Random musings

Long days: It starts getting bright very early in the morning - probably about 4:30 AM and does not get dark till 10 in the night. It looks at least one hour extra sunlight than US. Of course you can't precisely say when the sun rises since it is cloudy mostly :(. The boy has adapted to this well - too well I should say, since he is up at least by 5:30.

Hard water: Tap water is hard. You can taste it in the water and you can see it when you boil the water. It seems like all of England has this problem. We brought a Brita filter to get over this.

Smoking: You see smokers everywhere - in the open places in the malls, in bus stops, in parks. It is safe to conclude the number of smokers is much higher than the US.

Utilities: On first look, phone and internet seems to be cheaper than the US. You could get broadband internet for £10-15 a month, compared to $50 in US. And you don't get pushed into buying a package. Vonage gives unlimited landline calls for £6 a month, compared to $15 a month. A Sim-only mobile phone plan costs £10 a month for 300 minutes with unlimited in-network calling, compared to $40 a month. All these prices include taxes, whereas you can get caught by surprise with taxes in the US. We are still in a temporary place, so these numbers could be higher or lower when we find our own place.

People: In general, people you meet on the road are less friendly than the US - not many smile or say hello. In the US, our boy meets with a lot of compliments and smiling folks in the mall and the park, but not so much here. I should add that wife always gets asked if she needs help when she is trying to get the boy on the buggy (stroller) up or down the stairs.