Our adventure in London begins

This blog was originally called 'Year in the US' but I had to change it to 'Taryn's Adventures Abroad' since we are now also spending 9 months in London. This way, it's generic and will be a great way to document all our adventures, wherever we may go :)

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I've been in London for a week now. I arrived on Friday 1 November 2013. It's been pretty cold! Today's temperatures are 3 degrees (min) and 9 degrees (max). Much colder than I would have expected for London. Fortunately, I've brought all my Boston winter boots, gloves, thermal tights and jacket to keep me warm.

Athol arrived at on 28 September 2013 as registration at LSE was on 1 October 2013. He is studying Political Theory at the London School of Economics (LSE) and is loving it. This is a new area of interest for him, so is loving the academic rigor, learnings and debates. LSE is one (if not the best) of the best universities to study Political Theory.

London is great, we stayed here for two months (April - June 2010) when Athol still worked for Bain & Co. and I worked for Old Mutual. We really enjoyed living here so I was excited to be living here again.

We are living right in the heart of London -  about 2 minutes away from Trafalgar Square, 5 minutes from Leicester Square, 8, minutes from Picadilly Circus, 10 minutes away from Big Ben and Westminster Abbey and 15 minutes from Buckingham Palace. So everything is within walking distance and very convenient. LSE is about 10 minutes away.

 

The one downside is that it is very noisy and always lots of people around.

I'm not sure LSE in in the heart of busy London. West End is very expensive as there are many theatres, fancy restaurants, Covent Garden, etc. Food and Rental is extremely expensive.

We had chosen to live in the LSE accommodation as we didn't have many other options. Trying to find accommodation from South Africa was difficult, I came across a few scamsters trying to pull a fast one on poor foreign students looking for accommodation. Luckily, our experience from Harvard has made us wiser so that we are not fooled by scamsters.

The accommodation is basic, we have a double room with two desks, chairs, cupboards, bookshelves, pedestals, lamps and bins. We are on the fourth floor, which faces the busy Northumberland Avenue. We have two large windows so we have a lot of natural light (when London gets sun!). The bathroom has a nice shower - its small but adequate.

My first day in London!

 My desk and our scullery (on the shelf! :) )

Athol's desk

 

We share a kitchen with a few other students - there are 3 fridges, a kettle, toaster, 2 stoves and ovens, 2 zincs, ironing board, vacuum and a little area next to the kitchen with a couch, armchair and 4 bar stools.  In the basement there is a laundry room with 5 washing machines and 5 dryers (costs $1.50 per wash/dry). There is a common room with couches and a TV, a computer room with computers and a printer and a study room. Real student life! :) There is a reception area downstairs with staff. This building is used as a hotel open to the public during the Summer holidays.

There are many little supermarkets nearby - Tesco, Sainsburys, The Co-operative, M&S, Tesco Direct and Spar. The Charing Cross station is also close, which has many shops like Burger King, Upper Crust, etc. The South African shop is also nearby, they sell all South African favourites like Chutney, Niknaks, Cream Soda, etc.

Last Sunday we went to buy falafel shwarmas and went to sit on a bench in Leister Square. They redid this square for the 2012 Olympics. There is now a William Shakespeare statue in the centre with fountains.

We live literally a 3 min walk away from the Thames River and from there you can see the London Eye and Big Ben. The one night we walked around to the London Eye and back along the pedestrian bridge which has great views of Big Ben. Reminds me of our walks in Boston, we used to walk along the Charles River to Harvard Square at 11pm at nights.

I've settled in nicely, so nice to re-united with my husband again :) thank goodness for Skype. Skyping twice a day and Whatsapp made our time apart much easier.  I had stayed back in CT to sort out a couple of things, in particular to get our book OAKY AND THE SUN printed and to manage our initiative READ to RISE to promote literacy by distributing books in Mitchells Plain. There is still lots to be done, but I can manage it from London, thankfully we have some people on the ground in CT.

So we will be here in London for another 6 weeks and then we will be back in CT on 19 December in time for our niece Hannah's birthday, Christmas and New Year. Then Athol's classes start on 12 January 2014.

So we've got 6 weeks this year to enjoy life in London! I'm keeping my fingers crossed for some sunny days :)

Back in SA

Well, we've been back in South Africa for two weeks now.

It's pretty cold here, it's funny, I feel warmer in Boston even when it's -18C because here in SA the houses are not geared up for the cold!

Was nice to drive my car once again - I haven't driven a car in a year! I do love the public transport and walking in Boston but it is nice to just get into your car and drive somewhere  :)

We spent 5 nights in Cape Town visiting family. It's been nice to see family after a year. We do Skype often which makes it easier. I've noticed that Cape Town is becoming a lot like Johannesburg - more and more houses have electric fences, spikes, barbed wire or armed response. There also seems to be a lot of security complexes. Driving around I also noticed a lot more townships. A couple of street names have also been changed to African names.

Over the last few days, we've been reading about the sad news of Nelson Mandela in hospital. He is 94 years old now. He has done so much for South Africa. He spent 27 years in prison on Robben Island so that we could be free from apartheid. His wonderful spirit and ability to forgive is incredible... a true global legend who will never be forgotten!

Johannesburg hasn't changed too much in a year. There are some new big buildings which have been built in Sandton. There are new South African notes being circulated - they look strange, almost too colourful. Food and petrol prices have gone up a lot (although the food prices are still far cheaper than in Boston!). The E-Toll is still not in operation, even a year later. There is a new circle along Bryanston Drive which used to be a fork - was a bit confused driving around. But all in all, most things are still the same.

There seems to be limited food choices for Vegans here compared to Boston.

The things in SA that I have missed - Grapetiser/Appletiser, Mrs Balls Chutney and Ocean Basket :)

Being so good to be using the metric system again, that was something in the USA that I just couldn't get used to :)

Last day in Cambridge

So here it is, our last day in the US.

Busy packing up all our things, it's amazing how much you accumulate in a year :) well, we're actually only shipping two boxes of personal items, the other 11 boxes are Athol's books! :) Shipping is very expensive.

Luckily I managed to sell most of our furniture. We had bought everything new when we got here last June so I've been exercising my advertising and negotiating skills over the last month trying to sell all our furniture :) Our couch and bed get picked up today so tonight we will stay in a hotel by the airport. Our flight is very early tomorrow.

It has been raining here and the temperature has been a bit low, today it is 12C - what happened to the Boston Summer?! 

Either way I am going to miss the evening walks, picnics along the Charles River, the can-do attitude of people, New England Clam Chowder, the excellent customer service, the good friends that we've made here and yes even the snow :) I really love this city. Although, I will not miss the cold, the hurricanes, blizzards, the humidity, the pollen and bombings :)

So for the rest of the day we will do some last minute things and say our last good-byes to friends.

We managed to have a last picnic along the beautiful Charles River and watch the sunset.

What an amazing year we've had. Not sure how we will ever top this year :)

So long Cambridge MA 02138.... our home from 19 June 2012 to 15 June 2013.

3 days to go before we head back to South Africa

And so the countdown begins.....

3 days before we leave Boston and head back home to South Africa.

The funny thing that it's more of a countdown of days left in this amazing city rather than counting down the days to going back home.

This year has been amazing....

What a fun adventure it has been here in the US, it's been a real eye-opening experience in so many ways. Living in a different country opens your eyes to different cultures and social norms. I definitely feel wiser from the experience. You also learn to appreciate the little things in life. It makes you look and think about life from a totally different perspective.

Saying good-byes...

Today was my last tutoring session at BCNC. It is sad saying good-bye. I have really enjoyed  the experience and have made some good Chinese friends here in Boston.

South Africa...

The country has changed a lot while we have been away. It is nice to watch what is happening in a country from afar. No, I don't read the exaggerated American news - I read News24 everyday. Then there's also publications like Financial Mail and The Economist who don not speak favorably about South Africa, however they state facts and I can't argue with that. There have been lots of protests and strikes, the SA rand has weakened terribly (was R8.40 to the US$ June 2012 now it is at R10.18!), attacks on foreigners, unrest, price increases, etc. There seems to be a lot of hatred and unhappiness still in South Africa. With Nelson Mandela being very ill, I cannot help wonder what will happen once he passes - he has a wonderful spirit and represents the end of apartheid, forgiveness and much more.

My first book of illustrations 'Oaky and the Sun' - collaboration with AE Ballakisten

The 'Oaky and the Sun' ebook was released on 10 June 2013.

http://store.blurb.com/ebooks/394620-oaky-and-the-sun

It is a children's picture book. It is based on a poem which Athol wrote in 1998, about an acorn who is searching for direction in life. During my sabbatical in the US, I decided to do the illustrations for the book. After many hours, this is the final product:

While on sabbatical in the USA, my artistic creativity was re-ignited leading me to collaborate with poet AE Ballakisten in producing his latest book.   Oaky and the Sun is my first book of illustrations, which I hope will be the first of many.  Through my illustrations, I hope to help writers tell their stories more powerfully.

Trip to the Capital... Washington DC

We spent 3 nights in Washington DC 5-8 June 2013.

It is a 1.5 hour flight from Boston to Washington DC's Ronald Reagan International Airport. The airport is pretty grand with its high ceilings.

We stayed near Du Pont Circle, a nice up and coming trendy area with a lovely park and fountain around the Circle.

Washington has a couple of traffic circles - Washington Circle, Logan Circle, Du Pont Circle, etc.

Traffic is hectic, every few minutes you either hear someone hooting or a siren going off. They also have the longest walking time across roads that I've ever seen - 62 seconds was the highest that I saw on the countdown! Pity the traffic lights by the circles are not synchronized!

Washington DC is also well known for its cupcakes - the bus tour operators told us that apparently you can get all kinds of cupcakes, one with candy floss on top, or with an apple pie stuffed into the centre. They are also a lot of Starbucks, almost one on every corner - about 90 in total!

Washington DC has tons of memorials:-

Our first stop was The White House. You can view it from the front and back. At the back they even had the Kitchen Garden where they grow the vegetables for the first family. There used to be White House tours but after September 11th they decided to stop.

Front of The White House

 

Back of The White House

 

 

We could see the Washington Memorial, apparently the tallest concrete structure in the world. Unfortunately they were renovating it because a recent earthquake had damaged it so they needed to strengthen it.

We passed the World War II Memorial.

Our next stop was the Lincoln Memorial. It was a beautiful walk next to the Reflecting Pool.

 

The spot where Martin Luther King Jr said his 'I have a dream' speech.

Then we walked through the Korean War Memorial.

Then we walked to the Martin Luther King Jr Memorial. A very cool statue of him.

 

 

 

 

The Jefferson Memorial.

 

On the Friday, it rained the whole day as a result of the first Tropical Storm (named Andrea) of the season. We did an Old Town Trolley Tour around Washington DC and Arlington Cemetary. We stopped at Capitol Hill, which was very grand.

 

During our walks we also came across the Longfellow Statue and the Gandi Statue.

I like Washington DC, it is like New York but just more spacious and slightly more relaxed. There were a couple of beggars around and traffic can be a nightmare. However it is a nice city with lots to do and see.