A New American Perspective on Eurodon

Manny does it again

2009-05-03T06:41:00.001-07:00

Best pound for pound fighter!!

I am one happy and proud Filipino!!!

.....cont

2009-04-24T15:37:00.000-07:00

Friday, April 24: High Street Ken Odeon (movie theatre) automated ticket machines not working

Hand dryers in ladies bathroom at Sainsburys not working

.....cont

2009-04-23T10:03:00.000-07:00

Thursday, April 23: On hold with Virgin Atlantic for 10 minutes then call dropped.

ATM at Sainsburys smothered with big Out Of Order sign.

.....cont

2009-04-22T13:03:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, April 22: One exit barrier at David Lloyds yellow taped

Though it's a recurring mishap and probably not worth mentioning here as it's not worth mentioning defunct London transport, Internet in my flat dropped for a good 5 minutes - we have O2.

Jeppe told me about the soap dispensers in ALL bathrooms at his uni (London College of Communication) not empty and not working. What's it replaced with? BAR SOAP FOR ALL TO SHARE. One word - EW!

Things That Don't Work

2009-04-16T05:44:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Jeppe joked that it would have been a great idea if we started a blog when we first moved here on things that don't work in London. Everyday we would update it with things erratic in the city, whether people, places or things and perhaps, we thought, this would justify all the rantings to date and better explain to people who ask us what we mean when we complain about things not working.

So, I thought, what inspiration to start doing this on my blog adjacent to my other great observations. :)

Wednesday, 15 April: Bus 74 broke down while I was on it. Circle line was down. Most Londoners know that disrupted public transport is daily routine in the city, but still, most logical ways for me to get home were not working. Despite the jet lag, I decided to walk home.

My test result from the doc's office should have been ready by now, as the test was conducted about a month ago. Conclusion? There's a backlog...won't be ready for 4-6 more weeks.

Why are the party foods placed in between ice and frozen desserts at Sainsburys? You'd see the absurdity of this if you saw - food placements don't make sense there. We can never find anything.

Thursday, 16 April: Website and phone number of Acton Angling does not work (we are trying to find a particular carp fishing rod for Jeppe's dad).

Talking Book Store's website, a company based in Putney, is working but the Advanced Search option doesn't. So we can buy a book but we have to search through the numerous pages. Doesn't exactly work for me seeing as I know exactly what I want.

Going to Denmark this weekend, so London gets off for the next few days...

Viva Las Vegas

2009-04-06T23:38:00.000-07:00

It's been a long time since I've written on here. I apologise to those of you following my travels and crude observations, especially family and friends in America where international costs and time difference make simple phone calls and texts impractical.

I have no real purpose for this post but to say hi and I'm alive and I'm actually visiting home - Vegas - at the moment.

In respect to the actual purpose of my blog, part of my absence is due to the realisation that the constant disappointment I was experiencing in London and the cathartic splurge on this page was becoming unhealthy and only contributed more to my solemn attitude. Since my last post, many things have changed - I have a more positive outlook with London, or I've tried at the least. February weather the exception.

Now I am home for a visit of 2/3 weeks and can say for the first time that I don't really miss London and the rest of the 'continent', as a Brit once phrased Europe.

It is April. The sun is out. It's convertible/t-shirt weather. People you don't know actually talk to you in a neighborly manner (took me a good few days to get used to again!). People have manners. There's a thing called Customer Service. Everything is cheaper. You get quality and more for your money. I actually leave the gym challenged and recharged. People actually smile and talk at the gym. Food is better. So is TV and the cinema. Speaking of which, movie theatres are maintained. Mass grocery shopping doesn't take a toll on the body. I don't climb 6 flights of stairs to get to my living room. I can ride my bike outside and cross the street without fearing my life. Parking and valet is free. Public restrooms are clean. Wait, most public anything is clean. I don't have to touch a toilet flush. Anywhere. There's selection. Everywhere. Did I mention that people are really friendly? Retail and business employees actually know how to help when you have a question. I got a massage for $40. I also got a massage for $15. It took almost 10 calls to Virgin Atlantic to get my flight changed and find someone who knew what they were doing in the UK company whereas I've made multiple phone inquiries here resulting in complete efficiency and competence. Things work. Starbucks baristas get your order the first time. Target and Walmart, enough said. People are losing their jobs but they smile and say it will get better. Gas went down and Obama is our freakin President.

I return to London in about a week and look forward to the European city hops planned for the coming months. Although I'm experiencing Americana-rama at the moment, I pledge from this point forward to attempt a more virtuous observation of Eurodon upon return and shall reclaim my role as a blogster.

Copenhagen Graffiti

2009-01-12T09:29:00.000-08:00

This will only be really understood by my friend Abid who once visited me in Copenhagen and found the city's graffiti as witty as I did. This is in his honor of his recent 'Berlin Graffiti' post as I recalled our days in Copenhagen reading tags such as "187 = Murder" and the like. You may not get the extent of absurdity, but surely you'll see its irony.

On the contrary..

2009-01-12T08:50:00.000-08:00

Ok I know I'm on this positivity and London glorification streak but today I experienced a bit of a drawback. For one, the rest of the week's weather forecast is cloudy and rainy but thank goodness I'm off to Barcelona on Friday. London gets off easy with this one.

But get this - and it's not a surprise to Brits if you ask one - they slack at work and oftentimes the processes and proofs of identity required to get stuff done is absolutely moronic and a complete waste of time. Before I get into this, I want to site David Williams' character named Carol Beer, a British woman working in a US hospital. The gist of her character is that she 'can't be bothered' to do, well, anything. She always tells patients that the "computer says no" to anything they query. If anyone wants to know what it's like running errands in London and getting anything done, just watch a skit of Carol Beer and you will get the gist. Basically, you will leave unsatisfied and frustrated.

Today I went to Natwest to upgrade my bank accout from STEP (a student account) to anything else. I was ensured a few months ago that this would be possible as soon as I got my first pay stub. Well I went in and I went prepared, knowing whoever helped me might ask for something that the other attendant didn't, like a phone and/or utility bill, council tax, national insurance number, 10 proofs of identity, gym membership, Blockbuster card, computer serial number, and airline and supermarket rewards cards. I brought everything you could think of except Natwest statements. And what did this person tell me I was missing? An original Natwest statement - no copies.

Why on earth would they need a copy of something that came out of their own system? But fine, I'm quite tolerant at the moment and I wasn't surprised as this happens ALL THE TIME in Britain. It takes 10 days to get anything done here that would take a few hours in the States. Just to get a sense of having something and anything done in regards to my bank account, I asked questions such as what kind of account could I switch to, would there be an annual fee, can I add additional users to the account, etc. You know what he said? "I can give you that information when you come in next time."

I said, "Well I live right down the road; I could grab the rest that is needed." He replied, "We're closing in 20 minutes so you could come in tomorrow and I'd be glad to help." What he meant was, "I'm lazy and I hate working and I don't want you to come back when I have 10 minutes til I'm off."

The woman who helped me before told me that all I need is a pay stub to show proof of employment and that I am no longer a student. This is why I waited until now to change it and not in October when I inquired in the first place. She never said anything about needing an original Natwest account statement.

There are ALWAYS inconsistencies in what people tell you here. Either the systems are flawed or the people are lazy and/or stupid.

One more thing before I get myself wound up...I popped into the post office to mail a package to the Philippines. There are pens available to the public but they are on a narrow table in which the line forms alongside. Because the line was to a certain length, I could not access the pens so I asked the lady behind the counter - very nicely - if I could borrow one of her pens (she had a bunch of them in front of her). She said no, "They are over there for you to use."

IT IS VERY HARD TO STAY POSITIVE IN A PLACE THAT BREEDS DISAPPOINTMENT AT EVERY CORNER.

I Love London Again

2009-01-07T13:55:00.000-08:00

After two hectic weeks in foreign countries - Christmas in Denmark and New Years in Morocco - I remember why I love London. And for everything I've complained about aimlessly as a result of Jeppe's anti-American antics or Bill Maher's bitching or Michael Moore's righteousness and all the related American denunciation, worthy or not, for once London is the closest thing to home. As a result of the abovementioned, I realise I've gradually built a defense mechanism for what I call home which engineered a heating pot of contempt toward European arrogance. Being away from America's sister country, however, I've realised I've been wrong and all it's been probably results from being with someone who is Danish, from one of the 'most happy' and prosperous societies in the world. Of course this issue is up for debate and I'll be the first to argue it if anyone is interested.

But that is besides the point. I apologise for being overly critical about my experiences here in previous posts. I've been a victim of stereotyping and am guilty for the exact thing I hate hearing about "Americans". Between Jeppe and I, in fact, we joke that I'm starting to sound like Bill O'Reilly. I guess it's funny but maybe not if you know my temper.

The point, being that my title for this post is "I Love London Again", is that it is great to be home! You can how Denmark turned out. Morocco, well, we ended up leaving 5 days early. So bad we tossed our return tickets and bought new one-way fares instead. Expensive ones. Alas we are home and upon reflection I've realised a few things.

For one, Morocco is the 'most accessible' Arab country in the world according to travel experts. Indeed it was interesting hearing Allah Akbar 6 times a day, meeting Moroccan Muslims, and learning about a country fused with French culture, well language really. What we learned, on the contrary, is that it wasn't the 'most accessible' country by any means. Our naivety foremost was a hindrance as was the language barrier. I've experienced French arrogance before, but after our recent Paris visit for Alyssa's birthday, my opinions were slightly retracted. The French's love affair with their language - even in Marrakech - revived my French loathing.

Two, the recent Israeli/Gaza business resulted in a Morocco warning email in my inbox. Americans in the area, mainly Casablanca, were instructed to keep a low profile. A few travelers we met camping out in the Zagora desert (after camel riding, one of the cooler things we did) said a group of 300 children swarmed their train on the way from Tangier to Marrakech. As the kids were screaming 'Gringos!' climbing the carriage and breaking into the windows, the tour guide translated that they were saying, "Kill Obama, Kill Obama". Obviously this was immediately after his statement on Israel. Luckily they survived the aggression after the tour guide whipped out chains and started hitting the kids away, defending their clients. Why he had chains on him is beyond me.

Similarly, we were circled around the souks in Marrakech for about 30 minutes. It came to a point where I almost cried with my mind questioning whether I've watched one too many movies or whether I should be realistic. We were led into some really dodgy alley ways where we seemed to be far from the central square. Honestly, I was thinking that someone put a price tag on 'gringo' heads and the person with whom we seeked direction (and couldn't really communicate with) saw dollar sign opportunity. After bothering him several times as this fellow continuously walked 100 feet ahead of us, we arrived near the square. Jeppe tipped him 20 durhams (Moroccan currency). The young man saw he had two other 20s wadded up with it and demanded them as well.

This is not the only instance where we were ripped off. Basically it happened all the time. We had a tour guide one day who was honest. He had told us we were paying way too much for everything. At the same time, we couldn't make a fuss in a foreign country. Usually you respect their customs, but in Morocco we were just getting haggled. Worst off, Jeppe's American Express got hacked by £8,000!

A group of young men also asked us to buy alcohol for them wherein Jeppe agreed yet I felt hesitant. Little did we know when we arrived to the alcohol section of the store, there was hefty security with a gate and people congregating in front trying to get in. I asked someone inside if what we were doing was safe, and I'll never forget the way he said no. Let's just say I was scared to see the disappointment and reaction of the guy outside.

One night we asked a cab driver to take us to a Japanese restaurant providing a written address since communication was impossible. He said no and took us to another one. Once he dropped us off, Jeppe gave him the bill and waited for change. Of course this did not happen, and the guy drove off in his taxi. Finding out the restaurant was booked - it being New Years Eve - we went out hailing cabs asking them one by one if they could take us to the initally planned Japanese restaurant. Three or four times they each said no. After a while we freaked out being stranded in the middle of no where, and of course it was impossible to retrace our path to the hotel as there are no street signs anywhere. Well in the end we got our sushi and found out the cab drivers may have denied us because it is located behind a nightclub infamous to their foreign gay clientele.

On a night stroll, a man screamed out the car window to us after Jeppe had squeezed me next to him. Granted we respect their culture and the fact their women serve more oppressed roles, I also felt it was evening and quiet and it wasn't exactly the most boisterous PDA.

Thirdly, it was more expensive than we thought. Hotel was averaging £100/night and they were filthy. Coming from Vegas I know my expectations are a bit unrealistic, but really, these places were not worth £100.

At one stall, a vendor asked for 3,000 durhams for 3 articles of Moroccan clothing. This is over $300!! I've been to poor countries - the Philippines and Mexico, swapmeets across the States, etc; these people were unreasonable.

Which brings me to my fourth point - absent modernisation. Though once a French colony, Marrakech is wholeheartedly an Islamic nation and quite conventional in many ways (though it was fun to see the enthusiasm of our tour guide when he eagerly said cell phone integration in their city in the last 7-8 years is major progress). Reminiscent of Mexico, many of the buildings are half-done or have been left alone to rot. Young children work in labor. It seems there is no regulation anywhere - with safety, traffic, health.. Outside of the Medina, the oldest part of the city, is where many tourists tend to reside and in these areas it is hard to find things we have on our doorstep.

During our desert tour to the Zagora desert, we passed many towns. Many towns which were so poor. There is an evident potential for a tourism industry but no doubt will it take at least 20 years before any growth should appear. We found out during our Zagora tour that we paid almost double as everyone else and we didn't get the English guide as promised, we left 45 minutes late, and the driver wasn't willing to stop upon request which was also promised. Eight hours to Zagora and eight hours back with no vanguard wasn't exactly enlightening. We passed through Ourzazate to Ait Benhaddou were many films such as Gladiator, Babel, Black Hawk Down, Mummy, and The Hills Have Eyes II were shot, but we were unable to ask any questions to our guide or anyone in these towns really. Speaking English would indefinitely help expand their market.

Internet was rare and even if there was an internet transaction such as hotel or car reservations, no confirmation emails were sent so we would spend time and money getting from place to place just to make sure we had a roof the next day. We initially rented a car to tour Morocco ourselves, but changed our minds after seeing that GPS rental is non-existent and virtually no street signs exist in the country. That, plus everyone in Marrakech highly recommended we make alternate plans because of safety.

What I thought was going to provide a wider array of fish and fruit and price than Great Britain ended up being a narrow selection of tangine, mint tea, stale bread, and canned foods.

Perhaps I watch too much CNN and Fox. Nevertheless I didn't feel comfortable, safe, and the trip ended up being more work than vacation. We had false expectations thinking it would be a warm holiday to a relatively near exotic and cheap location. Sure it was warm but the latter two definitely not. Finally, it was nearly impossible to get around if you don't speak a lick of French. They don't even want to try understanding your non-verbal cues. I thought a trip to Morocco would be an adventure but it was really a ginormous migraine headache.

Arriving London gave me foresight into entering heaven. I appreciate everything now and I won't complain for at least a few weeks. :) Sainsburys is like a dream come true as is being able to talk to people, a simple pleasure often taken for granted. Several officers addressed me in the airport regarding a landing card and for each it took me several seconds to snap back into my native tongue. And they smiled. Perhaps things like this have happened before but I've been so wrapped up in my I Love America World that I've failed to acknowledge it.

We've been back since Monday, a few days now, and the real vacation has been enjoyed. I'm lovin London and for the first time in a few years, I feel quite optimistic and excited about my birthday. It's my last bit of hope to celebrate the final part of the holidays with fun and normalcy as Christmas in Denmark and New Years in Morocco have been foreign experiences, both literally and figuratively.

Morocco pictures will be shared soon and similar to my Demark pictures, they're the better, more sugar coated parts of the trip. :)

"In Denmark"

2008-12-27T13:50:00.000-08:00

Danes are proud. "In Denmark..." is probably the most common phrase begun with every sentence.

"In Denmark, we display hearts everywhere in honor of our Queen."

"In Denmark, we grow produce organically and drink water straight from the tap."

"In Denmark, we sometimes cut our own Christmas trees."

"In Denmark, it is cold and as a result so are the people."

"In Denmark, the average person has blue eyes and blonde hair."

"In Denmark, we have buildings older than America. This is the oldest building in Denmark." ...and this is a literal quote.

"In Denmark, 5% of the population are church-goers. We rely on logic, reasoning, and science and neglect emotion and diversity to make sense of the world."

In Denmark, the average Danish Christmas dinner takes a marathon to burn off. And during Christmas dinner and opening presents, we sit in a structural circle and are each given individual time to speak and open gifts, respectively."

"In Denmark, we light our Christmas tree with candles and only light them up for two days: on the 24th eve & 25th. We also hold hands walking around the tree singing Christmas songs on the 24th eve, and we only sing them in Danish even if there are English counterparts for guests to participate. It is, afterall, tradition."

"In Denmark, I had one person who could understand and see that Danes constantly promote Danish things."

"In Denmark, I learned Danish humor from Jeppe's brother, but I also learned that I am not Danish, will never be Danish, and have a long time before I stop questioning Danish customs, traditions, manners or lack of."

Denmark is indeed a great society and at the end of the day, of course I embrace the culture and its people because I appreciate its antagonistic qualities from my own. However, the most I can say is that it is a small country and appears to suffer from the small country inferiority complex.

Christmas in a Jiffy

2008-12-27T13:25:00.001-08:00

I've been completely out of touch with my blog over the holidays! Just got back from a week in Copenhagen. As some of you know, I lived in the city for 3 months before and was hoping for a different, perhaps better experience. In ways I was satisfied and in others the question is questionable. The city itself had better spirit and I guess it explains that there are two seasons in which Danes are 'sociable' - the summer and Christmas. Tis true, though to American or Filipino standards they are by far far from it. Apparently it is because I don't get the humour, because meaning is lost in translation, because I am biased or what have you. The countryside and its mindset is another story. Nevertheless there is a mouthful of rave as well as criticism I find with the culture and so continues one of my most problematic dilemmas with a country I both admire and despise. Twas my first Christmas away from home and indeed it was an interesting one. For the sake of some of my Danish readership and in honor of obvious cross-cultural complexities, I will leave it at that. I am, however, quite bullheaded about the topic so if it ever comes up, more than a paragraph of words should surely arise. Just ask. Will be posting pictures soon from the trip, most of which will portray the more transparent backdrop of my experience.

Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree

2008-12-15T14:56:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to wish everyone Happy Holidays and share my little Christmas tree with you. Hope you are keeping sane with the Christmas crowds and watching thou favorite holiday movies. Seasons greetings, Arctic Puffins! xoxo

Pinoy Pride!

2008-12-08T03:14:00.000-08:00

That's right. Our hero Manny Pacquiao, by technical knockout, painlessly defeated the Dress Wearing De La Hoya in the 8th round this past Saturday night. Thousands of miles away and about 15 hours later, I was able to watch the fight. We pledged not to open any news tabs the entire day to watch the fight with complete unpredictability and how sweet it was to see a national superman, or shall I say "Pacman", beat the crap out of the Golden Boy, who I thought looked all-show in the De La Hoya vs Pacquiao HBO pre-boxing special. Just because you can afford a lodge at Big Bear to prepare and have your training team wear matching branded t-shirts doesn't mean anything! Pacquiao, on the other hand, humbly trained in an old gym in LA with a head coach who has Parkinsons and bunked with something like 10+ of his friends.

Pacquaio deserves his triumph not only because of his undeniable talent but also because he is a national hero to the Filipinos. Even to Filipino-Americans who have prospered in life yet have seen the struggles of our moms and dads, Pacquiao manages to give us pride and hope for our titos, titas, ates, kuyas, and "boys" abroad.

The Philippines enjoyed their liberation in 1946; this is an independence that has existed only 62 years! After 400 years of Spanish colonization, Japanese occupancy during much of WWII, and about 10 years of an American commonwealth, it was national heroes such as Jose Rizal and Andres Bonifacio who Filipinos adhered to. Unfortunately political turmoil led to a dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos and a declaration of martial law, which has resulted in a country suffering from violence, corruption, poverty, and diminishing economy.

Today, Manny Pacquiao is the new liberation. He is the answer to the depressions Filipinos face. He represents the strength of the people and their battles to be won. Pacquiao has helped bring attention back to the Philippines giving us a sense of pride aside from our infamous adobo, San Miguel, and expatriat/part-pinoy celebrities such as Enrique Iglesias, J-Lo's ex-hub Cris Judd, Dante Basco (Rufio from the movie Hook), Tia Carrere (sphincter says what?), Lou Diamond Philips, Phoebe Cates, Rob Schneider, and Nicole Scherzinger from the Pussycat Dolls. Pacquiao is the full Filipino monty, however, 100% straight from the PI Islands. You get this in his admirable tongue and the fact he prays and signals the Trinity every 5 minutes.

As Barack Obama does for African-Americans, Manny Pacquiao inspires hope to every citizen despite any negativity that surrounds them on a racial as well as national level. And like America, the Filipino people are not synonymous to their politics. Manny personifies the struggles in each one of us and exhibits that hard work pays off. Whether he is physically small (originally weighing in at 106), uneducated, or just a one-hit wonder, Manny continues to fight and achieve success - the same happy ending and dream Filipinos incessantly seek.

He's done this all without forgetting where he came from, a trait admirable to what I think is important to any minority or second generation immigrant. Like all Filipinos, he sings karaoke whenever he gets the chance and surrounds himself with his "pares". He also gives back to the people in monetary contributions, food donations, charities, community service, and has even personally appeared on the streets to hand out giveaways.

Pacquiao is the symbol of what has been lacking in sports for awhile. Someone who came from the bottom and rose to the top. Uncomparable but most definitely akin to Muhammad Ali, I'd also like to think of Pacquiao as a Thrilla in Manila as he's created such an impact to his country and other places in the world. In America his name is becoming, if not already, a common household name.

My dad emailed me with the simple text, "We should be proud of our kababayan. I did not expect the fight to go like that. Pacman out boxed and outsmarted the golden boy." ("kababayan" meaning to belong to the same bayan, town, or province; on a larger scale, it refers to the country, of being fellow countrymen.) This is coming from someone who has been living in the States almost more of his life than his native home.

We identify with Pacquiao. He gives us optimism and inspiration and shows we won't give up up a fight without that left jab. He is a fast and strong fighter yet smiles like a little boy who just found out dinner is at Jollibee.

I would LOVE to see him fight Hatton next. For all the frustrations I've tolerated in this toothless country, I fancy to see Pacman knock out the overly-confident, Manchesterian speech-impediment-stricken rumbler. Until then, I will enjoy Pacquiao's victory! Hip-hip-horrahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Bad Karma

2008-12-07T11:33:00.000-08:00

Just when I said the park was the one place that hasn't disappointed me yet, I was proven wrong. Today a squirrel attacked me and jumped on my leg. I felt its nails dig into my leg as it curiously stared my plastic bag down. See what he or she is eating here? Yeah, that was mine.

You don't get what you pay for.

2008-12-06T04:01:00.000-08:00

Forget travelling to underdeveloped countries to help the modesties of less 'fortunate' places. There is no hot water...again! This is the third time in the less than two months we've lived in this flat. How is it possible London landlords are able to ask for the same amount of rent - more actually - than what we were paying to live in a bigger and newer with additional amenities, high rise, 1 bedroom condo..on the Las Vegas Strip no less!? And to have the audacity to deny our offer of £20 less a week from what he was asking when he can't even guarantee essential hot water.

Now, I want to clarify that I am not being a demanding American. If we weren't paying for it or if we were in a place that would excuse such deficiencies (and I have experienced living with a lack of plumbing in the Philippines without complaint), I would have no reason to throw a fit or bitch about the Brits. The problem is, this wouldn't happen anywhere else. And if it did, it wouldn't take 5 days to fix which is how long it took last time this happened. And(!!) perhaps the freaking rent wouldn't be as expensive.

I never have hateful feelings towards specific individuals but when I think abstractly of London as a civil whole, I think they are incompetent and benefit from a prosperous stereotype that they undeservingly possess.

PS In regards to my previous post on incompetent and lazy people, I went to Boots yesterday, was curious about this eye cream (because this city is advancing my ageing!), and asked the young lady behind the counter how much it costs. She walks to the open shelving, at which any customer could look him/herself, to look for the product and price. After about 20 seconds, she walks back to me and says she can't find it but there's a woman who might know how much it costs but she doesn't know when she'll be back. Then....a moment of silence. Hmmm how very helpful, as I was thinking in my head what an idiot she was. I'm glad we get what we pay for here.

Oh, and don't get me started on the Internet, its service and its speed. Seriously, it the worse I've ever experienced.

Incompetent Brits

2008-12-04T15:25:00.000-08:00

Last week when my sister was here, on two consecutive days, we went to a trendy young women's store called Warehouse found on most UK high streets. It's somewhere in between Contempo and BeBe but way more on the former lean with prices closer to the latter. On day one, one of the employees was organizing some clothes and a massive glass shelf shattered on her right before all our eyes. Luckily no one was hurt. This is not the incompetency I am speaking of however. This same employee, quite a pretty Asian - or as they call "Oriental" here (yes, like a rug or the type of food) - rung up our purchases. This was after the other employee stood behind the till for like 5 minutes without looking up, said we had to wait, and straight walked away! So the oriental brit chick rings us up after my sister's request of two separate transactions since each would be paid with different payments. The first transaction had my bag, priced at £39. When she disclosed our total price, I thought there was some sort of discount I didn't know about because it was really cheap. To keep the long story short, when we got outside Alyssa checked the receipt. The girl from the orient forgot or mistakenly rung it up. My bag was free.

Watched Changeling a few days ago and was in one of the two lines available. There was one person in front of me and as the last one in the other line walked away, I waited where I was for the ticket handler to give me a nod. But like many other instances where I'm learning about a 5 minutes of nothingness, another patron walked straight to his window where he then assisted in the person's ticket purchase. He blatantly looked at me but didn't offer to help which was, by golly, his job. So, I continued to wait in my original line where I was eventually helped.

On the contrary, there have been times I've encountered complete competency. It's mostly occurred when I haven't had to interact with anyone (then again we were at Sainsbury's tonight at a defective self-service machine and a shop assistant had to come over for some fixing, nay, it wasn't us). I've tried running a bit again at Hyde Park. It's been really nice with all the moisture in the cold air. My joints pop and crack for every vertical movement I make now, but the runs have made all the poor experiences in London go away, perhaps even well worth it. There's something special about a park in the middle of a bustling metropolis. It's big with lakes and endless walking, running, and cycling paths. It's spotted with greenery from head to toe and, touched on before, is currently the site for Winter Wonderland. The park offers opportunity for quiet time with a brush of nature, squirrels, swans, birds, and ducks. Lately it's been some of the best alone times I've had in London. And it's the one place where no one could possibly exhibit multiple examples of ineptitude or laziness I've experienced.

When we walked into Sainsbury's earlier there was a security guard catechizing this little girl for a Christmas stuffed animal he thought was stolen. The little girl was with her younger sister and mom, who was explaining to the guard that this was hers from the forefront. Now, Christmas items at Sainsbury's are currently marked half-off. I haven't seen anything above £10 since the holiday price cut. You would think the security guard had better things to do with his time than bother this family. But there's a briton for ya and yet another example of lacking intuition.

At least I got a free bag out of it...

(note to localites-i'm completely taking the piss ok!)

Pictures worth a thousand words

2008-11-27T15:38:00.000-08:00

I've been absent a few weeks now playing around in London and Paris, where we spent my sister's 20th birthday. Here is a slew of pictures of us enjoying holiday festivities. I'll miss my sister :(

Josh Hartnett in Rain Man

Walking Hyde Park

Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace

Harrod's bear couch :)

St. Paul's Cathedral

Billy Elliot

Sloane Square

Alyssa's 20th in Paris!

Arc de Triomphe

Walking to Eiffel Tower

Soldiers with machine guns on the streets...scary!

Atop the Tower

Toast to her 20th

Last hours on Champs Élysées...

...and so so tired!

Winter Wonderland at Hyde Park - London

Why there was a gorilla going around scaring people at the Wonderland, I don't know!

Uber slide!!!

Thanksgiving at the Texas Embassy

Customer service sucks in Britain

2008-11-15T01:54:00.000-08:00

It's as simple as that. I wasn't going to blog about this as I feel it's turning into a rant fest when my experiences here aren't all that bad. However, I woke up this morning to no hot water and this is not the first time it's happened. The fact that nothing works in Britain is a whole other story so I will save that for another time. It did set the mood for the day and reminded me I should just complain about what happened yesterday, what I attempted to ignore.

Yesterday my sister and mom joined my gym as guests. To keep the long story short, after much difficulty getting some customer service but after finally getting it sorted and paying £56 each (!!) for a mere 12 days, the front desk woman asked my sister if she could call me and just have me show her around. Now, for £56 I think they should show their asses around. Pardon my French, but that is just rediculous. That is not even half the story or battle, but it put the cherry on top.

You get what you pay for back home. Things work and if they don't you can get them fixed for a consistent amount of time. Here nothing works, nothing gets done, and nobody wants to work. How has this economy gotten to such a successful state? So frustrating!

Vegas girls come to play

2008-11-13T15:40:00.000-08:00

My mom and sis have finally arrived L-town! This is my mom's first time in Europe (even though I don't really consider London traditionally European) and Alyssa's second. I think she'll enjoy it this time around more since she's spending her big 2-0 on the 24th. We're thinking Paris!

My sister's first request was lunch at Pret no less. I then wanted to see the look on my mom's face upon exiting Westminster station where the glorious Big Ben, Parliament, and Westminster Abbey reside. My mom, a very cautious person, seems up for anything these days, one of which includes the London Eye. This is major coming from someone who squirms in an elevator. Should be a fun two weeks.

We ended a long walk through Trafalgar Square up to Piccadilly Circus, where my sister has her name written all over it.

Finally we went to our local major Sainsburys and coming from two American girls who are used to large supermarkets, it was nice to see them have an easy time finding what they were looking for. I often complain because I'm the latter, then again I want a big slab of swordfish for $5, not a diet deprived white fish for $11. I think I'm just missing cheaper, larger portions of anything from home but at least now I have a year's supply of pretzels thanks to my mom.

Speaking of my mom, she has been such a sport considering she had reconstructive surgery on both feet less than a year ago and rarely has elevator options here, except of course -and luckily- at Westminster which is on the Jubilee line ;) ...And as mentioned in my previous blog, you know what I think about London, the diabled, injured, sick and the like.

Having two enthusiastic tourists will be a breath of fresh air. The only thing commented, which will never be surpassed from either locals or tourists - the weather!!!!!!

Roll Out

2008-11-11T15:19:00.000-08:00

Had a very interesting conversation today with a colleague at work. I've recently noticed a lack of accommodating the disabled. There are no ramps. Limited underground stations have lifts. And let's not forget the impatient and rushing traffic in London. There are stairs and there are way too many people that appear stressed to catch a train that will have one proceed it within minutes. I feel bad for the disabled here; well there are none. They wouldn't survive in such a place. Nor would an injured person, someone rehabilitated, or someone recovering from either. I'll even go to the extent of saying someone with the flu. Has anyone here heard of equal opportunity? There are plenty of disabled that are fully capable of the same things we do and have in this city, and I think they are entitled to the same freedoms. A bad strike of luck and unfortunate nature shouldn't say otherwise.

There's a movie called Music Within. Though I'm a flick-o-phile and appreciate just about any movie, it has to be one of my favorites in its genre - the inspriational. It's based on the true story of Richard Pimentel, a gifted public speaker who loses his hearing in the Vietnam War. He befriends a disabled fellow and becomes a pivotal figure in creating the Americans with Disabilities Act. I don't want to give too much away for I hope some of you will watch it after this puffery. Despite the drama and pancake humor (you'll see when/if you watch it), the significant element of the plot is the Disabilities Act and the realization of its importance to Americans and American infrastructure.

The Disability Act, signed by Bush Sr, has 5 parts:
1) Employment
2) Public Services and Transportation
3) Public Accommodation and Commercial Facilities
4) Telecommunications
5) Misc provisions

The law entitled the disabled equal opportunity in all the above stated. It's Title II and III which strikes me as I walk the streets of London.

The conversation with my colleague digressed into any and everything that doesn't really work in London, either because it's too old, the city wasn't built to accommodate such volumes, public apathy etc etc etc. Not to say that Brits aren't today integrating facilities for the disabled or injured. For example, the Jubilee line which runs northwest to southeast London is one of the newest if not the newest underground route and majority of the stations have lifts, Braille, and are more spacious. However, unless one is traveling from Maida Vale to London Bridge, it is beyond me how one would live, work, and be mobile within the city.

Ask anyone over here and they'll tease about the stereotypical people in electric wheelchairs at Walmart or the more transparent existence they have in the States in general. They may wonder why on Earth it's in the States you see these kinds of people - perhaps they're lacking or lacked the health care to prevent them from even being disabled - but I'm also thinking it's because we accommodate them to do the basic things we all do. Even if that means getting up a ramp to eat somewhere, riding the bus with their crutches or wheelchair, or shopping at Walmart. They are apparent in the public sphere. Can't say so much here. (My colleague later told me about a time he walked up Downing Street and saw picketing disabled protesting exactly what I'm talking about.)

Watch Music Within - you'll be amazed at what you notice within your city's framework and the importance of it.

God Save the Americans

2008-11-05T02:12:00.000-08:00

It was a new dawn for me last night as I stayed up until the wee hours of 4am GMT to watch the numbers come in during the presidential race. I went to an election party last night held by Americans Away From Home. Predominantly occupied by Americans, the party felt more British with the catered cucumber sandwiches, pub atmosphere, and lack of organization. Even so, it beat watching CNN coverage over BBC on election day. And who could miss CNN show off all their gadgety things, especially the launch of Jessica Yellin's hologram.

The organizer of the party made a champagne toast soonafter the results of Ohio were released. One of her closing remarks was, "I know this is silly, it's really silly, but I've prayed every night for this to happen...."

There is nothing "silly" about praying everyday for this victory to happen. I often think Americans/religious people/a combination of both feel they have to walk on eggshells when they're anywhere but home, especially when it's an American citing their faith. Granted there's reason to, we should be proud of our values and stand tall. Especially now. When the close race of Georgia was projected, someone - an American - cried, "Stupid Americans!". Though it's a common stereotype, I don't think this is the time to underestimate our intelligence. THAT was a stupid American. I don't think Americans are stupid, per say; I think it is more a matter of being uninformed, to an extent of perhaps ignorance. We are not, however, incapable of processing information, having opinions, and making decisions on our own - being stupid more than anyone else.

This is a time we should stick together and be proud of our country, what we believe in, and aim for progress in our country. Shoot, if there is something out there, he or she sure heard our prayers because history has been made and we're up for a vivid future. Change and Obama - our daily cup of tea from here on out! YES WE CAN.

Why I Love London

2008-11-04T00:30:00.000-08:00

Despite the often depressing, gloomy weather, high prices, stressful living conditions, crowdedness, and impersonal people, London is still one of the greatest places on Earth. And let me tell you why (I pulled an Obama there, like that?!). I think one of its greatest assets is its diversity and culture. For one, I don't think London embodies typical British culture aside from the pubs and individual reservation, although the latter could be a product of any metropolis of mass population. Nevertheless it is this mass population that is rich in diversity and one of the main reasons I'm always driven back to this city. It buzzes with its own history while it makes history with people from all over the world. Unlike many Americans, when a person here says (s)he is Italian, (s)he is not just talking race but also culture. (S)he may know a thing or two about the customs aside from spaghetti, pizza, and a last name that ends in "i". There's something exciting and enlightening about being in a place where there are people from all corners of the world.

I played tourist this weekend as we had guests in town from Denmark. I showed them around a number of places I thought they would find novel such as Brick Lane, an authentic Japanese restaurant (which is hard to find where they are from), Columbia Flower & Spitalfield Market, and Tower Bridge, which okay, the latter three I'll hand to the Brits. Of course Big Ben and the South Bank was in there somewhere, and I'll admit that the House of Parliament is a glorious structure.

The main two occasions that really gave me the London buzz was strolling down Brick Lane. As LondonTown puts it, "Brick Lane Market is pure East End London, which means Jewish bagel shops, Bangladeshi curry houses, Indian sari silks - and Cockneys crying out their wares. This chaotic, bustling market is half way between jewel and junk heap. It attracts lots of young Londoners, in search of second-hand furniture, unusual clothes and bits of this-and-that." It continues to say that the joy of this market is that you never know what you'll find, anything from cheap leather clothes and old magazines to Art Deco. Places like Brick Lane make you feel like you've escaped the city.

The second event over the weekend was when I watched, and don't laugh, "Heartthrobs London UK 2008" at the London Palladium, the original venue for Sound of Music. Heartthrobs showcased what I would describe as a mix between variety entertainment Filipino style and basically the Brad Pitt of the Philippines singing and talking to the audience. Alongside the infamous pinoy audience, I felt like I was back in Manila. I also felt at home despite being thousands of miles away.

Even though London, or any big city, can give you feelings of lonesomeness, at times these big cities like London make up for it in its rich culture and diversity. There are secret places throughout the capital that can make you feel both at home and enlightingly foreign. Now...if only the sun would come out and the dollar go up!

Make me sweat

2008-11-01T06:04:00.000-07:00

Today I submitted my first feedback card at my local gym David Lloyds. For the fifth or so time, I had had enough of what seemed like a lack of encouragement from group fitness instructors. Generally speaking, most of them are talented and informed but for the most part they lack any sort of push and challenge towards their students. Most of the time I never break a sweat. In order to do so, I modify movements so I can test my limit and increasingly get stronger. What I've found, however, is many of the instructors have called me out and said something along the lines of "Don't do that yet - low impact first" or "take it easy - you might injure yourself" or "we're not there yet." My favorite: "Don't kick so high." What most of them don't know is that I've either warmed up already, I am very conscious of form, I have much experience in training, and sincerely appreciate their interest in my safety. What I find wrong with this training strategy though is a lack of challenge, a lack of pushing people to exercise to be stronger, faster, fitter, whatever their goals may be. Instructors should encourage such motivation if they see it in their students' actions. Especially if it is at a gym and people come to work hard.

A typical session in a group fitness class in the States embodies a mentality of "You're here for an hour so push yourself!" Instructors are motivating, challenging, exciting, and fun. They do not downplay any signs of inspiration or enthusiasm. The absence and denial of this is really beginning to bother me. And any form of disregard on my part would only make me seem arrogant.

It's a rainy, cold Saturday morning so I took two classes today - step and body sculpt. The first class was good. My only complaint is there was all this twirling and choreography. Where's the workout in this? I tried exchanging twirls with squats and of course the teacher told me not to. The previous mentioned occurred in the second class. The teacher even started class 10 minutes late because a student said her stomach muscles hurt. The teacher put her on a mat and did a little inspection. This cut into our class time. Additionally, before she started class she even insisted this other student spit out her gum. Why? I need gum all the time in aerobic classes. Some studies have shown that it actually assists in breathing. There are too many requirements and babying going on in this gym, and it's supposed to be the "highest end" fitness center in London.

David Williams and Matt Lucas poke fun at two American stereotypes Tom and Mark in the US version of Little Britain.
I agree that certain body builders and American fitness "enthusiasts" are borderline vain and unhealthy, some way beyond borderline. The characters are tongue-and-cheek and undeniably funny. But after experiencing much discouragement in fitness here, I see the existence of challenge and motivation not necessarily a bad thing. They're taking the piss but can they even push themselves?

Terrorist First Jab -- anyone?

2008-10-30T15:53:00.000-07:00

My absentee ballot arrived today after much Skype spending and ambushing the Clark County Election Department. A number on the ballot that might spark some interest:

Question No. 5 advisory only: Do you support the imposition of an additional hotel and motel room tax not more than 3 percent to be used in the first 2 years after imposition to avoid large cuts in the funding of education and other state programs and to be used thereafter to increase the funding of K-12 Education, specifically to improve student achievement and for salaries of non-administrative educational personnel?

Yes, of course. Especially for a rapid growing city like Vegas, a city in ominous need for more educational resources. On the contrary, I thought of a time Jeppe and I debated about an involuntary recycling fee I was charged in Copenhagen when I bought a bottle of water. I wanted the option to choose whether or not I wanted to pay this recycling fee. The overall advantages of recycling are obvious, and justifying recycling is not the point here as it should be evident where I stand and what I would inevitably do. At the time I just wished it was a hidden fee, an amount that was merely added on the "tax" line. I didn't want to see all the different fees I didn't ask to pay. Perhaps I was being a righteous and stubborn American who wanted a choice. Or maybe I was just being righteous and stubborn. :)

I realize, though, that if I were to travel somewhere in heavily taxed Europe, say, Dusseldorf and was taxed for German welfare (when two of my own countries I call home have their own share of problems), I probably would expel another "choice" uprising. On the same token, I believe it's a fair fee -- but it would be fairer if I/we were granted the same opportunities. When in Rome, do as the Romans do though. Anyway, I'm sure a German wouldn't mind paying a maximum 3% tax on their room at the Wynn.

The more I'm here the more I'm beginning to see the opposite of ex-nay on the ax-tay. So, I voted yes. I also voted for something that oddly looked like just another name on a paper.

Freaks, Tourists, and Camden

2008-10-29T11:09:00.000-07:00

To all my USAers, Camden is in North London and is known for their markets, food stalls, and atypical high street. Oftentimes a bit crowded with tourists and the usual "eclectic" Camden crowd, Camden to me is still one of a kind. It's like the Venice Beach (minus the sun and ocean), Berkley (minus the academia) and Castro Valley (minus the palpable homosexual presence). Nevertheless it's the only place in London where I could get tights and gloves for £2 TOTAL. And you see fun stuff like this...

I wanna be like Julia

2008-10-25T13:20:00.000-07:00

Anyone who's known me for a while knows that I am not known for my cooking. Except for my acclaimed fried rice, says my mom, I am typically the only fan of my cuisine.

But everyone knows it's expensive to eat out in London especially for someone like me in the USD and as someone like me who's used to getting a big, nice, and quick meal in Vegas at places like Whole Foods, Samurai Sam's, Claim Jumpers, Red Rock Casino, and PF Chang's. Even some grocery store sushi is doable -- Albertson's I miss you.

These cuismatic forces are encouraging me to improve my Julia Child skills. Embarrassing to admit but Jeppe is superior to cookery. Don't know if it's my lack of measurement abilities (as Americans are raised on measurement units not used by anyone else) or impatience, but there is hope for my domestication. These days I'm starting to actually fancy cooking.

I bought 3 recipe books yesterday before we watched Saw V and tonight I made dinner and dessert which weren't as bad as the movie. Upon discovering a white fish we've never tried in the States or Denmark, I made Basa with Peppers as seen with a smile above. As for dessert, I made Strawberry Tart and without bias I swear it was scrumptialicious. My mom will be so proud. :)

And, I received my National Insurance Number in the mail today. I'm officially in the tax books in the UK. Which means I'll be taxed 22% based on my current part-time income (I paid no income tax in Nevada). Beats the 40% if I made any more than that! Euros and their taxes. But hey, Barack the Vote, I'm all for taxes now! Tax my tart.

Only an American breeds those teeth..

2008-10-24T14:48:00.000-07:00

It's a Russell Crowe line to glowing Abbie Cornish's character in Ridley Scott's The Good Year. The 2006 film has often been given the hatchet, but I loved it. You can't go wrong with Americans, Brits, Europeans and romance in a provincial Italian town.

Americans are notorious for their pearly whites. And Brits, well, are not. As some of you may know, I now work for Euromonitor International as a Market Analyst and am currently researching the oral health care industry in the UK and Ireland. I came across this quote today from the Dental Services Division of the National Health Services in Britain:

"Currently just over half the adult population are registered with a dentist (46% adults/63% children)."

To put it in context, the report basically expressed that Brits are just jumping on the oral hygiene bandwagon. Ie a small percentage floss, a small percentage change their toothbrush every 2-3 months, etc etc etc. These numbers are remarkable to an American's oral etiquette as I've found.

However, the oral hygiene market in the UK is unquestionably on the rise due to trends in health consciousness, vanity, multi-functional, total care products (such as whitening + plaque removal toothpastes and mouthwashes) and consumer electronics (fashionable power toothbrushes).

When given this project, I teased a colleague. I said I get why whitening wouldn't work here. Why would a Brit want their jacked up teeth to be more noticeable? You can't whiten tea, cigarette, alcohol, and all those skipped-nights-of-brushing stains. I seemed to be the only one laughing in the room. His response, "Well, we have better things to spend our money on."

Whatever dude. All I hear are snears of how Americans don't have a system that work for them, and I indeed agree that we need a more nationalized healthcare system. We may not have health care, but the percentage of Americans with dental insurance coverage has increased from six percent in 1970 to 61% today (this is a 2004 stat from quick Googling, but I'd be interested in looking up more current figures). Yes, this means Americans are leading Brits in dental care and basic oral hygiene.

Granted and agreed anyone would rather have health care than dental care, it is never acknowledged what Americans actually do well, except feed into obesity, crime, broaden the middle class and unemployment, and give birth to culture, music, television, and film that belittles art and corporatizes our youth. This is just the start, am I right?

BUT, what we do do right is learn from day one that a smile goes a long way. We may not have health care but at least we have our teeth. I want to know what Brits spend their money on over oral hygiene. Lager?

Oh, and 46% is NOT "just over half".

Introduction

2008-10-23T05:22:00.000-07:00

"Eurodon" is my portmanteau for "Europe" and "London". London is an unconventional European city for it is possibly more comparable, at least to me, to cosmopolitan metropoli such as New York, Paris, Berlin, and Tokyo. In this blog, I may make generalizations about London, but I don't want to confuse that with Europe as a whole. London may not be typically "European", but London is majorly populated by Europeans. Depending on the context, I will refer to each indepdently but wholely in this blog.

This is my third time leaving the motherland and living in Europe. First time I will group 2 occasions, both of which took place in London - one month study abroad for my BA and about over a year for my MA at King's College. Second time was to, what I want to refer to as an uber European city, Copenhagen Denmark. Presently, I am back in London with a different telescope which is where this catharsis begins.

Inital migrations to Europe had defined me on a more personal, individual level. I learned about myself, my place in this world, and predominately formed many of my views by **accepting** new ideas, cultures, and criticism. It was about me adjusting to my environment and learning to challenge my potential. Perhaps driven by naivete. Perhaps driven by young ambition. Whatever the cause, I returned to America with a more global eye.

But as time ticks and I am once again in the land of Eurodon, at a time when American affairs are critical to the rest of the world and most importantly to themselves, I find myself a NEW American perspective on this terra firma of prosperity. I am a new American and loyalist. Far from conservative in my political views but perhaps traditional in personal values and ideals, I redefine what it means to me to be an American in Europe. I am a lover and hater of both societies, but today I will **reject** and criticize common stereotypes, prejudices, and misconceptions of what I call home.

So...to my new perspective....