Sleep or no sleep, I'm back to the grind at work.
I returned this week to 69 unread emails, an urgent phone call request, a young person that absconded 3 times, another child that disclosed some serious allegations against a parent, an request for an urgent unscheduled visit, another team requesting I wait another month to transfer my already overdue case, and a foster carer that has put in her 28 day notice to no longer care for a young person.
Now, the majority of these issues, emails, phone calls, and visits all have to do with one client. A client, who I believe, is currently lying to my face and causing me a BIG headache and a lot of paperwork. This was the ONLY case I worried about while I was in Texas.... I guess I had good reason too.
I think people are right when they say you need another vacation shortly after you return from vacation. These past two days have been INTENSE!
I did something that I am super against today ..... I stayed at work until 7 pm tonight. UGH.... I really hate cutting into my self care time, especially since I still need to catch up on sleep due to jet lag.
But, I was in good company at the office since half of the staff was also in the office late. Apparently, my office is known to work late. Who would have known, since I try to leave by 5:30 at the latest everyday.
I did confirm tonight that I can get an eye test paid for by my employer since I have to use the computer so much. I think my eyes are going bad with all this computer and file reading I do....boo.....
Oh...and I also went to the dentist yesterday. The NHS -- "free" dentist. (but you really have to pay). I mean, I was in the chair for maybe 7 minutes total, and she took some x-rays (surprisingly), told me I had one cavity that needs filling, and I learned that they apparently don't clean teeth here in the UK on visits like I am used to in the US. After my NHS dentist visit, I understand why the English are known for having bad teeth. On a positive note, it is relatively really cheap for me to have an "exam" and a filling!
Last thought of the night....why do journalist put themselves in the line of fire to get a good shot and/or story? I just finished looking at the Boston Globe Big Picture blog, and saw all of these pictures from the protests in Bangkok. Some included journalist following around the military or ducking on the ground or behind stuff. I mean WHY? Why is America and the rest of the world so enthralled with good news or stories that journalist think it is necessary to put their lives in danger and get in the way of a HUGE conflict. It doesn't make sense to me.
There's a party at my house this weekend for one of my housemate's birthday. There are a lot of American's coming over. This should be fun and/or interesting!
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Hi! I'm still here...
Has it really almost been a month since I last wrote a blog?!?!?!
DANG IT!
Just when I thought people didn't read this thing, people start asking why I haven't written on here in awhile.
I think I did mention in my very first post that I am bad at these kind of commitments, but I want to be a good blogger! So... will keep trying.
To update those that did not know, I just arrived back in England today from spending 10 days in Texas. I pulled off a fabulous Mother's day surprise, attended a great wedding, and raced around a few cities seeing people that I know and love. It was an amazing, super needed trip home, and I am glad I was able to see so many people that know and love me! It was fun to see the reaction of some people that saw me and wondered if I was a ghost or a look-a-like, since they thought I should be in another country.
On an opposite note, I feel like a zombie today. My flight arrived in London at 9:15 am GMT or 3:15 am Texas time. OUCH! Sadly I didn't sleep very well on the plane, but I did meet an interesting fellow. Since London Heathrow was closed for 6 hours early Monday morning, due to volcanic ash, my plane was maxed out with those that had been stranded for a day. Instead of taking up two seats like I have become accustomed two on these international flights, I sat by an African man. His name was Enoch -- like in Genesis 5 I said, he said no like in Hebrews. Yea yea....the same Enoch who walked faithfully with God, and was taken up so he would not see death (YEP....I listened to the podcast sermon that Matt Carter preached at Austin Stone a few weeks ago!).
This Enoch is from Malawi and works for or owns a freight company, so he frequently travels internationally. Enoch proudly wore a USA sweatshirt that also said Washington DC because that was where he was flying from. We chatted on and off for the first few hours of the trip. The more we chatted, the more Enoch found interest in me. hmmm..... Enoch mentioned several times that he wanted to give me his London phone number because he would be in London for the next 7 days and he travels there once to twice a year. He also asked me if he bought me a plane ticket to Malawi, would I come. hmmm.... a little too close for comfort airplane buddy. I said I don't know, I would like to visit Africa some day, but thought I would start by visiting my friends that live/will live there. Later he told me that he would fly me into Nairobi, Kenya and meet me there and then we could travel to Malawi together. He also rattled off his London phone number and asked me if I remembered it. No.
Thankfully as the hours ticked on, he fell asleep for a long time and I tossed, turned, and slept a little. When we arrived in London, I jetted off the plane a little faster than usually, hoping he would not ask me for my number. I also never made eye contact with him in the immigration line. Am I a mean person? Enoch seems to have a little different boundaries than me. I just don't think I want to be Enoch's African princess at this point in my life. I know I say I would like to get married soon, but why do I keep attracting all the one's I'm not interested in?
So, after two plane rides and three underground trains later, I made it back across London to Taryn and Paul's to get my car. I then drove an hour home, where I almost fell asleep on the motor way, so I had to stop take a five minute power nap, walk around, and get some coffee.
I took a two hour nap when I got home, opened the two gifts I received in the mail while I was gone (thanks Aunt Debbie and Laura!), and went grocery shopping. I just ate dinner....and realized one reason I may feel like a zombie was because I had a croissant on the plane at 8 am or 2 am Texas time and a cup of coffee this afternoon. That doesn't sound like real people fuel for a day.
I am trying to stay awake until about 8:30 or 9 tonight so hopefully I can get back on a normal schedule for work tomorrow.
DANG IT!
Just when I thought people didn't read this thing, people start asking why I haven't written on here in awhile.
I think I did mention in my very first post that I am bad at these kind of commitments, but I want to be a good blogger! So... will keep trying.
To update those that did not know, I just arrived back in England today from spending 10 days in Texas. I pulled off a fabulous Mother's day surprise, attended a great wedding, and raced around a few cities seeing people that I know and love. It was an amazing, super needed trip home, and I am glad I was able to see so many people that know and love me! It was fun to see the reaction of some people that saw me and wondered if I was a ghost or a look-a-like, since they thought I should be in another country.
On an opposite note, I feel like a zombie today. My flight arrived in London at 9:15 am GMT or 3:15 am Texas time. OUCH! Sadly I didn't sleep very well on the plane, but I did meet an interesting fellow. Since London Heathrow was closed for 6 hours early Monday morning, due to volcanic ash, my plane was maxed out with those that had been stranded for a day. Instead of taking up two seats like I have become accustomed two on these international flights, I sat by an African man. His name was Enoch -- like in Genesis 5 I said, he said no like in Hebrews. Yea yea....the same Enoch who walked faithfully with God, and was taken up so he would not see death (YEP....I listened to the podcast sermon that Matt Carter preached at Austin Stone a few weeks ago!).
This Enoch is from Malawi and works for or owns a freight company, so he frequently travels internationally. Enoch proudly wore a USA sweatshirt that also said Washington DC because that was where he was flying from. We chatted on and off for the first few hours of the trip. The more we chatted, the more Enoch found interest in me. hmmm..... Enoch mentioned several times that he wanted to give me his London phone number because he would be in London for the next 7 days and he travels there once to twice a year. He also asked me if he bought me a plane ticket to Malawi, would I come. hmmm.... a little too close for comfort airplane buddy. I said I don't know, I would like to visit Africa some day, but thought I would start by visiting my friends that live/will live there. Later he told me that he would fly me into Nairobi, Kenya and meet me there and then we could travel to Malawi together. He also rattled off his London phone number and asked me if I remembered it. No.
Thankfully as the hours ticked on, he fell asleep for a long time and I tossed, turned, and slept a little. When we arrived in London, I jetted off the plane a little faster than usually, hoping he would not ask me for my number. I also never made eye contact with him in the immigration line. Am I a mean person? Enoch seems to have a little different boundaries than me. I just don't think I want to be Enoch's African princess at this point in my life. I know I say I would like to get married soon, but why do I keep attracting all the one's I'm not interested in?
So, after two plane rides and three underground trains later, I made it back across London to Taryn and Paul's to get my car. I then drove an hour home, where I almost fell asleep on the motor way, so I had to stop take a five minute power nap, walk around, and get some coffee.
I took a two hour nap when I got home, opened the two gifts I received in the mail while I was gone (thanks Aunt Debbie and Laura!), and went grocery shopping. I just ate dinner....and realized one reason I may feel like a zombie was because I had a croissant on the plane at 8 am or 2 am Texas time and a cup of coffee this afternoon. That doesn't sound like real people fuel for a day.
I am trying to stay awake until about 8:30 or 9 tonight so hopefully I can get back on a normal schedule for work tomorrow.
Monday, April 19, 2010
a lovely accent
While I was on the phone with the cable man tonight, every other thing he asked me I said, "HUH?" "Do what?" "excuse me?"
Let's face it, I could barely understand him. I knew he had to be either Irish or Scottish, but at this point, I still get the two accents confused (unless of course I have both an I Irish and a Scottish person talking to me at the same time, then I can tell the difference).
Half way through the conversation, he asked me where I was from. I told him the US, and he thought Canada. When I asked him where he was from he made me guess, to which he confirmed Scotland.
Later in the conversation he said, "I could just listen to your accent all day long!" (well...alright).
I asked him if the TV channels in Scotland were the same as England because almost all the channels here are American shows. I said he could just listen to American accents all day if he really wanted.
But, apparently its different in person...or over the phone I guess.
At the end, I asked him what a Welch accent sounded like. He suggested a cross between a Scottish accent and an American accent, and noted that you can't understand them at all. Scottish/American .... I'm not buying that!
HA! Oh good fun in the accent department of life! :)
Let's face it, I could barely understand him. I knew he had to be either Irish or Scottish, but at this point, I still get the two accents confused (unless of course I have both an I Irish and a Scottish person talking to me at the same time, then I can tell the difference).
Half way through the conversation, he asked me where I was from. I told him the US, and he thought Canada. When I asked him where he was from he made me guess, to which he confirmed Scotland.
Later in the conversation he said, "I could just listen to your accent all day long!" (well...alright).
I asked him if the TV channels in Scotland were the same as England because almost all the channels here are American shows. I said he could just listen to American accents all day if he really wanted.
But, apparently its different in person...or over the phone I guess.
At the end, I asked him what a Welch accent sounded like. He suggested a cross between a Scottish accent and an American accent, and noted that you can't understand them at all. Scottish/American .... I'm not buying that!
HA! Oh good fun in the accent department of life! :)
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Spectacular Sunday!
Well...today didn't start out spectacular by any means, but it ended up so great!!
My original plan was to go into London yesterday afternoon with my roommates to celebrate one of their birthdays. However, at the last minute, I decided not to go for a few reasons. One of which, was because I was having a pretty emotional day and found myself crying over every little thing that went semi-wrong. Homesickness sank in again, and I was definitely not on my A game. Therefore, I had NO desire to spend the evening in the London party crowd.
After about a 3 hour trip to England's Walmart equivalent, I spent the evening watching movies on cable. It was just what the doctor ordered!!!
This morning I woke up excited to start my day.
However, while I was getting ready for church, someone knocked on my door. Slightly confused at who would be knocking at my door so early in the morning, I cracked the door open to a middle age woman dressed in work-out attire. After I said hello, she asked whose car was parked at the end of the drive way. I said mine. And, she preceded to raise her voice as she yelled at me asking why I thought it was appropriate to park my car over the 'pavement'. Kicking my British translator into gear, I realized she wanted to know why my car was parked over the 'sidewalk' in American English terms. You see, my car was parked behind another housemate's car at the end of the driveway blocking a straight path on the sidewalk. I apologized, and told her I didn't even think about the fact that my car was covering the sidewalk when I parked it. Sadly, apology NOT accepted. She spent the next 2 minutes yelling my direction about why I would be so inconsiderate to park that way, and did I know she had to walk her blind dog into the road to get around my car, and she couldn't believe my car didn't get vandalized last night for a parking job like that, and finally, if she ever saw my car parked like that again she would first call the police, then call the city council, and then call my landlord. With her frustration vented, she turned around and stormed off, as I apologized again. I noticed she walked to the house across the street....what a great way to meet my neighbor! Still being in the slightly emotional state I was in the day before, the tears came a streaming....I didn't understand why a simple parking job would frustrate someone so much to spend 5 minutes yelling at me. UGH....
After that less than ideal start to the day, I returned to the Baptist church I visited last week. I was greeted at the door by a man I had met the week before who remembered my name! When I entered, the 2 old ladies that oohed and aahed over me being American the week before shot me quick waves and smiles across the pews. I actually really liked the sermon that was preached today, so that was good. After church, a woman named Ester, that I met last week stopped me to say that she had tried to call me last week to invite me to dinner, but the number she had for me did not work. We exchanged numbers again, and she invited me to dinner this Thursday night and to their house group after dinner. I gladly accepted! Ester than took me to meet people 'more my age'. I was introduced to about 4 girls that are in a similar life stage as me, who invited me to a picnic in the park.
By the time we actually left the church, the group multiplied to about 8 and we went to the grocery store to grab food. We ended up in the Westgate park near the cute little river where the riverboats -- or gondolas-- float by and little duckies and swans play. We sat outside for hours soaking up the sun and enjoying each others company.
I learned a lot about some of the other churches in town, because apparently "all the Christians decided to have a picnic at the park today". One of the girls pointed out 3 other church groups represented in the park. By the end of the afternoon, the groups collided and played a game of ultimate frisbee and a game of soccer.
When I went home, I decided I wanted to catch the night service of The City Church Canterbury, which I had visited twice before (it was represented at the park today too) because I thought that I should give it a third chance to see if I'd like it better. When I arrived, no one was there, so I am guessing they cancelled service tonight....which is probable since the universities are still on holiday. As I sat in the parking lot, I googled the two other churches that were at the park to see if either of them had night services. Barton Church did, so I drove to a new area of Canterbury to randomly try it out.
When I arrived, I was greeted at the door by a guy named Eric. He immediately noticed I wasn't from Canterbury, and asked me about myself. I told him a little and then he told me he was the pastor of the church. He asked me what kind of church I was looking for, and I .... well, laid it out really honestly and frank. He smiled and told me a little more about the church. At this point, I had this feeling that I would really like the church. Eric apologized a few times throughout our conversation because he said that the night service doesn't usually have many people and I should visit the morning service which is a lot bigger.
During the service, something just told me that this could be the church for me. After the service three girls sitting around me stopped to talk. By the time I left, I had the names, numbers, and invitations to random things from each of them. (One is in the upcoming production of Oklahoma!!! in Canterbury--what a site to see a bunch of British singing in American accents!)
I think I may really like this church! Even though I could really tell the pastor was nervous that I wouldn't like it because there were only about 25 people at the service. He stopped me at the end and told me again to come back to a morning service to get a better idea of the church. I will for sure! I think I am going to the women's bible study on Tuesday night. Sadly, I have to skip a house group I was invited to on Thursday because I had already made plans with Ester from the Baptist church.
Things are looking up around here. I have this idea that I may have a friend or two soon! :)
My original plan was to go into London yesterday afternoon with my roommates to celebrate one of their birthdays. However, at the last minute, I decided not to go for a few reasons. One of which, was because I was having a pretty emotional day and found myself crying over every little thing that went semi-wrong. Homesickness sank in again, and I was definitely not on my A game. Therefore, I had NO desire to spend the evening in the London party crowd.
After about a 3 hour trip to England's Walmart equivalent, I spent the evening watching movies on cable. It was just what the doctor ordered!!!
This morning I woke up excited to start my day.
However, while I was getting ready for church, someone knocked on my door. Slightly confused at who would be knocking at my door so early in the morning, I cracked the door open to a middle age woman dressed in work-out attire. After I said hello, she asked whose car was parked at the end of the drive way. I said mine. And, she preceded to raise her voice as she yelled at me asking why I thought it was appropriate to park my car over the 'pavement'. Kicking my British translator into gear, I realized she wanted to know why my car was parked over the 'sidewalk' in American English terms. You see, my car was parked behind another housemate's car at the end of the driveway blocking a straight path on the sidewalk. I apologized, and told her I didn't even think about the fact that my car was covering the sidewalk when I parked it. Sadly, apology NOT accepted. She spent the next 2 minutes yelling my direction about why I would be so inconsiderate to park that way, and did I know she had to walk her blind dog into the road to get around my car, and she couldn't believe my car didn't get vandalized last night for a parking job like that, and finally, if she ever saw my car parked like that again she would first call the police, then call the city council, and then call my landlord. With her frustration vented, she turned around and stormed off, as I apologized again. I noticed she walked to the house across the street....what a great way to meet my neighbor! Still being in the slightly emotional state I was in the day before, the tears came a streaming....I didn't understand why a simple parking job would frustrate someone so much to spend 5 minutes yelling at me. UGH....
After that less than ideal start to the day, I returned to the Baptist church I visited last week. I was greeted at the door by a man I had met the week before who remembered my name! When I entered, the 2 old ladies that oohed and aahed over me being American the week before shot me quick waves and smiles across the pews. I actually really liked the sermon that was preached today, so that was good. After church, a woman named Ester, that I met last week stopped me to say that she had tried to call me last week to invite me to dinner, but the number she had for me did not work. We exchanged numbers again, and she invited me to dinner this Thursday night and to their house group after dinner. I gladly accepted! Ester than took me to meet people 'more my age'. I was introduced to about 4 girls that are in a similar life stage as me, who invited me to a picnic in the park.
By the time we actually left the church, the group multiplied to about 8 and we went to the grocery store to grab food. We ended up in the Westgate park near the cute little river where the riverboats -- or gondolas-- float by and little duckies and swans play. We sat outside for hours soaking up the sun and enjoying each others company.
I learned a lot about some of the other churches in town, because apparently "all the Christians decided to have a picnic at the park today". One of the girls pointed out 3 other church groups represented in the park. By the end of the afternoon, the groups collided and played a game of ultimate frisbee and a game of soccer.
When I went home, I decided I wanted to catch the night service of The City Church Canterbury, which I had visited twice before (it was represented at the park today too) because I thought that I should give it a third chance to see if I'd like it better. When I arrived, no one was there, so I am guessing they cancelled service tonight....which is probable since the universities are still on holiday. As I sat in the parking lot, I googled the two other churches that were at the park to see if either of them had night services. Barton Church did, so I drove to a new area of Canterbury to randomly try it out.
When I arrived, I was greeted at the door by a guy named Eric. He immediately noticed I wasn't from Canterbury, and asked me about myself. I told him a little and then he told me he was the pastor of the church. He asked me what kind of church I was looking for, and I .... well, laid it out really honestly and frank. He smiled and told me a little more about the church. At this point, I had this feeling that I would really like the church. Eric apologized a few times throughout our conversation because he said that the night service doesn't usually have many people and I should visit the morning service which is a lot bigger.
During the service, something just told me that this could be the church for me. After the service three girls sitting around me stopped to talk. By the time I left, I had the names, numbers, and invitations to random things from each of them. (One is in the upcoming production of Oklahoma!!! in Canterbury--what a site to see a bunch of British singing in American accents!)
I think I may really like this church! Even though I could really tell the pastor was nervous that I wouldn't like it because there were only about 25 people at the service. He stopped me at the end and told me again to come back to a morning service to get a better idea of the church. I will for sure! I think I am going to the women's bible study on Tuesday night. Sadly, I have to skip a house group I was invited to on Thursday because I had already made plans with Ester from the Baptist church.
Things are looking up around here. I have this idea that I may have a friend or two soon! :)
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Bonjourno Italy, Ciao England - Day One!!!
Here is my attempt to accurately capture the unexpected randomness, glorious beauty, slightly painful, but all around wonderful experience of my first 'holiday' via blog and pictures. (WARNING...this is super long and will be over a few posts).
Day 1:
Flight: London-Stansted to Milan-Bergamo on Thursday, April 1, 2010 at 14:00
Adventurers: Jen, Kelli, Christina, and me
Christina left her house in Margate at 8 am to drive to Canterbury to pick me up at 9. I gave her a short tour of our house and then we left at about 9:15 to Bearsted to head to Jen's house. After one near death experience in a roundabout (yes I do mean NEAR DEATH...we were in the wrong lane to go around the roundabout and another car almost slammed into us as it exited..YIKES!), we arrived safely at Jen's house around 10:05. Meanwhile, Jen was on the phone with Kelli attempting to direct her back on course, as Kelli had made a wrong turn on her trek from Tunbridge Wells.
The four of us left Jen's via Christina's car headed to London-Stansted with a quick stop at the post office to turn a little pounds into more euros. The drive to Stansted is projected to take about an hour to 1.5 hours depending on the circumstances that one crosses along the way.
The second mishap (the first being the near death roundabout experience) occurred, when we ended up in the construction barricaded center lane when we needed to exit onto another motorway. Nevertheless, we trotted on an extra 3 miles to the next exit to turn around and get back on track.
Third mishap : OH NO! As we were exiting the motorway toward the 'long stay car park,' Christina said, "uh-oh...I think there is something wrong with the car!" as she coasted to the shoulder of the roundabout. She stopped the car and attempted to start it again....NOTHING. I said, "did you run out of gas?" "hmmm...I don't know--I had over half a tank when I left my house this morning." UGH....if you reread the first part of the story so far, you will soon realize that YES we had run out of gas (about two hours before our flight, I might add), as Christina had already been driving for HOURS.
While Christina called the recovery number to have someone bring us gas, I got out of the car to look around. I decided that I would walk down the exit ramp to see if there were any gas stations within walking distance, because I could not sit in the car and count as the minutes ticked closer to take off time. Kelli joined me as we marched down the exit like idiots.
Down the exit and up the road, we found a Hilton that we walked to. After making a plan to take one of the taxis at the Hilton to a gas station, I called Jen, who said that the recovery guy was 10 minutes away. PERFECT!!! I told Jen we would wait at the Hilton. A few minutes later, I got a call from Jen saying that the recovery man was on the wrong side of the motorway and it would take him too long to turn around, so he would have to call into his office to have another person dispatched. WHAT?!?!?! Jen said that Christina wanted her to grab our bags and meet us to take a taxi to the airport so the 3 of us would make the flight since by this point we had less than a hour and a half until take off. Feeling super sorry for Christina, but more sad that we may miss our flight, Jen grabbed our bags and walked our direction as we walked hers.
Here's Pack Mule Jen!
After we met, I called the taxi number I received from the Hilton. Unfortunately, the taxi company said it would take 10 minutes to get to us. Instead, we chose to walk back to the Hilton to look for a taxi or catch the shuttle.
We caught the shuttle, scrounged up 20 pounds because we thought the driver said 6 pounds each, but no, he meant 6 pounds for all of us, and headed to the airport.
After Kelli's fabulous "we must expect the unexpected, because nothing ever turns out the way you expect in England" Speech. BRILLIANT!!
In the airport, we rushed to get our passport checked at check-in and through security, where my bag was completely dumped and searched thanks to my bottle of mousse. After a quick repack, I met the other two girls at to grab a sandwich. (about 35 minutes until take off). As we started walking to the gate, we noticed a sign that said 12 minutes to all gates. WHAT?!?!?! Our tickets said we must be at the gate 30 minutes before take off or we cannot get on. CRAP....
So....this is the part of the story where we ran through the airport dodging people and scaling escalators. There was NO WAY I was missing a flight I had worked so hard to make! When we arrived to at the gate, OF COURSE the line was super long and they had not even begun boarding (so much for our run).... So, we stood in line for the next 20 minutes catching our breath, peeling off layers of clothing, and eating our sandwiches.
Poor Christina Update: The recovery man came an hour and a half after we left her car. He towed her to the nearest gas station because recovery cars do not carry gas in their cars (WHAT?!?!). Christina chose not to change her flight, and instead spent the weekend in London with some other Americans.
Thankfully, there is nothing exciting to report from the airplane. It did, however, mark my first Ryan Air flight!! People that have lived in Europe will understand the excitement of this. Cheap flight = no free drink, a hideous yellow and blue decor, lovely flight attendants from all over the world, who try to sell items to people over the entire ie: food, drinks, train tickets, scratch off lottery tickets, smokeless cigarettes...not even kidding!
We arrived in rainy Milan and caught a hour long bus ride into the city train station, where we managed to figure out which bus to hop on in order to go to our hostel. Unfortunately, we did not figure out how to pay for the bus ride, so we sat nervously hoping no one would ask to see our tickets. Thankfully, we discovered which stop to get off at, and walked around in circles to find our hostel.
Check in went okay besides the fact the man said he wouldn't cut the price even though we lost a person. After that, we walked around town attempting to find a good Italian place to eat and then went back to the hostel/hotel to get some sleep.
My first REAL Italian PIZZA!!!
Adventures of DAY 2 to come!!
Day 1:
Flight: London-Stansted to Milan-Bergamo on Thursday, April 1, 2010 at 14:00
Adventurers: Jen, Kelli, Christina, and me
Christina left her house in Margate at 8 am to drive to Canterbury to pick me up at 9. I gave her a short tour of our house and then we left at about 9:15 to Bearsted to head to Jen's house. After one near death experience in a roundabout (yes I do mean NEAR DEATH...we were in the wrong lane to go around the roundabout and another car almost slammed into us as it exited..YIKES!), we arrived safely at Jen's house around 10:05. Meanwhile, Jen was on the phone with Kelli attempting to direct her back on course, as Kelli had made a wrong turn on her trek from Tunbridge Wells.
The four of us left Jen's via Christina's car headed to London-Stansted with a quick stop at the post office to turn a little pounds into more euros. The drive to Stansted is projected to take about an hour to 1.5 hours depending on the circumstances that one crosses along the way.
The second mishap (the first being the near death roundabout experience) occurred, when we ended up in the construction barricaded center lane when we needed to exit onto another motorway. Nevertheless, we trotted on an extra 3 miles to the next exit to turn around and get back on track.
Third mishap : OH NO! As we were exiting the motorway toward the 'long stay car park,' Christina said, "uh-oh...I think there is something wrong with the car!" as she coasted to the shoulder of the roundabout. She stopped the car and attempted to start it again....NOTHING. I said, "did you run out of gas?" "hmmm...I don't know--I had over half a tank when I left my house this morning." UGH....if you reread the first part of the story so far, you will soon realize that YES we had run out of gas (about two hours before our flight, I might add), as Christina had already been driving for HOURS.
While Christina called the recovery number to have someone bring us gas, I got out of the car to look around. I decided that I would walk down the exit ramp to see if there were any gas stations within walking distance, because I could not sit in the car and count as the minutes ticked closer to take off time. Kelli joined me as we marched down the exit like idiots.
Down the exit and up the road, we found a Hilton that we walked to. After making a plan to take one of the taxis at the Hilton to a gas station, I called Jen, who said that the recovery guy was 10 minutes away. PERFECT!!! I told Jen we would wait at the Hilton. A few minutes later, I got a call from Jen saying that the recovery man was on the wrong side of the motorway and it would take him too long to turn around, so he would have to call into his office to have another person dispatched. WHAT?!?!?! Jen said that Christina wanted her to grab our bags and meet us to take a taxi to the airport so the 3 of us would make the flight since by this point we had less than a hour and a half until take off. Feeling super sorry for Christina, but more sad that we may miss our flight, Jen grabbed our bags and walked our direction as we walked hers.
Here's Pack Mule Jen!
After we met, I called the taxi number I received from the Hilton. Unfortunately, the taxi company said it would take 10 minutes to get to us. Instead, we chose to walk back to the Hilton to look for a taxi or catch the shuttle.
We caught the shuttle, scrounged up 20 pounds because we thought the driver said 6 pounds each, but no, he meant 6 pounds for all of us, and headed to the airport.
After Kelli's fabulous "we must expect the unexpected, because nothing ever turns out the way you expect in England" Speech. BRILLIANT!!
In the airport, we rushed to get our passport checked at check-in and through security, where my bag was completely dumped and searched thanks to my bottle of mousse. After a quick repack, I met the other two girls at to grab a sandwich. (about 35 minutes until take off). As we started walking to the gate, we noticed a sign that said 12 minutes to all gates. WHAT?!?!?! Our tickets said we must be at the gate 30 minutes before take off or we cannot get on. CRAP....
So....this is the part of the story where we ran through the airport dodging people and scaling escalators. There was NO WAY I was missing a flight I had worked so hard to make! When we arrived to at the gate, OF COURSE the line was super long and they had not even begun boarding (so much for our run).... So, we stood in line for the next 20 minutes catching our breath, peeling off layers of clothing, and eating our sandwiches.
Poor Christina Update: The recovery man came an hour and a half after we left her car. He towed her to the nearest gas station because recovery cars do not carry gas in their cars (WHAT?!?!). Christina chose not to change her flight, and instead spent the weekend in London with some other Americans.
Thankfully, there is nothing exciting to report from the airplane. It did, however, mark my first Ryan Air flight!! People that have lived in Europe will understand the excitement of this. Cheap flight = no free drink, a hideous yellow and blue decor, lovely flight attendants from all over the world, who try to sell items to people over the entire ie: food, drinks, train tickets, scratch off lottery tickets, smokeless cigarettes...not even kidding!
We arrived in rainy Milan and caught a hour long bus ride into the city train station, where we managed to figure out which bus to hop on in order to go to our hostel. Unfortunately, we did not figure out how to pay for the bus ride, so we sat nervously hoping no one would ask to see our tickets. Thankfully, we discovered which stop to get off at, and walked around in circles to find our hostel.
Check in went okay besides the fact the man said he wouldn't cut the price even though we lost a person. After that, we walked around town attempting to find a good Italian place to eat and then went back to the hostel/hotel to get some sleep.
My first REAL Italian PIZZA!!!
Adventures of DAY 2 to come!!
Everyone seems to be moving back to Texas....
I have 3 friends that are moving back to Texas (from oversees) over the next couple of months. Two of them are moving back a little sooner that I'd thought.
This has been tough for me to digest. I realized it is easy and exciting to think about moving abroad when your good friends live abroad as well. But then, I start to think about all the fun memories I had with them at home, and get a little sad that I won't be in Texas when they get back.
At this point....I keep reminding myself that 2 years isn't that long!
PLUS... I have a whole wave of friends that are still oversees and/or are preparing to go oversees in the coming months. :)
And finally, today marks the completion of my second month/beginning of my third month in England. It has gone by pretty fast so far.
This has been tough for me to digest. I realized it is easy and exciting to think about moving abroad when your good friends live abroad as well. But then, I start to think about all the fun memories I had with them at home, and get a little sad that I won't be in Texas when they get back.
At this point....I keep reminding myself that 2 years isn't that long!
PLUS... I have a whole wave of friends that are still oversees and/or are preparing to go oversees in the coming months. :)
And finally, today marks the completion of my second month/beginning of my third month in England. It has gone by pretty fast so far.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Milan!
I am leaving for Milan, Italy today and will be back on Sunday evening. I am flying out with three other Americans and tomorrow 4 Americans are meeting us in Milan. On the agenda: visiting the Last Supper painting, touring Milan, taking the train to Venice, and maybe visiting Lake Como. I am excited about some time off and my first 'holiday'.
Happy Easter! I hope you take sometime to reflect on the ressurection.
Happy Easter! I hope you take sometime to reflect on the ressurection.
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