I'm starting this post from my loft bedroom in Buckinghamshire. A large duvet is crumpled around my waist and I prop my head against the top of the wooden headboard behind me. Bedside tables are to my right and left, and the one to the left carries a pink and green hippie lamp, flecked with splotches of gold. The lemon yellow, lime green, tangerine orange and bubblegum pink ironing board stands near the foot of the bed, high-tech iron sitting stoically on top. I finished the family's ironing on Thursday, but have yet to return the board to the basement. A TV eyes me from the corner, barely fitting between the slanted ceiling and the dresser of drawers on which it squats. When I first arrived, Charlotte showed me how to use it -- how to access channels, which remote does what, etc. Watching TV has always been a social thing for me, though. I didn't have TV as a kid and I certainly didn't spend the money on cable as a college student, so TV was something I did with friends and boyfriends. TV is watched on plump couches with cuddles, hard cider, sangria, cheese and foot massages. It is not watched all alone in the loft of a gorgeous house in Buckinghamshire.
My favorite part of this space? The windows. I love the three windows that open up to the sky. I've returned to waking up at 5:30 every morning, as I refuse to draw the blinds down, much preferring to wake with the sun. And the single cow that moos anxiously and repeatedly from a field a bit down the road.
Goodness gracious, someone milk that poor beast already.
The family arrived home rather late (no one appears to be sure of the exact hour -- so late enough for no one to be exactly sure) the night before last. Their original plan was to return on Monday, but as normal weather was predicted for that morning and they were reluctant to pack a tent in tippling rain, they decided to call it quits early and drive home. Receiving this news made me nervous, excited and disappointed.
Nervous: I was asked to sweep and mop the wood floor, vacuum the carpet, clean the bathrooms, wash the windows, water the potted plants, wipe the cabinets, doors and molding, scoop pony poo, and collect chicken eggs whilst the family was away. There are many questions one must ask when moving into a new house with a new family in a new country.
- Which dishes go in the dishwasher?
- Which setting do you use?
- With which dishes do you use soap?
- How well do you have to rinse your dishes for your dishwasher? (some people own washers so effective that the dish can pass directly from table to loader, but many have washers that require the cups and cutlery to be nearly sparkly clean before placed in the ponies and trap machine)
- Are there certain dishes on which I shouldn't use certain spatulas?
- Garbage! Recycling! Compost! What is what, which goes where, and when does it all go out?
- Laundry! Which setting do you use? how do you open the door (I had not the slightest notion of how to open the washing machine door at Roisin's... even though I puzzled over it for 20 minutes, each minute standing there awkwardly chewing my lip making me feel more and more like a complete dunce. Machine = 1 Aimee = 0)
- Are you saving any of the food in the fridge for anything special?
- Which plants need to be watered?
- How do I get the shower to spew hot water at me?
- Which doors need to be locked? When do they need to be locked? Where are the emergency keys hiding?
- Which doors can't be locked? (the downstairs bathroom can't be locked here. When the door is shut, it's assumed that the bathroom is in use. Immensely useful piece of information)
- How does coffee work around here?
- How does your cooker work? (I forgot to ask this question before the family left for the festival. I spent ages looking for matches or a lighter to ignite the gas stove... only to discover the next morning that the stove actually had a button to light the burners)
So I was nervous that they'd pop into the house, look around, and wonder what I was on to think that the space was clean.
Disappointed: I had planned to make cardamom oatmeal raisin cookies for the family as a sort of "welcome home" gesture. Returning to a plate of cookies after midnight is not the same as returning to cookies in the early afternoon.
Excited: As mentioned earlier, I'd only spent a few hours with the family, but goodness, I enjoyed their company. The son (whom I shall call "Harry", as that was the most popular name for boys in the UK for 2012 and I feel rather uncomfortable using the real names of kids on my blog) reminds me a lot of my big little brother, Jared. He's sharp as nails, a blossoming foodie, a natural performer, and has a praying mantis in his bedroom (and aspirations for an entire... flock? swarm? herd? of praying mantuses? manti? Ach). The daughter (whom I shall call "Violet", as that's #82 on the list of most popular names in the UK for girls and I think she'd prefer it to "Amelia", which currently ranks as #1) is a bundle of boundless energy (although she seems to have a habit of falling asleep at the most inopportune times), has model horses hiding in all corners of her princess bedroom, and enjoys singing Disney karaoke at the top of her lungs.
She reminds me of my little little sister, Anna.
The parents are both avid foodies and their kitchen is a veritable wonderland of spices, sauces, oils and chutneys. The mother (whom I shall call "Charlotte" (#15)) has a career in natural medicine and is very interested in yoga. When I asked Charlotte what I could do for the family today, she responded, "Well, I'd like to do yoga in the morning. And you could make those cookies with Violet. And we could practice yoga with "
Umm... yes please.
As I've hit the two month mark of the trip, I thought it might be a good idea to mention the useful and not so useful things I brought with me.
USEFUL
- Sunglasses. Never travel without a solid pair of sunglasses. They are not only tremendously useful for fending off the sun (didn't anticipate I'd need them so much in the UK), but if you're a lady and would rather go a day without having to wear makeup and still look mostly classy, sunglasses are marvelous.
- Smartwool. The shirts are fantastic for the UK because they're light and warm. Perfect under-layers for a jumper and good stand alone options.
- REI super lightweight towel. This has only come in handy a couple of times, but if you're at a hostel for even a few days, it's well worth having. Especially since they're not bulky at all and can make excellent yoga mats when the grass is too damp for my yoga paws alone.
- The PHOCUS lenses for my iPhone 4. So stinkin' useful. Transportable, good quality, and an excellent conversation topic (so many people are fascinated by the lenses and case and want their own), I'm tremendously happy I decided to purchase this package for my trip.
- My three pairs of shoes. I brought flip-flops, a cute sort of barefoot ballet shoe and tall black boots. I applaud myself on the types of shoes, but I'm disappointed in the brands. In the future, I will bring waterproof flip-flops, sturdier boots (mine already seem to be falling apart) that aren't quite so tall and could double for hiking/snow boots, and nicer flats.
- I love the essential oils my mom sent me of with me. When traveling, smelling good can be a luxury. It's absolutely lovely to be able to rub a bit of frankincense on my wrists and under my nose and be comfortable with myself again. Frankincense in the morning, lavender at night. It's a nice little routine, and routines like that become very comforting when living a life of constant change.
- I've been exceedingly grateful for my two sweaters. Prana makes some stylish and comfortable sweaters that are of phenomenal quality. Quite worth the investment.
- My Royal Robins discovery skirt has made life so pleasant. Easy, comfortable and classy. Make skirts happen.
- My sarong.
- My medium sized purse. I have my rucksack, my carry-on rolling bag, and a purse just large enough to fit my camera, a small notebook, and my kindle. I use this whenever I go out.
- MY KINDLE.
- My iPhone.
- My laptop. Sure, I need it for blogging, editing photos, uploading interviews and contacting hosts -- but I also need it for keeping my sense of community alive. Charlotte asked me how I kept in touch with my friends from home. I mentioned Skype... email... but mostly, it's just the pictures I see on facebook. My friends all have my blog and I have all of their facebook accounts. Knowing that a childhood friend got married or a university friend had a baby girl is bittersweet, but grounding. It's hard to know that the people I grew up with are continuing to grow without me (and now I'm just stalking them), but seeing a picture of my little sister taking typical facebook selfies on the main street of my hometown gives me a sense of comfort and connection. Facebook is how I window shop. It is how I look into the lives of the people I love.
- My lululemon sports bras. I like that they serve as swimsuit tops and "the rest of my shirts are too smelly to wear, so I'll just wear this" tops.
- My rain jacket. 'Cos even though we're in the midst of a heatwave, it's still the UK. If I had a do-over though, I would purchase a much lighter waterproof outer layer and just wear my jumpers underneath.
- Soap. Everyone has soap. If you're couchsurfing or volunteering, you don't really need to bring your own shampoo/conditioner/soap. Most people are perfectly willing to share theirs for a few days. This is something I sometimes have to put into perspective. If I had someone volunteering/couchsurfing with me, would I mind if they used my soap? Ummm... not even a little. Soap, shampoo and conditioner are cheap to buy but awkward to transport. Of course I'd let them use my shower stuff.
- My sleeping bag. Proved to be completely useless and took up far too much space to justify carting about Europe. I left it with Hanne and am quite glad to have the extra room in my bag. One of the main reasons I brought it was because after I got frostbite on my last trip, I wasn't able to warm up for three days. My couchsurfing host didn't have enough blankets and I had no sleeping bag. During this trip, I desperately wanted to be in control of my warmth. But. I'm going to give up the illusion of control and just not be stupid enough to get frostbite.
- I own too many trousers. Why on earth would I need two pairs of jeans and one pair of corduroys and two pairs of yoga pants and one pair of linens and one pair of shorts and two skirts? It's so excessive that just writing it out embarrasses me. One of the reasons my bag is overstuffed is that purchasing "gear" for my trip was one of my guiltiest of pleasures prior to boarding my plane on the 5th of June. I browsed Amazon, Campsaver, Steep and Cheap, and the Clymb for boots, clothes, technology and whatever other random bits and bobs for which I could contrive uses. I have a sewing kit. Two pairs of plastic knitting needles. Smartwool arm warmers. Hair texturizer, even though I knew that in one month, my hair would be too long for the stuff, anyway. I don't need so many trousers -- I bought so many trousers because stuffing them in my bag made me feel like my trip was closer. A full bag made my future seem more real. And now it's just f*cking heavy.
- I really want a sleeping bag liner. It would take up minimal space in my rucksack and would ward off hostel cooties. It would also be considerate to future couchsurfing hosts, so that they wouldn't have to wash their sheets after I left.
- A better pair of scissors.
- I know I've spent a long-winded paragraph complaining about packing too much crap, but I really want a pair of comfy pajama pants. I want XXL ugly flannel trousers real bad. The kind with drawstrings and elastic, dancing with fat snowmen or Dr. Seuss characters or superheros. My sarong is all well and good, but I can't sprawl out and relax in the flimsy blue fabric the way I could in the flannels about which I fantasize. Kim let me borrow a pair during my stay with her in Newport, and goodness, I swear I slept a hundred times better. Wearing frumpy pajamas is part of the bedtime routine. The nice part. Not the flossing/brushing/wiping off makeup part. It's the part that makes me want to go to bed.
- A hard case carry-on bag. I think it's an excellent idea to travel with a checked in rucksack and a carry-on rolling bag, but I'm beginning to worry that mine is too large for flights in Europe (we have different standards in the US) and it's already getting a bit frayed around the edges. Which is unfortunate, as it was a 260 dollar bag (which I bought on Amazon for 80). A hard case carry-on would be excellent for my peace of mind because I wouldn't have to worry about it bulging past the limit and it would be a good deal sturdier.
Challenges: Cockney rhyming! Ponies and trap = crap
Also, they say "cheers!" when they toast.
Preconceptions: They do drink loads of tea in England. More tea than coffee, as a matter of fact. If I go to visit a friend or Charlotte is putting the kettle on, I'm offered a cup of tea. In Ireland, I would be offered tea or coffee, regardless of the time of day. In England, coffee seems to be more of a morning beverage with tea dominating the main part of the day.
General observations: If you're traveling in England, try out Megabus instead of National Express. It's significantly cheaper. I wish I had heard of it before I booked my previous tickets.
Sayings: Two bites of the cherry = two chances to get drunk.
No comments:
Post a Comment