Happy Holidays!
We hope this greeting finds you happy and well this holiday season. We’re happy to report that this is true for us. We have enjoyed our first few months in London and look forward to continuing our adventures in the new year. We look back in amazement at all of the excitement of 2006.For some, our recent move is news. Why London? Why now? In May, G finished his masters degree at NC State in Raleigh and we had always said that K was up next for her MBA. After watching G balance work and school for three years, K wanted to avoid undertaking grueling coursework while also working full time. In addition, there is so much of the world that we want to see. While we did our best to travel abroad 1-2 times a year, living abroad would make it much easier to explore. But, if K began her two-year MBA in the US this window of opportunity may not have come around again.
So, we looked at programs abroad and decided to make the jump across the pond to London. Of course, the obvious benefits are that everyone speaks English and we’re close to continental Europe so that we can take weekend jaunts to explore. And the less obvious benefits are that London is the “branding capital of the world†— allowing K boundless career opportunities, and the job market is also very strong for G (as a software engineer/architect).
What else were we up to in 2006? We rang in the new year in London, of all places [Photos]. Upon returning to the States, G entered his final semester at NC State while working at Motricity. And K continued her work with SMITH Advertising and began to study for the GMAT.
In April, we traveled to Augusta to visit K’s college friend Jessica. In mid-May, G graduated from NCSU, with family visiting for the weekend’s festivities [Photos], K traveled to the NC coast to present an annual marketing plan to a client, took the GMAT, submitted her application to Cass Business School in London, and her UK Visa application, we put the house on the market, and left for a 3-week trip to Japan. Wow, what a week!
Our trip to Japan was the perfect respite from the daunting details of our impending move and welcome break from work. Our friends Andy and Chiaki were married in Japan in Chiaki’s hometown northeast of Tokyo. Her family was very kind and generous and we got a rare insight into Japanese culture and traditions. From there we headed off on a whirlwind tour to Tokyo, Mt. Fuji, Enoshima, Takayama, Shirakawago, Kamakura, Kanazawa, Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe, Beppu, Yufuin, and Hiroshima [Read More, Photos].Upon returning from Japan everything fell into place to get us to London — K was accepted to the MBA program at Cass Business School, we received approval for a work visa, and the house sold. In celebration of all the good news, we took a day trip to the NC coast for the Tall Ships festival over the July 4th holiday [Read More, Photos]. And we then returned to Raleigh to begin packing boxes. We closed on our house in Cary on the last day of July — moving all of our stuff to storage in Virginia and commenced a whirlwind farewell tour.
We spent a week with K’s family at Smith Mountain Lake, a few days in Blackwell, Oklahoma with G’s grandparents, a day in Utica, New York with G’s granddad, and week in Northern Virginia/Bermuda with G’s parents. Our whirlwind tour was incredible. We went tubing and boating at the lake, had good quality time with our families and enjoyed our first cruise. We also enjoyed seeing our friends at a couple going away parties during the summer months before leaving on August 20. Next stop, London…
G transferred to London with his company, and began work at the firm’s London office on September 1 while K’s classes began on September 11. Between August 20 and September 1, our focus was on finding a flat, opening a bank account, getting a national insurance number for G, and securing at least one cell phone. It was no small feat [Read More].
After getting settled in, G was told that Motricity’s London office would no longer require software engineers. As a result, G needed to find another job in London and was quickly snatched up by an exciting mobile startup company. K is enjoying her MBA program, but it’s keeping her very busy. She is enrolled in a 12 month full time MBA program and completes nine credit hours of coursework every month. She will complete the program in mid-September 2007. Graduation will be in March of 2008. [Read more about K’s program and her experiences].
Though busy with work and school, we were able to fit in a few weekend trips. In September, to celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary, we traveled to Bath [Read More, Photos]. And then we enjoyed a weekend in the Cotswolds in October [Read More, Photos].What’s coming in the new year? We have decided to spend the holidays traveling about Europe. We’ll split two weeks between Nurnburg, Salzburg, Prague, Vienna and Munich. We’ll add an update to the blog once we return (and perhaps from internet cafes along the way). In addition, K will travel with her class to Poland in February and to China for a weeklong symposium in June. K plans to visit her family in Virginia in the Spring and we will likely take a short trip to continental Europe during Spring Break in April. Among other possible trips, we may travel to Guatamala in early July for our friend Ana’s wedding and to Germany for Oktoberfest in the Fall. As our plans develop, we’ll continue to update and post photos to the blog.
For those of you new to our blog, this is the site that we set up to keep our family and friends in the know during our time abroad. If you’re curious what we’re up to, we’ll always welcome an e-mail, but also invite you to check in at travelfortwo.net. We hope you and yours have also had an enjoyable and exciting 2006. Happy holidays and cheers to a wonderfully exciting and enjoyable 2007!
G&K