London

I am used to this place and now it is time to leave.

After seven weeks, I….

* don’t think bacon or sausage butty is a weird item on the menu

* realize that bespoke just means custom-made, like a bespoke suit. Has nothing to do with spokes on a wheel

* correctly pronounce Southwark as Suth-ick

* know how to tell time when it is 2200 or 2330

* have a bit of a handle on grams, mls, kms, Celsius and all that other metric stuff

* remember to hit the switch on the wall because just plugging in an appliance doesn’t do anything

* realize that I am the one that talks with an accent

* hear an abundance of words ending in ‘ly’ when I am in earshot of Brits in conversation (i.e. ‘seriously, you wouldn’t believe it’, ‘she was literally 20 years younger than her boyfriend’, ‘lovely, just lovely’, ‘actually I wasn’t involved')

* say cheers for hello or goodbye, so that I fit in

* realize I am the ONLY person in London that doesn’t smoke

* recognize most of the coins. Think that pence is a fun word but quid, not so much

* order a starter and then a main and try to save room for a pudding, if I am going to have afters, unless I am just at the restaurant to have a sharing plate

* have stopped looking for eggs in the refrigerated section of the grocery store, they are never there - always on a regular shelf

* shop for aubergines as they are not called eggplants

* will miss produce shopping at Elsey & Bent LTD but at least I have a reusable bag (which I can take to Von’s when I get home)

* say sorry because nobody says excuse me

* know that people use the loo instead of the bathroom

* realize that Zed is just how you say the letter ‘Z’ out loud

* keep walking up five flights of stairs (or take the lift) even though our flat is 40 B because ground is street level and then you go up to 1, and so forth and so on

* know that Night Nurse is what you buy at Boots (pharmacy chain all over London) when you need relief from a cold or flu.

* pay attention to signs or I would constantly be looking for traffic in the wrong direction.

* just found out that my underground ticket works on the overground, not to be confused with a train

* mind the gap when I get off the lift, the train and the underground

* found out that High Street in the UK is the equivalent of Main Street in the USA

* am familiar with all the weather choices that the BBC offers to describe what is coming up – sunny, sunny interval, white cloud, grey cloud, mist, light snow shower, sleet snow shower, freezing fog, etc.

* know that if I lived here any longer I would need a much prettier umbrella, like one of these:

* know to take advantage of Free Admission at the fabulous museums and galleries this city has to offer!

This entire adventure has been brilliant, simply brilliant, and I have enjoyed every minute!