You had to expect one of my blog entries to be about the Tube,
officially known as the London Underground. It is pretty reliable but
provides lots of comic material.

First background on the tube. Its part of metropolitan London's
transportation, a lot like New York's subway or Chicago's L. I take
it every day to and from work. To travel roughly four miles, it takes
20 minutes. I have an iphone that I listen to every day during my
commute while either reading Kindle books or playing solitaire. I have
tried other games but I tend to do better at those when I can sit down.

Second, the rules. They are pretty simple but still some people refuse
to comply. First, when you are ready to board the train, let the
people getting off get off. When boarding "mind the gap". When you
finally make it on, there are a few more rules. Most importantly, you
must avoid eye contact. Second, to look like a true Londoner, you need
to bring along reading material. Only tourists actually look around
the car. The last rule is the most important--you should NEVER ever
talk to someone else. Unless you have kids and then its okay. The
strictness of the rules does vary depending upon day and time with
rush hour on weekdays being the strictest.

Finally the stories. Today I got on the Bakerloo line as normal.
However as we approached Oxford Circus where I switch to the Central
line, the driver announced that the Central line was shut down. Keep
in mind in the past ten months I have had to deal with similar things.
So thinking on my feet, i decided to go to Baker Street and switch to
the Circle line and head home. Problems arised when I hopped on the
wrong train at Baker Street and got on the Hammersmith and City line.
I did not realize my mistake until I heard the announcement as the
doors were closing. No problem, I thought I'd just switch at the next
station which looked possible from the map. I got off at Paddington
and learned that while I could switch, I had to walk about a half mile
across Paddington Train Station.

Thinking about it, most of my stories have to do with getting on and
off the train. One time I missed my stop (had to hop off at the next
stop and catch a train back the other way). Thankfully nobody
noticed. Another time I got off at the wrong stop completely engrossed
in my game of solitaire. Fortunately I realized it and got back on the
same train. Unfortunately somebody else noticed. He broke rule #3
above and laughed at me. One time I was coming down the stairs as a
train was getting ready to leave. I decided to hop on even though the
doors were closing. Ouch those doors hurt!

I do have to say that nine out of ten trips are completely uneventful.
I can even laugh after riding in one of those cars that people are
riding like sardines and we can all smell each others' deodorant. I
just try and remember that I will not be riding the tube to work
forever and will look back on my memories with fondness. And I will
always remember "Mind the Gap".

The Cutest Saint at Superbowl XLIV 2010 Drew Brees Son

Check out this video on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfrJh7h-27U&feature=youtube_gdata

It is 1 AM and I am sitting in my recliner, watching the Super Bowl
half time show. My heart is pounding and even though its far too late,
I can't sleep because of my excitement for the Saints. While I don't
get to see the commercials, the BBC is airing CBS commentary. Thank
goodness!

Watching the game makes me realize how football season passed by this
year with barely a thought. We had perfect football weather but with a
five hour time difference from the East Coast, we barely saw any games
this year. I paid more attention to the X-Factor competition than
what teams were in what bowls.

Telly didn't mention it, all sports talk was about football (the one
with the round ball). It seems odd to be insulated from the US. Other
than Obama and the stars trekking from London to LA, generally we
don't hear much news from the US. It's like a huge layer of
insulation across the Atlantic.

Well, one piece of news I won't miss is how the Saints bounced back in
the 2nd quarter and how they played in the second half of Super Bowl
XLIV. Half time is over and I need to get my season's fill of football.

Who dat!

The Good and Bad of London Living

We returned a week ago from visiting the US for Christmas. Because it was our first trip back after living here for awhile, I saw the US from a new perspective and started thinking about the good and bad things about living here. In no particular order, below is a quick rundown of the best and worst of London.

The top ten things about London so far:
1. Public transportation - okay, so you do have to plan more since you don't have a car you can just hop into. That said, we don't pay a note, insurance, or fuel for a car. And the whole Tube experience can be humorous.
2. Chocolate - not just from England but from the EU. Its where it was invented and probably because of #8 on this list, its just better.
3. Espresso - Who drinks yucky drip coffee anymore? Go buy yourself a nice espresso machine, splurge on some Italian espresso coffee and get ready for the smoothest cup of coffee you'll ever have. I promise, an espresso addiction does not equate to sending your entire life savings to Starbucks.
4. Coca-Cola - No corn syrup here, just plain old sugar. Remember that stuff.
5. The parks - You might say, well I have my nice fenced in back yard. But, you can only afford so much and what you can afford, you have to take care of. The parks are great places to run, play on the playgrounds (the equipment isn't falling apart!), and just enjoy the sun on a nice day. Plus, you wouldn't get to watch the Royal Family's helicopter land in your backyard.
6. Top Gear --Top Gear is a BBC program but three men acting like teenage boys in cars is pretty darn funny. Plus, these guys are pretty funny without the cars. Picture playing football (soccer) with a giant ball and hatchbacks for the players.
7. Being able to buy an inexpensive bottle of good French wine
8. Dairy products - Over here, the mass production folks haven't started adding hormones and all that junk to their cows. Plus, as gross as it sounds, clotted cream is wonderful.
9. Getting your groceries delivered!
10. I love the electrical sockets here. Much safer than in the US, with each having its own switch and codes not allowing light switches and only shaver plugs in the bathroom.
10. Heating with radiators - not as drying as forced air.
10. My gas stove - okay, so I could have that in the US but don't. Its much better for cooking.
10. Free museums - A number of London's museums are free. I know that's it paid for with tax dollars but at least you get something for your tax dollars here.
10. No potholes - again, something for your tax dollars.
10. Last but not least...you can spend a couple hours on a train and be in Paris, Brussels, Scotland.

So I cheated a little on the top ten...here's my least favorite thing about London.

1. Diet Coke - the reverse of number 4 above. The sweetener they use just doesn't taste the same.
2. Dining out - There is a reason why a normal tip is 10%. The service is so-so and you can expect to take at least an hour to an hour and a half for a meal.
3. Having to make homemade macaroni and cheese - No Kraft mac and cheese here. We either have it sent to us or I make it from scratch. Really, I miss a number of foods from the US that you can't purchase here or you have to buy from an expensive American store.
4. BBC programming (excluding Top Gear) - There is nothing to watch. Period.
5. Finding a place for a good hair cut that doesn't cost as much as a car payment
6. The dubbing of characters'voices on American cartoons with a British speaker- Imagine Little Einsteins characters with British accents. Thankfully, Mickey still sounds like Mickey.
7. The super short days - When we first moved here, the days were extremely long, with sunrise at 5:30 am and sunset not until 10 pm, much different than anywhere in the continental US. The long days were fine but now that its winter, it is pitch black outside until 8 am and sun is long gone by 4 pm. I can now understand why people actually have sun lamps for light therapy. I need some sun.
8. Having no credit history - When we moved here, our credit history from the US means nothing. The only way we were able to open up a current account is through my employer. Even getting a new mobile phone usually requires a deposit equal to six months' of payments.
9. Nope nothing else.
10. Better stop, I keep thinking of more things for the top 10 list.

When in Rome, act like a Roman

To celebrate Thanksgiving this year, we decided to visit Rome Italy over the four day weekend. We stayed in a pensione near the Spanish Steps. While there, we found out that a pensione is one step above a hostel. The place was nice enough with clean, comfortable beds and our own bathroom. Biggest drawback was the lack of television (I know!) but they did have wireless internet.

With less than four days to visit and two young sons to drag around, we carefully selected what we wanted to see, leaving the rest for a later visit. Our first full day, we went to the Vatican, visiting St Pietre's Basilica and the Vatican Museum. St Peter's Basilica and the square were amazing. Even chasing Jacob around the confessionals in St Peter's, I felt a sense of tranquilty and peace that I rarely feel in everyday life.

Next up, we visited the Vatican Museum, the only way to see the Sistine Chapel. Searching for the Sistine Chapel felt a little like searching for Venus di Milo in the Louvre. We kept looking, walking, following the signs, but it was always just a little bit further. Christian and Jacob's tolerance for museums is low and we basically ran down the corridors trying to find the chapel. And when we did find it, I was a little disappointed--crowded with no open seats to sit and look at that beautiful masterpiece. After some rest back at the pensione, we went to the Pantheon. Christian was enthralled with the mice outside the Pantheon. After dinner, he wanted to go back and see what they were doing.

For our second day in Rome, we visited the Coliseum, the Palantine and Roman Forum. The Palantine and Roman Forum make up this large area of Roman ruins. The area is massive and full of history. It was completely worth the effort to see a lot of it even if after a few hours we just wanted to find the exit.

From a language perspective, most people in Rome spoke English and knowing Italian was of little use. Regardless, if you made the effort to speak some Italian, the people seemed just a bit friendlier, even if they just corrected your Italian. Of the places we've been in Europe, it did feel like we were back in the US with the large amount of Americans that were there.

Public transportation was easy, even though the train system looked like it hadn't been renovated since Mussolini was in power. We walked a lot and as you might have heard, the roads are cobblestones without any sidewalks and we had to dodge quite a few cars. Food was so-so though we did not venture outside of the more touristy places. Breakfast was always a cafe and pastry with absolutely no chance of having some eggs and bacon to go with the pastry.

Overall, we had a lovely time in Rome. Our time there was very short but we are looking forward to our next visit.