We're Not in Kansas Anymore

I previously wrote about the window displays at Harrod's. I took some photos (some BAD ones, as it turns out! Sorry, especially to all the photographers out there!)
I've never seen Dorothy or the Tin Man quite like this...

We finally had a visit by the schools to verify our residence. At 8 pm! And we have been staying home all DAY... I wonder how many evenings or weekends they showed up? Now, let's see if they can get it together to get the kids into school when it resumes in January.....

Well, after just talking with the schools, I'm not convinced that they are going to make this happen. Apparently, it is "normal" for a child to be waiting for a few months if the schools are full. "Normal" and ACCETABLE are two completely different things! They have apparently assigned Gray to the school in the borough that is the farthest from our house: 5.5 miles and an hour and a half by bus ONE WAY! We can appeal that, but they have 30 days to respond to the appeal. So, we are busy writing every government official we can think of.

On Friday evening, I went shopping for those items we want for Christmas breakfast and dinner which are not available in grocery stores here: Karo syrup, canned pumpkin, Log Cabin type syrup and marshmellow fluff (for fudge). They have pumpkins, which I could cut up and cook, but frankly, I don't have the time to do that. They have NO corn syrup that I can find. They sell pure maple syrup, imported from Canada- at an outrageous price. (Though it's probably about the same as I paid for the fake stuff they imported from America...) I also picked up some Kraft Mac and Cheese and some microwave popcorn-- neither of which are readily available (in any brand or form). So, just as an example: both the Karo and the Log Cabin syrups cost 4 GBP each-- that's about $7! I could have ordered them from Ebay for about 8 GBP, or about $15 each. Good thing Christmas only comes once a year! There is a website where we can order American food. Prices are as outrageous, and there is a shipping charge on top of it. (www.americansoda.co.uk) We did get a Christmas pudding to serve. A little of America, a little of England.

An interesting note about Christmas pudding: it's not really pudding as we know it. It's more of a really moist cake. Also, to make a proper Christmas pudding, it takes about 6 weeks! There is even a Sunday designated to begin preparing your Christmas pudding. Since we missed that, we have bought one. We'll let you know how it goes...

We found a church we are excited to visit. It is Hillsong Church. It meets in one of the theatres in central London. (The one that is playing, "We Will Rock You," with the music of Queen...) Hillsong publishes a lot of Christian music. One of the questions in the FAQ section of the website was: "I am concerned about the sound level in the Dominion Theatre." Sounds like our kind of church! We'll let you know about it.

My Spanish co-worker explained today that Santa/Father Christmas/Chris Kringle doesn't visit Spain. Christmas Eve is the big deal, but focused on a big meal with family, followed by a day of relaxation on Christmas Day. (Or a day of recovering from gluttony!) The gifts come out on January 6, on Epiphany. The Three Kings are the "mascot" for Epiphany.

We have offered to host dinner on Christmas Day for the American social workers. The interesting thing is, there is no transportation on Christmas day (other than cabs, which will charge double fare), so folks are spending the night on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with us and/or another American who lives nearby. So, while it's not family, we will have a crowd for Christmas. We will sure miss being with family on Christmas!!!

The day after Christmas is Boxing Day-- also a holiday. (I need to remember the significance of this day.) But, it is the shopping day like Black Friday in America. People line up (though not as early as in America) to get all the good sales. It seems a little backwards to me. I want the sales for buying presents! I will have to adjust...

We should have real internet access by Christmas, so we will be able to Skype on Christmas. We look forward to talking with some of you!

I'm glad not all days are like today...

(We have a few photos of David and Zane asleep on the tube... We wear them out!)

We decided to try another church. Found the one we wanted to try, rushed around to get ready and missed the bus. The ONE bus that comes to our neighborhood comes every 30 minutes on Sunday. So, we caught the next one, and then realized that the walk to the church from the bus stop was farther than originally thought. By the time we would have gotten there, it would have been well into the service. Meanwhile, we are cold, frustrated and all of us in a foul mood. So, we got on the Tube, and went to exchange the Wii remote that has needed returned for 2 weeks. We needed to accomplish SOMETHING. Decided to treat the kids to McDonalds since it had been such a yucky start to the day. (They have been begging for awhile, and we have resisted.)

We decided to search for some of the moderately essential items we were still missing: trash can, can opener, cleaning supplies, Christmas decorations. Another success!

Later, David decided to go in search of stereo equipment. He ran into a train line that was closed for the weekend, and the replacement bus took the loooooooooong way around. He got to the store just in time to watch them close. He stopped in a pub before trying to figure out how to get back. Ended up on an "express" train, which didn't stop until it reached the end of the line. Got back on going the other direction, and of course, it stopped at all stops.

I tried to shop for a vacuum cleaner on line (a pain to carry on the bus and tube). Found one that looked like it would do the job, and it wasn't available for home delivery.

It's just been one of those days.

The week, however, was much better. We went to see Wicked, which was FABULOUS! Great show, and it was our first since coming to London. We found the discount ticket websites, so got our tickets for about half price.

We also went to Harrod's. It is THE department store in London. (There are many, of course, but this one is known particularly for it's opulence.) The holiday theme is The Wizard of Oz, in celebration of it's 70th anniversary. All of the display windows had the Oz theme. But, imagine The Wizard of Oz, done "Vogue" style... Quite outrageous, some of them, but all very creative and cool. (Couldn't get photos... in order to get far enough away to get the photo, there would have been hundreds of strange people in them!)

Inside, each room has a theme. Oz is present throughout, but they had the Egyptian room, which displayed fine jewelry (a watch that was 250,000 GBP). There was a billiard table that had a 1 million pound price tag! A TV that was 103 inches. Attendants in the bathrooms. You get the picture. It's kind of fun to be able to wander through, even though nothing is within reach. The architecture and interior design is museum quality.

We also went to a Christmas Fair at Hyde Park (the big park that is near Buckingham Palace.) The German Christmas Market is a common theme here, and it was here in spades! Of course, plenty of carnival rides and snack booths (lots of warm mulled wine available!) and merchandise booths. It is a semi-permanent thing, as it will be open daily for about 2 months. It is free to enter-- but that's where the free stuff stops! (Like any other carinval, right?)

We did have an experience on the tube (with kids and Grandma) where we were certain that we were squished in as tightly as could be, and a family of three squished themselves in at just the last minute! I'm surprised that the whole crowd didn't just fall out when the door opened-- you know like the closet that is stuffed full, and when you open the door, it all comes toppling down? That didn't happen, thankfully, but I'm not sure how it didn't!

Another first: we ordered groceries on the internet and had them delivered! That's a different experience. I'm used to being able to see what I'm purchasing. We will need some practice to work that one out. I realized that I had purchased meat for meals, but not many things that we could do with the meat, much less side dishes! I also forgot toilet paper, cleaning supplies, dish soap... It will definately take some practice. But, it's much easier than either shopping every day or trying to haul 10 bags of groceries on the tube.

We find ourselves eating lots of fresh fruits and vegtables. The kids prefer their veggies uncooked, and they are more affordable than the less nutritious canned or frozen ones. I sort of feel like I'm learning how to cook again. The things available are similar, but not the same. Many things have a different name, so figuring out how to find what I am looking for is a challenge. (Hamburger is "mince.")

We are still fighting with the schools. They still have not shown up for the residency check to verify that we do indeed live here. We found out that the primary school nearest us is one of the best in either the city or the country. And, since you can choose your school, regardless of where you live, people try to cheat or lie about where they live to get their kids into the good school. (Kids in the immediate area have priority over kids traveling from somewhere else.) So, we are waiting... not so patiently anymore! We call them, and/or email them every single day. We are nice, but just asking where things are with our applications. We are now trying to figure out whe we can contact to lodge a complaint. There has to be an entity the schools fear hearing from.... (besides us, AGAIN!).

Sadly, David's Mom returned to the US on Friday. We will miss her, but I am sure she is more than ready to be home! We tried to take her to see things, and she insists that she got to do everything she wanted to and more, but it's so sad that she had to stay in the house with the kids waiting for the stupid school to show up-- especially since they never did!

Unfortunately, the boys are getting very bored and very lonely, having to be cooped up all the time, with no one their age to play with. The last few days, they didn't behave very well for their grandma. They are also increasingly homesick-- again, lonely, bored because they don't have opportunities to meet kids their age. One night, we sent Zane out to meet the boys who were playing in the street. They seemed to be close to his age. That went really well, but it's been too cold or wet to play outside after school since then. And, we are out playing tourist or getting things for the house on the weekends.

Maybe we will stay home next weekend, especially since today was such a disaster!

What a week!

We finally moved into our house this week. We took the day off so we could get it done. We had mostly suitcases (11 of them) and grocery bags to move. So, how do you do that without a car?

We actually hired a mini-cab. These are different than regular black taxis that you see in that you actually call to schedule the cab, and they tell you the fare for the trip BEFORE they pick you up. Black taxis have outrageous rates and run on a meter, so if you sit in traffic for an hour, you pay for it. We made one trip with the majority of the stuff, sending David and Grandma by taxi, and Shaunda and the boys took the tube. Then, David and Shaunda went back to the flat with two empty suitcases to get the rest of the stuff. We actually stuffed both of them full and had about 4 grocery bags in addition! Bedding, especially conforters are big! Even when you put them in a bag and suck all the air out. We took the tube to our area, and then hired a mini-cab for the half mile walk. Only one almost major mishap on an escalator in the tube station with all of the luggage and bags! People really are helpful and friendly around here-- several stepped in to help when David almost went backwards down the escalator with the suitcase...

After getting all of our stuff into the house, we headed to Ikea. It's actually quite a trip from our house. The nice thing, though, is that they have mini-cabs there (in the form of mini-vans, which they call "people carriers") to haul all of the people and their stuff home. Imagine, a full set of dishes, pots and pans, glasses, broom, small bathroom and kitchen rugs and miscellaneous household items-- on the tube and bus. IMPOSSIBLE! It would take us a dozen trips to get just the basics! It's not even expensive-- probably the same as it would cost us to take a dozen trips...

On Saturday, we went into full blown tourist mode. We went to see the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace. The crowd was impressive, so we got to see mostly the backs of the band. We did see the actual Guard change, though, from the side. It's very "royal." We then had lunch at a pub called "Bag O' Nails," which originated in 1755 as "The Devil and Baccanal." The name changed in 1905. Then, we headed to South Bank to take a trip on the London Eye. It's this very large wheel, with glass capsules that hold about 25 people each. It takes 30 minutes for one rotation, and you get pretty much 360 view from the capsule. Unfortunately, it was raining, so while we did see quite a bit, the photos did not turn out very well. Gray really did NOT want to go. He doesn't like heights, and he insisted that he would not go. He changed his mind at the last minute because he didn't want one of his parents to miss out to stay with him. What a nice guy! He didn't enjoy it much, but he didn't have a panic attack or anything. After The Eye, we headed home. We were going to have dinner at a Mexican restaurant we had heard about, but they were booked. (Mexican restaurants are very rare in London.) We will have to try again-- and get a reservation!

Everyone was very exhausted at the end of the day. There is sooooooo much walking involved in getting anywhere. You have to walk to get to the tube station, and then you have to walk inside the tube station (often under the street, or under train lines!) to change to different tube lines. The tube is fast, it's getting there that takes time!

Sunday, we went to a local church. Much different than our church in the US, it is very small, just starting up. The people were very nice and welcoming, and before we left, we had invitations to tea and 2 Christmas parties! We will probably visit other churches, but this was a good church.

Life here is different. (In case that isn't obvious!) We ordered cable/internet/phone service 3 weeks before we got to our house, hoping that things would get hooked up quickly. We were told that once our cable was hooked up(it's actually sattelite, I guess), we would call to hook up phone and internet. Well, the cable guy did show up on the day we moved in, but he didn't have all the cable he needed to hook us up, and didn't have time to get it all done, so he came back on Sunday. He also said that we have to have phone service in order to switch on the cable. I made them talk with each other, and it is supposed to be figured out, but we still don't have more than the basic BBC channels.... Supposedly by tomorrow morning the man in the magic room will have pushed his button, or flipped his switch... Meanwhile, in a few days we will receive a letter telling us when they will hook up the phone. After that, we can call to schedule Internet..... Apparently, they are still using switchboards, or some such antiquated system! Meanwhile, we use mobile phones and a mobile broadband connection for internet. It is a poor connection and a pain in the but.

The boys still are not in school. We called 2 or three times this week, and were told various versions of "we're working on it." Because Zane is in primary school, and Gray in secondary, there are two admissions offices to contact. For Gray, they are working on proving residence, which they have to do by coming to see that they live at the stated address. The only proof of address they will take are a lease agreement (which we have) and two PAID utility bills (which, obviously, we do not have.) Apparently, they came by just before we actually moved in. They will try 2 more times and then I don't know what happens if we aren't home when they arrive. Oh yeah, they will not schedule the visit. It has to be a surprise visit. So, the boys get to sit at home all day, no cable, until the school dude shows up.

For Zane, they keep telling me that they are full in his grade in every primary school. They offer a spot at the Ilford Jewish School. Two major problems with that: We aren't Jewish, and it's 4 miles from home! They would be obligated to pay a taxi for him to attend that school! There are 3 or 4 schools less than a mile and a half from our house! They told me Friday that they have until the end of this academic year to offer him a spot in school. When I told him that in Child Protection, we are not allowed to have a child out of school for more than 25 days without making headlines, he said he'd print Zane's profile, and see if he could get admissions to assign him a school spot. They aren't as worried about my children attending school as I am! It is very frustrating.

Grandma leaves on Friday, so we have to have some solution by then! For plan B, C and D, we are looking into Child Minders. Those aren't plentiful in our area, either. Our employer will work with us, but this is ridiculous! It is apparently like this in most London schools... they are all full, so they have to get creative in placing new students.

So, that's our week! The adventure continues.....

I keep forgeting to talk about phone calls...

So, every phone number here begins with a "0."
Land lines begin with 020 8 or 020 7 (and probably some other combinations, but these are the ones I've come accross.) Phone numbers are either written like this: 020 8XXX XXXX or 0208 XXX XXXX

Mobile phones seem to all begin with 07XXX. And, there are six numbers after the "area code," so they look like: 07XXX XXX XXX.

The other wierd thing, is that if you call a mobile phone from a land line, it costs from 4-7 pence a minute, depending on your phone plan. Also, it's more to call a mobile from another mobile, than it is to call a land line from a mobile. And, I think I am understanding that incoming calls are free on mobile phones. I need to check that one out, but someone told me that...

Also, there are premium numbers, which seem to begin with 08XXX. These calls also cost a few pence a minute. Many customer service numbers are premium numbers. Not very good customer service, I say!

But, our home phone plan is an international plan, and allows us to call internationally for free for up to an hour per call. You can even hang up at 59 minutes, and start all over again! For that priveledge, and to be able to use the phone all day without fees for even land line calls, it costs 5 GBP per month! (Most "standard" home phone plans include free evening and weekend calls, with other calls costing a few pence per minute.)

Anyway, it's just another way that things are different here.

Statute?

Or Street Performer?

This guy would do a little "routine" everytime someone put a coin in his collection box. He was very convincing, sanding there like a statute!

Has it really been a whole week?

I can't believe we haven't written in a week!
I guess we've been busy? Really, kind of settling into real life, I guess.
We finished our 3rd official, and 2nd real week of work. There is sooooo much to learn! Working with families is pretty much similar as what we've done previously, but learning systems and laws and resources is going to take some time.

Thursday was an interesting day. We had to work (of course). But for dinner, we were invited by a colleague from America to have dinner at his home. He invited all of the new Americans for a traditional thanksgiving dinner, complete with American Football. The meal was great, but the real problem is that many of us just arrived, and don't have pots and pans. Since it was pot luck, there were some interesting dishes along with all of the normal ones. And, the bummer: No pumpkin pie. I don't know where to find pumpkin! I'm sure I can get a fresh one somewhere, but I didn't have any way to bake it, or anything in which to make a pie. Apparently, no one else did either... I made yams, and discovered (at 11 pm) that the brown sugar here is different. I think our brown sugar is brown colored white sugar. This brown sugar was "unrefined cane sugar." It had a kind of molasses taste to it. I dumped some regular sugar on top, and they tasted okay, but not normal. The other glitch with the yams: Marshmellows. They aren't readily available. The only ones we found were pink and yellow. So, we had pastel yams. Had no problems with the salad.

The kids and Grandma had an adventure on Wednesday. They decided to go see a movie at the O2. It is only one tube stop from where we are staying, but they decided to save a little money and take the bus. They were directed to the wrong bus, and ended up in the wrong area. They had to take a taxi to get to the movie on time. (So much for saving a couple of quid!) They saw Christmas Carol in 3D.

Friday night, we decided to go to Oxford Street and see the Christmas lights. It's not the Plaza in KC, but it was pretty cool. The biggest thing is that this is the major shopping district, and it was PACKED!

Since we are moving into our permanent home on Saturday, we decided to go shopping for a TV (much cheaper to buy one than ship one.) There was a Krispy Kreme in the tube station next to the electronics store! They were quite proud of their donuts, though. it cost over 5 GBP for 4 donuts! That's about $8! And, they really weren't any different. (I don't particularly care for Krispy Kreme anyway.)

Then, we went back to Oxford Street. It was even MORE PACKED than on Friday night. We really were shuffling along like cattle to the slaughter. We went back so we could go to the HUGE toy store we were told about Friday night. Hamley's. It was started in 1760. They have added a few products since then. It was 7 floors of toys! Zane had to check out the Legos and Bionicles. A pretty large collection, they had. Gray, of course, had to check out cars. A large collection of those, also. We had dinner at a different kind of restaurant. It was a buffet, of sorts, but more health food/organic stuff. You pay according to weight. It was good, but we won't hurry back. The boys didn't find much they liked there. They did like the apple turnovers... Anyway, our travels on Saturday took from about 1 pm to 10 pm! VERY TIRED FEET!!!

Tomorrow, we will go see the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace. Hopefully, it won't rain, and hopefully we will get some photos to share.

It's not ALL glamorous.....

So, public transportation is great, when it's running. Because of the Olympics in 2012, the city is greatly expanding and improving the public transportation links. So, weekends mean sparse transport options. One of the only two tube lines in our area is down this weekend, and it's the main one that gets us anywhere we want to be. Add to that, there is a strike of the bus drivers in our area as well! So, my trip to the store for a few items took 2 hours! And, it's cold and rainy. (Of course...) And, I probably didn't travel more than a couple of miles.

So, grocery shopping. No car. Means no full grocery cart ("trolley"). You get a few things at at time, or you order on line and have them delivered (for 3-5 GBP). (Think about hauling luggage around!)

It takes 4-5 hours to do ONE load of laundry! No kidding! The machine in our flat (and the one in our house) does both washing and drying (figure that out, you engineers out there!) It takes 2-2.5 hours to wash (WHY?!?!?) And then, it takes about that amount of time to dry them, and then they come out totally wrinkled. My friend dries her clothes on the radiators, and it takes about 30 minutes and the aren't wrinkled. If only we could figure out how to work the radiators in this flat..... (And somehow, it is pretty warm in here.) Moral of the story: No more doing all of the laundry on Saturday...) And, let's not even start to talk about figuring out how to run the thing. The washing categories have to do with temperature-- in Celsius! We're just guessing. Things seem to be coming out cleaner than they went in.....

Computer keyboards are different. First of all, they had to find room for the sign that represents their money (Sterling Pound-- I don't have that symbol on my computer to show you, and I'm too lazy to figure out the trick to get to it). But, they kept the $ sign... So, the @ symbol is where our " is, and the " is where our @ is located. (They could have left those alone!) The $ sign is in the same place, but the Sterling pound sign is where the # is. I don't remember where the # is located. Additionally, the shift keys and the enter keys are smaller-- almost as small as the letter keys.

Toilets flush funny. On most toilets, the flusher is a button on the tank, or on the wall behind the toilet. Regardless, they all flush funny! Speaking of toilets, in most public restrooms we've visited, their are no stalls, but individual toilet rooms, where the door goes floor to ceiling. If not, there is not much air space above or below the door. Much more private!

Debit cards have a chip in them, and the magnetic strip is not magnetic, nor functional. We have been to a couple of places where we couldn't use our US debit cards because they don't have the chip. (We now have UK cards.)

This is wierd: When we stayed with my friend, and then in the hotel, neither had flat sheets. Just a fitted sheet and a duvet. (We bought sheets for the flat, and did get flat sheets.) I don't understand that.... I keep forgetting to ask my friend about it.

Electric kettles are everywhere! It's a tea-drinking country, and we must have our hot water at the ready! We have started making French press coffee-- mostly because the container is smaller to haul around, given that we are still only temporarily housed. (We do have the electric kettle, though.)

That's all the wierdness I can think of at the moment. Will write more later!

Another week

David and I finished our first "working" work week. The first week was all training, and this past week we spent with our work units half time, and the other half shadowing other units. Everyone continues to be very nice and helpful. The manegement seems to have some understanding that moving a family around the world is a big deal, with many complications and things to do. They are being very supportive and flexible.

It turns out there there are about 10 of us "Yanks" working for this agency. So, a colleague who has been here for a few years has invited all of us for a Thanksgiving meal. So, we will work all day, and have our traditional dinner in the evening. I wonder how many of us will make it to work on Friday.....

The boys have had a mostly relaxing week with Grandma. They ventured out one day to find a bookstore-- they've read everything they brought. It turned out be quite the adventure, landing somewhere they hadn't intended. They found their book store, AND theire way home! People are very helpful when you ask them how to get where you want to go.

One evening, we went to the O2. It is a HUGE arena, plus a lot of other things. It was built to commemorate the millenium in 2000, sat dormant for a few years, then a developer bought it for 1 pound, and has developed about half of it. It is THE concert arena in town, where all of the big names perform, and where Michael Jackson was to perform 50 concerts. There is also a small "town" with a street full of restaurants and exhibits. The British Music Experience is there (but closed when we got there). Zane made a music video, and we played some video games (free).

We plan to play "tourist" again this weekend... more updates then!

We're all here!

Gray and Zane arrived yesterday with their Grandma (David's mother). It's great to have them here! We have also moved into the temporary flat until our house is ready. It's "ok." I wouldn't pay to stay here on a long term basis. It is just worn. And, it smelled of cigarette smoke. I think we have that fixed. We now own stock in Febreeze... (Well, we should!)



Yesterday, the boys and Grandma rested-- they didn't sleep for almost 24 hours! None of them slept on the plane, so they were quite tired when they arrived. David and I went shopping for more basics: sheets, towels, groceries. We started this on Friday night. It took us almost 7 hours!

When we finished work at 4, we had to go to our primary office (we have been in a different location all week) to print, sign, scan and email mortgage documents. This shouldn't have been terribly difficult, except that someone sent us on the LONGEST bus route which was constantly stuck in traffic. We eventually got off the bus and walked. Beat the bus by probably an hour! By the time we got out of there, it was close to 6. We had to get to the estate agent's office to get keys to the apartment by 7, and get to the hotel to get our luggage to go to the flat. We got to the flat at about 7:30. Have I mentioned that many stores close at 6:30? We researched a couple of stores on the internet, verified that they were open late and headed out. Only to discover that the store we had chosen was only a food store. (Who knew that "Metro" meant groceries?) We asked someone at that store where to go, and were directed to one of two different locations (neither of which were very near where we were.) A customer suggested a different store in the office/retail complex we were in. Well, we got a nice tour of the area, only to arrive at the store just as it was closing (9pm). We have now verified that the maps of this office/retail complex are inside out, upside down, and counter-clockwise. A security guard told us so tonight! We eventually found our way to another store, to find out that they don't carry housewares. Someone there made phone calls until she verified the location of a 24 hour store which carried the things we needed. We didn't even have any sheets for the beds at this point, and it was about 1030 at night!!! FINALLY, we landed at the right place. Got our linens and headed home. Got home at 1230 am, and had to be at the airport around 730 the next morning. Did I mention that it takes an hour and a half to get to the airport?

Well, we overslept. But, fortunatly, the plane was delayed, and we ended up getting to the gate about 5 minutes before our family arrived. WHEW! We had no way to contact them, nor they us.

So, while boys and Grandma rested, David and I shopped-- in rain and incredible winds. We were both pack mules, getting all that stuff back to the apartment-- which we will have to move again on Dec. 1.....

Sunday was a much nicer day. Beautiful weather (mid 50's). We played tourist. We took a double decker bus to Greenwhich where we walked past the Royal Naval College and Queen's House, and ate lunch at Trafalgar Tavern-- it was the local haunt of literary greats such as Charles Dickens. (Yes, we've been there before, but had to take Grandma there!) We then took a river boat, and passed by the Tower of London, Tower Bridge, the London Eye, Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, a big battleship (don't remember the name), and tons of very cool architecture-- both historical and modern. We got off the boat at Big Ben. We walked a bit and saw Westminster Abbey-- couldn't go in, they were having services. We walked toward Buckingham Palace, but it was a farther walk than it appeared on the map, and our recent travelers were getting very weary. So, we got on a double decker bus which took us past Trafalgar Square, St. Paul's Cathedral, Piccadilly Circus and the West End (location of the theatres-- London's version of New York's Broadway.) We went back to that office/retail comlex that almost swallowed us last night to get something to eat. (That area is called Canary Wharf, but the way.) So, it was a typical London tourist day. More of those to come!

We will post photos at some point. But, the internet connection we are using is essentially a mobile phone connection, and it is very slow to upload photos. Sorry, but you'll have to wait for those!

Where is the shower? Where do I dry my clothes? (A very long update!)

We have not had internet access for a few days, so this one is quite long.

9 November 2009

Showers are an afterthought in houses built in the 1930’s. So, most showers are retro-fit to work with the claw foot tub. It’s an interesting setup. Also, no shower curtain. A piece of glass on hinges, about 1/3 the of the length of the tub is supposed to keep the water off the floor. I suppose it works most of the time. I tried to take photos- don’t know if you can see it.
We have also learned that most households don’t have clothes dryers. They hang their clothes out to dry (do they not know that it rains A LOT!?!), or they drape them over the radiators to dry. This is actually pretty effective. Our clothes were dry in about 30 minutes that way. They hung outside ALL DAY, and only got cold, then we draped them over the radiators and in half hour, they were toasty. Fortunately, our house has a dryer. Though it is in the garage, which is detached from the house, in the back of the garden (small back yard). So, washing machine in the kitchen, dryer in the garage (unless we choose to use radiators.) I suppose it’s an energy savings to use the radiators, particularly if they are on anyway.
For the first week, we stayed with a friend, Kimberly. She hosts people who come to England to learn English in an immersion program. Since she has students for the next few weeks, and our house is not available until 1 December, we are officially transient. We are in a small, privately owned hotel for a few days, and then our estate agent will have a 2 bedroom apartment for us to stay in until our house is ready. It’s very much a bohemian existence at this point! But, it’s what we chose, given our housing options. I will say that our choice of area in which to live has been very much validated by our colleagues. They have all affirmed that we have chosen a nice, decent area with great schools. So, I suppose it’s worth the wait in the long run. (Particularly since leases are for 2 years!)

We started training for our jobs on Monday. It was a good day, lots of information, meeting many people. We both enjoy the people on our units (we call them teams). Everyone was very nice and helpful. I have to mention Camille. She moved here from New York at the end of September. She has been extremely helpful, meeting with us to find a hotel in a decent area, providing directions to get to work. The biggest glitch is that there was a bus driver’s strike on Monday, which affected ALL of the busses we knew to take to work. We even had a couple of routes available to us, and all of the buses were affected. So, making a great impression, we arrived at work 45 minutes late! It took over 2 hours to get there! It should take no more than 30 minutes, if the buses are running, even if traffic is horrible! We were able to call and let them know, and we were in touch with Camille by phone. She was in the same position as us, but knew a little more about bus routes and provided some guidance that eventually got us there. Fortunately, this is not an uncommon occurrence, so everyone was very understanding, particularly since we couldn’t be expected to know the bus routes yet. (The Tube routes are very easy to figure out, if you know where you are and where you’re going. Bus routes are too numerous to post publicly the way the underground routes are posted.)

On Saturday, we were able to play tourist. We went to Greenwich Park, which is home of the Royal Observatory and Planetarium. It is also a very large, beautiful park. What’s amazing, is that these huge, green parks are all over the city. Greenwich is one of the bigger parks, but they are everywhere. In the city! The Royal Observatory is home of the Prime Meridian -- it is where 0 degrees longitude is defined (the line that runs from the North Pole to the South Pole.) It is also where Greenwich Mean Time is defined. You see on world clocks that time zones are defined in terms of GMT + or – some number of hours. For example, Kansas City is in the time zone defined by GMT – 6 hours. So, this is where GMT is defined! Our time zone is therefore Greenwich Mean Time. This was defined in the late 1700’s, based upon astronomical observations and mathematical analysis of early astronomers. Very fascinating! The Royal Observatory is also home of the World’s 7th largest telescope-- a 28 inch telescope. It is HUGE!
We had lunch at The Trafalgar—a pub famous for early figures of literature, including Charles Dickinson. It sits right on the bank of the Thames. After lunch, we went to the Royal Naval College. The “building” is split in half so that the Royalty in residence (at the Queen's House-- but a Queen never resided there) when it was built could maintain their view of the river. In one building is a large, very ornate chapel. This is where Lord Nelson laid in State when he died. The other building has what is referred to as “The Painted Room.” Again, very large and ornate. It houses a very elegant dining hall.
Oh, and all of this is FREE! Most of the museums in London are free. Don’t worry, though. There are plenty of sites and activities where you can spend your money!

10 November 2009

Second day of “work.” We are training with our work units, so we are getting to know the people with whom we will work the most. Everyone is very nice and helpful. There is a nice mix of people who have been working in this area for a long time and people who are new. There is certainly a lot to learn!

Public transportation, while convenient, is a bit of a pain, particularly at rush hour. The buses have to drive on the roads with all of the cars. It’s pretty amazing that very small cars take on these big buses, fighting for their space in the road. Additionally, both buses and tubes are VERY FULL during rush hour. We’ve watched people squeeze into the tube such that the are almost closed in the doors, just to get on the thing! People are crammed in like sardines. I try to remember Mandt stances: strong front to back with a front stance, and strong side to side with a side stance. It’s VERY useful when you are balancing on a bus or train. (Our Mental Health Center colleagues will understand that reference, but the principles are true for everyone.)
After work, we signed the lease on our house. It was 20 pages long! We did read through it, and it’s mostly about what the landlord gets. We just get the place for the agreed upon amount and have to take good care of it.

After that, we met up with my friend, Rich. Rich and I went to junior high and high school together. He has been in London for about 12 years. He took us through the area where he lives, which just happens to be very near the Tower of London and the Tower Bridge. It’s funny how such deep, rich history sits amidst modern buildings. (Or rather, modern tall buildings sit amidst history...) All around the Tower and Bridge are fairly new office, retail and restaurant buildings. Of course, this is all along the banks of the Thames, so it’s very high end. I have enough city girl in me that I really enjoyed it.

It's been quite a week-- learning about our jobs, meeting the people, securing housing (both permanent and temporary, since our permanent home isn't ready until 1 December.) All the while, trying to figure out this thorough and complex public transportation system. We'll get it though. Today, David and I got seperated on a "bendy bus." These are buses with an accordian like thing in the middle that help them take corners. They are pretty funny looking. Anyway, we got seperated and since I have been the navigator, and keep numbers in my head, David got lost and confused. He did find his way, but it took a long time!

Are you tired of reading yet? I'm tired of typing!

Until next post...

Can I get new feet?

We've been here 3.5 days. What have we done? We have WALKED!!! Mostly looking for a place to live. It seems that the area where we want to live is the area EVERYONE wants to live! Rental properties (or properties "to let") go quicker than they can be posted on internet real estate sites! We even walked through neighborhoods and called when we saw "to let" signs in yards, and they were already gone... So, it was either slim pickins where we wanted to live, or broaden our search. We broadened our search a bit, and didn't find anyting any more attractive, so we picked from the first two houses we saw the first day. One house was HUGE! Bigger than our house in Overland Park. 5 bedrooms, a HUGE living room, HUGE kitchen, 3 car garage with a game room attached. The landlord even came down 350 pounds on the price. It was a great deal, but way more house than we need, higher than we wanted to pay, and we could only assume that it would be more expensive to heat. It would have been great for guests, but....

So, we went with a "normal size" 3 bedroom, semi-detached house:

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=10%20Lorne%20Gardens%20Wanstead&rls=com.microsoft:*:IE-SearchBox&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7TSHB&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wl

Or, you can go to Google maps and search for 10 Lorne Gardens, Redbridge, London E11 2BZ, and then click the "A" balloon, and click "Street View."

It drops you onto Burnham Crescent. Go down that street (Click on the picture, and use your arrow keys to "walk the street.") to Lorne Gardens, and turn right. "Walk" down to number 10 (you will see the address displayed at the top of the picture as you stroll down the street.)

It has 3 bedrooms-- one is smaller than Zane's room, another about the size of our room with built in wardrobes (pretty unusual to have closets-- most people buy a wardrobe to store clothes in), and the third is a little larger, again with built in wardrobes. The kitchen is "galley style," narrow, but it actually has more cabinet and counter space than my former kitchen. The "reception," is a living room/dining room all in one long room. There is a "garden," a small back yard with some grass and a small paved patio. There is a garage as well.

I don't have photos of the actual house, but there is a similar one on this site: http://www.pettyson.co.uk/Property/Residential/for-sale/Wanstead/-/PSP110022

The layout is the same, though the furniture is different. There is some furniture with the place, and the family moving out is moving to Australia, and have indicated that much of their furniture is for sale, so we will be chatting with them about that.

The lady who lives there has lived there 2.5 years, and says "neighborhood is great, neighbors are great, landlord is great." There is a primary school just down the road. Hopefully, Zane will be able to attend that one. There are two secondary schools (where Gray will attend) less than a mile from the house. Again, hopefully he can get into one of them. (remember earlier post where I explained that kids get into the school which is less over crowded and closest to home.)

Because our priority has been to find a home, we haven't done much site seeing. However, we have ridden the double decker bus-- top and bottom, the train and the "tube." We rode (via taxi) through central London en route from the airport to my friend's house and got to see lots of things there- the most noteworthy was Harrod's Department Store. It's a pretty famous and posh store in London. The funny thing was, they had Wizard of Oz in their window displays! Drove through Trafalgar Square, Picadilly Circus, Oxford Street, Kensington (one residence of the royal family).

We did go to a fireworks display on Guy Fawkes Day. (He was some sort of government protestor from a long time ago.) They celebrate the day like we do July 4th-- LOTS of fireworks. It was a better display than most I've seen in the US.

The friend we are staying with lives on a hill in a borough south of central London. You can see the city from here! It's a fantastic view! Great workout for the tush getting up here from the bus stop...

Things we've noticed:

* Whey you say, "Thank you," people respond with "No worries."

* Instead of saying "Excuse me," people say, "Sorry."

* No electrical outlets in bathrooms-- they don't have the GCFI circuit breaker to protect wiring from water. That means no light switch either. It's OUTSIDE the bathroom door.

* Walk on the left, not on the right (just like you drive). Well, most of the time. Hard to tell when to break that "rule."

* We have been in 3 pubs that don't serve food. (And then 3 that do serve food.)

* At rush hour, the tube is like a herd of sardines.

* The banking system is wierd: You have to have a job to get a bank account, but you need a bank account to get paid from your job. You also have to have a UK address to get an account. And, you need a bank account and a job to get an address. (Fortunately, we have job letters and a friend's address.)

* LOTS of walking. (We knew that before, but now we feel it!)

* If you stand around looking lost in the tube station, someone will actually offer to help you.

* The A to Z map is the best 10 quid you'll ever spend!

* A latte is only 25 to 50 pence more than a regular drip coffee.

* Fresh produce and meat markets are everywhere! Don't know how reputable they are, though.

* Everyone is from somewhere else. So many languages spoken in the street and on the Tube.

* No tax on food and beverage. HUGE tax on almost everything else.

* Every car we have been in has been a manual and has been from Germany.

* Cars are generally smaller and "roundish." Similar to VW bug.

* We did see a 1960's Dodge parked on a residential street.

There are other observations, but it's too late and too early to remember!

What's Happening?

Well, more of the same, really. I was informed tonight that it has been way too long since I've posted, so I have to write something....

David and I finish our jobs tomorrow. Last day. This past week has been full of finishing touches.

I've had many moments of: "What the.....!!!!" It just hits, this crazy thing that we're doing. Some moments feel more real than others. Then I will think things like, "In one week, I will be sleeping in a bed in London." David called today and said, " this is our last Tuesday in America." It's funny the things that pop into our minds. We have a whole new perspective on the days left.

The packing seems endless. We have gotten rid of so much, yet we seem to have so much left! Most of the rooms look pretty empty, though. It will all be gone by Monday. (Except for what we are taking with us...)

The other thing happening is we are saying a lot of "Good-byes." That's pretty difficult. We will miss all of our Peeps. We do hope for LOTS of visitors!!!

Along with the Good Byes, we have some "Hellos" on the horizon. Shaunda's friends Richard and Kimberly are both in London. Helena, a foreign exchange student who stayed with the Irwins for a year during high school, is in Sweden, and planning to visit London early next year. Shaunda's former roommate from her semester in London, Susan, is in Spain, and has welcomed the family to visit her on the Mediterranean Coast. Then there is a colleague who recently moved to Paris. Shaunda has an aunt who's neighbor's daughter is in London, offering assistance and guidance as needed. Other connections are waiting! Spill them if you have them!

Six Days to London...

Endless Gratitude

So many people have given us their time and talents to help get this house ready to sell. We will attempt to list them here as a way to show our HUGE appreciation. There is no way to properly return the favor. All we can say is, you have a place to stay when you visit London! (This list is in no particular order, other than those at the "top" spent numerous days and many hours at our house. Otherwise, it's according to my feeble brain.)

Dave and Peg Irwin
Tracey Gillaspy
Debi Anderson
Steve Daumas
Bill McDonnell
Howard Baldwin
Jay White
Lisa White
Steve Klein
Debi Klein
Kathy Brown
Eldon Brown
Maria Giffin
Paul Giffin
Karen Vaughn
Dave Miller
Tani Daumas
Morgan Wyatt
Preston Daumas
Christelle Porter
Jason Porter
Carla Hilton
Dan Irwin
Ron Lundine
Rob Ames
Clark Howard
Todd Wetherhilt
Marc Deras
Jay Arnot
Randy Hardesty
Marty Colburn
Brad Shields
Cassie Shields

As you can see, it has taken a small village to get us out of the country. We will certainly miss all of our family and friends, and not just because they have helped us work! We feel very blessed to have such generous friends and family. It is very difficulty to leave you all.


(The risk, of course, in posting a list like this, is that someone has been forgotten. If you don't find your name on the list, and know you deserve to be there, please don't think that we appreciate you any less. We are just working on very tired, very overwhlemed brains! And, PLEASE, speak up!)

THANK YOU ALL!

It's time!

Our Entry Clearance (visas) have arrived. Plane tickets purchased. Now, the real packing begins!
David and Shaunda will fly out 2 November and stay with Shaunda's friend, Kimberly, for about the first week, while we look feverishly for a place to live. We begin work on 9 November. The kids will stay with Grandma and Grandpa for a couple of weeks so when they join us, hopefully they will join us at home. We think that will be easier on them than having to trapse around a new, strange city, walking everywhere while we find a place to live. Grandma and kids will fly out on 13 November, and Grandma will stay a couple of weeks until we get the kids into school. (It's not as easy as marching into the building, saying, "Hi, I'm here!" like it is here. There are applications to complete, then the kids will be placed in the school closest to home that is least "oversubscribed." But, before they can attend, we have to prove our residence. A lease agreement is not enough. They have to come visit us first! And, aparently, they aren't in a big hurry to do that. Hopefully we can get that all arranged before she has to return home! It may be a bit of a stretch.

One step done!

Our Sponsorship letters came today! Now, we apply for Visas, and spend a big pile of money. Online application, then we get an appointment for "biometrics,: (fingerprinting). We will use a visa courier/expiditer service so that the application can be reviewed before going to the British Consulate in Chicago. It will take about 2 days to process once we get the info to the courier. Then, we make flight arrangemens! Our work start date is November 9. We anticipate flying out on November 2!
HERE WE GO!!!

Hurry up and Wait.....

Well, we are still waiting for Sponsorship numbers. England has recently revamped their immigration laws and application/approval processes. This is apprently creating quite a mess for employers and educational institutions who recruit from overseas. Our employer started the process to get us Sponsorship numbers near the end of August. They still haven't received them. We can't do anything until this happens.

On a good note, we have been approved to be Registered Social Workers in England! This is their equivalent of professional licensure. One more step completed!

We still work on this house. We are probably a weekend away from putting it on the market. (It's kind of a good thing that England is being so pokey about Sponsorship, huh?)
I have to say, I am really sick of the house. Some have said that we will get this house updated and not want to leave. Well, my current feeling is that I am sick of it! That may change when we have a date to leave.....

One of our current dilemmas has to do with the kids and school. We will not be able to enroll them in school until we have a permanent address. We don't have time/money to go find a place before we move (and given the time the immigration process is taking, it could be a money pit to find a place too early!). So, depending on how long it takes us to find a place, the kids would be out of school for that period of time. And, what are we supposed to do with them while we are at work? Certainly not leave them alone in a hotel or B & B!!! We may have the option to negotiate something with their grandparents, which seems to be the best option at this point. We can figure out more when we know when we are leaving.

Speaking of the kids-- they seem to be adjusting/accepting the change. Gray is still very firm that he does not want to go. Zane is getting excited to go, but says it's mostly because he doesn't like his school. That worries me a bit, because school is very different in England, and I don't know if he'll like it any better! They do both talk about things they would like to see or do when we get there, so that's a good sign.

Well, I'm still employed here in America, and I should head on back to that job.

Can we really leave these people?

We are very blessed to have the friends we do. We had about 10 people here throughout the day on Saturday, painting, painting and painting. Also, a great friend helped me sort through boxes that have been sitting on shelves in the garage for 10+ years! I am certain that God is using this opportunity to help me detatch from "stuff." I have serious pack rat genes (as does my husband), and we are just not feeling as attatched to all that stuff as we were when we decided to keep in in boxes in the garage! It's a really great feeling to let it all go! We had about 10-12 boxes/bags for both the trash man and charity pick-up today. ALL GONE!!!
Tonight, our small group "re-grouped" and came over to help some more. Baseboards cut and placed, more stuff sorted, and some great conversation.

We are informed that we have both been medically cleared to work in England. Also, our employer has applied for Certificates of Sponsorship. They expect to get them within the next few days. When we receive the Sponsorship Number, and A-Rated Sponsorship letter, we will complete our application for visas. Once we submit them, along with our passports, "biometric data," (digital fingerprints and digital photographs that have to be taken at an Immigration office), it will take 5-10 days to get the Visa, or learn that our application is denied. It's a pretty complciated process. We have been advised to hire a visa assistance/expedition service, which can cost a pretty penny! But, it may be worth it not to have to go through the denial/appeal process. We will see!

A note on the A-rated Sponsorship: This is a sponsorship category that our employer has which will reduce the amount of documentation required to apply for a visa, and will also help us be able to get a bank account in England. Without it, it would be quite difficult to get a bank account there. Apparently, they are more picky than our banks in the US. I expect that it will expedite other things as well: being allowed to rent, set up utilities, phone/mobile phone service. Basically, that letter indicates to anyone who wants to know that our employer will cover our "maintenance.' In other words, they insure that we are not going to become a liability on the welfare system. It is very nice that our employer has gone this extra mile.

It's all coming so quickly! Wow! In about 5 weeks, we could be in London! Makes me smile, cringe, shiver and jump for joy, and screech, all at the same time!!!

That's all I can say for now...

Finally, an Update!

Haven't updated in a while! Been busy, and just haven't gotten into the habit of "blogging" frequently.

We have been informed by our employer that they want is there, working, by 5 October! That is waaaaaaaaay tooooooooo soooooon!

In the meantime, we have had contractors paint the outside of the house, deal with wallpaper, tile floors, make some minor repairs. We still have to finish painting, place and paint baseboards, replace a few doors that fell victim to animals and/or kids (which includes painting them), and getting rid of more stuff.

City Union Mission comes tomorrow. We will schedule them again for a couple of weeks away.

We have been researching areas in which to live. We are most attracted to the London Borough of Redbridge, particularly the area of Wanstead. It is consistently described as "family friendly, good schools, leafy, lots of green space." It would be about a 30 minute commute to work. Alternatively, we have considered Stoke Newington, which is a neighborhood in the London Borough of Hackney. We will be working in Hackney, but several friends have suggested it is not the area in which we want to live. Stoke Newington is a nice area, with a "bohemian" feel, but the schools are not very consistently good. We have connected with an Estate Agent who is keeping her eye open for properties that fit our needs. We expect to pay at least 1200-1500 Sterling Pounds per month for a small 3 BR home! It's a bit more than we spend now... We will pay less, however, for transportation, telephone, cable, internet. I'm not sure it will all even out, but it's a small consolation.

Schools are much different. They have only two levels: primary and secondary. Primary is equivalent to our grades 1-6 and secondare 7-12. The boys will be enrolled in whatever school in our Borough which is closest to home, and has space. The schools are universally "oversubscribed," particularly secondary schools. The nice thing is that we may be able to find a "faith school," as many of them are state or public schools. Their admission criteria is a little different than the other public schools, so we will see. Also, there has to be space for them. Also, class sizes are generally 30-40 students. They are, however, ahead of the US academically-- the boys will have some catching up to do.

The boys are still unenthused, and getting a little cranky with all of this home rehab stuff. Especially as we start talking to them about sorting through their stuff... We'll make it!

Gotta head to New Dinner Theatre now. Will try to update more soon!

Productivity

Well, the weekend felt productive. By Friday, the outside of the house was painted. Saturday a garage sale-- good profits, but WAY too much stuff left! We'll try to get rid of some more this Saturday. Today, backerboard was laid in the kitchen, and ready for tile. Some of the wall paper is meeting it's match!
But, I'm sadly reminded that I am not 20 anymore. Went to a 12:20 movie Friday night, got up with the rooster on Saturday to do the garage sale, went to a concert Saturday night, church Sunday morning and prepared the kitchen and downstairs floors for their remodel. I can't believe I am still tired!!! Glad we hired out some of the work...

A Bittersweet Moment

One of the most difficult things about this move is that we have to find homes for 3 of our 4 animals. We are going to try to take one of the cats with us. The pet love of our lives is our big dog, Rayne. He is 100 pounds of German Shepard mixed with something, and he is a total teddy bear-- unless he doesn't know you and he feels he needs to protect his people. Rayne had a sleepover this weekend with a couple who expressed interest in him. It seems, he is just what they were looking for. Darci and Jason hosted Rayne, and fell in love with him. He was on his very best behavior, and a total lover boy. Well, we say, What's Not to Love? Anyway, they were sad to see him leave tonight, and understand that we want to "dog sit" until we move. It's really nice to know that he will have a good home with people who will love and care for him, but we would really like to figure out how to ship all 100 pounds of him, and convince a London landlord that he can live in their rental..... It is apparently not likely. As you can see, he is a member of the family.....

"So, how are things going with the move?"

This is the predominent question these days.
The answer is "slow but sure." The biggest task at this point is getting the house ready to sell. That means purge, purge, purge. And pack a little. And, the wallpaper on 16 walls "has to go," according to the realtor. Of course, those walls need painted after they are stipped of paper. And the outside of the house needs painted. And EVERYTHING needs cleaned. And, did I mention that stuff has to GO?!?!? We should probably get rid of the weeds in what is supposed to be flower beds.....
Someday soon, our employer will get our sponsorship papers and numbers. When that happens, we get to apply for our visas and entry clearance.
We still don't have a firm date yet, but expect to leave around the end of September.
The kids are still not excited, and quite vocal about not wanting to go. But, I think they are accepting that we are moving anyway. At least for now.
Not much going on for now. More later!

Please plan to visit!!!!

A friend suggested that perhaps one of our comments could be misunderstood: "Living spaces in... London are small. We don't mind if you don't!" (loose quote) What we mean is, we will welcome you into our small space if you don't mind that it is a small space! We look forward to company! Take advantage of our opportunity!

Hi, this is Gray. I don't want to go to England because I wont see many of these, or other classic Ameican muscle cars. ):

More FAQ

Just a few come to mind:

What will you do with your house?
We hope to sell it. Houses are selling fairly well in our neighborhood. We just have to get some blemishes taken care of first! (Way too many to count!)
If it doesn't sell, we could easily rent it. We know a couple of property manager types, so that could also work.

Where will you live in London?
We have no idea! We've been doing some research, but it's clear that we'll need a direct connection to help us with that one. We hope for a decent place with decent schools and a fairly short commute time to work. We have some friends and connections in London, and our employer and staffing agency will help us as well when we get closer to the move. We may do something crazy like one of us going first to find a place and get somewhat settled. That way, when we move the kids, they can move directly to their new home. On the other hand, it may help them to be part of choosing that place. We'll see how that shakes out.
We do know that living spaces are much smaller there than here. We are hoping that we don't spend that much time in it, though! We don't here, so there's no reason to think we will there... (We often marvel at how much money we spend to store all our stuff that we're seldom home to use.)

What about your animals?
This is one of the hardest parts of this whole thing. Most of them will have to find new homes. (For those who don't know, we have 2 cats and 2 dogs.) The biggest issue (besides the cost of getting them there) is finding a place to rent with all of them. And, the dogs are BIG! We plan to take one of the cats. The nice thing is that it is no longer necessary to put animals in quarantine for 6 months. There are some steps we can take before we go to prevent that.

How is the packing going?
What packing? We're still cleaning and tossing! It's a grueling process. We'll keep you up to date!

FAQ- The Adventure of a Lifetime

We are David, Shaunda, Gray and Zane Irwin, and we are headed on an adventure! Shaunda and David have both been offered jobs as Social Workers in London. So, we're going!

Several questions keep coming up, so we are creating this FAQ.

How on earth did you decide to move to London?
Shaunda has thought about seeking to move overseas off and on for several years. There is the high school friend who has lived overseas for over a decade; the graduate school friend who moved her family to Spain when her husband was transferred there by his company. Plus, international travel in college planted the bug. David traveled in college as well. He didn't realize Shaunda thought about this FOR REAL!

How did you find the job?
Several months ago, Shaunda went to Google and searched for "ex patriate jobs in England, Auastralia..." She found many jobs in the medical field, but only a few social work jobs which paid horribly. In mid-April, she went back to Google, and searched for Social Work jobs in California (random, didn't really want to live in California). She found a website (www.socialservice.com) which lists social work jobs in the US, Canada and UK. She clicked on UK, and found a job listing in London posted by a company called UK Pro. Since she was at work, she copied the information and made a phone call during her lunch break. And, that is the beginning of "the rest is history!"

How did you get the job? Did you have to go to London to interview, did they interview by webcam, phone, etc?
UK Pro is located in Atlanta, and since they hosted these interviews, we went to Atlanta. We spent the weekend of May 16 and 17 playing and studying, and interviewed in May 18. Managers from the agency in England were there to interview us, along with 13 others. Nine social workers were offered jobs that weekend!
Before interviews, we had to complete on on-line verbal reasoning test (so they could see that we could read), and complete two case studies. We also had to create a Curriculum Vita and write a Personal Statement, which is a statement of how we specifically meet the job qualifications. We also had about 130 pages of information to read and "study!"

Why London?
Why not? Mostly because that's where the jobs are. It is in close proximity to the rest of Europe. And, they speak English! Differently than we do, but we will have only a small communication barrier. (I found one airline that had round-trip airfare from London to Rome for $170-- That's for all four of us!)

When will you leave?
It will take 4-6 months to get registered as social workers in England (their version of professional licensure) and get the visas approved. Of course, we hope we can get our house emptied and sold in that time as well!

How long will you be there? Will you stay forever?
The employment contract will be for 2 years. That will take us up to about 6 months before the Summer Olympics are in London in 2112. We have to stay for that, right?! So, we're saying 2-3 years.

What do the boys think?
Basically, they think we are torturing them. They aren't looking forward to it, but they are adjusting to the idea. Every now and then, we overhear them talking to friends about all of the cool things they will get to see and do. Gray recently said that he doesn't want to go, but he can see how it would be good for him. And, of course, it will be very good for both of them. We are confident that they will both appreciate the opportunity one day!

I'm coming to visit!
Come on over! We look forward to having guests! Just remember, though, that living spaces in England, especially London, are much smaller. We don't mind if you don't!

What kind of job is it? Why are they hiring Americans?
We will be social workers in the child protection system. England has a shortage of social workers, and they are recruiting internationally. The work will be both similar and different from what we have been doing here. We will be like team leaders for a unit of professionals who will share the work of serving at-risk families. It is actually an exciting opportunity, because the borough we are in is trying to completely change how services are provided. We are excited about the program.

Where can I find information about social work jobs in England? (Seriously, several people have asked!)
UK Pro is a company which helps American Social Workers get jobs in England. Their website is
www.uk-pro.net. We have found them to be very friendly and helpful.
British agencies are also recruiting and helping in the hiring process for several boroughs in England. These can be found at www.socialservice.com. This is the website which got me started!

So, what next?
PAERWORK! Lots of it, to get registered as social workers in England, and to apply for work visas in England. We also have a LOT of work to do to get the house ready to sell. Do you prefer a paint brush or a scrub brush?