Welcome to England!

Hello All!

So sorry for the late update but I have seriously been so busy since I touched down on Friday. So I left Sydney on Thursday night only having about 6 kilos of excess luggage which I somehow made it through the check-in ok. I was swabbed at the airport for explosives and had to have all my hand luggage opened and tested as well, I didn't think anything of it as it has happened to me before, but when they pulled the curtain closed and told me I had to be frisked down I was like....What the! and a little nervous to say the least. But all was fine, just a quick pat down and I was on my way.. I don't know what it is about me but I am constantly pulled over at airports and searched.... I blame my mothers side of the family we all have shifty eyes. Anyhow, I boarded they plane with my massive amount of hand luggage which was so unbelievably heavy and after 9 hours of nothing but turbulence to Hong Kong I was ready to de-board in a big way!

Hong Kong Airport was pretty nice. I got off and went straight to the travellers lounge and booked in for a much needed shower and buffet breakfast. I didn't eat anything on the plane over as I was so nauseous and with people using their sick bags around me I wasn't going to take the risk of food. I felt so good being on solid ground and after my shower and two little chicken sausages from the buffet I was rather hesitant of getting back on the plane and was honestly ready to call Mum and Dad and let them know I was prepared to bypass England and live in China... but after being delayed in Hong Kong for an extra 2 hours I boarded and had an awesome flight to the UK.

So what have I been up to in my travels this week.... After picking up Kimberley at the airport on Saturday morning we all headed up to Oxford in our little rental car. We stopped in at Oxford University and my highlight of the day was definitely seeing the great food hall where they filmed the dining room scenes in Harry Potter. It was SO small compared to the movie and unfortunately we couldn't sit on the seats but I still got a few good pics which I have included below.

After Oxford we drove around the countryside for a bit and then found this really cool little local pub in Oxfordshire. It was such a local hub and everyone that walked in the door knew the owners, it was so cool. There was a resident dog that walks around the pub getting the occasional pat from patrons which was a bit of an eye opener...a little different to our health rules : ) We had a classic Bangers and mash dinner with bottles of cider which has now replaced my red wine fetish.

The next day we went onto Brighton to see the beach...ha, ha just saying that makes me laugh. I knew that they had pebbles on their beaches here but these were dead-set rocks! It was like trying to walk in the ball pit at Ikea, so funny. We went on the pear and had fish and chips followed by fairy floss. Such a great day. Reg got attacked by a seagull when she was posing for a photo with her fish and chips. The seagulls are the size of small cats over here... quite bizarre.

It still really hasn't hit me that I am living in the UK, it's so much like home. I honestly feel like I am just in a different state. There are a few things that are certainly different, I spent nearly 10 minutes in a public toilet the other day trying to work out how to get the automatic flush to work and then at the taps a little girl had to show me how to use the sensor to turn them on and off... so funny.

Our apartment is pretty cool, I am in a small room but nothing as bad as what I thought it would be. We have a huge balcony which we haven't been able to use yet as it is so cold and won't stop raining!!! I am meeting up with Charlotte in London tomorrow and going shopping for some more warm clothes.

So I am sitting here in my pyjamas about to cook some pasta for dinner. The girls have all gone to Amsterdam for a few nights so I am flying it solo. It's still light outside as it doesn't get dark til nearly 10pm.... it plays a bit with your time clock and we've had a few late dinners because of it.

Well, I'd better get going to get my washing done and get dinner on. I will post again about our trip to bath....so much fun, a little mischief and a lot of apple cider.... good, good times.

I hope you all are well, will speak again soon. Luv F