It has occurred to me that while some of you (K’s team at FMC) know every last detail of the behind the scenes leading up to our move to England others didn’t even know I had moved (insert sheepish emoticon here).
Last year D applied for and got a job with Imperial College, but they wanted him to start right away and we were a bit unsure that we were prepared to make a move like that so we turned the job down. As time went on I regretted that decision more and more. Fast forward to spring of this year, D had applied for another job at Imperial and I said, If you get the job we are going! NO discussion! A few days later D text “Do you want to move to England?”
I should’ve started getting ready to move then, but why start early when you can almost implode from shear panic and lack of time later. It all came together though (so many ppl kept saying this and I kept telling myself this, but there was a quiet nagging in the dark&twisty cortex that kept saying- don’t be surprised when it doesn’t work out.)
So, jobs resigned from, plane tickets bought, Visa’s acquired, English Language exam passed (true story), Jeep sold, landlord paid off, and bags packed. All 18 of them.
Now picture this, two adults, one 3yr old, a stroller and 18 bags. Ahead of us we had two airports and two train stations to navigate. Would you believe it went far smoother than I thought it would? We had a caravan to get us to YYC, three vehicles.
Getting to the UK was painless as we didn’t have to worry about luggage until Gatwick. Then came the comical part.
At Gatwick we had to load up two carts, so of course we could’t push B in his stroller. Instead we loaded up the stroller with carry-on luggage and made B push it. I may not win Best Mom of the Year, but I’m in the running for Best Spectacle! To get on the train going to Reading (west of London) we had to get special permission and an escort to get to the platform with all our stuff. Then in Reading, we had an assembly line to get all of our stuff off the train. Thankfully, there were luggage carts or we would still be there as we didn’t have enough ppl to wheel all the luggage to the taxi stand (our original plan was bus!) and not leave it unattended. We arrived at our VRBO in the middle of a wicked down pour. As we were getting out of the cabs (yes there were multiple) the skies opened up and drenched us.
We stayed in the 200sqft pool-house for 10 days while we nailed down a house (not a smooth process as it seems no one at the rental agency actually gave a damn. Although, I was forewarned by a Scotch drinking Englishman that customer service may not be what I’m used to.)
Now we are in a little terraced house, two bedroom, one bathroom about as far away as you can get from my bedroom at 0300h. Its close to the High St and close enough to the train station that we could walk, but the bus is far more convenient. Downtown is close too, about 15-20 by foot.
All in all, not too bad of a journey.
weRNtheBritzone 