rest of the vegetarians on the plane a good 40 minutes before everyone else. So unfair! I am sitting there smelling the food next to me while the attendants are sitting around waiting for the proper mealtime to come.
At last I am in London. It is a beautiful day, smooth landing, and just when everyone is getting up and ready to deplane the captain comes over the intercom and says that we are not being taken to a gate but will be taken to an area of tarmac, put on buses, and from there taken to customs. Apparently the congestion problems at Heathrow are very real. So we got on buses, went through customs, which was fairly easier this time since I went into the special line for work visas rather than the customs line for everyone else. I walked out to the baggage area and my luggage was already there. I grabbed that, strolled out to the waiting area and John was not there.
I waited, waited, and waited. I had him called over the intercom. I walked around a little bit, staying close to the entryway from the underground. Finally, an hour later he shows up, apologizing and hugging me, man I missed him. Turns out I was NOT in Terminal One, where all other international flights come in, and where we both assumed we would meet. I still don't know what terminal I was in but apparently Air New Zealand is in an odd sort of area both in LA and in London. John had been looking for me in Terminal One.
After a long time in the underground, which was very crowded for the middle of the day, we finally made it home and dropped off my luggage. John took me to a pub he had promised to take me to my last trip, The World's End, and I had the Cider and Black I had been craving for two weeks. All of a sudden Sublime's song Burn starts to play over the speakers and I can see it is raining outside. I was pretty content, listening to my music, LBC baby, in London, with the rain outside, and most importantly, my man by my side. Yep, this is the life.
Stay tune for my next post . . . .UK shopping and why I love American supermarkets!
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