7 Jan 06 Replacing my luck
I’ve gone and bought a compass, which is absolutely necessary to maintain my mental well-being. (The brand is Suunto and their tagline is Replacing Luck, which explains the title of this post.)
I wandered lost after viewing a flat in Pimlico. I meant to make my way directly northeast toward the hotel, but walked in vast circles into Chelsea, around Victoria Station and through Knightsbridge. At one point I thought it would be useful to refer to a map, but on its own it was no help. With a compass though, I can ease this pain in the future :O)
The flat hunt is proceeding reasonably well. Since we are unfamiliar with neighbourhoods, I’ve been looking in many areas - primarily in the east and south (that’s E1 and SW1 for those hip to the postcodes). I’ve also looked in Islington and Shoreditch. Since Matt is working in Mayfair around St. James’s Park the only location preference we’ve had is to be near transport links for him to easily commute.
Today we actually made an offer on a place! It was listed for 295/week and others offered 315/week… yes, we are in a bidding war apparently which I’ve never encountered before when renting. We offered only 300/week and that’s it, but the agent we’re dealing with said we are the landlord’s preferred choice for tenants. We met with him today and hit it off well. We should know by tomorrow if he accepts ours or the higher offer. What would you do?
The flat is in a most ideal spot for Matt. He could walk to work in 10 minutes, straight across the park. This is a large one-bedroom in a 70s building near the Home Office (and Buckingham Castle), SW1, practically on top of St. James’s tube station and very near a Sainsbury’s (groceries). It’s got a really modern kitchen with a large fridge, dishwasher, washer/dryer. It’s fully furnished, down to replacement lightbulbs! Great condition, lots of storage, secure building, etc. We really like it, but won’t be heartbroken if the higher bidder wins. We’ve still got till the end of January to confirm a place, so there’s no great urgency. It was nice to have Matt along looking today and moreso since it’s been the best flat so far - by a long shot. Speaking of Matt, I’ll bug him to make a post to tell how his work is going :)
Let see, what else is going on? A few discoveries of Britishy things…
- We tried a cornish pastry (pasty) which, somewhat surprisingly, was a very tasty pasty!
- Discovered Roasted Chicken-flavoured crisps and had to give em a try and guess what.. they taste like roasted chicken. The texture of crisps is different enough from potato chips though that indeed they deserve a different name.
- Many thoughts in my head now have a British accent, and I’ve also practiced my accent out loud for Matt. His opinion: it’s horrific! :)
- Water closets are annoying! That’s WC for short. I curse evertime I open the door to go to the bathroom and see no toilet there.
- Perhaps I’ll get a job driving a bus, double-decker big & red. They are hiring…
- Nearly every corner has a Pret or an Eat shop for a quick pre-packaged lunch grab.
- Don’t just order “water, please” at a restaurant. It’s still water (bottled), sparkling water, or tap water.
- Canadians say eh at the end of a sentence, Londoners say yeh
Also, I had to get a mobile phone. Everybody (and I mean everybody) in this city has one. Not only that, but the voice messaging system in our hotel room failed, and I needed to be reached by lettings agents. You can get a pay-as-you-go mobile here by walking into Carphone Warehouse and handing them less than 10 pounds. Just like that.
The surroundings, the architecture and history, are really beautiful. I haven’t taken photos yet as I’ve got plenty of time to gain some perspective before shooting, as opposed to just taking snapshots. Besides, it’s another few weeks before I’ll be able to share them on the blog. Imagine though - our hotel is steps away from Trafalgar Square, around the corner from a fabulous view of Big Ben. It’s alright!
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