A Christmas Carol

Merry Christmas! 

The sunshine we woke to. No snow in sight, but can't complain when the sun shines all day. 

Christmas Day walk through the British countryside. 

Making a gingerbread house. 

The final product. 

Christmas turkey roast. Keeping it traditional. 

Christmas feast. 

Not quite Christmas Day, but we went ice skating underneath fairy lights in Hyde Park. Magical. 

Very strange to not be at home with the family, but not a bad alternative. Missing you all xx

In Praise of Folly

Things that make me laugh or smile in London:

The man who bikes to work each morning dressed head to toe in the latest cycling gear (fluoro jacket included), but doesn't wear a helmet.  It's legal to not wear a helmet here - apparently it's odd that it is illegal in New Zealand - so most people don't. But this man makes me laugh; he's all up with the play, and obviously understands the risk involved given he wears the fluoro gear, but a helmet is clearly a step too far. 

Calling fish and chips your national dish and then cooking the chips before they are ordered. Maybe they are supposed to be soggy?

The tube. If I didn't laugh I'd cry. 

The price of fruit and veges. See above. It's not unusual to pay £2 for four apples. That works out to be $1 an apple. But then you can buy a fully prepared dinner for about the same price. All other food is much cheaper than home (2 litres of milk is £1), just not fresh fruit and veges. Go figure. 

The sheer number of kebab shops. 

The price, quality and range of books available in op shops. I could create a well-stocked library for next to nothing here. Amazing. Certainly the cheapest entertainment you can find here, by a long way. 

The cost of tickets to any football match you might actually want to go to. Think 200 pounds plus. Per person. 

When we figure out we don't have to pay crazy tourist prices to see something here. Instead of paying £30 (each) to go up the Shard - Europe's tallest building, with amazing views over the city - we went to the bar on level 35 and had a drink. It only cost us the £4 for the glass of wine. Instead if paying £18 (each) to check out Westminster Abby we went to the choir service for free; hearing the Westminster choir in the process. Instead of paying the £13 (each) to look around The Globe Theatre we paid £5 to watch a Shakespeare play there instead. And saw an amazing play in the process.  We have a blanket rule; never pay just to enter a building. It's working out brilliantly, usually there's a way to see it, or at least a bit of it for free. And if there's not, well there's usually an equally as cool, just slightly less touristy, building around the corner. 

The way people treat their cats. On more than one occasion I've seen someone panicking and shadowing their cat as their beloved decides to walk out of the safety of their two metre x two metre front patio and onto the footpath. It's a dangerous world out there. 

Christmas time. Fairy lights galore. Suddenly all those slightly odd and naff Christmas decorations back home feel perfectly acceptable, and not in the least bit tacky, here. Seriously. 

The person who dares to speak on the tube. And the looks they are given. 

Shop assistants. For a country which has mastered their pleases, thank you's, and queuing, their shop assistants are, quite simply, a joke. It's not uncommon for them to be having a conversation with the teller beside them while you pay. Or, if they're particularly daring, on their phone. Consider yourself lucky if you even get a glance. 

The Trial

London strikes. Again. 

Just when we were feeling like we might be able to sit back and start to take in London, the city we have chosen to call home for a while, it has decided to bite back; in the form of a nasty Australian (I see the irony). 

Just over a week ago (at 5pm on Friday, to be precise), David was told not to return to work on Monday (or any other day of the week). Two weeks out from Christmas. No notice; no real reason given. 

It's London. In a city of eight million, no single person is important. I've struggled with this since we got here - it's a feeling I've never experienced before; not in New Zealand, nor Australia, nor Thailand, nor even India. It's hard to put into words, you can just feel it. And on Friday, David certainly did. 

Who knows, it may not have been working out, David's boss might've had a mate who was struggling to find work, or maybe he was just having a bad week. Either way, because we are in London, at 5pm on Friday, with no warning, it's acceptable to boot someone out. TWO WEEKS BEFORE CHRISTMAS. 

But, David picked himself up again and has gone out and found casual work to keep him going until our two week Christmas holiday. London is the reason he lost his job, but it's also the reason he was able to pick himself up again so quickly. A world of extremes. And it is a world, not just a city. 

Bring on the holidays. We deserve it. 

- Hana

The Consolations of Philosophy

On Tuesday we celebrated our six month anniversary. With nervous excitement, this time six months ago, David and I embarked on a journey we couldn't quite explain, with no real plans. To travel: but was that enough of a plan? 

I've spent a fair bit of time mulling over why I want to travel; what's the point, I suppose. But six months have passed, interest on our student loans have kicked in, and I'm still unable to answer that question with any true philosophical answer. Other than it makes me happy. I'm not saying I wasn't happy not travelling (work out that triple negative), it's more that this feels like the right thing now. Deep. 

And so, with a smile on my face (most of the time), we've walked the streets of nine countries, smiled with the locals; frowned with some of them, and spent many an hour watching the world pass by from trains, planes, cars, bikes, scooters, tuk tuks, and boats. 

And so the journey continues. Still with no real plan; but with happiness as the driver. 

- Hana