Marathon Finish

London is Wicked.

Today was another whirlwind. I will keep in short tonight and recap some of the highlights. We saw the Tower of London and the royal jewels that are housed there. The queen's diamonds put mine to shame. We had a wonderful tour guide who was funny and kept us laughing the whole time with jokes that took a stab at pretty much everyone, French, Italian. Blond, Male and Female. He was a riot.

We went to a pub for lunch and I had the obligatory fish and chips meal with a pint. I did feel a little silly though when we asked for an Amstel Light and the bartender informed us they do not serve anything light. What, a girl's gotta keep her figure...

From there we saw St Paul's Cathedral where Princess Diana and Prince Charles were married and then walked across the Millennium Bridge to the Tate Modern museum. The Tate Modern was really neat. We were able to see several works by Andy Warhol and large installation pieces that took up entire rooms. Some we understood more than others. I guess that's modern art for you though. I'm anxious to see how it stacks up to the Bechtler at home.

Tonight we saw Wicked. It was wonderful. The music was really great. The play is a prequel to the Wizard of Oz story and it really is worth seeing. It is coming to Charlotte soon and I highly recommend getting tickets!

Tomorrow we leave London for Paris again and begin our journey home. I can't believe our trip is almost over. I am looking forward though to sleeping in my own bed again. I will miss the housekeeping service though. John not so much. He has live-in service. I kid because I love.

Cheers!

Look to the right before crossing.

Whew. What a day. My eyes are getting super heavy as I sit down to write. Our first day and a half in London has been jam-packed and has taken us to many of the famous sites. And yes, if on foot in London, do remember to look to the right first, instead of the left, before crossing the street. The little cultural idiosyncrasies really do make make all the difference. We enraged several a taxi driver during our first few hours in London as pedestrians. Stupid Americans.

Upon arriving yesterday we saw Buckingham Palace. I am sad to report that the guards are now behind closed gates so I did not have the opportunity to try out my jokes. We then went Abbey Road. Home of the famous Beatles album cover. We then strolled through the Notting Hill district which is full of posh homes and shops. It is a quaint neighborhood that feels more like a suburb than a major city.

Today was a whirlwind. We started the day with Westminster Abbey. We were able to take a guided tour which we enjoyed a lot. It was interesting to see all the famous tombs and memorials. One individual in particular to note that is buried at the Abbey is Darwin. The guide noted the irony and we all had a laugh. We went through several museums which, like the Smithsonian, are free. We toured the National Gallery, National Portrait Gallery and the British Museum. The National Gallery houses famous paintings spanning across several decades and continents. Including Monet's waterlillies painting and Van Gough's sunflowers. At the British Museum we were able to see the Rosetta Stone and pieces from the sphinx at the Pyramids of Giza. We toured Charles Dickens' house which was a little bit of a let down. They are currently remodeling it in anticipation of the 2012 Olympics.

We ate dinner tonight at Jamie Oliver's restaurant, 'Jamie's Italian'. We have been watching his show, 'Food Revolution' and decided to try it out. The food was delicious. Fresh food, of course. That is his mantra. The restaurant is in the Canary Wharf district which is primarily commercial. We felt like locals, eating with people just getting off from work and meeting for drinks and dinner. It was nice to get that type of perspective.

Tomorrow we have tickets to Wicked and I am pumped. I cannot wait to see it. We plan on seeing the London Eye tomorrow. Jury is still out on weather John will be able to actually get me to go up.

London so far has been fantastic and we are thoroughly enjoying our time here. The people seem to have such a fun-loving, adventurous spirit.

More later.

All Aboard

I've decided to make use of the free wi-fi on board the train. We are currently on board a train from Amsterdam to Brussels. From Brussels we'll hop on the Eurostar to travel underneath the Chunnel to get to London.

I cannot rave enough about the European train system. So far it has been more timely than any other form of transportation I have taken. Our tickets had a departure time of 11:16 and we pulled out of the station at 11:16. Amazing. We are getting to enjoy the luxuries of first class on this trip from Amsterdam to London. I feel quite pampered. I think I could get used to this. If only Euros grew on trees, right?

John and I are planning our 'to-do' list for London and it is becoming a little daunting. I have decided this is due to our familarity with British history and lack thereof of French history. I'm sure there is so much more that we could have seen in Paris that we just did not know about or did not even recognize as important. I will have to brush up before going back to France again so as not to fullfill the sterotype of 'ignorant American.'

That's all for now. We are getting close to Brussels. We will be in London soon. I am brushing up on my jokes and have every intention of making the guard at Buckingham Palace laugh. How can he resist my jokes? I'm sure anyone that has heard my jokes, including my coworkers if they are reading, are laughing just thinking about it. (What do you call a cow with no legs? Ground beef)


Cheers!

Paris to Amsterdam

All is well on the European front. We finished up our time in Paris yesterday and are now in Amsterdam. Yesterday we went to Montmartre which is a funky little neighborhood in the 18th district and is currently the 'it' scene for trendy artists and musicians. We were there early in the morning so it wasn't very lively, but you were able to get the feel nonetheless. Montmartre is home to Moulin Rouge and also Sacre-Coeur which is the second-highest point in Paris next to the Eiffel Tower. We were able to see Sacre-Coeur but not Moulin Rouge. Sacre-Coeur is a beautiful white-washed cathederal that boasts a pretty impressive dome at the top. It is still used for services today.

We also were able to go to the Louve. We were able to see the standards, the Mona Lisa (and yes, she does stare at you from every angle, creepy really), armless Aphrodite and the original headless Samothrace or Nike. It was also neat to see the original moat the runs underneath the Louve from it's original days as a working castle. The architecture of the Louve itself is really something. There are grand murals scrolled on the ceiling domes that evoke a sense of the Sistine Chapel. At times, the history and architecture of the Louve overshadowed the works inside. After we finished at the Louve we strolled through the Jardin des Tuileries or Garden of Tulips. There were surprisingly few tulips though. We the took a quick look through the Musse d O'rsay which houses a large number of the Impressionist paintings including a traveling Van Gough exhibit that we were able to catch. Finally, we went to the top of the Eiffel Tower and were able to get some great photos. Or, I should say, John was able to get some great photos. I pretty much stood back and gripped the railing.

This morning we took the train from Paris to Amsterdam. Train travel is the way to go. It is a shame that Eisenhower's interstate system took off the way it did in the US. Train travel is much more efficient and comfortable. Definitely a note we should take from the Europeans.

Amsterdam is wonderful. Such a picturesque town that feels more like a quaint village at times than the major metropolitan city that it is. Much of the architecture is reminiscent of what is seen in the US, both old and new. Many of the brownstone buildings that you would see in Brooklyn are modeled after the homes in Amsterdam and the modern architecture that many major cities are adopting began with the Dutch. The feel of the city itself reminded me a lot more of home. We took a canal tour through all of the major water ways and bridges which was fun but seemed more like a tourist trap than anything. We are lunch at a local pub and had of course Heineken and toasted cheese sandwiches which is apparently a staple around here. We toured the Anne Frank museum where her and her family were hidden for so many years. The exhibit was powerful and they have done a tasteful job with the conveyance of the message. We just got home from dinner at a wonderful Italian restaurant called 'Incanto'. The food was delicious. I had a chickpea and pumpkin (which, by the way, was spelled 'pumpkin', not 'pomkin') lasagna.

The people of Amsterdam are really quite amazing. I am so impressed with the number of languages that are spoken. Not only do the speak Dutch which seems to sound like a beautiful mixture of French and German, most of the natives also speak one or more other languages as well. Everyone that we have met has been able to speak near perfect English and has had no problem conversing with us. Some of them I think speak better English than I do at times. I wish we had more than a day in Amsterdam.

If there is one thing that I have learned so far during this journey and the more and more I travel is that people seem to have more commonalities than differences. I only wish that we were able to focus on these similarities more. I think with a little more understanding, the world could be much more unified.

Tomorrow we take on London and all she has to offer. Time is running out and our trip is nearly half over. There is so much left I would like to see. I guess there always needs a reason to come back later.

Lost in Transit...literally.

Well today brought new meaning to the blog title 'Lost in Transit.' The second mishap of our trip occured when I hopped on the wrong train while trying to go to Versailles. I stepped on, realized it was the wrong train, and then the doors closed. It was just like a scene out of a movie as John was on the other side of the train doors frantically trying to make them somehow open. All of this unfolding in slow motion. A native woman was kind enough to help John find me and eventually we met up at the next stop and then on to Versailles.

Versailles was beautiful. It makes the White House look like a shack. Louis really knew how to live it up, let me tell you. We lucked out while waiting in line for tickets. We were able to join one of the last guided tours of the day and were able to skip the line and go straight to the front. The tour included a viewing of the place opera house and the King's private chambers. We were also able to take in the chateau's gardens, complete with a musical fountain show.

We were also able to take in a little of the town of Versailles and stumbed across a few neat boutique shops. We walked the historic streets while sipping Starbucks coffee. I could not help but laugh at the irony. Let me tell you, a tall, nonfat vanilla latte is not easy to order in French but I managed thanks to the help of another employee. So far, the people we have encountered have been nothing but gracious and more than willing to help. Thank goodness!

We ate dinner at a modern French restaurant called 'Jamin.' The food was excellent. I am making progress and actually recieved what I thought I was ordering this time. Which, just so happened to be scallops. I did however feel a little ignorant when I asked the waiter what the 'pompkin' soup was that was translated on the menu. He replied, 'you know, like halloween' and I knew we were talking about 'pumpkin' soup. Laughter ensued and much ribbing from John. We ended the meal with pineapple tiramisu and carmalized clemtines with blood orange sorbet. Delightful! I'm usually not a dessert person but France just might change that.

After dinner we strolled along the Seine and were able to get some stellar pictures of the Eiffel Tower at night. Tomorrow we plan on trying to fit in the Louve, Musee d O'rsay and Montmartre . I am exhausted just thinking about it.

Bon Nuit.

Scallops or Vegetables?

I am happy to report that John and I have successfully made it to the continent of Europe. It was not, however without or fair share of mishaps. The trip began with a two hour delay due to a 'mechanical issue' that was found while inspecting the plane for volcanic ash. Good 'ol volcano still manages to haunt us. They ended up changing planes and all was well.

We arrived to a picturesque Paris day. I don't think we could have asked for better weather. Our taxi driver from the airport to the hotel (operating a Benz I might add) was the epitome of delightful. There was banter back and forth, mostly from his end as he ribbed us for being too lazy to learn French.

The first casualty of the language barrier occured today at lunch when I ordered what I thought was a vegetable sandwich and received scallops and steak instead. Oops. Quite a difference. The look on my face must have been priceless, or at least that's what John says. I suppose no trip to a foreign county would be complete without a blunder such as mine. John sure is enjoying giving me a hard time about it though.

We covered a lot of ground today. We visited the eiffel tower briefly. The line to actually go up is ridiculous so we decided to try another day. We also went to Notre Dame. I did not realize that it is still an active church. The detaling inside is incredible. The stain glass alone is really something to see. From Notre Dame we walked a few blocks to the Jadin du Luxemberg which is a public park that borders that Latin Quarter and St Germain. Today it was packed to the brim, overflowing with families, couples, students who were out to enjoy the nice weather. The landscaping is beautiful. Cookie cutter trees, tulips in vibrant hues of yellow, orange and violet and a large fountain in the middle. Children can actually rent miniture sail boats and race them in the fountain. It was quite a site. John and I strolled the gardens and snacked on some tiramisu gelato from a local vendor. Finally, we ended the day with the Arc de Triomphe. We hoofed it all the way to the top. The view was worth it though. We got there at sunset so the city was beautifully lit with a dim red.

Paris is amazing. I will leave it at that for now. We have been up for almost a day and a half so I'm not sure that any of this will make sense when I read it tomorrow. For now I will say good night as I listen to light murmers of French conversation below me, dishes clanking as folks enjoy evening coffee and enjoy the cool, light breeze as it lofts through the open windows of the hotel room.

More later.

Bonsoir.

And the adventure begins...maybe.

Life has a funny way of throwing you a curveball every now and then. We are t-minus 2 days until our trip is set to begin and things are still very much up in the air. I have been watching the airways like a hawk for the past several days hoping that Iceland's own Eyjafjallajokull (which by the way, has an unusually improportionate number of consonants) would not affect our travels. John and I have been looking forward to our trip to Europe for months and we were more than bummed when nature decided last week that she had different plans. When air travel had still not resumed in Europe on Monday, we seriously considered scratching plans altogether. But, nonetheless we have decided to take our chances, volcano be damned.

This will be our (only) way of keeping in touch while we are overseas (hopefully). We won't even have cell phone access. John is, by the way, beginning the blackberry detox process early so as to suffer minimal sideffects.

We hope you enjoy and are able to share in our experience. Our journey (volcano willing) will take us first to Paris, then to Amsterdam and finally to London. Hopefully there will be some stories worth sharing along the way.

Cheers!