Move-in Day

"Let's get ready to rumble!!!"
Well, one thing to say about the movers in the UK.  They are punctual.  Unlike our friendly packers on the west side of the Atlantic, these guys show up when they tell you they are.  Two things took place today.  First, we had to have all of our temporary furniture moved out; dining room table and chairs, several chairs, two twins beds, one double, three bed-side tables, etc.  As you can see, there was a lot to get ride of.

Here is what happened. We were told that our temp furniture would be picked up between 8-12.  And our big shipment would be dropped off between 8-5.  In the US, you would expect your movers to show up around 3 PM if they were working on that same timeline.  Oh no, not here.  Looked outside about 7:45, and what did I see, a big truck.  One that looked to big for a pick-up.  So, promptly at 8:00 the door bell rang, and sure enough, it was the guys here to unpack.

Wonderful.

House semi-filled with temporary furniture.

Can't tell them to come back.

So, we moved forward.

A little difficult. The house started filling up quickly. Then about 8:40ish, the guys came to pick everything up.  That too was a little confusing.  Two movers.  One unloading, one loading, a lot of movement.  The guys picked up the stuff in 45 minutes.  The movers were done unpacking by 10:30, with nothing really broken.  All in all, the move went very well.  Keltie and I can't believe we have gotten all of our stuff by now.    We really thought it would be in February before we saw everything.

The rest of the afternoon was spent unpacking, rearranging the house and watching the inauguration. 

Pretty wonderful day.  Hope you like the picks.

Enjoying some dinner, waiting to see the Corps.  Don't screw us CNN.

Editors note:  Damn you Wolf Blitzer!  He was rambling on, and on, and on.  But, we got to see the Corps and they looked great!  Eat it, all of you "wannabes."

The Yoda!

The long awaited photo of the new car.  Well, new being relative.  Its a Toyota, and it runs great.

Who says England doesn't have good eats?

First, sorry no pictures of the car.  Tomorrow, I promise.

This afternoon Keltie and I had lunch with one of the British Officers I work with and his girlfriend.  We ate at a wonderful pub called the 7 Stars in Bottlesford.  Keltie had a very good mackerel pate, and a manchego and mushroom tart.  I had the butternut squash soup and the pork belly roast.  We then drove to Marlborough and walked around the historic downtown.   Afterwards, we spent the rest of the afternoon driving on the back country roads.

Sorry there is no picture.  I will get one next time.  The 7 Stars is really the picturesque country pub.  Low ceilings on the inside, and all green fields with a small country road leading to it.

Couldn't resist, the weather was wonderful, and the sun was out all day!

General Update.

Sorry it has been a while.  Keltie and I have been busy.  We spent a couple of days in London in-processing at the US Embassy and meeting with the Army Attaché.  We stayed at a cool little hotel called SoHo Hotel in the SoHo district for two nights and even managed to catch a funny, completely inappropriate play called Avenue Q at the Noel Coward Theater.  (Look at both of the links).  We were able to eat at some good restaurants, one or two were a little too chic for me.  We did find a terrific tapas restaurant near the hotel that was awesome.  The night before we left we walked around Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery and ran into the Will Smith premiere of 7 Pounds, in Leicester Square.  That was crazy.

Keltie has been driving and is getting better every day.  Mark, not to worry, her nickname is not going to change anytime soon.  I too fear for the motoring Brits!

The good news is the rest of our furniture and belongings will arrive Tuesday, right before Franky and Meridith!

(Picture of the new car will be added tonight.)

Wodka

Our first New Year’s in London was a blast!  Big thanks to Dana and Jason.  Keltie and I had our first experience riding the train into and around London. We rode in on the afternoon of the 31^st and Jason met us at the station and we walked the 5 minutes to their house.  That night we went to an excellent Polish Restaurant named Wodka, and enjoyed a delicious diner with several flavored “Wodka” shots.  We tried a Carmel, Mint, Cucumber and Citrus.  We were home by 10:00 and managed to stay awake to watch fireworks. (The Brits shoot off fireworks for any occasions!)

The next day Jason and I went farther into the city to pick up some car insurance that I required while Keltie and Dana enjoyed time catching up with each other.  On the 2^nd, Keltie and I rode the train back and stopped by the car dealership and paid for a nice, used, silver, 4-door Toyota.  (Picture to come). We should have the car by Wednesday.

Finally...an update!

Let's just say, Christmas, New Years, and a little Scientology = lots of fun. Sorry for not updating, things have been crazy. For Christmas Eve, Keltie and I were invited and attended more "North American" functions at another Canadian Exchange Officer's home. We enjoyed ourselves immensely. The next morning we awoke to a wonderful (sorry family) Christmas without anybody. We proceeded to relax, watch TV and put together a puzzle. That night we enjoyed a wonderful Christmas Dinner at Mike and Tracy’s house, and played a little Twister. The next morning we drove to Cornwall and stopped in Exeter. Exeter was wonderful - very cool city - and we walked around and saw the old cathedral and portion old city wall. Cornwall, was a whole different experience; we stayed at a very interesting hotel named Camelot Castle Hotel. Check the website below, I can’t say any more due to “people” watching us. We spent a wonderful day hiking and seeing the ruins of Tintagel Castle, the legendary home of King Arthur.

Christmas Dinner with Diane, Tracy, Mike and Keltie.

Keltie in front of the Exeter Cathedral.