10 things I miss about England are:

1. The ability to travel so easily and CHEAPLY to see the world. Despite the many opportunities we had to travel through Europe while in England, there were still many places on my "list" that I had yet to see when we returned to the States. I have to admit that I get a little sad (and jealous) when my friends in England e-mail about their journeys to surrounding countries (particularly when they are visiting one of those remaining places on my list), reminding me that I don't have the same opportunities that I did when I was there.

2. The vacation time. I realise this goes hand in hand with #1, but whether or not we were travelling, it was just nice to be able to have time off when needed. I have recently started a new job here in the States and I get NO VACATION TIME for the first YEAR that I'm employed! (In England I had 28 vacation days beginning the day I started.) *Sigh*

3. The pace of life. In England, it was just me, Scott, and (eventually) Caleb. We did things whenever we wanted and had few pulls anywhere other than work. All of our evenings and weekends were for us to spend time together, relax, travel, get together with friends, etc... Since we've returned, every weekend (except maybe one) has had things booked that we've "had" to do. Though most of the scheduled responsibilities/events are quite enjoyable, it just isn't quite as "relaxing" as life used to be because we are always on the go.

4. Public transport. It's true, I absolutely love driving and while I was in England, I missed my car. However, I would love to have the option to take trains or trams at times. This allows you to travel and "zone out" while reading the "sketchy" free newspaper each day or finishing a book while commuting to work. And I really miss the days of riding trains with Scott and Caleb where we could all sit there, facing each other, walking around when necessary, and enjoy each other's company rather than constantly being strapped down in one seat facing the same direction during a journey.

5. Tea breaks every 2-3 hours. When I first moved to England, I made fun of their constant need to stop for tea during the day. It seemed quite excessive. And I was angry when they forced me to have a cuppa at 5:30a.m. every morning in the hospital after Caleb was born (despite the fact I was sleeping). It was never a practice I fully adopted into my daily routine. However, I've particularly discovered that I miss this tradition when in half or all-day trainings with work. Somehow it just helps break up the time a bit better.

6. Being within walking distance of most things. While it wasn't always pleasant in the less than desirable weather, I miss being able to just walk to the store or restaurant. It definitely ensured that I got a lot more exercise. Now, I feel like such a blob because I am driving everywhere - even when something may be within walking distance, there is not typically a sidewalk or crosswalks across busy streets to allow for the safe on-foot journey.

7. Markets. I loved going to our local markets, whether they carried fruits/vegetables, crafts, clothes, junk, etc.... they were just fun to peruse.

8. Christmas crackers. These are not edible treats (as all us Americans initially envisioned), but rather a fun little popping treasure chest filled with a crown, confetti, and small prizes in order to make Christmas dinner a bit more festive. Seriously, I'm lamenting their absence from my life this year. I went to World Market today in hopes of finding some there but, alas, there were none.

9. Less bugs. I had never thought of England as having few bugs, but we used to have our windows open (without screens) all the time, and I rarely found bugs in our home. Here in Texas, I feel like there are always ants, spiders, crickets, beetles, etc... lurking in every corner. And I don't know where they come from!

10. Diversity of food. While living in England, we adopted a much more eclectic palate, including: Indian curry, Spanish tapas dishes, Moroccan food, Portuguese chicken, Caribbean food, etc... These types of food could be found on every corner and they were oh so yummy! While restaurants of this nature can be found in the DFW area, they are much more scarce.

***Note: I purposefully used the British spellings as a tribute to the rest of the post. :)

Labels: England