11/11/10

11/11/10

   Ohhhhh what to say about Thursday?  It was a rainy day with little spurts of sun here and there but the gusts blew in more clouds than rays and we got our first taste of damp London weather.  It was hard waking up and we needed a quick nap after breakfast before we heading out to see more flats.  After looking at the map we decided that the walk into Fulham would provide a good opportunity to do some power walking across the river and get a tad bit of exercise.  We left the Tube behind and strode down the high roads to meet with Richard, another young lad working for the same company but located in Fulham.  He showed us a few properties and again, nothing too breathtaking or even desirable.  There was one flat that looked out over the park which I thought would be nice.  Along with the park there was a very charming coffee house that was on the corner of the apartment building within seconds of the flat's front door. I drooled over it but Sean wasn't phased which was fine considering the place was small compared to what we had been seeing.  After an hour or two of riding around in Richard's mini cooper we saw the final property which was a rich looking flat, with a view over the Thames River.  Sean and I are both suckers for a water view but knew deep down that this was too good to be true.  After learning the price that feeling was confirmed and we focused our wishing and hoping back on the flat in Chiswick. Despite the disappointment, it was fun to imagine us living in this luxury apartment with stone floors, a balcony over the river and enough closet space to store a new London wardrobe.
   Disappointed and feeling stuck, we pulled out the map and headed to Parsons Green.  Richard had told us it was a great little area to eat and find some pints.  It was indeed charming.  We walked around, turning down random streets for a while then once we found our bearings headed back home to the hotel.  On the way we dipped into a pub to use the bathroom and being honorable patrons we also sat down and ordered two random beers. Again, poor choices, as they were sweet and almost cider like. Blegh!  This was around 3 pm in the afternoon and already the sky was getting dark.  The rain had started coming down full blown now and it was nice to be sitting inside, drinking beer and doing a crossword puzzle.
   The only other people in the pub were older guys who hovered over their glasses then buzzed around talking to one another.  Everyone seemed to know each other; their friendships made apparent through the joking, winking and conversations that sounded more like mumbles and chuckles than actual words.  Sean and I were definately the odd ones out.  Not before long the gentleman sitting next to us started to make small talk, commenting on the news, where we were from and of course the weather.  We sat there for about an hour wincing down our gross beers and chit chatting with this local.  He lifted our tired spirits by congratulating us on our good luck of sniffing out the cheapest pub that side of the Thames.  Whether or not that was true his loyalty to Fulham was clear and hard to ignore.  We briefly shared with him our flat hunting experience and felt we couldn't leave till we agreed that yes, yes, Fulham was the greatest place on earth, you are right old man, Fulham is THE place to be, we'll live in a tent down by the river if we have to.  My favorite part of the conversation was when he shared his California ski experience where he found himself bombing down a black "crown" in nothing but levis and sunglasses, clueless and lost.  I didn't catch his name, and his friend sitting on the other side of him was impossible to understand.  All we could do was laugh when he laughed and shake our heads "yeah yeah, I know what you mean, ha ha ha".  It was a pleasant escape from the rain and great to talk to some locals.  Yes, we speak the same language but boy oh boy we are having a hard time understanding people!!!
   On the walk back to the hotel we ducked into  a grocery store.  Sean and I have been checking out grocery stores every chance we get.  We compare prices, check out the produce and try to get a feel for which stores are the cheapest.  While walking through the store we find that it's pretty similar to the States but a lot less choices, which is fine. The prices are comparable but of course slightly higher. The one thing that really caught us off guard was the shelf of eggs that were clearly not refrigerated.  there they were, sitting next to the bread, la de da.   Later research revealed that this is common considering the stores overall are kept pretty cool so you really don't need to put them in a cooler shelf.  It still weirds me out but that's just a little cultural difference that apparently packed a big punch to me and Sean.
   We left the warm, samonella egg aisle and found the health and beauty section.  With much excitement I found the exact same electric tooth brush we had at home at a good price and snatched it up.  Funny how such simple little items can make you feel at home!  In my mind, at that point, the day had been a total success!  I felt as triumphant as ever, like I had just skied down a black diamond in California in my levi jeans and jean jacket.
   Tired and achey feet led us back over the bridge, through Putney and to our hotel.  4:30 and it was pitch dark outside so we called it an early night.  I proudly plugged in the toothbrush to charge and then spent the rest of the evening down in the cute little hotel lounge where we drank beers, ate some dinner and worked on our laptops.  Our room must be made out of cement because we barely get internet up there.  It works fine down in the lounge, with internet access, comfy chairs, tvs, and hot radiators we found our place for the night.
   I still can not get over how it feels like we've been here for months.  The days seem so long and so full of running around and soaking in the surroundings.  No wonder we are tired and quiet at times.  Our brains are processing the 15 or so flats we've seen in the past two days, trying to recall what was what and why we liked some over the others.  I'm looking forward to finding a place, settling in and then spending our free time simply exploring.  I'm also completely missing cooking and cutting vegetables.  Fingers crossed!!!!!!!!!