Sweet Tea to High Tea: Tea for Two

I realize it's only day two of our 730 day (approx.) adventure, but it's safe to say that Adam and I REALLY like it here so far. Birmingham is a big city, and it has the big city feel we've been wanting for some time now. We speak the language, and we can find our way around… so far so good. I'll start the blog with an update on what it's been like our first two days, and maybe sometime later will back track to all we did to prep for this trip. The last month has really been a blur, but I'm making a point to remember and document as much as I can of this time in our lives. I'll do my best to post on interesting topics relating to how things are different here and any exciting trips we take, and also will post on requested subjects (i.e.- things friends and family ask to hear about more).

Day 1 - We began with our flight from Mobile to Atlanta at 11:50am. Our connection was to Amsterdam set to leave at 3pm… there were mechanical issues with the plane, but thankfully a new plane was located, but we were delayed until 6:00. On a stroke of luck, the one and only Avery Shannon happened to be flying thru Atl and met us at the international terminal for drinks. The flight to Amsterdam took off around 7:20 and was an 8 hour flight - we both watched The Theory of Everything (which I highly recommend to the others under rocks who haven't seen it) and a few episodes of Parks and Recreation; we landed in Amsterdam at 9am local time, flew to Birmingham and landed at 12:25. We were picked up by arranged car service (thanks KPMG) and delivered to our temporary accommodations (a nice, conveniently located corporate apartment). We took a 3 hour nap, woke up and walked around a bit, finding a charming little canal and tasty restaurant, came home, and crashed.

Day 2 - We slept, and slept some more. We woke up and caught up on Game of Thrones and then went out to explore our new city - starting with the Bullring. This place is HUGE. I'd venture to say it's the equivalent of our Mall of America. Lots of American stores and lots of resources which I think we'll find useful along the way. There we had a slice of pizza from the Foodcourt, tried (unsuccessfully) to get me a cell phone and hit the road. We stumbled upon Adam's office, which is located in the Business District. Looks pretty swank. We then found the Birmingham Cathedral and happened to catch the Evening Prayer Service. We then headed home, stopped at a pub and had a beer on the terrace. On the way home, we grabbed a few groceries (the essentials: spaghetti makings, wine, cereal and tea) and called it a night. Currently I'm working on this post as Adam cooks.

All in all, two good days. The weather has been nice, cool, but not cold, and the people have been extremely welcoming. Pics and links to our visits below.

Coming up later this week: House Hunters International - Haywood Edition. We weren't selected for the show, but I figure who needs HGTV producers, right?! Sadly, I haven't met Kate yet, but I think she's a bit busy (in case you missed it… the new Princess was born). Until next time, cheers!