tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-238339990518962804.post6949627259146638241..comments2023-10-28T16:42:12.682-07:00Comments on Teacup in the Bay: Land of Opportunities to Spend MoneyCarly Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15180144749279794134noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-238339990518962804.post-61159833222747811762011-06-14T10:34:21.007-07:002011-06-14T10:34:21.007-07:00Weirdly enough, I remember some instructor on one ...Weirdly enough, I remember some instructor on one of those 'keeping kids busy at half-term' courses at Easingwold Leisure Centre telling me about the Kali thing! Being about nine at the time I was like "er, ok..."<br /><br />With our name (Severn) we already have problems anyway booking at restaurants ("Table for seven, at 7, for Severn please - hello?") so I'm liking the idea of adopting an all-American <em>nom de guerre</em>. We could be Jennifer and Chip Johnson!Carly Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15180144749279794134noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-238339990518962804.post-17028795257707534272011-06-13T14:21:11.487-07:002011-06-13T14:21:11.487-07:00It was a similar situation to your friend- i got h...It was a similar situation to your friend- i got home, thinking the weekly shop seemed more expensive than usual, only to realise when i checked the receipt! Was not happy- especially as Russian cucumbers are of the short, lumpy skinned variety, and not half as tasty as our good ol' English kind!<br /><br />Will be travelling over to Russia in July for two weeks to go to a wedding and visit friends, but no immediate plans to go back and work full time. £2000 a year for a work permit was a little tiresome after three years(!) However, should my current employers like to send me over at any time, i wouldn't say no!<br /><br />As for your (our) name- i was recently told that it can also be a bastardisation of the Indian goddess Kali, who was the goddess of fire and destruction. A slightly cooler response to give to anyone who asks me "So, are you named after Carly Simon, then?"<br /><br />Or alternatively, adopt an American name! Whenever booking tables/ tickets/ taxis, i became Anna Ivanova to try and save the linguistic problems (my first dentist appointment was made under "Foreign girl" as they couldn't figure out the spelling of my surname!!)Carly Graingernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-238339990518962804.post-43785169260541257742011-06-09T12:13:55.602-07:002011-06-09T12:13:55.602-07:00Hey Carly - nice to hear from you! I had to chuckl...Hey Carly - nice to hear from you! I had to chuckle at the £10 cucumbers, I've made similar unwitting errors over here and only because there's no way you'd ever have cause to suspect that something <em>could</em> be that expensive - why would you?! Am sad to report that the US still has not opened its mind to £2.50 champagne though...<br /><br />Please do keep commenting - it's great to have the perspective of one who's familiar with the Brit-abroad experience. Are you planning on heading back to Russia any time soon?Carly Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15180144749279794134noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-238339990518962804.post-22720577219034569852011-06-09T10:44:49.117-07:002011-06-09T10:44:49.117-07:00Hey Carly,
This popped up on my Facebook news fee...Hey Carly,<br /><br />This popped up on my Facebook news feed and so i thought i'd have a read. As much as Russians and Americans may hate to think so, there are actually lots of similarities between them. I once (inadvertantly) bought a £10 pack of 3 mini cucumbers, and thank goodness for working in the Embassy, because otherwise i would have spent a fortune on £1.75 tins of baked beans!<br /><br />Similarly, you can go anywhere on the Moscow network with unlimited transfers for 60p, and Sovietskoe Shampanskoe (aka Soviet "Champagne") is a bargain at £2.50 a bottle. Clearly, less salad eating and more champagning-quaffing was required!<br /><br />Hope all is going well in SF- looking forward to reading more of your posts now i've discovered this blog!<br /><br />CarlyCarly Graingernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-238339990518962804.post-84934984132262969752011-06-07T13:33:11.002-07:002011-06-07T13:33:11.002-07:00I TOTALLY forgot the crazy charges to receive over...I TOTALLY forgot the crazy charges to receive over here - and my call minutes actually include calls received as well as made. That was a nasty surprise.<br /><br />Sales tax... where to even begin? Just put it on the label, guys!Carly Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15180144749279794134noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-238339990518962804.post-80661178261687417532011-06-07T13:20:19.169-07:002011-06-07T13:20:19.169-07:00My friend over there is currently raging her phone...My friend over there is currently raging her phone charges her to -receive- texts as well as send them. Totally ridiculous in this day and age.<br /><br />That and I wasn't fond of the fact they add tax after purchase. Those were some nasty purchases I made in NYC!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-238339990518962804.post-25007570896886138432011-06-07T10:40:11.928-07:002011-06-07T10:40:11.928-07:00I believe it was one of those situations where the...I believe it was one of those situations where they'd bought quite a lot at the same time and thought "hmm that shop seems wildly expensive" after leaving, and then checked their receipt to discover the offending item...<br /><br />Re: cab ride, you want to come out here and SEE the hill on top of which we live!Carly Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15180144749279794134noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-238339990518962804.post-16799471955416655152011-06-07T01:35:23.546-07:002011-06-07T01:35:23.546-07:00Haha....love it! I hope your friend had the good s...Haha....love it! I hope your friend had the good sense to NOT pay £7 for a friggin' tomato? What the actual f***!<br />Shame on you for taking a four minute cab ride tho, you lazy fecker.stuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02166477554240516313noreply@blogger.com