Living In the UK

Local building in Reading, UK

After more than 20 years living in Virginia, Rex and I sold our house, pulled up stakes and headed across the pond to England. We’ve settled in Reading (rhymes with bedding) about 35 miles west of London, home to the historic Reading Abbey and such entertainment greats as Ricky Gervais and Kate Winslet. So far, I’ve only seen the Abbey.

Our flat has 3 bedrooms, 2 baths and balconies off both the kitchen and living room. Appliances include a gas stove (huzzah!), dishwasher, a compact refrigerator/freezer, and a washing machine that doubles as the clothes dryer (what?). Our household goods won’t arrive until mid-September so in the meantime, we’re equipped with rental furniture, linens and dishes. 

Red poppies commemorating WWI

August 4^th marked the 100 year anniversary of the British Commonwealth entering WWI and it was commemorated throughout the UK with services, readings, and thousands of red poppies. I attended a lovely service at Reading Minster’s St. Mary-the-Virgin, a beautiful church over 1,000 years old, where they incorporated traditional Catholic stations of the cross with excerpts from letters to and from soldiers of the Great War. Very moving.   

We’re within walking distance of a lively town center -- albeit that walking distance is over a mile.  Since I don’t have my cooking utensils yet we’ve taken advantage of local cuisine from around the empire. So far, we’ve dined on Italian, Indian, Moroccan, English, and French fare. In the middle of the town center is The Oracle, a shopping mall with over 80 stores, plus more than a dozen restaurants along the River Kennet just outside the mall. So whenever I need a little retail therapy, I consult the Oracle.

The Oracle Mall

So far, there haven’t been any major setbacks. We now have cable TV, internet, WiFi and a LAN line phone hooked up. We figured out the hot water system and I’m comfortable doing laundry with just the one machine. All is beginning to fall into place – although I managed to set off the smoke alarm when I broiled some lamb patties from the local Tesco supermarket. No big deal but it scared a few drops out of me. 

  For more pictures of our first impressions of Reading, click here.

________________________________

It’s The Little Things . . . 

I knew the outlets here accommodated plugs of a different shape, but I didn’t know the outlets would each have an on-off switch. Clever energy saver, that.