Happy Christmas!

Today was my last day at work until the New Year and I can definitely say that the city is becoming a ghost town. I can easily get on the Tube, no pushing, no shoving. I might take the train to the airport instead of a taxi. My colleague said that the roads might be crowded and I'd be better off travelling by train.

We had some "bad" weather here. A light dusting of snow on Monday and a little colder than normal. My poor friend Jacqui's flight was cancelled to Prague but her husband was determined to give her a great holiday and rebooked on another airline. I was checking the local papers online for any word that Heathrow was having problems.

Right now I am watching some cheezy BBC Christmas show. They are playing an ABBA performance from an old segment...Since when does ABBA know Spanish - Chiquitita???

Anyway, less than 12 hours before I head out for my flight! Can't wait...

Happy Christmas as the Brits say!

I'm Dreaming of a Chicago Christmas

Two Sundays ago, I booked a trip back home to Chicago on a whim....Maybe because Sofia was here and telling me about how excited she was to go home to see her family and friends. Maybe it was because I really haven't felt the Christmas spirit here yet. I miss the houses being decorated with Christmas lights (and not taking them down until the following year.) I miss the anticipation building up to Christmas - figuring out the Christmas menu, Juanie's kids making their Christmas lists, and just the overall Christmas feeling. Maybe because I just wanted some really good Mexican food....

Whatever it was, I decided I was going to come home for Christmas and I really made my aunt's day! While I am excited to go back home, I am also nervous. I wasn't supposed to come back until Easter. I wanted to give myself enough time to get used to living in London. I figured six months would be enough time to miss Chicago. It'll be 3 months on January 2nd. I think I'll be alright. I still have many things to accomplish in London and in Europe overall. Today I was just invited on a ski trip in February to the French Alps. That would mark one item off my To Do list.

So while I'm home, I plan to do some major shopping. This Saturday, I'll head to my favorite mall - OakBrook to check out the post-holiday sales and buy some works clothes. I am treating myself for Christmas and my birthday (I have to justify it somehow) to a MacBook.

I'll hit the Mexican food store and get Mesca and a few dozen tortillas. I'll then swing by Walmart or Target to get my beloved Dove body wash and facial products that they don't sell here. I also have to pick up my summer clothes from my mom's friend's house because I am definitely going to take a Beach holiday soon.

I can't wait to have some great food! COMIDA MEXICANA....Rosie's mom is cooking Tamales and posole. I love her mom's cooking. I may have to stop by Zaca T's in Berwyn for some good tacos.

Whatever, I decide to do, I'll be home for Christmas....(as Kanye West's song "Homecoming" is playing through my mind)

2 days and dreaming....I'm coming home again....

Around Town

I didn't do too much this weekend. I am trying to keep it low key since I am going back to Chicago in 4 days! I did manage to go out and do some window shopping. There's something about shopping that fascinates me. I try to look for things that are different or similar to the States. I look to see what the best bargains are.

On Saturday, I went to the Kensington High Street. I wanted to check out Whole Foods and see if I could get Stanley some organic treats. There wasn't that big of a selection there but it will hold him over until I go back home and get him some 'real' treats. Like many Whole Foods in major cities, it was bustling. It felt a little like home.

Today, I went to Oxford Street. This street has the most concentrated area of stores in London. It reminds me of our Michigan Avenue and State Street combined in one. The windows are decorated. It was super crowded today but that's to be expected as everyone is doing their last minute shopping. Good thing I'm not in that boat. With moving to London and originally thinking I was going to be here for the holidays, I wasn't really gifting this year. While I'll miss getting everyone a gift, it's definitely less stressful.

I checked out a small Christmas market. Nothing like the chalets in Belgium. I am really glad that I had that opportunity. It didn't stop me from having roasted almonds and hot chocolate.

Here are my observations/revelations from being out around town and over the last week:

I really love the Victoria Tube line. It's closer to me than the Clapham North stop in the neighborhood that I actually live. This line is super fast and has really good connections. It left me right in the heart of Oxford Street in under 20 minutes.

Watching movies is not that bad after all. I didn't think that I had the attention span for it. Now that I have more time on my hands, I've watched: Sex in the City (yes definitely behind the curve on this one but just in time for the new one), Dirty Dancing (an old classic I've seen a gazillion times), Yes Man, Edward Sissorhands (I couldn't be bothered with it before) and Transformers (I had already seen it but was good). Not all this weekend but I did watch a few.

I'm being opened minded to music. I am listening to The Smiths, Morrissey, Depeche Mode, some UK hits, Sting, the Police, and the Beatles. Now I never thought I would like British music or even that really clubby stuff. I used to call Depeche Mode, cranberry music...(inside joke) But it's not bad...I guess when in Rome....

Nigella is awesome and inspires me to want to cook! I love her cooking shows especially the Christmas themed programs. When I get back from holiday, I think I'm going to have a housewarming party / post-NYE gathering with my new friends. I want to make her crab cakes. YUM!

Daily Wisdom from the Clapham North Tube Stop

So I had to create two posts today because every day since I moved to Clapham, I've been bestowed a bit of daily wisdom on the Clapham North whiteboard.

As I make my way down the Tube escalator, there is the thought of the day written up on a small whiteboard. Really good ones in fact. The board is positioned so you almost have to stop and read it. I usually read as much as I can from my vantage point and then I look forward to reading the rest when I return back from work because I have a better view coming up. But then that makes me ask...why don't I just stop on my way down in the morning??? Anyway....

I'll take a picture and post the good ones.

Here was today's quote:

“I have had dreams and I have had nightmares, but I have conquered my nightmares because of my dreams” - Jonas Salk

How powerful is that...

Another one that really stuck in my mind was, "Don't make someone your priority, when you are their option." (not sure who quoted this) I love that one!

London Snowflakes Falling Down, Falling Down

Today, I experienced my first snowfall in London. Everyone stopped to look out the window. They were amazed and scared....For a Chicago girl like me used to this, I was like oh...bring it on! However, it was a very light snowfall. Enough to get people worried about getting home. London is not used to having snowfall nor are they very equipped to handle it. Last year, my project team in London worked from home because the city shut down. Out of 20 people only 1 made it to the office and that was because she was in walking distance. I was getting worried that I might be stuck in the office rather than my house and poor little Stanley would be home longer than he should be without a walk.

The temperature is starting to get colder...about 30 degrees. I went for my morning run. I must admit I was proud of myself for running in the cold. It was just in May that I started running and here I am now a seasoned runner. I love it!

On the way to work, I noticed alot of brown pebbly stuff on the sidewalk. It looked like something your high school janitor would put over vomit before he cleaned it up. As I looked closer, it was salt mixed with mud...or grit as they call it.

My First Business Trip

Last week Monday and Tuesday, I was on a world tour to Dublin and Rotterdam. My day started at 4:15a.m. I had a car service pick me up at my flat. We headed to the Gatwick airport. We must have took the side roads to a major expressway. I was not impressed with the surrounding neighborhoods. They looked dingy.

I arrived at Gatwick around 5:00 a.m. (yes, almost an hour later) and as I looked up at the departure board, I noticed that there was no flight leaving out of Gatwick for Dublin at 6:50a.m. Hmmmm, I wondered....I then checked my itinerary and realized that I was at the wrong freakin' airport! Leave it to me to get things wrong the first time. I suddenly panicked because this trip was a string of bookings that would ultimately lead me to Rotterdam. A very important meeting that I was coordinating.

There was no way I could cancel my trips. So I did the only thing I could do, I had to phone my manager. I embarrassingly explained that I was at the wrong airport and there were no flights to Dublin. He laughed...Thank god...He said that I should try and take a cab to Heathrow.

So it was kind of funny going up to the taxi post and asking for a cab to Heathrow. 95 pounds ($154) and an hour later I was at Heathrow. The taxi driver was so nice and said "Oh sweetie, I would have thought Gatwick myself." Those polite Englishmen....Apparently, this airline is synonymous with leaving out of Gatwick.

I arrived in Dublin for a 6 hour meeting. The clients were really nice. It is amazing how their business is so tied with history. Without divulging too much information about my client, they made references about how they run their business and how it dates back to World War I when Ireland was considered neutral. I found this very interesting and have taken an interest in re-learning European history. I found it boring and as I got older, realized that the history I learned was party biased because it is from the American point of view. Anyway..in these situations, I sometimes feel so ignorant with history and geography. Especially when I don't know where a particular country or city is. So this one goes on my list of 'To Dos' while in Europe. This one will be sooner than later. I didn't see too much of Dublin but at first observation it is definitely greener than London.

Around 4:00p.m., my manager and I headed to the airport to catch a plane to Amsterdam and then took a train to Rotterdam. While waiting for the train in Amsterdam, my manager reminded me about these really great waffles that have caramel in the middle. You put them over your tea and the steam makes them really soft. A client brought some for us last week and after having one, I had been eyeing the rest of them that week. So we found a store that sold Dutch goods and I started off buying 3 but apparently it was a 12 euro minimum on your debit card. I ended up with 6 packages of waffles and they weren't light either. Seriously, what am I going to do with 6 dozen pack waffles??? I guess I'll have to add it to the shortbread cookies from Belgium and the chocolate Sofia brought me from Russia. I have a whole international stash of goodies.

We arrived to Rotterdam around 10:00p.m. and had a late night dinner. I had a traditional Dutch dinner - Braised Beef and mashed potatoes. It was really good. Later our Director and another colleague joined us for drinks and we stayed up late talking about everything from work to music to the stages of leadership development. I really enjoyed the conversation.

Tuesday was the big day for me because we had several clients coming for a very important meeting. The office is really cool because it is an open concept with no assigned seating. In fact, they don't have cubes. Most offices in Europe don't have cubes. That took some getting used to for me the first few weeks I started working. I see the benefits. I am more likely to turn to my colleague and ask her something than if I were in a cube.

Going back to Rotterdam - Colleagues come into work and choose an available seat, kind of like a restaurant booth and they do their work. The environment felt so relaxed. Very modern and chic. The executives don't have offices. They have really nice conference rooms or booths for privacy and client meetings.

The meeting went well. Afterwards, we entertained our clients at a nearby hotel for drinks. It was really empowering to see that I was the only female among not only our clients but other business men at the bar.

We ended the evening by heading to the airport and debriefing on our meeting. I flew into a totally different airport - London City. Supposedly this is a really small airport, similar to what Midway used to be back in the day. What I thought should have been a short ride turned into an hour long taxi ride. I think that the London grid system is not as great as ours and driving definitely takes longer than taking the train. The good thing that came out of this is that I had a sense of where I was at and was able to put a "face" with the name of a town. When you travel by the tube, at least for me, I only know where it's dropping me off. You don't get a feel for how the towns are connected.

I really enjoyed my first business trip. I always learn something different about myself and it reinforces why I came to London.

2 months, 8 years

Yesterday was my 2nd month anniversary since I moved to London. The time has flown by. It's too early to feel one way or another about London but I am definately enjoying it. I am still learning about the great things this city has to offer. I have my first official visitors coming at the end of the month and spending NYE with me. Mari doesn't count because I have a feeling this is going to be her second home.

Today is my 8 year anniversary with my company. It has afforded me to take various positions and grow within the company and it has brought me here to London. I can't complain. I've had great opportunities so far.

Monday, I am flying to Dublin for business and then I fly to Rotterdam for a meeting I am organizing. Two more countries to mark of the list. Three countries visited in a matter of a week. Life is definately good.

The London Underground System

I really feel the need to blog about the London Underground system aka the Tube today. Monday was really hectic on the Northern Line coming back from the St Pancras/Eurostar train station. I wondered if I was going to get on the train with my carry on and shopping back full of chocolates and biscuits (cookies). I also wondered if my biscuits would be smashed by other passengers on the train.

Then today I came across this article in the paper today - http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23777648-tube-overcrowding-is-turning-londoners-into-selfish-animals.do

Before I start with the bad things about the Tube, I must say that I am completely in awe of how smooth the transit system works. I was a little intimidated by the Tube map and the various lines but Mari really broke me in the first week we were here. I kind of panicked when I left her at the Paddington station but I got back to my place with no problems. After that, I knew I could do it.

The Tube system is amazing. I can get to my destination fairly quickly. If one train doesn't go directly to the area I need to be at, I can easily connect to another line, and make yet another connection within 20-30 minutes. When there are events, people always give the nearest Tube stop to help with directions. I use www.tfl.gov with google maps to help me get to my destination. TFL is a very useful trip planning tool.

I always know when the next train is coming. There is a sign that tells me how many minutes until the next train and it's not only one train, it tells me the next 3-4 trains. I also know the current time. I always feel safe on the Tube no matter what time it is. (The Tube closes at 12:30a.m.) There are cameras everywhere and staff ready to help you. When you push the information button on the platform, you actually get a prompt answer back. It's not there for the purposes of being there. The train conductor tells you if there are signal problems or issues and apologies in the ever so charming English way. Way more than what you would get in Chicago on the CTA. Sometimes the bus will come, sometimes it won't or you'll have 3 buses to choose from at once.

However, during rush hour it's a different story. The Tube turns into a major nightmare. Going back the article above, it says that between 7-10 a.m. one of the major tube lines transports 60,000 people. My line - the Northern Line just so happens to be the oldest and most crowded lines in London.

Every morning, I feel like I am jumping into a big mosh pit. Here is a picture of what it's like to attempt and get on the train - http://www.flickr.com/photos/anniemole/2452500747/ I am not sure who's photo this is but my friend Jason advised that I should not try and take a picture. I guess I understand because of the bombings that occurred some time ago.

Sometimes, I can get on the Tube the first time. Other times, I have to wait for two to three trains or walk to the next station over where there are other connections so your odds are pretty good that you are going to get on as people connect to other lines. I have to deal with being shoved or someone trying to cut in front of me to ensure they get on the Tube.

Immediately upon getting on the train, I strip down to just my work clothes because it is so hot. Today it was one of the coldest days since I've been there. I started off by bundling up with my warmest scarf, a hat and gloves. By the time I got on the train, my gear was off and my coat was unbuttoned. Another article I read says that in the summer, the temperature levels are so bad, it exceeds European standards for cattle transport. Geez....I've heard this several times and laugh every time but seriously, I don't think I want to be on the Tube in the summer.

To distract myself, I listen to my iPod as I read someones paper over their shoulder. You notice everything about the neighbor right in front of your face....Like the man who missed a spot shaving, wondering how that girl does her makeup, the booger stuck in someone's nose. Luckily, I haven't bumped into too many smelly people. What grosses me out the most is when someone sneezes and then touches the rails. You can't help but worry about swine flu or other airborne diseases in such a confined place.

So what are the alternatives? Not too much. I have thought about cycling to work but London drivers are not very respectful of cyclists or pedestrians. I am sure one day on the Tube in the summer will drive me to chance the roads. Overall, I love the Tube system and I don't miss having a car. It feels good not to worry about car maintenance, insurance, designated drivers. I leave that up to my friends at the Tube. Cheers!