I have no idea how to introduce this one, so I’ll just dive right in. It couldn’t have come at a better time, for both Jake and I were feeling stagnant aboard Bosco. We were definitely in need of a change of scenery, because staring at one another across the small enclosure that is our living space was getting old. So we took our journey across the Atlantic for two reasons:

1. Play tourist in a country that we’ve always wanted to visit but never have.
2. To attend a wedding.

We were lucky in finding dirt-cheap flights through a budget airline: WowAir. The trade-off is that there’s no food or drink service (unless you want to pay mucho bucks), there is no in-flight entertainment other than what you provide and if you want ANYthing (a choice of seat or a carry on bag), it costs EXtra. A lot extra. No biggie. We can bring our own food and entertainment, and we only needed to check one bag (loaded with wedding gear), which was a hefty charge, but well-worth it (and still significantly cheaper than any other flight).

And for the most part, it went about as smooth as you could hope. The only scare was the morning of our departure, our phone wouldn’t turn on. Figures, right? If there’s going to be a problem it has to present itself at a time most inconvenient. Just hours before we take off is kind of a big pain, considering that literally EVERYTHING we need (travel details, contact info, addresses, etc.) are trapped inside the device which will not turn itself back on.

I suppose this sort of a problem would cause the best of us to freak out. But surprisingly we didn’t. We just figured a solution would work itself out and it did! My uncle (who was giving us a lift), offered to give us his old retired cell phone, which just happens to be the exact same make as our current one. At the very least its a backup, and once we land in the UK we can get a SIM card for it. And you know, we got doubly-lucky because our phone did finally turn itself on. As soon as it did, I jotted down all of the important details (phone numbers, trip details, etc.) in our little notebook, just in case.

Our first flight to Keflavik, Iceland was a long one; nearly 7 hours of flying and a 6 hour time change put us in about 430AM. Even though our body-clocks are about 1030PM. We had exactly 1.5 hours until flight #2, so we grabbed some (kinda expensive) food and walked about the only store that was open in the airport at 430AM. The second flight to Gatwick was only 3 hours and no time change, so we were on-time at 930AM. The only down-side was the complete lack of sleep for team Bosco!

It was a zombie-march through this hodge podge of an airport. We walked for nearly 20 minutes through what felt like a lot of different buildings; an art gallery, a conference center, an underground subway-type of walkway, and then finally into a large space that looks more like an airport should. The immigration line was slow but steady and we were cleared to pass into the UK. YAY we did it.

Can I just say that everyone speaking in their adorable British accents its just so damn charming! 🙂

Anyways, luggage collection was surprisingly easy and then we walked out of the doors and into the throngs of people and shops and noise. A quick scan of the crowd in front of us and we spotted a big white sign with blue letters “TEAM USA!”. Behind the sign was our friend Adam! We ran forward and were in squeals of delight to see our buddy from the Te Araroa.

And from that moment on, my brain turned off. Adam took the reigns and we were along for the ride; that is the ride on the wrong side of the car on the wrong side of the road, hahaha. It was nearly a 2-hour journey from Gatwick to High Wycombe (say it like ‘Wickham’ for you Americans). The sky teetered between gray clouds and a bit of rain with patches of blue and even some sun streaks. It was all lovely countryside.

Before arriving to our final destination, we stopped off to visit Adam’s fiancee at her place of work. It was in the most adorably English-looking town you could ask for. Cobblestone walkways, crooked stone buildings with doorways that are only 4-5 feet high. Lots of charm and character!

Its been nearly 8 months since we last saw our UK friends and all of us were living the life of nomadic hikers at the time. So when we walked in and saw Abi all dressed up and cute for work, it was shocking. I know it was equally shocking for her to see us in normal clothes (and nice shoes!). It was a fun reunion, cut short so that Abi could get back to work and we could go “home” and sleep off some of this jet-lag.

Now I really didn’t know what to expect of our friend’s home. Perhaps an old English cottage nestled in a small village? I think I’ve been watching too many Jane Austin-inspired movies! When we pulled into their drive, I was surprised by the very suburban-style abode in front of us. We walked around to see the beautiful yard and garden spaces. Inside was a very sheek and modern space. Oh and did I mention, its HUGE! Adam’s mum (mom), Liz, also lives here and the space is set up almost like 2 separate apartments in one home. Liz is probably the sweetest woman that we have ever met. So adorably English in EVERY way. Warm and welcoming and made us feel as if we were already part of her family.

After a quick tour and a chat, Jake and I took our leave to our room and promptly passed out. Thankfully he had the good sense to set an alarm so that we wouldn’t sleep the entire day away. Just 4 blissful hours of pure peace.

I lost all sense of place and time when the buzzer woke us at 5PM. It was so quiet and restful I could have probably slept for another 10 hours! But we wanted to get up so that we could visit with our friends and try to get on local time. We sat around and watched some tele, which to our delight had many of our favorite shows that we watched in New Zealand! That should be fun for later on…Adam left to pick up Abi and then we would all grab some dinner a bit later tonight.

It was a blast visiting with our friends. They took us to the most perfect English Pub (called The Crown) for dinner. It was exactly how I’d imagine such a place: complete with fireplace and multiple levels and beautiful stone facets and features with quaint sitting areas. The food and drink were also delicious. I don’t know what everyone is talking about how bland English food is, because we certainly did not experience this. The beer and cider were so good. Our feast included calamari, steak and ale pie and tikka masala.

Back at their home, we devoured some “practice” wedding cake that was leftover. Abi plans to make the cake herself, and thinks she landed on the winner-recipe. A chocolate cake with chocolate and butter icing with fruit. All made from scratch and I can vouch that it was 100% delicious! Sitting around by the warm fire and chatting was the perfect end to a really long travel day. We couldn’t wait to plan all of the fun activities and touristy places that we hope to visit while we’re here.

First Days in England

The next morning was a Saturday. A perfect excuse to sleep in, and boy, did we. I think Jake was the first one up at 11AM, I felt like I could lay in bed all day long. But that’s no way to spend our ‘UK Vacation’. A little groggy but we have to force ourselves to get up and moving so we can acclimate to the time zone. Some hot tea in bed was a nice little pick-me-up.

We didn’t plan anything for this part of our trip. Last night we spoke briefly about touring some places with our friends. Stonehenge and Avebury to name a few. They also said that we could visit Oxford and Marlborough. Abi and Adam are amazing planners. We suck at it, so we left it in their hands. Abi thought it’d be fun to rent an Airbnb and then we could spend more time out and about. Sounds good to us!

But today we have the entire day to do what we want. Or rather, half a day since we slept in so late. Abi had to work again and Adam had some meetings to attend, so Jake and I opted to take the train into London-proper. We didn’t want to give ourselves TOO much to do, so we thought we’d just go walk around and maybe visit the British Museum. The weather was perfect for an “inside” day, as it was cold and snowy. Yes, Snowy in England! A rarity no doubt.

It took us a bit to get ready. After a simple breakfast of toast and cereal, we dressed in all of our layers that we brought. Packing light is our forte. We each have only ONE primary outfit with various layers to add or subtract depending on the weather. With the temps in the very low single-digits (Centigrade), we layered up.

The train station is only a 5 minute walk from their place, so that was nice and easy. The only downfall here is that the train to London is kind of pricey. We opted to purchase 2 all-day passes (£50 or about $70) which would allow us to take transport on the railway as well as the Underground and even busses should we so desire. Now in retrospect, we should have probably saved this adventure for a time when we could take full advantage of the all-day tickets, but it was too late to change our minds and so we were off.

What a cool experience, riding the train for the first time in the UK. It was a very pleasant and easy ride, about 30 minutes to the nearest station in London-proper. Abi lent us one of her many London maps, concealed as a small notebook with a red crocodile cover. This way we don’t have to look like complete tourists as we try to navigate to our desired destination. I had to make a mental note of each of our stops; Marylebone Station would connect us to the Underground and from there we hop on 2 different lines to Oxford Circus. It was a bit of a circus figuring everything out amongst all the other humans but we managed.

After 2 Underground lines, we got off at our stop and had to walk up for quite awhile before we got to “street level”. I was punched with a gust of cold air as soon as I walked out into the street and it was a madhouse of activity. People walking every which way, cars and busses flying by on the street, shops lining both sides of the streets. It reminded me of Times Square in NYC. The buildings were so tall and imposing so the feeling of claustrophobia set in rather quick. We had absolutely no idea which way to go from here and standing still was not a good position to be in as people pushed their way passed. So we just picked a direction and began to walk, as my head was buried deep in the little notebook, Jake had to make sure that I didn’t trip or bump into someone. It took us a few blocks to realize we were walking the wrong way and to figure out that the street signs are located on the sides of buildings.

We walked for about a mile, stopping here and there in the smaller of the shops that looked sort of intriguing. I was drawn to the home-wares type of stores, which had loads of really cute (and inexpensive) nick-knacks for the home. Not that I have a home, but I can dream. After some meandering, we noticed a Vodaphone store at the end of a block and stopped off to get a SIM card. Only £20 for a 6GB data card, unlimited texts and 1500 min. calls is a pretty sweet deal!

Back on the street we walked another half mile until we finally found the British Museum. The line was long but moving swiftly and after the security check, we made it into the grandest of entrances and the largest building I think I’ve ever seen.

One of the coolest things in the UK is that many of the tourist things (museums, art galleries, etc) are free. Its a sweet treat for those who want to save a buck and learn/see things of this type. It was about 2PM when we got here and we were amazed at its huge facade and grand interior. The building went on and on for ages and its full of World history. Greek, Roman, Egypt, Asian and Assyrian artifacts were displayed in their own separate areas which helped to dissipate the crowds.

Its hard to pick a favorite thing to see, though the Rosetta Stone was pretty cool. I think I most enjoyed the MASSIVE Egyptian sculptures and hieroglyphic displays. Jake probably liked the Roman weaponry the best. As we made our way through the early European histories, an employee told us that the place was closing! It felt way too soon, but then I guess we got here pretty late. 3 hours flew by in the space of what felt like just 20 minutes.

It was a long shot that we could actually see everything this museum had to offer. I was disappointed that it had to end so soon but thats also when I realized how starving I was. We were on the upper level and the stairway was so large it could probably fit thousands of people. It was definitely loaded up now, with a bit of a bottle neck at the doorway. Eventually we made it out and again, hit by the frigid cold wind. It was snowing again too and the sky was already growing dark. Or maybe that’s just the incoming storm? Either way, it felt like a good time to head home.

We managed to get lost (twice) in an attempt to find the nearest Underground station from which we managed to get back to the Marylebone station without issue. Then it was about 20 minutes until our train would depart to High Wycombe, so we got our first pick of seat (towards the back) and relished in the warmth. Eventually the car filled with people and our 1835 train left the station on time. One funny thing, or maybe not funny, is that everything here is labeled in 24-hour, military time. It takes some getting used to!

Today is St Patrick’s Day: March 17. Whoops totally slipped our minds. Guess its good we’re not Irish (though Jake could look the part). There’s a rugby match today between England and Ireland, so all the pubs will be booming. As we sat, we couldn’t help but overhear a nearby group of youngsters (I’m guessing early 20’s), who were boisterously loud. One girl was dressed head-to-toe in Irish garb and her accent shined through as she bossed her friends around on the train, whining about some Irish band that they were going to miss because of a late start. Apparently this is blasphemous to her since she is Irish, which she proclaimed several times. I felt bad for her friends who seemed put out by her. I just couldn’t believe someone with such a cute accent could be so annoying!

At 1900 on the dot we reached our stop and it was pitch dark with snow falling heavy and thick. At least it wasn’t so windy here, but the 5 minute walk felt much longer as we trudged uphill. The long journey ended with a very happy sight; a warm fire and a delicious spaghetti bolognese dinner cooked by our amazing hosts, followed by more amazing ‘practice’ wedding cake. I could seriously get used to this!

Sunday, March 18. 2018
Another long night meant another late start. 11AM seems to be the new wakeup norm for us. Good thing our friend’s stick to this late schedule in their normal lives, so it works out quite nicely.

Can I just say that it seems like every time Jake and I travel someplace new, there’s always some sort of weather phenomenon: “It’s the coldest or wettest or snowiest season we’ve seen in a decade.” Or something of the like. I keep thinking that it’d be so great to go somewhere and have them say its the nicest weather we’ve ever had on record!

Well, today, it looked like a white Christmas morning (in March)! Good thing our only real plan was to hang around the neighborhood of High Wycombe. Abi and Adam had an afternoon meeting so we enjoyed spending the early portion of the day with them. We thought it’d be fun to take a walk around the neighborhood.

The path leads outside the main town and into the countryside, past some very large manor estates. It was really beautiful, but cold, wet and slippery too. Abi and Adam haven’t changed a bit since the TA, they’re still ridiculously fast walkers hahaha! I guess it didn’t help that I kept stopping to take photos of everything.

Our tour continued along up to the pinnacle, aka, Hughenden. This impressive massive manor that sits a top a large hill. Benjamin Disraeli lived at the Hughenden Manor in 1848 through 1881. For years it was “owned”, but apparently too expensive to maintain. So, it was given to the National Trust in the late 1940’s and now it serves as a cool and interesting place to tour. Unfortunately due to the snow, the entire place was shut down, closed and locked. Of course, this didn’t stop us from hopping the short fence and taking a quick walk around the back side of the mansion.

I know, we’re such rebels aren’t we?

The path continued into a huge park where we passed families with children playing in the snow, dog walkers, etc. We stopped in the town-center which was much more modern, with large outdoor mall, supermarket and pubs. A late lunch at The Falcon was a great warm retreat and excuse to get some good beer and cheap grub. This pub is a J D Weatherspoon, which are a sort of brand of pub that serves the same types of food and drink for VERY cheap. I had teriyaki noodles and Jake enjoyed an English breakfast.

Abi and Adam had their meeting in about an hour so we left them to walk around and window shop. We also made our way to the supermarket, Tesco, to pick up some groceries. We thought it’d be fun to cook our wonderful hosts a homemade pizza and salad for dinner, since they’ve been so hospitable.

The best part about England so far is how INCREDIBLY INEXPENSIVE the food is. Seriously its so affordable and high quality as well. We loaded up on food that would cost us at least $30 or even $40 back in America. But here, it was only £8! That’s like $12 bucks. I think America needs to take a page out of the English cook book and learn to make good food affordable (wink, nudge!)

Oh well we were pleased all the same and found our way back easily up the big hill and back home.

That afternoon was a pleasant and relaxing one. We sat and drank tea, while preparing the homemade pizza dough, and chatted with Liz.

Dinner was a huge hit with everyone and conversation was awesome. We are so lucky to have made such amazing friends along the road of travel and I just can’t believe that we’re sitting here in England enjoying such perfection. We couldn’t be happier or more excited for our big plans to come…The Adventure will continue, tomorrow…

For now I say, Cheerio.