Loving London

Dear Everyone,

after a fabulous weekend I am sitting in my bed writing this post and I realise once again that I absolutely love London. I fall in love with it again and again every day and when I see the Shard and the Gherkin in the distance from a hilltop it strikes me each time, that I live here. I am not an ordinary tourist anymore.

So this Saturday I got to know a new part of London: Hampstead. Hampstead is truly beautiful. There are so many nice houses and busy streets, but also the Hampstead Heath park, where you can take long walks and you have a great view over London from Parliament Hill. That's exactly what I did, taking a nice and long walk through Hampstead. Unfortunately I had to go back home in the afternoon to babysit, but I will definitely come back to Hampstead.

Today we went to the British Museum, which holds huge collections of artefacts from Africa to Ancient Greece and Iron Age Britain. After wandering around for some hours we still didn't see everything, but left to get lunch at Nando's. Then we walked over New Oxford Street, High Holborn, Chancery Lane and Fleet Street to St. Paul's Cathedral. Before we attended an Advent Procession, we crossed the Millenium Bridge and enjoyed the great picture of London at dawn. The Advent Procession was magical with everyone singing together and lots of candles burning. It also gave us the chance to go inside St. Paul's for free. 

I hope you all had a great first Advent.

See you!

Escape To The Sea

Dear Everyone,

about a month ago it was Half Term and as Jack went to Northern Ireland to visit his grandparents with his Dad, I had the week off. I decided to spend a couple of days in Brigthon. I first visited Brighton in 2013 on a school trip and fell in love. So I always knew I wanted to come back, if I got the chance. And there it was. 

On Monday morning I set off by bus on a nearly two hours ride, after which I arrived at my hostel. I've never stayed in a hostel before, but have to say it is a great experience. There were people from all over the world and I met another German girl, who was really nice. As I didn't really plan my trip, the first day I spent walking along the pier and beach, enjoying the sound of the waves and inhaling the salty breeze. 

The next day I visited the Royal Pivilion, one of the most magnificent and beautiful buildings I know. I love all the details, Eastern elements and the gold. After marveling at all the rooms, I went to the Booth Museum of National History, which mainly contained stuffed birds, animals and skeletons. Then I visited the Hove Museum and Art Gallery. I finished off this day of walking and museums by having a nice Italian dinner. 

Wednesday was shopping day. I started by walking along the big shopping roads, which are West Street, Western Road, North Street and East Street. I've also been to Primark and the Churchill Shopping Square Centre, before I had all you can eat lunch at an Indian restaurant. All full and satisfied I started to walk through the Lanes, which I absolutely love. The small independent shops are all so cute, that's why the Lanes are one of my favourite places in Brighton.

On my last day I woke up early to pack all my stuff and check out on time. I then walked to London Road where I had a look at all the shops. After I made my way to the North Laines, a great place to wander around and shop too, it started raining. I decided to have Lunch at Burger&Cocktails, which was delicious. I spent more than two hours there, because I didn't want to go back outside in the rain. After this time I already made friends with the waiter. That is what I love about British people, they are all so welcome and friendly to you. To bridge the time till my bus left for London in the evening, I went back to Churchill Square. At least I had a roof over my head there. Later that night I arrived in London, exhausted, but also really relaxed and happy from my short holiday.

If you ever have the chance to visit Brighton, do it! That's all I have to say. Maybe you know some other nice cities woth seeing in England?

See you!

Christmas Time Has Started

Dear Everyone,

another busy weekend has passed and for me it is now officially Christmas time. Last week has been quite busy, that's why I didn't find time to write a post. But I am back with a lot to tell about this weekend. 

On Saturday I slept in and took time to get ready. I was meeting Celine for Lunch at Dudley's, the best Pancake House here in Barnet. After that we went to the cinema to see 'Mockingjay Part 2', a great film. After seeing it I really want to reread the book, because there are a few things I didn't remember anymore. When we left the cinema it was already dark, although it was just about 4:30pm. Nevertheless we took the Tube to Hampstead and wandered around in the dark for a bit and I can tell by that, Hampstead is a beautiful area in London. 

Sunday was even more exciting, because Celine and I went to Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park. The Brits really tried to make it look and feel like a German Christmas Market, but it just wasn't the same. It was more like a leisure park with a lot of rides. But nearly every advertisement was written in German, which was quite funny. And it didn't feel weird to order a Bratwurst or Glühwein. I feel like the only thing we did was eating and drinking and walking around for hours, but there was just so much to see. After we had enough, we walked to Buckingham Palace and then wandered through Green Park and St. James's Park, till we ended up at River Thames. We had a walk along it and went back home when we couldn't take the cold anymore. It's freezing here now, and I am not sure yet, if I like winter this year or not. 

I hope you're all feeling the Christmas spirit already and I wish you a merry and jolly time.

See you!

The Lord Mayor's Show

Dear Everyone,

this Saturday was the Lord Mayor's Show in London, a parade to celebrate the new Lord Mayor of the City of London. The City of London is also known as the Square Mile, an independent county in the heart of London. There's a new Lord Mayor elected every year, who then lives in Mansion House. We've been to the parade on Saturday and although we spent two hours watching in the rain, it was fantastic. So much to see and good vibes all around. Brits know how to celebrate. 

After getting all wet we warmed up again in Starbucks, before we went on wandering through London. We wanted to go to the Bank of England Museum, but it was closed. So we decided to just walk around and see where we would land. In the end we saw St Paul's Cathedral at night, which was intimidating and a bit scary. Over Strand and Aldwych we made our way to Covent Garden where we watched a street performer and found the most magnificent Christmas tree. After a short walk to Leicester Square we left the theatre-goers behind and went back home. 

On Sunday we took it easy and took the Tube all the way out to Wembley Stadium, just wandering around all day. We also saw the X-Factor studios and that was about it. Next weekend is already planned and I can't wait.

See you!

What I've Learned

Dear Everyone,

after I moved out of my home and came to England I learned and lot of things. I had to become more independent, but I'm also talking about things I learned about Britain and Brits. So here's a list of what I've learned so far. 

1) Not all British people love tea and drink it whenever they can. I live in a family that highly praises coffee and I never saw anyone in this house drinking a cup of tea, except for me. 

2) The weather isn't as bad as its reputation might suggest. It is not raining for days and it is not constantly grey and windy. The way I would describe the weather is moody and changeable. Let me tell you about the weather today for example. The morning started off dull and when I was on a walk with Harry it started raining. This lasted for about two hours and suddenly the sun shone bright and there were no clouds. Then it rained again and now there is sun again. So you see, the problem with English weather is you never know what you will get exactly.

3) The Irish accent is just like a noise and doesn't sound like separate words. Living with an Irish Dad, who says so himself, I can confirm this. Sometimes I am just sittig there being like 'What did he just say? Was he even talking to me?'

4) Keeping a house clean, doing the laundry and cooking for yourself isn't difficult at all. It just takes up time you have been willing to spend. But let me tell you one thing: caring for yourself, seeing the house shiny after two hours of cleaning and eating something you cooked yourself make you really happy and proud.

5) In London every day of October is Halloween and now that November has started, it's officially Christmas. I don't mind, I love it! I mean, just look how beautiful Christmas lights are.

6) London is the place to be, if you love Asian food as much as I do. I've eaten more Indian and Chinese food the past two months than I have the last two years. 

Is there anything you learned when moving out from home and maybe even to another country? Let me know. 

See you!

Week 10 Is Over

Dear Everyone,

it is Monday, which means another week is over. As crazy as it sounds I am now in London for 10 whole weeks. That's about two and a half months! In six weeks I'm going home for Christmas and I am already super excited to see my family and friends. 

But today's post is going to be about last week. Looking back it was quite busy and a whole bunch of things happened.

On Thursday night my fellow Au pair and friend Celine and I wanted to go to the premiere of 'Mockingjay Part 2' at Leicester Square. We were hoping to catch a glimpse at the actors and might even take some pictures. Unfortunately Celine had to work longer than usual, so we arrived there too late. The only thing we saw were men packing together the red carpet and all the cameras and lighting. Nevertheless we stayed for a bit longer and had a walk along the southside of River Thames. London at night is truly magnificent with all its lights, especially now that the Christmas season has begun.

On Friday I had the night off, because J was having a sleepover at a friend's house. So after skyping to my Dad and brothers I was craving Chinese food. I took myself out to dinner, something everyone should do every now and then. 

       

The Weekend started with me waking up already hearing the pouring rain against my window. But I can't complain, I chose England to be my new home. After getting ready and having breakfast I took the Tube into Central London to do a bit of shopping on King's Road. King's Road is, at least till now, my favourite shopping street here in London, although I can't afford to buy anything in about 90% of the shops. After getting really wet from walking I met up with Celine at the National History Museum. We've already been there last week and saw the Dinosaur exhibition and a lot more. This time we went to the Earth Hall. But we didn't stay long, because we already left in the afternoon to go to the Bonfire Night celebration at J's school.

Bonfire Night celebrates the murder of Guy Fawkes, who tried to set the Parliament on fire with his friends. There are fireworks all over town as well as bonfires people gather around to chat and have a jolly evening. At our bonfire there also were stalls where you could buy Hot Chocolate, Burgers, Cakes, Candy Floss and toys. I have to say, altough the reason English people celebrate that nigth is quite macabre, it is one of the nicest holidays I know.

Sunday was a perfect-weather-day. Celine and I went to see the Remembrance Sunday parade at Whitehall in the morning. We didn't see the Queen, but we saw everyone else, being lucky enough to find some poles to stand on, overlooking the crowd of people. After the parade finished we walked along Whitehall to Trafalgar Square and from there we went to Chinatown, where we had an all-you-can-eat lunch. Afterwards we wandered through Soho strolling through some shops and eventually ended up on Oxford Street. From Marble Arch we went back home, being tired from another successful weekend in London. 

If you ever get some questions please feel free to ask them in the comments. I am happy to answer and help. Or just write something nice that is going through your mind. 

See you!

My Everyday Routine

Dear Everyone,

another school week is over and I thought I would let you know what I am up to on a daily basis. Maybe it also helps other people out there, who want to become an Au pair, to imagine what the life of an Au pair is like and what tasks can come with it. Of course that can differ from host family to host family. 

I was really surprised that after just two weeks I was back in a daily routine, doing kind of the same main things everyday. To me it feels good, because I love to have an agenda and plan everything in advance. So let's have a look at what I call my work.

My mornings start later than they did in Germany. I have to get up at 6:30am to get ready and then wake up J (from now on I'm always going to refer to the boy I look after as J) at 7am. When he is dressed we have breakfast together and then I take him to school. We walk about half an hour and come across two parks. I really like going for a walk in the morning and always feel like it wakes me up and makes a fresh start to each day. School here starts at 8.45am and from then on I have freetime. So on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays I go jogging. Fortunately I live in a quiet part of London, a bit outside in the North. There's a lot of green here and great places to go for runs. 

When I get home I usually clean up the kitchen and then go for a short walk with Harry the dog. Of course you can never predict British weather so sometimes it can be a wet walk. After that I do my workout and then have a shower if I feel like it. Till 3pm I have time to do what I please, which means I basically watch TV, read or are on my laptop. I got obsessed with watching The Great British Bakeoff repeats or Jamie Oliver's 15 Minutes Meals! 

At 3pm school is over and I pick J up. Up until recently the weather was quite nice so he could play for an hour after school outside. He would run around with his friends, buildings dens or climbing trees. Even I took a try at it. When we get home J has a sandwich and then he loves to watch TV. But I try to convince him to craft things or play board games. Although his parents have no problem with him watching TV. Of course this is different for every family. On fridays I normally babysit so J and I spend the whole evening together. On the other days his parents get home at about 5:30pm and then the evening is mine to do as I please. I always look to have a chat about our day and then I go to my room and relax like every teenager would after school, just for me it is now after work. Sometimes I go out for dinner or to a pub to convince myself that I have a social life, but I am not really a person for going out at night when I have to wake up early the next morning. 

There you have it, that is basically what I call my job for now. I am really lucky to be with a family that gives me a lot of freetime and lets me be independent. 

I hope you liked to read about all of this and if you are looking to become an Au pair, I hope it helped and informed you. Sorry there was no pictures again, but they soon will come when I start doing posts about my adventures in London and what I do on the weekends. 

See you!

About Leaving And Starting New

Dear Everyone,

I don't know if anyone besides my friends and family will come to read this blog. To everyone who reads this I want to say: Welcome!

I wanted to start this blog since I started a new chapter in my life. Two months ago I moved from a small town in Germany to London. I am now working as an Au pair having the chance to experience and discover London in all its beauty. On this blog I want to share my adventures and I want to create something I can look back on to relive this fantastic time.

Like I said I'm already in the UK for two months now. On the 29th of August I had to say good bye to my friends and family. It was hard and yes, we were crying at the airport. But I am absolutely happy I made the decision to take a year off after school and enjoy my youth. The family I live with is really nice and they only have one boy I need to look after. Although kids can be difficult to handle sometimes, it is the best job I could imagine to spend a year abroad!

During the week I have to work and on the weekends I am mostly free to go inside Central London. Fortunately there's another Au pair living near me, so I have a friend I can go out and about with. I'm still missing my family and friends, but thank God we have Skype these days. I always keep everyone updated on my life and this blog is just another way to do so. 

As I am already here for some time I already made a lot of experiences. I learned how hard it can be to open up a bank account, I ran into a demonstration, something I would never see at home and I realised that public transport is quite expensive. 

During the next weeks I am going to try and sum up everything I've been up to the last two months. After that I will do weekly post about my weekends and simply things I would like to talk about or share with you. I hope you are going to like it and maybe stick with reading this little blog.

See you!