Prague – aha

They call It Praha over here and I can see where the aha comes from. We didn’t get a full day because of the snow and rain but what we saw today was incredible.

I went out on my own this morning to get cash to pay for the apartment and pick up some groceries. Got a little sidetracked with a beautiful church whose name I don’t even know and another building that has some sort of concerts in it. Picked up some killer pastries (is it ever to early for dessert) on my way back and don’t know what it was called but the chocolate pudding and whipped cream inside a hard shell with chocolate coating was worth whatever it cost and I don’t know because the conversion is too complex for me. It’s vacation.

We both got a good nap to catch up with some of the sleep we have been missing and headed out around 2:00.

We weren’t sure where we were going just trying to get a feel for the town and didn’t know what to expect. Well it’s no revelation but each City has had its own feel and Prague is certainly different than all the others. Can’t describe very well with my limited vocabulary but it kind of has a small village feel to some parts, a cosmopolitan feel to others and then a bunch of really cool old buildings crammed in there. Now that I’ve painted a clear picture in your mind, let’s move on.

We made it to Old Town Square just before dark and it was spectacular. There was still a Christmas carnival going on with nice food and craft booths. They also had some music that was in Czech but it sounded fun and had some of the younger folks dancing. We went up in the Old Town Hall Tower and Val got some great shots while I helped some French women (they were older but those French women can get me to do anything if they just call me Gareee) figure out how to make a pressed coin. They didn’t speak English, I don’t speak French and neither of us knew anything about Czech language or money. It was fun and took my mind off the heights.

When we were leaving, the Astronomical Clock was about the strike 6 and a crowd had gathered to watch. It was cool and someone played some trumpet notes from the top and folks cheered. Might try to make it back for New Years or will watch the fireworks along the river. Had some great food at the booths. We got some dough that was wrapped around a hot rod and cooked over an open fire then rolled in cinnamon and sugar. A little like cinnamon toast but quite a bit better.

There seem to be lots of young people here. Not sure if they are in town for the celebration (New Years and Velvet Revolution Independence Day – I made that up but do know it is a big event) or if it is always that way.

We stopped at a supermarket in the City center and it is the first supermarket I have been in that is on two floors and has an escalator type device that allows shopping carts on it. It is basically a moving sidewalk on an incline and was a funny feeling riding it.

We got lost on our way home but at least we got our monies worth on the transit system. Had to go back to the same place twice then finally got pointed in the right direction to get back to our apartment. Val’s not so hot on my direction finding skills right now but I’m the best she’s got and I don’t eat much when I’m on vacation.

It rained quite a bit tonight and we were out in it more than planned but my coat and Val’s poncho worked and kept us and our stuff mostly dry. If it rains every day for the rest of the vacation we can’t complain because we have had wonderful weather.

We are having a little dilemma. Trying to pick between a Czech hockey game and a classical music concert. I say go to the concert hall and look at it for cheap and do the hockey game too but for some reason Val wants to hear the music. Do they have classical music at hockey games? We will keep you posted on where that goes.

Travel day to Prague

Every travel day is interesting and tests us in new ways. We had a pretty successful trip today; we got here without too many mishaps or wrong directions. One thing that has become quite comedic has been the fact that Valerie’s glasses broke so we are kind of down to one pair between us. We can see most things but transportation maps are usually in pretty small print. I usually ask Val to find or verify something and depending on how well we are getting along she will let me know that she needs the glasses to be able to do that. You can probably imagine the range of ways she expresses that to me.

We shared a train cabin with a lady and her 21 year old daughter today who had been in Vienna were going to Prague and then on to Budapest. They were currently from North Carolina but have lived in several countries over the years as her husband’s job requires quite a few moves. It was nice to have some conversations in English with someone other than ourselves.

If you haven’t done it I can’t explain how difficult it is to get from one place to another. The train was a little late and moved from one platform to another. That is not announced in English and you have to just get lucky to see it appear on the overhead. We almost got on a train to Rome. Maybe that would have been fun? Lots of other chances like that make we wonder how we have ever made it to Prague. One more trip and we will be back in Anacortes.

The landscape in the Czech Republic was beautiful on the trip over. Lots of farms and rolling type hills. I didn’t expect that but not sure what I did expect. Old communist tanks abandoned everywhere? The buildings range from cool old European to square boxes. Not sure what that means either, just and observation.

Train trips are tough on me. Too much time to think. Closed my eyes and didn’t fall to sleep. Rare. So therefore didn’t snore. Embarrasses Val but not me for some reason. Anyway the light filtering through the trees and other passing things made we think that it must be like using some drugs that I have never used since they were popular shortly before my time. The psychedelic effect was cool until I realized it would stop when I open my eyes. It helped pass the time and we made it safely to our apartment.

The apartment we are staying in is perfect. The location is a bit sketchy but I am hoping we adjust to that. It is right on a tram route that will take us to the downtown area but there is lots of painting and vandalism on the outsides of the buildings. The inside is spacious and lovely and appears to have decent internet service and is close to a real grocery store.

No pictures today so I went back and included ones we left out. Hoping for a more interesting post tomorrow.

Laundry day

Well even on vacation you have to take care of some mundane tasks. Still quite an adventure when you don’t speak the language and can’t read the signs. First problem was that I had to get money changed. The bank lady isn’t like the one at Horizon in Anacortes. She couldn’t or wouldn’t speak English and apparently didn’t find me too charming. I felt the same about her but got my 100 back in 5 20’s just the same. Now back to the machines. No English and a different system than our Laundromat. I was getting close to having it down but couldn’t find any detergent. Someone app

eared from the back room and made some motion that led me to believe he was asking if I needed help. I apologized that I only spoke English. He asked why I apologized and I told him that we weren’t the most popular folks in some countries. He said “we are all just people” and went on to give me the assistance I needed. My experience is that most folks recognize the similarities between all of us and our struggles / triumphs / dreams /needs / etc. Maybe that wasn't what he meant but it was what I heard. Anyway, the detergent is in the machine and I didn’t bother to ask about bleach or fabric softener. I think it is a waste of time anyway and just use it because Val tells me to.

Oh, by the way. How about those Bengals. Playoff bound and did it with a win not having to count on Baltimore losing even though Pittsburg beat them anyway (thanks Dan).

Went to a great little place that was really crowded but lots of fun today. They sell small sandwiches and beers among other things. We had a few sandwiches and three small beers. The beer was really good and I wondered if I like it better in small glasses. Didn’t wonder too long about that because it was getting dark and I have to say I love the lights of Vienna with the beautiful buildings as a backdrop. Took some decent pictures but the sights will stick in my mind for quite some time to come.

We came around a corner and there was a big door and small dome at the end of the street so I asked Val if she wanted to look inside. It was another splendid church. Not as special as our find from yesterday but still really cool. Not sure how many of those there are around here but suspect there are plenty of reasons to come back.

We are both still not feeling the best and today the drug stores opened back up.

Another interesting trip. The drug stores are apparently the only place they sell things like Dayquil since we couldn’t find it anywhere else. So I go in to the drug store and am trying to play it cool and look around for something with a sick person with a runny nose on it. No luck, lots of stuff I didn’t know what it was and was a little wary of taking a chance. A nice fellow says can I help you. I explained my situation and he pulls out from behind the counter something that looks very much like Vicks Dayquil. Glad I didn’t have hemorrhoids and just wanted to quietly pick up some Preparation H.

Travel to Prague tomorrow. Should be fun.

Val’s special find

Not me. I am pretty special but not in such a good way.

Gary started this yesterday – but is watching football and updating his fantasy leagues – bless him – so you are stuck with me.

Yesterday we started the day at the Imperial Treasury – in a palace once housing the Hofburgs. My crow eye for all that glitters and sparkles was rolling about every way and I flapped my crow wings in excitement and hopped all about the place. We viewed exquisite jewels, robes, crowns, scepters—trinkets as Alec calls them. We even saw a jeweled cradle and receiving blanket fitting for the coming attraction to our family, Little Yoyo.

From here we walked to the chocolate palace – Dremels – that is touted to have incredible chocolate displays – we didn’t see displays but we did see incredible pastries. The place was jammin’ and elbow-to-elbow with tourists so we went out for a sausage and Gluwein from a street vendor instead. Gluwein is a hot mulled wine drink that makes me such a jolly traveler!

We wove around the core of Vienna to the edge where we found our destination: Dominikanerkirche (dates from 1630). Of all the churches we have visited, this is the one I have fallen in love with. It is small and the outside is rather plain but the inside detail is jawdropping. After all the crowds of Vienna this was an amazing change – at most there were 10 other people inside of this church. We had time to sit and look and look and wonder. Lit a candle for Grandma Cecelia Rose.

It was hard to tear away but we left to find our way to Belvedere Palace. We took a few wrong turns but that is always part of the adventure and the more you walk, the more you get to eat! The Belvedere is another incredible museum with a large Klimt collection. If stripped of artwork the museums would still be worth viewing.

Three dessert day

Some days are just better than others and today was one of those days. Three desserts in one day and they were all low calorie. Dessert #1 was at the Sacher Tort Café. They have a famous café, hotel and cake that is simply explained as chocolate cake with some apricot jam, chocolate frosting and whipped cream. Val ordered it and I got a white hot chocolate with some sort of biscuit. They were good and the place was fancy but not too intimidating for a couple of hicks like us. Dessert #2 came at some place by Stephansdom Cathedral and mine was some sort or custard cream layered pastry thing and Val got a “apricot custard delight” both were excellent and I got a dainty cup of hot chocolate in a fancy cup.

Dessert #3 came after dinner and was something that looked like cheese cake but was made out of what we think was creamed cheese and whipped cream with a shortbread crust. It was delicious also. We walked plenty to make up for the added calories today.

On the tram ride in to town I was thinking to myself how much fun I could be if I had a ton of money. I could do this and bring friends along almost any time. Then I wondered if it would still be fun if you could do it all the time. Then I got sidetracked with the incredible beauty of the day and never got back to the question and now it seems pointless. Oh well.

The sun was out and it was brisk but not cold today. We say some incredible sights inside and out. The Albertina Museum had a impressionist display that was magnificent. All the painters I like and not too many I don’t. Can’t name them all but Monet, Manet, Chagall, Munch, Cezanne, Renoir, Degas, Gauguin, Van Gogh, Sisley and they had some cool modern art too. Then we went to Stephansdom Cathedral and it was spectacular inside and out.

We were able to visit the Kunsthistorisches Museum (great names they have over here and easy to pronounce too, aren’t they Dara?). It has lots of stuff but val wanted to see the really old paintings I hate. The building was incredible and they were getting ready to shoot some sort of movie or film. We went and looked at the Arcimboldos together then I sat down in a comfy spot and mapped out the rest of our evening. Vals was so thrilled to ditch me that she wasn’t able to make it back to me at closing. They shooed me out and as I came down the grand marble staircase with all the stage lights on and ballet dancers practicing Val was at the bottom of the stairs giggling. Mary, you should have come, you would have been able to hang around the set and meet famous people and who knows how your evening might have ended.

We went back through the downtown area and the lights of the buildings and the Christmas lights were absolutely amazing. I love that kind of stuff and was really enjoying the moment. The camera battery went out so we didn’t get any pictures but maybe we can make it back there again one of the next two nights for some photos.

At the end of the night we stopped off at what amounts to the local 7-11 with a small twist. It has a gas station and convenience store stuff but it also has a bar in it that is apparently frequented by a group of old men that I would guess are regulars. They rarely seem happy that anyone is getting gas or trying to buy some milk and complain to the one person manning the whole place. It’s kind of comedic but the whole place is a little seedy and all I am interested in is getting some milk and getting on my way without getting into a fight that Val might not be able to get me out of.

P.S. Sorry about the shitty Christmas Dara and Alec but we spent too much money on this trip to do much for you guys this year.

Merry Christmas

Sorry about missing the post yesterday. Once again Val picked up the slack. Seems like a theme is developing. How long has that been going on?

Val did leave off one observation from yesterday that we both found interesting. We came all this way, have seen incredible sights that can fill volumes of picture books but one lasting memory will be of some small child singing “Oh Taunnenbaum” (gsp) filling this tram that seemed like it was at least one block long with her youthful voice of joy. It warmed our hearts at a time when we were missing our own kids.

This morning we went out looking for an open grocery store (for some reason Val didn’t want “Eees goot meat” as she thought it might make us sick(er). As we were following the path of grocery bags to their starting point we came upon a lady with a dog. Well most of you know that part of the reason I come to Europe is because I’m not very good socially. Over here since I don’t speak the same language I can’t talk to most people so it’s somewhat acceptable. Now I can’t resist a dog so I give hand signals to the person asking if it is ok to pet. I think she says sure and start to pet the dog. She is talking to me in some language I don’t understand then I tell her I am sorry but I only speak English which doesn’t impress her much but when I say I have a dog she busts out the English and we exchange a few words while her dog licks my face. Bottom line is that I think dogs and kids speak the universal language and maybe if they were in charge we would all get along a bit better. Not sure it matters but the dog was a pit-bull and a good looking boy too Mia.

We went to Schounbroon (gsp) Palace today. Some say it is the Versailles of Austria. Not sure it reaches that level but it was spectacular and I loved the garden and the green house. Too much family history for me. I can hardly keep track of my own immediate family and these folks have lots of kids and marry them off the other countries to gain power, etc. Didn’t work so well for Marie Antoinette in this case.

Forgot to mention that I have very smugly been packing and having with me foul weather gear just in case it rained. Well when the day started it was around 55 and pretty clear so I decided to leave the stuff at the apartment (which is as nice as promised on the internet). So when we get out of the palace to tour the grounds the temp seems like it has dropped 20 degrees, it’s raining and the wind is blowing. Being from the northwest I am not going to let a little weather get in my way of a good time so we went out to tour the grounds. It was wet but not as bad as the trips with Dara, Adam and Alec. Now I will keep packing the gear and I can be sure I won’t need it.

Short story about Val and a Christmas center piece. We are walking along the street and see a Christmas center piece outside a florist shop with no price on it. I think maybe it’s free. Val goes in and asks the price. The shop owner says 15. Val says no thanks. The shop owner says he will take 10. Val give him 15 and says Merry Christmas. Now I say Val got the centerpiece for the 10 it was worth and gave the poor shop owner a 5 Christmas bonus and that is one of the many reasons I love her.

We had a great encounter on our bus ride today. Got on the right bus and came to the place we wanted to get off. For some reason the door would not open so we were standing by the door. The bus driver yells something. We thought he was saying not to go out that door but he could have been saying either Merry Christmas or YFSA’s . We went to the other door and it wouldn’t open either. The bus driver yells again this time maybe Happy New Year or AYSYFSA’s so I’m in a panic and push what I think is the stop button on the bus which turns out to also be the open the door button. We calmly get off and I am going to just assume that he was wishing us a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

One last thought for this Christmas day. Viennese women should not be allowed to eat sausages in public they way they do. It truly is not fair.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

Vienna - A city of wonder

Christmas Eve --Today’s blog brought to you by Val.

Gary has done an incredible job of chronicling our little journey but since I so generously shared my cold with him, he is taking the night off. I am the designated blogger.

We had an absolutely lovely train ride from Munich (Muchen) to Vienna (Wien). The train was called a Rail Jet and sped along at 200 km. There is an engine on each end of the train – they do not turn the train around on a turnstyle – the conductor just moves to the other engine and heads off in the next direction. This means all the train seats were facing backwards. I admit I was getting a bit queasy seeing where I had been.

Side note- apparently Gar isn’t as sick as he claims. He just had to interrupt and point out on the map where he wants to go tomorrow; Wienerburg. Really? Will my oldest “son” ever grow up?

After arriving it only took about 40 minutes to get our bearings, purchase tickets for the tram-rail-underground system AND find our apartment. Gary is navigating us around Europe like a pro. I can’t find my way out of a Safeway.

Another side note – I have never seen so many dead animals on women as we have during this trip. It is quite upsetting to see the Robinson rabbit friends and other little forest animals fashioned into adornments. Don’t think the ASPCA has a branch over here.

We were looking forward to stopping in some specialty shops and purchasing our Christmas dinner fixins’ but we were walking all over Wien with our mouths hanging open and lost track of time. This city is as elegant and classy as Audrey Hepburn. All the stores were closing early for Christmas Eve. We hurried down to a large outdoor market similar to Pike’s Place. Only a few stalls remained open – we went into one that offered a variety of meats and asked about turkey. The gentleman paused for a second then said, “Ya, I’ve got turkeeee.” Goes to a box and pulls out half a turkey with feathers still clinging to it and SLAMS it down on the counter. “Eees goot meat!” We are the suckers that purchased this noble bird without giving thought to one detail – an oven – we do not have an oven. Stewed turkey anyone?So today was spent on in child-like wonder strolling about Wien and visiting a Christmas Market. Our plans to attend a midnight church service are out because we are both hacking like smokers.

My lesson – Tomorrow we have six eggs, some milk, some bread, and a bottle of champagne for Christmas dinner. I feel that I am the luckiest woman in the world to be sharing this with a man that I have loved as long as I can remember. I am lucky that our kids pushed us out the door and said JUST GO! I am lucky to have the most loving and supportive family and friends. Merry Christmas every one!

Castles, Castles Everywhere

We went to see a couple of castles out by the town of Fussen today. I can’t get their names right but they were really very pretty castles done by a couple of Ludwig Kings. The later one done by Ludwig II is the one that Disney used to model their castle after. They were beautiful inside and out. Couldn’t take pictures inside so only have some from outside and those really don’t do them justice.

When we planned this trip I had specific agendas for each day. This is the first day we have actually followed that agenda. Not sure if that is good or bad but it is what it is.

A big part of today was the trip to and back from the castles. It involved getting a train ticket at the best available rate (not as easy as you might think), figuring out schedules, platforms, connections, where you should sit, etc. It may be easy for some but it stretched Val and Gary quite a bit. Happy to say we made it and are still talking to each other. One example of the difficulty. When looking for the town of Fussen there are apparently two letter u’s in the German alphabet one the regular way and one with a couple of dots over it. Use the wrong one on your search at the ticket machine and your city does not appear.

I do at this time have to offer an apology however to a whole country. I had previously made some disparaging remarks about Japanese tourist groups. Wouldn’t you know it that as life always seems to point out you should not make vast generalizations and be an asshole. We were having a bit of difficulty waiting for a bus back from the castles and this Japanese man asked me about the bus, etc. I told him I didn’t know much but thought this was the place to catch the bus. Well he finds a taxi asks us is we want to join him and then pays the whole bill. I said thanks and asked if I could take a photo of his family that I will include later. Suspect he didn’t know what he was teaching me but hope I learn it this time.

Well we should be leaving Munich and Germany tomorrow and I have a few thoughts.

Do they have any drinks that aren’t carbonated? Had carbonated water, apple juice and beer. Couldn’t find much without carbonation besides milk and they don’t keep that it in a cooler.

They have quite a bike system in Munich that includes bike lanes and even signals at intersections specifically for people on bikes. Their system seems more set up around their sidewalks than their roads. A lot of folks ride bikes and it seems not so much recreationally as just a function of getting to and from places. Lots of bike racks, etc.

Really looking forward to our trip to Vienna tomorrow.

Munich

What a day. Had things all mapped out when we left Anacortes but have had to adjust plenty. Did that today and we did it well. Basically just walked around downtown and looked at stuff. Had some idea what was there and some idea when to look for it but other than that it was pretty free form. Got tickets for the train trip to Vienna (Wien). If you haven’t been around it, it is easy to get the wrong tickets and get on the wrong train. We haven’t been around it much but hope we get it right when we go on Thursday morning. If not there are lots of cool towns around and maybe they will have a room. The train station was incredible with people coming and going.

From there we went to see the Glockenspiel(sp) at the new town hall go off at 12:00. It did and was fun to watch. Then we went up in the tower and had a good view of the town / area. Val took good photos and I hung on and stayed away from the edge. Got to see the Olympic Village even if we aren’t going to make the trip out there.

Next up was the Hofbrau House. Had lunch and a couple of beers. Both were good. I don’t particularly care for the sauerkraut I have had in the states but his stuff was good with the sausages and beer. Got a picture of a beer maid but not with full steins of beer. Best I could do as I didn’t see any carrying armloads of full beer steins and I didn’t want to stage one.

After that we went to an open air market that starts with a V and has a whole bunch of letters in it, two churches – one beautiful on the inside one beautiful on the outside. Then we walked around and looked at the outside of the Residence (a fancy palace) and the start of Englisher Garten a huge beautiful park that is too big to get around without a bike and no snow.

Planning on going to a couple of castles outside of town tomorrow if we can figure out the train and bus arrangements. If not, there is still plenty to do in Munich that will more than fill another day. Did some laundry tonight and hung close by our room.

Thought for the day for me. When we planned the trip we used Munich because it was cheap to fly to and had a castle close by. At one time we weren't even going to spend a day. It has turned out to be as good as any town I have been to in Europe as far as I'm concerned. What does that tell me?

Gars bad travel day

Rough travel day from London to our new hotel. Neither one of us slept much last night. I’m getting Val’s cold and she’s still not over it. The flight from London was delayed almost 4 hours after we got up at 4:00 am to get to the airport for the 7:15 flight. The flight finally left a little after 11:00 and we were not able to sit by each other. Maybe that was a good thing. The good news is that the flight was pretty short and we were in Munich at around 2:00 Munich time. Still plenty of time to get to our room and see a few sights.

Oh, I forgot a couple of issues. I didn’t put my man tool (micro Leatherman with scissors not pliers so my kids call it a girly tool) in my luggage so it didn’t get past inspections. Then I somehow forgot to get a map or directions to the hotel. Small mistake when you speak the language big mistake when you don’t. Had to get cash so we could use a phone since for some reason our credit card wouldn’t work in the phone like it was supposed to. Never sure how many numbers to dial on these international / local calls. Anyway it’s getting dark and we can’t find our room and I’, not sure if we are even with 10 miles of it. Val uses her cell phone and gets the place and good directions (we were close) and it all works out in the end. Val came to the rescue for me once again even if it did cost $1.50 per minute who cares at that point.

The room is a little short of what was advertised but we have stayed at worse and it was our cheapest stay.

We went to the Marianplatz Christmas Market tonight and it was spectacular. It was one of the reasons we came and it was well worth it. Hard to get good pictures but lots of lights, old buildings and good food. Val had a mulled wine and rum (she shared) and I had something that was like a deep fried potato pancake with sour creamy stuff (I shared a little). Both were delicious and the atmosphere was incredible. We tried to take some pictures but were too busy soaking it in. We will go back tomorrow night when we are a bit more rested. It was an incredible memory that will stick with me for quite some time to come.

While all that was going on little Alec got hired on fulltime with the City of Seattle. He did it all on his own and you can be assured that we are very proud of him.

So my lesson for today should have been to weather the storm and things will work out if you have patience and a great wife and wonderful children. Not sure I’m smart enough to figure that out so will probably take away something like don’t forget to put your mantool in your checked luggage. After going through all the history stuff in London I wonder if we ever really learn what we should.

I need some sleep.

Good-bye London

Another late start that I can blame on Val for still not having her A game but I might be dragging a bit too. Still have not fully recovered from the trip day and am wondering if I am fighting off Val’s illness. In spite of that we are having a great time.

Old Spitafields Market was first up today. Another venture outside of Central London and there were bars on the windows, etc. After we finally found the place it was nice with lots of artisan vendors and good food and some upscale shops. Didn’t buy anything but looked around a lot and the weather was nice.

Next stop was the National Museum and it is quite a place. Not sure it’s a good thing they stole all this stuff from other countries but that’s up to them. Really cool building and lots of old stuff. We enjoyed it and what a surprise to find that King Amenemhat III supports the Fixit effort. I knew he was a great guy but I would have thought that folks from the 18^th or so century BC weren’t all that interested in the Fixit campaign. I was not however able to get any of his treasures for the effort so there will still be plenty of work to do when I get back.

Finally stopped at a pub and had a beer and shared a plate of food. Val was complaining about the starvation vacation so we had to get something normal.

Leaving London with a few thoughts. Japanese tour groups should be banished, short skirts are OK again and London has got to be one of the most diverse spots on the planet. Not sure how many languages I heard or how many different accents but it was a lot. We think we saw quite a few Jewish men last night in Tottenham with Russian type winter hats and long dark coats. Tried to look it up on the internet and think maybe they were believers of Hasidic Judaism but we were so freaked out/tipsy that we aren’t sure. I am thinking that my diversity training for the City should be a sponsored trip to London for a week once a year. What do you think Emily? I am sure Dean would go for it.

Heading for Munich at 5:00 am tomorrow. Hope to make it and keep the posts coming.

Tottenham Pub Owner Supports Fixit Effort Too

Had quite an interesting outing last night. Harrods is an incredible store that makes Nordstrom’s seem like Wal-Mart. The people were mostly friendly but it is safe to say we felt out of place. The food area is incredible and we looked at a sweater for yo-yo but it cost 200 gbp. Sorry yo-yo apparently in London there are things I can’t afford for the kids. Next stop was the Hyde Park Christmas Festival. It was quite a mix of carnival, beer gardens, skating rink, food booths and a few vendors selling stuff you could buy from an Oriental Traders magazine. Did get roasted chestnuts (not over an open fire) and I liked them. Val didn’t.

Got a late start today but more than made up for it with an all out effort from the both of us. The National Museum was our first stop and the view from outside was spectacular. The sun always seems to be in our face so my pictures aren’t very good but glad it’s not raining. Val loved the National Museum paintings and I loved the building and a few of the paintings. I still think the French are the best painters and don’t have much use for stuff before the 1800’s. Oh well, I suspect those folks wouldn’t like any art I did either.

Really noticed shoes for some reason today and how they seem to be the piece of clothing that most determines how dressed up someone is. Jeans and tennis shoes are so much different that jeans and fancy Italian dress shoes. You can tell we spent a bit too much time looking at paintings before the 1800’s.

Our next stop was The Bricklayers in Tottenham. A bit of a different side of London. No fancy Italian dress shoes in the pub or on the way to it. We did great getting there. Used the tube, made a transfer then got the right bus and got off at the right place. Didn’t do so good getting back. May have been the refreshments at the Pub that caused us to overshoot the bus stop, etc, etc, etc. Val wasn’t too happy with all the interesting people we met but we survived and I had a great time as Tottenham won 2-0 and the pub owner supports our fixit effort too.

Ended the night at Covent Gardens. The cookies are still there Al and they had chocolate chip orange flavored ones that were great. The Belgium waffles were good but miss piggy says not as good as the ones in Brussels. Finally found some meat pies and brought them home to eat. Got lost one last time on the way home but central London isn’t nearly as exciting as the outskirts.

Hoping for a good nights sleep to start off our last day in London. It seems like I miscalculated the trip back to the airport and have a bit of figuring to do before we can make that. I will keep you posted.

Beefeater support fixit effort

Rough night for Val last night. Not sure she got more than a couple hours of sleep. No, I’m over 50 and couldn’t keep her up than long even with good drugs. She coughed herself to sleep eventually but I do have to admit that her coughing didn’t keep me from sleeping.

The Tower of London was cold and clear. Didn’t know that they buried most of the folks they killed there on site which apparently was the case unless they shipped you off in pieces around the world as an example of what not to do to the King. Val arranged for the Fixit photo op that was quick but fun.

My first successful trip on a bus. I tried to ride on in Seattle once and it didn’t work out (sorry Dara) then tried again in Rome with the same results (sorry Alec) but this time with Val at the helm we covered a short distance only missed our stop by one and didn’t have to walk far. Tomorrow we will try to get on the second level of the double decker bus.

St. Paul’s is one magnificent structure. I was struck by the incredible symmetry of the building along with its vast beauty. The galleries were closed so we didn’t make the trip to the top. Saved a few bucks and didn’t wet myself. Not too bad. There was a wonderful prayer read over the loudspeaker asking for peace and understanding around the whole of the world. It was much more eloquent than that but I enjoyed the message and appreciated the fact they didn’t try to recruit me or only wish for peace for Christians.

Val and I agree that the good looking women in London outnumber the good looking men by about 10 to 1. No more comments about.

Tonight we are hoping to go to a Christmas market at Hyde Park. I am hoping it is not too commercial but may be disappointed. Could just be a winter carnival but since it’s just down the street and promises to have lights, it’s worth a shot.

Day 1 1/2 Random Thoughts

Not sure if it is day one or since we have been up for more than 24 hours it counts at 1 ½ days.

I don’t know if people in Houston aren’t friendly or we were tired (Gary) and sick (Valerie) but they sure seemed unhappy in that town. Did see Sarah’s book featured at the newsstand. Are they still pissed that Barrack won? Oh well, we weren’t there long.

Flight was a little late getting in to London but not bad at all.

Figured out the tube stuff and went the right way and got to our hotel. It is as nice as the website said and once we figured out the lighting system it seems like it will be a fine base for us to explore from.

Young women in London like really short skirts and in most instances they were working just fine for them.

Val is still sick with a pretty bad cold but we got a look at the Natural History Museum and it is totally cool and free. Also went to the Victoria and Albert Museum and saw plenty of sculptures and art and girls with really short skirts.

We had cool temperatures, sunshine, wind and even a little snow. Seemed like Anacortes with a bunch of old buildings and lots of people.

Val was a real trooper and we went out at night and hit Westminster Abbey, Trafalgar Square and the Embankment. I liked the look of London at night so I included one of the pictures.

The hotel thinks their internet connection is worth more than I do so it is going to cramp my use a bit but I should be able to get a few posts in while we are here.

Vals cel phone works but mine doesn’t. She may be sending some texts but if we get split up we I can’t call her to find my way back now.

Looking forward to a good nights sleep and another wild adventure tomorrow.

Photo opportunity suggestions

If you have a photo you would like to see taken. Post your request here and we will see what we can do. This is a Christmas Market in Munich that we are planning on going to.

Plans vs reality

We thought it might be fun to post photos from the websites of the places we have reservations and then compare them with photos of what the place actually looks like when we get there. Having some trouble getting them exactly how I want so this is it for now. I will learn how to put captions I hope. They appear from top to bottom in this order. Prague, Vienna, Munich and London.

Arrangements for when we are gone

It is so nice to have Alec staying at the house while we are gone and looking after Mia Bear (the best pity in the world) and Outlaw Pete (the name says it all). On top of that Little Lee our neighbor who doesn't miss anything on the block will be keeping an eye on Alec. Does it get any better.

Preparing for the trip

Val and Gary are working hard at making arrangements for their trip to Europe. Leaving Wednesday, December 16th and returning Monday, January 4th. London (17th, 18th, 19th and 20th), Munich (21st, 22nd and 23rd), Vienna (24th, 25th, 26th, 27th and 28th) Prague (29th, 30th, 31st, 1st, 2nd, 3rd).