Phase 10 -- Phases of living in London - Experiences
"Cuppa"
Repairman/Technician # I’ve-lost-count was at the flat the other day. He was an affable and efficient bloke (I’m practicing my British English ;) ) and we visited a bit. I asked if I could get him anything to drink and he replied that if I were making any, he would enjoy a “cuppa” (cup of tea). OK, go ahead and laugh at my being faced with a heretofore unknown challenge: make a true Englishman a proper cup of tea?!?
Well, as it so happened, I did have some herbal hibiscus tea. Laugh again – English people seem to think herbal tea tastes like dishwater. Undaunted, I did explain I didn’t actually drink regular tea, but I did have this herbal sort. Being the good sport he was, he thought he’d give it a go. Happily, I had picked up a single-serve teaspoon contraption where you place the loose tea or tea bag in a mesh strainer, close the spoon cover, plop it into a cup of hot water to steep and, after pumping the plunger on it a couple of times to press the tea, remove the whole thing from the cup and there is your drink. I actually picked up this wonder gadget at Hobby Lobby before I left Georgia. Go figure that one!
. . . Anyway, he politely sipped it and commented it was much better than he thought it might be. Although the next day when he returned he didn’t choose to drink it again. . . . Hmmmm. I thought he drank it all that first day. But, since then I have noticed the house plants in the area where he was working are turning brown. . . Perhaps they were watered with hibiscus tea?!?
High Tea at
a posh hotel festooned with flowers with companions Ashley, Kirsten (one of Ashley’s
friends from Marietta) and her mom, Jean, was a girly treat we thoroughly
reveled in one afternoon. We were
served in the most gracious, warm style as we nibbled on tea sandwiches, herbal
tea treats, scones with lemon curd and an array of goodies. It was scrumptious and even more enjoyable to
share a tea party with Ashley (something we’ve done from the time she was tiny,
drinking juice and eating a cookie) and also with friends from home. Such a surreal time to sit in London chatting
about Marietta, catching up on their activities and our friends in common. Delightful! And yes, better tea than my "cuppa"- making gadget yielded, for sure!
Zooey!
It was a
Zoo! And since it literally was, with half-term
(Spring Break) meaning such masses of people everywhere, we decided to join the
other folks and trek to an actual zoo -- London Zoo. It’s one of the only places we were that week
that wasn’t mobbed. Jax, Mike and I
strolled, dashed and galloped (depending on Jax’s agenda) through meeting all kinds
of animals and fish. Particular
favorites were the tiger (which had Jackson actually jumping up and down and
squealing with delight) and penguins behind an acrylic fence that waddled along
next to him and right at his eye line. Giggles
aplenty! The usual suspects were also present
. . . i.e. lamas, zebras (pronounced “zehb-rahs” in England), hippos, giraffes,
donkeys, lemurs, etc. What a
wonderful day with our darling grandson.
Such fun!
Call Me!
Crackle!
Static! Dead air! Dropped calls. Yes, this seemingly endless
parade of communications snafus have sometimes made me feel like I moved to the
moon. Without having great internet speeds and connections at the flat (a
situation which we are remedying immediately), phone calls to kids and parents
have often been a series of Verizon ads with a million “can you hear me now?”
queries. When I was finally able to get my UK phone (we had to wait until
bank accounts were set up – too bad Mike doesn’t know anyone in banking!
Haha!) and could actually make a mostly uninterrupted call, I was
thrilled. Oh, simple pleasures! Now if anyone asks me if I’m
“well-connected” in life, I can happily say “Yes! Call me!” (That is what they mean, right?!?).
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