The Little American Things and The Big American Game

About two months ago, we took notice that the Seahawks were looking really good. Superbowl good : ) And as you can see from all of our adventures, Aaron and I are not ones to sit on the sideline... or in this case, we wanted to physically sit on the sideline.

The stars aligned perfectly: since the superbowl was being played in NY, it was closer for us to travel; some of our friends in Seattle had also decided to go; and those 12th man, beast mode, legion of boom, skittles-fueled, Russell-hustle Seahawks just kept on winning. We bought plane tickets and tried to contain our excitement when we brought it up in casual conversation, scared to jinx our team since it wasn't guaranteed.

Fast forward and we are headed there this weekend, and now I can't contain my excitement. I am not only excited for the game, but also for my first trip back to 'merica. And while seeing our friends, being immersed in blue pride and just being back in the US are what will truly matter about the trip, here are the "little things" that I am also looking forward to : )

Pedestrians having the right of way
move car, you're in MY way!

Delicious, cold ambers and porters paired with an American burger 
that is happening

American television... and commercials
yes, I even kind of miss these too!

Football
the real kind, none of this soccer stuff : )

Tall buildings everywhere
ah, corporate America!

Cheaper purchases.. well, at least than I think! 
example: so for dinner I owe 15? oh wait, that's $15 not £15, cha ching!

Ah, the little things : ) GO HAWKS!

Seattle.

I've always thought of homesick as a negative word- for me it carries a connotation that I'm not tough enough, can't go with the flow, or don't want to experience what the world has to offer. But lately I'm beginning to think the word just means that you are in love with a city, a place, the people.

These past two weeks have been the toughest that I've experienced here. It's bizarre timing; why now? I think it's partially because Aaron's going home and I can't, the Seahawks are doing so well and I want to be immersed in the Seattle pride, I thought I'd get to see some of the family I haven't seen soon and I'm not... All these things have just been tough.

London is such a cool city and traveling is amazing - it's a once in a lifetime experience and we are very lucky. I also don't know what I'd do without Aaron by my side. But there really is no place like home or Seattle or all the people that know and love us - we really miss you all! Now who's ready to book a room at the Whamley Bed and Breakfast in London? Special rates for those that book before March!

Iceland, oh Ísland

Did you know that Iceland is actually spelled like Ísland in Icelandic? Fitting since it is an island country... just a little colder than the tropical feeling that we associate with the word : )

Aaron and I traveled to this snowy country last weekend in search of the Northern lights! Ah, the amazing green night sky. Unfortunately the cloud cover was too heavy and so every Northern light excursion was cancelled... boo! (Travel tip: you can see the Northern lights from late October to March, but the best time to go is October/November or February/March).

So instead we explored Reykjavik and hit up all the sight-seeing spots:

1. The Best View - Hallgrimur Church is the largest church in Iceland and towers above the rest of the city. We went up into the steeple for some amazing views - I love how colorful all the roofs are! There's also a statue outside of it that was a gift to Iceland from the US. You're welcome, Reykjavik : )

2.  The Most Famous Food Stop - and you can't even go inside of it! Turns out Icelanders love hot dogs; everything we'd read about Iceland said to go to this place and after we got on the plane, there were mentions of it everywhere. Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur, which translates to "The Best Hot Dog in Town" (right to the point) is a famous hot dog stand that has been around since 1937. There was a long line when we arrived and left. It became famous after President Clinton declared it the best hot dog on a visit to Reykjavik. (Monica didn't agree though... I'm sorry, I just had to make one joke!)

3. The Most Precious Commodity - turns out that it would've been really terrible to be living in Reykjavik more than 25 years ago.

Iceland had a prohibition period from 1915 to March 1, 1989 (now known as Beer Day, yeah!) The short version is that in 1908 Iceland voted to ban all alcohol starting in 1915; in 1921 Spain said, "if you won't buy our Spanish wine, we won't buy your seafood and you're on an island so you're screwed" so Iceland said, "okay, only Spanish wine is allowed". In 1935 the people of Iceland said, "wow, this ban really sucks. Let's un-ban hard alcohol, but still no beer allowed!" Finally in 1989 Iceland said, "wow, this is really dumb. Beer is good. Let's end prohibition." And that was the short version! Now beer is the most popular alcoholic beverage in Iceland.

Because we couldn't see the Northern lights, we did a brewery tour instead at Ölgerðin Egill Skallagrímsson. It was such a great night - we had so much fun and learned a lot. We drank Polar Beer (clever name!), hung out with the other people on the tour and laughed at the history and stories that our guide told us all night. 

4. The Best Way to Detox - We planned our trip pretty well I'd say. Brewery tour, then out to bars that night (Iceland is like Barcelona - the bars don't get crowded until 2am and everyone stays out way past our bedtime!) and then in the morning a trip to the Blue Lagoon : )

Located on a lava field, the Blue Lagoon is a geothermal spa. The water is said to do wonders to your skin and the temperature is about 98–102 °F. It was the perfect end to a great trip. And if you have to be outside in cold weather, I'd say a geothermal spa is the place to be!

A Little Atti'tube

I have a love / hate relationship with the public transportation in London. Especially now that it takes up 2 hours of my day, sometimes more.

On the one hand, I love it. I feel like a real Londoner: running on the train platform to sneak in behind the closing doors; briskly climbing the escalator on the left hand side to surpass those standing; gripping one of the colorful handles while riding the tube like a surfboard moving my body with it as it turns and winds down the tracks. I also love the tube map: it's so easy to read and navigate.

Even when you are packed in like sardines, there's something very private and lonely about riding the tube. It is silent except for the low rumble, a screech here and there, or an announcement of the next stop. Nobody makes eye contact with others - everyone is focused on a game on their phone, a newspaper (they give them out for free at the stops), or a book, and people only occasionally glance up when they need to check their stop.

I love that there is no connectivity in the tube. I cannot be reached from the outside world. It is actually refreshing to disconnect and not be able to check Facebook, e-mail, Instagram or text (brings me back to my phoneless days when we first moved here!) I've also started to read on my commute in, and I've been able to read through an entire book in a week and a half.

So what is there to hate? Why start a post with the title a little atti'tube?

A bus caught in traffic, a signal delay on the line, missing a tube because it is so packed that you physically cannot fit one more body in it, trying to cram your body into a tube that is packed and getting hit by the closing doors, running towards the bus stop while watching it drive away, not having service to text a friend and say "I'm running late because I missed the bus!" - this ironic unpredictability of leaving your house at the same time everyday, taking the same route everyday, and still never arriving where you want to at the same time everyday.

A public transportation experience in London is either the best or worst, especially during rush hour - there is no in between. Because you either make a train or you don't; you get a seat or you don't; and you get to where you need to get on time or you don't.

Plus this is a little daunting to see as you are coming down the escalators:

Ah, the beauty of a little atti'tube.

The City that Never Sleeps - Barcelona

This post is a bit delayed, but better late than never!

Just after New Years, we traveled to Barcelona with Jake and Katie for a long weekend. Our friends, Becs and Yacine, also spontaneously decided to join us! We were looking for a city that would have pretty good weather and fun nightlife... turns out Barcelona actually has fun all-nightlife : )

Dinner at 10pm, gearing up for the night at 1am and then clubbing at 4am; home just as the sun is rising. I don't know how they do it.

We stayed near the Sagrada Família, a church that has had work being done to it since 1882 (and it's not expected to be completed until 2026!) The cranes actually have to be digitally removed from recent pictures - crazy!

We also walked to the harbor and experimented with the iPhone's panorama feature...

And hiked to Park Güell for some picturesque photos from above.

 
The worst part about the trip was that we got caught in what I'm referring to as the "tapas tourist trap" and were swindled out of some money while having lunch near La Boqueria. It put a damper on the day, but we will never make that mistake again. Because by the time Aaron and I finish seeing the world, we will be expert travelers! And also likely extreme homebodies  : )

Back to Work

Well, it finally happened. I started work last Monday and had my first full week in my new UK office. What a wake up call : )

It's going really well. I like the job, work, company and people - the location is a bit far from our flat and although I dislike the commute time, it is fun to now say I ride the tube in everyday! Plus Aaron and I sometimes commute part of it together which always makes it better.

It's only been a week but I've already had a few funny encounters in the office and have noticed many differences since starting:

• I learned that Ashley is more commonly a male's name in Europe. Of course, this was after a phone mix up and a few e-mails to me titled "Sir".
• Some of the keyboard symbols are in different spots. For example, the " and the @ symbols are switched so whenever I go to write an e-mail I always accidentally put name"company.com
• I used to never drink tea and now I drink more tea than coffee!
• A coworker asked if I could bring him back a white coffee as I was going to the kitchen... I thought, white coffee? They have that here? (click on the hyperlink if you don't know what it is). I stood in the kitchen extremely puzzled looking for a type of coffee when my other coworker came in and sorted out the situation. Turns out white coffee just means with cream or milk here : ) thank goodness they came in or I could've been standing there all day.
• I've never had so many vacation days at a job in my life!!
• I thought I was bad at remembering names in the US... it is even harder when you are trying to remember names from France, Poland, Russia, Germany, Japan, etc.
• Many words are called different things here: lectern = podium, cabaret = rounds, streams = breakouts, programme = agenda, delegate = attendee... the list goes on! I have a page on my desk dedicated to these differences. Usually if I hear something I don't immediately know, I can figure it out, but I also want to fit in!
• I will not be winning the UK spelling bee anytime soon. I have to get used to writing program as programme and color as colour, not to mention putting the date before the month and using military time (goodbye January 13 at 3:00pm... hello 13 January at 15:00!)

I'm just taking it one day and hurdle at a time. I also just received staffing for my contract and there are many things to look forward to: an event in London, Singapore and Lisbon!

Ringing in 2014 from Londontown

2013 was a wonderful and crazy year for us. We will always remember it as the year we got married and moved to London : ) What an amazing opportunity that not many people have, and we've gotten to experience it together.

So of all the places we could have gone to celebrate, London seemed like the perfect place to ring in 2014. We had old and new friends and family celebrating with us, and watched the firework show in our new city.

The Newlyweds Abroad hope that you all had a fabulous New Years and here's to a wonderful 2014!

Bonjour Paris!

7 things about Paris and our trip:

1) There are lines to EVERYTHING. No matter how early and no matter what day you go, it takes an entire day to see one attraction because the line is two times longer than you actually spend in the place.

2) The metro system is terrible- it's frustrating and confusing. People cheat the system and there's nobody that's available to help when you need it. Also, the metro tickets are magnetic. I learned this the hard way after I had to exchange my ticket twice, sneak my way in a few times and thought it was the most frustrating thing ever / user error.

3) There is so much history in the buildings. We did a walking tour of one neighborhood and learned some hints of what to look at. For instance, you can tell if a wealthy family lived in the building by how high the ceilings are.

4) Stereotypically, I had the best chocolate croissant I've ever had in my life.

5) You have to go to a Canadian bar to watch an American football game (how bout them Seahawks, eh?)

6) By just wandering around and exploring Paris, you will stumble on something beautiful. We were just walking around and found the love locks bridge which was a pretty cool find!

7) French bakeries are amazing. You can tell if a baguette was made properly by how long it keeps- if it goes stale in one day, it was made quickly. A proper baguette should last a few days. Also, see point number 4 above : )