Catching Up and London

Hi friends! Well wowzers. Where do I even begin?! It’s been a crazy, blessed and adventurous few weeks for me so far. I’ll back track a little and try to catch up those of you who I don’t talk to regularly on the phone!

            Ok first of all. The house I bought 3 ½ years ago, remodeled and was living in. Yup, it sold. It went crazy fast and was the perfect deal as far as timing, price, new owners, etc. So Heeeay.. Money came a talkin’ and I went a walkin’. Well. Two doors down that is. At that time I didn’t have a buyer for the house I had recently purchased and remodeled. So, I literally just went and picked up some helpers and walked my stuff two doors down. There was one small clitch though… Its funny how things work out sometimes. On the very same day I received the contract to purchase my house, I also received a contract to rent it out for the summer… all within 6 hours of each other. Talk about walking the tight rope. But thank my lucky stars, the renters were more than happy to take the other house down the street! And plus, I couldn’t have found better renters. They are Americans, currently living in Germany. So they’re just home for the summer and wanted to stay close to family in the area.. So thank you baby Jesus- I just can’t help but believe this story line has to be straight from God’s making. So I moved, found the perfect renters for a 3 month term and then as luck would have it.. I got a contract on the other house. No joke. Three days after moving into the house, I had a full price contract on the table. It would be safe to say at that point, my little head was just a spinnin’ like top! Okay, so after a week of dealing with adjusting the closing date until I got back in August, dealing with the inspection hoopla they needed for their loan to be approved, unpacking the house I just moved into, because don’t forget I had renters coming that Sunday, and don’t forget I was leaving for Europe that Next Tuesday for.Three.Months, and then the icing on the cake hit… I took a major financial blow in dealing with Bank of America. In short, the house was going into foreclosure before I got it. Basically, once a house starts going into foreclosure, apparently the bank can just charge open endedly to that account for what ever bogus charges they deem fit. In other words, I was learning a few lessons the very. VERY. Hard way. But anyways, with all that being said, I ended up telling the buyers for the second house that there was no way I was going to do another $2500 in repairs( which were brought up through the inspection process) so that they could get the type of loan they wanted. I mean for peets sake, the house was built in 1958.. there is no way I’m bringing every single thing up to code.. especially when I just sold a house two doors down last week with many of the same issues still existing. It’s not even that these items were major issues or safety hazards. They were just random new codes, that really weren’t necessary. So, I told them no. So that deal is off, which honestly is just fine with me. If I had proceeded with the sell, I would have gotten back to the States on Aug. 8^th, had to find a new place to live, move and close on the house on Aug. 15^th. So anyways.. I’ll hold out for another buyer and enjoy the perfectly lovely house that’s been fully remodeled in the mean time- I figure no need to loose money on a deal that only stresses me out to begin with- right?!

            Enter the craziest weekend ever. The first week in May I was running around like a crazy person. My parents were kind enough to realize I was fixing to break and offered to come up and help out with anything they could. Little did they know they were walking into a three page list, with assignments per each persons skill setJ So I had my dad putting a lock on the shed, fixing the dryer hook-up etc. and my mom, bless her heart, basically called herself my person assistant. She followed me around with the list of stuff, helped where she could and herded me in the general right direction. Sunday was mother’s day and we all went to church. I was so excited to have them go to the church I’ve been going to since last June. I.LOVE.IT.SO.MUCH. So to have them experience it too was just an awesome last outing.

            Oh. Wait. Speaking of church, how could I forget to add in what I did that Thursday night, Friday and Saturday morning. I went to a women’s conference at my church. Which was nothing less than blow your mind AMAZING. I could not have prepared my mind in a better way for the upcoming trip. I spent three days in worship and listening to powerful Godly women speak about learning to Fly. The theme throughout the conference was “ She stepped out on a limb and learned she could Fly.” How PERFECT was that for me?!! I loved every second, felt so rejuvenated and knew I with out a doubt that I was doing just that. I had stepped out on a limb a year ago. There was awhile that I felt like the baby bird that just leapt from the nest, with the small swoop downward. But do they ever completely fail. No. They learn to fly. The downward swoop arcs upward and then… there is flight. I’ve seriously been choked up multiple times this past week when I realize how unbelievably proud of myself I am. Is it conceded to say that? I don’t think so. If you can’t be proud of yourself, then why should others be proud of you? So yes, I’m proud. I took a leap and learned to fly.

            So, the conference was over, my parents helped me pull of the miracle of the century and get my shiznat together, got me on a jet plane and I was off! And boy oh boy, I was off in style! First class all the way Baby! My dear friend Sharon, most of you have heard me talk about her before. But quick summary of our friendship. I met her two years ago thru a free lance design project. She hired me to do a kitchen design and several other things since then. We were instant kindred spirits and she has been the absolute best mentor since then. We’ll be celebrating her 60^th birthday in August when I get back.. I CANT WAIT SHARON!! So anyways, she is retired from American Airlines and was kind enough to give me a buddy pass. It all depends on availability, but with here fab planning skills.. she got me in first class! Let’s be clear, I have not ever ever been in first class. And oh what a treat. I pretty much had my own cubicle area. We had a steak dinner, all the wine and champagne we wanted, chairs that swiveled and laid all the way back, our own tvs and fancy headsets, free movies, hot wet towels(I couldn’t ever figure out if they were for your hands or face) and then we had a very delightful breakfast before we landed. Considering I was going to be staying in hostels for the next three months.. it was quite the treat to go out in style! So Thank You THaNK YoU, THANK YOU Sharon! I love you dearly and I hope to see you in Rome <3

            On to London-Day 1: Wednesday May 11, 2011: I landed at Heathrow Airport around 12:30. I make my way just fine through the airport, get my luggage and find the train into town. Everything is in English so I’m in my comfort zone and able to navigate just fine. I got out at the wrong station and these two very nice attendants had there cell phones out in no time, made calls and had my route all figured out. As I got out (at the correct stop this time) I couldn’t help but immediately think that London was just like New York, but in an alternate universe British kind of way. The scale of the neighborhoods, the pace of the people, the markets, the traffic, level of cleanliness and of course the language. It was nice to feel so comfortable considering how nervous I was headed over. By the time I made it to hostel in Kennsington, it was nearly 3:30. My eyelids were extremely heavy at this point, so I laid down for a nap. Four hours later… I woke up. Oopsy daisy. So I gathered myself and walked north torwards Hyde Park. By the time I made it to the park I realized I was starving and that it would be dark soon. So I turned around and found a place to eat. This was my first British dining experience and was only a taste of the awful service that was to come. It was an Italian place, I sat outside on the sidewalk, ordered a margarita pizza and enjoyed watching the young Londoners outside across the street at the Pub. They all dress, so.. quirky. Cute, but definitely different. A lot of black, gray and dark in general. Luckily my food was good the first night, because the service was lacking to say the least. I finally had to walk in to pay my bill because he was pretty much MIA all together. I carried on and found an internet café. I stopped in, paid 4.5 Lbs( which is nearly $9) just so I could skype and email. Eh. Oh well. I went to bed around ten, as I knew I had a big day ahead of me!

            London- Day 2: Thursday May 12, 2011: I really hadn’t done much planning for any of my trip. So being this would be my first day of really touring around and getting into a tourist pace, I knew I had to put an itinerary together. At this point, I really could have used some of Amanda’s planning abilities!! So me being me. Where do I go first? That’s right people.. The absolute closet STARBUCKS I can find! My mind is just not functional until I’ve had at least one dose of caffeine. From there, I make my way to the ‘Tube” stop across the street, where the attendant greets me with the following message, “Are you sure you don’t want to come back a little later? Most of the tourist don’t make it out until around 9, so the tickets will be cheaper then.” Me,”Well what time is it then?” Attendant, “6:45” Golly gosh. You mean to tell me I woke up, showered, got coffee and made it here all by 6:45 AM?! I was shocked to say the least. So I bought the more expensive ticket and headed on to Westminster Abbey. I took a few pictures outside and then walked in. Unbeknownst to me, I was there right on time for morning prayer service. Of course I went. How majestical to sit inside Westminster Abbey, pray and listen to the very stoic and robed priest. I’ve never even sat through a Catholic service before, so this was very fascinating to me. But prayer is prayer to me, so I soaked in every once that I could. The service wrapped up and I walked around a bit, not allowed to take any pictures inside L but tried my best to enjoy all the royalty that still lingered in the air. From there I went towards Parliament and crossed the bridge to look back. As you cross the bridge, the London Eye ( the big ferris wheel) is directly to your left. It was kinda cool to be crossing the bridge with all of the regular morning commuters. They were all hussle bussle and I was lally gaggin across in complete aww of the icons around me. From there I turned around, crossed back across the same bridge and went north to St. James’ Park. I got some great pictures here and enjoyed a stroll through the park. As I got closer to the north end, I could here a very ominous drum. As I came to the bend in the trail, I saw to my left a brigade of soldiers practice their pacing. I’m sure there is an official term for their march, but they basically just walk back and forth to the beat of a drum.  I continued on to my left and came to Buckingham Palace. There is apparently a certain flag that flies where ever the Queen is present. No flag, so no queen at the casa. It was still quite majestic to be standing at the gates, where as an American, you see so many events and have such an association with the happenings of the UK. They were still taking down all the bleachers from the royal wedding that had happened only a week and a half earlier. I went to the Queens Gallary, which is right behind the palace. They advertised the royal jewels and treasures. So not paying attention, I got all excited thinking this was where The Royal Jewels were and paid my 15 pounds to get in. Ha, did they fool me. I paid what equated to around $28 to see some royal place settings, artwork and furniture. I mean cool and all, but I was severely disappointed to say the least when I didn’t get to see any of the real bling. My camera battery was low, because smart girl didn’t fully charge it the night before. Luckily I found an authentic Italian Café right around the corner, with three very Italian and very nice ladies working. They plugged in my battery and I sat down to enjoy my sandwhich. This is worth writing about only because I had never had anything like it before. It was just plain white bread. But the egg sandwhich consisted of hard boiled eggs, mashed together with mayo and put on like you would do tuna salad. Topped with crumbled bacon and mmm Mmm delicious! Batteries charged, breakfast had and the rest of my itinerary planned. I was off to Westminster Cathedral. There was a small minute when I second guessed myself that Westminster Abbey wasn’t what I thought and that it was the cathedral where the royal wedding had taken place. But upon my arrival, I was completely reassured this was not the case. The cathedral is nice, but not nearly the structure that the Abbey is. Anyways, after my blonde moment, I toured the cathedral and quickly moved on. I walked to Victoria Station, which is a very large hub in London. Hopped a train and headed further west down the Thames River to London Tower. My plan was to get to the far west end of the big sights and work my way back east along the river. London Tower is the original palace of London with multiple towers and surrounding walls that were added on over the course of hundreds of years. It was really cool to see the tower where those of the likes of Anne Boleyn were held and then beheaded. And then the most most most important part of my day. ThE. CroWn. JEWELS! Oh they were huge. Magnificent. And totally blinged out. I wish there was some sort of file in my brain that could store useful and factual information, but I somehow lack that part of the brain… so you’re going to have to deal with my own interpretation of events, icons, and artifacts. Such as bliged outJ But I know that the current “Royal Crown” was there at the end. Amazing!! I then learned that what I thought was “London Bridge” was actually “Tower Bridge”. I thought the bridge with the two towers and cables that sling from one to the other was London Bridge. Nope. That’s tower bridge and London Bridge is actually rather flat and uneventful. Anyhow, I saw both of those and continued on to Millennium Bridge. Which is a modern structure with large interesting arcs, and cables. Again, not a fact buff- so don’t judge me. I concluded my day at St. Paul’s Cathedral. Again, I couldn’t take pictures inside- so this was not to pleasing. But the all in all it really was a beautiful and massive Cathedral. I hiked my way back down some of the main boulevards in London, down the river and eventually back on the Tube. There came a point when I got back that I realized I hadn’t eaten anything all day and I was Staarving. You know the kind of hunger where you’re sure your stomach is eating itself. So I stop at another Italian place right outside the hostel. It was here that I was served, with not only more awful service than the night before, but I had the most wreched lasagna ever. It was so bad, that even after I had a few bites out of shear desperation for food, that I just couldn’t muster it any further and sat it to the side. I ate ever bite of bread that was on my table and then sat. And sat. And sat. Finally the girl came to check on me and I told her it was the most awful thing ever. Keep in mind, I am all sorts of hot and bothered by this point considering I was starving when I walked in the door. Now, after awful service and awful food.. I just want my ticket so I can leave. Minus my lacking dinner, my first day in London was jammed packed full of Amazingness. I was completely exhausted and passed out early again.

            London- Day 3: Friday May 13, 2011: Nearly Noon. I finally wake up. I knew I was tired but, noon? Really Amber? Oh well. I’m on vacation right?! There was another girl who was across the room from me who had just gotten in the night before who also was just waking up. Since it was just the two of us we were able to chat a little while.  She was Karla, from Germany. She was huge! Not fat. Just tall, thick and very German. (Hopefully, we won’t be face book friends, otherwise I will have to edit that part of this blog!) Anyways, she was a very nice girl and asked what I had planned for the day. I told her I had planned on renting a bike and riding through Hyde Park, Regents Park, by several monuments and then over to Notting Hill. She asked if she could join, so of course I said yes! We had breakfast, coffee and rented our bikes. The bike ride through Hyde Park and Regent Park was just delightful. I definitely prefer to see the town on bike. You get to see so much, but still get to be apart of the vibe and life that walking through the streets gives you. It was quite the daring thrill biking through the streets of London. Apparently, the cyclist ride along with the cars on the streets. Mostly in the bus lane. Ya. So you can only imagine this Texan on my cycle, as they call it. My agility was definitely tested that day. Other than the few near death experiences and the occasional blaring horn.. I got to see everything I had set out to. Minus Hugh Grant. I was sure he’d be sitting on the stoop in front of the blue door waiting to give me a wave hello. But, no.. he wasn’t. That night Karla I took the train back into the center of town and walked along the Thames. We had, yup.. you guessed it. Italian food. I’m not sure why I only ate Italian in London, but I did. Anyways, the food was much much better than the night before while the service was only incrementally better. The views made up for anything that lacked. The night sky was perfect and overall was the best way to end my last night in London.

            London- Day 4: Saturday May 14, 2011: I had to get up early because my train was leaving at 4:30 and there was a lot I still wanted to see. So I was up and at em’. Got my bags packed, stored and I was off to the Natural Science Museum. My good friend Melanie recommended this to me. She said it was unlike any museum she had ever been to and boy was she right. Fabulous Rec Mel Pod!! Oh my gosh, this place was ridiculous. Why this wasn’t on my architectural icon list, I have no idea. The place was so intricately carved, etched, blinged out, amazing! I think I took nearly 200 photos there alone. It was probably on my top two highlights of London, which is crazy considering I didn’t even know what I was in for. I walked two blocks west to the Queen Victoria and Albert Museum. It was quite the dessert for the eye as well, but after having gone and been knocked off my feet by the previous museum, I just wasn’t nearly excited. Don’t get me wrong it was quite stunning, it was just like eating a steak dinner after already having had Tres Leches first. Well, perhaps that’s not the same for you.. but you get the idea J From there I carried on down through the streets, stopped in at Harrods department store and ended my walk in

Sloan Square

. I figured Kate would be back from her honeymoon by now and moving out of her apartment and loading the moving van. Maybe I could “bump into her” on the streets, start chatting and become BFF. Ok, well it sounded like a plausible story right? Ok, well much to my surprise.. I didn’t bump into her:/ From there I hoofed it back to my hostel, sent my parents the email of the address to my next stop, grabbed my bags and headed to the EuroLine Train. The train itself wasn’t all that impressive. I guess I didn’t get on the fastest one, because it just didn’t seem nearly as quick as I expected. But it was still cool. It goes under the English Channel and then through the French countryside.

            And theeeen things. Changed--I got to France. And well, let’s just say…that the culture shock and every worst nightmare I had thought of prior to leaving (minus actually being stolen and sold into sex slavery) ya, well minus that.. everything happened.