Chipolte!

Saturday's objectives included:

• Getting our Zoo Membership Photo Cards
• Chipolte
• College Football

We knocked out the Zoo membership before lunch and then set out on a mission to find Chipolte.  In May, the first European Chipolte opened in SoHo which is 2.9 miles from our flat.  We investigated transport options, but since the tube line by our house was down for maintenance this weekend, opted to just walk.  In actuality the Woods family I think looks for excuses to stay above ground so having the Jubilee line closed really wasn't that big of a deal.  It was also a really nice day.

It took us about 40 minutes to walk from the Zoo to Chipolte and we were SO EXCITED to see the sign.  We were like kids in a candy store.

Differences:

• Option of Brown or White Rice
• White Corn Salsa 
• No Fountain Pop, only Cans/Bottles
• Smaller Scoops (but open to asking for more)
• Expensive Guacamole (but equally delicious)

The food was AMAZING!  Just like we remember it.  It definitely is my top meal so far and I think Brady and Cory agree.

In the end three empty bowls and three satisfied customers.  Brady fell asleep about 15 minutes into the walk home so I'm pretty sure he had a full tummy and was enjoying his post lunch nap.

Brady's New Trick!

Not real excited about Brady's new trick and was hoping this wouldn't happen for awhile!

London Science Musuem

On Sunday we decided to venture to the London Science Museum in South Kensington which is just south of Hyde Park.  First decision was how were we going to get there.  We had fully planned on either taking the plunge and riding the tube or taking the bus, but it was a really nice day so we set off on foot.  Note:  Day 11 in the UK and we have yet to set foot on public transport.  The walk took about an hour from our flat, but it was a nice day and there was plenty to see along the way.  There was a fundraiser/run taking place in Hyde Park so there were tons of people supporting various charities.  Brady wanted to walk in the park and we had to be on our toes from all the people, bikes and commotion.

Pictures from Hyde Park:
   

Boating in Hyde Park



Not sure what this is, but it's in Hyde Park

 

Walking through the park.  Might not be able to tell, but he's grabbing a tag from his shirt.  "Cut it"


The Science Museum was really nice overall.  It's free admission unless except for a couple of the special exhibits which is awesome.  We ended up having lunch in the Deep Blue cafe within the museum and Cory proclaimed it as his favorite meal so far.  I'm hoping we are able to find something better than the museum cafe to claim as our favorite restaurant before we leave so I'll keep everyone posted.

Science Museum

In the museum there is a special area for Under 5's that had a water play area, things to climb on, building blocks, an instrument section and several other fun things.  Brady didn't want to wear the smock to keep him dry to start with, but we were eventually able to negotiate with him.  Brady also enjoyed the floor that had history on planes.  He ran around pointing at the different airplanes and making airplane noises.  "Big plane - vroooommm"

After the museum we walked down the road to Harrods for a brief look.  We didn't end up buying anything, but I do want to plan a trip back to eat in the enormous food hall and perhaps another peak in the HUGE purse department.  They have an amazing selection of anything you could ever imagine.  After Harrods, we walked back through the park to Oxford street which is one of the main shopping districts to pick up a couple of things. 

Exhausted from the walking, we opted to get a taxi for the ride home.  I am still struggling with the concept, but rather than putting children in car seats you simply roll the stroller into the taxi and put on the break.  I have been reassured many times that it's very safe since the taxis are large and the speed limit in the City is 30 MPH basically anywhere you go.

Brady's first taxi ride

Brady pictures from the week of 8/30

Cable, Internet and college football

We were supposed to have our cable, Internet & phone setup on Friday morning, but had a slight hiccup in the plans when we got a call from Sky telling us the service 'engineer' had a sudden death in the family.  The plan was to watch the Iowa game & K-State game in our flat with some fellow Americans who also were Iowa fans.  Our cable package will allow us to watch some games through regular TV, but a majority of the games we will have to watch using our Slingbox which is setup to Cory's parents cable box.  Slingbox is a pretty cool invention as it allows you to remotely watch TV via the Internet.  We can control the cable box anywhere we have a broadband connection.  Only problem is we didn't have a connection as of Friday evening.  Cory started calling local bars to find out if anyone was playing the game with no luck.  There is a place called Bodean's that was playing the K-State vs. UCLA game, slight problem the game is being broadcast on Wednesday at 3 pm.  Yep, I can go to a bar in London and watch my Wildcats in action 4 days after the actual game.  Doesn't provide nearly the thrill & excitement of watching the game live.  Luck have it Cory decided to play around with the router the previous tenant left behind and low and behold it worked.  We then had another stroke of good luck and the cable company was able to squeeze us in on Saturday.  So in the end Saturday was a pretty positive day in the Woods flat.  We have a TV that actually plays TV show, we were able to watch both the Iowa & K-State games and both teams won!!  We do still have to wait another 5 - 10 days for a working phone and 'official' Internet, but we should be able to manage.

Water Bill

We received our first water bill in the mail today.  Not an exciting topic in itself, but I did find it interesting.  Water bills are not determined by the amount of water you use, but the property value of your place.  The bill was through the end of March 2011 and I couldn't for the life of me figure out how they could estimate how much water we would use through March.  After careful reading of the enclosed leaflet we find out that no one is billed off of actual usage unless you specifically request to have a water meter installed.  After you have the meter installed if you're happier with your prior rates you can go back to your old method of payment.  Not so sure how I feel about this and also found it a bit ironic that three pages on conserving water followed the pages that explained you pay the same no mater how much water you use.

Daily Commute

Our plan is to walk to work the majority of the time. It takes about 15 - 20 minutes depending on how you time the cross walks, how daring you are and whether you want to show up at the office with back sweat. Fortunately our first two days we have had great weather and we also had the luxary of having a co-worker meet us a couple of blocks from our flat to show us the best route. On the walk to work we walk by a pub called the Warrington that was voted in the top 5 Pubs in London.  Gorden Ramsey owns the pub and they have restaurant fare in addition to the pub.  Haven't had a chance to check it out yet, but I'm sure at some point we will get side tracked on our walk home so we can give an official review.

Just in case walking does not work out for us we have already started thinking about other options. There is a bus that stops right in front of our flat, but we have yet to tackle public transportation despite everyone telling us over and over that once you get used to public transporation we will never want to drive a car again. I have a feeling this may be a bit of a stretch, but I'm sure holds some merit.

The third option is commute via bike.  There is a huge campaign urging London residents to become 'pioneers' and take part in the Barclays cycle hire program. Right outside our flat is a bike rental station and the first 20 mins are free. You can deposit the bike anywhere there is another bike rental station. Theortically we could rent a bike outside our flat, ride to work and drop it off right outside the office. Free bike since it would take less than 20 mins, quick commute, but high risk that either myself or Cory would get hit by a crazy taxi, motercycle or car. We are going to have to think the third option through a little more although it would make my mother proud to know her daughter was biking to work.
 
 

 
To give some more perspective on our location and commute here's a map of London.