Chronicles of Reading

I was pretty low key this week.  Reading proved to be a perfect place to live.  Tuesday broke the mold however.  John from work had asked me to dinner and a movie.  We met at Nando’s - not too far from mine - and had a quick bite before heading off to see Shutter Island.  The restaurant confused me, I was glad to follow his lead. England loves not having real waitresses/waiters.  They always want you to order at the bar or counter, but I suppose that is why you don’t really need to tip (another confusing thing altogether).  We had spicy, spicy chicken pitta - just a silly way to say Pita Bread and it’s even funnier to hear people say it out loud.  I was a bit apprehensive about the movie.  I don’t do well with things that are scary, but John assured me I’d be fine.  He reserved fancy seats in advance and made sure they were on the aisle - in case I had to run out.  He thought of everything it was a great night.

Wednesday and Thursday I happily stayed in and prepared for the weekend.  England loves Easter and Pega Reading was closed both Friday and Monday to celebrate. And much to my delight, Neal was coming to visit from Mumbai.   It’s been 6 long months since we’ve seen each other and I was VERY excited for our rendez-vous. 

I met him at the station in the morning and we headed back to my apartment to catch up and watch America’s Next Top Model (and Canada’s as well!).  I had wanted to take him to Windsor Castle and Eton during the day - but the castle was closed to the public as the royal family was visiting!  The weather was windy and rainy, so we were happy to stay close by and just went out for lunch.  That afternoon, we both worked - very boring, but necessary.  I had a call with Jeff that I was nervous for and Neal has a big presentation on Monday.  It was my first call with Jeff that didn’t go flawlessly.  There’s trouble with a candidate in Belgium and he’s disappointed that I wasn’t out in front of the issue.  I didn’t dwell for too long - neal and I were going out to dinner!

I’m not a foodie - but I want to be now.  Neal took me to Joel Robuchon’s L’Atelier (http://www.joel-robuchon.com/) and it was the perfect night out.   Everyone spoke French and was a little disappointed that I didn’t, but with a little assistance I had no problem ordering.  We sat at a long bar which over looked the open kitchen.  We watched them prepare everything.  The ambiance was unbelievable - dim lighting, walls covered with plants and food used as decorations - but dinner was even better.  We ordered tapas style.  I started with an asparagus soup and moved on to lamb and then quail.  Everything was amazing, but the lamb was my favorite.  Dessert was necessary and I had la boule surprise.  It was a ball of chocolate and hidden inside was earl grey ice cream and a coconut and praline treat.  To break into the ball, they poured hot chocolate sauce over it until it started to melt.  Whoa!  After dinner, Neal was exhausted - the time zones were not kind to him - and we headed back to Reading for some shut eye.

Saturday morning, I had to move!  I left Bear’s Wharf for Queen’s Wharf on the other side of the city.  (The new couch is quite comfortable, but I miss my bed.)  Neal and I quickly settled in and we were off for an adventure in the country side.  It was Jemma’s friend’s birthday and she invited me to join them on an “Ale Trail.”  It’s quite different than our Freedom Trail Pub Crawl… but just as cool.  We took a bus 30 minutes outside of Reading and began our journey sampling local ales.  The day flew by.  Some beers were better than others.  I really wish we didn’t order the Honey Porter at Bird in Hand.  Neal was tasked with taking pictures at each bar - stay tuned for some snap shots!

Neal left me first thing this morning.  I think he’s really going to miss Reading Reggea bars… they just don’t make ’em like that everywhere. And I am certainly going to miss him.

I skipped out of work early on Friday to meet Lucy for the weekend in Germany.  I wasn’t traveling in my normal fashion.  I didn’t know a thing about Munich, we were leaving everything to chance.  Like - where do I go when I get off the plane?  Luckily, the only German word I retained from my visit to Vienna was Banhoff!  I made my way to our gorgeous hotel to meet Luc and what a welcome to Germany we had! While being escorted to the residence entrance of the hotel, we ran into a British stag party and saw a completely naked man in the middle of the road.  Whoa Munich!  The lady from the front desk was so mortified, it was priceless.  Lucy’s boyfriend had recommend we check out Atomic Bar and try his favorite cocktail - Heart of Gold (no it didn’t have any Goldschlager in it and we might have been disappointed).  The club was composed of three types of people: really drunk ladies with wreath-like headbands, 18 year old boys and men with mustaches.  Well, there was also that one strange little boy with a fake mustache…  We had a great night full of dancing and laughing and dreaming of Lucy’s future shower curtain - metallic and fabulous. 

Needless to say, we needed to sleep in the next morning.  Munich doesn’t have many touristy things to do - except sample beer.  We walked through the city center and stopped at the Augustiner GroBgastatte for lunch.  They’ve been making and serving beer in that very spot since 1328.  Lucy ordered and I didn’t realize just how types of sausages existed and could be served on one plate!  But I was happy to see that big baskets of pretzels were on every table.  After lunch we walked down to the river.  It was so serene and hard to believe that you were so close to a bustling city.  We walked through the park until we got to the Chinese Tower.  It’s like a giant Pagoda with a polka band!  The tower is surrounded by tons of long green tables and stands where you can buy beers and pretzels - Lucy and I had our first liter of the weekend (and then some!).  Afternoon beer made us sleepy and hungry!  We walked through the artist district and saw a most bizarre ‘Walking Man’ statue but stumbled into the most delicious Indian restaurant. 

For our last day in Munich, we took advantage of a big breakfast and made our way to the art galleries.  Choices were quite limited.  The major gallery’s exhibit was about frames.  Next door, we had the crystal museum.  And lastly, modern art.  It was an obvious choice.  Lucy and I were not excited about the possibility of 100 Andy Warhol pieces - but in we went.  Twice I was spoken to/yelled at in German in the gallery, but I was so pleased I was able to understand what they were saying.  True - it’s pretty easy to get the gist when you’ve set off the alarm for standing too close to the paintings.  We rewarded our tolerance for bad art with our third and final beer house (just think - there were another 3 we didn’t get a chance to visit!) Hofbrauhaus!  It was GIGANTIC.  And everyone was in their Barvarian Best - lederhosen, more lederhosen and of course mustaches.  Lucy and I once again sat next to the band and people watched the afternoon away.  I almost forgot I had to fly out and once again tested my ability to make an international flight in record time.  30 minutes people.  It’s all you need.

It’s hard to remember I’m here for work.  But this week - I worked!  Monday and Tuesday I was at the office late.  So late in fact that the grocery store was closed and I couldn’t do any shopping!  (It wasn’t that late - the grocery store actually closes quite early.)  However, it paid off. 

On Wednesday, the lovely Natalie May visited Reading!  It was so cool to have someone know more about my life here. We started at my favorite pub - Allied Arms.  I got all the gossip from the party that weekend and this London crew is just as scandalous as at home.  We tried to dine at the London Street Brasserie, but apparently Reading is more popular than I gave it credit for and this was a reservations only situation.  The other restaurant Leon mentioned as being decent was an Italian place above a Burger King.  I asked Nat to trust me and we had a very private ginormous dining room.  We asked the waiter/owner to suggest a bottle of wine and his first question was “How many bottles will you be drinking?” 

Thursday surprised me.  We once again kicked some ass at work.  There are 5 sales people ready to be hired and our numbers keep growing!  This was absolutely unthinkable a month ago and Jeff is happy, happy, happy.  That night, I was invited to join a group from the office for drinks.  We went to a pub close to the office and then someone suggested we move to the Hobgoblin!  I can’t believe I hadn’t walked in there before.  It’s very cute from outside and they brew all their own goods - which I knew I was already into.  Inside the front bar is cozy, crowded and covered in pictures of patrons and coasters.  When you head further into the bar - it’s like a little maze!  There are millions of nooks and hidden booths - you felt like you were in a bar all by yourself!  I’ll definitely be returning.  We made our way to a corner and swapped what we didn’t like about each others cities.  Reading = combined washer/dryer (neither works very well), no ice and no bar stools… but I’ve been complaining about those all along.  What people from Reading don’t like about Boston = tax not included in prices and tipping.  I’m sure there was a third, but we hadn’t eaten dinner yet and the beer was going right to my head.  Oddly, enough we headed back to the Burger King.  Maybe Leon knew what he was talking about after all.  We went to an Indian restaurant and it was perfection.  Most of group headed home at this point, but us local to the area had one last drink in us.  John and Gareth invited me to The Purple Turtle.  This bar has no equal at home.  Open layout, punk bands, people from every walk (and age) of life and an amazing beer garden.  We had a really good time, but I felt really crappy the next day . 

There were no bagels or gatorades to get me through the morning, but back to back to back meetings instead.  I spoke to Jeff just before taking off for the weekend. When I get back stateside (which was been extended an additional week) I’m moving into global recruiting operations!  It’s a new position and I’ll be covering all business units and all of our locations.  My traveling days are just beginning.

Oh - and this is a hilarious commercial.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8kxB3nSTn0

British people don’t really understand burritos.  That might not surprise you, but it disappointed me.  There’s a burrito shop not too far from my apartment and I tried it out for lunch on Friday.  There weren’t any jalapenos and both the cheese and chicken were shredded - not to mention the extra special heaping pile of shredded lettuce I couldn’t escape.  Lunch aside, Friday was brilliant, gorgeous and jammy all at once (I know, a lot of British slang in a small sentence).  I had an amazing call with Jeff back in Cambridge.  He so pleased with my progress and is giving me some good press back in the states.  But the real highlight of the day, was I scooting down to the city and awaiting my Natalie May. 

It’s like we never spent a day apart. We had such an amazing time and a little bubbley to kick off the weekend.  Natalie’s flat is out by Oval Station and she treated me to a super traditional Engligh meal at a cute pub called Chimes.  I had a “pie” - it’s what all the kids were eating.  Saturday, Nat went to the country with her family and I headed downtown.  The National Portrait Gallery has an Irving Penn exhibit.  He worked for Vogue from 1946 through 2007 before he died and his photographs are breathtaking.  Penn worked with everyone from Truman Capote and Edith Piaf in the 40s to Gael Garcia Bernal.  My favorite shots were when he put his subject in really tight spaces.  He also took amazing pictures of Woody Allen as Charlie Chaplin.  The rest of the museum is filled with royal portraits, so I only stayed long enough to check out the new paintings of Price William.  On my way out, my eye was caught by a royal tribute to Twiggy.  It was great but didn’t mention ANTM at all.  When I got outside it was pretty shitty, so I ducked into a nearby theatre and took in a matinee.  I saw Billy Elliot and left tap dancing.

Nat and I had more champange when we met back up at the apartment.  That night we were going to a leaving party for her friend moving to the UAE.  I met all of Natalie’s hash friends and a few people she doesn’t like at all.  Next thing I know, Nat’s drinking a coffee with spoiled milk and it’s 3:30 in the morning.  The night flew by and it was time to eat our second dinner.  The problem with staying out so late is that morning comes so early!  Nat and I met Jenny May for a bit and then I bounced to Chelsea for the day.  I did a 5 hour walking tour of the area which includes Battersea park… It should have only taken 3, but I wasn’t running on all cylinders. 

In my neverending quest to find a pub to call my own, I hit the streets again on Tuesday night.  Not to far from my house there is a lounge-y bar called Sahara.  I saw an empty couch from the window, so I thought I’d give it a try.  One problem.  I couldn’t figure out how to open the door.  I felt like everyone inside was watching me, there was a lot of pressure to get this right.  Discouraged and embaressed, I walked around the corner to try another door.  Again - nothing.  I could feel myself turning bright red and decided to give up, go home and never again walk by this place.  I walked away “casually” and found myself in the middle of a beer garden!  It was perfect.  The bartender recommended a Hobgoblin and I made myself comfortable in the corner with my book. 

Work had been going really well.  Suspiciously well.  The hiring managers were on our side, the reports were flawless and we were making some real strides in changing the recruiting process.  Best news - we were able to finally put an offer together for a candidate that had been hanging out since end of January.  Of course, everyone back home attributed our new found success to my presence in Europe, but in reality it was a combination of everything but me.  Wednesday, we had our first set back.  The Sales Recruiter we extended an offer to turned us down.  Thursday, set back number two quickly followed.  The Sales Sourcer we extended an offer to turned us down.  We are back to square one building the engine that will run sales hiring - not a good position to be in.  I only have 2 weeks here left on the ground, I really hope that we can fill those two key roles so the rest of the work I’ve been doing has legs to stand on when I head back to Cambridge.

Thursday night things got a bit brighter.  I was invited for out drinks with the Director of HR and some new managers that were in the office for training.  I miss this about Vanu.  I don’t really know anyone that I work with back in Cambridge.  But here, drinks turned into dinner and dinner into more drinks!  It was perfect.  I have three new friends.  Sylvain lives in Paris and Andy and Tim both in Reading.  We talked about work, families, vacation - it was kind of like we were on a group first date.  And I loved every minute of it.  I spoke with Andy and Tim about my struggles to meet people in Reading and neither of them were surprised.  Apparently, south England isn’t much for talking or being friendly.  They told me I would probably continue to strike out, but to keep my chin up.  Thanks guys!

Disclaimer: There is no save button.  That really screwed me this week.  I wrote a beautiful post about my adventures in London and then accidentally hit Ctrl+Z (usually my favorite command) and all was lost.  This will have to do.

It’s overwhelming to arrive in a new city with no attack plan and I didn’t have one.  I flipped a coin and decided to begin my weekend at the Marble Arch.  The Marble Arch is exactly what it sounds like: a large marble archway which serves as one of the many entryways to Hyde Park.  Previously, this gate was exclusively for royalty during ceremonies - but I marched right through.  What drew me to this corner was a statue I passed in a taxi earlier that week.  The newest addition to Hyde Park is a 23 ton statue of a horse head.  That’s right.  It’s GIANT!  I can’t wait to post some pictures, you really won’t believe what you are seeing.  It’s completely out of place (although I’m not entirely sure when it would ever be in place!) but I think that what makes it so beautiful.  The statue really set the tone for the day and I was ready to see what else the park had in store as I made my way to the opposite corner. 

For those of you who have not been to Hyde Park before - it’s a little like Boston Common, without the trees.  It’s just grass, grass, grass and dirt walkways.  There were soccer games, frisbee throwers, and kids on jungle gyms for what seemed like miles - but then I ran into an unexpected major attraction: Roller Bladers! Oh - roller blading is alive and well in London.  Everyone was doing it!  Not only could you rent blades, knee pads and helmets, but there were roller blading gangs every where you looked!  They would camp out on long stretches of pavement (or dirt) and play their boom boxes, drink their beers and do amazing tricks!  Each little group would set up a line of mini cones and show off.  I really thought I wouldn’t find anything better until I stumbled upon roller hockey.  These people were playing with mini mini nets, honestly they were the size of a carry-on suitcases, but having the time of their lives!  I spent wayyy to much time soaking all of this in - and yes, I will buy some skates when I get home.

At the far end of the park is my favorite monument in all of England - the Prince Albert Memorial.  Queen Victoria had the memorial commissioned in the 1800s for her late husband after he died of typhoid.  It’s stunning.  I’m not a good photographer, but just wait.  You’ll want to see this for yourself. 

Walking out of the park, I began to tread on familiar territory.  I knew I was approaching my old stomping grounds when I saw a butler washing a Maserati.  Before diving deep into South Ken, I took a pit stop a the Natural Museum of History to check out a Wildlife Photography Exhibit/Contest.  The pictures were all quite good, but my favorite part was the that the winner’s photograph was disqualified and removed from the exhibit because they had reason to believe he was using a “show wolf.”  Go Figure. 

After some culture, all I needed was a pint filled trip down memory lane.  Lots of things in South Ken are exactly the same (only fluorescent cars allowed at the neighborhood Lamborghini dealer, amazing long lines at kabob stand and people EVERYWHERE), but somethings have changed completely.  For one, the Hoop and Toy was CROWDED!  And there wasn’t an Australian bartender to be found!  I had a pint of Pride and quickly moved on.  As I walked down Old Brompton, a few more surprises were in store.  There was a new Tessco Express and Cafe Lazeez is closed for good - but one constant stands the test of time: The Zetland.  Surprisingly, there were quite a few Americans.  They seemed to be a little offended when I asked if they were BU students, so I found my way to the opposite end of the bar and settled in for some Rugby.  After the game, I wandered around the corner and took a peek down Manson Place.  There didn’t seem to be any streakers or kids kicking beer bottles - I think we were the end of an era.  I tried to go to the only restaurant I could remember in the area, but that had changed hands as well and I ended up at the Stanhope Arms killing time before my train back to Reading.  It was 9:00pm and I was tired.  How did we ever stay out until 5:00a?

The next day I wandered the South Bank of London.  Down on the far side of the Thames there are breathtaking views of all London’s major attractions - Big Ben, Parliament, and St Paul’s Cathedral.  I watched the street preformers, browsed through books at the outdoor shop on Gabriel’s Wharf, and made my way to Tate Modern.  The Tate is filled with Picasso - literally almost every room in the museum has one of his paintings - but one of my favorite exhibits is Matisse’s The Snail.  He created The Snail in 1953, the year before he died, when he could no longer paint. It’s a giant canvas covered in blocks of cut out pieces of colored paper that are arranged in a loose spiral hinting at the shape of a snail’s shell.  It’s so innocent and childlike, it’s wonderful. 

What is not wonderful at the Tate Modern is the Paul McCartney video exhibit I have now been tricked into viewing twice.  This is not the Beatle.  It’s an America artist who, as they describe, uses “bodily fluids, paint, and food… to create elaborate and grotesque explorations of family, childhood and dysfunction.”  Next time, I swear I will not go in that room!

Leon asked for ice at work the other day.  The office doesn’t even have a freezer, so someone when down to the local burger king and filled up a cup from the fountain soda machine.  Emily, the girl I sit across from, said they don’t have ice in England because it just doesn’t get hot enough.  Clearly they have missed the point of ice all together.  And although I can’t find ice cube trays at any of the stores, I’ve found an amazing discovery in my kitchen just the other night.  Self Seal Ice Bags - watch out!  Basically, you fill a bag with water and magical compartments appear separating the water into cubes.  Then you hold the bag upside down and voila!  It seals itself.  Yes, things are exciting in Reading.

I attempted to make friends twice this week.  First on Thursday night I popped into The Horn.  It’s the closest pub to my house and I thought this would be a nice place to meet some neighbors.  No dice.  I walked in and the bar went quiet - or was the bar quiet to begin with?  I took the only stool at the bar and waited to order a drink.  The biggest difference between bars here and bars at home is the lack of bar stools.  Apparently here, everyone just stands around the bar which makes it really hard to be there by yourself.  At least if you are sitting you can flip through a magazine or a book - but here everyone just stands, so awkward.  I asked what was on tap and the bartender didn’t seem to know how to answer that, so I ordered the closest beer to me.  More people started filing in and everyone just stood there quietly.  There wasn’t a tv to distract everyone and there wasn’t even a radio.  I drank the beer quickly and went home.  Strike one.

Last night, I decided to go a bit more mainstream.  There are lots of chain bars in Reading.  I pass O’Neils on my way to work and on the way to the grocery store Yates and the Walkabout, but I wanted to go somewhere Courtney and I didn’t frequent when we were 20.  Pitcher and Piano seemed like a safe bet.  Everyone in the window was attractive and hovering 30.  There was a long bar and looked like there was just enough room to squeeze another person in the middle.  What I didn’t realize was that the gap in the middle of the crowd was to give the 55 year old toothless man a little space.  I ordered a Guinness and that was apparently the green light for the guy to start talking to me.  (He had never seen a girl drink a Guinness before.)  Chivalry is dead in Reading.  No one attempted to save me from this situation and I couldn’t extract myself.  So finally - I finished my beer and excused myself.  Strike two.  Let’s see how I do in London.

After some last minute packing and a few drinks with Hoag, I decided to shut my phone off before going to bed.  I was going to off the grid in the morning - why not start a few hours early.  You’ve guessed it.  I missed my alarm and the taxi calling from outside.  Off to a great start.  But I have some unusual luck at airports and apparently, you really only have to be at the airport 30 minutes before an international flight. 

I slept the entire flight.  Felt totally miserable with this cold I had been fighting.  I had my jacket and scarf on underneath 3 blankets and when I got to London all I could think about going back to bed.  Reading is about a 40 miles outside of London and home to Pega’s EMEA headquarters.  I’m staying here through April 4 working with on our beefing up our European Sales Recruiting team, processes and strategies.  They’ve put me up in an awesome apartment.  I have 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a dishwasher, a washing machine (apparently dryers aren’t popular in England) and a beautiful wrap around porch over looking a river and park.  And I haven’t even mentioned that I’m staying only 2 blocks from a Wagamamas! Feel free to come and visit! 

My first day at work was kind of a blur.  Learning the personalities in the office is harder when you can’t really understand what they are staying (best new British slang ”nutter”).  The office isn’t really big.  Most of the European team works remotely, but things were buzzing with Leon in town.  Miraculously, a lot of the things I was tasked with are 95% complete.  Not sure how they got their act together so quickly - maybe the idea of me intimidated them.  We’ll see what I end up doing.  That night, I went back to London with a few of the head honchos from Pega Cambridge.  We had drinks at the Hilton at Paddington and then took a cab up to Oxford Circus and ate at the most amazing restaurant.  At first, dinner reminded me of when I first started at Vanu.  Leon said ”Let’s share oysters,”  I ate 4.  Leon said “You try this first and tell me what it is” I took a big bite of a bread stick stuffed with anchovies…  This was “What will Kate eat on steroids.”  When dinner finally came, my actual food was amazing and I think I left a good impression.  The night ended with sticky toffee, pudding (you must try it!!) more drinks back at the hotel and sleepy train ride to Reading. 

Tuesday was already another day at the office.  I’m training a girl named Jemma and constantly people are asking me if she’ll be able to do the job.  That night we did dinner in Reading with the Managing Director of Europe and we shared a tiramisu - these people love there desserts.   Pega Cambridge left for Amsterdam today, so now it’s just me.  I went to Marks and Spencers afer work and that’s about it.  Tomorrow, I’m going to try to make friends.  And if anyone reads this - I’m sure you hope I do something a little more exciting.