Missing London

I've been back in the US for almost three weeks now.   It has been a very surreal experience moving back to DC - kind of like living in London was some long, wonderful dream or a lovely vacation and now I am back to reality. 

Getting settled after a move is never a fun or easy process, but an international move makes things a bit more complicated.  We lived in a corporate studio apartment until Sunday.  (Yes, Cesar, Max, Mia, and I were all snuggled together in a studio for a few weeks!)  The stuff we had in storage was delivered on Friday.  Before the truck came, Cesar and I could think of a few items that we knew were in storage and thought there might be couple of other items.  However, I was shocked when the truck pulled up and found out that there were 69 boxes on the truck.  69 BOXES - WTH?!?!?!  It has been interesting and sometimes funny to open up boxes and see what's inside.   (Side question for my lawyer friends:  I graduated from law school in 1998.  When is it time to throw away the binders of all of my class notes and outlines from law school?  Answer: clearly not yet)

We're still waiting for most of our stuff to arrive on a boat from London, including almost all of our furniture, dishes, linens, books, keepsakes, photos, and whatnot.  Needless to say, we're sort of camping out in the house now until everything arrives.  I actually got to see the container that it was being shipped in.  They loaded it directly from our flat.  I was fascinated by it and was taking pictures and talking to the driver, who then ever so kindly completely freaked me out about the move.  He was describing how the container gets loaded onto the boat and then said, "Yes, keep your fingers crossed that your container is in the middle of the boat."  I asked why and he said that "the containers on the end of the boat typically fall off during the trip over" and then proceeded to explain, in detail, how the containers were attached to one another and the boat and showed me the somewhat flimsy latches that are used.  When I told him that I could have gone my entire life without knowing those details, he laughed and said, "Well, it's all insured, right?"  Well, yes, but that is not the freaking point.  Our lives are in that container - every material thing we hold near and dear.  So, if you all could pause for a minute and say a prayer, send a good vibe, do a happy chant, or whatever works for you that our container is in the middle of the boat, I'd really appreciate it.  Thanks!

Overall, I have been really happy being back in DC.  It's been great to see friends again and visit familiar places.  But, there have been a few times when I really missed London.  The first happened just before Christmas.   Our corporate apartment was in Woodley Park, right by the Metro station (on the corner of Calvert and 24th).  I wanted to get some wrapping paper for Cesar's Christmas presents, soI went outside, thinking I could just walk to a nearby store to get the paper.  The CVS across the street, which by the way we have termed the most useless CVS ever, had only baby wrapping paper.  Right, because that is what is really needed 2 days before Christmas.  Anyway, much to my dismay, I had to get in the car to find Christmas paper.  I miss the days of living in London where I could walk outside and get pretty much anything I needed within a few minutes walk.  On a related note, I am very thankful for the exercise DVDs I got for Christmas, because I will otherwise not be moving very much.

Last night was the most homesick for London I have been since I've been here.  We went on a big grocery shopping trip at the Harris Teeter in Capitol Hill.  I remember when that store opened up.  It was so shiny and new and everything seemed fresh and wonderful.  Oh how I loved that place, especially in comparison to the "Un-Safe Safeway" that we used to go to on Bladensburg Road.  But, Waitrose has ruined me.  I loved our Waitrose on Finchley Road in London.  The fruit and veg section was gorgeous and huge.  The breads were fresh and tasted like they came straight from Paris.  The pastries were beautiful and made my mouth water whenever I walked by them.  Last night, at the Harris Teeter, all I could think of was how tired it looked, with its unstocked shelves, lack of options, and sad looking pre-made food. Sigh.

Also, I know I commented about this previously from the other side, but why is all the food here freakishly huge?  We bought some pears and apples that are twice the size of those in the UK.  What the heck do they do to them to make them so big?  Can they put fruit on steroids?  Also, I am frightened by the size of the chickens that create the chicken breasts here.  They must be monster chickens!!! 

And, what's with all of the high fructose corn syrup in EVERYTHING here?  Before Christmas, I picked up a package of stuffing mix and it had that in there.  In stuffing?  Really?  Why?  It should be just bread and spices.

I really enjoyed living in Europe where there seems to be much more of a focus on natural, healthy foods instead of the overly processed, full of preservatives and additives foods here. 

So, yes, it is great to be back.  But there are things I miss about London: the convenience of not having to get in the car to do everything, the fresh unprocessed foods, the city itself.

Stay tuned for a description of my new office digs.  If I am organized enough, I will post comparative pictures of the hated London office and my new sweet set-up in the burbs.

Comments

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