Sandals to Wellies

Please and Thank You

2010-09-27T10:32:00.000+01:00

A while back Griffen stated that while he thought Americans were more friendly, British were more polite. I tend to agree with that observation. When one takes the bus here (at least in Cambridge) I notice that as the passengers get off, they always say thank you to the driver. Whereas in America I think a passenger may have a conversation with the driver, but never say thank you.

That brings us to other manners. Since moving here Kaitlyn has had a difficult time in school communicating with teachers. If she gets caught out for talking in class and then defends herself by saying, "I'm sorry, so and so was talking to me and I was asking them to stop," she gets told off by the teacher for talking back. I see nothing wrong with that response and asked a friend why the teacher would say otherwise. Her explanation was that it comes across as rude to start a sentence with, "I'm sorry." If Kaitlyn were to switch around her sentence and instead say, "So and so was talking to me and I was asking them to stop, I'm sorry," she would probably not be told off. mmm. Something tells me that any defense of oneself would not be accepted and she is just supposed to suck it up and not whinge.

A New Roof

2010-09-20T23:12:00.000+01:00

I have been watching this house for at least a year now...it went up for sale, sold and then sat there. Lovely cottage garden went to ruin, then the roof was removed and finally we have this.

Weather Report

2010-09-17T13:53:00.000+01:00

I don't know why, but for some reason reading the weather forecast always makes me smile. Perhaps it's the flowery descriptions of the weather. Are the forecasters trying to make it sound better than it is?

Today from the MetOffice we have: "Temperatures will quickly fall as cloud melts away, leaving a clear, chilly night with light winds. In rural areas a slight ground frost is likely. Minimum temperature 4C."

Almost poetic.

They Must Learn in Order to Remember

2010-09-11T16:35:00.000+01:00

Today is the ninth anniversary of 9/11. We asked the kids if they knew what it was. Answer...No.
Jillian, age 6, is learning about the Incas and Aztecs and their use of chocolate; Griffen, age 10, is learning about The Blitz on London during WWII; and Kaitlyn, age 12, is learning about the Tudors. In fact, Griffen's lessons have been enhanced by our close proximity to an air museum which last weekend had a Battle of Britain air show with WWII planes flying overhead as well as the discovery of an unexploded bomb in the village the same day. However, I do think it is sad that as Americans our kids couldn't tell us what happened on 9/11. I hope that American History lessons back home include what happened that day.

Excuse the Interruption

2010-09-10T18:23:00.002+01:00

Please excuse the long break in my blog. Life got in the way and my desire and ability to write disappeared.

Autumn

2009-10-15T20:15:00.002+01:00

Yellow street lamps shine

Autumn leaves blanket wet streets

Evening sets in

Beware

2008-06-11T15:47:00.003+01:00

Saw these at the train station...even more funny after my 'slip'

So you had a bad day?

2008-06-03T17:40:00.003+01:00

Try this one: Look in bag and see 2 umbrellas-take one out. Leave the house at 7:20 and realize you still have to buy your ticket and the train leaves in 10 minutes. Start running, with a rucksack containing a laptop on your back. Get to the station and buy ticket...2 minutes to spare. Hike up stairs, over tracks-realize its going to rain all day and maybe today was a bad day to wear white jeans.

See train approach, open door, step in. Move from the new so-slip surface on the platform to slippery lino on the train-one leg goes forward, one leg goes back out the train and in between the platform and train. Feel like a fool, worry about those white jeans and pray the door doesn't close before you extricate yourself from current position. Limp to seat as pain sets in from knee to just above ankle. Piercing hot pain that makes you want to scream and sick to your stomach. Desperately grab water bottle hoping its cold (but no). Defy train rules and prop leg onto seat.

Get to class only to realize my umbrella is broken and worthless.

Borrow some Aleve from classmate (who was late because someone somewhere else fell between the gap only they got stuck). Leave class early, not in the mood to come up with a concept garden for Andrew just having spent all mental energy on final design project. Although he did like my idea and asked me to make a model, photo it and email it to him.

Leave umbrella behind because its broken. Get on tube-stand for 20 of the 27 minute ride. Get on train home-its a short car and stopping at all stations. Why do they do that? Someone on the train smells funny, but I have a seat.

Work furiously on laptop all the way to home stop. Get off train and it is now chucking down rain. (Kids & Au Pair Julie tell me they had to walk home in the rain with 2 broken umbrellas and a flat tire on the jogger.)

Another Day, Another Protest

2008-06-01T17:34:00.001+01:00

Protest! This time it had nothing to do with petrol. The new Mayor of London made enemies with the general public by banning alcohol consumption on public transport to discourage yobs. They got a month notice and Sat at midnight it went into effect. Response? Hundreds of people descended onto the tube (mostly Circle line) and had a party-arriving already drunk or setting up bars in the carraiges. End result-about 17 people were arrested with police officers and Tube drivers being injured in a few fights. Crowds+alcohol=violence and stupidity.

Fuel Prices

2008-05-27T16:30:00.002+01:00

I know-you guys over in the states think you are paying tons for fuel, but you still have it good. I remember when we lived stateside a few measly protests would be called for (don't buy fuel on a certain day of the week or some such)

Well-we are now paying GBP 1.30 per liter with the exchange rate hovering around 1.98/2 we are well over $10/gallon. Needless to say I will only fill up my car once a month and that costs me almost $200.

Lorry drivers here took matters into their own hands-around 300 of them parked on the roads to protest, closing one of the roads into London for 5 hours-there are hints that another 2p tax rise is soon to hit. This on top of a 60% rise we just had for household utilities with another rumored 60% rise to hit this fall. (Diane you thought my house was cold in April-I think it may be a cold winter as well!)

Half-Term

2008-05-27T16:25:00.002+01:00

We are now on day 2 of the half-term. It rained Sunday-Monday all day. Today the sun is trying to peak out. Hoping it will not rain the rest of the week. Griffen is having a sleepover for his birthday and I let him invite 5 boys thinking that at least 1 would be away for the week. So far they are all coming. Plan is to set up the tent and let them sleep outside with Jason. Pray for clear skies!

Bank Holiday

2008-05-24T16:11:00.001+01:00

We have a bank holiday here this Monday-no reason just a day off. The kids also have their half term break this week. We had the brilliant idea to go camping in Devon for a few days-just a few though because I have my final project hand in next Monday (its for part of the grounds at Hedingham Castle, a well preserved Norman keep is on the grounds.

Jason has been away all week and I have been busy with school and the Chelsea Flower show (both attending and working). He seemed to think we would be able to pack up the car this morning and we'd be off before noon. The older kids actually packed themselves, so that was helpful. However, we realized that Jason & I don't have sleeping bags and the au pair is using the extra bedding and I am not about to take my white bedding camping with rain in the forecast. So we will have to stop off on the way to buy one.

That was problem 1. Problem 2-Jason just now realized how far away Devon is. Five hours without traffic, and this is the busiest weekend of the year, so it will be more like 8+. Much to the kids' dissappointment we ditch the idea of camping very quickly and tell them we will pitch the tent in the garden and go to the beach instead.

We stop off for breakfast atThe Comfort Cafe and begin what should've been a two hour drive. What do you know-its an A-road (1 lane each way) and full of caravans and other travelers. Half-way there the traffic wasn't even moving, so we turned around and went home.

Jason took the kids to the store to buy squirt guns and he & I took at nap after our hectic week. Next year we will leave on Thursday or Friday instead.

New Word

2008-04-02T14:29:00.003+01:00

I learned a new word today...as I was reading through Kaitlyn's paperwork for her Brownie Pack Holiday (weekend away from home at a scout camp), I came across the word 'tuck.' This was on the list of things NOT to bring along with electronics, virtual pets and mobile phones. Upon further reading I see 'no tuck' again but this time an accompanying message stating that they can bring a maximum of GBP 4 and that plenty of sweets and treats will be provided. Aha-must mean eatable treats.

Happy Easter?

2008-03-23T14:43:00.003Z

We didn't have a white Christmas, but we had a white Easter...

Planes, trains and automobiles....

2008-03-11T19:42:00.003Z

Another commuting day from hell. We knew a storm was coming and thought we planned ahead. I packed a pair of socks and knickers in my pack just in case I had to stay over. Got up at 5:45 am so I could catch the 7:25 fast train to Liverpool street, giving me a 2 hour cushion to get to class. The winds were blowing, the rain was coming down...checked the national rail web site and it said all the trains could be delayed or cancelled at the last minute due to the weather and all were on speed restrictions because of the winds. Checked Jason's flight and his wasn't posted yet but so far nothing was leaving London City-all cancelled.

So-Jason decided to book a Eurostar ticket instead. The train going thru our village goes to Liverpool Street, and the Eurostar leaves from King's Cross. Jason thought we could drive together to Royston (a town about 20 minutes or so away) as that train went to King's Cross. I though we should just catch the train here. I lost. We got to Royston only to discover that there was no power between Cambridge and there, so no trains and no word when they would resume. The agent told us the trains were turning around at Letchworth and we should go there. Another 20 minute drive, car park is full so Jason drops me off to go look for parking. As I run into the station I am told no trains here either. So I called Jason and told him to come back-in the meantime the agent tells us a train is going to Baldock. At that point we decided it was so late we would never find parking so we would drive towards London until we can catch a tube line. That is until we hear the traffic report and see the cars sitting on the road going nowhere fast.

So back on the road to our house, I called a classmate and asked her to look up trains from our village-the web site is so jammed I can't access it on my phone. It looks like they are running so we go home. Jason forgot something anyway and I needed a wee by then. We left a key for the nanny to go get the car from the station because only 1 hour parking is left, go buy our tickets only to be told there is a tree on the line and the trains are delayed. A train does come in and we are told it will go to Cambridge (10 minutes) and return going onto London. So we drive back home rather than leave the car, at which point Vania is back from taking the kids to school-so she drops us off.

At 9:40 a 4 car train arrives already full. We are just happy to be moving and stand the 1 hour 20 minute (slow train) ride to London. It stops at every station, with the conductors yelling at us to 'move on down the cars please, there are more people waiting to board the train,' The only place to move is into the luggage racks. We get to London at 11- almost 4 hours after we left the house. It took Jason longer to get to London that it took him to go from London to Brussels. Jason missed his 10 am train, I missed the first hour of class.

Class was a waste-some guy telling us how wonderful Google Sketch-up and VectorWorks are, but not telling us how to use them. In the middle of lunch the VP came in to say the afternoon session was cancelled as the tutor was stuck in traffic and would not make it. What a waste of a day.

Christmas Spirit

2007-12-14T16:46:00.000Z

Jason's group had their 'Christmas Do' as its called here, last night. With budget cuts, it was on everyone's own pocket this year, so that meant spouses (me) could go as well. It was at a vodka bar in Cambridge-finger food and drinks.

Jason chipped in and bought 5 pints of beer, 20 shots, 8 bottles of wine and 4 jugs of cocktails. A few guys started in on some alcohol before arriving at the bar and were well on their way. The food went fast, but the booze went faster and before long another 10 bottles of wine and several rounds of shots came and went. Since Jason is the boss, he was given the honor of at least 3-4 shots and the wife of the boss has a few as well.

Someone wore a red sparkly boa to the party and it made its rounds, we all danced with embarassing abandon.

So total booze count: 10+ pints of beer, 30+ shots of vodka in various flavors, 18 bottles of wine, 6 jugs of cocktails (one with double alcohol). And how many people? Thirty at the most.

Home by 2, up at 7 and way too old to drink that much any more.

Sunrise

2007-12-07T10:46:00.000Z

I need sun

2007-12-05T08:22:00.001Z

I left for class yesterday in the dull dark cloudy morning, sat on a train for an hour, sat on the tube for half an hour, got some cash, stopped by my regular lunch spot, an Italian deli-where I've become a regular. The sandwich guy now knows when I am running late and when I can have a cappuccino or not and today he made me a special sandwich. Anyway, one with my day-then I got to walk for 15 minutes to class-nice break in the day actually-and got a few looks from builders as I am dressed like a school girl with a plaid wool mini and knee high black boots.
Sat in studio for 5 hours-got my first project back, had to present it to a visitor from another school, worked on a fun project with a group (somehow 4 expats grouped together) for the grounds of Glyndebourne, an old country house in Suffolk that hosts operas in the summer, had some muled wine and the day was done.
Left school at 3:30 to a dull dark afternoon-dark enough for the Christmas lights on Kings Road to be on.
Woke up late this morning because it was dull and dark, and so far today we have had 5 minutes of sunshine. Time to light candles and eat chocolate.

Today's Headlines...Shame on you

2007-12-04T20:11:00.000Z

While sitting on the tube this morning on my way to class, I picked up the free commuter paper to pass by the 30 minute ride. What do I spy on the front page as the headline? The richest countries of the world spend more money on sun cream protection in one month than they spent in a year (or something to that tune) on the poor countries suffering the most from global warming. And of course the US is the worst offender, pledging absolutely nothing to the fund.

How dare you selfish people put your family and their skin health and their risk of cancer before whole countries? You wouldn't need to spend that much on sunscreen if you were more green. Its all your fault.

This coming from a country that burns its trash, has huge bonfires every November, wants you to recycle but makes it impossible to do so (and the solution is to charge you by weight on your rubbish pick up), wants everyone to take trains but charges way to much for the average person to afford for a ticket.

Sound of Silence

2007-11-22T12:20:00.000Z

It is odd-the quietest moments of my week are actually on the train from home to London. In the morning, there is rarely a sound to be heard on the train-despite it being packed with people standing in the aisles by the 4th stop.
You may hear the occasional whispered hello between people but that is about it. Most are sleeping, listening to Ipods, reading a book or the paper. And if you are brave enough to answer your mobile phone should it have the audacity to ring-the mass of looks that are sent your way could strike you down or turn you to stone!

It's a Dilemma

2007-11-15T19:53:00.000Z

What to do when its 25F outside...do we ride our bikes the 3/4 mile or so to school, walk (it's a good 10 minutes longer than the old house) or drive? I have to admit I get lazy when my garage bins are frozen shut and there is enough ice on the car windows that I have to run it for 5 minutes before leaving, and drive. However, with petrol now costing us about $9/gallon I may need to rethink.

Tractor vs Lorry

2007-10-05T12:40:00.000+01:00

All settled in our new house, still no bed though. The main disadvantage to the new house: We are walking distance from the train station. The wisdom of a country that wants everyone to take the train instead of drive means that the train stations charge an exorbitant amount of money to park in the car park, plus your ticket. Solution? Everyone parks on the street. Solution of the County Council? Restrict parking on the street closest to the station-in the form of you get a ticket if you are parked there between the hours of 11:30 am -12:30 pm M-F. So if you commute you can't very well come back and move your car. Side effect-cars just park somewhere else...further up the road...by our house. Try getting out of your drive when you have cars on either side and one directly across.

Or you can have a problem like today...a large tow truck (lorry) was parked across from my house to retrieve my car for repairs (France accident), there were also cars on either side of my drive. Then the poor local farmer decided to drive down the road to get to his field.

Another Day

2007-09-25T19:05:00.000+01:00

Today we started learning how to use our pens to draw straight lines and circles. You may think it sounds easy. Well its not. A very discouraging day indeed. I know what I am going to do all weekend. These pens are buggers. I have ink blotches all over my fingers and my paper was full of splodges and smears. Drawing a perfect circle with a compass so that the line is even all the way round and one cannot tell see any overlap what so ever for the end point was not fun.

Round out the day with a letter from the kids' school notifying me of an outbreak of head lice.

School Days are here again

2007-09-24T18:47:00.000+01:00

Well, I am now in my second week of school. Today the allure of taking the train into London every week, twice a week for the next nine months, has gone. That didn't take long!

First off-despite my best intentions of waking up at 6 to get in a little exercise and eat a bit of breakfast in order to make the 7:55 train-didn't pan out. I slept in due to a bad night's sleep (still sleeping on a twin mattress on the floor) so no exercise. I did eat and had a cup of coffee made by my loving husband. However I had to run the whole way to the station. There is another train 5 minutes later, but it is a slow one. I managed to get there, buy my tickets, run up and over the tracks just as the train pulled in. No sooner did the train leave then the rain started coming down in buckets. Hope the nanny feels comfortable enough to drive the kids to school

Once in London I ran to Boots for some tissues (nagging cold), chap stick and over to M & S for lunch and water. I take the fast train to ensure a good hour to get to class. Just as I walk over to the tube station alarms start up and the doors close. There is a huge crowd standing around waiting to enter while swarms are exiting. I am hoping it is just crowd control and not some disaster because the bus takes almost 1.5 hours and I can't remember which ones to take anyway. I send Jason a quick text to find out what is going on-signal failure at Kings Cross has just caused the closure of the Circle Line (the one I need). Fantastic.

After about 10 minutes the doors open back up and they let the cattle in. A made dash to my platform where the notice board says a train will arrive in 10 minutes. An announcement reveals it will only go one stop. Ok-I can catch the District Line from there and still get to my stop. After 10 minutes the board changes to 'delayed' with not sign of any trains. I quickly run out and over to the Central Line, standing room only. My only option is to take this train a few stops, get out and Bank and take a fast hike to the Monument station (up and up and down the stairs because the escalators are not working). It is a good 10-15 minute walk. From Monument I catch a District Line train and get to my stop with 15 minutes to walk the 10-12 minute walk to my class. Of all the days to forget my deodorant. Ah well-I fit in with everyone else now HA!

I walked thru the door with 2 minutes to spare and out of breath.

Wet and Tight

2007-08-21T20:00:00.000+01:00

No not the name of a new movie but our life today in the UK. We have
not seen the sun since we came home from France and the high was
pushing 60. I think our summer is over and it is still August. Quite
depressing I must say,

We started the move today and our first casualty was a paper cut from
a box for me. Next up-the movers only brought a small van so our idea
of moving the beds today didn't fly. They did bring over everything
they boxed up today-next problem. The stairway here is about as wide
as a door and it has a sharp curve. The girl's big dresser had to be
dismantled to fit and there is no way in hell our wonderfully soft and
thick mattress is going up the stairs. So off to storage it goes.
Since Jason is pretty much gone for the next month-we will make do
with the trundle bed and start shopping for something that will fit up
the stairs.

We also decided that the girls room is too small for 2-they wouldn't
have room to pull out the basket under the bed without hitting the
dressers-so they will move the to 'guest room; and the guest room will
have to be re arranged when ever someone visits to accommodate the
trundle.

Jason was almost the next victim...he nearly fell on his ass on the
tile floor in the conservatory-it is so damp that the floor is
weeping-so I've turned on the heat hoping it will dry out.

Now I am sitting here having a drink, washing my sheets so I can store
them and looking forward to what tomorrow may bring..

Bird brain

2007-07-09T09:22:00.000+01:00

We have lots of windows in this house and employ a bi-monthly window cleaner. It never fails that the day after the window cleaners wash my windows, I can walk around the house and see no less than 3 imprints of a large bird. One was even so kind as to leave a few feathers as well-he must have hit hard.

Challenge

2007-07-05T09:20:00.000+01:00

I challenge you to do a week's worth of laundry for a family of five...without the aid of a tumble dryer...in a summer that has had more rain than the winter...including bedsheets.

rain

2007-07-02T18:35:00.000+01:00

I'm going to start building an arc soon.

Driving Test Take 2

2007-06-19T14:11:00.000+01:00

Well I had my second driving test today. I went in with a different frame of mind and worked hard to combat the nerves, said a few prayers. I drove around with my instructor for about an hour first-going by the spot where I drove to fast last time, and the 30 signs are all gone and its back to 40.

There were about 4 of us waiting, and my name was called first by none other than the supervisor who rode along on my first test. She was very nice however and set me right at ease. The whole time we were driving around on my test I kept thinking, "Man I do not like this lady's perfume and I can't wait to get out of the car."

I made a few mistakes, but nothing fatal-turning my signal on too late, running a yellow light-but I passed and thats all that matters.

Car Wash

2007-06-17T21:04:00.000+01:00

How do you wash your car and not waste precious water in a country that has tons of rain but can't figure out an efficient way to contain it and claim there is a draught and impose a hosepipe ban for the summer?

Jason was sitting at the table eating lunch today when we were hit with a torrential downpour. Quick thinking bloke that he is, he donned his wellies & raincoat, rushed outside and washed his car. Why not let the rain rinse it off? Plus since it is rain water-no hard water spotting either. And he got to save himself the trouble of drying it as well.

He came back in only to find that Griffen tried to turn his coke into a potion with some surface cleaner, but that's another story.

Its raining pigeons

2007-06-16T20:56:00.000+01:00

Well not really, but during story time with Jillian Friday afternoon we heard some strange sounds coming from the fireplace. Upon further investigation, I spied some feathers, lots of soot and 2 legs dangling from that little hole where the air goes up the chimney from the fire place.

MMM-what to do. I called a few local chimney sweeps and left messages. Called Jason at work (like he can do anything from there), finished reading our stories and left to pick up the other 2 from school.

My friend Lisa suggested calling the SPCA. So thats what I did. They called back and said to put a light in the room and maybe the bird would make its way into the fireplace. No go its too big of a bird. They said they couldn't come today, but someone would call tomorrow. Great.

Jason tried to take apart the fireplace so the whole top would fall down and we could grab the bird and hold a large plastic bag close to the opening, close all the doors and open the windows just in case in got loose. Not knowing pigeons, we decided not to risk it and wait till Saturday.

Saturday rolls around, SPCA arrives. He just popped the fireplace down grabbed the bird and let it loose outside. Of course he was covered in soot and so was the hearth, but the bird flew away unharmed.

Bugger

2007-05-02T16:30:00.000+01:00

I know-I need to catch up on my blogging. I did have a draft of the final days in Morocco, but it has disappeared into the depths of internet space.

Crappy week to say the least.

I finally took my driving test as it looks like we will be here for another year past the initial contract of 2 years. Plus Jason threatened to take away my keys if I didn't.

So-my instructor took me out for a few more lessons, said I was good to go and he felt I would pass no problemo. HA. We went out for an hour of driving before the test-and I had no problems. Ten minutes before the test time, we drove to the center and maneuvered the car into a space and made our way on foot to the waiting area. Even though I've been driving for a long time, I was nervous.

There were 4 other people waiting to take the test and one by one they disappeared as their examiner called them to their cars. Mine seemed like a friendly chap, talking to me to ease the nerves. Until we stepped into the hall and he introduced me to his supervisor, who was going to ride along with us. Brilliant.

First step was to stand in the car park and read the license plate on a distant car (eye test). Then I showed him my car. Most people have tiny cars and he was taken aback by my VW Touran, which in reality is narrower than Jason's BMW. But I let him think it was big. I had to show him I knew how to check that my lights were in working order and I knew how to honk my horn (duh-I'm American of course I know how the horn works). Then we set of for our 45 minute driving test.

Right off the bat I made an error. I wasn't sure if a light was for me and started to slow. They make a big deal here about putting on the break without the clutch, so I was doing that and stalled the stupid thing. I NEVER stall. Grr. Then we went around Cambridge, me showing him I knew how to turn down narrow streets looking for on-coming cars because there is really only room for 1 car at a time. I had to be sure to look in my mirrors every few seconds for bikers. A couple times I had to just pull over in a convenient spot, to show him I know when its safe to pull over (no bikes in the way) and pull out, again the bikes.

You have to perform 2 of 4 maneuvers on the test-I was only worried about 1 but my instructor said the examiner would be nervous about the size of my car and not make me do it anyway. First maneuver for me was to perform a 3-point turn in the in middle of a street without hitting the curbs. With my car it was more like 5 turns, but they only want to see clutch control and that you are observant of what is around you. No problem.

Next he took me to a round-about on the A-14 near where Jason works. There is always road works going on here and the road way changes on a daily basis. Not fair if you ask me. I thought I did fine, and he had me go onto the A10. Good, this was just testing me to see that I went slowly around blind curves. Second maneuver, back around a corner staying close to the curb and straight back until he tells me to stop. Fine, did that perfect, even when the garbage truck decided to back into the road perilously close to me. We drove around a bit more and went back to the test center. The other maneuvers I could have been given are backing into a parking space and parallel parking.

Here he told me to park and turned to me and said, “Well I’m sorry to tell you that you have failed your test today. Would you like a briefing?” I requested my instructor hear what had to be said. Turns out I failed because I stalled the car and drove 40 in a 30. The sign is posted just after you come off the round about on the opposite side of the road that I was looking. My instructor was a bit miffed; the same examiner failed another student of his the day before for something stupid like ‘undue hesitation.’ On the way home we decided that the supervisor was doing a ride along because he had been passing too many people.

I really just want to be in America where I understand how everything works; I can drive an automatic and have large signs in obvious places.

Then to top it all off the landlord came by for a visit to see her garden today. I asked her if she was going to let us renew the lease in December. No go, she wants her house back. Double bugger. So now we have to look for a new place to live on top of everything else.

On the plus side-I was offered a place at the Chelsea Physic Garden’s garden design program next September. It’s a 1 year program, 2 days/week in London and 3 days of work from home. We also have to find a new nanny as our current one doesn’t want to nanny full time.

Essaouria continued

2007-01-01T10:55:00.000Z

After breakfast-hard boiled eggs, breads, coffee and juice, we book a camel ride with the other family we have been hanging around with. Our guide helps set us up with a local guy, who we hope will show up at the appointed time. Sure enough he shows up-with a taxi. The taxi laws are strict here and only 3 can go in at a time. The dad’s each split up with 2 kids apiece. That leaves me and the other mom, Jillian and the guide. We squeeze into the last taxi and as we drive by the police on the edge of the town, I lay Jillian down. The taxi driver looked back at me and smiled saying something along the lines of-‘ah, good thinking.’
We pair up on the camels with Kaitlyn having to brave one on her own. She’s not too happy about that. Camels are strange creatures to ride on. We climb on as they are lying down and then they rise up one end at a time. Despite my legs were sticking straight out, stretched to their limit, it is actually a bit easier than the donkey. It is against the law to ride the camels on the beach now because of their poo and the risk to others on the beach, so we walk thru some brush instead.
Jason’s camel was in the lead-he was the head male, the only one not neutered. Every time a female camel walked by, his camel would make this strange noise and an enormous pink bubble of flesh would pop out of its mouth and the spit would fly. That wasn’t even the worst part. My camel was directly behind Jason’s. His camel decided to poo half way thru the walk, which was fine, except it felt the need to flip his tail as it pooped. I could only lean back so far, but little bits of camel poop found their way to me. Kaitlyn was behind me screaming that the poop was going to hit her and she wanted off. The stupid camel did this not once, but at least 3 times during the ride. These animals are absolutely disgusting and I think I will never ride one again. At the end of the ride the camel guide told Kaitlyn that when Angelina Jolie visits, she always requests the one she was riding.

We relaxed for 2 more days in Essaouria. The kids played on the beach, we walked around, went shopping for souvenirs in places we really didn’t have to bargain at. This is an intense vacation that makes us really miss America. One of the highlights over the next few days was going to the fish stalls. Despite it being street food, it was touted as safe. You basically pick a stall, pick your fish, they cook it and you eat it. Nothing like eating fish caught fresh that day and grilled to order, served with a side salad, chips and a drink. The kids were happy with chips and ice cream. Tomorrow we head back to Marrakech for the night and then back to our home in England.

Essaouira

2006-12-31T10:54:00.000Z

Ok-I need to finish this trip up. This will be one rambling post as my original was lost and I made the stupid mistake of tossing the hand written notes thinking it was all online. Learned lesson there.

The small child that sampled all the drinks yesterday is sick (not surprised on that one), so is her mom. Today, we pack up from the mountains and head to the coast. It is a long windy drive in a small van with widows that barely open and if they do the smell of exhaust impales your breathing passages and makes an already car sick stomach more so. I gave all the kids their bracelets and some Dramamine and end up taking a migraine pill for myself.

We make a side stop to a village that has a nice little garden to walk around. This was meant to show us the saffron plants, but they are already harvested so we really just see plants that grow in nice warm sunny places-nothing new to a Californian but different for our fellow British travelers. Today is a holiday…damn, I wish my post didn’t disappear I had so much on this.

Not only is it New Year’s Eve, but Aid el Kabir as well. This is one the oldest and most important religious festivals of the Islamic world, based on when Abraham was going to sacrifice his son Isaac, for God. Each Muslim household that can afford to do so will sacrifice a sheep; the head of the household turn’s the animal’s head toward Mecca and then slits the throat. None of the animal is wasted-our guide told us that the family eats 1/3, gives 1/3 to the poor and shares 1/3 with family, friends, or neighbors. The women of the household cast a few small pieces of the heart and liver into the corners of each room in order to keep away evil. So along our route we see gatherings of the people in each village on the mountainsides participating in special prayers and ‘masses.’ It is an arresting view to see an entire village dressed in white robes against the red mountains.

Of course this festival attracts controversy and outrage around the world from animal rights workers, who see the ritual as exceptionally cruel as the animal is conscious when their throat is slit and causes a bloody and painful death.
We had to drive all the way back to Marrakech in order to get to the coast-the roads are supposed to be better this way. Along the roads in random open fields we see plumes of black smoke and smell burning flesh. It appears that the portion given to the poor is the head of the sheep-they are all being roasted on makeshift fires. Kids no older than ours proudly hold up the blackened heads as we drive by. The smell is sickening and I wonder how long it will linger.
After 3 hours of driving and a lunch stop, we arrive in Essaouria. This is a nice sleepy coastal area. After checking into our rooms, we spent the remainder of the day walking around the town center and relaxing. Unfortunately while walking around the town center we did encounter one too many roasting sheep heads down small streets. After a pizza dinner, we retired to our room and fell asleep to the sound of dance music from the New Year’s party in the restaurant below.

Different Worlds

2006-12-30T14:49:00.000Z

(Don't forget you can click on the photos for larger & better views)

This is such a different world from ours and there is so much to observe, if I don't write the date each day, I loose track. Tomorrow is a big festival here and everyone is traveling to see their families. We are lucky to get donkeys for our trek today, the group one day behind us will not get to start their ride until after lunch.

After breakfast-bread, some round bread made from semolina that appears to be last nights left-overs, coffee & juice-we piled in a local transport bus to go about 3 km up the road where our donkeys/mules were waiting. We had two pack animals to carry out lunch and seven others to carry the kids or adults who couldn't walk the trek. No saddle-just layers of blankets. Jilly and I rode 1, Jason claimed he was too big and walked, Kaitlyn & Griffen talked two members of the Scottish family into riding with them.

Our trek went straight up a mountainside into what seemed like nowhere. We had to stop along the while while locals made their way down either on foot or donkey's. Several times the donkey came too close to the edge of a drop for my taste. The trip back down is going to be a bit perilous.

About half way up we stopped to rest our legs (I think I'd rather be walking) and eat a snack of dates, figs and nuts. Our
resting spot was near a tiny Berber village and about 7 young boys aged 2-8 sat and watched us with great curiosity. One of them even looked like he could be the twin of my nephew, Logan.

About 40 minutes later a large village nestled into the mountainside appeared. The houses all built from the dirt and rock around them-all a saffron red color. The land in front of the village was all neatly terraced with bright patches of green all the way to the river. Some women were down by the river washing clothes, rubbing them against the rocks and laying them out to dry over bushes. As Jason was taking a photo of them from afar, one of the donkey guides stopped him and shook his
head no.

Our guide told us the village consisted of 1 tribe and the people all marry within their tribe. Most villages negotiate with the government for water (wells), electricity and a school.

Once we reached the village, we dismounted and were led to a house. We climbed up some very crude steps to an open area where we all sat on a mat. For shade could remove our shoes and go through a door to a room that had a carpet covering part of the dirt floor, pillows around the walls and a TV sitting in an armoire. The TV was tuned to Al Jazeera and we deduced that Saddam had been executed.

Back outside a gentleman was brewing mint tea for us and our guide was preparing lunch with some local women. The drink
of choice in Morocco is mint tea-90% mint leaves and 10% green tea leaves brewed and poured into a sort of shot glass with about 4 cubes of sugar. While in the Western World you tend see people sitting around have a glass of wine, beer or soda; here in Morocco it is mint tea.

We had to snatch our cups quickly as the youngest child of our group (not one of my kids) decided she would add even more sugar to the cups and then sample each one. The adults of her family thought it funny and didn't do much to stop her. Despite the primitive living, this turned out to be the most unsanitary moment of the day.

Me and 2 other women decided we needed the toilet. This turned out to be below the steps, through a door that led to some empty rooms that looked animal housing or storage. Through another door we found the actual toilet-a hole in the wall at the corner of the room that had a slight downward slant to the floor. As I sat, squatting on the floor and staring at the pile of potatoes in the opposite corner, I wondered where one had to go for a poo. I will be sure to step over the clear paths of wet coming from each house as well.

While we each waited for our turn to pee-a few local children gathered whispering and giggling at our marvel of their toilet. When we returned upstairs we found a teapot filled with water, a bucket and a bar of soap to wash with. Is is amazing to see that so many people still live off the land and nothing else. Nobody seemed unhappy with what they had or didn't have for that matter.

Lunch was simple yet delicious-fresh cut tomatoes, olives, red onions, green peppers, pasta, tuna and a spicy red pepper sauce. We had fresh mandarins and apples for dessert.

I put Jillian in the baby backpack and walked around until she fell asleep-I was then able to pass the backpack onto Jason and he started off down the mountain. I rode on the donkey with Griffen and Kaitlyn went with another adult from our group. The trip down was a bit spooky with the donkeys walking very close to the edge and all the locals coming back up with full loads on their donkeys or visiting family. At one point the donkey walking behind Griffen and I slipped and its hind legs went over the edge. Thank goodness no one was riding that one. After watching this happen, Griffen got spooked enough that we walked down the rest of the way.

At the bottom, the donkey guides surrounded us waiting for tips. I wish our guide had told us what was a fair tip or took all the money and divided it as each of us gave a different amount and it wasn't a nice way to end the day.

Ourika Valley

2006-12-29T20:12:00.000Z

Today we are leaving Marrakech for the Ourika Valley in the Atlas Mountains. It was going to be a bout a 70 km drive to our hotel. We stopped along the way for pictures of the valley. Out of nowhere 3 little boys appeared with a bucket of lychees to sell.One family gave them 1 dh and they got 12 lychees in return. He was really very friendly, but we didn't want any-so we gave him some coins and took his picture with the kids instead. He wanted to the see the photo, when Jason showed him he smiled and said, "c'est bonne."

We arrived at out hotel around 11:30 and the staff seemed surprised to see us, none of the rooms were ready. Our guide warned us that there really wasn't anything around and we had all packed a picnic lunch which we ate on the hotel's rooftop terrace. We had to eat quickly and move away as lunch is the biggest meal in Morocco and this hotel's biggest trade was lunch for well off Marrakechi's.

We checked into our very cold rooms, turned the heater on and left to sit by the pool wondering what to do next. Our guide said he would return around 3:30 or so to take anyone on a walk that was interested. After the craziness of Marrakech we all just sat around the pool while the kids played around the hotel grounds.

We were traveling with 2 other families; one family from the London area had 2 children aged 5 and almost 4 I believe. Our kids got along quite well with them. The other family was a pleasant Scottish family consisting of 2 children, their parents and various aunts, uncles, and granny. Although the adults outnumbered the children in their case, the kids seemed to get the best of even them at times.

Around 3, a family with 2 kids from London suggested we walk on our own as the sun was fading quickly with the mountains. Since our kids were playing together we thought that was also the best way to make them want to explore.

Down by the river we were met by an old Berber man speaking a combo of French and Berber. He seemed very intent on telling us all he knew about his home, showing us a picture of his family and a card from a professor recommending him as a guide. He carried the kids across the water and then showed us what he made for a craft-it looked like a wooden mortar and pestle. He gave the kids sparkly rocks, picked mint for them, showed us a few cars that had gone over the edge of the cliff. After a while we took photos of him, paid him for his time and started back to the hotel. Along the way we saw a man selling tajines by the roadside-we could tell he was proud of his creations as he opened each one for us to admire.
Back at the hotel we sat in the lounge of the restaurant around the fire for a few hours, drinking mint tea and trying to get warm. After dinner we went to bed, huddled together in order to stay warm.

The Streets of Marrakech

2006-12-28T23:12:00.000Z

Griffen is still sick-but he troops along anyway. We started him on a re-hydration sachet.

After breakfast (bread, oj, hard boiled egg and coffee) and meeting the rest of our tour group (3 families-18 people) we pile into some caleshes for a tour around the 'red city.' There is so much going on-I can hardly take it all in: Men wearing the traditional djellaba cloak, women wearing head scarves, donkey carts full of people, bikes, men pushing carts full of food, cars, horns, scooters carrying anything from food to entire families. All three kids are wide eyed and silent.

We are let off at the Djemaa el Fna-an open square full of snake charmers, monkey handlers, musicians, produce sellers, and more. All will pose for a photo-and that is how they make their living.

From here we head into the souks-each little alley devoted to a different craft-tea pots, leather, pottery, souvenirs and food. The alleys are crammed with people battling for space to walk between the random scooter, carts of goods and the occasional sheep. It was so intense, Kaitlyn soaked it all in without her usual litany of complaints.

We stopped in a Berber pharmacy where we got to sample a few items and purchase spices. Jas & I got neck massages for 20 dirhams each-about $2.50. We also bought 30 grams of saffron threads for what 2 grams would cost in the US.

After the souks we made our way back to the Djemaa. A quick picture with he snake charmers-I gave him 20 dh and he asked for 20 more. I said no and the guide came to our rescue, said we paid enough and we walked away.

Time for lunch. Griff had 1/2 a Sprite, Jilly had some bread, Kaitlyn ate pizza while Jas & I went for the traditional tajines. These are dishes cooked in a tahine pot for a long time at low temps. Mine was chicken with lemons and Jason got beef. The meals came with 3 baskets of bread-which all the moms stored away in their backpacks for future use.

Here our guide left us on our own till later that night. Previously he told us to only take petit taxis and to make sure they had a meter. HA. The petit taxi drivers all told us they could only take 3 people we had to take a grand taxi-and they don't have meters. We told him where our hotel was-there are 3 here with the same name so we had to make sure he got the right one-and agreed on a price. Although Dirhams are the local currency they will take Euros quite readily as well.

Back at the hotel Griff and Jilly napped, Jason and Kaitlyn went to the store for snack and then to find a garden while I wrote and watched from the window.
The hotel was not in a nice fancy area, but there was a grocery right next door and it was within walking distance of the Jardin Majorelle. The Jardin is a sub-tropical garden offering a peaceful getaway from the craziness of Marrakech.

My views out the window: I watched a man with a sheep appear and wait on the side of the road for a taxi. Once one stopped for him, he tied the legs of the sheep together and put it in the trunk of the taxi and off they went. Must have something to do with the sheep festival. Two groups of people were waiting for a taxi-as one pulled over both groups ran towards it and then argued over it. While they argued, the taxi left. At any given time there are 20 or so buses coming and going. A truck goes by loaded with plastic crates 16 long, 8 high and 6 across each full of oranges and nothing secured. A man driving a scooter with flats of eggs 10 high in front and two such stacks behind him. A old woman pushing a man in a wheelchair up the street amongst the other traffic.

After our rest we went for a walk around our hotel, an area called Bab Doukkala. This area is definitely poor. There was rubbish everywhere-the sidewalks filled with dust, old bits of food, trash, stray cats. Street vendors lined one street with wooden carts full of bananas, mandarins, dates, figs. Every doorway was full of craftsmen-woodcarvers, slipper makers, butchers. People were even selling just piles of straw. We had Jilly in the backpack and several women were eyeing it-they all had their young ones in slings across the back. We saw maybe 3-4 other westerners walking about-yet we felt safe. The locals might be staring but they were smiling as well. Several children even yelled "Bonjour" to us. We had to constantly dodge scooters-some carrying the driver with a child standing in front of him and the mom in back either holding another child or large bags in each hand. A smell invades us-raw meat, spices, sheep, smoke, there are so many cats you can actually smell them. Is this the smell of poverty?

Just as we were walking back to the hotel a man turned and smiled and patted Griffen on the head. He stopped ahead of us and came back to kiss him on the cheek with a big smile. We told Griffen it was good luck.

For dinner the hotel recommended a restaurant on the edge of the Djemaa. After watching the difficulty locals had catching a taxi, we asked a man in front of the hotel to help us flag a taxi. After about 10 minutes a man pulls up in a car and they all smile saying, "welcome, Marrakech taxi." We piled in and agree on a price-Jason just showing him what we thought was reasonable. As we are driving to the Djemaa-I tell Jason that there are no taxi markings on the car and I think we just hitched a ride with a total stranger.

The Djemaa was alive with activity-even more so than earlier today. The center area was transformed with hundreds of tables filled with dinners and men flagging us down to entice us to their table. The smoke from the outdoor grills is so thick it stings the eyes. The musicians, dancers, and storytellers were entertaining locals as well as tourists.

The restaurant was nice-tile walls, pillow lined seating along the walls. There was a set menu, but they let the kids just eat off our plates and also let us order a side of couscous for them as well. There were two musicians entertaining the guests as well-taking turns playing the qraqeb (metal cymbals) and the guinbri (3 string guitar type instrument), singing and swinging their heads ever so slightly making a large tassel on their fez hats swing around in unison. When they are finished and second set come in playing drums. After a short break the drummers come back with a belly dancer. Once Jillian saw her she said, "mommy when you are going to sign me up for that?" I know belly dancers aren't Moroccan, but it was fun. She tried to get Griffen to dance with her, but he refused. He'll regret that when he's 16.

Walking to the taxi stand after dinner a small boy no bigger than Jillian approaches us, hands out begging. He is alone. Once he realizes we won't give him money, he kisses Jillian on the cheek and walks away. It is hard not to give all the begging children money, but our tour leader as well as everything we have read warns against giving to them, it only encourages them.

All this in one day.

"We're off on the road to Morocco..."

2006-12-27T16:28:00.000Z

"We're off on the road to Morocco" today (taken from lyrics by Johnny Burke). Our flight leaves at 5. We left the house at 11 and traffic reports said we should have a clear way. We have tried to time it so we will leave the car at Jason's office in Uxbridge and have a bit of time for lunch and to buy diapers, water and a book on Morocco. The clear traffic didn't last long.

Traffic jams in LA are nothing compared to here-there is never an exit every few miles and there are really no side streets for detours unless you want narrow,windy country roads. We had only about 45 minutes (pushing that) when we got to Uxbridge. Time for the convenient but unpleasant McD's.

While standing in line to order, Griffen clamped his hand over his mouth-I took one look at him and we raced out the door with the inevitable splat just clearing the entrance. Thinking it was just car-sickness from stop & go traffic, he went back in and a ate his burger and fries.

After scarfing down our food, Jas let me off on a corner with vague directions to his office. He took the kids to wait for our taxi at his office and I ran to Tesco's for diapers, water and tissues. By the time I got to the Amgen building, the taxi was loaded and waiting for me.

We were not sure where the Air Morocco check-in desk was but a board at the entrace of the terminal said to use the Air France desk. I asked an agent waiting by the line just to make sure and she said yes. So, we stood in line for 30 minutes only to be told by the check-in agent that no, Air Morocco does not work with Air France, we have to go to the Lufthansa desk. We trudged back to the other end of the terminal where the Lufthansa agent tells us Air Morocco has its own next at the end. After another agonising 20 minutes (I swear they typed with one finger), we are checked in for our flight.

Thankfully the security line was quick. Our departure gate hasn't posted yet, so we decided to run into Boots for forgotten deodorant, sunscreen and sudafed for Kaitlyn's aching ear. Another stop at WH Smith for snacks a novel for Jason and tour book on Morocco. By now the gate is posted and thankfully its a close 10 minute walk (it can be up to 30 minutes or a bus ride away).

Once in the air we smell dinner-fish. A strong yucky smelling fish. Beef was another option but we are stuck at the back of the plane and the beef runs out at Kaitlyn. The fish was just plain nasty and unedible. The rest of us ate bread and the pudding dessert. Griffen and Jillian are feeling ill and really don't eat anything. Great start to our big holiday and I am having a deja vu from our last winter break.

The plane lands in Casablanca where we have to change planes instead of the listed touch down only. The first agent we meet off the plane tells us to go to gate 3. The agent at gate 3 tells us to go to gate 7. Back at gate 7, the agent walked away without answering when we asked him. A passing agent said no, go to gate 3. After waiting at gate 3 for 5 minutes with a now frustrated crowd of passengers we end up back at gate 7.

Gate 7-a quick security check and a long wait with no information. Our 20 minute touch down turned into a 45 minute delayed flight to Marrakech. Once in Marrakech we run into the chaos of passport control where we pick the slowest line. It is now about 11 pm.

Our guide met us and we drove for 15 minutes to our hotel. On the way he apologizes for the business of the airport, there are lots of things going on with Christmas, New Year's and the sheep festival, Aid el Kabir and many people are traveling to be with their families.

Immediately after getting off the bus, Griffen christens the ground with his stomach contents. Wonderful. Off to bed in our rooms that face the bus station and very busy road and beds that are as soft as the tile floors.

Winter Wonderland

2006-12-19T20:32:00.000Z

We walked to school this morning in a winter wonderland of fog and frost. Even though the kids have all seen frost-quite a few school children marveled at the crunchy ground and cobwebs on the way to school this morning. We were running a bit late after a Jillian fit and as I ran out from the drive I just about landed on my bum-there was an ever so slight layer of ice on the sidewalk.
Although it was fascinating to see the cobwebs covered with frost-it was a bit of an eye opener as well to see how many are around that are usually invisible.
A down-side to all the wintry beauty was that the fog didn't lift at all and with the dampness in the air and the cost of heating we are all walking around our homes with scarves on. I may have to bite the bullet tomorrow when everyone is home from school and keep the heat on all day.

Paris, Take 3-Photos

2006-12-18T15:04:00.000Z

Paris, Take 3

2006-12-18T09:58:00.000Z

I hope the kids realize how lucky they are-they've been to Paris 3 times in one year.

Jason decided we should make one more quick trip and do a bit of shopping. It was a lot of driving for such a short time, but worth it. Since we got a late start on Friday, we stayed in Calais and then drove into Paris Saturday morning. Our regular hotel was full but we found another one in the same area that had parking and a kitchen. After checking in and cleaning up we went out to find something to eat.

It is always a challenge to feed kids-but we managed to get Griffen to eat some onion soup and Kaitlyn cleaned up on a quiche. Jillian just ate some bread and a few bites of my omelet. We gave Vania the afternoon off and went out on our own.

The plan was to go back to Luxembour Gardens, but the rain halted that plan. Two more options-dinosaur and mineral museum or to try to find ice skating. The museums are free in London, and probably better so we opted for ice skating. Buying metro tickets tunred out to be harder than usual. We only needed a pack on 10 single rides, but the ticket attendant said he didn't speak English, and we had to buy those tickets from the machine. Ok. We see 2 different ticket machines, one to add money to passes, which had both English and French, and the other machine which you bought tickets from, and only had French. Tell me who is more likely to add to a pass and who is more likely to buy a ticket? We couldn't get the machine to take our credit card and it didn't take bills only coins. The attendant wouldn't give us change and told us to go across the street to the other station-even though he said he didn't speak English. That all taken care off, we were off.

So was everyone else. I felt like a cow being herded into a pen, no need to hold on. We never did find the ice rink. We walked around a bit and found a creperie instead. After the crepes we decided to take a taxi back to the hotel rathet than brave the Metro again. As we drove past the Eiffel Tower, we noticed large crowds and a lot of tents. We asked the driver to let us off here instead of the hotel. Good move. The ground was saturated with rainwater, turning the sandy paths into a nice pasty muck.

The smell of cheese, mulled wine and sausage soon assulted our senses. Apparently-for just this weekend-people from every region in France had set up stalls offering free samples of thier specialties. While wandering through the stalls, a group of Brazilian drummers walked up and down as well-I am only assuming they were Brazilian by their chosen attire of Brazil Football shirts. The kids were soon rewarded for walking thru the muck-At night the Tower is normally lit up-but on the hour for 10 minutes, the twinkly lights go on. Since it is winter and dark early, they got to see it this time around.

Having our fill of wine and stinky cheese, we started back to the hotel only to be distracted once again. The church bells were ringing for 6:30 Mass. Much to the kids' dismay, we took it as a sign to go now instead of Sunday.

After Mass we picked up some dinner for the kids and went back to our room-where Vania took over so Jason & I could eat without the kids. We strayed away from our normal dinner spot and found an out of the way restaurant filled with locals. I asked the woman who brought our menu if she could speak English and she laughed. I pointed to what the diners next to us were eating (looked good) and when I didn't understand her response, she went "baa baa" and laughed. We ordered the duck.

Sunday morning we wandered around the market as the kids marveled at the different foods-cow tongue, some sort of hearts, livers, whole bunnies, pigs, chickens with feathers still on, octopus ('you can't eat octopus thats disgusting' from Jillian). As we entered the market Jillian said, "mommy I smell that market smell" ie stinky cheese. We tried to go up the Eiffel after that as Vania said there were no lines the day before. It was probably the rain, because now there were lines. We promised Griffen next time and he said he wanted to skip breakfast next time and come straight to the tower before anyone else.

After one last crepe we loaded up the van and headed for the boarder. We made pretty good time, hoping to give ourselves 2 hours to shop at the boarder. We almost did, except Jason has a heavy foot and he couldn't get the cruise control to work. We did think it odd to see a large white car with a man hanging out the window just sitting on the side of the motorway. About 5 miles later as we paid our toll, a Gendarme flagged us down and told us to pull over.
He first asked if we spoke French, then said 'thats ok, I speak English.' Apparently that man sitting in the white (unmarked) car was his collegue who clocked us at 150 km/hour. He asked for Jason's drivers license and seemed puzzled with the California one-as he was expecting UK. He then asked Jason if the car was his, we said yes. "Ok, that will be 45 Euros fine please. You pay now with cash, no credit cards." We had no cash. So, he gave us directions to the next town, 10 minutes away and kept the drivers license. We debated not returning. After 1 wrong turn and 20 minutes later, we retuned with 40 in bills and 5 in coins (not going to make it easy on him are we?). The Gendarme asked Jason to come to his van while we wrote his ticket. I think we were targeted because we were in a GB car and once he found we were not British, had to fine us anyway, saying we almost were at the next fine level. At least no points will be added to the UK license!

Sunday Ramble

2006-12-11T18:18:00.000Z

After church today, we decided to partake in a new tradition. A Sunday Ramble around the village. There are numerous footpaths around-some of which Jason & I run on during the week. Every Sunday it seems families are out walking either before or after roast-so we thought we'd giv it a try. The kids put up the typical fight but I hear it so often now I've grown immune to complaints. Once we were out though-Griffen decided he had so much fun that he wants to go every Sunday now. Kaitlyn's scowl broke for the occasional smile but won't admit to any fun.

Because of the cold, Jason led us on a short walk, but I think we will add this to our list of regular activities.

Christmastime Abroad

2006-12-10T18:05:00.000Z

So, this is our first Christmas over here, a bit different than the states. For one thing-even though the kids are in a 'state school,' it is Church of England, so there is a Christmas tree in every classroom and a huge one in the hall. Although the anti-Christmas sentiment from the US is gradually seeping over here, it is still acceptable to celebrate, and in public. Company parties are still called Christmas parties, decorations are still referred to as Christmas not holiday. The school play depicted the Nativity and Jillian's pre-school has a show as well (she's an angel).

Another interesting occurance-the kids at school pass out Christmas cards much as they would Valentine's Day cards in the US. Although there is none of the PC method of giving them to every child in the class all at once-its just random-every day the kids come home with a handful of cards. This is good-as you have all either forgot us over here or the post is slow-we have only received one card!

After being raised in cold climates, I must say that Christmas in California was always a bit of a let-down weather wise. Its kind of invigorating to be here in the cold for the Christmas season. More sun-light would be nice, but there is only another week and the days will start getting longer again.

Next week our village shop is having mulled wine and mince pies along with caroling. By the way there is no milk and cookies for Father Christmas here-its mulled wine or whiskey and mince pies.

Last night Jason and I went into London to see The Producers. I know this play is shown all over, but there is something cool about seeing it in the West-End with a sell-out crowd. We ate dinner afterwards at mid-night and looking at the Christmas lights as well. Vania (nanny) was staying the night so we had no need to rush home. When we left London at 1 am-the streets were still packed and there was plenty of buzz going on.

Night Out

2006-12-02T20:09:00.000Z

One of the many advantages of having a nanny is that Jason and I have a date night once a week. Another advantage is a nice authentic Italian meal every once in a while!

Last weekend we went to a pub in Cambridge for a quick Thai dinner and then to another (The Red Lion) one close by for a drink. There were not too many people in the Red Lion-an office Christmas party and a table of drunk mostly Scottish men. They were quite entertaining and we got a few chuckles from watching them. Mulled wine and mince pies are the tradition this time of year, so when the Christmas party had leftovers, the pub staff walked around offering free warm mince pies to everyone.

Tonight we opted for heading into Cambridge for pizza and drinks. Since its Christmas time-most restaurants were full with Christmas parties but we managed to snag a table at the Tapas restaurant. One of the problems we have run into going out in Cambridge is that the crowd is pretty young. So after dinner we decided to check out a pub in Sawston (village next to ours) where Jason had seen a pool table earlier on.

In the past when we have gone to our local, 'The Bees in the Wall,' we get that everyone stops what they are doing to stare at the intruders kind of feeling. Sawston is more of a blue collar town so we were hoping there would be a more welcoming reception.

Once we stepped in everyone turned to to look and waved a hello with a smile. We sat at the bar and ordered a beer for Jas and water for me. A woman sitting at the bar apologized for the noise-"X Factor" was on tv and the votes were in. She detected we weren't local and proceeded to engage us in a conversation. Turns out her son is named Jason, after Jason and the Argonots as well. Every once in a while someone would walk over and shake hands with us and say a few words. It got a bit crazy after half an hour and she bar maid started yelling at someone. Next thing we knew another woman and then the one we were talking to went behind the bar and started serving. We thought-cool she needs help and all these people jsut chip in. Wrong.

We were talking to the owner-made sense then why she kept getting her class replaced with fresh beer every 15 minutes. It was quite fun sittin around talking to these people, noticing all the missing teeth with the camradery. Wish our local was more like this.

Remembrance Day

2006-11-12T19:05:00.000Z

We went to a different church today-United Reformed. Kaitlyn's Brownie troop was asked to participate for Remembrance Sunday and I figured it was good for her to experience and learn. Over here, Remembrance Day is actually November 11 (from WWI) and on that day at 11 am, everyone is asked to stop and give 2 minutes of silence. For the most part, people still do that.

Griffen has football (soccer) on Saturday mornings on the village green. He doesn't play in a league-it was full-so this is more who shows up, plays. Anyway-when he was finished, we walked over and watched the league players for a bit. At 11 the ref blew his whistle, stopped the game and everyone on the green stopped and bowed their heads for 2 minutes. Pretty moving. I suppose with the wars being closer to home here than in the US, no one is allowed to forget. On a side note-surprisingly there is quite a bit of prejudice against Germans still.

Back to Remembrance Sunday...I'm glad we went-the Brownies read a poem about poppies:

IN FLANDERS FIELDS.

In Flanders field the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

~~By Major John McCrae, May 1915.~~

they sang a song, and after a short service everyone followed the Brownies, Cub Scouts and Pastor in silence down the street to the War memorial where names of those from the village who died in WW I were read out loud. The Brownies then laid poppy wreaths and wooden crosses at the base of the memorial. A teen aged girl played The Last Post on her trumpet and we had 2 minutes of silence.

Kailtyn & Griffen would've forgotten today's reading at Mass, but I don't think they will forget what they did instead.

Guy Fawkes Day

2006-11-04T19:05:00.000Z

Our First Guy Fawkes Day. Technically we really shouldn't take part in it considering what it is. Background: Guy Fawkes was a Catholic who wanted to blow up parliment and kill the King. His attempt was foiled, he was hung and burned and every year since then England celebrates this by having huge bonfires with a "guy" being burned and fireworks. So they are celebrating a foiled terrorist attack and burning a Catholic at the stake. But we are here and we want to experience all there is...

So at 6 (it gets dark really early now) we head over to the biggest bonfire I have ever seen. It is sponsored by Griffen's Scout Group in Duxford-so we use the fund raising bit as an excuse as well. The kids run around in the dark and we have no idea where they are-but we have become much more relaxed in supervision here good or bad I don't know. There are actually quite a few people here-and everyone from Duxford itself has walked to the field, in wellies of course. It is a nice clear, cold night-but the bonfire puts out a fair amount of heat. We can see plumes of smoke from all the other village bonfires-and this country says they are worried about global warming?

After the fireworks we run to the car to escape before the mad dash of others and miss the traffic jams.

Halloween

2006-10-31T19:05:00.000Z

Halloween in England is nothing like Halloween in America. In fact they don't really like it here at all and would like to send it back to America.

I've had a few bits of decorations out-nothing big and crazy-just what the kids like to see around the house. The kids have their costumes planned and we asked around as to where the trick-or-treating took place.

We've been having a girl down the street (Rebecca) help out with the kids for 2 weeks while we look for a nanny-when I came home from the grocery shopping she told me my neighbor called about appearing on the news. Our neighbor across the street works for the BBC and asked if he could interview me about Halloween and film the kids getting ready.

So after school we invited a few others over, I asked Rebecca to come back in the afternoon to help and we were filmed 'getting ready for Halloween' and they asked me a few questions regarding Halloween and whether I was worried for their safety or if I though Halloween was evil yada yada. Then we were on the East Anglia version of the BBC news on Halloween! Once we figure out how to get it off the digital box and onto tape we can put the segment up here. I even had someone from my flower arranging class come up and tell me they saw me on the news.

Anyway-we also had a small party before we went out (bobbing for apples, snacks and mystery box). At most houses, no one even answered the door, others handed out 1 candy or biscuit that was unwrapped. The kids came home with so little candy that it was gone before the week was done. People here associate Halloween with evil and Satan-all the costumes are scary not cute or creative and all the older people are just afraid of yobs vandalizing their house. We need to set them straight-I think we will have a big party next year.

Corfu-Final Day

2006-10-24T19:04:00.000+01:00

Our initial plans for today were to hire a car and drive into Corfu town. Jason has just been knackered from all the business travel, and the kids just wanted to play, so we decided to spend a brainless day at the pool.

First we went out for a nice breakfast-apparently Greeks usually only have a cigarette and coffee for breakfast. We went to the first place we ate at-Jason & I got special omelets and Greek coffee, Griff and Jilly opted for plain scrambled eggs and Kaitlyn got an English breakfast (eggs, toast, baked beans). Once we had our fill, we stopped at the grocery for snacks and went to the pool.

It was another beautiful day and with winter almost upon us we soaked up the warm sun. Around 3 we cleaned up, checked out of the hotel and went into town for an early dinner. We decided to eat at a place that looked like it had smaller meals. Jillian fell asleep in Jason's arms on the way. As we went to sit at a table, a young girl came over with 2 chairs and pushed them together-it took us a minuted to realize it was meant for Jason to lay Jillian down so we could eat. I love traveling in countries that appreciate families and children-England isn't one of them. Soon after we sat down and ordered, the Icelandic family arrived. Our kids, their kids and the daughter of the restaurant staff played a few rounds of Foosball and chased around one of the many cats wandering around the patio.

Just as we were about to eat, a rat ran in the rafters above our heads. I hope we don't get sick. Food wasn't too bad-we made sure to order hot food. Just as we finished Jillian woke up wanting to eat so we ordered her a small plate of pasta while all the other kids disappeared.

As we got up to pay-we found the kids-they were all sitting on top of a pool table watching cartoons with the little Greek girl. After we collected everyone-we went back to the hotel to wait for our bus to the airport.

Typical of small European airports, security was pretty lax. Griffen walked through with a tube of hydrocortisone in his backpack and Jason had an open bottle of kumquat liqueur. It was a long day-we didn't get back to London until nearly midnight and then we had a 2 hour drive home. All in all a good family trip.

Corfu-Day 4

2006-10-23T18:50:00.000+01:00

Another early start...this time for Theo's BBQ Boat. It was described as a wild trip with a crazy, short Greek man who likes to play tricks on everyone. It rained last night and seemed a bit overcast, but warmer. The Thompson rep said usually when it rains at night the next day is beautiful.

We survived the bus ride, barely, even I was getting sick, and walked aboard Theo's boat. The plan for the day was to enjoy a 30 minuted or so boat ride to Limnopoula Beach near Kassiopi. At the beach we could play in the water, enjoy water sports and lounge around while waiting for the crew to prepare a BBQ lunch of chicken or pork chop, salad, bread and tsatziki. After lunch we were to get back on the boat to visit the Blue Lagoon and a cave before returning to Corfu.

Theo's antics started soon after we left the dock. Immediately he honed in on some Scottish ladies and a teen boy. He told one boy to go sit next to a girl, put his arm around her and kiss her; and if he didn't then, Theo would kiss him. Next he took someones hat and walked away returning minutes later and put the hat back on.
The trick was in the hat-Theo filled it with shaving foam. Griffen didn't have a hat on, but Theo decided a nice mohawk made with shaving foam would look nice. After a few more practical jokes, we arrived on Kimnopoula Beach.

The men helped Theo and his brothers unload the food and the rest found some lounge chairs. In high season, some 300 people land here for Theo's BBQ-we were the last group of the season with just some 40 odd people (much nicer that way). The day was turning out to be beautiful-sunny and warm.

Theo's crew set about lighting the grills and prepping for lunch. Picture this-a nice secluded beach, a very tan Greek man standing in nothing but small shorts and a sombrero lighting a grill with something that looked like a blow torch. Love it.

Jason went out on water skis, the Kaitlyn ran to the water, Griffen set off with another boy and Jillian sat on a towel under an umbrella trying to play with sand without actually touching it. The air was soon filled with screaming children as Theo talked Kaitlyn into opening her hands with her eyes closed only to find a small crab crawling on her.

Soon the wind was just right and two men decided to go up on the parasail. Here is anther picture for you to conjure...two fairly large men, bald men with tattoos at that, standing behind each other in harnesses. Theo walked up to us and said-"oh I can spot them anywhere-pooftas."

Lunch time-nice juicy chicken breast, fresh bread, tomato, cucumber & red onion salad and tsatziki and all the wine you can drink. Kaitlyn cleaned her chicken up like it was her last meal, and the salad was so fresh and simple that we had to go back for more. After lunch we cleaned up and went back on the boat. By the time we got organized on the boat, I noticed several kids running around with black shoe polish on their faces...Theo must be at it again. With ample warning-a water fight soon started. I thought Jillian and I were safe sitting far back on the top deck-but we still got a shock of cold water.

Our next stop was a gorgeous blue lagoon that Theo set anchor in. Jason was the first to jump off the top deck. Kaitlyn fearlessly jumped of the back and after some serious coaxing Griffen went down the water slide Theo had on the back of the boat. When Jason went off the top, one of the Scottish men said he'd marry me if Jason didn't make it. As I was contemplating jumping off the top-a Scottish woman came up next to me and looked down. After claiming it was pretty high-she climbed over the edged and dove, not jumped, in without a second thought.

Our next stop was a cave that was used during the War to hide gunnery. Theo drove the boat right in and was what seemed like inches from the side of the cave to the boat.

We returned to the hotel for a quick dip in the pool to clean off the beach and changed for dinner-yes our last night we went back to the Balcony.

Corfu-Day 3

2006-10-22T18:51:00.000+01:00

No sleeping in today-we are to meet in front of the hotel at 9:30. It is another cloudy day-I hope the water park isn't too cold.

We manage to get the front seats of the bus, vital on these roads when you have kids who are susceptible to car sickness. We wind around the road and swerve around cars for about 40 minutes. Looking around, I notice there is a lot of garbage laying about, unfinished buildings everywhere. It is not uncommon to see a house that has a finished bottom story with rebar sticking out the top waiting for a second floor. There are also houses that have the second floor, but the second floor is unfurnished and has no windows. This looks to be a handy location to dry laundry.

We made it to the boat without incident, or so I thought. Jason didn't escaped the bus before me, but didn't tell me to look out fast enough as I stepped thru another child's reaction to the rough ride. Yuck.

We were told to herd on down to the bottom of the boat as it took off. The kids were excited to be able to see the sea as we moved along. After about 20 minutes, the boat set anchor as 2 SCUBA divers went below to show us various sea creatures. It was completely and utterly cheesy. I am sure the creatures were in cages under the boat, but the kids loved it. Happy kids, happy parents. Once the divers came back aboard, they drove us to a random platform in the sea for another cheesy performance. This one involved some poor sea lions. Didn't quite compare to Sea World.

That all done, time for another 30 minute bus ride to the water park. The car park was looking pretty empty. We wandered in to the whines of 3 hungry children. Although we were told there were numerous places to eat in the park, all but one was closed. That one didn't have much left-they close October 31 as well.

We walked around a bit to explore before venturing into the freezing water. We found some chairs to spread out on in a nice grassy area that the sun sort of shined on every so often. The older 2 didn't seem to mind the cold water and wasted no time picking the first slide. I stayed to watch the bags, while Jason braved the water and took all 3 to the pirate play area. Jillian lasted about 15 minutes.

The rest of the day was spent with Jason & the older 2 enjoying themselves, while Jillian napped and I wished I brought my book. The coldness of the air and water really didn't change the amount of fun that was had, and on the bright side there were no lines to wait in.

We were able to get the front seats on the bus once again. The Thompson reps had to force the driver, Costas, to open his window (he was a bit smelly). About half way back Jillian started to cough in that all to familiar way. The quick reacting reps told the driver to pull over and out of nowhere we were handed tissues and a bag. Disaster averted.

We got back to the hotel, washed up and went to dinner. Where. Ah-you guessed correctly, The Balcony. Kaitlyn ventured out and got fish fingers, Griff and Jilly stuck with pasta. I went with the Greek Salad and Chicken with Mushrooms and rice and requested no chips. Jason picked Greek Salad and Stifado. The hotel staff was very intuitive and each night brought the kids dinner with our salads. We let them eat dessert while we had our main.

Dessert was an event. Each dessert is decorated with umbrellas, plastic monkeys and sparklers. As they are being served the waiter says, "Happy Birthday." Needless to say, we will go home with a handful of plastic monkeys (they also attach them to the kids straws). Off to the disco., then bed.

Corfu-Day 2

2006-10-21T23:27:00.000+01:00

We are staying at a Thompson Superfamily Resort. I think it is somewhat similar to a ClubMed of Sandals, but for families instead of single, young guests. This means we have to endure an hour long welcome talk telling us all that Thompson has to offer during our stay. While sitting thru the meeting, we noticed the room was full-which made us feel a bit better (no longer creepy).

We decided to sign up for 2 tours (this being the end of season, you can only get tours thru Thompson and not in town). Sunday: glass bottom boat ride, sea lion show and waterslide park. Monday: Beach Boat BBQ run by some crazy Greek man named Theo.

Once the talk was over-it was time for lunch. We liked where we ate yesterday-so we made a return visit. Pasta for Jilly & Griff, hot dog for Kaitlyn. I got a Greek salad (must stock up of fresh produce as England is a bit lacking). Jason got a 'special omelet'-feta, mushrooms, ham and tomatoes. Yum!

Although it was a mostly cloudy day-we lounged around the pool while the kids played. While watching the kids play, we struck up a conversation with another family and found out the real reason behind the mysterious increase of guests. Apparently our hotel was set to close on Tuesday (which is why I got such a great deal), but another Thompson resort about 20-30 minutes away was evacuated last night and all the guests brought to our hotel. This was due to 2 suspected cases of Legionnaire's disease. The hotel even had to call a few restaurants and bars asking them to re-open for the extra guests. Great.

After a cool day at the pool-we went into town for drinks and dinner. We started off having drinks in a bar overlooking the ocean and the beautiful sunset. Jason and the kids played some pool while Jillian stood at the edge watching the ocean. Next stop-back to the Balcony for dinner.

This being a Saturday-it was much busier than last night, there was a party of locals (always a good sign) and all the extra hotel guests. There was at least a 20-30 minute wait, but we could wait at the bar downstairs and the waiter would come get us. There were a few more families hanging out in the bar watching music videos on a giant screen tv. Jason and the kids played video games while I wrote in my journal. The guy at the bar didn't push anyone to buy drinks and about half an hour later, the waiter came down and said a table was ready for us.

Tonight the kids went for pizza, Jason ate what I had last night and I had Stifado-beef made with lots of cinnamon and baby onions. Of course we had the Greek salad again as well. I think we will have to come back again tomorrow.

Corfu, Greece, Day 1

2006-10-20T22:56:00.000+01:00

This is going to be a long one...

The flight was uneventful-although the runway in Corfu is very very short a mere 2000 or so meters long and is built on a narrow strip of artificial land surrounded by water. See link to a video showing you just how short it is.

Once off the plane, we headed through passport control, or lack of. Those flashing a UK passport were waved through, most only showing the front cover of their passport. We had to step aside as well as an Australian couple. After everyone else went through, we waited while our passports were entered into the computer and stamped. We waited another half hour for the luggage which was piled so high on the cars that the driver could only drive about 2 miles/hour if that. After retrieving the luggage we herded onto buses going to various resorts.

Before the bus drove away, our tour rep welcomed everyone, distributed safety booklets and informed us of the high mineral content of the water, the fact that no paper goes in the toilet and it is mosquito season.

We sat at a red light for about 10 minutes or more as a police car blocked all traffic-a plane was preparing for take off and the runway was just yards from the road with only a chain link fence between the two. I imagine this is to prevent cars being blown away by the plane, something residents must endure for tourist season 6 months of the year.

Driving through town I observed several bicycle riders sans helmets weaving thru cars as well as a motorbike with a small child as a passenger without a helmet as well. Jason saw several shops with large animals he thought were cows hanging in the window. I don't think they were cows-beef is usually imported.

After about 45 minutes of winding, dangerous driving, we arrived at the Corfu Plaza Hotel but only us and one other family got off. We wandered around a bit after dumping our luggage and realized it was very deserted here. In fact only 2-3 bars and a few restaurants seemed to be open. Maybe that's why we got such a cheap deal.

We picked a restaurant that looked the cleanest. The kids ate ice cream and fries (its vacation). Jason opted for soup and bread while I went for the Dolmades. We then went to the hotel play area where the kids befriended some children who live in the London area but were from Iceland.

After a bit of play, we went for a siesta in the room. Despite telling Kaitlyn 3 times as we got in the room and once more while she was using the toilet not to put the TP in the toilet, she forgot. Luckily nothing happened and I am sure we were not the first to forget.

After a nap and a quick trip to the mostly empty grocery for water, cookies, and milk, we walked back into town for dinner. Once again we noticed how shut down everything was. While looking at a menu for a place called The Balcony (its main dining area is a balcony overlooking the sea), I spied a waiter waving us up. All the kids received a pat on the head and Kaitlyn said, "Just like Italy mom."

The kids tried to order soda and the waitress said, "Oh no, kids don't like that so much, you would like juice or milkshake better." Jillian dropped her pacifier and the waitress immediately picked it up and washed it.

The menu was in Greek, English, and German and most dishes came with 'chips' catering to the British clientele. I wanted to order something Greek that came without chips-so I pointed out the 'specialities' to the waiter for a description to make sure I didn't get lamb. I ended up with a Greek salad-which came with a huge slab of feta that was wonderfully fresh, a few bits of lettuce, and loads of cucumbers and juicy tomatoes and of course Greek olives. I think I could live off this. My main course, Stamna, is a Corfu specialty. It is like a beef stew full of either lamb or beef, potatoes, carrots, green beans, a fair bit of cinnamon and topped with cheese. Jason had pasta with the same hunks of beef found in my stew.

Corfu is the closest Greek island to Italy, so you find a lot of rice and pasta on the menus and there is even some debate as to who invented pasta; the Greeks or Italians.

Our fellow diners were the kids from Iceland and the staff didn't bat an eye at the kids going back and forth between the tables (unlike England).

We ended the evening with the kid's disco at the hotel-a bit cheesy but the kids loved it and the entertainers put in enough humor aimed at the adults to make it tolerable. The disco was followed by the Greek Dancers, and with only 9 families, we all had to participate. I got out of a bit-Jillian was thirsty so I ran back to the room for her water cup. As I was returning I noticed what looked like bus loads of people arriving-at 10 pm.

Travelin' Again

2006-10-19T23:16:00.000+01:00

Half the adventure is always how you get there. With us, the journey started with Jason taking the luggage with him to London 2 days before we were set to leave.

After picking the kids up from school, we rushed home, changed clothes and ate a snack. The taxi arrived an hour later to take us to the train station (only a mile or so away, but I'm not walking that with 3 kids tired from school). The ticket machine wouldn't take my card -that chip and pin thing all over again-and the attendant only works until 1:30, so I purchased some permits to travel and got on the train. No attendant on the train either.

We arrived in London an hour and 15 later in the midst of rush hour. Broken ticket machines must be common as there were several agents waiting to sell you the right ticket to exit. We had a quick bite at Burger King and set off to find the right tube line to Victoria Station. Jason called and said he was stuck in traffic, but should be at the airport when we get there.

Without too much trouble, we found our line. We made it with just 5 minutes to spare for the Gatwick Express. Jason met us as we departed the train. If your flight leaves before noon, you can check in yourself and luggage the night before between 8-10 pm. This is supposed to save time, although we were told to still be at the airport 2 hours before departure; which meant we would be back at 4:30 am.

Is it worth it?

2006-10-10T16:39:00.000+01:00

So, I still don't have my name on Jason's account. I have pretty much given up on that. Especially since they are now changing our post code because too many people are moving into this area of England. If they couldn't find me before, how will it be with a new post code?

New issue-driving license. I suppose some of this is our fault for waiting so long and not fully investigating the issue, also part of Amgen's for not really telling us what we needed to do.

Once moving to the UK from a non-EU country, you have 1 year to take and pass the driving test, both written and practical. Apparently we were supposed to get provisional licenses once we moved here. We didn't.

I decided we better get on this as our year is up very soon. I applied for the provisional license on-line-seemed simple enough until I got to the end. If you don't have a UK passport, you have to mail in a certified photo of yourself and your passport to prove you are who you are. Makes sense.

Problem 1:how to certify your photo. Your photo must be signed on the back by a witness. The witness must be a UK resident and have known you personally for 2 years and cannot be a relative. HMmm. Well if one has only lived in the country for 9 months how are you going to do that? So I called the number listed on the web site-only that is not the number of someone who can help me, so I get transferred to another person who cannot help me, but they give me the right number. I call the right number and they transfer me to yet another person. That person tells me-oh yes, to get around the time problem, you must go to your local DVLA office and have someone there sign your photo and fill in a form, then you can mail that with your passport and hope you get it back in 15 days because we are running behind in processing applications. OK. So where is my local office? I don't have one, I have to go to Luton which is basically London. I think we will find someone in Jason's office who we have 'known' for 2 years.

Problem 2:we need our passports. Jason is in Australia right now until next Monday, we go to Greece next Friday for 5 days, Jason is off to the US in November and we are all off to Morocco after Christmas. I can probably manage getting mine off, but not sure about Jason.

Once we have the provisional license we have to take the tests. I talked to another woman in the village and she had to take it 7 times before passing. If you do not pass and your year is up, then you have to put a big red L on your car and you can only drive with a certified driver. So I ask myself, is it worth it? Couldn't I just drive until we move back home and pray I don't get pulled over for any reason? Maybe I should add certified driver to my nanny add?

Bath & Stonehenge

2006-10-01T20:09:00.000+01:00

Off on another adventure...this time within the UK. We have heard how beautiful and charming Bath is so we decided to take a weekend away before some more crazy travel from Jason.

Upon breaking the news to the kids, we got the typical response of "I don't want to go see some stupid rocks and water." Not even telling Kaitlyn that the rocks were 2000 years older than Jesus could elicit excitement. Griffen's interested piqued however when he shared with his class our plans. His teacher told him the Romans used to bath in Bath-and since Griffen thinks teachers walk on water-he was good to go.

So Saturday morning we set off to Bath-a more rainy part of England. We took the advice of our tour book and used the Park & Ride and took the bus in-free parking and free fare for the kids. This part of England also has a few hills-unlike Cambridge-so the bus ride in on the double decker was fun. We ate lunch and then headed for the Roman and Medieval Baths. Admission price included self-guided audioguides and even had special audio for the kids. Kaitlyn half-heartedly listened to a few while Griffen went thru and listened to every single number. Jillian got fed up after an hour and wanted her stroller back for a nap.

The water in the main bath is bright green because the pipes carrying the water to the pool are lead as well as the pool having lead sheets lining the bottom. It is amazing to see how all this water was brought from the hot springs and the original in/out paths of the water are still in working order.

The exit of the baths leads you right out to the Abbey, the last great medieval church of England, a mere 500 years old. As we entered the attendant told us an orchestra was rehearsing for a concert but we were still welcome to wander around. So we got the added bonus of enjoying the acoustics of a beautiful Gothic church. We even spied a WWII era American Flag given as a gift to the church. (Being over here, we miss seeing the stars and stripes)

After the Abbey, we went in search of Sally Lunn's Old English Tea House for a cream tea. Sally Lunn's is purportedly the oldest house in Bath (late 15c) and they still use the original bun recipe from 1680.

We are not huge fans of the typical English B&B-overpiced, run down and not very family friendly, so we opted for the Premier Travel Inn in nearby Bristol. Just your basic hotel with attached restaurant, but clean and suitable for families. I researched a bit before we left and found a cathedral in Bristol for Mass on Sunday. It was the first one built in England post Vatican II with the altar close to the people (very similar to St. Mary's in San Francisco). And with impeccable timing it literally rained buckets on us as we ran in.

After mass, we drove to Stonehenge. I'm not sure what I expected. You can see the stones from the road and they are quite impressive once you get as near as you can get to them. It is now a conservation area and they are roped off at quite a distance. Lucky for us however, it was a windy, rainy day and we got great shots with no people in them.

There were actually a lot of Americans there and Jason and I noted how happy they were. The rest of the tourists just grumbled around and we ran into some very rude French people, but the Americans were just clearly happy to be there. Maybe the long vacations and easy access to all of Europe has made Europeans inappreciative.

Conkers and Crane Flies

2006-09-15T20:00:00.000+01:00

What is a conker? A conker is the seed of a horse chestnut tree-they are hard brown nuts surrounded by a prickly casing. Actually they look almost identical to a buckeye. An old playground game here is for kids to thread a strong string thru the middle of the conker and hit an opponents conker. When one's conker is destroyed, the game is over. Kaitlyn's class had an experiment to see what you could do to conkers to make a killer conker. Between these and the acorns, we have a very crunchy walk to school.

Now onto the crane flies...the kids here call them daddy long legs, we know them more as mosquito catchers. They are more annoying than anything. When we walk to and from school thru the green they fly around you in swarms. Forget leaving the windows or doors open in the evening because then you spend 20 minutes trying to catch the dozen that have made it indoors. At least when winter sets in I will only have spiders to deal with and hopefully the bug poison cousin Leif led me to will make the house impenetrable.

Flying Chicken

2006-09-02T17:20:00.000+01:00

Last night Jason and I got to spruce up in our fancy dress and go to a Summer Ball. The venue was at a winery about 10 miles our village. I know what you are thinking, 'a winery in England?' I'd say the wine was on par with English food, nothing to write home about. So why am I writing?

Although England is a binge nation and people get quite out of hand drunk, A LOT, drinking and driving is not the problem that it is in the US. When people here know that they will be out drinking, they take a cab. So-in keeping with this, a random Amgen employee living in the village next to ours contacted Jason and asked if we wanted to share a cab to the ball. We ended up driving there in the 'company car' and sharing a cab home.

Things started off well enough...met a few people had a glass of champagne. Then we all went into the next room for dinner. It was labeled a BBQ buffet. With full plates, we returned to the table and started on the house wine. Oh-the food. It was an over cooked beef pattie, chicken breast, some salad and roasted potatoes. Have you ever seen a Brit eat with a fork and knife? They have this fancy rhythm once they get going and use the knife to scoop food onto the back of the fork and then eat. I thought I was doing pretty well-getting the hang of it all, trying to fit in when disaster struck. The meat was a bit overcooked and as I went to cut into my flavorless chicken breast, it flew across the table. AHHH! I was mortified.

I quickly grabbed the offending piece of meat and placed it on my plate before too many people noticed. Unfortunately it landed in front not my plate but the woman next to me. She graciously passed it off as her own. Needless to say, I didn't finish my chicken.

We got home late-around 1 and slept late. Actually we both felt quite ill most of the day and blamed it on bad wine rather than the amount. We have a wedding to go to next weekend and the same place-I think we will skip the wine.

Sights of London

2006-08-27T19:06:00.000+01:00

Some of our pictures from around London...

"The Virgin Mother" by Damien Hirst, a 35 foot statue at the Roayl Academy Of Arts

Fancy a rest? Rent a deck chair for a small fee in Greenpark

St. Bride's Church Tower, the tiered wedding cake was modeled after this tower.

The London Eye with Big Ben in the middle

A pretty Bridge

Tower Bridge, the one that moves

London, London Bridge...

2006-08-26T18:33:00.000+01:00

Funny lyrics-I wonder if Fergie knows that it is Tower Bridge that goes down, not London Bridge?

Anyway-We left the kids with Noelle in Cambridge last night so Jason and I could have a night out in London. We took the train in, checked into the hotel, changed clothes and headed out. We had tickets to go see Avenue Q and little time to eat a sit down-so we opted for a quick Asian heat up and a drink at a pub. Going to the pubs on a Friday after work with your mates is a very big deal here in England.

We found a pub across the street from the theatre-most people were standing outside the pub drinking and hanging out-no open container laws here. This weekend is a bank holiday-last one of the summer-so the area was alive and kicking with visitors. There happened to be a rather large group rowdy very drunk men from Hull hanging out as well. Hull is rated the worst place to live in the UK based on crime, education, employment, environment and lifestyle. We had fun watching them chat up the girls and it took about 5 minutes for one to approach me when Jason went to the bar for a 2nd round. Every so often one of them would yell something and they'd all start singing.

After the show-quite funny I must say, we went out to a dance club. Apparently you can reserve a spot ahead of time and then don't have to wait in line. We didn't do that but were early enough it didn't matter. We were also dressed the right way-the door guy took a look at us after we told him we were not on the list and he put us in line, but while we were waiting 2 guys stopped and tried to get in the same way and they were turned away. We stayed until well after 2 am, but my feet were killing me and we were both a bit tired. Most stay out until breakfast.

Jason let me sleep in and he went back to Cambridge to get Noelle and the kids for a day in London. They made it around lunch, so that was the 1st stop. With the kids complaining like always and short time-we felt the best way to see the city was to take an open air bus tour. After spending most the day sightseeing we went to Piccadilly for Noelle to do her last bit of shopping before leaving tomorrow. We sat down for a quick bite to eat before heading home-the only place open was next to a very colorful character.

France, Finale

2006-08-22T18:12:00.000+01:00

Time to go home. First things first, breakfast at the only open bar. Griffen opted out of the petite dejeuner (croissant, baguette, juice, coffee and jam) and wanted bacon and bread. The waiter steered us to the English Breakfast for him. Griff was none to happy when his bacon showed up with fried eggs sunny side up on top of his bacon and refused to eat anything other than his hot chocolate. Travel with kids...

After breakfast we thought we would head over to the Rue Clare area for a bit of shopping. We didn't have as much time as we thought-Jason took a wrong turn. Noelle did find a few souvenirs and the kids found some 'farting putty' in a dollar store. Next step-getting out of the city, there is still a tine bit of life left in the Treo.

Armed with the map and Treo-we make our way out of Paris. I tried to video tape the event, but the charge as well as space was about gone. We were doing pretty well, we even made it around the Arc de Triumph (a giant round about with no rules) until we hit the tunnels. I had a general idea of where we needed to drive towards and when I saw a sign without a prompt from the Treo, I told Jason to take the exit. One of the many disadvantages of the Treo-no signal in tunnels. I was wrong and we ended up back in Paris and Jason decided he was not going to listen to me anymore and just drive to where he thought he should go. You know-we have a great marriage and argue about few things, but navigating seems to bring out the irrational woman in me and leads us to grumpy silence most times. After a slight delay we did make it out of the city and onto the motorway.

We didn't have as much time as we would've liked for shopping at the boarder. We decided to split up and meet at the car in 30 minutes. Noelle went in search of presents and lunch, Jason went on a wine mission and I fed the kids at McDonalds. Only in France do you have real art on the walls and beer on the menu at McD's. We all made it back to the car and went to check in for the train crossing-with a few minutes to spare me to run out and grab 2 sandwiches for Jason & I at the last stop before getting in line. Turns out we rushed for nothing-we sat in line waiting for the train for a good 45 minutes.

France, Part 5, Paris

2006-08-21T16:17:00.000+01:00

Today's agenda: Pack up the car and drive to Paris for a quick trip and a way to break up the long drive home. The morning was pretty uneventful, by now we knew how to get to the main motorway and once there we just had to follow the signs to Paris. The only issue is that since Jillian got car sick, she won't let Noelle sit in the back with her, so I have to. On a side note-the French motorways are a bit nicer to drive on than the English roads. The smooth roads however come at a price, in the form of tolls, we have probably spent a couple hundred total. France also has more roadside amenities as well...free air pressure checks (with an attendant who will add more air as needed), petrol stations and eateries.

We stopped for lunch at one of these roadside eateries. Quite a few families were stopped as well, returning from their August sojourn, eating fresh baguettes. We got the kids a hot dog meal-which of course they hated and only ate the french fries and ice cream. I admit I tasted it and the texture was just yucky so I can't blame them. After lunch Noelle and I tried to pull a switch on Jillian so that I could better navigate once we got near Paris-no go.

Jason and I have been to Paris twice now, but only by train and taxi. As we approached the city, I located the hotel on the map and tried to guess which road we were entering Paris on (think wagon wheel with lots of spokes) and Jason put the address into the Treo (just a bit of power left). It was actually not too bad-although we had a few rude drivers. We stood out with the steering wheel on the wrong side and the French hate the Brits (who don't they hate?). We found the hotel, found street parking 2 blocks away and still have power left on the Treo! I read on the meter that parking was free for the month of August (everyone is on vacation), but Jason didn't trust my translation abilities and had to check with the hotel to make sure. I was right.

After a quick unpack, we decided to walk over to the Eiffel Tower. There was a bit of a rain shower and we only had 1 umbrella and no raincoats (must learn to pack the right things), luckily the hotel had a few spare. As we approached the Tower, the rain stopped and we saw a rainbow. We let the kids blow off some steam at the park and returned to the hotel area for dinner. We were staying at the same hotel as last time and remembered some Chinese take-away place the kids liked and a grocer for drinks. We had left over milk from camping that we froze the night before and paper plates as well.

After getting everyone ready for bed, we left the kids with Noelle and went out for a bite to eat by ourselves. We ended up at the same place we ate last time--only this time as I struggled to order in French the waiter asked if we spoke English and I breathed a sigh of relief. Since it was a nice night we opted to eat outside under the awnings which was fine until about half way through dinner it started to rain and my wine glass caught a few drips of water.

Big cities amaze me-here it is 10 at night and people are still sitting down to dinner and walking about. After dinner I woke up Noelle to take her to see the Eiffel Tower lit up at night. I didn't have the camera set up correctly, so you will just have to visualize it. The park around the tower was buzzing with tourists and the tower itself was glowing from top to bottom with golden light. My surprise for Noelle however was that on the hour the lights change to twinkle lights for about 10 minutes. It was great to see the excitement in her as the lights changed over. Off to bed.

France, Part 5

2006-08-20T20:27:00.000+01:00

Our last day here before we set off to Paris. We can't seem to wake up early and go on the run together we keep saying we will do. Oh well. Jason and the kids run down to the bike hut to rent bikes for the day. We let them putter around a bit while we get ready for the day. As predicted Griffen wipes out and cuts up his knees and arms. Another little girl the kids were playing with came over to see that he was ok and to show him she wiped out the other day and cut up her chin. In fact I see a lot of kids with bandages on their knees.

Today's adventure involves a longer drive, but we promise the kids it will be worth it. We are going to an area referred to as La Venise Verte, The Green Venice. This area of France was a wet marshland that was drained by 12th century monks and 17th century Dutch engineers. It is now a 35,000 hectare labyrinth of tiny rigoles-canals that filled with mossy duckweed and surrounded by poplars and willows that create soft green tunnels of filtered sunlight. Interspersed among the trees are pastures for the grazing cattle.

Our guide book references about a dozen villages along the canals to visit, but states that Coulon is by far the most beautiful-so that is our destination. Much of this village is closed as well-but we manage to find the car park and follow the people walking toward what we hope is the water. Looking around, we see that there are very few GB license plates-so we are among mostly French people. We decided that rather than waste our time trying to figure out how to maneuver the boat, we should hire a boat with a guide. The company we chose had no English speaking people, but we managed to work out that we wanted an hour and 15 minute ride and but a boat is not available for another hour. Off for a snack then.

The only cafes that were open were along the water, so we plopped down at a table and proceeded to order. I started ordered 4 crepes, 2 coffees and 2 ice creams-we only got 3 crepes, our coffees and ice cream. The waiter wasn't friendly at all and once we asked for the bill he proceeded to acknowledge me but smoked a cigarette, had a drink and took another order before he brought it, then he assumed we paid exact and wouldn't come over to give us change.

The boat ride was nice and tranquil, the kids even enjoyed it. Jason had great fun giving Noelle a hard time as the guide put her right in front of him and we even saw a waterside boat-bar.

We ate dinner back at camp-all the left over food in the fridge and it isn't camping unless you have popcorn. We shipped over a case of popcorn when we moved-they barley have the microwave stuff here. The kids invited a couple others over and they sat around the table talking and eating before bed.

France, Part 4

2006-08-19T22:56:00.000+01:00

Ahh-vacation. Always prepare for the worst and pack essential items like extra blankies, extra clothes, plastic puke bags. Or not.

We skipped kids club today and went on a longer excursion despite the loud complaints from one 8 year old girl who can never be pleased. We did have a bit of a late start after another sleep in or 'lie in' as the Brits call it. Right before we left, Jason found out a co-worker was from this area of France and she recommended we visit her home-town, Les Sables-d'Olonne, and our guide book made it sound like a worthy visit as well.

Once on the road and 3 round-abouts later Jillian claims she is getting car sick. I do keep a handy stash of car sick pills in the glove box, as Jason is not known for taking round-abouts slowly or smoothly and this is a common complaint from the kids. Just as we round the last round about and get on a larger road I hear the distinct cough that can only mean one thing...quick thinking Noelle grabbed Jillian's blankie and caught most of it as Jason pulled over. Drama queen, Kaitlyn starts gagging as I frantically pull Jillian from the car. Noelle manages to clean herself up but the only items on Jillian not covered are her shoes and top. Blankie and pants go in the plastic bags we keep in the car (but realized too late we had them) and Jillian is stripped down to diaper and top. We do our best to clean up her seat and rejoice that the car carrier is on top of the car to contain the brunt of the odor. Do we head back? No, we carry on, we have things to see.

So-we get to Les Sables-Jason drops us off next to a large open-air market so he can hunt down a parking space. Lucky for us we find a skirt for Jillian at the market. However, this is not the market we came to see-we want the Halles Centrales-a glass and brick building next to the sea. We find in with only a slight amount of zig-zagging and WOW! The top floor is full of local farmers selling their produce-we come away with carrots, raspberries and tomatoes for dinner-but not before spying some sort of bird that was feathered but still had its feet. The ground floor was breathtaking with all its colors and smells...fresh produce, heaps of shellfish, smelly cheese, mounds of fresh butter and the fragrant bunches of fresh herbs. Our eyes landed on the baker-after sampling a few items we decided on some sort of apple tart and a round cake much like pound cake.

On the way out of town we stopped off for lunch-kids had the old stand-by of pizza, Noelle opted for a Croque-monsieur, hot ham and cheese sandwich, while Jason and I
had some sort of cold sandwich with ham, tomatoes and slices of hard boiled egg.

After a quick stop and the grocery store for laundry detergent we head back to camp so the kids can play and I can wash clothes.

Dinner-fresh carrots, salad with beautiful hierloom tomatoes, fresh baguette, bottle of wine and some BBQ pork.

France,Part 3

2006-08-18T19:18:00.000+01:00

We had a nice morning sleeping in. After such a long drive yesterday, we decided to take it easy today with the kids. We dropped Kaitlyn and Griffen off at the kid's club, let Noelle have some time to herself and Jason went to buy some groceries at a larger store in one of the neighboring towns. An adult had to stay on site-so Jillian and I went for a walk.

After lunch we took the kids to the pool for a bit. We didn't want to spend our whole time here laying about-so we went off to one of the towns, Apremont, to explore. Of course the kids put up a fight, but Noelle was keen and tried to tell the kids how lucky they are to have parents take them to such cool places.

Apremont is home to a Chateau the main part dates back to probably the 13th century, while the towers are from the 16th century. The towers were built by Phillippe Chabot de Brion, admiral of France and friend of King Francois I. It is also said that King Louis XIII stayed here on 17 April 1622. The network of wooden beams supporting the tower we had access too, were quite impressive. The other intersting bit was the glaciere, a refrigerator Renaissance-style. Winter ice would have been stored to preserve food in hotter months in this half buried space carved into rock.

We have also noticed a trend in these small French villages...it is August and the French go on holiday during August. So pretty much every shop, restaurant, store, you name it has a sign on the door stating that they are closed. Most have dates on them as well-August 7-August 26 or later. The windows of most houses are shuttered as well. Can you imagine whole towns on vacation for 3 weeks? Only the larger grocers are open.

France, Part 2, Vendee

2006-08-17T13:27:00.000+01:00

After one looong drive, several stops in search of a charge cord to no avail, and a few heated debates over directions, we arrive at Eurocamp, La Garangeoire-St Julien de Landes around 7pm. Immediately we are practically assaulted by kids on bikes.

The camp area is a bit like a KOA, but only a bit. There are well over 300 'pitches' in the area with 4 companies renting the campers and tents. About 75% of the site was taken over by these companies and about 25% were people who had their own caravans or tents. I's also say about 75% of the guests were Brits, the rest were from Germany, Netherlands, very few French. With all these people, it was surprisingly quiet and clean. Here are some photos of our pitch:

Not roughing it all by our standards, but with 6 people it is by far the most cost effective way to explore an area and the kids had a blast.

After checking in and being escorted to our site by a 'cute guy' (Noelle's words) on a bike, we unpacked and sought a store for food. Lucky for us the on site store was open until 8. We scrounged some bread, wine, and burgers for dinner then went down to the bar for after dinner drinks and ice cream. Did you know the drinking age in France is 16? By 10pm the sites were all quiet for the night-nothing like the equivalent of an American camp site!

France, Part 1, arrival

2006-08-17T11:25:00.000+01:00

We are off to France for a new adventure. This time we are taking our car, packed with 2 adults, 3 ungrateful children, and one excited teen, one packed bag each, beach towels to the Eurotunnel. Once at the train station (a 1.5 hour drive)we will drive onto a special car that takes us under the Channel and then we have to drive a mere 6-7 hours to our destination. Sounds like fun.

About 20 minutes into our first driving leg, Jason realizes he forgot the chargers for his Treo, which is also our navigation tool. Do we wing it or do we drive back home and take the risk of running into London traffic and missing the train? We wing it, figuring we can at least pick up a car charger in France.

We actually got to the train station early and are able to get on and earlier train...some photos of the train:

Once off the train in Calais, we spy a shopping center and decide it is time to look for a charger for Jason's Treo. No luck--but we did find the biggest grocery store I have ever seen. It looked like a warehouse from the outside. Once inside we found clothes, food, wine (oh soo much wine!) And get this, an entire aisle of yogurt. Picture a regular dairy aisle like you see in Albertsons or Vons, add a few feet to the length and imagine yogurt, just yogurt on both sides. We are definitely stopping here on the way home.

With no car charger in hand, but croissants and coffee in our stomachs, we start our long drive to the Vendee area of France.

Twelfth Night

2006-08-16T23:17:00.000+01:00

Jason and I went out tonight for the Shakespeare Festival in Cambridge. Tonight's show, Twelfth Night was performed in the Fellow's Garden of Trinity College. This part of the College is usually not even open to normal members of the College. Another fun bit...one can never walk on the grass unless you are a fellow and we got to walk on the grass.

The performance started at 7:30 in the natural setting of grass surrounded by trees as the backdrop of the 'stage.' Many members of the audience brought picnics and blankets and enjoyed a meal while watching the performance. I am glad that I decided to grab my jacket at the last minute as summer seems to be over already as the air grew chill with the setting sun.

What a way to watch Shakespeare! As the natural light diminished, several spotlights were turned on, but there were no props other than the trees and grass. We were most impressed with the guys who played Sir Toby Belch and Malvolio. Thank goodness for the hot mulled wine at intermission... as I said I believe summer is already over

Home

2006-08-14T18:11:00.000+01:00

Well after a long trip back to the US and a very long wait in the airport...we are back home in the UK. Our flight was supposed to leave at 5:20 but didn't really get in the air until just past 8. Security wasn't all that bad though. With our Upper Class tickets, the line to check in was shorter and since we had a stroller we also got to bypass the long line for security. We all had to take off our shoes and my backpack was chosen for hand inspection. (I think it was the empty sippy cup) We sat in the lounge for a few hours whittling away the time. All passenger's carry on bags was hand checked by the National Guard before boarding the plane, but it went very smoothly.

We are all tired and have just 2 days to prepare for our trip to France. Thank goodness Noelle is here to help!

Heat Wave

2006-07-17T18:58:00.000+01:00

Today was sports day at the school-in the midst of another heat wave; which is caused of course by the rising emission of greenhouse gases (global warming is really shoved down your throat here...). It was about 92-92 here today with about 25% humidity. The grass is my garden is now fried to a crisp-I did water a bit yesterday. If it doesn't rain soon-there could be a hosepipe ban. Of course if the culture here allowed for complaints maybe the Victorian water system could be fixed and the water storage facilities wouldn't leak. How can you have a drought with soo much rain?

Anyway-the kids had fun at sports day. With the heat, they cancelled the relay because that would have the kids standing in the direct sun for too long. In between races, the kids sat under canopies while the parents sat in the sun. Griffen took 3rd in the 40m run and 4th in the 2 hoop race. (run pick up a hoop, crawl thru it, run some more). Kaitlyn took 1st in her 40m run, maybe it was 60m. She took 2nd in the egg/spoon race and never dropped her egg (wooden).

Jillian had a ball in the toddler race and was ready for more stating, "I can race like that. I'm big." (In the red shorts)

I took 2nd in the mom egg/spoon race with a bit of cheating. There were too many moms, so we had to race in pairs and my partner had the great idea of me holding the egg on the spoon while she held the spoon. We took a bit of ribbing on that.

The kids got their reports today...all good. Kaitlyn is performing well above what is expected of her and even scored at an 11 year old level for reading and her flute teacher would like to see her join the orchestra next year (a half term ahead of schedule). Griffen is still a bit behind but catching up. The reports here are quite a bit different than the states...you get a little bar graph on performance and effort for speaking & listening, writing, reading, math and science along with quite a bit of commentary from the teacher on each. It also entails just commentary of Information & Communication Tech, Religious Ed., History, Geography, Art, Music, PE and PSHCE (Personal Social Health Citizenship Education). The teacher then lists 3 items for improvement, the headteacher writes a comment and then the child writes their own report. I have to say I am quite impressed and Kaitlyn seems to be thriving in this type of environment. Once Griffen's confidence is boosted, I am sure he will start to excel as well.

Off to pack...see you all soon,

William Westley Day

2006-07-14T22:11:00.000+01:00

Today was William Westley Day at the kids' school. It started with them going to church in the village for an end of year service, picnic lunch with parents and then the Summer Fayre in the evening. No that is not a mis-spelling, that is how it is spelled here. The Fayre started with a small parade from the 'old school' to the current school, led by the Gog Magog Molly Dancers.

According to Wikipedia, Molly Dancing is a form of Morris dance and is traditional to this part of England. It came about in the 19th century. Apparently ploughboys got bored between Epiphany and the start of Spring-so they would tour around the village landowners offering to dance for money. If the landowners refused, they were often treated with a furrow ploughed across their lawn. Because the dancers usually asked the same landowners for jobs, they would attempt concealment by blacking their faces with soot and dressing up in black garments with colored scarves. Typically only men did this with one dressing as a woman, the Molly.

The Gog Magog dancers typically wear very colorful attire and face paint. See photo of some of the kids and the dancers. Kaitlyn is in the front, Griffen was on picture strike again.

Frustration

2006-07-06T11:53:00.000+01:00

Grr. Sitting here, looking out the window at the rain, wondering if I should take my laundry off the line. At least we are having a break from the heat. I felt like we were living in Florida-temps in the 90's, humid and no AC. Every once in a while a breeze would come along, but houses here are constructed with big open spaces like CA-it is impossible to get a cross breeze in the house. Poor Griffen has a dark roof outside his window, afternoon sun and the water heater next to his room. I ended up turning the water heater off except for a few hours in the morning for showers and washing dishes and in the evening for laundry.

Still waiting for a credit report so that I can get my name added to Jason's account. At this rate we will be back in the US before that happens. For some reason, the credit agency can't match my name with my address. So I had to send them a copy of my passport and scrounge for original bills in my name with our address on it. Lot of good that does to prove I am who I am-most bills (if I have any) say Mrs. Martin. Well Mrs. Martin could be any Mrs. Martin. Luckily Kaitlyn's flute rental is in my name and the County Council Tax bill is in both our names. I called them today as some info was supposed to be sent to me weeks ago. They will re-send today (for the 5th time) and I should have it tomorrow or Saturday. Right.

OK- the slight drizzle is now a nice down poor-time to bring in the clothes.

We are also fighting with the utility company. First of all, the computer system was down so I couldn't pay the bill online for gas, just electricity. I tried to call and do it over the phone (Jason was out of town), but since my name isn't on the bank account they wouldn't let me. They don't take credit cards for payment. I can't sign a check. I ended up signing a check anyway. Lot of good that did me as a week later we got a red notice saying the bill hadn't been paid. The check cleared and we got another notice saying they were going to shut off our gas. This was on a Saturday-so we called the number on top of the letter-the office was closed due to computer problems and agents not being able to access accounts. So on Monday Jason called-they put a hold on our account and said they'd look into the payment. Two days later another letter. So I got on the computer and noticed that our electricity account had a credit-the same amount of our gas bill. MMM. I called the company again and they saw the credit and said they'd look into it, but it could take 2 weeks. Two days later another letter this time threatening legal action, police will come with the gas company and disconnect my line, charge me 10 pounds for each letter they have sent me, 300 pounds to re-connect and I will be required to go on a pre-paid basis for gas. Nice. So I called once again. This guy can't help me because the electricity system has been updated but the gas hasn't been yet and the 2 systems can't talk to each other. But he will take note and I will get these letters (at no charge) until the matter is cleared. Good thing those bills are in Jason's name-who knows what it would do for my ability to get my name on a joint account!

July 4

2006-07-04T22:43:00.000+01:00

Happy Birthday to me...its just not the same. First of all I had to take the kids to school. I put a red-white & blue ribbon in Kaitlyn's hair and Griffen had an American flag sticker on his shirt. His teacher gave him a merit for wearing it (reward system in their school-10 merits=Bronze, 25=Silver, 50=Gold, every half term).

I then hosted coffee morning-an event in our village with the local women every fortnight during the school year. I got asked to have one during the summer bc of our garden. So I figured I'd have my own party. It was a pleasant 90 in the garden with hardly any shade-so I served some water infused with cucumber and lime with lots of ice instead of coffee. The offer of iced coffee was too 'foreign' I guess.

It was a nice morning-complete with the planes practicing for the airshow this weekend. At one point I think what was a Spitfire, Hurricane and Mustang trio flew over, and one of which had the American flag on it. My neighbors husband popped by just as that happened and asked if I enjoyed the flyover he arranged.

Jason gave me a large glass jar for me to brew my own iced tea and a nice Polish crystal water pitcher. We ended the day with dinner at Chili's (had to go somewhere American). Missed the big family get togethers and the fireworks.

Punting

2006-07-01T23:19:00.000+01:00

We finally have some sun, but it is accompanied by too much heat, no AC and no iced tea as well as humidity. Now I know why soo many elderly people in Europe die during heat waves. Between the heat and late sunsets I am lucky if the kids falls asleep before 10pm, which would be fine if they didn't have to get up and go to school.

So-how do you beat the heat? There are multiple parks and paddling pools around Cambridge-so we set out to explore today. We ended up at Llamas Land-a great park with lots of green, trees and play structures. We didn't pack the swim suits as we wanted to check it out first-good thing because by the late afternoon when we got there the water was pretty 'manky.' The kids played, stuck feet in the water and ate ice cream.

Around 4 (when the England game started) we headed over to the River Cam for some punting. Once Jason got the hang of it-we had a very pleasant ride. We crashed into a few boats, a few crashed into us and we only passed by one loud drunk group as most were in the pubs watching the game. Unfortunately we forgot our camera-so we will just have to go again--here's hoping for another sunny weekend.

We finished up around 6 (game still going-in a tie breaking overtime) and we made it out of city centre before the mad drunks left the pubs. I'd have to say-I have never seen the streets so quiet on a sunny Saturday afternoon.

We found a Tex-Mex type restaurant and enjoyed a decent dinner. Still no iced tea though-had to go for a blended margarita just to get something cold.

After dinner on the drive home, we wondered who won the game...after seeing groups of 6-10 coppers strolling the streets in front of the pubs, we guessed England lost.

This time of year in Cambridge is known for the May Balls at the colleges...so on any given weekend you are bound to see people in formals. We saw one such couple heading into Cambridge as we left...not in the extravagant LA style of over the top limo, but in the Cambridge style-on bikes! It takes some coordination to ride a bike in a long formal gown and heels.

Summer Impressions

2006-06-27T21:55:00.000+01:00

A warm sun with a cool breeze kissing your skin
The flapping of a bird's wings overhead
A fresh smell of flowers intermingled with the sharp odor of manure
The sting of nettles brushing your legs
The laughter of children in a garden paddling pool

A cricket match on The Lawn
Two Horses canter lazily up the road
Tractors cutting the fields
Watching roof thatchers perform their art
Coffee mornings in the garden

Riding our bikes down to the pub on a Friday evening
Midnight twilight
First light and morning birdsong at 3:30 am
Afterschool picnics in the park
Stopping at the shop for an ice cream

Headline News

2006-06-23T19:10:00.000+01:00

The British newspapers have a tendency to play on words for the headlines. And sometimes just the news itself and what makes the local evening paper evokes a chuckle. Here are some of my favorites (all taken from the "Cambridge Evening News" at various dates):

"Drier takes a tumble," tumble drier was dropped by thieves...

"Garage burglars net fishing gear and bike"

"Lean meat claims are a load of mince"

"Make whoopee and flatten world record," an aim to enter the Guinness Book of World Records by recording the largest simultaneous deflation of whoopee cushions.

"It;s the grate drain robbery," Thieves steal 165 manhole covers in a year.

"Pub gets shirty,"A 2 year old boy was ordered to remove his England football shirt in a pub bc the manager feared it could spark trouble.

"The cheek of it! Naked punter shows skills with pole." "Punting on the Cam is normally regarded as a dignified summer activity-but one cheeky punter had other ideas. The views of the Backs are famed for leaving tourists breathless and scrambling for their cameras, but this punter obviously wanted to spice the tour up when he presented sightseers with a view of his own backside." The Backs are the backsides of the colleges.

"Farm plan fowl, agree councilors," A giant chicken farm plan was denied

"Driving us all parking mad!" Cambridge drivers paid 1.2 million (pounds) last year in parking fines.

"What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly"

2006-06-15T16:48:00.000+01:00

--Thomas Paine

Things I esteemed too lightly in America, things which were also relatively cheap, I missing terribly today.

Jason is still gone, I've lost count of how long he has been gone-its been over 15 days really since he's spent any time with us. The kids are missing him and acting up (just what I need) He returns tomorrow, but the relief is short lived as he will be off to Spain next week. I had to turn down the kids' requests to have a friend over after school today-the thought of more kids in the house, creating huge messes and noise was just more than I could handle today.

At this point I am done washing dishes and making dinner-however, the UK isn't quite as convenient as the US in relieving a tired parent. Paper plates, if you can find them, are meant for birthday parties only, therefore the cost is enough to prevent purchase. I've already used up the last I had from Griffen's birthday. So for dinner-I think it will be cereal tonight. If we were back home, I can think of a many number of take-aways to give me a break. Not so here. In our village we only have the pub. The next closest villages-same thing, pubs. There is a McDonalds next to the petrol station-but it makes us all sick to even think of it. I could go for a CPK, Pick Up Sticks, Chili's, Baja Fresh, Sharky's, Habit, Rubios, Amecci, or even BJ's right about now. Even Trader Joes would be a relief (of course a freezer in which to store prepared foods would be nice too).

I can get some prepared food here-but the only grocery store that carries decent food is about a 20 minute drive from here and my choice is Indian (National Cuisine) or Pizza. I do have a nice bottle of wine and some cheese, but I have to take Kaitlyn to Brown Owl's in an hour, so that will have to wait.

So--the next time you buy a stack of 200 paper plates for $2, or choose from the endless supply of eateries when you don't feel like cooking, think of Thomas Paine.

Footie Fever

2006-06-10T21:09:00.000+01:00

Well it is finally here...THE WORLD CUP (and summer). Footie mania has been building up for a few weeks now and we have another good month to go. I have been seeing white flags with red crosses (the England Team's Flag) everywhere. More so than Laker flags---on cars, houses, store fronts, toy stores, grocery stores, you name it. Griffen's class performed assembly on Friday-what each child would put in a magic box...one child put in the England Flag and has his face painted.

I think the craze is even bigger than the Superbowl. Examples:

The local paper is having a contest to see who is the biggest "Football Widow."

I guess hooligans are a problem too-bringing violence to the matches. The government has gone as far as banning certain people from attending games-they have a list. All airports have this list and have special police forces out to prevent them from going to Germany. Crazy. I read today even suspected troublemakers are detained and prevented departure.

I noticed on I-Tunes there is a CD out full of England Anthems meant to instill English Pride, a World Cup Sing-a-long CD, a official World Cup Anthem (new one each year), a World Cup Classics CD by the World Cup Willies (slang for penis) plus several spoofs..."Is This the Way to the World Cup (Amarillo), and so on.

The first game was today-I felt like I should watch it, but didn't. Instead I took the kids on a bike ride and then came back and attempted to blow up the pool without our shopvac. We used the sprinkler instead. It was a warm and windy 80+ today. May not sound like much to you-but to us it was. I miss having AC. Its not hot enough long enough here to warrant anyone having central air-so here we are sitting in a brick house with no insulation and its hot. At least my laundry is dry.

Grandma

2006-06-01T12:50:00.000+01:00

Edna, may you now rest in peace, we will miss you.

"Gotta Travel On..."

2006-05-31T15:48:00.000+01:00

This is going to be another one of those months where I don't see my husband. Thank goodness I am not working it is hard enough to get it together.

I still can't get my name on Jason's bank account nor can I get the UK credit report required to get my name on the account-Experian can't verify my address without me registering to vote in the UK. Everytime they put my name and address into the computer, some random address in another city pops up. With all of Jason's travel this has become a huge burden as I can't sign checks to pay the bills. He is never here to sign them and can't spare the time to set it up as direct debit. On the fair side of things however, we talked to a British couple living in TO and they are have the same problem in the US. We have finally asked Amgen to intervene and 'recommend' or sponsor me on his account.

Jason's schedule for the next few weeks: Last night he drove to London so he could catch a 6am flight to Barcelona today. He will fly back tonight, staying in London as he has to work there tomorrow. Thursday he goes to Poland and will return Saturday and turn right around and fly to North Dakota for his grandmother's funeral. He will then stay in Montana until the 12th. From the June 12-17 he will work in TO. He returns to us on June 17 and Kaitlyn receives her First Holy Communion on June 18. He will then be with us for a mere 2 days before going to Barcelona again. That is 17 days without him, and only 3 checks signed before he left...

Scotland & York

2006-05-30T20:19:00.000+01:00

Well we are back from our trip to Edinburgh, Scotland and York in England. We decided to come back a day early as Jason's schedule was starting to look to overwhelming.

May 26-28
Scotland was, well rainy to say the least. It was also everything I had imagined it to be. We took the kids out of school early on Friday and drove up after lunch, arriving after 8 (long drive!). Once we got past Newcastle, the drive and scenery improved greatly.

I book us on a bus tour of the Highlands & Loch Ness. We made several stops along the way and it was a great method to see the Highlands with little time on our hands as well as the compromised mobility of my dad. We saw misty hillsides, green rolling hills, lots of sheep. One of the most beautiful sights though were the hundreds of waterfalls and rivulets of water flowing down the hills and mountains to the rivers. The people were very friendly and love to tell stories (our bus driver included!)

After feeding the kids and leaving them with the grandparents, Jason & I went out on George Street (taxi driver tip). I felt overdressed in jeans and a sweater despite the biting chill in the air. Most of the girls were in shorts or jeans and camisoles with high heels. Girls in really short skirts and heels are known as Tarts.

Our first stop was a pub we were told to go to for a cheap round. It looked to be in an old bank with its high ceilings. It was quite loud inside, despite no music being played and most people were carrying around 1 drink in each hand.

After the pub we went into a dance club (its been awhile since we've been to one) I even got carded! The dance floor was good people watching. After a few songs a girl came up to me and wanted me to join her and her friend. Then they pulled Jason out. The Scots generally seemed like a fun loving society and want everyone to join them.

The next morning Jason had to interview someone who flew in from Singapore, so the rest of us had breakfast and packed up the car. After Jason finished we toured the castle and had lunch.

May 28-29
We arrived in York around 7-8, checked into our B&B and walked into town to have a quick look and wear out the kids. It didn't seem to have much to offer us, my dad was having a tough time walking, Jason was stressing about his travel schedule and we were waiting word on the imminent passing of Jason's grandmother. We decided to only give York 1 night.

After a full English breakfast, we packed up and drove into town. With the roof rack and topper we couldn't find a place to park, so Jason dropped us off and searched for a spot. It started raining (ya-I thought winter was done too, even put my sweaters away)so we waited for Jason in a coffee shop. After he found us we checked out the 'Minster.' The Minster is actually a medieval cathedral that was only saved destruction by Henry VIII because it didn't have a monastery. It is called a Minster because its purpose is to minister to the people-it was impressive. Jillian dropped her candle and melted down, so we decided to skip the castle, go straight to the National Rail Museum and then home.

The shuttle stop for the museum was right next to another church, this one Catholic. My dad surpised me by going in on his own and saying a prayer. Bit of an aside: Last week we went to our church here and told him if he wanted Sunday Roast he had to come with us, but he could wander around while we were in church. Well the clouds split open just as we got to church and he had to come in and sit through Mass. The homily was about loving one another no matter what and that the church doesn't turn people away after mistakes (despite what others believe of us Catholics). I think my dad thinks we set him up! Well, the Holy Spirit was. It worked, because he went in on his own and I don't think he has been into a church since walking me down the aisle. Anyway, it was a lovely simple church.

We got to the rail museum and it was free! What a museum it was--the best rail museum I've seen by far. Griffen was in heaven. There were some Royal Trains on display, Winston Churchill's funeral train, a cut open steam engine that showed how it worked and more. We got tired and ran out of time, so we will be back for a visit there.

We finished the day by going in the York Wheel, which is a bit like the London Eye. My parents claimed fear of heights and waited for us. I though I'd be able to handle the height and with the windows the claustrophobia shouldn't be a problem. Besides there is a panic button if you want out before your time is up. I was fine at first. Then we had to stop about halfway up to load more people in the pods. My leg started to shake uncontrollably, Griffen wouldn't sit down, Kaitlyn was laughing at me. But we were how many feet above ground? Just stopped midair, with the wind howling through the doors and the pod swinging ever so slightly my stomach started to churn a tiny bit. Then we went back down to let out some others who couldn't handle it. I decided to be brave and stick it out. Once everyone was loaded and we just went around without stopping I was find, but still had a tough time enjoying the view. Griffen and I decided that in the future, we will skip the London Eye and just wait for Jason and Kaitlyn below.

So now we are home once again

Hobnobs and Fingers

2006-05-25T17:01:00.000+01:00

I wandered into the pantry to find something to munch on today. I was hoping a pack of Oreos would appear before my eyes or maybe some Trader Joes Tortilla chips. Nope-no such snack of that kind.

I did however find some Fingers and Hobnobs. Upon giggling at the names I found in the pantry, I decided to fill you in on all the snack names from the store. Once I started listing them I decided you also needed a description, what good is a name without a definition?

Hula Hoops: Potato rings that kids (and some adults)love to eat because it is fun to play with your food. It is like putting potato chip rings on your fingers-similar to putting olives on your finger tips on Thanksgiving.

Quavers:"The light potato snack," a cheese flavored thin curly shaped crisp (chip)

crisps: Potato chips, only they come in all sorts of strange flavors like beef & onion, ketchup, prawn cocktail, lamb & mint (yuck!!) or our favorite-Thai sweet chili.

Wotsits: Basically they are cheetos but also come in BBQ and twisted.

Jaffa Cakes: "Light sponge cakes with dark crackly chocolate and a zingy centre" The center is either blackcurrant or orange (think Trader Joes orange sticks with a cake middle).

Hobnobs: "Nobbly oaty biscuits" also sold with a chocolate layer.

Flapjacks: No, they are not pancakes. Flapjacks are a soft and very sweet cookie/bar made of oats, sugar, butter and honey.

Fingers: Made by Cadbury, crisp biscuits covered in chocolate and shaped like fingers of course!

See why I just want some Oreos?

What did you see today?

2006-05-17T11:57:00.000+01:00

I went on a 3 mile or so walk today. It started with my usual walk into Sawston, but instead of returning the same way thru the swarms of flying insects, Jillian & I found a footpath that went back into Whittlesford by the old Norman Church. Pictures sometomes speak louder than words and I just happened to bring the camera along. So here you go...remember you can click on the photo for a larger view.

Freedom & Rights

2006-05-16T16:58:00.000+01:00

I read an article in the paper this last Sunday and then watched the follow up on BBC last night. It wrenched my heart and sickened me as well as opened my eyes to an attitude that seems to exist here.

The story is about a young married couple here in England. They had 3 young children under the age of 5. Their middle child got sick and was taking a long time to recover and seemed to not want to walk. The parents took him to their local GP and were told he was fine just let it run its course. Then his leg became swollen and hot to the touch-so they took him to a bigger hospital.

This hospital took x-rays and said he most likely had a bone infection. After a night in the hospital staff started asking more questions and found that he had some metaphyseal (SP?) fractures to his leg. Basically they accused the parents of abuse. Upon hearing that the boy was also lactose intolerant and wouldn't eat solids, they accused them of neglect as well. Police investigated and social services was called.

Social Services told the parents they had to sign their kids over to them. The police found no cause for charging the parents and dropped their investigation. The parents told doctors that the mother's family had a history of brittle bone disease and could this cause the break? The doctors asked her if she had it which she replied-'I've never been diagnosed.' The Dr.'s wrote in their report that since the mother did not have brittle bone disease then categorically the son could not have it. This conclusion without a single DNA test on either the mother or child.

Social Services told the parents they had no rights in light of the abuse of their son and took all 3 children away. Family Court ruled that the children would be better off adopted. So all 3 children are now gone to separate families and adoption is not reversible in this country.

Can you believe it??!! The grandmother and 3 of the mother's siblings have brittle bone disease. The child was never tested! NEVER. The mother is now awaiting results of her DNA test and is pregnant with her fourth child. Social Services can take her baby away from her based on the ruling by Family Court.

I could not see this happening in the US. The people here seem to not really care about rights and freedoms or value families as a whole. The first thing a US Dr. Would have done is a DNA test. Can you imagine having your children taken away under these circumstances and know you can never have them back? It is almost barbaric. I don't hear much outrage about it all either.

May 1

2006-05-12T15:41:00.000+01:00

One last breakfast before we go-same place. This time we order croissants for the kids-after all their belly aching they decide all is good.

We check out of the hotel and to save money on taxi fare, Jason and Kaitlyn take the Metro to the train station while the rest of us take a taxi. Jason predicts he will arrive first. Our taxi driver is a grumpy man who scolds Jillian for playing with the window switch. Although his sour demeanor is off putting-he's good driver and with the lack of traffic we beat Jason and Kaitlyn to the train station. We have plenty of time before our train leaves, so Diane & I watch the luggage while the rest hunt down a picnic lunch for the train. We make it out of Paris without a hitch.

Once in London-Jason buys tickets for the train ride back to Whittlesford. While Jason & I knew the trains would be less frequent because its a bank holiday-we didn't predict they would be almost nonexistent. We found 1 train that was heading to Liverpool Station-once off the train, they closed the gates behind us and closed the line for some reason. I looked at the train departures and notice there are no trains going to Whittlesford. In fact there is a notice saying we have to take a train to Bishops Stortford and then get on a bus. Jason talk to an attendant who tells us to take the Stansted Express and we can catch a bus at the airport. So we hop on the train to the airport. Once at the airport we trek our way to the buses-where the attendant tells us we should've taken the train that went to Bishops Stortford not the one we took. Now we have to take a bus to Audley End and then take another one to our village train station-where we will then still have to call a taxi to get us to our house. Great.

The bus arrives and we hop on-its hot on the bus and the windows don't open, and it isn't driving on the motorway but on the smaller roads. We all feel a bit sick. After over 30 minutes we make it to Audley End. No other buses are there, but there are 2 taxis. We opt for the taxis instead of waiting for the bus. Good thing-the driver told us there was a couple at the train station that had been waiting for over 1.5 hours for a bus. What a way to end a weekend.

April Showers

2006-05-12T14:57:00.000+01:00

April 30
It is cold and rainy today. Good thing we hit the park yesterday. We decide to eat breakfast at the same place-only we tell the kids they cannot have McDonald's. Kaitlyn drinks her coffee and decides to get a sugar crepe on the street.

After breakfast-we notice a market has been set up under the train tracks on the corner-so we check it out. It is so crowded-we can hardly walk let alone maneuver a stroller. All around us is fresh fruit, seafood, cheese. The colors and smells are mind boggling. We could've eaten breakfast here. Griffen doesn't like all the smells and Kaitlyn just complains that she is hungry.

Diane & I spot a woman selling scarves-they are beautiful-and a good price too. I got some cheap ones for the girls and nice ones for me. The woman told Kaitlyn to pick out another for free. After that, we decide to buy food for lunch. We start off with some fresh bread, also getting some waffles for Griffen's breakfast (moody Kaitlyn turns them down), next some Brie and another cheese which we sampled and liked, off to the meat guy for some ham and then some strawberries for Jillian. No meal is complete without wine-so we head over the wine seller-who is also offering samples. He doesn't speak much English-but he is funny. The sample is called Domaine Martin-so of course we have to buy it. We end up with a nice red to age and a light red for lunch. The guy even throws in some cups as well. This market must have gone on for half a mile-way better than your typical tourist attraction.

We drop off all the goods in our hotel room and set off for Notre Dam. On the way we get Kaitlyn a crepe-which after buying she decides she doesn't want and begins to gag. This is now a common occurrence with her.

Once we arrive at Notre Dam we see 2 lines, one for tourists and one for Mass, which starts now. Good timing! We switch to the correct line and much to the dismay of the kids announce we are going to Mass. While the guards do a stellar job of catching people attempting to take pictures during Mass-it is still a bit distracting. During Mass I stop and think...in the last month we have been to Mass in Venice, Orvieto, Rome, and now Notre Dam. I also notice quite a few people wandering in that are rain soaked.

After Mass, we exit the church into a pretty good rain shower. The Metro station we want is a bit of a walk-we go into the first one we see and walk through underground to get to the one we want. Once back at the hotel-our picnic turns indoor but is just as good. Kaitlyn no longer gets to choose what to eat-she gets told or she goes hungry.

Eric, Jason and Griffen go out after lunch to the Picasso Museum, the girls watch a DVD while Diane & I read. The rain stops and we head out for a walk. Dinner is street food and we pack up for our trip back home tomorrow

Springtime in Paris

2006-05-12T13:53:00.000+01:00

April 29-
We had a delayed start Friday with a late lunch/early dinner at a cafe in the Rue Clare area. We decided that to beat the crowds and get a discount on price, we would visit the Louvre in the evening.

Eric's trip was made with a visit to the Mona Lisa. Kaitlyn got bored pretty quickly, but Griffen surprisingly took an interest in the art for a good 30 minutes. Somehow we got separated from Eric & Diane but had agreed on a meeting spot earlier. Turns out Diane forgot her cell phone and they tired of the museum before we did, ending up waiting the our spot almost an hour before us.

Breakfast at our hotel was an extra fee, so we opted for stopping at a local bar/restaurant instead. Fresh coffee, orange juice, croissant, bread with butter and jam. Kaitlyn got to enjoy a coffee while the other 2 had hot chocolate. Jillian munched on a croissant while the other 2 insisted on McDonald's. The food server got a kick out of Jillian's chocolate covered face and gave each of the kids a small piece of chocolate before we left.

After breakfast we split up-Jason and Eric took Griffen and Kaitlyn to the underground catacombs. Diane & I used claustrophobia as an excuse and set of with Jillian to the Luxembourg Gardens.

The catacombs are home to some 7 million bones (yuck!) Sometimes they are piled up haphazardly and at others they have actually been used artistically with patterns set along the walls. Ex-one layer of skulls, layer of arm bones, layer of legs etc. Apparently, the Les Halles district above ground was suffering from contamination of poor burials and mass graves in the churchyard cemeteries; bringing about sickness. Because the ground level in some church yards had risen 10-20 feet from the volume of the human remains in them, the bones were moved below ground.

Diane & I walked around the park-looking at all it had to offer the kids, until Jillian fell asleep at which time we wandered over to a cafe with tables in the sun for a nice bottle of wine. About half-way through the wine Jason called to see where we were-I described our location, raised my hand and he found us. We ordered the kids some Orangina, soda for Eric and coffee for Jason. I told Jason how to get to the park and all 3 kids left with dad and grandpa while Diane & I went shopping.

After a bit-they urge to pee hit us-so find a bathroom. Diane spied a McDonald's--we walked in like we owned the place and went straight for the back, where a key pad was awaiting a code to enter. Luckily everyone exiting just held the door open for those entering and we had a free toilet.

After finding a pair of sandals that I liked but were too much, we went looking for a better price. First we found a nice little bakery with mini quiches for lunch-which they warmed up for us. Outside a shop a beggar approached Diane-she pointed out a penny on the ground for him. Go ahead laugh-it was funny to us with a bottle of wine still in us.

Eventually I found a really cute pair of sandals, and a belt. Never shop with Diane, she is really good at talking you into buying something for yourself.

Meanwhile at the park...Luxembourg Gardens are beautiful. There are park benches and flowers everywhere, a pond with rental sailboats for the kids to push across, pony rides, a carousel and a great park. You had to pay to enter the play area-but as a result it was exceptionally clean and well maintained. The area was pretty much all locals-so the kids befriended some French kids and played with them the whole time. They had a blast.

We stopped off at the Eiffel Tower on the way home-it was way too crowded-so we just enjoyed the view from below. However-typical Kaitlyn and Griffen had to find a toilet. Grandma took Kaitlyn and Jason took Griffen. As it is every where in the world-long line for women, no line for men. As Jason was helping out Griffen, Diane appears out of nowhere with Kaitlyn. Jason yells "What the hell are you doing mom, this is the men's!?" Diane, not knowing any French thought Monsieurs meant women. The others ladies in line took pity on her and let her to the front of the line.

The kids had take out for dinner, grandparents watched the kids and Jason & I went out to a place across from the hotel with a French only menu. We picked out something that sounded safe and crossed our fingers. Jason ended up with an open face ham & cheese sandwich on a bed of salad and a plum. I think the guys next to us were laughing at him-he has gotten used to eating English style and used his fork and knife instead of picking the sandwich up. I had a yummy salad with serrano ham. I stress the salad because for some reason lettuce is hard to come by in England and if you do find it, its not very fresh looking.

Where is my taxi?

2006-05-03T18:22:00.000+01:00

Friday morning (April 28), we had a full English breakfast at the hotel (bacon, eggs, mushrooms, beans, sausage, tomatoes and toast). The receptionist said it wouldn't be a problem to catch a taxi in front of the hotel (our Eurostar train left from Waterloo station), so we grabbed our suitcases and set off.

Within 5 minutes we spot a taxi dropping someone off, so we put Diane, Eric and Kaitlyn in and tell them we'll meet them at the train station. Jason and I do not have much luck flagging a taxi ourselves. In fact they are all full. A kind taxi driver directs us over to the taxi queue by the bus station. Guess what-there are no taxis there either. After about 25 minutes we are getting a little bit panicked, so Jason calls the hotel and asks them to call a taxi for us.

A few minutes later a taxi pulls up (not sure if it is the one the hotel called) and the driver jumps out saying, one minute please. Jason pleads with him to not take a break as our train to Paris is leaving in about 30 minutes and we are supposed to be checking in right now. He takes pity on us. On the way there-he tells us he's been working since 5:30 am and was just on his way in for a coffee. Jason told him we'd buy his coffee if he got us to the station on time.

As we are driving in Friday Morning traffic, Jason calls his parents telling them to go to the EuroStar ticket counter and see if we can still get on the train. We didn't know that there is a separate drop-off for EuroStar than the rest of the train station. Jason also decides to call EuroStar itself...as long as we get there before the train leaves we should be fine, if not there is another one in an hour-we just won't all be seated together.

Our driver drops us off at the correct entrance-we give him a large tip and we run into the station and jump in line with Jason's parents and Kaitlyn. As we are waiting to go through security, Kaitlyn tells us that her and Grandpa got lost from Grandma and they just found each other.

A security guard asks if anyone in line is going on the 11:10 to Paris (which leaves in 10 minutes) and we raise our hands. He opens up another line for us and we sail through to get our passports stamped and then through to the security check. We sit down and about 2 minutes later the train starts to close up for departure. That was a close one!

We enjoyed a pleasant train ride to Paris. I did fine except for the last 10 minutes thru the chunnel. The thought of being underwater in a train tunnel for 25 minutes is just a bit too much for me.

Once off the train we get a bit of money and search for more taxis. This time Jason goes with Eric and Griffen and I am with Diane and the 2 girls. I had to try to explain to my driver where our hotel was (rusty High School French) and we set off. Traffic is horrendous! After 20 minutes our fare was already at Â10. I also noticed that our driver is ready while driving. The French are almost worse than the Italians...there are no lanes you just drive where you can fit. Picture a oneway road the width of a typical 4 lane US road...now have at least 7 cars across all trying to get somewhere. Diane was convinced that our driver didn't know where he was going or that he was trying to rip us off by taking an off route.

Although Jason left after us, he made it to the hotel about 5 minutes before us-same fare though.

Check-in, clean-up and off to explore Paris....

Which way do we go George?

2006-05-03T18:12:00.000+01:00

I took Diane and Eric back into Cambridge today (April 27) to get a few things. Driving next to all the bikers and very narrow roads unnerves me too much so I just drive to the Park & Ride and take the bus in.

After Cambridge, I drove back to Whittlesford-the train station to be exact to pick up a friend of Eric's, Wolf. Eric knows Wolf through the HAM, he's from Germany and upon hearing that Eric was going to be so close, he flew in for a quick visit. They hadn't seen each other since the late 90's, so it was nice for them.

I spent most of the afternoon getting ready-it takes a while to pack light for 4 people. Jason came home from work early, had 2 conference calls then a taxi arrived to take us to the train station. Wolf rode with us until his airport stop while we went on to London, Liverpool. We fed the kids Burger King in the station-which was quite crowded. Turns out all the trains were delayed b/c someone died on the tracks.

The kids are now pro's at using tickets for the Tube and pulling their own suitcases. Jason reserved a room that was supposed to be a 10 minute walk from the station-but we walked the wrong direction. Ten minutes turned into twenty, but we eventually got there settled down for the night.

April 24-26; Breda, Netherlands

2006-05-03T17:36:00.000+01:00

Jason had to leave for business yet again, this time Breda, Netherlands. I took advantage of free babysitters and free hotel and joined him Tuesday night. He knew in advance I might be along, so he reserved a room in one of the nicer hotels.

After I arrived, we had a cheap dinner followed by an expensive dessert. If you end the meal with a nice expensive dessert-you can trick your brain into thinking the whole meal was expensive! HA HA. It was nice to be on our own-with all his travel I hardly see him anymore. I am practically a single mom most weeks-to the point where Jason is in the way when he is here.

While Jason had meetings all day Wednesday, I wandered the pedestrian only shopping area. It was nice just to pop into shops without small distractions. While looking into the shops, I noticed that the clothing prices were quite a bit cheaper than the UK. So I had to buy a few things.

I sat down for lunch outside at a cafe and read my book for a while followed by some people watching. I bought some stroopwaffels and fresh roasted nuts for the kids. Stroopwaffles are 2 thin waffles with caramel smooshed in between. They taste great with coffee or tea.

I spent my last 1.5 hours sitting on a bench outside a church watching people. Its nice to know I don't stand out-I had at least 5 people approach me speaking a Dutch. I don't know one ounce of Dutch.

The kids were waiting up for us when we got home. We put them to bed an mentally packed for Paris.

April 22

2006-05-03T16:52:00.000+01:00

I am so far behind on my posts, that I have to date them so I know where I am! Jason was in TO all week, returning Friday night. The kids went back to school on Wed., and now here we are on Saturday.

Jason's parents arrived today. It was a bit of a fiasco. We usually fly into Heathrow with Virgin. They flew into Gatwick-which we are unfamiliar with. Jason and Griffen took the train-just to see how it worked out. They bought tickets for the first leg online.

To buy return tickets, both Jason and his parents tried to bypass the service line by using the self-serve machine, to no avail. The UK and the rest of Europe has found a way to combat credit card fraud-using chip and pin cards (some US companies use them under the name Smart card). That means your card has a little chip in it and to complete the transaction you need to input a 4-digit pin. We all have US credit cards (they must not care about fraud) and the machine required chip & pin. Luckily Jason has a UK debit card (of which I still don't have access to). It will be interesting to see how tourist season plays out; those without chip & pin had a nice long line to stand in for a human to help.

After letting Eric, Diane & Jason nap away some jet lag, we drove into Cambridge for dinner. Since the evening was so nice, we took a stroll to the river. It is now light until well after 8 pm here.

The punters (a bit like the gondolas in Italy) were out in mild force with a few pulled over to the riverbank to enjoy wine or beer. We passed a lively little square with a bar and lots of college students.

On our return upriver-I noticed a commotion in the square. A naked man. He was probably college age. The naked guy was climbing up a pole to the top of an awning. This just as Jason was telling Eric & Diane what a nice family area this was.

The kids had a great laugh as naked guy flaunted himself before taking a leap into the river. We took the opportunity to point out how drinking too much alcohol makes you do stupid things.

April 16, Easter Sunday in Rome

2006-05-03T16:07:00.000+01:00

Last night after we got back to Orvieto, we checked the train schedule only to find out that we would have to leave Orvieto at 4 am or 7:30 am, which would get us to Rome too late. Jason was ready to throw the towel in-but we had a good think for a better solution. Our flight back in England was out of Rome and we were staying at a hotel outside of Rome for Sunday night. Jason called the hotel to see if we could park our car there and catch a taxi to the Vatican. No problem.

We woke the kids up and were out the door by around 6. The kids fell asleep in the car for the 1.5 hour drive to our hotel. The hotel called us a taxi and we arrived at St. Peters just as the gates were being opened. You could just feel a sense of excitement in the air. As we were walking to some seats, a young nun turned to us and said, "You have a beautiful family. Happy Easter!"

We found some seats-just about 20 or so rows from the front! I think you could have gotten in without tickets-they were not really checking them. Now-we just have to sit here and keep the kids entertained for 2 hours before mass starts. There is so much going on around us that it was easier than it sounds. We packed some crackers and water as well as coloring books.

There were flags from other countries waving in the calm breeze. The sun was shining-it really was a beautiful morning. We have Germans in front of us, Americans next to us and Italians behind us. Somewhere from behind us some nuns are playing guitars and leading a group in song. We stood up on our chairs and look behind us-there are people as far as you can see.

Jason ran Griffen to the bathroom about 10 and Jillian started to get restless. I walked to the back of our section of seats and see the guards starting to close off the wooden barriers and clearing a walk way. Some sort of military band starts up and walks through the aisles. I found my way back to my seat, just in time for the bells to start ringing. Everyone stands on their chairs in anticipation, and you can see German flags waving everywhere. Then we see him.

The pope walks right by us-we can see him-we are only 8 chairs away from the aisle. Griffen looks up at the giant TV screen and yells, "Mommy, the pope wears glasses like me!" The joy on his face was priceless.

Mass started with the pope venerating the cross. Most of the mass was in Latin-imagine hearing 100,000+people singing the Gloria in Latin. Bone chilling. It made me want to cry, as I looked around, I wasn't the only one brought to tears.

The first reading was in Italian, second in English and the Gospel was sung, in Latin. Just as the priest was preparing to read the Gospel-you could almost hear a pin drop. Imagine that-silence in St. Peters Square with all those people. Jason said he has always wondered why the Latin is sung in that tone of voice (you know the one?) We now know why. Once the priest starting to sing the Gospel, you could hear is echo throughout the square-it was in harmony with his voice. I wish I could convey the thrill of this experience-but I think you have to do it yourself-my words can only describe so much.

Another sight to see was the hundreds of priests that walked down the steps for communion. Jason took a picture-but it was amazing to see. After mass was finished, the kids sighed with relied, only for us to tell them they had to wait a bit more because the Pope was going to come to the window and give his Easter Blessing.

As the crowd anxiously awaited the curtain to pull back, we could hear several different groups in multiple languages singing Happy Birthday. Today was the Pope's birthday. After Pope Benedict's blessing and message he proceeded to say, "Christ is Risen, Christ is resurrected," in every possible language. It all ended with the bells ringing a good 20 minutes solid. None too soon for Griffen.

We rewarded the kids for their patience and good behavior with a visit to the park. We found a nice family park, Villa Borghese. We had sandwiches and chips from a vendor and then rented a bike built for 4. That was a hoot. The kids couldn't reach the petals, so it was just Jason & I and there were a few hills to manage. At on point we saw someone else being pushed up the hill, so Jason said, "Lets pass them." We put our spinning legs to use and passed them, with Jillian riding in a front basket, Kaitlyn & Griffen in the back laughing away; they were younger than us too. A great way to end our vacation...back to England tomorrow and Jason flies to Thousand Oaks on Tuesday.

April 15, Rome & Orvieto

2006-04-25T13:55:00.000+01:00

We get an early start and eat another breakfast in the train station before hopping a train to Rome. The train takes about an hour. Once in Rome, we feed the kids at the train station, get some money and make a pit stop. We warn the kids to stick close, especially since scooters and motorcycles do not have to stop at red lights. The best way to cross the street is to follow a local. We buy tickets for the day for the subway and buses. The kids are free, but try to squeeze more than one person through a turn style.

We take the subway up 2 stops-it is a bit crowded, but others get up so the kids can sit. After the subway, we hop onto a mini electric bus to the English College for our Mass tickets. The priest that was supposed to meet us is practicing for Sunday Mass, so we get the tickets and are invited to sit on rehearsal. The chapel here is beautiful and the acoustics are amazing. After about 10 minutes we take advantage of a free and clean toilet and go on our way.

We decided to take the kids to the Vatican. By the time we arrive it is close to 11 and the line is quite long. We stay anyway...ends up to be about 2 hours. As we near the entrance we notice people trying to cut in front of us or behind us. After standing in line for 2 hours, you get to know the people standing next to you. We had some Americans in front and Americans/Spanish behind us.

The first perpetrators are a father and son pair. Jason figures the father will ignore us so he goes for the son telling him in broken Italian that the line does not start here-he is 2 hours behind us. The son looks at his father, says something and they end up leaving. Background...the line (or que) is sacred in England, and no one would think of cutting in. Ever. Not so in Italy-this occurrence is very common.

The second attempt is a group of people who are trying to edge their way in front of us, I cut them off, by spreading the family out and give the man of the group a friendly glare. He ends up continuing his quest for a cut with each group behind us.

Once we are very near the metal detectors, we are also right next to where a bus/subway stop lets out. An Italian family walks right up and cuts in line. The people behind us immediately set into them. There was a yelling match and the Italians effectively ignored us all and cut in line anyway. I told the father that he picked a good place to sin.

Once at the x-ray machines, we are stalled again-Jason had his pocket knife with him. He hands it over and is told he can pick it up when we are done...don't think so, we just said goodbye to the knife.

There are 2 lines to go into St. Peters; one for Pope John Paul II's tomb and one to go into the church. We figured Pope John Paul II wasn't going anywhere so we picked the church. I will never attempt to visit the Basilica during Holy Week again. Half of it was cordoned off and I felt like a cow being herded through. The kids enjoyed the statues, but we will have to visit again during a slower time.

We leave to find some food, coffee, and gelato. We ate lunch in a piazza with a market that I made a visit to with a restless Jillian. I know that saffron in quite a bit cheaper here, so I was on the lookout. Unfortunately the guy selling it was already cleaned up. I did find someone selling bulk spice mixes though and I have enough to last a while-they make great pasta sauces by the way. We used the mini bus again and visit the Pantheon. We really didn't stay much longer as we knew the kids were tired and we had another long day in Rome tomorrow.

We had dinner in Orveito again, Jason spied a small pizzaria filled with locals. It was a tight fit with about only 10 tables and a couch and quite warm as well. Poor Griffen was so tired he started to fall asleep before the food arrived. The dad at the table next to us pointed at the couch and moved his bags off for us to lay Griffen down. Our pizza was fantastic and included a drink and coffee as well.

April 14, Orvieto & Civita di Bagnoregio

2006-04-21T17:05:00.000+01:00

Originally we had planned to go to Rome today for Stations of the Cross at the Colosseum. Problem with that plan is the last train to Orvieto leaves Rome at 8:30 and Stations are not until 9 and only an insane person would attempt to drive. The priest from the English College in Rome calls and confirms that our tickets have been delivered for Sunday Mass.

We start the morning off at the train station cafe for espresso and bomboloni. We have found that even the train stations make better coffee than the US, the trick is shorter pulls on the shots. Bomboloni are donuts made with a dense brioche type dough, fried of course, filled with jelly, chocolate or custard and sprinkled with sugar. They are the lightest, airiest jelly or custard donut you could ever imagine. We finish off with fresh squeezed blood orange juice.

Jillian decides now would be a good time for a fit-over what I have no idea. A gentleman standing next to us speaking Italian surprises us and starts talking to us in perfect English. Turns out he's some American musician/actor that had been living in Italy for 12 years. He tells me that he was the baby of his family and his sister tells him all the time that he cried quite frequently. Great. He complements us on our kids good looks and tells us to enjoy our stay.

Jillian was just hungry- a glass of milk and a box of crackers later she is just fine. We head up the hill in the funicular and remember to take the bus this time as well. Once in the main square we search for a pharmacy to purchase tissues (Jason & I got colds) and sunscreen (not used to needing that).

We then find the TI office to purchase tickets for the underground tour of Orvieto. While in line Jason talks with another American who tells him how to find a farmhouse to rent for long term and larger groups. We wander around a bit until it is time for the tour to leave.

The guide takes us into some caves under the city. The caves date back to Etruscan times. Later, it is believed that the caves were formed as a way of using building materials for houses and then serving as cellars for food (and wine) storage. We saw evidence of an old olive press, dovecots and wells.

Lunch time. We buy the kids pizza and they eat it on the steps of the Duomo while we sit across from them at a cafe enjoying a pecorino cheese sandwich on fresh farmhouse bread and some Orvieto wine. Back down the hill and into the car for a trip to Civita di Bagnoregio.

The stupid navigation system thinks we are going somewhere else and we end up taking the back way-a winding road in the middle of nowhere with no one on it. Jason called it 'Europe through the window.' Driving through Bagnoregio, a suburb of Civita, we notice the main street is blocked off. I assume this is for the night procession of Stations of the Cross. It is so nice to be in a Catholic country for Holy Week.

Civita is a traffic-free village, the only way in is to walk up a pedestrian bridge. As we reach the top we see a procession approaching us. Leading the procession is a priest surrounded by robbed men and boys. Following them are some men carrying a large wooden 'stretcher' with Jesus lying on it. Townspeople singing follow them. All the tourists step aside and solemnly watch them down the pedestrian bridge and into town.

We turn and walk into this dying village, home to only 14 residents. During peak tourist season you can peak in on an old olive press (1500 years). Last time Jason and I were here we paid the owner 1 Lira to see it and guess at his explanation on how a blindfolded donkey walking in a circle, crushing the olives. Since it is Good Friday and so late in the day, the few new eateries are closed, so we just walk around and step into the church. The crucifix, from the 15th century, is carved out of peach wood and venerated by the locals. I read later that it is the focus of a midnight procession on Good Friday. We walk back to the car and drive to Orvieto for dinner. This time we park ourselves at the top so we don't have to worry about missing the last funicular.

April 13, Orvieto

2006-04-20T20:50:00.000+01:00

After breakfast, we leave the villa to make our way to Orvieto. First we stop off in Cortona to see if the pottery shop is open. After seeing the prices in Florence and other locations, this shop had good prices. Unfortunately its closed. I end up buying a cute little all purpose jacket instead.

We decided to stop off in Montepulciano on the way to Orvieto. Montepulciano is another medieval city with contrades-only instead of a horse race, the neighborhoods compete by having teams of men push large wine casks uphill. Fitting for a city known for its views and wine. We parked at the bus station and find that today is market day. We make it out with only fresh strawberries for the kids.

After hiking up a hill we see a park, which excites the kids. Jason sets off to explore while I watch over the kids in the park. We let them run off some steam for about half and hour. As it nears lunch time-we drag them from the park in search of food. Being Italy, most shops are closed for the mid-day break. We do spot a pizzeria and each get a slice and sit on the bench outside in the warm sun.

Since this is a wine city-we must stop for a free wine tasting right? We find a small shop that is open and pop in. We get to enjoy little tasters of food as well as wine. Shipping costs were thru the roof-so we only buy 1 bottle to take with us. However we discover a new appetizer...little cubes of pecorino cheese dipped into black truffle scented honey. Imagine the sharp flavor of the cheese contrasting with the sweet honey and nutty musky taste of the truffle; follow that with a sip of red wine and you are in heaven. The kids are bored so we head back to the park for a bit more play and continue our drive to Orvieto.

To save money, we are staying at the bottom of the hill by the train station. After checking in and cleaning up-we take the funicular to the top of the hill where the main city sits. This is a city built on a hill of tufa (volcanic rock) and filled with Etruscan and medieval caves. Of course we forgot about the bus (included in the funicular ticket) that takes you to the top and we walk instead. We spy a lot of ceramic shops here as well-but Cortona had better prices. Despite much whining and complaining-we make it to the top.

Our hike is rewarded by the beautiful facade of Orvieto's Duomo. A bit of history for you: Back in the 1260s, there was a priest who doubted that the Host was really the body of Christ. After a pilgrimage to Rome he stopped of to worship in Bolsena, near Orvieto. During Mass, as he held up the bread-it bled, staining the altar cloth. A pope was visiting Orvieto at the time and the cloth was brought to him. Miracles like this require a church-so Oriveito has a grand Duomo with the cloth on display. As an added touch to the experience of this church-only 25 people are allowed in at a time.

Jason waits outside with the kids as I pop in to see what time Mass is. Its now and the guard tells me there are only about 20 minutes left. We go in anyway. Turns out-we just missed 20 minutes, basically the washing of the feet.

After communion, children begin distributing long white candles to everyone and they are then lit. A priest steps down from the altar and starts walking with the cross. Slowly, everyone in the church walks up the center aisle to follow the cross while singing. Once around the church, two lines are formed and another priest walks thru with the reserved second Host. He is accompanied by someone carrying a little cloth umbrella over him. We all follow him into the side chapel where the consecrated Host is placed. I'm glad we didn't listen to the guard and got to experience this.

Seeing the cross venerated so and the procession for the Host gave me goosebumps. Kaitlyn grumbled before we even went in about how boring church is and why do we even have to go. She had a change of heart after the Mass. We'll see if it lasts for Easter Sunday.

We end the evening with dinner and head down the hill to the funicular. The last car left at 8:20...it is now well past 9. I spot a taxi sign on the door and just as we were getting ready to call, a bus shows up and takes us down to the train station. Time for bed.

April 12, Florence

2006-04-19T18:45:00.000+01:00

After much debating we decide to go for it and tackle Florence for the day. As we are leaving the hotel, the receptionist tells us it is much better to take the train than to drive. She gives us directions in case we don't make the train, which leaves in 25 minutes from another village. Good thing we got directions, we missed the train by mere minutes, after blower Â10 on parking. Once we find out way into Florence to park at the train station-we can see why the receptionist told us to take the train. There are scooters and cars everywhere and the lines in the road serve as nothing more than suggestions to where to drive.

The big city is much more stressful with the kids especially when Jillian refuses to sit in the stroller, then refuses to walk and then refuses to let Jason carry her. My hips are killing me at this point and she has no choice. The terrible two's have hit our sweet little girl with avengeancee and we now have a screaming terror. I walk ahead with the other 2 while Jason lags behind with a screaming Jillian.

We stop off for a very expensive lunch and head over to Giotto's Tower and the Duomo. I can't believe how black the marble is on the Duomo. In fact most of it is covered up for cleaning at the moment. We take a few picture outside, and head indoors. The kids light candles and say prayers and we gaze up at the huge dome.

Outside to regroup...we are entertained by the illegal vendors trying to avoid the police. The top designers have gotten fed up with the fake stuff being sold so the police have really cracked down on the vendors and even fine buyers a large amount of money. The vendors have portable cardboard displays that they pick up and walk away with whenever the police drive by, then about 5 minutes later they return only to play the same game again on the next drive by.

Next stop-the Academia. Although we called ahead for reservations, we still wait in line for a good 30 minutes (vs the 3+ hours for those without reservations). So far everywhere we have gone, Jillian and Griffen get in for free and sometimes even Kaitlyn. The kids were in awe over Michelangelo's David. Most of the museum is closed due to construction but that is about all the kids can handle anyway. We set off for some more gelato and a view of the Arno River from Ponte Vecchio. The crowds are immense and the kids are tired so we make our way back to the car and out of Florence.

All afternoon Kaitlyn has been moaning about her shoes hurting her feet and Griffen's toes are ready to shoot out the top of his, so we keep our eyes open for a shoe store. As luck would have it there is an Outlet Mall about 10 miles from the Villa. Kaitlyn scores with a pair of bright pink trainers and Griffen picks up some Pumas (all the little Italian boys wear Pumas and sweats). Jason finds a few shirts-styled much differently than US shirts! They are shorter in the sleeve and body as well as a bit more form fitting. Give him a hard time if you see him in one.

We eat another yummy dinner at the hotel. Kids got plain pasta and steak. I get an artichoke appetizer with a cheesey fondue kind of sauce and Jason gets asparagus. We both order the penne with ragu and have a bottle of local red wine. I go for the coffee creme brulee and Jason has a repeat of the dessert he ordered previously. The kids sit in the reception area drawing their depictions of David for Adriana (much to my horror) while we drink our espresso. The receptionist offers to take the kids to meet the chef after they claimed their food was the best ever. Another couple eating dinner next to us compliment the kids on their behavior. We are proud parents, despite the David portraits.

April 11, Cortona & Siena

2006-04-18T20:38:00.000+01:00

I took a cooking class at the hotel with four other guests. The wife half of the owners, Adriana, taught the class. She said she learned to cook from her mother. Menu: crostini with tomato or olives, homemade pasta with a cream of zucchini sauce and cantuccini (a biscotti type cookie) for dessert.

Jason stayed in the room until Jillian fell asleep while Griffen and Kaitlyn sat in the reception area reading books and coloring pictures. Once Jillian fell asleep, Jason came down to play with them. As they got bored, they came to peek on me in the kitchen. Adriana gave the kids a cookie and welcomed Jason to try the crostini. During this time Jason was talking to the husband half, who teased the kids that there was a witch in the wine cellar. I believe his name is Damien and he his part of the family who owns the Wimpole farm not too far away from us in the UK.

After we finished cooking our food (and 2 glasses of wine later), we sat down to eat what we made and more wine. The staff set a place for Jason and I sent the kids off to find him. They got sidetracked by the offer of eating lunch with the staff in the kitchen. Jason found his way to the table after checking on the sleeping baby (her only real nap the whole trip).

After lunch we made our way to Siena, home of the Palio and St. Catherine. The Palio is a horse race that dates back over 800 years and is held twice a year in July and August. Residents wear medieval clothing to flaunt their neighborhood's pride in a parade and race. There are 17 contrade(neighborhoods) in Siena but only 10 are chosen to race, which is why the race is held 2 times. From what I have read, this can turn into a bloody race and is best viewed without young eyes. The winners receive a banner painted by a local artist and always features the Virgin Mary as well as the right to boast that their contrada in the best.

It was late afternoon by the time we got here and cold wind had picked up as well. So far we have only bought the kids some masks from Venice, so when they saw a store full of Pinoochios we let them each pick out one. Afterwards we head to the main square and let the kids chase pigeons for a while. After dinner we head back to the villa in Cortona.

April 10, Cortona

2006-04-18T16:27:00.000+01:00

Our villa here outside Cortona is absolutely fantastic. We have a large room where you can see the original wood beams and stone floor. The staff is great as well. They seem to love our blond blue & green eyed children and never hesitate to stroke Jillian's cheeks.

Last night after a glass of wine in the courtyard, we had dinner in the hotel. Pasta for the kids, soup starter for Jas & I followed by steak for Jas and bacon wrapped pork for me. Oh and some wine. For desert Kaitlyn had a coffee creme brulee. Jason had some carmelized pear and I had a strawberry tart with cream followed of course by espresso. Ok-the food here is good, not much worth mentioning in Venice-but here is another story.

We explored Cortona today. What a charming village of Tuscany. Hints of Etruscan life are everywhere. We decided on getting lunch from the grocery in the main piazza. The kids scarfed down pizzettes (small hand sized cheese pizzas) while Jason and I enjoyed eggplant, peppers and cheese on toasted foccia. Of course the meal isn't complete without a scoop of gelato.

The kids were playing on the steps of a bank while Jason and I contemplated our next move. A women came up the steps and tipped Kaitlyn's chin to see her eyes while saying "bella, bella bella." Like I said-a very family friendly country.

Despite the constant grumbling we forced our very ungrateful children to climb to the top of town and see the Medici Fortress. As we were walking a gentleman passed by and said something to us in French. (I was also approached in Venice by a French speaking teen). When I gave him a blank look he said "Non Francaise?" I responded, "no, American." "Oh, well happy walking."

We made it about halfway before realizing that the stroller was NOT going to make it up the ancient cobblestone road. We abandoned it and carried Jillian instead. Upon reaching the top, a bar was waiting for us ready to make an espresso at our request.
No sooner had we finished when the skies opened up with an April shower. Earlier, as we left the hotel, we decided coats were not needed and only had 1 umbrella between the 5 of us. Jason and Griffen decided to walk down the hill to fetch the car while the girls and I waited under the shelter of the Church of St. Margaret. Being a Monday and midday-both the church and the Fortress were closed. After about 5 minutes the rain let up and we walked down to catch up with the boys who were waiting by a soaked stroller. (gotta love cell phones)

We made it back to Cortona before the rain really let loose. We also found a nice pottery shop with reasonable prices...must come back on a driving weekend to stock up on pottery and wine.

Dinner tonight was at La Tufa in Ossaia, a nearby village. We were the first to arrive at 7:15 (most restaurants in Italy don't open for dinner until 7:30). By the time we left it was 9 and the restaurant, a recommendation by hotel staff, was packed with locals. The parking lot was a dirt plot up the hill and we almost couldn't make it out with all the other cars that arrived after we did.

Our dinner was delicious-Kaitlyn ate pizza, Griffen cleaned up a whole bowl of minestrone soup and ate a bit of everyone else's food. Jillian ate almost a whole bowl of pasta-penne with a meat ragú, Jason & I each had bowls of pasta mine was a short cut spinach pasta with tomato sauce followed by some steak sautéd with cherry tomatoes, rocket (arugula) and pecorino cheese smothered in a healthy portion of olive oil. I can still taste it. Add the requisite bottle of wine, desert and espressso and dinner is complete.

April 9, Venice

2006-04-18T15:31:00.000+01:00

Leaving Venice today. Started off the morning with church bells as our alarm clock. We learned from our gondolier that there are 141 churches in Venice. After cleaning up, we headed off to San Marco for Palm Sunday Mass. While Palm Sunday is notoriously 1.5 hours in the US, we were in and out in under an hour. Amazing how much time singing takes. The kids got their palms, (olive branches here) and we listened to the Passion of Christ under a ceiling of gold mosaics and in Italian.

After breakfast we left Venice and its canals behind. Our next stop, Marco Polo airport to pick up a rental car. Too bad Jason lost his driver's license-he can't drive. After squeezing 4 suitcases, 2 rucksacks, and 1 stroller in our Alfa Romeo-I set off for Cortona. I am so used to driving in the UK now-I had to think about which side to drive on.

Although we were on the freeway-the Italians still made their own way a few times. Ex: drive on a 2 lane road in the right lane, get passed on the left and have another impatient driver make his own lane to the left of that.

We stopped in a small town outside Bologna for lunch. The only place we could find open on a Sunday was a little bar with no English spoken at all. We ordered the kids a pizza and we got little sandwiches and some white wine and a liter of sparkling water. The man (always seems to be an older married couple working) brought us a few more appetizers-ham and figs and what we think was bologna. We ended with an espresso and ice cream for the kids.

I wasn't driving fast enough for Jason so he took over for the rest of the 4 hour drive. Good thing too-most of the driving was well over 80-90 mph and we traversed what must've been 20+ bridges and really long tunnels. I hate bridges. And now I hate tunnels-especially 900 meter tunnels. I think I have developed a bit of claustrophobia.

April 8, Venice

2006-04-18T14:49:00.000+01:00

Woke up after a good night sleep and had breakfast in the hotel. Jason cancelled is debit card and filed a police report. We head out to Murano on a free boat from the hotel. A smooth talking rep from the glass factory is waiting to show you in upon arrival. Large tour groups were being shown a demonstration of the ancient art of glass making while we got a 'personal' interpreter. The factory we visited was housed is an old church-you could feel the heat of the furnaces. After the demonstration our 'personal interpreter' took us into the showroom to see all the glass-pretty smooth talking to attempt a sale. We declined using Jason's loss of cards as a reason and walked away empty handed.

After glancing in a few shops down the road, we pop into one and let the kids spend some money on trinkets. Griffen really wanted to pay for his own but only had some loose change. The old couple in the shop understood this and took his money and Jason's on the side. They then gave each of the kids a little glass toy. The Italians are absolutely great with kids-it has been really easy traveling with them so far. After the shop we decide to head back to Venice, but we missed the boat. Then next one comes in about an hour-so we wonder. Across the water there is a church with a boat in front carrying a casket. We decide not to cross the bridge yet as a crowd in dark clothes has gathered and a priest is saying a prayer before bringing the casket into the church.

Kaitlyn is desperate for a toilet so I take the older 2 and set off for a quick search. We find one in the park and Kaitlyn has her first experience with an Italian toilet...a hole in the ground. At least it was a porcelain hole. We spy a vaporetto and head back to Venice. Lunch-more pizza and gelato and strawberries from the market. We are tired of carrying Jillian around and go back to those 75 steps and get the stroller. We still have to pick up the stroller every time we cross a bridge-but that is less exhausting than carting her around full time.

Next we find a mask shop I had read about and wanted to visit. The shop owners are there and they show us how they make the masks-the wife does the painting herself. They welcome us to look around and answer any questions we have-even giving us the full history behind the masks of Venice and what the different types represent. Kaitlyn and Griffen watch another woman painting in one of the rooms for a good 30 minutes while Jason and I decide on our purchase. Jillian is entertained by the shop dog. We make our selection-pay in cash for a discount and ask him not to mail until the next week. The masks we picked out are original pieces of art-a better purchase for us to add to our collection than a glass vase.

April 7, Venice

2006-04-18T08:24:00.000+01:00

We arrived in Venice today, Jason's birthday. It was a bit of an ordeal getting here. Before leaving we debated what mode of transportation we should bring for Jillian: backpack or stroller. Jason thought the crowds would hinder the backpack so we chose the stroller. After landing at an airport about 40 minutes away from Venice (reason why Ryanair is soo cheap), we took a bus to the edge of Venice and hopped on a vaporetto (public water bus).

After discovering our hotel was on the other side of the canal, we had to struggle over the Rialto bridge with Jason carrying 2 rolling suitcases and 1 backpack; each of the kids had their own rolling suitcase and I had the baby and stroller. Go ahead and laugh. Somehow Jason got over with Griffen while a kind American tourist took pity on Kaitlyn, Jillian and I and insisted she help us. Once over the bridge we walked down an alleyway to our hotel. It sounded great in our guidebook as well as online. However, we must've skipped over the reason why it is the cheapest hotel looking over the Grand Canal, it's on the 3rd floor which means 75 steps to climb. After reaching the top, the kind receptionist met us with fresh glasses of orange juice. Our room looked out over the Grand Canal and the Rialto Bridge-beautiful!

After cleaning up a bit we set off to wander Venice for the day-without the stroller.
First things first-a cup of espresso and pizza. As we were walking around, Jason stopped off at an ATM for cash. Minutes after leaving the ATM machine he stops and says to me, "I feel like something just fell down my leg." I looked down and spotted his credit card (we were using money belts to protect from pick pockets). Quick stop off for our first gelato of the vacation. Next time Jillian gets a cup not a cone.
We took turns carrying Jillian when she tired of walking and made our way to the back canals away from the crowds.

Mid-afternoon we are approached by a Gondolier and haggle over a price for a 45 minute ride. He takes us on a nice ride through the more quiet canals vs the busy, noisy Grand Canal, pointing out interesting places along the way-Vivaldi's home, Marco Polo's home etc. After our ride we head over to the bustling St. Mark's Square. The Piazza is full of tourists and pigeons. Jason take the older 2 up the Campanile (Bell Tower) to hear the bells while I wander the Piazza listening to the dueling orchestras outside the cafes. Jillian falls asleep in my arms becoming dead weight as I long for the backpack we didn't bring. Time for another espresso.

We end the day with a decent dinner and tired kids. Once we are in our room reorienting ourselves, Jason discovers that his credit card wasn't the only thing he lost...he also lost his health insurance card, UK debit card and CA driver's license. So much for the money belt. Luckily no one else found them either and they are now out with the trash of Venice.