Day 82 (Sunday, December 19, 2021)
Costs for the Day are in the Table below:
Bi woke up several times throughout the night to let Sydney out for a potty. However, we had a couple accidents in the morning when we were letting her play. We caught her in process and took her outside immediately.
In the morning, I ran to the local pet store, Hornsey Pet & Garden Shop. It’s a small shop but they were knowledgeable and helpful. They did not have the dog food we needed but they suggested another hypoallergenic food that was also a mixture of grain and raw to be easier on Sydney’s stomach. They said not to switch completely all at once if possible but to blend the food over several days or meals. They also helped me with flea/tick protection and advised to use the drops vs. collar for better protection and also less irritation on the puppy’s neck. (Cost: 29.98 Pounds). We don’t think she has fleas or ticks but we want to make sure she is protected since we are moving around a lot. I loaded up my backpack and then ran back to the Airbnb, trying to get in a little workout.
We have started the training process for Sydney with games for Leave It, Come, and Stay. It’s obvious she is very smart but also much more stubborn than we imagined. We are already wondering if her will is stronger than ours. She playfully bites any toes when possible and her teeth are surprising sharp. Her nails were also super sharp and we found out you can trim them at 8 weeks so we did that as they can wreck havoc on sweaters. She was very good during that process which is nice and she is also very good when we are wiping off her paws after going out. During training, we try to reduce distractions but it is difficult since anything is interesting to her and when we try to contain her in a boring space for training she focuses most of her attention on getting out vs. the snacks.
In the afternoon, we took the Great Northern Train and Underground (Tube) – Piccadilly Line (Cost: 8.3 Pounds Each) downtown to Harrods Department Store at Knightsbridge. The store was originally started in 1824 as various businesses such as a draper, mercer, haberdasher, and grocery store. It moved to it’s current location on Brampton Road in 1849 and in 2010 it was purchased by the Qatar Sovereign wealth fund. The store has an interesting history of selling everything from airplanes to elephants and cocaine to jewelry and real estate. A.A. Milne’s fictional bear Winnie the Pooh came from seeing his son Christopher Robin playing with a teddy bear bought in Harrods in 1921. Harrods had the first escalator in England, it was made of leather and patrons received a shot at the top after the “ordeal” of riding the escalator. In 1967 Leka, the son of King Zog and Queen Geraldine of Albania bought an elephant as a present for Ronald Reagan from Harrods.
I gained a whole new appreciation for retail just by visiting the store. The displays are spotless and meticulously arranged and packaged and presented in a way that made them look beautiful and special. They took the same approach from jewelry to steaks and chocolate.
After checking out the store, we hopped back on the Tube – Piccadilly Line and then the Train – Great Northern back to the Airbnb. (Cost: 8.3 Pounds Each)
Then we went to dinner at Crouch End Best Kebab London which was absolutely fantastic. (Cost: 23.50 Pounds) The salads were fresh and crisp and the chicken was juicy and flavorful.
