English Language and My Favorite Words

I love the accents here - the thick Yorkshire accent is lovely.  With each passing day, I am getting better at understanding it quickly.  The only exception is the vet - his accent is VERY thick and I have to ask him to repeat each phrase a few times.  I am looking forward to going to Scotland - where I think the accent is even thicker!

I have also learned a few new British phrases (beyond the obvious like 'loo).  Here are my favs:

• Hen Party: This is the British version of bachelorette party!  There are many many hen parties here in Harrogate on Saturday nights. They walk around with with "hen" sashes that are fab. Note that bachelor parties are "stag parties" here. 
• Brill: This is the shortened version of "brilliant" - which is also a phrase used frequently here! 
• Ladder: Instead of a "run in your pantyhose" - they have "ladders in your pantyhose" here.  How fun! 
• Terraced House: When we were looking for a house here, I kept seeing references to terraced houses and kept thinking of terraced fields around the world.  I figured they were on slopes or something... nope...town houses!
• Jumper: Instead of sweaters, they use the term jumper.  This strikes me as a weird - but fun 

And for those worried about Alfie, he has made a quick recovery and is feeling great!  We'll take him to a follow up visit at the vet on Wednesday to check on both his head and his infection - whew!  A gratuitous picture of our favorite fluffy family member:

 

Alfie and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Week

Alfie has had a very rough week.  All in all, he has adjusted very well to our life in England, but this week definitely got the best of him!

First, he got a hot spot on his head that got infected.  We had to go to the vet where they diagnosed him with wet eczema, likely from all of the rain and his little wet head!  He had to have a patch on his head shaved, steroid injection, and anti-biotic cream.  Horror.of.horrors. he got stuck in a cone:

As you can imagine, he has not been pleased, so he has spent a lot of time sitting on my lap this week.  I call the below photo my true "work-life balance" photo:

Despite lots of love and affection this week, Alfie has not been feeling well.  So this morning, we decided to cheer him up with a ride in his new car seat and a walk at a beautiful spot in the Dales.  Here we are, on our way:

Note that his tongue is out... about 15 minutes into the drive, he couldn't stop panting or shaking.  He was clearly unwell, so we spent the afternoon at the emergency vet.  Unfortunately, his episode earlier this week, made him vulnerable and he got another infection.  Poor guy is on anti-biotics for the next week and is clearly feeling down (though the shivering and panting has stopped!).  Woof Woof.  Here's hoping he continues to feel better, so he can enjoy afternoons in the window and breakfasts at outdoor cafes with us!

Love this guy so much! 

Favorite Restaurants in Harrogate (Part 1)

If you are coming to Harrogate to visit us... you are in for a treat! In addition to all of the great day trips, Harrogate has some pretty great restaurants.  As we have moved over here and have lived in a hotel for almost 5 weeks, the government has provided per diem (money for food and basic needs) - that has enabled us to try many of the restaurants in town.  Below are a few of the local highlights

La Oliva

This doesn't look fancy from the street, but the Spanish tapas are incredible.  They have a lightly seared tuna on fresh guacamole that is amazing!  Their patatas bravas (my favorite standard tapa) are the most flavorful I have tried.  Top it off with the best red sangria and a lava cake for dessert...hands down our favorite!

Deano's Graze and Grill

This is a neat restaurant that has inventive tapas OR steaks.  So far, we have just tried the tapas - which are more like world-wide small plates!  We really loved the "DIY" taco with peri peri chicken and their meatballs with mozarella gnocchi. The environment and serve were excellent here and the wine prices were very reasonable.  I look forward to taking guests back here soon!

Royal Baths Chinese 

The atmosphere of this restaurant is what makes it stand out - it is housed in the old Turkish Baths building and has an incredible vaulted ceiling and amazing stand out painting.  We came here for Sunday brunch and enjoyed a number of different dishes on their buffet.  Pro Tip: Arriving at 1 will allow you to try all of their food (since it will have been brought out, but still have it fresh!).  Their pork dumplings were the best I have ever had and their crispy duck on rice rounds were amazing.  This is a neat Harrogate-only experience 

Riding the Train

We are so incredibly lucky to have easy access to the train to get just about anywhere in the United Kingdom!  Harrogate has access to Northern Line trains that will take you to either York or Leeds (or any of the little villages in between).  From either city, you can catch a train to London, Edinburgh, Glasgow, or many other places near and far.  So far, we've only taken short trips into local cities, but will look forward to our longer journey to London in September.  A few pointers we've learned:

• Buy a Railcard: You can buy a railcard here - it pays for itself in just a few journeys because if you use the card, you get ~30% off.  Our trip to London alone paid the 30£ for the "Two Together" card.  This card requires that you travel as a pair and go off-peak hours (anytime except M-F 9-5).  This works great for our weekend adventures. 

• Purchase Long Trips in Advance: The earlier you buy, the cheaper the ticket.  A ticket from Harrogate to London can be as cheap as 20£ if you buy 3 months out.  It can be as expensive as 200£ if you buy a few days in advance. 

• Buy Online: It's usually a few £££ cheaper if you buy online -- even for short trips. Check out the Red Hanky site as well as the Northern Line (or whichever line you'll be taking)

• Bring Your Puppy - It's Pet Friendly: Fun fact - you can bring your dog on the train.  We haven't taken Alfie on the train yet, but are hoping to bring him to Scotland with us this fall on the train 

A train selfie!

The Train Station is quite beautiful in York (it also contains the rail museum) 

Our One Month Move-aversary

It is hard to believe that we moved here a full month ago.  In some ways, it feels like we've been here forever, but this time has just flown by so fast!  Below are a few things that make me feel like this is actually home!

We Have a Lease on a House!  We picked a beautiful house right in the center of town and will move in September 1.  More on the house in an upcoming post

We Have a Car and Can Drive.  I have posted lots about this already, but hooray for the freedom of the road!

We Have a Gym: The Brits do not seem to be super into the gym, so this was more of a struggle than expected. We signed up for Gambaru - which is very close to the center of town, but feels like a muscle gym.  There will be another gym opening near our house later this year - Pure Gym - we'll be switching to that gym soon.  Certainly a long way from the days of Vantage classes, personal training, and Pure Barre...but it will have to do!

We Know the Grocery Stores: We have visited all of the big grocery stores here - Marks & Spencer (sort of like Trader Joes), Asda (owned by Walmart), and Waitrose (like Harris Teeter).  Our new house is across from Waitrose, so I have a feeling that will be our go-to grocery store.  In other good news, there is a Costco in Leeds that apparently carries the same stuff as the one in the US (woo hoo!).  I do love eatting out, but it's been over 6 weeks since we cooked ourselves a meal.

We Built a Travel Itinerary: We have big trips planned for every month through the end of the year.  It's nice to have things to look forward to and be able to take advantage of living in Europe:

• September - London
• October - Venice 
• November - Munich 
• December - Barcelona 

I am sure it'll feel even more like home once we move into our house, receive our furniture, and make more friends, but I think we have a pretty good start for a month!  Here is the sneak peek of our house...for those following along, we picked house 3!

Harrogate Culinary Institution: Betty's Tea Room

One of the most famous spots in Harrogate is Betty's Tea Room.  Founded in 1919, it is an institution here and nearly all of the tourists visit when they come to the town.  This weekend, we had our first Betty's experience and it did not disappoint.  They serve formal tea - complete with the tiered plates of sandwiches, scones, and sweets and also have a small cafe with many of the same yummies.  Since we didn't want to wait in line and had other plans for the day, we grabbed a quick bite in the cafe.  It did not disappoint and was still one of the fanciest teas that I have every enjoyed.

I will look forward to having the formal afternoon tea another time when friends and family come to visit.

Once you grabbed a seat, they had a cute little menu with all of the options

Once we ordered - a fancy tea feast arrived.  My breakfast blend was amazing as were the scones.  Prasad enjoyed some french press coffee, yogurt, and a tray of amazing sweets.  YUM!

After we finished breakfast, we got a few of their beautiful cakes to take home and enjoy later.  How cute are the cakes???

Our experience is summed up with this perfect little box and a bow.  How very British!

Everyday Adventure for This Week - Harewood House

This weekend we found a most excellent Everyday Adventure at Harewood House.  Built as an estate of the upper class in the 1600's, today it is an amazing space that includes incredible landscaped gardens, a bird sanctuary, and a beautiful house renovated to the times of Lords and Ladies.  We spent several hours there and couldn't get to see everything, but thoroughly enjoyed the gardens especially.  I am sorry in advance for the photo overload, but there was a tremendous amount to see.

Locals note: This is a quick trip - about 15 minutes from Harrogate. The price to get in is somewhat expensive (15£ per person), but it's worth it on a sunny day with enough time to see everything.  We didn't regret it at all!

The back gardens...looks like a movie set, right?

Front of Harewood House

The formal terrace gardens

The bird gardens included penguins, flamingos, and other exotic birds!

This is P about to walk into the walled gardens...where they had tons of vegetable and flowers! The best were the artichoke!

After the Walled Gardens, we walked through the Himalayan Gardens...they included this amazing water feature over the creek

We enjoyed one last view of the garden terrace before we left.  What a beautiful, beautiful day

#AlfieMoves: Living with the Administrivia

Anyone who knows us well...knows that Alfie is very much the center of our world.  When we contemplated moving to England, making sure he could come with us was our first priority.  For many years, England was a quarantine country - meaning that animals had to stay at an approved kennel for up to 6 months while vets confirmed the animal did not have rabies.  In good news, this practice was stopped about a decade ago, but England still remains one of the strictest countries for pet import.

For those PCS-ing to England, here is the process we used.  It seems to change about every six months, but the below is a start.  Also note that there are several dog travel brokers that can manage the process - but it is expensive and non-reimbursable.  As long as you're meticulous, you can definitely handle the coordination yourself.

1 Year Before You Move - Research and Understand the Requirements: The USDA is the authoritative source for all pet exports from the United States.  They maintain a detailed website with detailed requirements for every country in the world.  Check it out here.  I also found it helpful to send an e-mail to the office to triple check the requirements and have the latest forms. Here is their e-mail - vspva@aphis.usda.gov - they typically respond to e-mails within 48 hours (YAY good government!)

6 - 8 Months Before You Leave - Schedule International Pet Exam: For England, you must schedule an international health exam a MINIMUM of 6 months before you leave.  If you're inside that window - you risk quarantine.  Make sure to bring all of the USDA forms with you and know what the requirements are.  For England, Alfie had to get an international standard microchip and after that was inserted, a rabies shot.  Make sure to SAVE this receipt - it proves the date of these actions and will be submitted with your customs paperwork.

6 Weeks You Leave - Schedule USDA and Vet Appointments: 6 weeks before you leave, APHIS will allow you to schedule your appointment for their approval of your international health certificate. Note that it must be completed within 5 days of arrival (4 days of departure for overnight flights). The office for DC / Virginia / Maryland is in Richmond (for real!) so expect to take the day off and drive down there.  Alternatively, you can overnight the form, but with our close timeline, that made me nervous

Once your APHIS Visit is scheduled, make sure you also set up your vet visit for the day before (also within the 4 day window). Make sure you tell the vet's office that it's for the final international check and that you'll need the paperwork completed.  Our vet completed the mountains of paperwork before we arrived, but need significant notice to do this. Shout out to Dr. Rogers at the Falls Church Animal Hospital - he has done hundreds of these for State Department employees and other government employees traveling - so he knew the routine (down to the distinction of what to sign with a blue or red pen)

4 Weeks Before You Leave - Get Your Crate: We bought a crate about a month before we left - make sure you get one that is compliant with your airlines guidelines. Typically, this is something that is compliant with the Air Transport Association (ATA) and is large enough to let your dog stand up fully and turn around.  It also includes air vents on all sides of the crate and has a metal door.  Double check the ATA symbol when you buy it.   Buying it a month out allowed us to help Alfie get used to it  - we put treats inside and a blanket and encouraged him to use it.  We also left him in there for short periods of time before we left the house.  This lessened anxiety when we left him at the airport  There are a lot of do's and don'ts - so make sure to check with your airline.  United's guidelines are here.

4 Weeks Before You Go - Complete the  British Customs Form and Arrange Customs Broker: Every British Airline / Airport has a designated pet customs broker.  For us, flying into Manchester on United - the broker was PBS Pets.  Once we had the plane ticket, we could complete the C5 Form and provide this to the broker.  They confirmed receipt and this enabled them to collect Alfie through customs when he arrived.

4 Days Before You Leave - Take Dog To the Vet: Make sure you take your dog to the vet to get the signed International Health Certificate and 7001 Form as well as confirmation of the Tapeworm Treatment - which must be administered in this 4 day window.

4 Days Before You Leave - Go to USDA Appointment: Yes, all the way down in Richmond - it will take an hour or two for them to get to your form and then sign off in approval.  TRIPLE CHECK that you bring all of your completed forms and that they are filled out correctly.  One of the other forms was rejected when P was there,

0 Days Before You Leave - Getting the Dog Ready: If you have an evening flight, give your dog a big breakfast and lots of water early in the morning and make sure to take him for a long walk before you head to the airport.  After breakfast, take away food and water so that he won't have any accidents on the plane.  One final cautionary note - if you are flying out of Dulles - the Cargo delivery is about 1 miles from the terminal.  Between lots of a luggage and the crate, we had a crazy amount of stuff and struggled to get Uber drivers to take a really cheap fare from Cargo to the Airport.  In hindsight, I probably would have hired a van service (since it's reimbursible and would save the headache of finding someone in a time crunch)

When You Arrive - Picking Your Dog Up: Make sure to tell your Sponsor you're bringing a dog - this will make sure your van driver knows and can help you make your way to the cargo unloading.  After we got our bags - our van driver took us to United Cargo.  There, we presented copies of all of our forms and she had to wait for confirmation the dog had arrived and cleared customs.  This ended up taking about an hour or so.  We went to get coffee during the wait.  Once the Alfie cleared customs, he arrived at the PBS pets door and we were able to pick him up quickly.  He was very happy to see us, but it seemed to have been an uneventful journey.

Here is a funny and pathetic of Alfie in his crate for your amusement.  It would be very sad if he was not the most spoiled dog in Harrogate and spends very minimal time in a crate.

Stormin' the Castle: Our Visit to Skipton Castle

I'm playing catch up with capturing our various day trips around North Yorkshire!  A few weeks ago we visited Skipton Castle.  Originally build in 1090 by the Normans, it is one of the most complete medieval castles in England. We are lucky to live about a 25 minute drive from Skipton...we most definitely live in "castle country."

Skipton Castle is right in the center of the town of Skipton - so there is much parking around town and many cute cafes and shops around the castle. It made for a very easy afternoon trip.  In other good news, it's dog friendly (though we did not bring Alfie on this trip since he was recovering from his adventure the day before).

After we walked through the Castle - it takes about 60-90 minutes to walk through it and marvel at the architecture, we took a walk through Skipton Woods.  A nice stroll through some pretty woods back to a small pond.  A nice afternoon in nice weather.  Below are a few snaps from the day:

Walking up to the gatehouse... it really feels like a castle! 

















Castle Grounds...amazingly there is a person who lives in the right hand side of the castle!  How cool would that be?

View from a castle window...amazing that this type of architecture was achieved before bulldozers, fork lifts, and other machines.  Just amazing!

Similar to the pained ceramic pandas in DC and cows in Chicago... Skipton has a variety of painted sheep.  Here is P modeling with a sheep !

Shop Til You Drop: Things to Buy Before You Move (or Maybe Visit!)

We are quickly closing in on a month of living in North Yorkshire!  Time has flown by and we've already done so much sight seeing.  Despite reading all about the weather here before we moved, it has still been a surprise how cool the weather has been.  Every day feels like April - some days are warm April days, some are cool and rainy April days.  What's funny...this is late summer!  I can only imagine what the winter will be like.  The best part about the weather - it's generally perfect temperature for walking around and taking in the sights.

A few things I am VERY glad I packed / bought:

Serious Rain Jacket: Before we moved to England, I had various light-weight "water repellent" jackets.  When we moved, I bought a serious rain jacket from the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale - the North Face Laney Jacket.  It has been fantastic! It keep me a bit warm and most importantly - has kept me completely dry.

Cute Walking Shoes: People here walk...a lot!  Everything in town is within a 20-30 minute walk - the grocery stores, restaurants, shops, etc. There is limited parking - so we definitely walk much more than we did in Virginia. Cute walking shoes are a must for making it around both comfortably and fashionably!  I LOVE the Ecco Bluma Ballet Flat - these are also a Nordstrom Staple - these are new colors (mine are silver).  We also have an Ecco store in Harrogate - but I am very loyal to Nordstrom *and they ship here!*

Sweaters for Layering: It's chilly here most mornings and warm-ish by the afternoons.  The long cardigans have been wonderful to keeping warm in the mornings and then peeling off in the afternoon.  I am a huge fan of the Pintrest Told Me To Blog and her beloved Blardigan! 

For those planning to PSC to England (or elsewhere in Europe) - a few other highlights of what we brought / quick shipped / bought here and wish we packed:

• Water Bottles (it gets old to buy bottles of water) 
• Tupperwear (we didn't bring with us, but wish we had...we had to buy expensive / poor quality stuff while we wait for our real kitchen stuff to arrive) 
• Reusable Shopping Bags (EVERYONE uses them at the grocery store) 
• Every Document Ever (birth certificate, Social Security Card, marriage certificate...you need it for your ID)
• Tape and Scissors (seriously, these are necessary for survival after a month!) 
• Hangers (our quick ship arrived with hanging clothes...but limited hanging capacity)

Alfie says he was a super helper in the move and packing the right clothes!

More Living and Learning: Finding Our Favorite Foods Here

After hearing many cautions on the difficulty of finding our favorite foods in the United Kingdom, we have been pleasantly surprised by the ease with which we can find our favorite foods:

• American Style Burgers:  A quick 20 minute trade ride to Leeds takes us directly to Five Guys .  Fries made in peanut oil and delicious burgers.  We haven't had to resort to this yet - but it's nice to know it's there!  Also in Leeds --- Krispy Kreme doughnuts!
• Asian Food: We have had some excellent Asian food while we've been here.  Everything from Thai to Chinese to Vietnamese.  One of the fanciest restaurants here is the Royal Bath Chinese - set in the most architecturally stunning building.  They had the best pork dumplings I have ever had 
• Grocery Store Staples: Many of our favorite staples are easily found at the British grocery stores.  Frosted Flakes, Honey Nut Cheerios, pretzels, fresh fruit, and lots of great meat.  There are only a few items we need from the Commissary: CheezIts, Ranch Dressing, and Constant Comment Tea
• Nando's Chicken: Nando's is one of our favorite restaurants in the United States.  It's also a quick and easy favorite here.  We love their peri peri chicken, garlic bread, and salads!   

A few things we have been surprised it's been hard to find - some were surprises, some were not:

• Iced Tea: This was the biggest surprise!  For a nation of tea drinkers, no one seems to serve it.  Not Starbucks, not independent coffee shops, not McDonald's.  How strange, right? When we move into our home - I am looking forward to 
• Bagels: There are 1-2 places in Harrogate that sell bagels, but they tasted old and squishy (yuck)!  I have heard Leeds has much better bagels - my fingers and toes are crossed. 
• Mexican Food: The Mexican food here is seriously lacking.  I miss Chipotle  - but we will DEFINITELY be stopping at one when we visit London in September.  

So really, these are very minor issues - really!  We are very lucky to have so many great options here!  

A Lovely Day in Leeds

Last weekend, we took a day trip to Leeds - England's 4th largest city and a quick 30 minute train ride from Harrogate.  Leeds is well known for their Victorian Arcades - essentially stunning architectural buildings that have been glass roofed and refurbished as fancy shopping malls.  We visited several in the center of Leeds and each one was more beautiful than the next.  It's funny - we usually love to see the cultural sites of any city or area we visit - but all of Leeds were focused on shopping, it seemed.  There are many spots outside of the city to visit with more cultural flair - so excuse the extensive discussion of fancy shopping malls!

Our favorite was the Corn Exchange - a beautiful rotunda building originally used as a corn and agricultural trading post for northern England.  Today, it has lots of neat shops and cafes!

We visited several of the other Arcades and found flagship shops for many large British Department stores.  Fun Fact: the famous Marks & Spencer chain started in Leeds.  It was fun to check out all of the British stores and see their fashion.

The Leeds street and pedestrian areas were also filled with music and dancing for the West Caribbean festival.  It was fantastic to see the colorful costumes:

Living and Learning - Driving in the UK

In recent weeks, we have had the challenge (and pleasure) of learning to drive in the UK.  While it was scary at first (really, I felt 16 and my hands were shaking during my first drive!) - it has become easier with time.

Last week, we took the British driving theory test.  The test included 50 questions from a bank of 1,000 that ranged from simple and typical, to some really funny / hard questions.  Below are a few of the highlights I saw on the test and during my studying:

• If you come across a horse in a roundabout, what should you do?  Answer: assume erratic behavior and give way 
• If you find a dog wearing a burgundy and gold sweater, what does it mean?  Your options: the elderly, a dog in training, a colour blind person, or a deaf person.  Answer: a deaf person.  
• What kind of driving is most dangerous?  Your options: cautious, careful, competitive.  The answer - competitive 

In good news, both P and I passed with flying colors!  We're excited to have our official driving permits here.  Despite some of the silly questions - in recent weeks, we also learned a lot about British driving terminology and facts:

• Colors of Signs Matters: The color of the sign has meaning here.  Blue signs tell you what you SHOULD do.  Red rimmed signs tell you what you shouldn't do! 
• On One Lane Roads - Pull Over: Yikes, this is one we've learned through practice.  There are many one lane roads that are VERY tight!  Taking these slowly and driving carefully is seriously important!
• No Open Container Laws Here:  Random - unexpected change.  We are so used to strict open container laws here in the United States - here, you can drink in the car (as long as the driver isn't drinking and is sober!)

....and....we're on the road! 

Another Weekend...Another Every Day Adventure

How fast the weekend seems to fly by!  Today, we had the opportunity to visit a local village - Pateley Bridge -  for their 1940's day.  The town was filled with World War II era costumes, music and decorations.  We were amazed by how many people came out to fill the small village, but enjoyed the scenes and had a delicious English lunch. Originally built in the 1300's - it was created as a trade and industrial center (think: textiles, breweries, etc).  Today, it's a quiet village with one of the only bridges over the River Nidd in the Yorkshire Dales.

After we visited Pateley Bridge, we drove back home with a stop at an Ice Cream Farm.  We had the freshest of ice cream made from milk of cows on the property and got to meet some sheep.  Pwas very excited to see his favorite animal, Alfie was actually pretty afraid! In any case, check out some photos of our adventure below:


Pateley Bridge - Decorated with Bunting for 1940's Day!

Pateley Bridge - Beautiful Old Church

Alfie Loves Checking Out the View with His Head Out the Window

P Loves Sheep... and got to pet a few today!

Checking Out the Local Scenery: Fountains Abbey

Today we took a drive to check out one of the local Yorkshire hot spots - Fountains Abbey.  Built originally in the 11,000 the incredible stone structure was one used as a monastary and religious establishment.  It's also a UNESCO World Heritage site because of the incredible preservation of this stunning stone structure in the Cicstercian style.  You can read more about the history of the site here.

Today, it's filled with picnic-ers, hikers, and sight seers.  Today was a perfect weather day - in the low 70's - so we took Alfie for a drive and enjoyed the scenery.  For friends that will come to visit, this will be a great stop on your visit:

Bell Tower from the walk down

View of Abbey Ruins from the ~1.5 mile walk

The ruins are dog friendly - Alfie loved visiting!

The architecture was truly incredible

Reminded me of Rome, in way!