My London Adventures

***note, this was written the day after my London Adventures. Edited and posted much later...

My London Adventures.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: it’s good to have a plan but if you plan too much its annoying. For my trip to London I had a general plan of stay with Charlie, see Kayla and do stuff. I 100% accomplished my plan.

I took the train into Kings Cross station, yes KINGS Cross not King’s Cross.

I found (on my way back to Bradford) the spot of Platform 9 ¾. I decided that I was too tired to wait in line this time and will do the photo op next time I’m in London.

Back to the plan...

After meeting up with Charlie to find out where his plat was and to leave my bag so that I didn’t have to carry it about London. His flat is in the Bounds Green area of London, which to me really just means get on the Piccadilly Line of the Underground and get off at the stop that says Bounds Green. Well the original plan was that Charlie was going to show me the Camden Town Markets. However my train was delayed and he had Basketball plans at 5pm so instead he pointed me in the correct direction and off I went.

The very first thing I did when arriving in London was to get myself an Oyster Card. This little gem is like a declining balance card for all London transit. It’s great! You deposit money onto your card, swipe it to get in and out of the underground stations and this is what allows you to tavel about London. If you use less than the amount of a day pass then you pay for what you used. If you use more than the amount of a day pass, your card is no longer charged past the day pass amount. This is nice for someone like me that likes to get lost or wander about aimlessly on and off buses and tubes. I stuck to the tube system and my own two feet for this trip. I decided that buses might get me too lost, but I think that my next trip into London I will take some buses just to see London without having to do a lot of walking. The tubes I found pretty convenient. They run more often than the Toronto subways. We’re talking about every three to five minutes which is fantastic. The longest wait I saw for a tube train was 6 minutes and that was at 10:45 in Leicester Square which is an incredibly busy area in the evenings.

Back to the fun stuff.

Camden Town Markets – these are HUGE. Candem town is really cool (and incidentally has the British Museum in it too). This is apparently the area of London that a lot of big name musical artists got their start. There are tonnes of little nooks and crannies, different pubs and places to eat. There were also more than a few venues that also host live music later in the evenings. I didn’t take in any music while I was in the area since it was too early. I hit the markets. There are tent markets set up in on area. This is the Camden Market. There are stalls of hoodies, and jewelry and dresses and sweaters and tunics and coats. I saw so many beautiful coats that I wanted, but I resisted the urge to try them on since I already have a coat. The vendors in this market are very forward. You stop for half a second to look at something (which is really just long enough to get your eyes to focus on what you are looking at and they just on you “you like that, it’s really nice, I make you a good deal” It’s a bit startling at first when you aren’t expecting it. Yet, unless you are planning on either spending a lot of money, being rude or leaving altogether you get used to it pretty quickly. I did find a nice warm sweater there that I liked and I paid less for it than I would have in a store so that isn’t so bad. If you continue down the street (I have no idea which street I was actually on but when you walk down it you see tonnes of different shops. There was your standard tourist souvenir shops, (there were many of those really) as well as funky shoe stores, and fashion shops (and I don’t mean ‘in fashion’ but different kinds of fashion). In this area there was really something for everyone. Well between the street and the following area called the Stables Markets. This area used to be a giant stables that served that section of London. It was cleaned up and converted into this market when it fell out of use as a stables after trains and other types of transportation took over. There are hundreds of these little shops set up in this market. Each stall is now a little shop. You can find incense, African art, clothing, but trendy, vintage, gothic, etc, bags and purses, different leather products, souvenirs and so much more. There is also a wide variety of food stalls to visit. I saw Chinese, Vietnamese, Indian, Lebanese foods and donuts! Fresh fried donuts are so good, and you really don’t need to eat four of them. Trust me, one is enough, you’re full after three, four is really pushing it. Regardless they were good. Now I remember wandering through these markets thinking that they were just incredibly huge. I really am not sure just how huge they are since they are very maze like and just twist and turn around back onto to each other. There are also multiple floors. I found the set up very confusing. There were a couple of things that I wanted to go back to but couldn’t simply because I couldn’t find them, which is fine because really it meant that I saved money.

After wandering about these never-ending markets I decided to head over to Piccadilly Circus to see what was in that area. I left the tube station and started wandering. It began as I was following the crowds. Then as the crowds petered off then I was following one woman, when that became boring I started following the important-looking buildings. Which is pretty easy to do in this country (especially in London) since everything is made out of stone and is huge so it all looks important to me. Anyway, I ended up in a few places where I was genuinely confused and impressed at the same time. 

Where I ended up was actually part of the Jubilee Walkway, that was designed to commemorate the Queen's Silver Julibee in 1977. The whole walkway runs from Buckingham Palace to St. Pauls. It's 24 km long. I don't know that I will walk the whole thing next time that I'm in London, but I will definitely try and do at least some of it as it passes many of the London landmarks. 

I found Trafalgar Square which has some impressive stove carvings, not to mention Nelson’s monument which is unforgettable. It’s especially impressive at night as the fountains in the square are lit up. I sat there just people watching for a few minutes and it just felt amazing to sit there and let it all soak in. I had a moment where I realized (again) that I am in England and it never ceases to amaze me. I don’t know if I was feeling a bit lonely and needing to share the moment with someone or excited to tell someone, so I called my mother and told her how amazing it was. I’m pretty sure that she thinks that I’m crazy to call and tell her that everything around me is giant and made out of stone, but that is the conversation that we had last night.

Once my phone call was completed I continued on my aimless wanderings. I ended up in Leicester Square which if I’m not mistaken in is Soho. This is the entertainment district of London. I saw advertisements for many shows that I have not heard of, but also ones that I have. There was ‘Singing in the Rain’ and my all-time favourite of ‘Les Miserables.’ I have to say the most amazing thing ever happened. My curiosity made me go and ask what the ticket prices were for ‘Les Mis’ just so that I could plan my next London trip around a theatre show. Well it turns out that there were a few tickets still available for last night’s show. And since the show had started already I was able to get one at a discounted price. I paid a third of the ticket price for a seat in the stalls (orchestra floor) near the aisle. I had a fantastic view for which I was grateful since I had left my glasses in my bag back at Charlie’s flat.  

Seeing ‘Les Mis’ was amazing. I’ve seen it before on television and at the cinema last year when they had the anniversary broadcaster from London which was fantastic. However nothing and I mean absolutely NOTHING beats seeing it live. It was well done and the show itself is so powerful that I spent a lot of it with tears in my eyes. It was so fantastic. I will definately be going again and next time I will see the entire thing since the Prologue is my favourite part of the show. ‘Les Mis’ was a fantastic part of this trip.

The following day, Charley and I went to grab some breakfast at a little place not far from his flat. We both had variations of a traditional English breakfast, which really is not all that different from what a lot of people get as a full breakfast in Canada. We’re talking about eggs, toast, hashbrowns (or chips), a sausage, bacon (like back bacon only without the peameal) and beans. The beans is the bit that is off from what I’m used to seeing in Canada. But I really, I have to say I like it. When I say beans, I mean beans in tomatoe sauce, or baked beans. I never really liked them as a child, although I ate them when I had to. Now I have to say I enjoy them. They go quite well with the other breakfast foods and I now associate it with having a proper breakfast when I go out for breakfast.

After that, Charley dropped me at the Tube station with some vague directions taking me past Buckingham Palace and through St. James’s park to get me to Borough Market.

St. James Park

 I have to say. I partially forgot his directions, got lost, asked a police woman for help (she thought that I was absolutely crazy for wanting to walk from Buckingham to the market because she said it would take 45 minutes. In reality if you are confident about your directions its really about 25), got within two blocks and gave up and took the train the rest of the way there. Needless to say, I survived and I got there.

 River near Buckingham Palace

Known commonly as Big Ben, now renamed Elizabeth Tower for the Diamond Jubilee. Apparently it was never really named Big Ben....

I found Kayla and we had a lovely although fast wander through the market. We had lunch. It was some sort of shrimp, tomatoe, sausage rice dish. 

It was very good. We also both purchased some baked goods to cheer our weekends. She got foccaccia (not sure about the spelling) and I got a custard tart and a brownie. It was interesting, having a custard tart. It was a new experience for me, but I figured since I always used to watch ‘As Time Goes By’ and one of my favourite characters was obsessed with custard tarts, that I might as well try one, especially since I am in England after all. So I had a custard tart in London, just like Lionel Hardcastle. I’m chuckling as I’m sitting here typing this since I think that most people will have no clue what I’m on about at the moment, but that is just fine.

After my rendezvous with Kayla, I headed back in the direction of King’s Cross. I wandered about, ate some more food. I found some street food vendors and I got some gyoza. Since I love gyoza, I had to get some even though I wasn’t all that hungry. Anyway, Gyoza, Edame, and crunky rainbow salad made for a delicious second lunch. 

Other than street food, that was pretty much the end of my London Adventure. I found some fuzzy slippers in the train station shop, but I decided that they weren’t worth what they were priced at... That is all. 

Leeds and the adventures that it holds

It sounds like such an exciting title. I don't know if the following entry will live up to it, but even if it doesn't the title still did its job of being attention grabbing.

I've been to Leeds a couple of times now. It's nice and close so it is really good for a day trip. It's just a short train ride away (and I do mean short, as it's only 20 minutes!). There is also a bus, but as I understand it the bus takes longer. I haven't yet taken the bus although I think that I should considering I can do so using my pass without having to pay the extra 4.30. I like the train though. Perhaps I need to force myself to be cheaper though.

I've been to Leeds now on my own, with another Canadian teacher and with my department. The trip with my department was quite interesting as it was right at the beginning of the break and everyone needed to blow off some steam. It really made e see that people are very different just depending on the context in which they are in, as well as how certain actions here are seen in a very different light.

My other two trips were far more eventful and full of sights. Where to start with describing is really the question. When I went to Leeds the first time I really had no idea what I was after other than a bit of shopping and some sort of sights. I was talking with a woman before I left for Leeds that I met waiting in line to pay for something. She told me that I had to go to the Corn Exchange, the art gallery and a gallery that has art exhibits but is NOT the art gallery.

 This is the Corn Exchange.

I must say, on my first trip I didn't make it to the Corn Exchange at all. I did on my second trip, but I was there before the shops inside of it opened. So I made due with peaking through the windows of all the little shops. It's a lot of just gift shops. Many of them sold little knicknacks and such that a lot of people give as gifts. You know, the quaint stuff that everyone 'oohs' and 'ahhs' about but no one really wants sitting in their house because it's just one more thing for them to have to dust when they're cleaning. There were a few fashion stores. One of the stores looked very much like it was a cross between a studio and a shop for a local designer. There were a great number of different textiles in the shop that had a variety of colours and textures. It really reminded me of Joyce Seppula's shop in Thunder Bay.


I did make it to the Art Gallery. I've been there twice now. There is a variety of art from different periods of history in the gallery in Leeds. I have to say it was quite interesting because I saw one or two pieces that I remember reading about when I took first year Art History in university. Even for the pieces that I didn't already know it was quite something to be face to face with art that you don't find as much in North America. Now before I bore you with jibber jabber about old art there was an assortment of modern and contemporary art as well. I don't know how to describe it, and I didn't take photos so really all I can say is that what I viewed was unique and interesting.

I also went to see an exhibit by Sarah Lucas in the Henry Moore Institute. This is the gallery beside the Art Gallery. I was there the last weekend of the exhibit. From what I understand about this artist is her work is largely feminist. This particular exhibit (Ordinary Things) was made up of tree knobs painted white to emphasize the phallic nature of them and pantihose stuffed with cotton wool and then twisted and arranged into different shapes. For the most part I thought the way in which the pantihose was contorted and arranged gave the exhibit an undertone of violence. There was one particular piece that really sticks out in my mind from this exhibit. This one you see right when you enter into the gallery. It was a mattress with everyday objects arranged on it to represent a man and a woman. Here is a photo of it that I found on the internet. This is exactly what visitors to the exhibit faced right when they walked into the gallery.

In addition to the art and my random wanderings during that particular trip I did some shopping. I walked around the pedestrian only areas of Leeds where there is a decent variety of shops. There is Marks and Spencers which began in Leeds. There is an H&M (I got a sweater there this weekend), and a whole array of shops that I have never heard of before coming to the UK. There is Next, Dorothy Perkins, Topman/TopShop, Harvey Nichols (which I am told is incredibly famous). I went into the Harvey Nichols. The clothing looks nice enough but let me tell you from experience that it is all high ed designers that design their clothing only for those women who have absolutely no figure. It's funny too because all of the clothing is designed for one body type (the stick) and yet the prices are such that it seems like it is impossible for them to make any money. Of course the price tag is exactly why they still make money I'm sure. I will say, as terrible as I found the pants (trousers) I did like the Jimmy Choo shoes that I tried on. Heaven! And no, I didn't have a mental lapse and buy them. 

I also visited the shopping arcades which are divided up into different quarters. The one that is listed on the tourism websites and such is the Victorian Quarter. This one is listed for it's popular shopping as well as the architecture. 

Below is a street shot of a building that I liked the look of. 

Here is one of the city buildings. This is right next door to the Leeds Library and Art Gallery. I thought that it was City Hall, but when I was in Leeds the second time around I found that there is another city hall. So on that particular point I am a little bit confused. No matter, here is what I do know about this building...

 It has columns which make it very official looking.

 There are sculptures of lions on the outside of the building.

Above the entrance to the building there is a collection of figures that really reminded me of the tops of Greek and Roman temples  and buildings. The stone work that can be found on the building in Yorkshire is really amazing compared to what little that is seen in Canada. Really, I have quite enjoyed it. 

Things that I love about this country...

There are many things about the world here that confuse me a little bit. Like why so many people seem to be unable to adapt their language. If you don't have the exact word you are looked at like you are crazy. Or if you tell people that you just got here and you are still figuring out the currency you're treated like you are more than a little pretty. Yet, there are several things that I really like. For example, you can get a decent serving of fish and chips for under 4 pounds. That's pretty fantastic, I find that I can't finish a serving, so it's good for those big eaters. There is also the tendency to rain everyday, so the people who like to always be prepared and carry an umbrella everywhere fit right in here.
Something that I really like about this country is the energy-saving invention of outlet switches!

I know, it is incredibly exciting and I don't understand why there aren't more of these in the world. I first saw these in my hotel. I thought that it was a hotel thing, because hotels always do things a little bit differently than the rest of the world. Well it turns out that this is normal here and I think it's darn clever. Every electrical outlet has its own on/off switch. Since switches here are backwards from North America, you turn the switch down to turn it on and up to turn it off. This is fantastic because if you hate unplugging things (which I do) but you don't want that residual power drain that happens even what the appliance or whatever is not turned on, then you just turn off the switch! It's great too because every outlet has a switch. That way you can turn off one plug, but leave its neighbour on! Genius! Ok it might not be genius, but as I said (wrote, typed??) I am impressed by it and think that North Americans should consider it as a green possibility to reducing carbon footprints and power consumption. 

Something else that is completely unrelated to power consumption is the candy that you can get here. Only wait friends...here you don't buy candy. I've been mocked actually for saying 'caaandy' because apparently I have a drawl -who knew?  There are a whole range of sweets that I think are pretty nifty. 

The first, and definitely my favourite is Rowntree's Fruit Pastilles. They are like a chewy candy coated in sugar. Not the powered sugar of the Jelly Babies but granulated sugar. They are made with real fruit juice and were originally made not too far from where I currently am. And by not too far I really mean in this general part of the country. I won't go into very long and boring details (you can look it up on wikipedia if you want the full history) but I think they're pretty good. There are a sweet that I think has spread as far as North America, although I will confess to having never seen them myself. They flavour has also been used to make icelollies (popsicles) by the same name here. They are apparently very popular with the kids. I think I will stick to my chewy sweets though, since they don't make me cold like an icelolly would. 

These little guys are not as good as I was hoping them to be. They are like very squishy  child-shaped jubejubes. They are coated in powdered sugar, or corn starch or something. I suppose I could just read the side of the bag and tell you what it really is. One moment please...I'm going to stick with sugar since I don't see anything about corn starch on the label and I licked one and it tasted like sugar. As you can see they are made with natural colours and flavourings. The sweets here are all about being natural. Might give you diabetes, but at least there are less chemicals in them! Just kidding folks. Anyway I think that it is neat that there is actual fruit in these sweets, it makes me feel a little better about eating them. 

Another great thing about sweets and here is that I can still get my favourite chocolate bar. The Twix is sold in the United Kingdom! All worship the person who decided that it would be done. It makes me happy. 

One sore point I have about companies that exist in both the UK and North America. They have differed their menus and ingredients to suit the country that they are in. Now of course from a marketing standpoint this makes perfect sense. Why would you try to sell a product that goes against the majority of the cultural values of your customers when you could adapt and make more money instead? So KFC I have a bone to pick with you. When I order gravy, I expect it to be thick and greasy and bad for you. Not moderately runny and boring. I should be able to taste every single calorie on every single drop of gravy as I dip my deepfried, artery-clogging chicken into before shoving it into my mouth. BUT NO! In this country you have gone and made your gravy moderately runny and therefore also I presume healthier. And you do not even have the courtesy to try and make it up to me by having poutine on your menu. Big disappointment. Big. BIG! 

And random food rant is now done. 

If the true English major in me was functioning I would go back over this. I should reread it and make sure that there are no errors and that I'm not uselessly rambling. However it is Friday and it has been a long week. I would rather do something else than edit. So voila! C;est fini!

World Curry Festival!

Well today was another random Saturday discovery. I was in the City Centre running some errands. I finally after four months have jeans again. I also have some heels and some casual stuff that doesn't look like it belongs to someone twice my size. Yay! I'm proud of myself for actually being successful in clothing shopping.

Moving closer to the point of this entry. I had to stop by the bank to take care of something and ended up in the City Park again. Facebook (and one of the other Canadians in the area) informed me that this weekend is the World Curry Festival.
The festival runs Friday to Sunday. There is food for (in my opinion) outrageous prices as well as small performances as well. I took a few shots of the park for your amusement.

This first one is a pretty fantastic view of City Hall. It is a side view but still you get the idea.

This is the puddle (nickname of some). Basically it's a fountain-like art form that sometimes that children play in. It's been cooler lately so there have been less children playing in it.

 In the background you can see some of the booths. I had a chicken tikka wrap. It was fairly decent.

Here are the Cake Ladies. They are on stilts which is quite interesting to see them move. They have to keep moving continuously to maintain their balance.

Discovering the festival was a nice coincidence since it gave me an excuse to be outside in the sun for a little bit longer. I think that I spent too much time inside. This is a pattern that has formed since I was very young. Perhaps I should the opportunity to now break it. One thing that I'm really liking about the area is that there seems to be something going on fairly frequently. Last weekend there was the Saltaire festival (not that I made the trip out there). I wonder what will happen next week. 

Sundays are rundays!

Well the pattern that my life has taken up is work like crazy Monday to Friday, get up to something whether work or errands on Saturday and on Sunday go for a walk/run and then finish whatever else must be done before Monday. With Sundays being run days I've been getting some amazing shots of the countryside and just been enjoying being outside. To give you an idea of how beautiful the area I live in is, here are some photos!

Both of these were taken about fifteen minutes walking from where I live. All that rain we get means for a very green and very lush countryside. 

Last Sunday when I went in the other direction for my run I ended up on top of a very large hill. I thought I had taken a picture of the view but it turns out that I had not. Regardless, you could see for miles. It was all rolling hills and what I would call moors, but I could be wrong. Much of it has houses and such on it, but much of it looks like either farmland or just fields of one sort or another. So when people keep asking me why here? Why not, it's beautiful!

Surprises in the City Centre

Two weeks ago (yes I know I'm behind) I was in the city centre tending to some errands and happened and a pretty exciting discovery. I was sitting in the city park waiting to meet someone. It was a nice sunny day, the temperature was warm and I had found myself a place to sit with the intention of reading while I waited. As I sat down an interesting scene was unfolding in front of me. A man dressed in an old police uniform (think bobby) was forcing a Beefeater Bear into a telephone box.

It was quiet an amusing scene so I put my book down to watch for a while. Soon enough there were these women dressed in incredibly colourful costumes that emerged from the building behind the telephone boxes.

Being my confused and curious self I had to ask what was going on. It turns out that the building you see in the background of the photos is the city hall. That weekend marked World Heritage Day so the mayor here decided to open up City Hall to the public. There was a self-guided tour of the council chambers and many other rooms. There was a replica of the building on display for people to see.  

Really the building is very cool. I liked this replica since it meant I could show everyone what the building's structure looks like. Note the bell tower -it's very imposing and I think very English. Apparently th

There was also many royal souvenirs from different time periods and artifacts from the city's collection.

This is the view when you first walk in through the front doors. It is a very beautiful building. 

The gorgeous ceilings in the council chambers.

Stained glass windows in the ceiling. Think of all the hard work it too to get those up there. This building was built in the 1873s. I was impressed.

Stained glass really is all the rage in this building. It looks far more impressive in person. This picture really does not do it justice at all. 

The council chambers was constructed completely out of one kind of wood. It feels very impressive to stand in the chambers even when it is nearly empty.

Something really cool that everyone should know about Bradford's City Hall: on the outside of the building (which is made of stone) there are 35 statues of Britain's monarchs positioned on the outside of the building, including according to Wikipedia (although I didn't take the time to double check myself) Oliver Cromwell. 

First English Fish and Chips (but certainly not the last)

This one will be short and sweet and to the point I promise. When one goes to England they must try fish and chips. Why? I don't know because we used to eat them when we were kids and my mother would tell us stories about proper fish and chips. Last night I was down in the city centre and happened by a fish and chips shop -who shall remain nameless simply because I forget its name. I got takeaway fish and chips for 3.80. Since this is my first fish and chips I do not know if this is a good price, however they were warm and delicious. The lady in the shop put the chips in the bottom of the takeout tray and then plunked a heathy sized piece of fish on top of it. Add a bit of vinegar (note the customer does that him or herself and I felt like a daft Canadian not knowing that right off - I had to be told) and she wrapped it right up in paper!! It's so cool that they still do that. She wrapped it up quickly in three pieces of paper wrapping one piece around the bundle at a time to keep the heat in and then put it all in a plastic bag. I grabbed a little wooden fork on my way out after I paid her and voila! dinner. The paper did the trick. I decided that I was tired and wanted to eat my dinner at home. So I found myself the bus and headed home. My fish and chips was still hot when I got there. I sat down at the table and enjoyed myself some English fish and chips.

By the way: little wooden forks are great for eating chips, but murder on the fish. 

Accidental Discoveries

The other night I stopped by the store to pick up some juice and instant noodle cups. The store that I was going to is located on the far of a shopping centre. I had been to this store before but I decided that I would take a different route home in order to see more of the area. As I was leaving the shopping area I found an odd-looking formation sticking out of the ground.

It looks a bit like a bell, but at the same time it makes me think more of a lightbulb that has been shoved into the ground and then turned on. I think the yellow rays coming out from it is why it reminds me of a light bulb. 

Continuing on in my wanderings I found a cathedral.

 It is built out of these large stone blocks with a rather wide stair case leading up the grounds on which the cathedral is located. I climbed up the staircase and found a sign stating that visitors to the cathedral were welcome.

I really liked that there was moss on the walls in places. It made it feel suitably old. I especially enjoyed the traditional-looking lamps that had the modern florescent bulbs inside of them. This particular picture really does not do it justice at all since it is a bit blurry. Alas, the sad things we must put up with in our first world lives. 

The inside of the cathedral was exactly what you expect to see in an old church in England. There was old wood and stone. There were stained-glass windows depicting different scenes. There was also in progress a choral celebration. As a part of the choral celebration there were also prayers. It made it feel very much like a service which is suitable considering it was taking place in a cathedral. I stayed for the service, which was only 30 minutes. I must say, it was a very enjoyable thirty minutes. It took conscious effort at first, but once I relaxed and got my mind off my to-do list the services was very beautiful. The atmosphere in the near empty cathedral was comforting but at the same time almost eerie.  There was one other person there outside of the priest, the chorus and sound man. The great thing about that was it felt like a private event. Myself and the other individual were like VIP members at a private show (although technically it was open to everyone). Now normally I'm not really big into the religious music but really this chorus was heavenly. They were together and well rehearsed. Their harmony was spot on. I don't have a single criticism. Following the service I left and continued on home.

Putting away my purchases, I decided that I was hungry and would eat one of my noodle cups. As I pulled it out of the cupboard to get it ready I had the unfortunate realization that I didn't have a fork or anything to eat the noodles with. BUT low and behold when I opened the noodle cup:

a little plastic fork

that folds out to a full-sized fork!! I'm sure everyone reading this is rolling their eyes, but I have to tell you I was seriously impressed with the fork. I mean come on -think of how inconvenient it is to pack your instant noodles into your lunch satchel and then have to also pack a fork. Or if you are like me, forget to pack a fork. Or the other alternative - if you are like me but you pack a spoon thinking its a fork. Let me tell you that spoons do not work well with noodles. So needless to say England - I am impressed.