London Wills and Won'ts

As our travel date gets closer, and plans are beginning to firm up, I get more and more questions from my friends and family about our life in London.  In general, I have no idea what it will be like, but there are a few things I know with relative certainty.  I'll try to list it out for you.

In London, I WON'T:

• Be staying in a flat- we'll be in a hotel
• Be in London proper- we're staying in the suburbs, which will require a train ride then a ride on the Underground to get into the city. I just say we're going to London for the sake of simplicity. But we're close, and will be able to go into the city for dinner and such.
• Be alone.  Tim is working with a couple of teams to install the system.  Some guys will be around more than others.  It is my mission to make them all my friends.  Just kidding... but seriously.
• Have a refrigerator.  While many of the cheaper (but still nice) hotels in the US sometimes have a fridge in the room, there will be none of that in the standard room we are staying in.
• Have a microwave. (See above)
• Have free breakfast.  It's just not really a thing over there.
• Have free WI-FI.  Again... they just don't do that.
• Have a car.  Tim will ride a bus to work, and we will walk or take trains everywhere else.
• Have my hair straightened or curling iron (aaaagh!).  They won't work with the power voltage over there. But can't you just get a power adapter? It's not that simple... those don't work with everything.  So what I'm saying is... this is going to be quite the frizzy-haired adventure.
• Have anywhere to put our stuff.  These hotel rooms are small.  Not really a dresser to speak of, and the closet will be minimal as well.  I may be tempted to hang my clothes on the sprinkler, which is strictly forbidden in the States, so probably punishable by death in the UK, since their safety standards are much more strict than ours.

Many people have asked why we don't get to stay in a flat. This was in consideration, but in the UK, there is apparently some law that a lease must be at least 6 months long, so if Tim's company only needs it for 3... not much cost savings there.  "But they should give you a suite or a bigger room.". We're staying for the whole install because Tim volunteered to stay the whole time.  He did that (partly) because I am coming, which was our choice.  I don't expect his company to shell out extra money just because I wanted to tag along.

However, during our time over there I WILL:

• Need to figure out our laundry. Usually a hotel will do your laundry for you, for a hefty fee.  Tim's company will cover this cost for him, but not for me.  I'll probably have to lug my laundry to a Laundromat or laundry service.
• Have an electric tea kettle. Probably.  So I need to figure out foods that I can cook just by boiling water, and that don't require refrigeration.  Luckily, I have a lose definition of what needs to be refrigerated :). I'm also kicking around the idea of buying a toaster over there because (seriously)... toast can make all the difference sometimes.  Maybe even a toaster oven!
• Have a hair-dryer.  I'll be sailing in relatively uncharted styling waters here... don't expect to see a lot of pictures of me :)
• Eat meals "at home.". Because I can't afford to eat out every meal in the most expensive city in the world!
• Have cell phones with data plans!  But we can't call or text you... because we'll be on a network over there.  But we will have (unlimited!) access to the interwebz at all times, so we are easily reachable through email, Facebook and Skype.  Just remember that we're about 6 hours ahead of you, so 7 in the evening for you is 1 in the morning for us.  Tim was getting my smart phone set up to go, and he asked me if I wanted Twitter.  What?! I'd never really considered it before.  I could constantly post my random thoughts for people to follow?  I'm not sure the World's prepared to handle that kind of brain barf... we'll see. (NOTE: I do not have a smart phone/ data plan now.  Plans over there are way cheaper, and Tim has an extra phone, which is why I will have it over there.).
• Be taking a class.  Like the one that started last week and I started with an F.  Don't worry! The professor let me make up the assignment!
• Be blogging a lot!  I'm hoping for 5 days a week, but since I'm currently struggling to do 3 days a week... we'll see how it goes.
• Be THAT American.  I'll try to blend in (although I won't try to fake an accent).  I just tend to be obnoxious even in the States, so I don't have much hope in another culture.
• Live the dream.  Not everyone gets to go someplace cool for a long period of time.  It will also be a wonderful break from life as we know it.

I'll close by saying how grateful I am to have this opportunity.  The Lord has made the way for this to happen, and it is such a blessing.  When I start to get anxious about preparations, He steps in and takes care of major things for me, reassuring me He's still there and He's the one behind all of this.  I have seen Him work already, and I look forward to seeing what He has planned for us in Great Britain.

Photos from Tim's trip to London in November.