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Have you ever been laid off and took the next flight to a country you had never been to? I have. In 2008, the economy crashed and I worked for the first industry to be hit hard. I was working in entertainment. Who needs radio when everyone around you is losing their homes, their jobs, and basically their comfortable lives? It was my dream job and it hit me like a pile of bricks. I thought, 'Well, now is as good as every to do this.'. I always loved traveling and I loved the idea of going overseas to see where my family came from. I flew into London around 7am on December 6th, 2008. I dressed up, even though it was a red eye flight. That worked to my advantage because I was one of the few that got through customs. Customs agents at Heathrow had it out for Americans that particular morning. I was starving and needed a sandwich badly. Luckily, a sweet Englishman named Neil helped me get my money traded in and made sure I got a sandwich. I explained to him it was my first time overseas and I would be lying if I said I wasn't nearly defecating in my pants in fear of being sent back. I planned a six month trip and I was going to travel all if the U.K. I had one suitcase and enough money to get by and see everything in my itinerary. One of the customs agents looked at my itinerary and stated, "You planned every day is your trip. That raises a red flag. You see, it's a bit too detailed." I had read that detailed itinaries would help you through customs, while traveling. I told her the website I read that on and apologized. It was a lesson learned. The first of many lessons that I learned on that particular trip. I had to make many promises to her. I could not work. I could not go to school. I could not stay passed May 6th, 2009 on that trip. Mind you, as I was making all is these promises, I had been awake for 36 hours. I was trying desperately not to say anything wrong. After 6 hours of going over paperwork, making promises, and getting my luggage, I heard the sound of a stamp as it met my passport. I thanked Neil for helping me out and I walked as quickly as I could to get out of that airport. I was picked up by a friend, who would eventually be my second husband, and we drove to his house in Oxfordshire. I was hungry and tired. He prepared a cheese tray and sat it down in front of me. I ate the cheese tray in its entirety. I looked at him with tired eyes and said,"That is the best cheese I've ever had." To this day, I still swear by British cheeses. All of a sudden my goals changed for the trip. It was not just going to be a trip about learning where my family came from but it was going to be accompanied by British cuisine. From pubs to fine dining establishments, to curry houses to chip shops and kabob shops, I was going to try it all and I did. I also taught some cuisine. The one day I went to an American restaurant and I taught the staff how to make iced tea. They thought the idea of it was disgusting but after drinking it, they found it very refreshing. I told them the difference between sweetened and unsweetened, in the case other Americans came in. I also taught my friends how to make grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup. They loved it. The U.K. helped me gain 30 pounds and left me quite the food snob. I have since then humbled myself. I also learned that you can not call children 'little buggers', that page 3 in the Sunday paper is totally different than in the States, and that tipping is not a custom. There are many small differences between even the regions of the U.K. while, I flew over an ocean, one could certainly jump puddles in England, Scotland, and Wales and they would learn a new way to live.