Oxford

So it has been a pretty crazy few weeks. We've got three main posts that we'll try to get up. First is our trip tp Oxford. Our friends from KC Eric and Anne have a car, so the 4 of us drove up to Oxford to visit the town and university.

It was maybe the worst day weatherwise since we've moved here, so its a good thing we didn't spend the whole day outside. Oh wait....

Both couples forgot our cameras, but Eric did manage to get some from his phone, so apologies for the mobile-phone quality.

So it was freezing cold and windy and spitting rain all day, but we had a fun time anyway. We took a walking tour of the city and school which was very informative. The school is very interesting in that there is no central campus. There are 38 colleges that are a part of the university, but they are all autonomous - if you go there you are accepted to one of the colleges and you live at the college and have all classes there. Each college also has their own chapel. The colleges are interspersed throughout the town, so as you walk the streets there will be a shop, then a college, then a set of restaurants, then another college. It was pretty amazing, and weird to think that the first people started going to school there 1,000 years ago. Also, something like 8 of the last 10 Prime Ministers went there, and we saw the window from which Bill Clinton didn't inhale.

Not too much else to say there - a pretty cool university that I wish I could have gotten into.

And in case you thought that the US was the only place hit with tough economic times:

Obsession with the US

Since we are just a week away from what I'm sure is taking up its fair share of the news coverage in the States, I thought I'd comment on something that's been on my mind pretty much since we moved here - the amount of coverage that the US gets over here.

Starting next Tuesday at 11pm (5pm Central), one of the major news networks over here begins their wall-to-wall US election coverage. That blows my mind. Our first weekend here in London the front page of the Sunday paper had a huge picture of a Tina Fey lookalike I'd never seen before.

Outside of the political world - every major film opens up over here about a month after the US, and even more crazy is the fact that TV shows air here (also about a month behind). So, shows like Heroes, Deperate Housewives (for Jenna), Lost, and some other big ones will air over here shortly after the US. The reruns are crazy too - they literally have Friends on for at least 4 hours per day. There is, by far, more US television available here than British television. We watch Heroes on the BBC!!! And this Sunday, we got to watch an NFL game that was played over here.

I just find it interesting because of how little we care for the goings-on of any other country. I would venture to say that about 75% of Americans could name the Queen and the line of succession (Elizabeth - Charles - William). I think I'd be stretching it to say that 40% know who the PM is (Gordon Brown). At the next level down, you really fall off the map - I'd say less than 1% - that could say who the Chancellor is, or what he does (Alistair Darling - head of finances - kindof a "2nd in command" - would be similar to Bernake, but more important/prestigious).

Also, you're not likely to see Eastenders or Hollyoaks airing on FOX this season.

I guess I expected that to some degree we'd be getting away from all of the media hoopla and detach a bit from the US when we came over, but it is like a parasite - we can't get away!!!!

First Visitor

So my Mom (Janet) was our first visitor (and as we haven't had anyone else make any reservations, she may be the last). She got into town on Friday and flew out on Wednesday morning. We had a really good time, and had the opportunity for a couple of "firsts".

We picked her up from the airport on Saturday morning (she brought us a suitcase of necessities from home, so we felt obligated). We spent the majority of Saturday at some outdoor markets. We got some food at Borough Market, which has been in the same place since before the US declared its independence. We also went to a place that one of her friends had suggested - Camden Lock Market. Not saying that I wouldn't go back, I'll just have to make sure I get the grunge box from the attic (lots of Dr. Martens and mohawks - not exactly what we expected). Also, I tried ginger beer, which a colleague had told me was comparable to ginger ale in the states. NOT the case.

Sunday we did a bus tour of the city and chose to sit in the open-air top section. I was fine, but...

And we wondered why the top was so empty???

We were able to see a majority of the major sites - Westminster, Parliament, Tower of London, St Paul's, Hyde Park, etc. That also brought us to another first, when on our walk to Leicester Square we came upon our first ever Indian Festival of Lights celebration - Diwali. Jenna dared to go in for a few photos, but I don't think they appreciated that too much, so we just have this one:

Monday I had to work, so Mom and Jenna went to see the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham, then went on to do some shopping on Oxford Street and at Harrod's (where they bought some ornaments from the Christmas Shop but avoided the £15 small pizza from the "food court").

Tuesday I was able to get off early, so we took a quick River tour (free with our bus tour ticket) which took us up the river from Westminster/Parliament to the Tower of London. We then hopped off and did a full tour of the Tower of London, which was very cool. The first fortification built in the area, and parts of it date back almost 1000 years, so that was cool to see. And, since Jenna and I have been watching The Tudors, there were a lot of things that were familiar (having to do mainly with axes).

 Anyway, we had a wonderful time and we are so glad that Mom was able to come stay with us for a few days and that she had the opportunity to experience London with us!

Bathroom Disparity

I've got a few bigger things brewing, but to tide everyone over until I have the time to put them together, I thought I'd throw out this little tidbit on one observation I've had.

As a summary for the ladies - the standard men's room in the US will contain both toilets and urinals. The toilet stalls are similar to those in the women's bathroom, where the walls start at about 9 inches off the ground and stop just above the average person's head. About 70% of the bathrooms also have some kind of barrier between the urinals, to prevent peeking.

Everywhere I've been so far here in London, though, has an odd mix. I have yet to see a urinal barrier, which is not completely mind-boggling. What makes it worth noting, though, is that every toilet stall has floor to ceiling doors. I guess I just don't understand the privacy barrier here between urinal and toilet. I would think that they could cut off 1/3 of the barriers used on the toilets and put them up as urinal barriers. Is that really too much to ask?

Anyway men, if you come over, plan on having no privacy in "one" case, and a lot more than you're used to in the other case.

Apologies to the Loyal Readers

I've gotten a request to update this, so it must have been a while since I last said anything.

Been on a bit of a hiatus as last week we had to take a trip back to the US for a funeral. My wonderful Great Grandma Sarah died 2 weeks ago today. She'd been in the nursing home for some time, and was very sick and had borderline alzheimer's, so although it is sad to see her go, we're all very happy that she can finally be at peace after so many years in pain. My company paid for Jenna and I to both go home, which was great. It was wonderful to see all of the family and to think back on the good memories of Grandma (she ALWAYS had Dr. Pepper and Push-Pops from the Schwann Man). Was also great to hear a lot of stories I'd never heard about her and her husband (who died before I was born).

The trip also gave us the great opportunity to see my brother Jason, who got back from Afghanistan the day before we left. He is home for about 2 months before going back over, so we were very fortunate to be able to see him, and of course Laura and my niece Hailey.

We were also very fortunate to be able to make it to a proper grocery store. Needless to say, there are a few differences in what you can get over here. A few of the mentionables that we put in the empty suitcase we brought with us:

-Chocolate chips (over here they come in about 1 oz bags)
-Cake Mixes (Those of you in Dallas may find this funny, as we made about 4 cakes in our last 3 weeks to empty our pantry. The selection of Duncan Hines over here is pretty spotty).
-Sugar and Flour (you can get those here no problem, so you'll have to ask Jenna why we needed those)
-Bisquick/syrup (we don't eat that many pancakes, but you can't get it here and its nice to have the option)
-Peanut Butter (Jenna thinks it tastes funny here)

We also did a little clothes shopping, as we decided there were a few things we were lacking. I ended up with a pair of shoes, a pair of jeans and 2 shirts from Steve and Barry's (love that place) and a couple dress shirts. Jenna got some sweaters and 3 pairs of shoes (all necessary, of course).

On return, I found out about a group of guys from the US that came over last year on the same program last year who play (American) football every Sunday afternoon. I took part yesterday, and what an experience. For one, I haven't played flag football since college - a fact that my thighs have not stopped reminding me of today. Also, it is London so it rains, which means wet ball. Also, I'm awful at sports. I think I caught 1 pass of about 8 thrown to me. Was an interesting game - rain for the first half, then a strong wind for the second, which made passing difficult and made it quite cold considering the wet skin. In all, was a lot of fun and (sort of) makes up for the fact that I can't really watch any NFL over here.

That's about all the news right now. Trying to plan an Anniversary (Nov 5) trip somewhere, so will hopefully have something to say about places other than London in the near future. Also, I have the pleasure of putting together a desk, a bookcase, and a dresser tonight, and from what I hear the directions here are worse than home, so that may provide some laughs for you in the next couple of days.

+'s and -'s

We took possession of our flat this weekend. Not sure if you call it that when you're renting, but we have keys and are allowed to sleep there, so I don't know what else to call it.


We haven't spent much time there yet, since our shipment of stuff (including bedding, towels, dishes and other essentials) hasn't been delivered yet, but there are already pros and cons that I've come across.


Pro #1

We get to have old timey keys, which makes it feel all the more like we're living in London (see picture below).



Con #1
It takes 4 keys to get into the place - 2 for the front entry to the building and 2 to our flat (see picture above). There are actually 2 more if you count the key to get to the backyard from inside the house and the padlock on the door from the backyard to the street. This could be a pro item for the moms - Safety First!!
Con #2
It is a little tight. The hallway is not quite wide enough for Jenna and I to stand next to each other. Also the rooms are just generally smaller than our place in Dallas.
Pro #2
It is significantly bigger than most of the places we saw (no cot in the living room).
Pro #3
The landlord was only required to put in a bed, a kitchen table, and a couch. He put in 2 couches, and also added a coffee table, 2 bedside tables, and patio furniture, all which we were planning to have to buy.
Con #3
We just realized that there is no microwave.
I'm sure there will be more things that we'll come across, but those are a couple from the first day.

Impressive, but a Little Excessive

So last weekend we made a visit to Buckingham Palace. It is only open for 2 months of the summer when the queen is in Scotland, so we thought we'd better get over there first thing. We did the full tour, which included a small art gallery, the mews (stables, coachhouse, and garage), and then a walk through the state rooms, including the throne room and the banquet hall set up for a state dinner (these were the ones worth mentioning).

Overall, it was pretty impressive. If I've been a good blogger, there is a link to some pictures that we took. If they aren't there as you read, its because we've been too lazy to upload them, so come back later and they'll eventually be up. They don't allow photos in the palace, so they will be a little limited. Everything in there was very ornate and grand - I guess what you'd expect from a palace. It takes them 2 days to set the 200 seat table for a banquet, partly because the 6 glasses per person has to be the exact right distance from the plate, silverware, etc. Yes, there are 6 glasses per person - champagne toast, water, white wine, red wine, dessert champagne, and port. All are the exact same size, but you wouldn't want to mix your water with the remnants from the champagne toast, of course.

Also of note - there are 240 bedrooms but only 78 bathrooms. I wonder who shares? Wouldn't it be pretty weird to be walking down the hallway in your towel after a shower, and whoops! there's the queen?!

Somewhere between the table and the 6 reception rooms (that we saw) and the 4 royal coaches (that we saw), I started to think that maybe it was too much. I'd really like to know what these people do, other than of course get born to the right family. The PM and the parliament run the country, so the royal family literally has no purpose other than to attend events and make appearances. It amazes me that the citizens here are okay with funding all of this. Granted, the buildings have been around for a while, but the upkeep has to be ridiculous. There is one department whose entire job is refurbishing the royal coaches that (maybe) get used one time per year. It takes a full year to do one coach, so there is just a rotation. I guess you'd say that at least they're creating jobs?

There are something like 6 royal palaces throughout the country that are at the disposal of the royal family, so the taxpayers here have to pay to keep them looking good on the off chance that Harry might need a place to sleep it off. Crazy. And all the while, there are about 3 homeless guys sitting outside the closest Tube station, and all I can think about now is the fact that I paid about $60 to look at all of these empty rooms while they are sleeping on the sidewalk.