Same, same but different

Its been two weeks since we got here to London. And everything is the same as South Africa but DIFFERENT. Here's a list of all the things that are Same Same but Different:

1. Same: shopping in supermarkets. Different: getting a handle on the currency. We're getting pretty good at multiplying everything by 23 or so to figure out if something is expensive. But then you realise that with an exchange rate like that, EVERYTHING  is expensive. But we're slowly working out how much stuff costs and what we can afford. It has taken a few slow trips around the shop figuring things out. Finding stuff on the shelves is also tough, all the brands are different, and things aren't displayed in the same way. 

2. Same: Having to commute to work. Different: the commute itself is VASTLY different. I walk to the station, catch a train, change to an underground train, change to another underground train, change again and then walk 10 minutes to work. My drive in South Africa was 15 minutes long. FIFTEEN MINUTES. Frans says its payback because its not normal to have a 15 minute commute when you live in Joburg. 

3. Same: watching TV. Different: all the channels, all the free channels, all the channels on the internet. 

4. Same: running Parkrun. Different: it's freezing cold and very muddy! The first time we ran Parkrun, we misjudged the bus times and arrived an hour early! It was freezing and we weren't properly dressed for the cold. Eventually we had to start running in circles just to keep warm! 

Things that are not different to how they were in South Africa: sleeping in a bed, washing my face... um... Yep, that's all.