Needless to say, this week has been quite crazy for me. However, for those who are following this blog and check back often for updates--I plan to blog on Sundays--hopefully this will give you a better schedule to follow than checking everyday.
Events of the Week
After the most amazing week in London with my sister, I finally had to say goodbye on Thursday morning. We left our hotel around 5am and by 7am I was officially on my own in England. Saying goodbye to Sarah was one of the hardest things thus far in this journey--for those who don't know she is not only my sister but my best friend. I don't know what we would do without Facebook and Skype!
I made it back to Luton and had the great pleasure of meeting a couple who are also here from Canada teaching at schools within my federation. When they heard that I would be back at Luton early in the morning but would not be able to move into my house until 1pm, they allowed me to store my luggage in their hotel room for the morning and met me for lunch in the midst of all their flat showings. 1pm came quickly and I met my roomate, Alisha to get the keys to our place.
I'm still in love with our house. It truly is a British roadside house---many have compared it to looking like Coronation Street from the outside. Alisha and I spent the first afternoon getting supplies for our house and then met some other teachers for dinner and drinks. Friday we had an Induction day from the agency who hired us all at the school I will be teaching at. The school is BEAUTIFUL! It is not only huge but has all new computers and technology in every classroom, different wings for different teaching areas and a huge quad in the centre with a water flowing pond and bridge to cross it. I've never seen such a beautiful school before. After spending the day at the school, we came back home and gave our bathroom and kitchen a solid cleaning then met up with almost all the teachers in our federation for a buffet dinner (a little over priced for the quality and quantity of food).
Things seemed to be going a little too good since I arrived in England a week before so of course something was bound to happen. Friday morning, before our Induction day, I woke up early with plans to shower. I turned the hot water tap on and it was cold...I waited about 10 minutes with it running and it was still cold. We spoke with our letting agency and a plumber showed up that night to look at it. He determined that there was something indeed wrong with it (not just Alisha and I being incompetent when it comes to working British pay as you go heating systems) and promised us he would be back the following day at noon. We did have plan to go to the shops and buy more stuff for our house on Saturday plus visit our new friend Carmel's new flat and help her carry some stuff over, but we obviously would post pone for hot water. We waiting around all morning and by 1:30pm there was no sign of our plumber. After calling around, the companies "handy man" came by to see if he could assist but determined the problem was beyond his control. We finally heard from the plumber---there had been an emergency at another client and he was post-poned but would be at our place around 5pm. We had an hour at this point before he would arrive, so we ran to the grocery store to grab some necessities for the night and following morning. 5pm comes around and no plumber....great. Once again we called the letting agency and they tried getting hold of the plumber but there was no response. WHAT HAPPENED? Instead they sent another plumber around to see if they could help. This plumber was from out of town and drove 1/2 hour to help us...not to mention he was the nicest looking British man I have seen since I've been here. He determined the problem but needed to replace a part and because stores close here early he could not buy one. He told our letting agency and they were going to get the original plumber to purchase the part and come by the following morning.
Turns out...this weekend is a bank holiday in England and hardware stores are closed on Sundays and bank holidays (I am actually a bit skeptical about this and just dont think the plumber wanted to work because every other store in the world was open today and tomorrow). So no hot water still. Luckily, my new friend Carmel offered her shower so I finally got a nice hot shower for the first time since Wednesday night when I had one at the London hotel. I have never scrubbed so hard in a shower to feel clean again. We are hoping that on Tuesday the plumber shows up and we will finally have hot water...if not, there will be at least one angry Canadian roaming the streets of Luton...better watch out.
Overall though, I am having a great time--the hot water is one little set back. We had a great meal tonight---it was 6pounds for a HUGE plate of different meats (pork, turkey, beef and gammon) plus as much carrots, beans, peas, corn, cauliflower, mashed potatoes, roasted potatoes and stuffing as you want. It was the perfect Sunday meal. We have decided to come back at least on Canadian Thanksgiving for a little taste of home.
Living in Luton
Many people back home were a little concerned with the reputation that Luton holds in England. Trust me, when I entered my home for the first time and read the paper...the first page labelled Luton as the second worst city in all of England along with many other not so great titles. However, after living here for a few days and getting to know the area it continuously proves to me that Luton is the Oshawa of Ontario. It has a pretty bad reputation for the people living in it and behaviours that occur but there are safe and nice neighbourhoods as well. The town centre area has been violence free since I arrived and I have had no issues at all. Our neighbourhood is great and very family orientated. There are some bad neighbourhoods, just like in Oshawa, Marsh Farms to be specific where people living in the area of told us to avoid because of the gang violence in them but these areas are FAR from where I live, shop or work and are very secluded. People who have lived here all their lives love it and have never had a problem. I've lived in Oshawa my whole life (give or take 10 years) and can 100% compare it to Luton.
The town centre has great restaurants, a mall and more for us to occupy our time with. It has a clock tower in the centre and this weekend a small fair/festival happening where they have brought a beach in and a cover band is performing (very funny to hear British people sing American songs).
England 101- Part 2.
Last blog I made a list of things that I have learnt about England thus far and in the last few days I have learnt so much more that I had to write another one!
- Kids in England are very strange in comparison to Canadian kids. From Asian mullets to kids laying on department store floors playing video games.
- Train doors don't open unless you push a button requesting them too
- Train stations lack elevators and often escalators
- Starbucks does not carry Iced Passion Tea Lemonade (almost a deal breaker)
- Public restrooms do not offer paper towels
- Streets, malls and stations lack garbage cans but the streets/malls and stations are always very clean because of the overwhelming number of street cleaners
- City buses (at least in Luton) are not standard fees, you tell the driver where you are getting off and pay a fee accordingly
- Old Navy style flip flops are non-existent..guess I need to grow up and buy an adult pair of sandals
- Loose sheets for bedding are non-existent...perfect for me who kicks them off in the night anyways
- Meal portion sizes are GIGANTIC and take out containers are non-existent.
- Windows don't have screens---yet minus a few rare cases, bugs don't fly in often
- Waiters always assume you are paying together, not separately...even in groups of 15
- Never go to Marsh Farms...you will be knifed
- You can buy alcohol at grocery and corner stores
- Chips come in large bags with 6 small Halloween sized bags within it...the only chips (or crisps as we Brits call it) that you can buy in a large bag are American Doritos and even that bag is small compared to the ones sold in Canada. PORTION CONTROL! No obese people in the UK!
- Eggs are stored on the counter not the fridge
- Smartie McFlurry's still exist!
- Everything closes at 6pm...everyday.
- If you look under 25 you will get your ID checked when buying knives or scissors...it has happened to me at least twice now.
- Shopping from a catalogue is very popular. An entire store is dedicated to it.
No comments:
Post a Comment