Last thoughts of the UK (OJG)

We’re back!!!

Yes we have finally made it back to Australia, having spent 7 weeks longer than planned in the UK. And even though we have come to 32 degrees heat with 85% humidity and a whole host of problems with Henry, it is great to be back.

I thought I would just write a final summary about the UK and our recent time there.

First off though, I need to mention that after the first week I made it a project of mine to spend one whole day walking around London taking loads of pictures, some of which would have been for the blog. All I needed was a nice clear day. For the whole 10 weeks there were literally just a handful of those days. And typically I always had something else planned. So I have very few new pictures. What I do have is a bunch of old pictures, which I have mixed with some of the new ones.

So I thought I would start off with something happy and mention a few things that really wound us up during our visit to the UK.

1. Tony Blair! I don’t mention his name as a political statement, only that whenever he is on TV making statements or answering questions, it is so obvious that his every word is a smoke screen at best, and utter lie at worse. And yet he just seems so bloody smug about himself. I honestly feel that when his time comes he will have an awful lot to answer for.
   
   
2. Politicians in the News. There is just so much pointless news in the UK about the politicians as opposed to actual politics. It is crazy just how much airtime and newspaper pages get taken up on this. No wonder there is nobody worth voting for, all the smart people void politics like the plague.
   
   
3. CCTV Cameras. Ok, I know this is in the news a fair bit, but… but, the cameras are still going up. Just taking a walk from the train platform at Victoria station to the bus stop (about 2 minutes), and I counted about 100 cameras. Seriously, 100! But it is not just in the busy areas either, I counted loads wherever I went. Motorways, Trains, Buses, Taxis, Roads, Parks, Shops, everywhere! And as if that wasn’t enough, several times I saw white unmarked vans patrolling the streets with cameras mounted on the roof at each corner. 1984 has come and gone!
   
   
4. Debt and Financial Help Adverts. God help anyone if they stray out of the prime time TV slot, because suddenly they are bombarded with extreme low budget adverts, repeating the same message over and over again. In fact I have it on good authority that the CIA fly their special “rendition flights” to the UK, and force suspected terrorists to watch hours of late night adverts. I hear most crack within a couple of hours.
   
   
5. Traffic Wardens and Overall Vehicle Penalties. On Baker Street I would often see about 5 wardens on one corner, 3 on the next one, and 2 walking up the street, all waiting like vultures for one poor driver to make a mistake. Unbelievable that they make enough money to have so many people just waiting around. On top of that, congestion charges, residents permits, parking meters, and of course petrol that is at least twice the price of anywhere else in the world. It would be understandable if public transport was reliable and good value, but it is neither. Not even close.
   
   
6. Rip off Britain! Yes it is another common newspaper heading, but seriously it is just shocking. Most of you will have heard that Microsoft launched Vista in January. The cost in the US for the top version is 190 pounds, compared to 330 pounds in the UK, for exactly the same product. A song from iTunes in the US costs 50p, but exactly the same song costs 79p in the UK. The list is never ending. Why won’t somebody do something about it?

I think that is more than enough whining. On the plus side, the UK has M&S, great original comedy, endless culture, amazing architecture, and many other unique things. Having said all that, this last trip has really sealed our decision to move to Australia. If it were not for good friends and family, I am not sure if we would even return to the UK in the near future. You’ll all have to try a lot harder to keep us away!

I would like to say a quick thanks to my Pa, Sandy & Bri, Dave & Jo, who between them all put us up for the duration of 10 weeks. Or maybe “put up with us” would be more appropriate. Anyway, thanks a lot, and don’t forget that we will need the same again next Christmas!

I think that is plenty for this blog entry, there will probably be other little stories from our trip to the UK in the future.

In the meantime, the adventure continues!