Adventures in London: New Year's Resolutions

I just came back from my last run in 2008 in the warm 30 degree fahrenheit weather. When it comes to running, I would love to say that I ended the year on a high note , but I cannot say that completely. Granted I am in better shape than I was in this time last year. All that said, in general I feel list I ended 2008 with a strong kick. Today's 5K run, however was just what my heart, body and soul needed to prepare for 2009! 

While running today, I reflected on 2008 and started thinking about hopes for 2009.  2008 was all about "Taking Chances" and you can definitely say that I certainly did. I took my chance, I started my adventure and now 2009 will about "Slow[ing] Me Down" before my life flies by. If you were to ask me what 2009 is going to be about - I can sum it up in one word - BALANCE! This year is all about balanced life, balanced nutrition, balance mindset, balanced training for the marathon.  It will be about training smarter - sounds simple, but this is the one area that I am anything, but smart about. I need to start listening to MY body and learn MY limits and not try to follow the programs of the people around me. 

With that, here are my top 10 resolutions for 2009...

1. Log no less than 25 running equivalent miles a week (going to the gym at least 3x a week) - this goal will increase and adjust as the year unfolds
   
2. Complete reading 12 new books - good thing I have the next 4 already lined up thanks to my family and Santa
3. See my family at least once a week (via Skype of course)
4. Continue to expand my cooking ability - adding hopefully 3-4 more dishes to the rotation
5. Add 2 new country stamps to my VALID passport
6. Take a photography class
7. Read a book in french (and not the easy French reader)
8. Run a sub-2hr half marathon 
9. Be able to look back on the 26.2 miles of NYC marathon as an experience of a lifetime - a unique way to tour all 5 boroughs of NY. Have the hope of crossing the finish line in under 4 hours (3h45 to be exact), but am going to try to avoid making this a goal as I do not want to look back at NYC as a disappointment. I don't want to feel like I failed, rather I want to be proud that I was able to run a marathon despite what the doctors said. 
10. I cannot say what my last one is, but some of you (PR this is especially for you) know what it is....

Happy New Year everyone! May this year be filled with grand adventures, treasured friends and a lifetime of memories!

xx

T

Adventures in London: Issue 23

I am taking a break between helpings of cous cous to write this, so needless to say - I am quite keen to have a second serving. I have thoroughly enjoyed this week in London with Mom. It has been an utter pleasure to tour and see the city with Mom by my side. 

This week kicked off with a dinner party with my friend and his family. Home cooked curry was on the menu and boy did we eat! Mom prepared a full indian feast of chicken curry, rajma, paratha, rice, raitu, bataka shak, and baigan burtha. I did my part and made some cheese canapes (my speciality) and papadams. 

I was so pleased to have SS and his family over. Last time SS came to my place it was to eat pizza and drink mararitas on the floor of my NYC apartment. It was nice to actually have him and his family over for dinner. Truth be told, they have become my family here in London and have been there every step of the way; I stayed with them before I moved, they were there the day I moved to London and they have been there for me on weekends while I struggled to find my way.

On Tuesday, I took Mom to Oxford Street for some good ole holiday shopping. For the first time this season, it actually felt like Christmas in London. All the stores were decorated in Christmas lights and the streets were PACKED (and you know how much I love crowds) with shoppers and bags :-( 

Mom enjoyed herself in the department stores of Selfridges, John Lewis and House of Fraser. They can only be described as the Macy's on 34th street in NYC, but with a gourmet food shop on the ground floor. We did a bit of shopping, but had to call it a night as the crowds were starting to get to me and I could not stand being around people any minute longer. 

On Christmas Eve, I took Mom for a tour of Clapham - showed her where I was planning on living (happy to report, she approved of my choice not to live there), the commons, Clapham Old Town and some of the local restaurants. Then we hurried home to get ready for our date with Bond... James Bond! While drinking mulled wine and sitting in velvet seat of the picture house, we watched QoS! 

For my first Christmas in London,  Mom and I had a relaxing day at home (not really out of choice, but because the tube was closed and we were unable to travel into London). We started the morning with me making pancakes (or what we would call crepes since they have no idea what buttermilk pancakes are). For lunch, we went to a Belgian restaurant for mussels and strawberry beer. For dinner, Mom and I cooked a British Christmas dinner with sprouts, yorkshire pudding, bread sauce, cranberry sauce and homemade mulled wine. It was a quite Christmas, but it was just perfect. HOLD! I take that back! It was missing 3 key details... it would have been perfect if Bhai, Jamila and my dear Kadin were here too (suppose we will have to do Christmas in June when they come to visit). Guess if I was truly nice and not at all naughty, then Santa would have brought them over to London for the holidays. 

On Boxing Day (26 Dec), Mom and I went into London to see the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace. From there, since the temperature was rather cold, we altered plans and took a detour through SoHo and Regent street for some retail therapy. I was content taking photos of the decorations and the streets rather than shopping, but I was easily convinced to buy some sweaters. 

Since the weather started to warm up a bit (went from 0 degree centigrade to 2 degrees centigrade), we made our way through Picadilly Circus to Hyde Park for Winter Wonderland. Hyde Park had been transformed into a German style Christmas market with a Bavarian village style houses serving sausages, dutch pancakes, and of course mulled wine. They had an ice staking rink, a carousel, a roller coaster and a sleigh ride, but we opted not to do any of the attractions as once the sunset so did the temperature.  It had been a long day, so we went home for some chicken Thai curry made by yours truly. 

I should have known that Mom was not feeling well after she had 3 normal size servings of dinner that night. The next morning, Mom woke up with a typical London cold - cough, lost voice and achy bones. It dawned upon me while I saw mom curled up with my Red Sox blanket on the sofa that I had planned a too hectic of an agenda for her with too many outdoor activities in the cold and windy London weather. After a day of rest and plenty of ginger tea, Mom got all bundled up and went exploring to Covent Gardens and the National Theatre today.  She does not have her voice fully back, but she is managing to talk...nothing can ever prevent that ;-)  (she did not like me saying that)

Well, my tummy is eager for more cous cous. I had another story to tell you, but guess that will have to wait for another time. 

Hope you all had a lovely Christmas break with your family! Do tell - who was nice? And more importantly who was naughty?! 

Adventures in London: Issue 22

They say that is not about the destination, but the journey that matters. Well, in this case I would like to disagree. For me this week, it has not been about Monday-Friday, but rather the last couple of days. Thursday morning, I went to Heathrow airport to collect my dear pocket sized mom! It was a rather surreal moment. I had been planning this trip...well since the moment I landed in the UK and here I was 5 months later finally picking her up from the airport. It was the last piece to the puzzle, finally the move would settle in. This move was the first time I truly did something on my own, so to say I was nervous about Mom seeing the flat, neighborhood, London is an understatement. I am happy to say that she was pleased with my choice - granted the flat was "smaller than expected", but just right for one person. 

After getting mom settled (and giving her the wrong guidance to re-entering my complex), I went into the office to attend my first Mindshare WW holiday lunch. Since I was unable to fully enjoy the WW holiday party, I was looking forward to this luncheon. It was a lovely afternoon away from the office filled with wine, pizza, PS2 Sing Star, and secret santa.  It is a great concept that they have here and I am glad that we all had some time away from the office to laugh, sing and hangout. Despite the fun time that I was having, I must admit - I was rather keen to head home :-) Later that evening, after coming home (in a well hydrated state) mom and I had a low-key evening as 1) she had just taken the red-eye and 2) it was a work night. We simply had some Thai take-a-way from a local pub. 

Friday, Mom travelled into London to take me out to lunch. Since it was my last day in the office for the year, I had to return to finish up some paperwork. After the workday, a few of us tried to go to Gordon's for wine and cheese. As our luck would have it, they were packed. Actually luck has nothing to do with it. Like the Monday night movies in Bryant Park, if you want a table, you have to go there at 3:00p.  We tried a couple of other bars, but given the holiday and festive season, they were all standing room only. Thus we went back to the good ole "brain drain" and joined some fellow Mindshare friends for wine and crisp. What was supposed to be a couple of glasses of wine turned into a couple of bottles. Once we were finished with there, we travelled across Waterloo bridge and walked around the Southbank German Style Christmas market. I introduced Mom to the beauty of Gluhwein, we ate our Bratwurst, and we shopped along along the Queen's Walk on the Thames. 

Saturday, as I am sure you all can guess, I took Mom to wonders of Borough market for coffee, Raclette, mulled wine, cheese, oysters, pastries, and lychees (clearly the last one was for mom,not me). I had initially planned a full tour around that neighborhood of the churches, monuments, and temples, but the beauty of Borough could not tear us away. Honestly it was bad planning on my part - should have not planned anything else when Borough was on the agenda. That said, Mom and I did have a night walk around the area. From Borough, we walked to Tower Bridge, along Tower Hill (again missing the last entry by a few minutes), 

and then made our way to St. Paul's Cathedral. This time, however, we were able to go inside and see one of the masses going on. The inside of that Cathedral is utterly breathtaking. I am so very glad that I was able to witness the beauty of the church and even more pleased that I did so with Mom.

On our way to dinner, we made a stop at the Somerset House on the Strand. We were unable to go to the market, but we did manage to have some Tiffany & Co mulled wine for our walk to Covent Gardens. We were going to walk around a bit more, but after walking for nearly 4 hours the hunger pains started to kick in. Thus, we took a bike rickshaw to Chinatown (tee hee hee) for some xiao long bao (soup dumplings), sticky rice, and crisy duck at Leong's Legend. I am happy to report that unlike the last time I went, I definitely did not leave hungry. 

Today, Mom and I travelled to zone 4 to Ealing Road which can only be described as a tasting of Bombay in London. The groceries were definitely much better than Curry Hill in NYC, but I will admit that I do miss Tiffinwala and Pongal. Have yet to find my own version on this side of the pond. 

Well, I am off. It is late and my bed is calling (or maybe that is Mom - who knows). 

In case I do not speak with you. Happy Chanukah, Happy Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa and Happy Winter Solstice (hope I did not leave anything out). 

Miss you all!

xx

T

Adventures in London: Issue 21

In comparison to last week, this week has been rather low key. Fortunately I did not need my passport to travel anywhere and thus no encounters with airport security. Sadly no running tours around London (as my legs  still do not like me). This week has been about wrapping up 2008 and getting ready for 2009.  I am looking forward to 2009 and what it has in store. In the last 5 months that I have been living here, I have noticed subtle changes as I have learned to adapt to the new culture around me. Below is a sample list...

• I have let my taxi days go and now travel via the tube from destination to destination - not only is it the cheaper way to travel, it forces me to come home at a reasonable hour (like Boston, tubes close at midnight)
• Rather than paying $80 a month for others to work out, I actually work the body beautiful (well excluding this week)
• I have learned to live in a world without seamlessweb - well it is not a city without, it is here, but I am avoiding opening Pandora's box
• I have learned what it feels to arrive at work before 0930 and leave before 1830! (guess I should also add that when typing I have also adapted the 24hr clock since everything is formatted like this). 
• You don't have to hold a dinner party or Superbowl to use your stove - sometimes a dinner for 1 is the perfect excuse to cook. 
• Girls Aloud is UK's PCD where all band members sing - fashion is still the same, tunes are  similar, but dancing is not up to par to PCD
• Unpasteurized milk makes a HUGE difference when making cheese - and honestly that is how cheese should be made
• Tipping is optional, especially when ordering at a bar (unless you are being served) If service is not included then tipping 10-15% on a bill is acceptable practice. 
• Holidays (aka vacation days) are meant to be taken!

Contrary to the assumption that by moving to London, I would only have more vacation days that would go unused - I am happy to report that I have used all my allocated days for 2008. And for 2009, I have already allocated 14 of my 23 days!! Impressive huh?!? So where exactly am I off to...well let's see! In February I am off to West Virginia for a long weekend (about 90% sure I am going on this trip). In March I am off to Austria for 10 days. And then in May I am off to St. Thomas for my "little" sister's wedding.  March will be an exciting month as not only do I have my Austria trip and my half marathon, but my dear friends from NYC will be visiting.I am so very looking forward to their visit. They are probably some of my older friends that I have. Known KU for 11+ years know and her husband for 5 years. I don't have many people left in my life that I can say that I date that far back with. Re-connected with a few friends that I have known since I was 12 which has been lovely. Post high-school, we did a fair job of keeping in touch, but while I was in grad school we re-connected again. I owe her really for my job at the NYS comptroller's office. And now, 6000 miles apart we have connected again. Some people will always be in your life - no matter.

Back to the adventures in London. Friday night, I hosted my first house party. Come to think of it, I think it was my first house party all together - not counting Superbowl. 13 people filled my little flat in Clapham for a Champagne and Cheese party - where everyone brought their favorite champagne and cheese and we did a tasting.  We definitely had more than enough cheese - in fact I think I can open a little shop with all the leftover cheese in the fridge.  I probably could have avoided making cheese canapes, but you know me - any chance to purchase cheese and I am there. (Sorry Ma champers and wine was thoroughly finished, but I will be sure to get you more for your visit! Which is in 4 days!!!)

Other than that, I have been brushing up on my french.. On Friday I was asked to recite from my french book. Think I did a fair job, but definitely need to work on pronunciation. Good thing my Parisan friends were there to help me out. They suggested that the best way to learn french was to date a french guy. Perhaps after learning french perhaps I should learn italian, celtic, spanish :-)

Have a fun last of week of work all!! The next time we speak I will be officially on break for 2 weeks!!

xx

T

Adventures in London: Issue 20

Oh deary me, what a week it has been!!! If I was looking for an adventure, this week has certainly been one. I have learned 3 key lessons this week

1. Listen to your body, not numbers

2. Throw away your old passport

3. Things always work out

Let's start at the top...

Last week I was a bit under the weather, but the OCD side of me was still determined to work out. Wednesday I spent the evening re-engineering my training schedule for the half marathon in March and the marathon in November. I really should just be focusing on finishing and perhaps having the goal of running the entire race. Instead, I got it in my head that I want to run it in 3h45mins so I could guarantee a spot in the 2010 London marathon. It did not seem too unreasonable. I have just about a year to focus on building up endurance and work on speed. On Thursday, against my better judgement, I went to the gym. Despite coming down with a cold and having tight leg muscles from Tuesday, I thought I could work the body beautiful. I should have known after the pain I felt after taking my first step to stop, but I continued. I barely made it 10 minutes before I had to jump off the treadmill as I could not stand the pain that radiated from my left ankle up through my ankle to my hip joint. Almost a week later and I am still in pain. Should have listened to my body when I felt tight, but purely focusing on the numbers has cost me a couple of weeks of training :-(

On the bright side of things - I was scheduled to fly to Vienna the next morning so I could be forced to give my legs some rest. "Scheduled" there being the operative word. We arrived at the airport at 0430 and at approximately 0500, I realized that I brought the wrong passport (I remembered to leave the ones with the fake ones at home, but did pack the one that was EXPIRED!!!). Against our better judgement, we thought we would see if we could still make this work - scary, but we were able to check-in, and pass through security. It was when I tried to border the plane that they flagged me. I was promptly de-bordered from the plane and ordered to go back to ticketing to get on the wait list for the next flight. Easier said than done. In order to get back to ticketing, I had to pass through Border Control - see where I am going with this?! I tried to explain to the officer what had happened, but they were quite keen on detaining me. I was detained in airport security for 30 minutes while they tired to sort our what to do with me - how do you allow a person back into the country that does not have a valid passport? Where do you send them? Do they go back where they came from (irony being the country I was tried to get back into) or do you send them back to where their illegal passport is from?

Thankfully I was let back into the country!!! I was, however, forced to purchase another full ticket to Vienna (joy to UK policies that if you do not take the outbound flight of a ticket, your inbound flight is void). I figured since I had a ticket for Vienna via Zurich departing in the evening that I would swing through Hollywood. At least I did not need a passport to go there!

The Mindshare WW holiday party was a fancy dress party with an Oscars theme - so the rule was anything Hollywood. Since I had to go home to get my passport, I decided to grab a dress too. I was glad that I was able to crash the holiday party! It was good to see everyone in their fancy dress and outside of the 4th floor of 40 Strand. After eating (some of) a fine Oscar meal, it was back to the airport! I cut my timing a bit close so I ALMOST had to travel in the dress. Thankfully, someone was looking over me and figured I had gone through enough so I was able to change just before boarding the plane.

I arrived in Vienna around 10:30p, just in time to make last order at Plachutta (we did not intend to go here, but after trying a dozen restaurants before, we were quite pleased to discover this). The meal was amazing - I wish I got the dish with the bone marrow and the boiled beef, but I went another traditional route and got the famous wiener schnitzel.

Since I only had one day in Vienna we had to make the most of it. Vienna is a lovely city. The old Europe feel reminds me a bit of Paris. The architecture and overall feel of the city is quite the contrast to London and especially NYC. Although I will say that unlike London, Vienna knows how to do Christmas. The city was overtaken by Christmas markets filled with ornaments, candles, candy, sweets and plenty of GLUHWEIN!! We went to a number of markets including the Christkindlmarkts at the Rathausplatz, and the Schonbrunn Palace.

In addition to visiting the markets we also managed to see...Belvedere Palace, Museum Quarters, Hofburg, Ringstrasse (Parliment), amongst other sites that I have not idea what they were. I am glad that I made it to Vienna and was able to spend a day exploring and photographing the city. Xavier, Nikki and Mini had a blast in the city. (photos from their exploration can be found on my Facebook account).

I cannot believe that the end of the year is a couple of weeks away!! A part of me cannot wait to start 2009, but there is another side that wishes I had a little more time 2008 (probably because I have a very long to-do list at work for the end of the year). I am looking forward to next week (w/c 15 Dec) as my mom will be arriving that Thursday. I am really looking forward to her visit. I have a jam packed agenda of sites, attractions, dinner and parties for us. While planning the agenda for her visit I realised that it has been years since we got to spend 18 days just the two of us :-)

With that - I am off to get some sleep.

Adventures in London: Issues 10-19

Hi All

Here is the recap video from the past 10 weeks. I hope you enjoy the video. The song is interesting, but I could not find another one in my collection that I liked. The song is by Luciana Souza. She is a Brazilian jazz singer and composer. After seeing her, Morley and Carmen Consoli perform in Central Park, I immediately bought the album. If you like jazz and are looking for something new - I highly suggest checking her album out. Also highly recommend Carmen Consoli. I ideally wanted to use one of her songs, but given that I do not speak Italian, I did not want to use an inappropriate song.

Anyway, this was not meant to be a music review. Hope you enjoy the video.

Adventures in London: Issue 19

What a week this has been. It is quite late here and I have a bunch to type so I am going to jump right in. 

This week was (as most of you know), Thanksgiving. I realised that for the first time in 28 years I was away from my family. The great thing about Thanksgiving is that it is not centered around gift giving ad receiving. It is centered around the most important thing in the world - food....I mean family, but really people it is all about the food. Thanksgiving is by far my favorite holiday in the US as it marks a time to hang out with your family and eat your weight in delicious autumn foods. I was thankful that on Thanksgiving Thursday I did have the chance to see my family over Skype. While catching up with family, I got to see the enormous turkey, the pies, the table and of course the large pot of Bhai's mashed potatoes in the oven. I will admit, I was rather sad that I did not choose to go home for TG break, but all was not lost. I still had the pleasure to have my own TG dinner in London - only catch was I had to wait until Saturday. 

On Saturday, the "Americans" gathered in Borough for a traditional TG dinner. For the majority of us at the table, this marked the first time we all were away from our families. Contrary to the common  belief that there are no turkeys in the UK, we will very pleased to find a 16lb turkey. If you were at our dinner table (seated for 8),  you would not have known that you were in London. 

Our 3 course meal included a fine selection of cheese canapes (made by yours truly - pic to the left), an 9 entree dinner (mashed potatoes, candied yams, 2 styles of stuffing, turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffed mushrooms, green bean casserole, and roasted potatoes) and for dessert homemade pumpkin and apple pie!! We even had the football games on to make it truly authentic!  

Granted it does not replace being with the family and nothing ever will, but when you are 6000 miles away from your loved ones this certainly satisfied the craving :-) Today we all went back for Thanksgiving leftovers with a few additions to the menu!! Have discovered a new found love for Chinese Turkey hash - YUMMY! Come on you cannot beat that!!! All the delights of Thanksgiving dinner without having to answer "when are you getting married?" - jk

Other than that, it has been a pretty low key week. On Tuesday, I went for a run outside. 

Rather than running towards Hyde park, I decided to run along the Thames towards Tower Bridge. I am still in awe of all the history and attractions that are just a stone throw away from the office. On my 5 mile circle, I ran by Tower Hill (sorry KU, I have yet to go inside), City Hall, HMS Belfast, the BFI, the National Gallery, etc. This run was exactly what I needed to clear my head. 

I have drawn up a training program and just like 2004, I am going to be very OCD about following it this year.  As of right now, I have a half marathon in March and the marathon in 2009 that I am focusing on. Rather than just having the goal of finishing, I want to focus on time. For the half in March, I would like to break the 2hr marker. For the Marathon - I have a number of goals. The main is to run a sub-4hr marathon - ideal would be to run a 3h48min marathon, but given it is my first I need to be a little realistic.  Man, these times seem so slow especially while reading "A Race Like No Other".... 

This afternoon while on my 9 mile run (up and around Battersea Park and back around Clapham Common), my iPod died. Any other week I probably would have turned around and gone back, but I was rather determined to run my full 9 miles today - it was the only way I was going to make it through round 2 of TG dinner ;-) I realised while running that I am thankful for you all and this blog. For the remainder of my run I spoke my thoughts to you all, took some photos and enjoyed a music free run. The sliver lining to the run was the lack of music forced me to focus on my form and breathing. I am still adjusting to the notion of running outdoors and have yet to break my "treadmill" form of short strides and heavy foot-strikes. It was nice to be able to open up and be lighter on the feet. Running through the mud, although messy and slippery, reminded me why I enjoyed running. I had flashback to a race when I was 14 in Rochester. The course was 3 laps through a mud pit park. We were sliding everywhere, but it was one of my fastest races. My knees and hips appreciated it - they sent me a dozen flowers to show there gratitude. 

This weekend I will be in Vienna for the Christmas market, so I will post the update on Monday. In the meantime, you can enjoy the video recap from the last 10 weeks of adventures! 

As always, if you use Skype, please let me know what your ID is and we can arrange a date to catch up. 

xxx

Adventures in London: Issue 18

There is an old running trick that teaches runners to finish strong. The idea is that if you finish a run on a strong note and with negative splits (i.e. running the last mile faster than you ran the previous), you leave your body wanting more. It is a mental trick really. You never want to finish a run completing depleting your body of all its resources and unable to run another step - if you do then taking the first step of your next run becomes much more difficult.

This week I tried applying that logic to my work week. Like any run, it had its easy hours, its taxing hours, and it certainly had those hours when I did not think I go anymore. The important thing was not how I started Monday morning, but how I ended Friday evening :-)

This week has required me to leave my comfort zone at work. The team here is quite focused on creating a teaching/learning environment. It is weird for me to take the step back and realise that I have been working in this industry for 5 years (well a few months shy) and can no longer call myself an entry-level employee. Not only am I checking the 25-30 age box, but I am about to check the 5-9 years of experience box. As hard as it may be at times, I need to learn to take a back-seat and allow the team to learn. I feel like I am still straight out of college and have so much to learn from the people around me - and I know I do. I am going through that stage where I feel like I am treading water pretending that I know what I am doing, but instead of keeping afloat my head keeps going underwater. I am constantly learning from the team each day, but I have also realised that there are things to that I can "teach". It is almost the ideal situation for me. This week I was putting together a "lesson plan" for these sessions that we have implemented here to expose the team to coding in a statistical software that we use globally. While writing this up, I could not help but think back to college. I remembered re-writing econ 101 chapters my senior year in high school for a friend in terms that she would understand - supply and demand for shoes, dating, etc. I remembered helping my roommate through the torture that was financial accounting - even if it was just making Smores for every problem she completed. I remembered studying with Kevin over the phone while in the bath (yes I had a strange obsession while in grad school of studying in the bath). I always had a desire to become a teacher, but when I was at BU I decided that would be one of my life goals. That was one of the main reasons why I pursued my Masters. I wanted to become a college economics professor cause it frustrated me that BU had the No. 7 economic program, but if you were in it, you would not have a clue given the lack of passion from the professors. I am far off the path of becoming a professor right now, but long story short, I have come to the conclusion given the right environment there is always a way to make evolve your dreams into something new.

On Wednesday while in Milton Keynes for a client meeting I found something that I lost over a year ago - actually probably longer.

After last week and the beginning of this week, it was just what I need to turn the tone of the week around. I used to carry around with me a sleeve of wallet size photos of my dad, my brother, family and friends. Most of them where printouts, but I had two originals that meant a lot to me - the one of my dad (photo on the left) and one of my brother from law school. The inscription on the back made me smile as it reminded me that he has always been the silent force behind me that has always supported me to do what I wanted.

On Thursday, a friend of mine from MS NY sent me "A Race Like No Other" by Liz Robbins. The book with its 26.2 chapters tells the story behind and experience of running the NYC marathon. Specifically it is about the 2007 marathon, which was probably my favorite year to cheer and photograph. I am only on chapter 6, but it is already pumped me up to run next year with my "Race 'N Brunch" ladies. I have found myself smiling while I read this book cause there are stories and paragraphs that I am so excited to experience. It is not just about the elite runners, it is about the everyday runner like me and what has driven them to run the marathon. How they caught the running bug and what keeps them going. At a time when I was starting to question whether I would be able to fulfill my dream of running a marathon due to the extremely annoying knee and hip pains that I get after running. Just when I was thinking "maybe my body is just not cut out to be a runner", this book snapped me out of that nonsense.

With that said, this weekend I got back on the road and started training again. I have signed up for the Aidias Silverstone half marathon in March 2009 so now I have a goal to work towards. I have not had a good run since B left (and that is largely due to a lack of trying - only went running once and it was not fun). This weekend, rather than into London Central, I thought I would venture through my own neighborhood. The main reason why I decided to move to Clapham was because they had a park. Sadly it took me 3 months to finally run in it. I did not time yesterday's run well, I initially wanted to go for 60 minutes, but while I was on my run the sun set, thus dropping the temperature dramatically. I also did not gauge the park well and miss-estimated the length and time that it would take me to do a full loop.

Clapham Common is not the most beautiful of London's parks, but it is nice to have an open area to run around. They have a dirt path which is nice to run on as it takes some of the pressure off the knees and ankles.

Today I thought I would take my blackberry along so I could capture some of the run. Nothing like Brightroom, but at least I can control when my photo is being taken :-) I left the flat early today in efforts to avoid the sunset. I did however get to enjoy twilight in the park - got the orange glow from behind the trees. The reflection of the sky in the puddles and ponds. The course may have been muddy today, but it was a joy to be out running again.

While reading my friend TK's blog, I started thinking about the marathon. This past year's experience was not my favorite. I was disappointed to think that the last NYC marathon that I would be able to photograph for a couple of years did not turn out as good I wished. But then while reading TK's entry, I realised that there is always the London Marathon! Being apart of the World Marathon Majors the London marathon attracts some of the world's elite runners: male and female. This year it will allow me to redeem myself and cheer for TK while she runs the streets of London.

Well I am sure I have bored most of you this week with my tales of running, but it was just what I needed to clear my head. Have had too many thoughts running through my mind lately. This weekend was all about getting my feet to run rather than my mind. Thinking doesn't get you anywhere, if anything it will only make situations worse if to dwell on the topic too much.

I hope you all are well. It is always a pleasure hearing from you so please continue to write/ comment. For those in the States, have a lovely Thanksgiving holiday. There are many things to be thankful for and right now I am very thankful to have friends and family like you in my life who have loved and supported me throughout this adventure.

xxx

T

Adventures in London Issue 17

Has another week really come and gone?! Sadly there is not much to report this week. It has just been a normal work week and thus no real adventures to share.  I got my first London cold - not as exciting as I thought it was going to be. Friday morning I woke up and started getting ready for work, but ultimately called in sick cause I was in no shape to go into the office. I think the past several weeks of traveling, visitors and exploring London caught up to me a bit. I still do not feel a 100%, but after a relaxing weekend I feel much better. 

Yesterday a couple of us finally went to see Quantum of Solace in Hampstead. We went to the Everyman theatre which consists of velvet sofas, table service and a snack menu. It was definitely the ideal way to watch QoS! I HIGHLY suggest going to see that movie (but I would recommend seeing Casino Royale first). 

Today a few of us went to Elephant & Castle for Dim Sum. All I have to saw is they had Char Siu Bao (steamed bun with bbq pork) :-)

Really wish there was more to share. I have absolutely fallen for Skype! I think that is by far the coolest software out there. This morning, I got to see my nephew this morning which was a sincere delight. I cried a bit when I ended the session - cannot believe he is changing so much. He got his first haircut and looks like a grown man! Last night I got to catch up with a "cousin" of mine and all the news on the girl which was great to hear. I definitely been missing my core group of girls this week. Although I am happy to have moved, I am sad that I have moved so far from them. I was able to deal with the move cause I knew I had my 2 trip home. Now, I have no idea when I will be back stateside - my next trip is not scheduled until Nov 2009 for the NYC marathon. That is just too long to wait!

Switching topics - 

I do have some things to look forward to. Next weekend, the Americans are going to throw Thanksgiving here. Nothing like going home and watching my brother dance with the turkey before he cooks it - but that is what I get for moving 6000 miles away :-( Maybe missing out on the Thanksgiving fun, but on the other hand, I am going to Vienna in December for the Christmas Market!! I am looking forward to the holidays now as my mom is going to be here for a visit! I cannot tell you how much I am looking forward to her visit (my friends here are looking forward to her visit as they cannot wait for home cooked Indian food). Should be fun touring and exploring the city together - we have not done that since Boston!!

On that note, I am quite hungry so I am going to prepare myself dinner. 

Miss you all

xoxo

T

Adventures in London: Issue 16

Me again...

This week has been filled with meetings, celebration and a dear friend from NYC! Some of you may have heard, the States have elected themselves a new president. I tried to stay up as late as I could to watch the election coverage, but the red-eye flight got the best of me. I went to be around 0100 and woke up at 0630 to tune in for the results. I had to pinch myself to make sure that I was reading the screen correctly...I will admit, I wish I stayed in the NY to properly watch the election coverage.  It was amazing to discover how many Londoners followed the US election and how they were in awe of the the turnout in the US. I guess a good election turnout here is 40%... 

Enough about politics...

For the first time since moving here I have not looked forward to writing this email. This email signifies that it is Sunday and with that the end of the weekend. I normally don't mind this, as it means that with Monday I get to see my friends and return to my body beautiful regime. But this Sunday means that B leaves tomorrow. My work husband came for a visit on Friday for the weekend. It has been an absolute pleasure having him here. 

Friday evening after work, we went

 to the National Portrait Gallery to see the Annie Leibovitz exhibit. I rather enjoyed this exhibit.  The exhibit was a showcase of her life as a photographer, so it displayed her photos from her well-known works from Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair along side with her personal photos of her family and dear friends. While looking at some of the personal photos, especially the ones of her daughters being born, you cannot help but think, "I have that same photo (different person of course), I should have an exhibit." Then you see the Demi Moore Vantiy Fair cover and you realize why it is that you don't. 

On Saturday, we sadly had typical London weather - rain! Rather than going for the Lord Mayor's procession between Embankment and the Mansion House, we went to Borough market for raclette, mulled wine, burgers and oysters. Thankfully the rain seized momentarily for us to walk across tower bridge and around tower hill. We wanted to go inside, but we missed the last tour by 10 minutes. That started a theme for the rest of the evening - doors to St Paul's Cathedral shut pretty much in our faces, Gordon's was packed the 2 times we tried to get a table, favorite restaurant in Chinatown was closed for decoration....but we managed somehow to have fun :-) The interesting thing about having B Mak here was that he had already been to London numerous times so rather than racing from site to site we just got to spend time together. Definitely made me realize how much I missed having him around in NYC. 

In the evening, we made our way to Blackfriars bridge for the Lord Mayor's firework display. We ended up watching them from the center of the bridge itself, which turned out to be really cool. The website said that they were going to usher people off the bridge and it was not a spot to view the fireworks, but they allowed everyone to stay - guess that was just there way of controlling traffic.  Clever folks!  After the show, we met up with the rest of the American crew and had an evening of food, drinks and laughter. 

Today B Mak and I went for a run around London - what was intended to just be a 8 mile run turned into a 10 mile grand tour of London. We discovered 5 minutes into our run that there was a special event taking place in London and as such many of the streets were blocked - thus throwing off our route. We still managed to have a lovely route through London. We ran across Westminster bridge, along the south end of the Thames and then back across Lambeth bridge. We weaved through the streets and made it to Buckingham Palace which...yup...was closed off because of whatever was going on. Rather than running through the front of the Palace, we ran along the back of it and made our way to Hyde Park. We ran around Hyde Park and then ran across Vauxhall bridge toward Brixton for a traditional English breakfast with the American guys. Was the "quickest" 10 mile run that I have done in a long time. Time just seem to fly by and I was rather pleased that cardio wise I felt fine - my knees and ankles on the other hand were in a tremendous amount of pain. 

After not being able to buy tickets to Quantum of Solace at the Picture House, B and I went to the War Museum to see the Ian Fleming exhibit. It was not quite what I was I expecting, but really eye opening in regards to who Ian Fleming was and how James Bond came about. It has been so nice having B Mak here....glad that we got the chance to spend the weekend together and just catch up. 

Other than that, not much else to report. Hope you all are well. Miss you dearly!! I am off to bed

xoxo

T

Adventures in London: Issue 15

Sorry for the delay on posting this - and thank you to those who inquired about Issue 15. I was
in NYC for the weekend - who would have thought that NYC would be a weekend trip?! I flew in on Friday and flew back to London Monday night. It was nice to be home and to see my family and friends, which made it quite hard to come back to London. I thoroughly enjoyed my time living in NYC, I have some great memories and experiences that I will always cherish, but this trip made me realize that I am pleased to have moved to London. Don't get me wrong, I will always miss my family and my friends and I will continue to wish that they were here by my side experiencing this all with me - I just don't miss the city itself. NYC seemed quite foreign to me and rather exhausting. May help if I try not to squeeze in a week's visit in a matter of 3 days.
Anyway, onto the adventures of the week - well really the weekend.

For the 4th year in a row, my camera and I travelled to the UES to watch and support the NYC marathon. Everyone has a sport that they are passionate about - I have discovered that mine is definitely the women's marathon. I cannot wait to make my marathon debut at the 40th ING NYC Marathon next year!! It is a year away - yet I am quite nervous. Too early to be nervous and stress I know, but just want to make this dream happen. And really trying not to injure myself in the process. The 2008 NYC marathon was quite a pleasure to watch (even if it was for a short while). Paula Radcliffe can definitely go down in the books as the greatest marathoner of our time. Paula became the second person to be a 3-time NYC marathon winner with her back to back wins. I almost missed taking a photo of her as I froze when they ran by. Just could not believe my eyes. For starters, was in complete awe when I saw that Kara Goucher (USA Olympian for the 5K & 10K in Beijing) was running right on Paula's side. I later discovered that Kara beat Paula in her half-marathon debut in England by nearly a minute. Kara, a native to Queens, became the fastest women in New York with her marathon debut time of 2:25:53. Does the USA have a new women's marathoner for the 2012 games? Not that I am biased, but I quite liked the team we had this year - shame you cannot have 4 people.

Speaking of US Olympians, Magda Lewy-Boulet returned to the streets of NYC. In a year of repeats, I got to repeat a number of photos of runners (elite and non)...including one of Magda. My friend TK noticed that I had a photo of her running 4 years ago and now after meeting her I got to photograph her running again (took a better photo this year). She ran by with complete ease - guiding along as if she had just started the race. Wonder in what shape I will be in at mile 17. Doubt I will make it look so effortless, but hope to have good form.

The experience of taking photos this year was rather different. I came to the realization that I am not going to be able to photograph the marathon next year. Was a bit bummed about that notion, but have entrusted Granny with my camera to do the job for me. Will be sure to make a cheat sheet of the runners to look for, but she already knows the cheering spots (yes spots - I have two). Hopefully she will do a better job than I did this year. I was distracted and not fully focused on the marathon. Who would thought that taking photos was a head game too!?! After having my running photographs taken from me - I wanted to retake the photos. Sadly I am not pleased with the photo overall from this year :-(


After watching the top 10 women run by, I raced home to change for dear Kadin's 1st birthday party. I cannot believe that he is 1 already. Feels like yesterday I was writing to you all announcing his arrival. I have been going through photos from the past year and it is amazing to see how much he has changed - even in the last 6 weeks he has changed. 12 months ago he fit in the palm of your hand and now it is a struggle to make him sits still - unless you have bubbles. I was very pleased to be greeted by a hug this time (rather than the screaming tears that I received last year). I don't even want to think about how much he is going to change and grow over the next 6 days - weeks - months... He will be walking and talking for sure the next time I see him. How scary is that concept?! He is growing up so much and I am 6000 miles away. Hmmm that just put me in a mood, so I am going to go to bed. Plus it is 01:30 and I am exhausted from the red-eye trip back and election watching.

Blogging is great, but uploading photos has been annoying and time consuming.


I am looking forward to this weekend and my dear B visiting!

xoxo

T

Adventures in London: Issue 14

Well it is a Sunday and issue 14 is being distributed, this can only mean one thing - I HAVE BROADBAND!!! Furthermore, I have cable TV! It feels so nice to be back on the web in the comforts of my sofa!

This week has been rather uneventful. The most eventful thing has been getting internet and cable. I also learned how to cook burfi! Tonight I am off to an American Football party (the Chargers and the Saints are playing in London). Pretty bummed about the Red Sox not making it to the world series after making such a lovely come back - guess you cannot have it all. Was hoping to give Kadin back-to-back wins for his 1st birthday, but looks like I will have to think of something else. 

These past couple of weeks it has truly hit me that I live in London. It is such a change of lifestyle and the customs are definitely different. A part of me feels like I am back in college. You are immersed in a new environment forced to develop new circles and friends. The hard part is that you just left a circle and lifestyle that you did not have to work at. I have taken a million steps back on that front. Feel like I am dating again - you want to get to know people, but you are cautious of what you say/do so you are not taken the wrong way. You want to be yourself, but also don't want to scare people away with your OCD habits - haha. Thus far, I am doing pretty well, but I have had my hiccups of misunderstandings. Americans are quite quick to forge friendships, but they tend to fizzle out too. Brits on the other hand are hard people to crack, but once you do they are friends for life. 

I was talking to a friend of mine from home the other week. We were talking about how with this move I will go to the 5 stages of mourning - denial, depression, anger, negotiation, and finally acceptance. I think I am at the "depression" stage right now. I have been missing everyone from back home - my family, my girls and most of all my nephew. I had a dream the other night that I came back to visit and he was already talking. The dream got me thinking that I am going to miss out on all of that stuff - first steps, first words, first tooth... suppose I have to use that as motivation to make most of this experience. Need to make it worth it (and I would like to think that I have been). But with all the said, I cannot wait to come home - see you all at the end of the week.

If you are interested in Skyping then please let me know.  I hope that the blog works out better - I will be sure to post more photos, sorry I do not have any photos from this week. My camera equipment and cords are at the office. 

I will go back and post the old entries (so you can clear your inboxes) with more photos. 

Miss you all and love you with all my heart! Happy Diwali! 

xoxo

T

 

Adventures in London: Issue 12

Another week come and gone! There is a LOT to cover this week, so I am going to jump right in.

I am still playing tourist which is lovely - each day offers something new to see, an area of town to explore. This week I realised how lovely the neighbourhood around my office is. It is amazing to discover what attractions and sites are just a stone throw away from the office. Early last week, during lunch a co-worker and I walked to Buckingham palace then back through St. James Park passing the London Treasury building and walking through Trafalgar Square. I am definitely enjoying my months as a tourist...have less than 4 mos to sort myself out (have given myself 6 months to play tourist, after which I am hoping to know my way around - so far so good).

Wednesday, the worldwide floor had one of our "bonding" events - Pub Quiz in the MindShare bar. I was pretty consistent and brought much value to the team as the token American. I am proud to say that I got almost every US question wrong. The operative word there was ALMOST! I got the most important question correct - "What year did the curse of the Bambino start?" Now some could argue that the year should be 1920 (the year the Red Sox traded Babe Ruth), however if you do the math (which I did), the 86 year old curse was broken in 2004 implying that it started in 1918. I definitely argued the answer (before it was officially announced), which was good because our team ended up winning by a very close margin!!!

I have been doing a fair job of adjusting to life here in London. I have gotten accustom to the 24hr clock, saying "take-a-way" rather than "take-out", "minding the gap", using coins to pay for items, and I have even gotten used to the treadmill being in kilometers. All was going well for me, until Thursday evening when I hosted my first dinner party with a very dear friend of mine (that I knew before I moved here) and two of her mates. I decided to cook a favorite dish that my sister-in-law makes - Fillet Florentine. Got the secret recipe from her and was pumped to cook it. I should have known that I was off to a rough start when I could not find Flounder, but that did not deter me. After prepping the starters, I started on the main course and preheating the oven, I was a bit confused that the oven only went to 250. Figured that was okay, would just keep it in for a bit longer. I was rather shocked by how hot the oven was, but given that I did not use my oven much in NYC - I did not think much of it. After prepping the rest of the dish and putting it back in the oven I am thankful that I notice how quickly the breadcrumbs turned dark brown. It was at that moment that I realised that my oven is in centigrade NOT Fahrenheit!! Thankfully I was able to save the meal and we all had a lovely evening (I am speaking for the others here). The debacle aside, it was quite lovely to have friends over. We listened to country, drank wine, laughed, share stories and had a relaxing evening. If I can admit something, I know I have met a number of people and have made some good friends since moving here. Not to discount all that (cause I am not), but it was this friend that made me look forward to moving over - they were the only friend "outside" of work that I had before moving here. They have been there for me at my lows and my highs since moving here. It has been hard some days not having my network of girls to go to, so I am thankful to have someone on this side of the pond that I can trust and call a dear friend...

...back to the update....

Friday night, a friend from work and I had our scotch tasting night. I supplied the movie pairings and he supplied the food pairing. I was extremely impressed by the food pairing that he did. Reckon that I am going to change the way I approach dinner parties and food preparation. For those of you who are interested, here is a sample of the menu - Penderyn (Welsh whiskey) and sweet shrimp marinated in fish sauce/soy with tobago, Springbank with yellow tail with jalapenos and scallions, Yamazaki (Japanese whiskey) and billinis with Salmon Roe (this was my favorite), Talisker 18 with gnocchi cooked with crushed red pepper and anchovies ...the list goes one. It was supposed to be about the scotch, but it just became about the food for me (what else is new).

For the first time on Saturday I re-thought my move to London. I went shopping for the first time since moving. Met with a friend at Oxford street to explore the shops for an outfit for a fancy dress birthday party that we were attending that evening. The theme was the 80s... I thought that I would have an issue finding stuff. Normally, I would either go to Ricky's in the NYC or travel to my closet in Niskyauna for a good outfit. The worrying bit, was it was quite easy to find an outfit here. In fact - a little too easy. I am convinced that London is not being retro with all the 80s wear, it is that they never progressed out of that era. Rather than explaining my ridiculous outfit, I have attached a photo of it so you can have a look - felt and looked like I was 10. At least I have an outfit for my marathon of 1 year old birthday parties in NYC at the end of the month.

Speaking of maratons, things on the running front have been slow. Took last week off cause I was not feeling 100% to train. Returned to the "Body Beautiful" regime today with a 8K on the treadmill. My boss was mentioning a 7mile route outside that goes by Parliament through St. James Park and around Hyde Park that I am going to try tomorrow. Why not?! Let's just hope that I do not get lost.

Other than that, life has been quite lovely. I am reading a new book - The Anglo Files: A field guide to the British by Sarah Lyall - that a friend back home sent me in case I ran into any Brits here. Boy am I thankful to have this book. The book is about this American writer who moved to London in the 90s and she documents the cultural differences between the Brits and the Americans. I have been cross-referencing the book with the people at work and I am astonished by how "accurate" some of her findings are. For example, the excerpt below is still relevant today....

"I have constantly been surprised, for instance at the way it is considered rude
at a party to introduce yourself to someone you don't know - the rule is, you're
supposed to wait to be formally introduced, preferably by your host"

How utterly shocking is that?!?! We all know how good I am at making introductions and how much I love talking to people I don't know...I am doomed here.

Well on that note, I am off - have a movie to work on. Fingers crossed my broadband will be up and running this weekend, but I am not going to be able to Skype as I am going to Edinburgh to visit one of my best friends from university - actually the first friend that I met at BU. Just randomly sparked a conversation while finding our seats at our lecture over a USA Today paper. Scary to think that was nearly 10 years ago...

Peace and love to you all. I miss you all so very dearly! I carry you all in my heart and my mom in my pocket cause she is small enough to fit.

xxx

T

PS: The photo of the week is from the Scotch tasting and my favorite pairing.

PPS: Please visit the following site. I have created a video summary of the sites from the first 10 weeks here. I have a another video that I am finishing up and will post later this week. You can probably check back here for other photos and videos - especially after my broadband is activated. http://www.dropshots.com/AdventuresInLondon

Adventures in London: Issues 1-9 (the Sites)

I have been rather poor at updating this site. It is not for a lack of content, rather a lack of internet access that prevents me from updating this site. I will try to be more on top of things when my internet is connected. In the meantime, please enjoy this video of my first 2 months in London. There are more videos to come. They are in final stages of editing...

xx

T

Adventures in London: Issue 11

Oh the adventures continue to roll in. This week was a blast! For starters I had my roommate from university visiting, so I had the grand delight of playing tourist. It was a good thing that I did not have to act, as I am still a tourist (am allowed to play tourist for my first 6 mos, then I need to accept that I am a resident). On Monday we rode the London Eye which was pretty flipping cool. The views of London that you get to see are quite out of this world. Shame I could only recognise Big Ben and as such have a million photos of it from every foot incline and decline - hahaha. It was really nice to have my first visitor, especially someone I used to live with (she is not shocked to discover how OCD I am). In addition to touring London, we watched movies, cooked dinner, made breakfast in the mornings...I forgot how lovely it was to live with someone. It made me wonder if I should have opted to do a flatshare...always next time - may even trade rings with the person before hand ;-)

On Friday, I went to Gordon's for wine and cheese - honestly this place is heaven. How can you resist a restaurant that only serves wine, port, cheese and bread?! A bunch of the American went there to "celebrate" one of us leaving MindShare. She was the first to move over here, but has decided to move onto other things. Thankfully she is staying in London, so we will still be able to see her and watch College Football :-) After Gordon's we went into Chinatown for dinner. Man that place is insane. Think that is just a given for any city that you go into - random shop signs, people heckling you to come to their place, etc. We dined at a fairly nice one (the one without the hanging meat) and ate some of the tastiest and spiciest Chinese food I've had in a long time. The soup dumplings were nothing like Joe Shanghai's, but I was told that this was the batch to judge on. Will be sure to go back and give them another chance.

Saturday I went to my favorite place in London - Borough market for Raclette (It is a Swiss dish of potatoes, melted Raclette cheese, pearl onions, and gherkins), oysters, coffee, and cheese. I honestly think I could live in this market - good thing that it is only open on Saturdays and only until 4pm. After our over indulgence at the market, my friend and I went shopping at a local Scotch market (yes a whole store for fine Scotch and Whiskies - they had a 1943 bottle of Glenleviet!!!). We decided that we needed to have a James Bond and scotch tasting night so we bought a bunch of mini-bottles ranging from Japanese whiskey to a 21yr Chivas. Should be a fun night :-) We decided to walk from London Bridge up to Islington to tour some of the sights. We walked through the city of London which is pretty desolate on the weekends. Reminded me of the Wall St area after the market has closed - not much to do down there and many of the restaurant and shops are closed. Pretty nonetheless. We reach Islington for our friend's housewarming party just in time to escape the down pour, which did not end until Sunday night ;-(

I cannot believe that it has taken me 4 paragraphs to mention this!! I finally signed up for cable and broadband today!!! How exciting is that. Should have it installed within the next 7-10days :-) Then you can look forward to more photos of the places that I reference in these updates. Xavier and Mini I have capture some lovely moments in the past 2 1/2 months here. For those of you who are not aware, I name my cameras (yes cameraS - have 2 digital SLRs, 2 digital point and shoots, 1 underwater film, and 1 regular point and shoot film). Xavier is the Nikon D40x that my Mom, brother and sister bought me for the holidays last year, and Mini is the Kodak point and shoot camera named after the first time I used it (the Mini 10K).

Well I think that about covers it. Looking forward to another week here. Training for the 2009 NYC marathon is going slowly. Am trying to be patient and not injure myself. Good thing that I have started to far out in advance - at the point where running 40minutes on the treadmill is rather painful. Not from an actually running perspective, but that running that long on a treadmill is simply dull. Am getting used to it though. I have taken spinning off the training mix, so I need to re-map my training schedule. Need to find something else that is just as satisfying, but "low-impact" on the knees, and ankles. You probably don't want to read about my running schedule do you....

So on that note, oidhche mhath (good night in Gaelic)

Miss you all! Please continue to write. As much as I love writing these updates, I enjoy reading about your adventures and time in the States, Canada, India, Jersey...(hahaha).

xoxo

T

The photo of the week is of St. Paul's catherdal on Saturday. should have probably had a picture from the Eye or the scotch market, but those are at home on a computer that is not attached to the internet :-(

Adventures in London: Issue 10

I am in the middle of watching a movie so I am going make this quick.Wanted to send a proper email from the office, but as luck would haveit we were having internet issues. This is not an invitation tomention that I live in a second rate country that cannot afford asolid web infrastructure...

I am still working on getting internet sorted I the flat. Finally gotthe phone people to come in and fix the line. Maybe in the next 6months I will have cable and internet. Am desperate for TV as my cableconnection broke. Don't know the technical name for it, but the needlepiece broke. C'est la vie.

So in more exciting news!!! I have settled in - or at least I haveunpacked. This week I was a good girl and unpacked my belongings. Mustadmit, I realised that I shipped way too many things over here - i.e.all my runner world magazines from the past 4 years. Also realisedthat for the first time in 28 years my closet will be filled withsomething other than button down shirts. Don't get too excited, I onlyhave room for my coats and suits. I know I am going to sound like atool, but it felt really nice to organise my closet and alphabetize my DVDs!

For the major event of this week! I had (have) my first visitor. Myroommate from university is in town from Germany. Must admit, it niceto be living with someone. Friday night we cooked dinner at sat at thedinner table. The idea that I' ve settled in was on Saturday mornng myroommate and I woke up and made breakfast of coffee and crumpetswithout skipping a beat.

Saturday marked my event in London. To keep up the tradition of theAmerican's crew in the office, I hosted a pub crawl of myneighbourhood. The notion was to give me a chance to learn the hood aswell as although the others to see a new part of town. We started mymy flat with a party keg and a cheese and fruit platter. Then the 11of us were off to the pubs of clapham north, clapham common and old town. It was a brilliant night of laughter, tasty beverages and grand memories.

I am sure there is more that I could share, but I want to watch themovie now. Has taken me nearly an hour to type this on my BB. I hopeyou are well. How is the fall weather treating you? Speaking of,here's the big question of the issue, what is your favorite part aboutfall? Am keen to read your responses.

Miss you all. With every step I take here, I carry you all in my heart.

Xxx

T

Adventures in London: Issue 9

Is that right...is it really issue 9!!! Remember writing Issue 1 like it was yesterday

I should mention that I have decided to move the date of the updates from Sunday to Monday. Once I get my internet sorted out, I will switch the back to Sunday. It is much easier to type on a keyboard than on a BlackBerry - plus I can send the photo of the week this way.

So back to the update. This week has been an adventure!!!

The week started in NYC with all my family and friends (It just dawned upon me that it was only a week ago that I was home. Feels like I came back ages ago. Guess a lot truly has happened this week). On Tuesday morning (very early morning) I flew back to London town only to get on a train Wednesday morning for a day trip to Manchester for a client meeting.

Thursday was supposed to be a low-key night of cleaning and unpacking, but it turned into a night of partying and dancing. Every Thursday before pay day is free bar at the Mindshare bar. I had every intention of going home early to get some rest, but the group I was chatting with were going out dancing and we all know that I cannot pass up a chance to dancing. I went along, figuring it would be a good way to meet new people and boy was it. I met some lovely people from my floor that evening and am now known on the floor for my fabulous dance moves - and I didn't even have postcards on my trousers.

Friday afterwork I went to Brighton to meet up with a friend of mine and his wife for wine tasting. It was a lovely and educational night of wine exploration through the regions of France. I truly learned a lot that night about the different regions of wines, how to taste them and what makes each wine different. I am going to try to find a place in Clapham that does wine tasting. I spent the night there on Friday. Saturday morning I went for a run with my friend's wife and then we all went to Chili Fest where we tasted the world's hottest curry. Boy that stuff was that insane - it was something out of a cartoon...fire gushing out of our mouths and smoke pouring from our ears. There were some interesting dishes there - chili chocolate, chocolate covered chilis, chili jam, chili beer ..you name it and it had chilis in it. From there is was off to a dear friend's 30th birthday, which was a night of laughter, dancing and karaoke! Who doesn't love a night of karaoke?!?! Met some lovely folks at the shin-dig - even another Shania fan. Who would have thought that I would have found a mate here that knows the Shania facts as much as i do...he even knew facts that I didn't know.

I am hoping that this week is NOT as adventerous as this past one. This coming week I need to focus on training for the 2009 NYC Marathon. Have over a year, but I reckon I am going to require all the time I can get. Given that this is my first marathon, I need to make sure that I do not injure myself, cause we all know how easy it is for me. I also need to do plenty of cleaning and unpacking as I will have my first visitor!!! My roomate from university is coming on Friday for the weekend all the way from Germany. Funny what I am about to say, but I believe that we will see more of each other on this side of the pond than we did when she was in NJ and I was in NYC.

Well that is all for me. I hope you all look forward to these updates as much as I do. I just wish that these conversations could be in person over an ice cream or a coffee or something. As a reminder, if you would like to be removed from this list, please let me know. If not, please look forward to Issue 10 :-)

I got this quote from my uncle this week and it got me thinking.

"There is a cost for action and there is a cost for inaction. You decide what is more expensive"
- Donald Trump

You never know what life is going to throw your way and rathter than being the person that sits back, I am going to get involved. Find something that you can get involved in. If I may suggest a cause...try doing something for the National MS Society (http://www.nationalmssociety.org/about-multiple-sclerosis/index.aspx). They hold a number of bike rides throughout the US. This cause has just recently become one very close to my heart. If you know anyone biking for MS then sponsor them or better yet do the event yourself (http://www.bikems.org/)!!!

Best of wishes to you all! Miss you and love you dearly!

xoxo
T

PS: the picture that I have attached is from Tuesday morning while my plane was flying over NYC. Hard to tell, but the land mass below me is manhathan.

Adventures in London: Issue 8

How is everyone?! I hope you are well. I have wonderful news to share with you all. I have officially qualified for the 2009 NYC ING Marathon! I ran my 9 races and this past weekend fulfilled my volunteer requirement, so now I can start training for my first marathon!!! Who knows...maybe I will give Paula Radcliffe and Deena Kastor a run for their money in 2012 - hahahaha.

So let's see what else. Well as the subject suggest, I am writing you this email from NYC. Should have written it last night, but I was too tired to write a proper update. I flew back home on Thursday night and I fly to London Tuesday morning. When I was on the flight over I kept thinking 6 nights was a substantial trip and sufficient enough to spend time with family and friends. Now that it is Monday, I cannot help but feel like it was nothing. This trip has been a blur - probably because my body was on NYC time in the evening and London time in the morning.

It has been a good trip. I have truly loved spending time with my family. Realized that although I pay rent in London, my home will always be 10 Park (I hope by saying that I don't have to start contributing to the mortgage - jk). I thought I would miss having an apartment here, but I have truly enjoyed staying with my brother (and friends when required). Seeing Kadin has been nothing less than amazing. I was a bit sadden that his first reaction when he saw me was to scream bloody murder, but after a couple of days he has finally warmed up to me :-)

If there is one thing that I wish I could take back to London, it would NOT be BBQ, Mac N Cheese, crispy bacon, mexican food, candy, American TV shows...it would be my brother (well knowing that wherever he goes Jamila and Kadin are not too far behind).

It has been nice catching up with friends. This trip has definitely proven that despite being 4000 miles away, we will always remain the closest and dearest of friends. Miss you all with all my heart. Thank you for a lovely couple of evenings.

Well I am off to explore NYC and be the tourist that I am!

Keep in touch!

xoxo

T

PS: The attached photo is from last week's football tournament! I have no downloaded photos from this week.

Adventures in London: Issue 7

Week 2 without internet, so you this is another BB update. I am in themiddle of cooking chicken with a red Thai curry sauce, so this may need to be brief.

What a week! It's been filled with some highs and sadly some lows.Where shall I start... Will start with the high.

Today I went to Battersea park to play football (soccer) for an IAAtournament. Let me say I was at quite the disadvantage for 2 reasons.1 - I have not played it over 15 years, 2 - I call the sport soccer. Istruggled with the first game, but by game 6 I was enjoying myself. Itwas nice to be playing a team sport. I reckon however that I will beslightly sore tomorrow.

Saturday I had an American evening. There is a restaurant/pub herethat shows American sports, so the Americans went to watch somecollege football and eat BBQ! The experience was no where close towatching in the US and having nachos and wings, but it was worth it.Strange moment was discovering that a friend that I met here went toBU during my time and lived around the corner from me in NYC.Ironically, she lived in the building that I was originally going tolive in befor my sister-in-law and brother saw the apartment on park.While talking with her, I realized that I was pleased to bring cominghome this week!

Thursday was the best! Monday marked the series premiere of gossipgirl. Being the obsessive and geeky person that I am, I made it mymission to find a way to watch it in London. I am happy to report thatI succeeded. Thankfully I am not the only gossip girl geek! This isgoing to be an exciting season!

So onto the unfortunate events of this week. My shipment arrived onFriday. Although all my boxes arrived, some of the contents weremissing. Sadly that was the one box that I was looking forward tohaving. Box #19 containing all my frames, photos and paintings. Yup,all gone. I have had time to deal with situation, but I am stillannoyed and disappointed by the matter. It is not the money attachedto the items - in fact money wise it was not that big of a deal toreplace the items. The sentimental value attached to those itemshowever, that is another thing. Had a photo of my brother and I inIndia, a family photo in front of the taj mahal, a photo of my dadthat my godfather gave us, the first print I bought in SoHo, thepainting that Mike gave me for Christmas, among others. Trying to bepositive about the situation and that the contents will be found.

Well on that note, I am going to sign off. Dinner is prepared! Hopeyou all are well. Drop me a line and let me know how things are - howwere the last summer travels, what did you do for labour day, how iss chool going....

Xoxo

T

Adventures in London: Issue 6

It is me again, here to report on another week of fun in London. Thisis going to a brief newsletter as I am writing it from my blackberry.I am without internet - which basically means that I am lost.Thankfully though, I have some accessibility on my blackberry. Will behappy to be connect to the worldwide web again!

Last Monday was the Notting hill carnival and moving day!!! A friendfrom work and I went to the carnival for a little while. We left waybefore the mini riot and the 300 person arrest. We managed to order acar and traveled to clapham and my flat!!

I am quite pleased with my move to clapham. The neighborhood is fun,the commons are only a 10 min walk and the gym is pretty close. Thecomplex that I live in has a young crowd which is good. No scary oldlady as my neighbor.

This week was rather low key. I hung out with friends from san fran onTuesday. Was really nice to catch up on things and hang out again.Other than that, not too much. Last night the Americans welcomed a newaddition by trekking to camden town for burgers!

Wish there was more to share. I will try harder for next week. I amkeen to hear how you are - anything new? Folks starting school?Finishing up projects? Any baby firsts that I am missing out on? Anyholiday plans to London I should be prepared for?

Miss you all dearly! For those that live in NYC, I am going to be inthe area in mid-sept, let me know if you around. Would love to catchup.

Xoxo

T

Ps: sorry no photo this week.

Adventures in London: Issue 5

What a week and weekend has it been (and it is still going). This weekend is Bank Holiday weekend (long weekend). I need to write this email rather quickly as I am quite late for a "labor" day BBQ in Borough....so with that said, here we go!!!

The work week was filled with gym sessions during the lunch hour break. I went spinning twice and running on Friday before starting the long weekend. It really feels nice to be working out again. Even if I socialize post work, at least I've done the healthy bit :-) I know that as I start to settle in the socializing will slow down, but right now it is my time to meet you people and explore the city. I do need to mock-up a training schedule for the marathon and determine how to incorporate running with spinning, weight and yoga. Yes that is right, I think I am going to give yoga a try over here. Can not hurt, if anything it will help from getting injured.

I met with my landlady and her boyfriend on Thursday. She is so very incredible and sweet. We signed the tenant papers and yesterday I dropped of the bank check and picked up the keys and code to the complex :-) I am extremely excited to move tomorrow. I am all packed up and all ready to get out of this temp apartment. I was going to move today, but I watched the Men's Marathon from 12:30-4:00a this morning, so I slept rather than packed.

Today and tomorrow is the Notting Hill Carnival. I think I am going to try to swing by before I move out of the neighborhood. It is supposed to be a sight to see during the day time. At night though I have not heard the best stories - good thing by then I will be in my new flat!!! Yippeee!!!! I met a lady who just moved from SA (south africa) on the tube last week (she works for our sister company), so we may go together and check it out.

Yesterday after dropping off the paperwork in Clapham, I went up to Borough and met a friend for a celebratory brunch. He then took me to Borough market, which can only be described as heaven! There are no words for this place. I could try to describe it, but you truly need to see the place to grasp what a market should be - hint hint!

At night, I went to East london for another friend's 30th birthday party. If you thought the themed parties I threw were out there - I am normal here. The theme of this party was "I spy with my little eye something that starts with the letter B" - meaning that you had to dress as something that started with the letter B (butcher, bubble bee, etc). I went as a Boston Red Sox fan as I really was not prepared for the party when packing. Was quite interesting to walk the streets of London in Boston gear. You couldn't tell if I was in fancy dress or a hard core American - hahaha.

After that party I went to SoHo to meet some dear friends that were in town from San Fran. They reminded me that it had only been a year since they moved to the west coast from NYC - I swore it was longer, but they were indeed correct. Guess a lot has happened in a years time. It was so nice to see them. It is amazing how you can just pick up right where you left off with true friends.

Speaking of friends visiting, one major reason that I am looking forward to moving into my flat is that I will finally be able to have visitors over! And I already have my first visitor planned at the end of Sept! I am so very excited. It has been ages since her and I have spent alone time together. Will be like the days of 824 Beacon - no PJ Kilroy's though - bummer.
Well I need to run. Off to M&S to buy loads of cheese :-)

Please continue to write and let me know what adventures you are up to! Even if it is just going to brunch at Duke's, enjoying Mac N' Cheese anywhere in the USA, eating ice cream at Stewart's, having a Mexican martini at Trudy's, I want to hear all about it. And why, even if it sounds basic, I wish I was there!

Love you and miss you all.

xoxo

T