Key differences

It's not an elevator, it's a lift.

The @ symbol and the " are swapped on the keyboard for no reason whatsoever.

Nail polish is nail varnish.

It's not a cell, it's a mobile.

And it's not a restroom or a ladies' room or even a bathroom - it's the toilet (often labeled water closet, but never actually called that). I never really realized how crude I consider the word toilet to be...but I really can't bring myself to ask someone where the toilet is, or excuse myself to go to the toilet. But if you ask someone where the restroom is you will be greeted with a blank stare - and in one extreme case, I was directed toward the seating area in the lobby.

Live from London!

I've been living in London for 18 days at this point, and I'll admit that I've done a pretty poor job of keeping my friends and family updated...so without further ado:

The basics: Housing
For the time being I'm living in corporate housing. It's a studio apartment on the 6th floor of a building with a busted elevator (there's a story for ya). It's about a 10 minute walk from the office, and it's a great walk too - right past St. Paul's and down to Fleet Street.
The building and the studio apartment are actually really nice, but this is by no means a residential area, it's actually a small pedestrian shopping street tucked behind St. Paul's.

Next weekend I get to move into my own flat in Kensington. It's kind of small, but it's got a great layout and it's in a fantastic location. It's fully furnished, with a spare bedroom and a working fireplace, and like most apartments around here it has a washer and dryer in the kitchen as well as a mini-dishwasher. It's very close to the Tube and some great shopping and pubs.

Work:
I hit the ground running when I got here, but I've had the last week off for "settling in", and come Monday I think things will feel more official. The office is beautiful and it's tucked into a little courtyard off Fleet Street. Everyone has been really friendly.
Of course the offices are open-plan, meaning we don't have proper cubicles - more like tables with little 10 inch partitions. I sit about 3 feet from my boss, which is both bonding and vaguely disturbing.