As exhausting as moving day was, it went a lot smoother than I had anticipated. We got up at ~6:00 in the morning to put away the things that could only be packed at the last minute (bedding, the inflatable beds, the kettle, etc.), so that we would be ready for when the removal people came at 7:30. We did have everything ready before then, and were well on time, but when Mum phoned the removal company at 8:30, we did appear to fall behind. Worse yet, the weather looked like it was going to throw down a massive amount of rain.
It turned out that one of the removal guys was sick, and he had to be replaced with someone who was on their day off; plus, they had got stuck in traffic. They finally did arrive at 9:20, and when they came, the three guys surveyed all our belongings to figure out the best way to get them all into the truck. In addition, part of our moving package allowed us to have the moving guys disassemble pieces of furniture if we chose to have them do that, and as such, they had to see what they had to take apart.
Fortunately, with two guys taking the furniture out of the house, and then the garage, and the other guy in the truck fitting everything in, we were soon back on schedule. Even better, the rain only came in a few brief bursts, rather than chuck it down, and the guys were able to use the small showers to take breaks. Despite one of guys also having to disassemble a few pieces of furniture, they got the entire job done in about three hours…a far cry from the estimated 4 ½ hours to complete the task. Once they left to go to Northamptonshire, we did a small amount of cleaning in the house, took a few pictures/movies of the place, say goodbye to our next door neighbor, and then left our (now former) home in Littleport, Cambridgeshire.
We stopped off in Ely briefly to hand back the keys to our old place. While my brother and I were waiting in the parking lot, I spotted both an American flag and an English flag on top of a building! (I am not referring to the flag of the United Kingdom here, but rather, the flag of England itself.) I have never seen these two flags together before, and so I took a few pictures of them. We then left Ely and took the A14 to go to Northamptonshire.
On the way to Northamptonshire, we stopped off at a pub on the way called The Fox Inn to have lunch. At this pub I had a burger, and I have to say that it was the best burger I have ever had. In fact, it was so nice I shared a little bit of with my family (except for Mum, who was already having a burger) so they could try it too (if I think something is really tasty, rather than have it all to myself I prefer to share a little bit of it so others can see how good it is too). Outside the pub, three flags were being flown: the pub’s personal flag, the UK flag, and the US flag!
Our next stop was the agents’ place to pick up the keys for our new home, and once we had done that, we went to our new home in Northamptonshire. The removal guys were waiting for us there, but they had not been waiting long, and besides, our scheduled time to arrive at the place was about 5:00, and we were there before that time. It took an hour to unload the truck (my brother and I helped with this) and for one of the guys to re-assemble the furniture he had taken apart back in Littleport. They left once they were done.
As for the evening, Mum, Dad, and my brother went out to buy some sandwiches for dinner while I stayed to sort a few things out in my new room (I have my own room again now, for the first time in over a year!). After dinner, we got a load of unpacking done, despite the long day, and Dad even got the internet up and running (hence the brief post from yesterday). Not surprisingly, the house is a mess, and it will take time to sort it all out, but we are getting it done. I am glad we are living in a bigger house now, and there are more people around here. At least this was also a short move in camparison to moving halfway around the world last year!
Finally, I do have a few pictures and movies of the trip to Northamptonshire. When the equipment to transfer pictures from my camera to my computer is unpacked, I shall upload them!
Glad to hear it went smoothly! :)
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