We moved into the flat a full week ago today. Moving the bags went fairly smoothly... the challenge came into where do we put all our stuff! haha I was able to get some soft drawers to put in the closet shelfs, so that really helped with the clothing that we can't hang (like socks and such). I also realized that there were no plugs in the bathroom for the hairdryer. So I added an extension cord to the list. We received our router this morning, so we now have internet at home! YAY! I still have to get a phone cord and then we can make some long awaited calls home :)
We found this place, Argos, that has been great at finding these little things for the flat. It has a very different concept than what we are used to though. It has a store front that is filled with these catalogs. You find the item you want, check to make sure it is available, go to a kiosk pay for the item and then go to the collection area and wait for your order number to be called. I would say this is very similar to Walmart quality but less since you can't really see the item before you buy it.
The shower is another story in itself... We were really struggling to take a hot shower from beginning to end. The shower would start off nice and hot then it would make this very strange noise and it would go cold, then it would get hot again. Overall, it would get cold at least 2 times during the course of a normal shower. The shower head was busted, so we thought that might be the root cause of the weird temperatures. The landlord sent us a new one and I have had very nice hot showers for the whole shower..... Jeff on the other hand has not had such luck. We turned the boiler on the ego setting, which means it takes a little while for the water to heat up rather than it being hot on demand. Hopefully leaving it on the hot on demand at all times will fix the issue.
I did have an epic failure this morning though... I locked myself out of the flat and Jeff had to come home and let me in. Thankfully I carried my phone out with me so I was able to text him. I was trying to be productive and take out the trash... and I even thought to myself 'don't lock yourself out'. Well it happened anyways :( The doors are kind of strange here. You have the front door to the building that has a lock on it and always locks when it is shut. Then you have the front door to your flat that always locks when you shut it. Additionally, there is another dead bolt type lock that you use when you leave. I knew it was only a matter of time before one of us locked ourselves out of the flat, but it could have been much worse if I didn't have my phone with me.
Yesterday we went to a flower market, Columbia Road, that Jeff and Giorgio had mentioned to us the other day. It was a beautiful day so we would enjoy the weather and take a stroll through it. And by beautiful, I mean the sun was shining in every direction and it was super warm! Look at the forecast of the rest of the week and you might see what I am talking about :)
And believe it or not, with all these beautiful flowers around I still went home empty handed. Our shipment should be delivered this Friday, which will have my flower vase to put these gorgeous blooms in!
The rest of the week we explored our area a little more to see what was around. We found a few really good places to grab a bit to eat and have a pint or two. I would say my favorites are the pizza place and a pub that serves Thai food. (Thai food in the pubs seems to be very common here.) Sunday Roast would be comparable to our sunday brunch, however we didn't get a change to experience the 'Sunday Roast' this weekend but there is always next weekend!
Stayed tuned for job updates!
I guess everything is an adventure, even taking out the trash! :)
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