The first 24 hours

I am finally living overseas! The last day has been a whirlwind, but in a good way. It all started off with a seat shuffling on the plane that resulted in James and I getting upgraded to Business Class. Now that was a nice way to start the trip! We didn't get a chance to enjoy too many of the perks, though as we were both fast asleep right after dinner! That was probably a good thing, after all, we had been getting only about 3 hours of sleep/night this week getting me all ready.

As we landed, we noted that it was mostly sunny, and the air felt warm for us (10C).....much nicer then the snow and cold I left in Virginia!

Immigration and Customs was a breeze!! Not even one question! And our bags were right out! So far so good.... I had some fun navigating the luggage cart through the duty free area....it was sheer luck that I did not take out any display counters :D.

We met our ride, got all loaded up (3 people, 5 checked bags, and 4 carryons....think clown car!) and headed to Reading in record time. It did take a while to find my new place, as the majority of the area is pedestrian only, and locating the only one-way alley through the area was almost impossible! We settled for parking about 100 yards away, and walking it to the front door.

The house is perfect! Its a two-story, 2-bedroom rowhouse, with a gas fireplace, gas stove/oven (yay!!!!) and the narrowest, steepest stairs I have seen in awhile...I see me taking the "fast way" down the stairs at some point in the near future!!

My land-lady, Shalini, showed us a few highlights of the area...the local pub, the corner mart, and the way to town centre. James and I took off to find a market in town, so we made the 20 min walk to the local shopping center (the Oracle) and the town center where we found a small market, Tesco express, that is open 6am-11pm and has a limited selection of essentials...dairy, produce, meat, wine, beer, and some non-perishables. Perfect for mid-week shopping runs...or at least until I figure out which bus takes me to the main market :). We headed back to the house to get unpacked and get me hooked up the internet.

Once home, we realized that Shalini had not given me the password to the wireless network, so it was back to town centre (my new form of exercise!!) to pick up a network cable....ouch! that one hurt, at 10 GBP for a 2 meter cable. that is about $15. But it got me connected to the folks back in the States, so it was worth the price. While back in town, and having a rare moment of sun and no rain, we took the oppurtunity to scope out the shoppes at the Oracle, shoppes in Reading, and the train station. We made our way back to the house, but decided to stop in at the local to grab a quick pint. We soon learned that "quick" is not in the English way of life, as 2 hours passed by while we were enjoying the atmosphere and people watching. I also got my first dose of Rugby, as there was a match on TV. We decided to grab dinner while we were there. Very good pub food! I can see this as the place I got often!

Eventually we made it back, and got me unpacked. About 2 hours later we were fast asleep at 10pm. So much for jetlag!

James left for the Netherlands this morning, and I made my way through the rain and wind to get back to my place. Today will be a bit slow, but I am going to try and find my bus stop and see if I can figure out how to get to work in the morning!


Statue of King Edward outside the Reading Train Station......is that the Holy Hand Grenade??