Thursday 29 May 2008

File this post under cultural differences.

I found out this week that U.K. drivers have separate driver’s licenses required for both standard (clutch) and automatic transmissions. Doesn’t really matter since I don’t drive; I just found it interesting.

Also… When someone here in the U.K. changes jobs/companies it is customary that THEY purchase the farewell drinks for everyone else.

Just so happens two gents are leaving the company this week.

What…

A…

Shame.

Sunday 18 May 2008

As Amy referred to in her previous post this last trip to Paris produced some of my best night time photos EVER.

I just HAD to share.

…continuing on that same “dark” theme.

While the ladies went about their touring I had some unfinished business of my own to attend to. The Catacombs were finally reopened, allowing me the opportunity to walk amongst the remains of almost 6 MILLION Parisians. Almost twice the number that LIVE in Paris today. I know… it IS creepy and NOT for everyone, but as most of you well know… I’m not like everyone.

Afterwards, I visited the Pantheon. Entering it brought on one of those “wow” moments, much like my first visit to St. Chappelle.

The friezes, the sculptures, and the working Foucault pendulum all added to a very magnificent tribute to the heroes of France.

Of course what visit to Paris would be complete without a visit to one of their Gardens of Stone? This time I walked amongst the monuments at the Montmartre Cemetery.

While not nearly as impressive as the two I visited in April it still was a worthwhile visit.

You know... IF you like that type of thing.

Wednesday through Tuesday 14-20 May 2008

My friend Lisa E and her mom, Judy arrived on Wednesday afternoon for a week's visit.

After an eventful late lunch, we took a walk to Buckingham Palace. It was a nice and clear day and we enjoyed a nice stroll through Green Park. We then made our way to St. James Park and managed a few photos along the way! We topped off the evening by meeting Ray for a traditional pub meal in one of our local favourites, The Jugged Hare. One last nightcap at The Marquis and we called it a night!

Thursday morning we took the audio tour of Westminster Abbey. The weather turned cold on us a bit today and we experienced windy showers throughout the day.

We walked through The National Gallery visiting the works of Michelangelo, Renoir, Van Gogh and all those other masters. We enjoyed lunch at The Texas Embassy and then walked through Trafalgar Square and into Leceister Square. We stopped for an afternoon coffee and to rest before a bit of shopping. We met Ray later at The Albert for another pub dinner and a pint or two.

On Friday, Lisa, Judy and I took the Big Red Bus tour of London. It was windy and cold – but luckily dry. The forecasted rain seemed to skip us today – and that was just fine! We stopped first at the Half Price Ticket booth in Leicester Square and purchased tickets for The Sound of Music. You know they had to twist my arm to see this one again! We watched the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace and then rode over to the Tower of London where we joined the Yeoman tour. We also saw the famous Crown Jewels and the Tower Bridge.

After a quick lunch and a little rest back at the flat, we took off for our evening show. The show was great and we had really good seats. Sound of Music is still one of my very favourites!

Early Saturday morning, we boarded the Eurostar for a train ride under the English Channel to Paris. Ray is the ultimate Paris tour guide these days – and we walked and walked and walked, hitting many of the highlights. We saw Notre Dame and St. Chappelle (beautiful stained glass windows), had a sidewalk bistro lunch, got caught in a short rain storm, saw the Eiffel Tower by day – and after a few cocktails in another sidewalk café and a lovely dinner – saw it again at night! Eiffel Tower at night is an amazing site and we got lots of great photos.

As Ray went exploring The Catacombs and cemeteries on Sunday, Lisa, Judy and I went to the Louvre and enjoyed Winged Victory, Mona Lisa and Venus de Milo – as well as lots of other classics. The Louvre is absolutely huge, and we barely skimmed the surface in the hours we spent there.

Then, we took to the city tour bus and saw all of the remaining highlights including Champs Elysee and Arc de Triomphe . This was a great birthday weekend treat and I thoroughly enjoyed the quick trip. 3 bowls of French Onion Soup and a few blistered feet later…

On Monday, after a lie in (one of our new English phrases) we crossed off the few remaining things on the Lisa/Judy list. We visited Eros in Piccadilly Circus, we browsed in Covent Garden and –of course- had cream tea at Harrods! After a bit of shopping, we dined at our local Italian restaurant and had a great visit.

I flew to Hamburg for a week’s work on Tuesday and dropped Lisa and Judy off at the meeting point for their last day tour of Bath, Stonehenge and The Cotswolds. It was a full day, and they truly enjoyed the outing.

It was a great time and I’m so glad that they had the opportunity to visit us in London.

Saturday 10 May 2008

Spring/summer has FINALLY arrived in London. On Saturday, we put on some shorts, and enjoyed some warm temperatures venturing out towards Richmond and Kew Gardens (part of the Royal Botanical Gardens).

Some of the azaleas were still in bloom, as well as, the rhododendrons.

However, if you recall the previous post, the highlight for me were the dells covered in bluebells.

We also walked through the Japanese Gardens and a replica Roman Arch, but it was the flora that made me REALLY miss not having a yard.

Friday 09 May 2008

Things I’ve grown accustomed to (and quite enjoy):

Lamb chops instead of pork chops

Dandelions as wildflowers instead of weeds

Bluebells instead of bluebonnets

And then there are the rape fields:


Rape is the flowering cash crop used to produce Canola Oil. This time of year the fields explode onto the English countryside in vivid colour. If you happen to fly into London this time of year and see the large swaths of bright yellow below… THAT’s them!!!

How many thought this was going to be about Friday Pub Lunches?

Sunday 04 May 2008

A Day in the Life…

(with a pre-emptive apology to J. Lennon and Sir Paul)

Behind the bus stop in the middle of the roundabout...
There’s a motorcar that sits before a bank...
And then the tourist rushes away…
From the pouring rain
Very strange...

Penny Lane is in my ears and in my eyes.

There beneath the dark and rainy skies, Penny Lane.

Let me take you down,
'cause I'm going to TRY and find…

Strawberry Fields…

All the lonely people

Where do they all belong?

Eleanor Rigby...
Died in the church and was buried along with her name

Nobody came

Father McKenzie…
Wonders who’s stumbling round with that camera near her grave
Is anyone sane?

So if you haven’t figured out…

After A Hard Day’s Night at the wedding yesterday we became Day Trippers as we took The Long and Winding Road to Liverpool for Ray’s Magical Mystery Tour of most the incredibly touristy Beatles’ stuff.

Our gracious hosts for the weekend, Mark and Christine escorted us armed with GPS and Google maps galore, and put up with my idiosyncrasies as we searched for (in no particular order) a headstone, a street and a gate (see above). All the while dodging somewhat heavy rain showers.

We also headed down to Albert’s Dock and took in the Beatles’ Story which included a detailed history of the Fab Four.

After checking out two OUTSTANDING, almost museum-like pubs (The Philharmonic and The Vines) we meandered down to Mathew St., home of the Cavern Club. Well… the original site IS still there, but the club itself is a reincarnation.

Thanks again to our hosts for a most enjoyable weekend and especially for Mark’s persistence in finding what proved to be (for us) the almost elusive gates to Strawberry Field.

Goo goo g' joob

Saturday 03 May 2008

This weekend was the “English Wedding"!!


This was something Amy has been looking forward to for quite a while and those that have been shopping with her know full well. Gemma and Ben’s ceremony took place in the parish church of St. Lawrence in Biddulph which dated back to Saxon times, and was followed by their reception held in a 16th century coaches inn.


The occasion gave Amy the opportunity to finally wear a hat!! Which she quite enjoyed, and I was happy as there were several local traditional ales that I just HAD to try. The day was full of festivities and lasted well into the night including a meal, music and the dancing to the English traditional version of “The Cotton-Eyed Joe”.

The wedding was lovely and the bride was beautiful. We were so honored to be a part of this celebration. Thanks so much to Christine and Mark, and Congratulations Gemma and Ben!

Saturday 26 April 2008

We FINALLY had some spring weather and decided to take a late planned daytrip out to the historic academic community of Oxford.

Arriving just in time to grab the last two available slots in the last walking tour, we were able to go into two of the colleges viewing the historic dining halls and their individual chapels.

The most visual of the two was the chapel at Exeter College which was patterned after Ste. Chapelle which I had just visited in Paris.

Afterwards we walked through the city’s main sights including the Bridge of Sighs (patterned after the original in Venice).

And also…

Christ Church College, the Radcliffe Camera along with the University Church of St. Mary the Virgin and the Carfax Tower.


What better way to finish the day than a couple visits to some 700 year old pubs?

Can’t think of many…

Well... Amy's feet might argue that soak in the tub once we arrived back in London was a better finish.

Friday 25 April 2008

Sit right back and hear this tale…
A tale of a faithful trip…

Too bad Ginger or MaryAnn couldn’t join us.


Today I joined my work mate Paul for a day’s sail on his 29 ft. yacht. We left from near Portsmouth and sailed across to the Isle of Wight.

The weather didn’t cooperate ALL that much and it was a lot of work, BUT it was worth it. After fighting the morning tides and westerly winds (learning how to “tack” the boat) we spent the afternoon “recovering” with a nice pub lunch sampling a local ale that was worth the trip.

These pictures aren’t of Paul’s boat, but were taken from it during our sail.

And yes… that IS a gent climbing UP his mast while on the water.

Friday through Sunday 11-13 April 2008

This past weekend I “treated” myself (Amy is still in Houston) to a quick jaunt spending time doing what I have found to enjoy. Climbing stuff and walking around in old cemeteries.

Except for one small caveat…

This trip was to Paris.

Yes… after jumping on the Eurostar, I spent the weekend wandering the labyrinths of the Gardens of Stone, reminiscing with the gargoyles atop Notre Dame and sitting in bistros drinking Leffe while eating crepes filled with coconut and chocolate. There were a few disappointments as The Catacombs were closed due to refurbishments (they were SUPPOSED to have re-opened in April) and the rib steak and frites at Les Relais de l'Entrecôte was a bit disappointing.

BUT… Did that dampen my spirits? I think not.

Now… I understand why the queues for the opportunity to climb the 400+ narrow steps to the towers of Notre Dame are so long. It's because they only allow 40-60 people up in increments of ~20. Even WITH the wait, it was well worth it.

Well… for me it was, especially when Quasimodo performed his chores in the bell tower while I was on top at 11:00 AM.



Then a quick visit to Ste. Chapelle, a gothic chapel originally built in 1239 to house the remains of Christ’s crown of thorns and bits of the True Cross that King Louis “acquired” from Constantinople. The most visually striking aspect of this was the original stained glass that survived the destruction of the French Revolution.


What can I say about the grand cemeteries of Paris?

COMPLETELY different from anything I’ve visited to date. The family vaults and detailed somber statuary literally blew me away.

First was a Saturday visit to Montparnasse which opened in 1824 as one of the three principal cemeteries of Paris. It was generally flat and easy to transverse, yet it would have been easy to have gotten lost amongst the tall vaults and monuments.

What I found fascinating were the small family vaults. Some were enclosed and included family mementos and photographs, while others were open which allowed an occasional respite from the rain.

The details in the statuary were phenomenal to say the least.

Pere-LaChaise is Paris’ (and one of the world’s) largest cemeteries AND one of the most popular tourist attractions in Paris. Opened in 1804, its 109 acres include some of the world’s greatest names of history. It’s difficult to describe the grandeur of some of the monuments and tombs. Combine that with the expanse of the grounds, the winding paths, the steep hills… and well… let’s just say one could have spent all day

I only scratched the surface of what sites this cemetery had to offer.

As difficult as it was finding my way around even WITH a map, it seems that all roads led...

To...

That’s right. How could I not attempt to locate Jim Morrison’s burial site (supposedly).

Then... there was Paris by night.

This little whirlwind trip left me tired and aching which, of course, has NOTHING to do with age.