Istanbul-bound!

It's confirmed* - I'm going to Istanbul!

The backstory: there have been some changes here at our client in Glasgow, one of which resulted sadly in our current development team being reduced to roughly half of what it was. At first, the boy and I were told we'd be sticking around. This made sense given that we were based here and many team members who traveled weekly from London, Manchester, etc requested to roll of. But the day before we were leaving for our 2-week vacation (which we are on now), we got the news that our schedules and skill sets lined up better with the gig in Turkey, and were we willing to go? And just like that, we announced to the team that the following day would be our last. 

Logistically we'll be operating in fast forward mode - once we get back to the UK, we'll have a day to pack up in Glasgow, the next day to fly to Istanbul to get settled, and the day after that we'll be at our new client...ahhh!!! Then a week after, we'll head to London to get obtain our full working visas, then it's back to Istanbul for good, with sighs of relief. 

I'd always felt pretty comfortable with the 'pack up and hop on a plane with ridiculously short notice' mentality that comes with being a consultant at ThoughtWorks, but I've definitely gone soft since living in Glasgow and not traveling for work the past year. I'm picturing our apartment and all the random shit we've accumulated - climbing gear, airbed and extra pillows/sheets/blankets, dozens of jars of spices, random souvenirs (thankfully we stuck mostly to magnets), clothing and electronics... to pack or donate all that, sell our bicycles, and pop in to say goodbye to our co-workers all in one day will be the ultimate test of my road warrior abilities.

I'll definitely miss Glasgow. I've grown fond of living and working here. There are still many things I wanted to do in Scotland, like hike Ben Nevis and eat a deep fried Mars Bar and go back to Edinburgh. Leaving on such short notice makes me feel cheated of a proper farewell. 

But travel madness aside, I'm really looking forward to the next adventure. I loved my visit to Istanbul earlier in the year - it left me craving to see more of the country, like the hot air balloons of Cappadocia or the salt pools of Pamukkale. Moreover, I welcome the challenge of a new client, a new city, a new culture. This assignment will take me out of the cozy, predicable nest I've built in Glasgow and catapult me outside my comfort zone. I'm looking forward to learning, to growing, and to helping my new team ship some kickass Turkish technology!

*Well, as confirmed as things at ThoughtWorks get, which is never quite 100%. I'll truly believe it when I've been there a week!

Life in Glasgow so far

I was prepared to write a long entry about a weekend in Paris but the internet in the apartment has not been cooperating with Flickr. A post about Paris without pictures seems wrong; sacrilegious, even. I'll find a solution soon, but in lieu of that I thought I'd let loose a little and just blog about what life here has been like so far.

A typical work week begins Monday when the alarm goes off at 7:10. I get ready, caffeinate myself as quickly as possible, tell the (colorblind) boy that his undershirt clashes with the shirt he picked out, and we aim to be out the door by 8. About once a week I forget something (usually my phone), stop mid-stair-descent, turn around and go back for it.

I venture outside; on any given day there seems to be about a 50% chance of drizzle. It's usually nothing that a hood can't take fend off, but it tends to dampen the spirit nonetheless. The flip side is that when the sun does make an appearance in Glasgow, it instantly puts the entire city, myself included, in a cheery mood. Sunshine is definitely not taken for granted round these parts.

Work is about a mile away. On the way there I pass through the city's bustling center which includes hordes of commuters pouring out of Glasgow's Central Station. If I get the timing right I usually pass a man who looks like Walter White walking in the opposite direction. I tug at the boy's sleeve and inform him of my W.W. sighting.

The boy and I get to the client site and settle into our respective seats. The day usually begins quietly - a few hellos and how were your weekends here and there - but the conversation doesn't linger because this early crowd knows that these quiet minutes in the morning are precious. Precious for mental calibration, for getting an early start to the day's work, for luxurious slow sips of coffee before the circus arrives.

And arrives it does. By 10:30 most of the team is here, many straight from the airport. Every time I see a fellow ThoughtWorker enter the team room and roll their suitcase into a corner on Monday morning I feel a wave of gratitude wash over me for not having to fly each week anymore. But I digress. We walk through our card wall (an array of index cards that capture chunks of functionality to develop or tasks to investigate) as a large group and we then break into smaller huddles which usually conclude with "Go team!" - a cheesy but effective motivator to start the day.

Here is where the daily narrative ends, for no day at work is the same and certainly no day is predictable. Usually it's a mixture of writing on white boards, kicking off or handing over user stories, talking with my product owner or business SME, and a random assortment of meetings/discussions/team Kumbayamylords. On average Monday through Wednesdays are fairly crazy and fast-paced whereas Thursdays and Fridays are a lot more relaxed. I'm still trying to find ways to plan ahead and flatline my cortisone levels.

Although the work can be challenging, it is also rewarding. We're working with a smart, willing client and the software we're building provides value in the short term and serves as a technological platform for further transformation down the line. Our culture at work encourages being honest with each other, challenging our own assumptions, failing fast, iterating quickly, speaking up for technological excellence, and cracking fart jokes. It's truly a fun and interesting place to be; most days I wake up excited to go in and do some cool stuff.

And as for working on the same project team with the boy - well, that's been surprisingly smooth. It helps that everything is out in the open and everyone is very laid back. Occasionally he and I will butt heads on something or another but that's bound to happen between any business analyst and developer. We work it out like big boys and girls.

The work day usually ends between 6:00 and 6:30. Sometimes I have to force myself to leave the office because the work can be so engaging and it's almost addictive to stay and do just a bit more. (This project/domain is BA crack, I tell ya.) Recently our weeknights have been a packed agenda as well; on Monday we go on a group run, Tuesdays and Thursdays are for rock climbing, Wednesdays usually involved a team outing of sorts, and Friday is for pub. On nights when we don't eat out (which is most of the time) we whip up something simple for dinner before spending the last few hours of the evening surfing the internet or watching something on Netflix together. Then it's time for bed.

The weekdays have been flying by in a frenzy of such activity and the weekend always descends upon us rather suddenly. We've been traveling roughly every other one. So far I've accomplished 40% of my goal to visit ten new countries (Scotland, England, France, and Netherlands) - not bad for two months' time. There are more planned ahead: over Easter weekend we'll be going to Barcelona, and at the end of April we'll take a full week off to see Turkey, Vienna and Prague. In May there's Wales with the boy's family, and after that, some talk of Portugal and Greek islands for the summertime...

On weekends when we stay in Glasgow, it's a nice mix between playing catch up non-work work (planning more trips), exploring more of what's in and around Glasgow, and generally enjoying some down time. As sexy as the travel can be, the stay-put weekends are sometimes just as wonderful and often more needed for sanity-restoring purposes.

It's surreal to step back and think that we have been living on another continent for a little over two months. In that time we have basically started our lives anew - new apartment, new friends, new surroundings, new work. Yet it's all oddly familiar as well, like we're living in some sort of Scottish alternate reality where everything's the same but there's haggis instead of hotdogs.

I do feel pangs of homesickness for family and friends and Chipotle back in the US. But mostly I am happy and grateful for so many things: for the opportunity to see Europe, for the ability to have loved ones visit and experience Scotland themselves, for the fantastic project and team, and most of all, for being in the same place as the boy every night of the week. I am very lucky to be here in Glasgow.

West End

I have fallen in love with a neighborhood here in Glasgow. It is called the West End.

West End is the love child of Lincoln Park and Wicker Park after you subtract all the yuppies and hipsters. What's left after: a huge public park and a gorgeous college campus, both surrounded by quirky restaurants, vintage shops, free museums and friendly folk - all in a quiet residential area.

It's posh but not pretentious. Trendy but not unwelcoming. Quirky without trying too hard.

It's also home to Big Licks, an ice cream shop that serves the most fucking delicious ice cream I've ever had in my life. Big Licks is the pièce de résistance that single-handedly elevates the West End out of "Oh, this neighborhood is neat!" status and into "I must go to there every weekend" territory. 

The boy and I have made many a trip already, the most recent of which was for my birthday this past weekend. We strolled around the park, walked through the university campus, dined at the Ubiquitous Chip, watched Grand Budapest Hotel on comfy couches in an indie theatre, and topped off the celebrations with scoops of honeycomb and strawberry ice cream from Big Licks.

Prancing about the University of Glasgow

I was looking forward to eating here for weeks!

Venison haggis

My rice and mushroom cake. Delicious but not very photogenic.

The boy's fish dish. Much better of a presentation.

We enjoyed some oatmeal apple ice cream for ice cream...mmm.

Side note: I may or may not be drooling on my keyboard right now after looking at all those food pictures.

Two weekends before the last one (you can tell how behind I'm getting with these weekend blog posts, gah) we had made another trip out to the West End. This time we strolled along the river through the botanical gardens and eventually into the Kelvingrove art gallery.

Goofing around in the park

I call this the "awkward hotdog"

Insert-flower-name-related-joke-here

I call this "mad cow disease"

We stumbled into a rather arbitrary drum performance by a group that was very diverse in age, ethnic composition, etc. The boy told me that they were a group of recovering alcoholics.
I believed him and was horrified as I gawked at the younger members of the group (who looked 10-12). This went on for a full five minutes before he told me he had been joking...

The Kelvingrove, at last!

Big smiles and weary feet (not pictured)

The architecture inside was just as beautiful as the outside

An interesting choice in lobby decoration

Of course, we capped that visit with some ice cream too. Thinking back, I wish I had taken some pictures at Big Licks. But I was too preoccupied with the task at hand of stuffing my face.

I'll conclude this post by answering the obvious: if the West End is so great, why haven't we moved there?

The easy reason is that it would double the commute that we currently take to work (which is 15 minutes). We're also relatively content with our current corporate apartment.

The less-obvious reason is that I think we both quite enjoy having the West End as a real local treat. It's nice to have it as a destination, something to savor and explore - ideally on peaceful, undisrupted Saturdays and Sundays. I think living there would spoil that magic a bit ;-) 

Glasgow: first impressions

In no particular order:

Goodbye, Rose's money. Everything -  cabs, meals, services, clothing/misc goods - seems to be about 30-40% on average more expensive here than in the States. Factor that in with the travel plans I am making and 2014 is already looking to be a bleak financial year for my savings account. But the unexpected kicker atop all of this? My corporate apartment is located about half a block from the Glaswegian equivalent of the Magnificent Mile. In the span of five minutes I can walk to Topshop, LUSH, the Body Shop, and a plethora of other stores that like to party hard with my credit card. I keep glancing at prices and thinking "Oh, that's quite reasonable" before realizing it's all in pounds, not USD. Also, my UK laptop is trying to convince me to spellcheck realizing with "realising".

I am surrounded by stunning architecture. It is a wide-angle-lens-owner's wet dream. 

Wet with rain, that is. So far it has rained about 50% of the time I've been outside. The threat of precipitation seems to loom above the other 50% of the time. There were a few glorious hours of sunshine and blue sky this morning which left me jonesing for more. Overall I'm pleased with the weather here and prefer it much over to the Chiberian tundra whence I came. 

Everything is smaller. Most noticeably, the portions, and second-most-noticeably, the people. (Though I suppose it would make little sense if that didn't hold true.) The cars, the homes, the street lanes all seem a fraction of what I'm used to in the States - especially since I lived in Texas for the better part of two years, where all of the above are bigger even by US standards. 

Also, Glasgow in general feels much, much smaller than Chicago - in the span of a day and a half I think I already have formed a somewhat good idea of the city and can orient myself fairly quickly using local landmarks. The boy and I also went on a run today to explore a bit; you can see that we covered quite a bit of the city ground with 5 miles.

People are extremely kind and I keep suspecting they want money from me when they really don't. Examples include the immigrations officer at the airport, waiters & waitresses at restaurants, and random Glaswegians I ask for directions from on the street. They are all incredibly helpful and polite. Even the people who do want money from me - cab drivers, beggars - are extremely cordial. I'm feelin' the love, Glasgow!

Glaswegians aren't workout fanatics...at least not in public. On my run today I saw a grand total of 3 other runners. In Chicago that number would easily have been 30. I also don't see people wearing sneakers, yoga pants, North Face, and other athletic/lounge wear which are pretty much ubiquitous in the Midwest. People here seem to dress for appearances rather than comfort, which I can certainly get behind. The boy, on the other hand...

That's it for now. I have a few more photos to share but unfortunately the internet in my unit isn't the best for uploading. I'm hoping to get my hands on a 3G dongle to fix that issue. More soon!