Move In Day!

So after much stress and frustration we finally got approved for our flat. We could move in basically anytime but figured it would be best to just wait until I got back from France. Before, however, we went in to sign the tenancy agreement and do a walkthrough. We met them Wednesday morning at 10am. It was the man who had shown us the flat and the landlord himself. They are both very nice and that’s who we will be dealing with for any issues we have, which is good.

                First, they walked us through the flat, taking inventory of all the furniture and any damage that is already in place. We get a copy too. Then they showed us the boiler and gas and water meters. They were very helpful with our questions. It didn’t take as long as we expected; only about forty-five minutes. Sarah had to work that afternoon so she left shortly thereafter, but I was going to show the place to my parents so I waited around. We weren’t moving our suitcases or anything until Sunday but we did bring over some of the household stuff we’d bought, so I spent the time waiting for my parents setting that up. It wasn’t much: some toilet paper, dish soap, garbage bags, etc. But it was less we would have to do Sunday. I also brought over the sheets I had bought and the blanket and housecoat my parents had brought over. So I made my bed and put a few things in my closet. It already felt more homey after getting my sheets and pillows in order. And my Batman blanket on the bed.

                Also while waiting for my parents I ordered our internet connection. I’ve never done it before. We literally chose our provider, Talk Talk because we had seen their advertisements on the tube. See, Mad Men? It does work! Also Sandra and Imogen use them, so we knew how well it worked. We didn’t bother ordering TV or landline, just simple broadband internet. Unfortunately, it will take until Wednesday to get it live, which means we are going to be internet-less for the first few days. At least we have our phones. It seems to be the cheapest provider, which is good. We don’t need anything fancy. Just a way to get our emails and watch Netflix.

                I went to the tube station to get my parents and show them around. I think they liked it but I can’t be sure. Then we left and I wouldn’t return until Sunday. Sarah booked us a minicab while I was in France. It was going to pick us up at 1pm. She had stressed that we had a lot of stuff (seriously, it’s like it multiplied over two months) and they came in a van. Yay. Then we drove to our new place. We dragged all our stuff upstairs and began unpacking. Sandra gave us a lovely moving out present: a much-needed iron. It was so nice of her and something Sarah would end up needing the very next morning.

                Sandra came by around 4:30pm to see the place. I had finished unpacking all my stuff. I showed her around and then she and I left to go walk around the neighborhood. There is so much here! There’s dozens of restaurants, several bakeries, three grocery stores, several pubs, a nightclub, a few lounges, a dry cleaners, and more! It’s very well serviced, by the look of it. Sandra was impressed with the fact that it had a lot of houses, which apparently typically has less crime. She also found that it was very multicultural, instead of there being one dominant culture. All signs point to us having chose well. She left after our walk and me and Sarah headed to Sainsbury’s to buy a few things. She finished unpacking and then we christened the flat in the only way we know how: with red wine, pizza and One Direction. We ordered pizza from the Domino’s around the corner and drank our wine out of one of our going away presents (it’s a wine glass that holds an entire bottle that says ‘finally, a wine glass that fits my needs!’). And we had One Direction night, of course. We watched their documentary, This Is Us, first (we watched their performance of Teenage Dirtbag four times because we have problems) followed by their concert DVD. We are already the worst neighbors ever (they better get used to our monthly One Direction nights) but it was an excellent and very fitting first evening in our new flat.