680, 5, 152, 99, 58, 15...

Let me start off by saying that despite a statement in my previous post to the contrary, I've done a little bit of traveling in the past year and a half. I went to San Antonio twice - once in December 2009 and then again in January 2010. Went to Big Sur in early July 2010 (or was it the end of June?), moved to Middle Georgia in August, went to North Carolina and DC area end of August, visited Savannah with my parents in October, had Thanksgiving in NJ and visited Philly the same trip, back to DC area for Christmas, and then back to California for a visit in early March! I guess I have plenty of fodder for posts, just need to get back in the habit.

Also, I feel like this post is going to need lots of back-story and therefore might not be the most fluid writing in the world. Perhaps exacerbated by being a bit rusty in my blog-writing.... So, here goes.

I have a two door car that I leased almost three years ago, before I realized I would be a suburban mom living in Warner Robins, GA before my lease was up. The car is great, I love it (2008 VW Rabbit) but it is true that it is a bit easier to transport a baby around in a car with more than two doors. My mother-in-law had an extra vehicle, and she offered the van to Chris and me. It was very kind and generous of her (she is a very kind and generous lady) and we accepted. Now the issue was, how to get it to Georgia? We started brainstorming about this a few months ago and toyed with different options, finally settling on the idea of both Chris and I flying back to California for a visit (with baby, too, of course - we'd probably be blacklisted if we came back without William. No one wants to see us anymore now that we have an adorable baby.) and then Chris and I would drive together to Vegas (where Marush, Jason, Syd and my mother were going to be for a vacation and we could stay and visit with them for a few days), then I would fly back with William to Georgia and Chris would drive the rest of the way. Yes, I took the easy route (not that flying by yourself with a 9-month old is really "easy") but my justification was that it would be better for William, that I couldn't miss too much work, and blah blah whatever other excuses I could come up with not to have to drive. It took a while to agree on it all and iron out the details (as anyone who has been around Chris and me for an extended period of time can imagine) but it was finally set!

Bellagio fountains at dusk on Tuesday, our last night in Las Vegas.

And then... plans changed. I am not known for always being the most flexible, accommodating person. I usually come around in the end, but tend to get upset when plans first change. Yes, it is something I could work on, especially now that my husband is in the military and I have a baby. In the end, after more negotiating, bargaining and finally an agreement, it was decided that we would drive together the whole way. I love adventures and traveling and any excuse to go anywhere, but this time I wasn't so sure (hence why I didn't agree to do the drive in the first round of negotiations months ago). We weren't going to have a lot of leisure time to stop along the way and sight-see and we have a fidgeting, energetic baby who would not want to be cooped up in a carseat for hours on end each day. In the end though, I was glad to get to spend the time with Chris and William and we did have a good time and managed to fit in a smidgen of sight-seeing.

And now back to the title of this post. For those that aren't highway geeks, the title is the route we took that first day from Pleasant Hill, CA to Las Vegas, NV, specifically the Interstate and route numbers. That first day, Sunday, was long (second longest of the whole trip in terms of mileage) and unforeseen events meant that we left a few hours later than intended and didn't get to the hotel until after 11pm, which definitely wasn't ideal. Even so, the drive was nice because I love seeing California, even if we didn't go through the most picturesque areas. My mom was with us (she joined us for the drive to Vegas and then was going to fly back at the end of the week), which was a huge help. I did get a bit tired of hearing "Patty-cake," though. Even though we got in late, once we got up to our room and settled, William decided that he didn't want to sleep. We learned how to combat this later on in the trip, but that first night it took a lot more effort to get him to go to sleep than it normally does, which didn't help the slightly frayed nerves from the long drive.

Sydny at the MGM Grand Lion Habitat on Monday (left) and her response to the question "what sound does a lion make?"(below)

We stayed in Vegas for all of Monday and all of Tuesday (to rest and recuperate before venturing back into the car for four more days of driving!) and did a fair amount of walking around, a bit of swimming, a lot of eating, and of course taking pictures. It was a nice break in the trip and I wish we could have stayed longer to spend more time with family.

Cross Country, Number III

Tomorrow I will complete my third drive across the U.S., my first time west to east. We are staying in Brinkley, Arkansas tonight, and will make our way through Memphis (with a stop to visit Graceland!), Birmingham, Atlanta, and then home to Warner Robins.

This drive has been easier yet also more difficult than past ones. Easier because this time there is not one person doing the majority of the driving (Trip I from Philly to Berkeley in 2004 I drove to Albuquerque by myself and then met my dad there and we did the rest of the drive together, visiting a bunch of national parks along the way. Trip II in 2006 from Boston to Oakland, my sister drove the whole way since I wasn't old enough to drive the rental car). More difficult because we are driving across the country with a baby.

William and me before departing our second stop, in Moriarty, NM.

I want to create a graphic that illustrates our route (and maybe while I am at it I will be able to remember the '04 and '06 routes and do the same...) but that might be wishful thinking since I haven't even updated this blog in over a year and a half.

One can hope!

I haven't taken as many photos as I usually do, but I do have some good ones from Vegas, a few from Little Rock and hopefully will get
some good ones from Memphis, and will add a few of the best here with an expanded blog post that details a bit more of the trip.

Lassen

I was able to take a day off from work last Friday so that we could go up to Lassen (full name: Lassen Volcanic National Park... more info here). We picked up Chris's brother Bill in Sacramento on Thursday evening and made our way to Mineral, which is a cute little town outside of the main park (and I mean little - population 90).

We got in to Mineral around 11pm, perhaps a little later. Bill had made a reservation for the three of us at the Mineral Lodge, a quiet little place with no TVs or phones in the room. It looks like a fun hang-out spot - there was a patio and a bar and general store all within the lodge area, but we got in too late to explore any of it.

I have a new found fear of motels/lodges - they might be the cutest, quaintest establishment in the world (and this one was pretty quaint), but I am convinced Javier Bardem is going to appear and kill me and Tommy Lee Jones won't get there soon enough to protect me. So yeah, cute place, but I was glad I wasn't staying there alone!

Chris getting settled in at the campsite

The next morning we got up around 8am, had a big breakfast at the restaurant and then headed towards Lassen. Not a long drive from Mineral, so we were there plenty early to pick out one of the good campsites. After setting up the campsite (and dealing with some tent issues), exploring the visitor's center briefly and then loading up on sunscreen and water, we set out for the Brokeoff Mountain trail head. Our plan was to climb Lassen Peak, but upon our arrival into the park, we saw a sign saying that the Lassen Peak trail was closed indefinitely. We went to the visitor's center to get the scoop - quite a tragic bit of news - a young boy was climbing with his family and was killed in a rock slide. The trail was closed for an investigation into the incident.

On the trail.

We set out on the hike about 11 or so, a bit later than is ideal (in my opinion) for hikes, but luckily there were a lot of trees and shade - at least at first. The climb was steady uphill the whole way, over 2000 feet of elevation gain in 3.5 miles. Maybe a mile from the top Chris went out on his own (Bill and I are not exactly in the same league as him...) I hate getting passed by others, and luckily it only happened twice, even though I consider that two too many times in my book.

After finally making it to the top and resting for a bit, we headed back down. We found a nice little swimming hole on the way up, so we had that to look forward to, and I was so excited when we got there! We relaxed there for 10 minutes or so, and then made it the rest of the way down.

Chris and Bill at the top of Brokeoff Mountain. Lassen Peak is visible in the background.

Sunburned and thirsty (well, I might have been the only sunburned one, but we were all very parched! I thought we had brought enough water, five pretty big bottles between the three of us, but we were dehydrated, I guess) we made our way back to the campsite and drank lots and lots of water. Then, since it was still a few hours until nightfall, we drove around the park a bit. Laasen definitely seems like an under-appreciated national park. It is beautiful, lots of hike to go on and lakes to swim in. Bill talked about how it doesn't have those Yosemite-like dramatic items (Half Dome, El Capitan, waterfalls, etc) but it really grows on you. And Lassen Peak itself is quite dramatic. It is a volcano that erupted last in 1915 and now the mountain is barren. In the Tour de France the commentators always talk about this one mountain, Mt. Ventoux, and how it looks like "the closest thing to a moonscape on Earth," but I definitely think Lassen might give Ventoux a run for its money. Too bad we didn't get to climb it, even though I am sure I would've been even more sunburned since there are no trees (I re-applied SPF 30 twice! Not sure how I got so burned!)

Emerald Lake

I am an avid swimmer, as my family knows, and was raised with the belief that if there is a lake, no matter how cold, it should be swum. And Emerald Lake was pretty chilly. But a gorgeous lake nonetheless. Bill hung out on shore while Chris and I swam - it was a great way to relax after 5+ hours of hiking.

The next day, Bill and I were a little worse for wear, so Chris went on an hour long jog while Bill and I drank coffee and relaxed and commiserated about sore muscles. When Chris returned we headed out for some more exploring of the park. Since it was a Saturday, there were a lot more people streaming into the park (still not Yosemite crowds, but more than Friday). We considered our options of doing an easy hike, but it seemed like all the easy ones were crowded, so we settled on some more swimming (even colder lake!) in Lake Helen. This lake was amazingly clear - you could see all the way to the bottom and it was 20 or 30 feet down. Chris had snorkeling equipment, so I got to swim around and explore the lake. There isn't much in it, it is one of those alpine lakes devoid of a lot of living things, but it was still fun to be able to see so much of the lake.

Lake Helen with Lassen Peak in the background

After Lake Helen and some lunch, we decided to head towards Chico, where the plan was to possibly swim some more and then catch an early dinner at the Sierra Nevada Brewery and then head back home.

Chico is one of those cities that I've visited briefly many years ago but written off as a place not worth making a trek to again. It was actually a neat place to visit - but very hot! They have these great swimming areas - the main creek is dammed in a few places to create a natural swimming pool. Also, it is free and their are lifeguards, so it isn't just some rogue swimming hole. Bill, a wealth of information (and who went to college in Chico) said that Chico has one of the 25 largest city parks in the United States and most of the other cities in the top 25 are much bigger (Chico has a population of 60,000). Not sure I could deal with the heat up there, but any place that has free swimming in a great locale AND has the brewery of one of my favorite beers can't be too bad of a place to live.

After exploring Chico a bit and seeing where Bill used to live, we headed to the Sierra Nevada Brewery. We had just missed the last guided tour, but were able to walk around a bit to see some parts of the brewery. Then it was time to eat (and drink). Bill and I each got the beer sampler - small glasses/tastings of 15 beers. Chris was our driver, so he didn't get to imbibe. The beer was good, as always, but it was so hot outside and I was trying not to drink too quickly that by the time I got to my last few beers they were pretty warm. It was still tasty, though.

Our beer samplers

The patio of the brewery restaurant has these misters to keep you cool - I am sure it is common in hot areas of the country, but we don't have such things in the Bay Area. Chris and Bill were figuring that it is cheaper than air conditioning, and estimating the amount of water it uses in a minute, hour, day, etc. I was just enjoying the mist and the beer.


Misters... not even sure that is the proper name, but I will continue to call it that!

Then it was time for our journey home. While many people might think the drive from Chico to Sacramento is boring, I enjoyed it and had fun looking at the scenery. Chris and I dropped Bill off and then made our way back home, and I slept for over 12 hours (sore, tired, dehydrated, sunburned - that is my excuse). I was so glad we decided to come back Saturday night so I could catch up on the sleep I missed - I am a light sleeper anyway, but sleeping one night in a motel that I was sure I was going to be murdered in and then sleeping on the hard ground at 7,000 feet while being suffocated by other campers too smoky campfire doesnt make for very restful sleep...

I am a Spain

Wow, I am a "Mrs." now! Chris and me during the reception.

It might not have constituted traveling for me, but many guests of our wedding traveled to be there (from across the U.S. and a few from overseas). Also, my new last name is a location (but it means I revoked my membership to the Marcus first name/last name club, unfortunately) so for these reasons I decided my wedding fits within the constraints I have set up for this forum.

A few of my post-wedding musings:

I had a great time, but my memories of the day are fuzzy and seem almost surreal. (And no, not because of too much alcohol!) I wish I had a chance for rebuttals after the toasts (especially Kate's), but other than that, the day went as well as I could have hoped. Chris and I said many times that all we wanted was for people to have a good time - I know I did and I hope others did, too.

I tried my best to mingle and spend time with everyone, and the one person I barely got to spend any time with was Chris. Well, we have our whole lives, right? (Cheesy, I know). Another aspect of the wedding that I loved - spending time with friends and family. It was very weird to see so many people that I know and care about together in one place - all of these different facets of my life colliding! Weird, but wonderful.

So much attention on me! I don't mind attention (as many of you can attest), but I think if one more person told me that it was my "day," I would've slapped them. I like attention sometimes, but having people stare at me because I was in a white dress - not the type of attention I like, I discovered. Also, what about the groom? Isn't it his day, too? Way too much focus on brides, in my opinion.

And now on to the visuals. Below are some photos of the wedding that I enjoy and a bit of text to go with them.

We (bridesmaids plus a few friends, my Mom and me) got to the church early and were stashed away in the childcare room. I think this photo is really cute and sums up our sitting and waiting...

Our florist was amazing and I loved my bouquet so much! I feel like there was so much to appreciate about the wedding in general that I barely noticed the flowers, but they were gorgeous.



As I was walking down the aisle with my parents, we saw my sister Marushka at the altar with Sydny in her arms and Marushka's bright green dress and the vibrant bouquet, and my mom whispers to me "Your sister looks like a fertility goddess." And that she did. Here is a photo of Marushka, aka the fertility goddess (with Chris' eldest brother, David).






The ceremony was pretty much a blur. I remember trying not to fidget, thinking my chair was extremely uncomfortable, and trying to ignore Kate and Marush who were making faces at me. I also remember waving at a few people in the pews, and scanning the crowd and having a lot of fun recognizing faces that I hadn't yet seen since I didn't get to mingle before the wedding! I don't have a photo of the point in the ceremony when Chris pulls out his wallet and I get a quizzical look on my face (that is where he put his vows). Also, no photo of me (accidentally) ripping my vows in half.

I like this one because we are all doing something different and obviously oblivious to the cameras at this point. I am a fan of more relaxed, natural photos. Also, for any fans of vexillology we are the flag of Sierra Leone (except Marush and mom should switch spots to be completely accurate)! Even though at the time I got it mixed up with Estonia's flag and wrongly said we matched those colors. A photo with my dad in his dark suit would've made us more in the Estonian color scheme. I am a nerd, I know.

Perhaps a little more aware of the cameras at this point. Still a nice photo, but not as fun as the first one.





A bit more of a relaxed bridesmaids photo. Kate, what is so interesting up there? And what is everyone else laughing about?


During the toasts. Pretty flowers! The room had great natural light.








Chris in his new running vest. I won't have to worry at night any longer. Also, look how red my hair is - crazy.




Love this one of Ruth and me.











I am a big fan of photos like this of Chris - I suppose some might think he looks angry, but he is being goofy. I have many of these. And I am sure there will be many more to come.

Thanks to Ruth, Ellie, Tracy and Heather for the wedding photos!

Praha + family

Coming back to Prague is always interesting, because it has changed so much since the first time I came (not that I remember much about that trip. I was four). The first memories I really have of Prague are in the 1989 - 1993 period. They have kind of all meshed together, so I can't differentiate which memory is from what year. But I do remember Prague having massively less tourists, not being so clean and polished, and things not being nearly as expensive! I suppose it would be good to have more developed ideas and statements about what is different here - maybe if I ever go back to grad school I can write a thesis on it.

Watching the crowds watch the clock in Old Town Square.

The expense is the first thing that jumps out at me every trip. Food, beer and sites! It used to be free to visit the castle, but now it is 350 crowns to see six sites in the castle. Every time we came back to my family's apartment after a day of sightseeing, we would tell them where we went and they'd ask how much it cost, and the reaction was always the same - "so expensive!" or "they charge for that?" (that was the reaction when I said it only cost 30 crowns to go see Emauzy).

The spires of Emauzy with a Prague tram stop in front.

This is the first time in several visits to Prague where I have done extensive sightseeing, mainly because Chris has never been here before. Usually on my trips I stick to a few things (free things - walking through the castle area, wandering on the streets of Prague, Charles Bridge, Old Town Square, and maybe I'll pay to go see exhibitions that are on while I am here. I guess I am only a cheapskate while traveling!) so maybe they have been charging this much for several years, I just don't know. When I told my dad how much it cost, he said that we should pretend we are Czech and we'd get it for cheaper (reminiscent of when we'd go to museums with my dad here 20 or so years ago and he'd tell us not to speak English or they'd charge us more money. Not sure how that worked - maybe the costs weren't posted and they'd charge you more if you spoke English). Unfortunately, I don't think it works like that now, and Czechs get charged the same price as people from anywhere else.

Chris (far left) rock climbing. No waivers or classes for the inexperienced required. Just "here are your shoes" and go!

I like to come to Prague not just because it is a beautiful city, but also (probably primarily, actually) to see family. So in addition to seeing Prague, Chris has also now met almost my entire dad's family. Earlier in the week, my cousin Honzik took us indoor rock climbing. I watched, but Chris climbed. It is funny - we belong to a climbing gym at home, but neither Chris nor I have ever rock climbed. (obviously the gym has other great amenities, or what would be the point for us?) We've also spent a good deal of time with my 91 year old grandmother, in between sightseeing expeditions. In the evenings we see my aunt and uncle and my aunt has cook some great traditional Czech food for us. Chris got to try strawberry fruit dumplings - still one of my very favorite foods even though I don't have it often. It is fruit wrapped in dough, then sprinkled with butter, a sort of cream cheese (we don't have it in the U.S. It is called "tvaroh") and sugar. When I was little it was by far my favorite Czech meal - what kid wouldn't love that for lunch or dinner?

A participant in the baby boom - Stella (one of my cousin Zuzana's three children).

My uncle (my dad's brother) is at the head of a family with its very own baby boom. We went to see them last night (they live in the countryside outside of Prague) - it is like being at a daycare center! Six children under the age of four, and one due at the end of May. Marushka and I will have to get to work if we are going to beat them (They have an advantage because there are three girls, not just two). This means that when my sister's baby comes (in a week!!) and my cousin Marketa has her second child, my grandmother will have eight great grandchildren.

Today is our last day in Prague. Tomorrow morning we head to Paris, and at this time next week I will have already been back at work for two days. I am excited for Paris, but am always sad to leave Prague.We haven't planned much for our last day here - we are meeting my cousin Janina and her husband for dinner and hopefully I will get to see a few more cousins to say goodbye. Every time I leave Prague (at least the last few times I have visited) my grandmother always says that this will be the last time I will see her because she will be dead before I come back again. This made me a bit depressed the first time she told me, but now I am not sure I believe her anymore. Obviously we all die sometime (and someone who is 91 might be a bit closer than someone at 27, but you never know...) but I think (and hope!) that it will not be the case and that next time I am here she will be, too.

Prague (and the castle in the distance) from Vyšehrad.











Kavárna Slavia (one of my mom's favorites in Prague) at night.

The hills are alive...

A stereotypical belief as to why Americans (and other nationalities, too) visit Salzburg is that they are avid "The Sound of Music" fans. I have seen the film a few times and I like it well enough, but it was not my reason for visiting. When researching Salzburg before our trip, I noticed that a lot of the travel info talked about "Sound of Music" tours, locations, etc. But then I came across this website which is possibly a bit more accurate.

They claim that natives of Salzburg only know the movie if they work with tourists and if they do know it, they hate it because it distorts Austrian history. Whether or not this is completely true (there are NO Austrians who might possibly like the movie?) I appreciated having the information. Not that I was going to venture on a "Sound of Music" tour or anything, but it helped me see behind the mask of what people will do for tourism money (advertisements for these tours are all over! Why sell out if you hate the film?)

While at the Salzburg Fortress (Festung Hohensalzburg) and enjoying a beer and a gorgeous view of Salzburg and the surrounding mountains, Chris and I overheard two American couples who had just met extolling the wonders of the "Sound of Music" tours that each of them had gone on - I listened in with a smirk and though "silly tourists." But the more I think about it, just because the natives might think tourists are stupid for enjoying the film and think they are making an easy buck (or euro), if the visitors enjoy it, why not? Of course it isn't good if it distorts history, but I am sure that could be cleared up on the tour. So upon further reflection, I thought that maybe I am too cynical, and I whether I like it or not, I am a tourist, too!

There is a lot to do in Salzburg besides obsess about "The Sound of Music," but Chris and I only had a day to explore. We arrived around noon on Friday on a flight from London. There is an easy bus connection into the city from the airport, so we hopped on that. Once at the train station we decided to leave our suitcases in a locker, since we would only be staying one night and didn't want to haul them around. It ended up being a good decision, because, while the walk to the place where we were staying was very nice, we got a little bit turned around, and it wouldn't have been quite so nice with two big bags in tow.

Salzburg is gorgeous and we got to walk along the river and through the old town (Altstadt) to our guesthouse. We were lucky to find a very reasonably-priced place to stay in Altstadt and I would highly reccommend it to anyone travelling to Salzburg - Gasthaus Hinterbruhl.

Our room

After settling in and a fun conversation with the patroness (she knew no English and my German is extremely limited. I do know how to say "room" though!) we headed up to our room. It was very cute and welcoming. We tried to resist the lure of a nap (we got up very early to get our flight to Salzburg) but the nap won. A few hours later we set out to explore the city. We saw the Cathedral (Salzburger Dom) and wandered around the streets of old town, and then settled down to rest by the Salzach river for a bit. It was a gorgeous day and many tourists and residents alike were resting by the river.

The view from our room (ignore the cars - beyond is the Salzburger Dom).

While resting, Chris decided to walk a bit along the banks (he called the Salzach a "real river." I guess the Thames didn't impress him much. True, though, the Salzach had a really fast moving current and was very nice-looking. I could see why one would think it superior to other rivers). While sitting there and snapping away some photos, a very drunk guy (maybe 17) came over to talk to me. He started in German, but (even though I am loathe to admit I don't know something) I told him I didn't know German so he switched to English. He asked why I was taking pictures, and said Salzburg is very boring, and he reeked of alcohol. I wasn't sure what his M.O. was, but either way I was not so keen on talking to him. He finally got the pictured and ventured off to talk to another tourist, and he and his friends finally sat down nearby with a group of girls who had a hookah.

I kind of see his point, though. If you were a kid growing up in Salzburg it might not be the most eventful place in the world. It is the fourth-largest city in Austria, but still, the population is only 200,000 or so. And it isn't like it is a city with other big cities nearby, like in the Bay Area. The city has several universities and I am not sure about industry there, but it seems to rely a lot on tourism. Probably not a lot there that a teenager really wants to do. So I guess they get drunk and sit by the river and smoke and talk to tourists. They also throw their empty beer bottles into the river.

The river, and the old town in the background.

After resting for a bit and enjoying the nice weather, we went in search of dinner. I had found a good recommendation for a place to eat that was a bit off the beaten path and therefore not overpriced and overrun with tourists. We found the place eventually and enjoyed a great meal of schnitzel and potatoes (and Stiegl, of course, the local beer).

We had a very content walk back to our room after our delicious meal. We were both still a bit tired, but since it was our only night in Salzburg, we thought maybe we should stay out and explore, or get another drink at a beer garden. We decided to go back and then possibly venture out again. Well, as soon as we got back to our room it started pouring rain (with no warning!) so I was very happy with our decision.

The Salzach and Salzburg at dusk.

Miles of walking

Wednesday was a day of walking. In the end, we walked about seven miles, not counting ambling around the Tate Modern and the Tower of London. When I write it out, it doesn't seem like a lot - plenty of people run more than that for exercise in an hour, but over the course of the whole day and while wandering around, it can do quite a number on your feet.

We walked from our hotel to Piccadilly Circus and Trafalgar Square, and from there along the Victoria Embankment to the Tate Modern. We thought a walk along the river would be nice, but between the exhaust from the cars and buses on the busy road and the exhaust from the ships on the river, it wasn't the most enjoyable, at least for breathing. Very picturesque if you didn't have to inhale.

The cafe in the Tate Modern.
Once we arrived at the Tate Modern it had been a while since breakfast, so we enjoyed a mid-morning snack in the cafe. It has a nice view of the Thames and I think the decor is done well (all of the Tate Modern is amazing in my mind - it can do no wrong). After "elevenses" (which I believe we actually had at 10:30am) we explored the museum.

The Tate is free, but there are certain exhibitions that you have to pay for - we decided to skip those two but we saw every other piece of art in that museum. After several hours of meandering through the museum, we went to the bar and restaurant on the top floor and each enjoyed a beverage.

The view from the Tate Modern bar.

After the Tate, we walked across the Millennium footbridge to get to St. Paul's Cathedral, which we explored for a bit. From there, we made our way to the Tower of London and spent a lot of time there. As with the Tate Modern, we saw everything we could: the crown jewels, the special exhibit on Henry VIII, the White Tower (the original "Tower" started by William the Conqueror in 1078) and many of the other towers (Bloody, Wakefield, etc).

The view from the Tate bar reflected in my wine.

A common discussion Chris and I have when visiting different sites is how they choose to present these places for the visitors (I believe the technical name for this is "heritage interpretation" - I learned about it when volunteering at the Eugene O'Neill National Historic Site and was actually given a free copy of Freeman Tilden's Interpreting Our Heritage. Never got around to reading it, though...) I think the Tower of London is a great historic site and as a European history buff, I really enjoyed visiting, but at times it seemed like the way they set up the site was a bit cheesy. I suppose it is aimed a bit toward children who are force-marched through by their parents, but I felt like it detracted a bit from the historical significance of the place.

Thursday was our final day in London and we had a few things left that we really wanted to do. London is a tough city to see in such a short period of time, but since we have both been there before there were some sites we skipped.

Chris in Hyde Park.

We started our last day by walking a few miles through Hyde Park on our way to the British Library. Once at the British Library (great website, by the way: http://www.bl.uk/), we got to see a few things that might interest someone who has described themselves as a European history buff: a Gutenberg Bible, the Magna Carta, pages from DaVinci's notebook, the Codex Sinaiticus, a lot of Shakespeare, and so on and so forth. I knew the Magna Carta was there and that was my main reason for wanting to visit, but I was very excited to see many other very important and unique documents. I got to see Jane Austen and Sylvia Plath's handwriting (Jane Austen's draft of Persuasion was there, a book I love and have read several times - I have also seen three movie/TV versions of it! Sylvia Plath's draft of Insomniac was exhibited - she had very unique/distinct handwriting. It made me think about handwriting as personality evaluation, and her life and how she met her end).

In addition to having a great collection, the British Library is a very nice building. I didn't find the outside too spectacular, but I thought the interior was very nice. Prince Charles, however, is not a fan (or of modern architecture in general). He said the reading room looks like a secret police academy. (what does that even mean?)

Chris and his beer at lunch.

After the British Library, lunch and then a brief reprieve from sightseeing, we headed to the London Eye. Earlier the previous day, I had commented while crossing the Millennium footbridge that my mom probably wouldn't like walking across it. This has sort of become a theme in the trip, where either Chris or I will say "Mom wouldn't like this" (except she isn't Chris' mother, so to be precise he would say "your mom wouldn't like this"). Well, Mom, you REALLY wouldn't like being on the London Eye. It was quite a spectacular view and I (of course) took many photos during our "flight."

London Eye

When we got off the London Eye, we headed to meet a family friend, Sam, and his girlfriend Lucy. We had a few beers, then realized we were quite hungry, so the four of us headed in search of food. We somehow ended up at the "Loco Mexicano." Chris and I probably eat Mexican food about four times a week, so this was kind of an interesting prospect- Mexican food much further from Mexico than normal for us. And ok, I'll admit, Mexican food in Berkeley may not be 100% authentic, but it is pretty darn good. Maybe it was the several beers, but I thought the food was ok. Chris wasn't as kind, but either way, we got fed. It was a fun evening regardless of if the food was the best it could be.

Sam and Lucy at the "Loco Mexicano."

Westminster Abbey and Parliament

The plan for Tuesday was to arrive at the hotel, leave our bags, go sightseeing, and come back in the afternoon to check in. When we got to the hotel they said our room was ready since it was empty the night before. Pretty dangerous, since we were both very tired and I was afraid I might give in to the temptation to nap. But that would go against my father's mandate that the only way to get over jet lag is to stay up until a "normal" bedtime in that time zone. So Chris and I decided on 8pm. I am not sure when the last time I went to sleep at 8pm was, but I it is a normal bedtime for some, and it was going to be tough enough to make it to that time (and I'll spoil things a bit for you - we did not make it).

So after we left the room, we went to find breakfast. On top of being tired, we were both very hungry, and we had to last for 11 hours before we could sleep. I am glad we didn't have to interact much with other people, because neither of us were that much fun to be around - especially a few hours later after 4+ miles of walking. We each ate a hearty breakfast which definitely made me feel better, at least for a while. Then we walked to Buckingham Palace, which is a little less than a mile from our hotel. From Buckingham Palace we walked down the Mall and through St. James's Park to Whitehall and to see 10 Downing Street.

While at Buckingham Palace, Chris pointed out that their is not as much security as you'd think there would be to guard the Queen. I can see his point, even though I said that there is probably a lot of security that you can't see, too. He said that at the White House, or in the U.S. in general, the security is much more "in your face." I definitely agree on that point.

10 Downing, and actually all of Downing Street, is much more guarded than Buckingham Palace - I guess the Prime Minister has more enemies than the Queen! (I'd like to think that it isn't because he is more important).

Downing Street, completely locked down, with tourists peering in from Whitehall.

After Downing Street, we walked down Whitehall to Westminster Abbey and the Palace of Westminster (Parliament). Parliament was not yet open to the public for the day (we couldn't believe it was only 10am!). We were told that they open at 1:30pm, but we'd probably be standing in line for an hour. That did not sound appealing to me at all. Luckily, Chris agreed. They told us that Parliament would be in session until 10pm that night, so if we wanted to come back in the evening, at around 8, it probably wouldn't be crowded and we could go right in. This is when the nap concept really came to the forefront. We knew we would need sleep if we wanted to visit Parliament at 8pm. So we discussed sightseeing for a few more hours and then maybe going back and napping and going back out at 8pm to see Parliament. Then reality set in, we knew that if we went to sleep we wouldn't want to get back up to venture out again. I said that I would, but Chris said he didn't think I would.

Westminster Abbey

We then walked across the street to Westminster Abbey and paid the 12 pounds to visit. Free audio tours are available. My reaction was "oh, that is nice, free!" and then realized I just paid about $18 to get in. The narrator of the audio guide was Jeremy Irons, and in general I thought it was a good thing to have while wandering about (the audio guide, not Jeremy Irons' voice).

I don't remember visiting Westminster Abbey before, at least not in my more recent trips to London. The audio guide was useful - I like to learn about the place I am visiting but am not a big fan of guided tours because I like to go at my own pace.

I kept noticing these tacky flower arrangements all over the Abbey, and was trying to figure out why they'd have decorations like that everywhere. Occasionally I saw an arrangement that wasn't so bad, but most of the time I didn't think very highly of the decorations. Eventually, I started to see people actually arranging flowers in some restricted areas of the Abbey, which seemed odd. Turns out, there is a flower arranging competition and the different competitors were setting up their areas. I wondered how they could afford to have all these fresh flowers brought in on a regular basis.

Once an hour Westminster Abbey holds a moment of prayer. After the moment of prayer (which is done via loudspeaker) it was announced that a few visitors could enter the Shrine of Edward the Confessor, which is closed to the public, but they have a once daily service in the shrine. Chris and I happened to be standing right next to the stairs leading the the Shrine, so we got to be one of perhaps eight or 10 visitors to the Abbey that got to enter the Shrine that day. We were told that it is one of the most sacred parts of the Abbey, and is the reason the Abbey as it exists today was built. We got to kneel in the original niches where pilgrims who were ill used to come through the centuries to pray for a cure.

After the Shrine, we continued on through the Abbey and saw the graves of Elizabeth I and her half-sister Mary (they are buried together, even though only a likeness of Elizabeth is present). There is also the spot where Oliver Cromwell was buried (he was dug up and "posthumously executed" when the monarchy was restored in England). Many others of importance are buried in the Abbey. While in Poet's Corner I was walking around looking at all the monuments and busts and engravings for those who are buried or memorialized there, and looked down and realized I was standing on the grave of Robert Adam, the Scottish architect I wrote a 20 page term paper on in my "18th Century Britain" history class my senior year at Penn.

We did a lot of walking/wandering through the Abbey and finally made it to the College Garden, which is only open three days a week. It was a very peaceful spot to sit and relax. It was also one of the few places in the Abbey where you could take photos.

In the College Gardens (do I look tired??)

After the Abbey and some food, we decided to head back to the hotel and nap since we were both pretty exhausted. The nap turned into a bit of a marathon nap (or maybe, just sleep - I think anything over a few hours might not be considered a nap anymore). I woke up at 7:30pm and decided to be stubborn and go to Parliament. Chris declined, and kept sleeping. Basically, my stubbornness won out over my tiredness. It was a great time for photos, too, so I got some good shots of the Palace of Westminster and the surrounding area.

The London Eye and County Hall, from the Westminster Bridge.

There was no line to get into Parliament, and I was able to see both the House of Commons and the House of Lords. I even got to see a vote in the House of Commons! The outside of the Palace is breathtaking, as is the main hall, but the House of Commons itself was nothing spectacular, and pretty small, too. The House of Lords was much more ornate but still small. It was more interesting to see the Parliament in session than the building itself, anyway. I asked one of the House of Commons Doorkeepers to tell me about the voting system, since it wasn't in any of the information I got while there. He told me that the MPs go stand in a lobby designated for whichever side they are voting and are manually counted. First they do a "voice vote" though, and I guess the speaker decides if it is close and then they have the "division" vote (what I described above). I heard several voice votes - one in which there were no "nays," therefore a division was not necessary. It was interesting to hear the voice votes, because they shout there "ayes" or "nays" which I assume stems from the fact that the presiding officer announces the result of the voice vote, and only then, if the voice vote is unclear or if there is a challenge, then a division follows. So I assume the shouting comes from trying to make it sound like either side of the vote is louder so they can win the vote without a division. I assume though, that anytime it is close they do a division, but I don't know that for certain (it seems like it would make sense, though!)

For additional photos of our trip to London so far, click here.

En route

Work was not exactly a walk in the park last week, which made me even more excited to get away. Life was made a bit more stressful by what I would call the "Passport Fiasco of 2009," but so as not to embarrass anyone, I will not go into more details. The important thing is, both Chris and I have current passports (not sure if the Fiasco of 2002 was worse or better than this one... but I am pretty sure I'd like to be done with them altogether).

My eight and a half month pregnant sister was kind enough to drive us to the airport (was it in bad form to ask Marush to drive us? It isn't like I asked her to pick us up at the airport - we arrive home the day after her due date!) I realized on the way that I was not so comfortable with the whole situation, and I would prefer if Marush stays off the freeways until the baby is born! She is a wonderful driver, but there are a lot of crazy ones out there, and I was channeling my mom by grabbing onto the passenger side door handle every time brake lights came on ahead of us.

The plane flight was uneventful, which is good. Chris and I were supposed to both have aisle seats, but instead I got a middle seat. Actually, I think my seat assignment was the aisle but I gave it to him. I am so kind. I watched three movies on the plane, and during two of which I was crying pretty profusely - some silly kid fare - "Hotel for Dogs" and another dog movie, "Marley and Me." I always wonder what it must look/sound to someone else on the plane when there is a crier like me there. I have never noticed anyone else on planes who gets quite so emotional. I am sure it happens, but I just wonder what the reaction is from others. I should just not be allowed to watch movies.

We had a pretty good tail wind in addition to going with the jet stream, so the flight only took a little over nine hours instead of 10+. We had to circle around London for a bit though, so we ended up landing not too much ahead of what our landing time was supposed to be. I think that if a plane is going to be early, the pilot shouldn't tell the passengers. I was all excited that we were going to land an hour early and was then disappointed when we got there on time. If my expectation of landing early had not been set, I'd probably have been pleased that we were on time. You never know what is going to happen, so unless you are going to be late, why not just tell everyone the plane is scheduled to land on time? Or just tell everyone you are going to be an hour late and then close to landing say you made up for the delay with your wonderful piloting and are therefore now on time. That is what I would do if I was a pilot.

Getting travel-ready (or just restless)

The last time I traveled out of the country was January of 2008. I understand that to some that is not so long ago, especially for a jaunt overseas, but this is one of the longest stretches I have gone without visiting another country!

I won't deny that I am lucky my parents took my sister and me lots of trips growing up. Since then, though, it has turned into almost a requirement for me - I get restless and a serious case of wanderlust after long stretches of staying in the same place.

Therefore, I am very excited about my upcoming trip. So excited that even though I have nothing to report except the fact that I will be traveling in a week, I am writing about it on this blog that I created specifically for the purpose of keeping track of my travels. I apologize if this is boring you, I promise (or at least, greatly hope) that in the near future I will have more interesting items, photos, tidbits, and insights to share with those that have decided to grace me with their readership.

Until then, all I have to say is that I can't wait to get on that plane next Monday.