Lessons Learned in London

It was an interesting first trip to the UK. Always good to fellowship with the abundant clan of inlaws. Along with the usual genealogoy lesson, a couple more things I picked up during my stay:

10. My tolerance for temperatures lower than 70-degrees is higher than I thought after 5+ yrs in LA.

9. It is harder than one might think to get used to cars driving on the opposite side of the road. If you swivel your head the wrong way, you will get runover by a cab.

8. It's weird to see the NBA, NFL and MLB replaced on the sports pages by Soccer, Cricket and Tennis.

7. Shortbread is overrated.

6. Boutique hotels try to hustle you by charging for WiFi PER laptop, and also by trying to prevent you from bringing food into the premises.

5. "Mind the gap" is not a reference to dental imperfection.

4. "Skinny" jeans are just not a good look on dudes.

3. The 2012 Olympics should be sponsored by Marlboro or Camel. If athletes thought the air in Beijing was bad, they're in for a rude awakening in London. I won't be surprised if I see a Brit light up during the medal ceremony.

2. Stay away from all appliances with plastic handles. I wasted a my whole last day because I broke the handle on a mini washer/dryer with a cheap a$$ handle. On top of that, it didn't dry squat.

1. Whatever you save up to spend when traveling to the UK, DOUBLE IT! It is no fun to shop when you're only getting $.70 to the UK pound.