July 3rd, The Arrival

Practically everything worked according to plan today. We got picked up at the airport by Parker taxi service.

In front of our new home

They delivered us to the building, where a friendly concierge kept an eye on our stuff while we went out to check out the swans and grab some hot Japanese at the outdoor market on High Street. Even though kids barely slept they were really happy - Isabella did some public singing. Georgia volunteered to go anywhere for company's sake.

The weather was typically British - cool with a drizzle. I've explained to the kids that this is a typical weather they should expect on a hot summer day here. They looked puzzled. Don't think they really believed me.

We picked up (wrong) keys at the agency and went back to the apartment to meet inventory inspector for check in. Concierges, now there was two of them, let us in with their copy of the key.

This check-in service is really interesting element of life here. Landlord hires a 3rd party company to do a thorough inspection, with pictures, of the apartment taking a note of all things however petty (burned out light bulb). Resulting report is shared with rental agency, landlord, renters. We can make comments on it within 7 days and then it is sealed. That light bulb will be meticulously checked at the end and if we replace it but another one will burn out, there will be a hell to pay.

After that the afternoon was a blur as we unpacked, and British Telecom guy came to set up the Internet and Ikea Delivery Company worked on assembling the furniture they had delivered. There were a few issues predominantly with the availability of the right stuff at the store but the company was amazingly great at resolving them and providing fast alternatives. Cannot praise them enough. Occasionally Dan and Georgia went out to pick up various incidentals as necessary and the great thing is that there is about a dozen of the right stores within the walking distance.

When it was over we came over to get a bite to eat and Isabella fell asleep on Danik's shoulders. We were able to grab fresh bread and cold cuts from the supermarket before it closed for the day at 6pm. It was really nice to make sandwiches and eat them on warm benches as sun was starting to set. The last time they've tasted so good was when years ago, without kids, we had raided the breadbaker, cheese, and salami shops in Paris and had our sandwiches down by Seine river.

We went home and put kids to sleep. I later came out to find some coffee. Most coffee places are closed at 7:30-8. I wandered around the center for a bit. There are people outside and it is definitely not dead, but everything is closed. Finally I got some beer at the Asia supermarket, which helpfully closes at 9pm. On the way home I've stopped at the Sweet Revenge bake shop right near our place and asked if the owner would be willing to make a cappuccino for me. He was, and he made one for Dan too. Then I came home and we had some beers with cappuccino while watching the party boats go by in the night. So awesome!!!