This past week has been an absolute whirlwind. Hard to believe that over two and a half years have already come and gone. It seems like just yesterday we arrived to an empty flat, were eating chicken and peas on the floor using Union Jack paper plates, and I was complaining that the yogurt and the processed cheese I was used to was going to taste different and I wasn’t going to like it.
Well...fast forward! This experience has been nothing short of life-changing and truly incredible and boy did I find new foods to eat (so many different types of cheese, carmelized onion hummus and plain digestives!). In order to go out with a bang, we tried to cram in as much as possible this past week.
Recap of the week:
Wednesday, June 23rd – Drinks at Santo’s with the girls and then last Supper Club at... Supper Club Notting Hill!
Thursday, June 24th – Dinner with new ex-pats Jeannie (Spink) Sullivan, her husband Todd and new baby Natalie at Pizza Express in West Hampstead. A few firsts here: Seeing Jeannie and Todd in London and visiting West Hampstead. Cute town!
Friday, June 25th – Jimmy’s birthday drinks at The Clarendon. Never a dull moment when we got out with J&J. Well, add their other friends to the mix and you have one heck of a gathering.
Saturday, June 26th – US vs Ghana soccer game viewing at the American Sports Bar at the O2. Then on to see Bon Jovi!! I had not been to a concert in years, had never seen Bon Jovi or been to the O2! The Bonj didn’t disappoint and Livin on a Prayer was the best I’ve heard.
Sunday, June 27th – Picnic with Maria, Jeff and Theresa (who were also at Bon Jovi) in Ladbroke Square on a gorgeous day. Followed by a trip to The Mitre to watch England vs Germany in the World Cup. Germany defeats England, I had a lot to do in the flat but was convinced to go to the Ladbroke Arms for one more. 4 jugs of Pimms later and at about 7:30, I convinced the gang, which had now expanded to include Jimmy and Jason, to come back to our house while we packed. They didn’t want to leave and we didn’t want to leave them so we tried to hang out as long as possible. It soon was 9:30 and everyone headed home. Eric and I then started to pack...
Monday, June 28th – Packers arrived to box up our stuff, went to work then Eric and I decided to take a trip to Wimbledon for a little night action. Nicola had never been either so the three of us headed down there. We caught the end of a junior’s match, then watched the end of the Roddick and Nadal matches from Henman Hill.
Tuesday, June 29th – I received the most brilliant leaving video from Nic, Heather and Lucy. They re-wrote lyrics to the song ‘Goodbye My Friend’ by the Spice Girls, and made a music video of them singing with clips of my other colleagues waving goodbye. It was a perfect mix of comedy and sorrow. It was so special. Had my leaving drinks at the Marquis that ended with flip cup. Eric had his leaving do at Corny and Barrow and brought some of his guests (including Jimmy and Jason) to mine.
Wednesday, June 30th – Leaving lunch at work which I’m sure is bound to include Lemoncello. My liver is going to thank me once I move out of the UK.
On my last day, today at McCann, I’m beginning to think back on some of the great memories we’ll take with us. Some of my favourites are listed below. I know there are so many more that aren’t listed, but this is just a sampler.
- Our first trip to Brussels and Bruge on the Eurostar
- First Agency Christmas Party that was a disaster and ended with me on the couch at work the next day and getting sent home in the afternoon because I was too ill to work. My co-workers were proud; I was embarrassed.
- Being laughed at in my first client meeting for saying the world anti-ageing instead of antee-ageing.
- Basically learning a new language
- Greece Sept 08
- South Africa April 09
- Every one of the visitors that took the time and expense of flying over to see us or getting in touch if they were here on business/pleasure
- Proms in the Park
- Teaching my colleagues how to play flip cup at the agency summer party in ’09, then having them initiate the play at the black tie Christmas party later in the year.
- Meeting some of the greatest, most unique people we will ever know
- Picnics in Ladbroke Square Garden
- Three Peaks Challenge
- Our final week in London
- And many many many more...
Goodbye England. I’ll miss you.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment