Excuse the quality of the picture (taken with my phone) and the fact that I have no make-up on.
My guess is the Christmas Jumper is going to become a tradition in the Harrop family :).
Friday 25 December 2009
My Christmas Jumper
For the last few weeks Rob has been teasing/taunting me with what he's bought me for Christmas. I like things to be surprises and therefore didn't want too many clues, so he limited it to 'a silly present, a nice present and an awesome present', something like that. This was the 'awesome' present:
Excuse the quality of the picture (taken with my phone) and the fact that I have no make-up on.
My guess is the Christmas Jumper is going to become a tradition in the Harrop family :).
Excuse the quality of the picture (taken with my phone) and the fact that I have no make-up on.
My guess is the Christmas Jumper is going to become a tradition in the Harrop family :).
Friday 27 November 2009
Hopalong - Again
I sprained my ankle at the gym this morning. The one I injured last year when I got knocked off my bike. Actually, I sprained it twice this morning: clearly I didn't do a good enough job the first time. I was doing walking lunges and felt my left ankle give way, so I stopped and told Sophie what had happened last year and that my left ankle in particular is now quite weak. We did other exercises then went on to step-ups. I started out with my right leg, then when Sophie asked me to change legs, I wondered if I should say that I didn't think my left ankle was strong enough to step off the box onto the floor - particularly carrying the extra 20kg in weights Sophie had put in my hands. That's what I should have done. Instead, I thought I would give one a try and see how it felt.
Suffice to say it didn't feel good. My ankle caved underneath me, I dropped the two 10kg weights, fell backwards and landed hard on my bum. Ben was training Rob at the time and watched me go down, so the two of them came over to see if I was OK. Ben had a look at my ankle, moved it around a bit and said he thought it was probably only over-stretched, rather than torn or anything worse, and I should try to walk as normally as possible on it (i.e. not limp if I could manage it) and even do a short session on the bike tomorrow to loosen it off.
My ankle has swollen up a bit on the outside, and I'm trying my best to walk evenly, without limping, but it's proving quite difficult. It's nothing like as bad as it was last year, though, and I imagine it will be alright again within a few days to a week.
Suffice to say it didn't feel good. My ankle caved underneath me, I dropped the two 10kg weights, fell backwards and landed hard on my bum. Ben was training Rob at the time and watched me go down, so the two of them came over to see if I was OK. Ben had a look at my ankle, moved it around a bit and said he thought it was probably only over-stretched, rather than torn or anything worse, and I should try to walk as normally as possible on it (i.e. not limp if I could manage it) and even do a short session on the bike tomorrow to loosen it off.
My ankle has swollen up a bit on the outside, and I'm trying my best to walk evenly, without limping, but it's proving quite difficult. It's nothing like as bad as it was last year, though, and I imagine it will be alright again within a few days to a week.
Tuesday 24 November 2009
New York: Saturday and Beyond
On Saturday's agenda: shopping!
We made a list of the stores we wanted to visit around 5th, then plotted a route round them all that didn't involve too much doubling back. We had a great time browsing, but an even better time purchasing :). I got some beautiful special-occasion jewellery; it will look great at Christmas with my LBD. I left it at the store until Monday as I won't need it while I'm here. The store even cleaned all of my other jewellery for free!
We made time for a gym session in the afternoon, then headed off to Madison Square Garden for a hockey game in the evening. It was New York Rangers vs Florida Panthers and we really enjoyed ourselves. The Rangers lost, unfortunately - and by that I mean unfortunately for us, as it didn't please anyone sitting near us - but it was a great night. We bought the obligatory hot dogs, enormous drinks and, of course, a foam finger :).
Sunday was a busy day: gym first thing, then Rob went to a barber's down the road for a haircut and shave while I spent a couple of hours in the spa having a facial and manicure. We just had time for a delicious lunch at the hotel (which was free - part of our package) before going to the Gershwin Theatre for the matinee performance of Wicked. I needed the loo before it started and the queue was really long, but we were in plenty of time. A lady behind me in the queue remarked that there were only two stalls in the toilets, and something about it being because this theatre was so old, so I looked it up when we got back. It was built in 1972! I guess someone's idea of 'old' is all relative...
It was my third time seeing this show in just over two years, but the first time I'd seen it on Broadway. It was fabulous; the fact that the stage was so much wider than the one at the Apollo Victoria in London meant that the view from almost any seat was unobstructed. Great cast, great songs, great show.
After the show we had a quick stop at the hotel to change then we got a cab to the Upper West Side to meet Mark, Daniela and David for a meal, which was lovely. The last time we saw Daniela was in 2005 and she was 6 months' pregnant; they've got two boys now. We had some really good food in good company.
Monday was a slow day: just a trip to the luggage store to buy a new suitcase (we planned to buy one all along as we need another one, but it's a good job we did as our purchases from just four days almost filled it), a walk up to the jewellers to pick up my bling and a quick stop at a shoe store for some Fitflops. Just as we were waiting for our car to pick up us to take us to Newark, it started raining. I couldn't believe we'd spent all weekend in New York in November and the only rain we saw was in the cab on the way in and for 5 minutes before we left. And it wasn't even all that cold - incredible. Shame the weather hadn't been this nice when Mum, Jen and I were here in May...
Rob commented that if a 6- to 12-month work assignment came up in New York, he would volunteer to do it. I think I could live with that.
Two consecutive weekends at home now - that hasn't happened since mid-September. In fact, we haven't even had one weekend at home since mid-September ;).
We made a list of the stores we wanted to visit around 5th, then plotted a route round them all that didn't involve too much doubling back. We had a great time browsing, but an even better time purchasing :). I got some beautiful special-occasion jewellery; it will look great at Christmas with my LBD. I left it at the store until Monday as I won't need it while I'm here. The store even cleaned all of my other jewellery for free!
We made time for a gym session in the afternoon, then headed off to Madison Square Garden for a hockey game in the evening. It was New York Rangers vs Florida Panthers and we really enjoyed ourselves. The Rangers lost, unfortunately - and by that I mean unfortunately for us, as it didn't please anyone sitting near us - but it was a great night. We bought the obligatory hot dogs, enormous drinks and, of course, a foam finger :).
Sunday was a busy day: gym first thing, then Rob went to a barber's down the road for a haircut and shave while I spent a couple of hours in the spa having a facial and manicure. We just had time for a delicious lunch at the hotel (which was free - part of our package) before going to the Gershwin Theatre for the matinee performance of Wicked. I needed the loo before it started and the queue was really long, but we were in plenty of time. A lady behind me in the queue remarked that there were only two stalls in the toilets, and something about it being because this theatre was so old, so I looked it up when we got back. It was built in 1972! I guess someone's idea of 'old' is all relative...
It was my third time seeing this show in just over two years, but the first time I'd seen it on Broadway. It was fabulous; the fact that the stage was so much wider than the one at the Apollo Victoria in London meant that the view from almost any seat was unobstructed. Great cast, great songs, great show.
After the show we had a quick stop at the hotel to change then we got a cab to the Upper West Side to meet Mark, Daniela and David for a meal, which was lovely. The last time we saw Daniela was in 2005 and she was 6 months' pregnant; they've got two boys now. We had some really good food in good company.
Monday was a slow day: just a trip to the luggage store to buy a new suitcase (we planned to buy one all along as we need another one, but it's a good job we did as our purchases from just four days almost filled it), a walk up to the jewellers to pick up my bling and a quick stop at a shoe store for some Fitflops. Just as we were waiting for our car to pick up us to take us to Newark, it started raining. I couldn't believe we'd spent all weekend in New York in November and the only rain we saw was in the cab on the way in and for 5 minutes before we left. And it wasn't even all that cold - incredible. Shame the weather hadn't been this nice when Mum, Jen and I were here in May...
Rob commented that if a 6- to 12-month work assignment came up in New York, he would volunteer to do it. I think I could live with that.
Two consecutive weekends at home now - that hasn't happened since mid-September. In fact, we haven't even had one weekend at home since mid-September ;).
Monday 23 November 2009
New York: Friday
I love New York. I woke up Friday morning, thankfully not too early as is usually the case the first morning after I've flown west, and felt strangely surreal about meeting famous people last night. I like to think that people are just people and I don't get fazed by celebrity, but I think that's only because I've never met anyone quite so famous before. Actually the whole experience was a bit surreal - what do you say to people you think you already know in some way? You can't exactly ask them 'So, what do you do?' and they aren't interested in what you do (although I did discuss Manchester and the North West with Daniel Craig, as he's from that area too). Still, an interesting, if a little bizarre, experience.
Moving on. We got up, dressed and went to a deli round the corner for breakfast, then headed off to the Empire State Building for the now-compulsory bird's-eye view of the city. The weather was fantastic for that time of year: bright and not too cold at all. We got the usual shots from the top of the Empire State, and this time we paid to go to the 102nd floor, which quite honestly was not worth the money. It was much quieter, but it was inside so all our pictures were taken from the other side of the glass and only gave you exactly the same view as the 86th floor, albeit you could spend as long as you liked gazing into the distance as there weren't hordes of people waiting to stand in your spot.
We got the subway up to 57th & 7th and had lunch at Carnegie's deli, opposite Carnegie Hall. They are famous for their portion sizes, and in hindsight it possibly wasn't the best place to eat considering we didn't want to over-indulge too much this weekend. But it was definitely an experience! Rob ordered a turkey, bacon & swiss sandwich and got this:
He made a valiant attempt at it but really didn't come even close to finishing it. I ordered a hot bacon & egg roll and I finished it, but it was less than half the size of Rob's...
After lunch, we went for a walk through Central Park, and it was perfect weather for it. I took a couple of shots:
We went for an early meal at Tao on 58th Street. We'd eaten here when we came in 2005, and we ate at Tao Las Vegas in March, but this time we weren't so impressed. The food was very nice, in fact I had shabu shabu for the first time since Kyoto in June, but the place was just a little too pretentious. OK, very pretentious. But at least we lowered the tone a bit. A lot.
We deliberately booked an early meal as past experience tells me the second evening is when I'm at my tiredest (although maybe it just has to do with sitting still), so we went back to the hotel and crashed out afterwards.
Moving on. We got up, dressed and went to a deli round the corner for breakfast, then headed off to the Empire State Building for the now-compulsory bird's-eye view of the city. The weather was fantastic for that time of year: bright and not too cold at all. We got the usual shots from the top of the Empire State, and this time we paid to go to the 102nd floor, which quite honestly was not worth the money. It was much quieter, but it was inside so all our pictures were taken from the other side of the glass and only gave you exactly the same view as the 86th floor, albeit you could spend as long as you liked gazing into the distance as there weren't hordes of people waiting to stand in your spot.
We got the subway up to 57th & 7th and had lunch at Carnegie's deli, opposite Carnegie Hall. They are famous for their portion sizes, and in hindsight it possibly wasn't the best place to eat considering we didn't want to over-indulge too much this weekend. But it was definitely an experience! Rob ordered a turkey, bacon & swiss sandwich and got this:
He made a valiant attempt at it but really didn't come even close to finishing it. I ordered a hot bacon & egg roll and I finished it, but it was less than half the size of Rob's...
After lunch, we went for a walk through Central Park, and it was perfect weather for it. I took a couple of shots:
We went for an early meal at Tao on 58th Street. We'd eaten here when we came in 2005, and we ate at Tao Las Vegas in March, but this time we weren't so impressed. The food was very nice, in fact I had shabu shabu for the first time since Kyoto in June, but the place was just a little too pretentious. OK, very pretentious. But at least we lowered the tone a bit. A lot.
We deliberately booked an early meal as past experience tells me the second evening is when I'm at my tiredest (although maybe it just has to do with sitting still), so we went back to the hotel and crashed out afterwards.
Thursday 19 November 2009
A Steady Rain
We flew to New York today for a belated birthday weekend trip. Rob planned it all, and he did a great job of it. We flew Virgin Upper Class from Heathrow to JFK, and we were like two kids in a sweet shop both in the lounge beforehand and particularly when we got on the plane, what with the fully flat bed, free toiletries, free food etc. :).
We got a cab into the city at around 5pm, which made the journey quite long, but not too bad. Our hotel gave us an upgrade - in fact, we worked out that we were upgraded by two levels of room, not just one. Our room was stunning, with a lounge area, big dining table, separate bedroom, even a mini-kitchen - but the best part about it was the view. Here it is, overlooking St Patrick's Cathedral.
We had just enough time to order some room service before we headed out to the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre to see A Steady Rain starring Hugh Jackman & Daniel Craig. The play started at 20:00 and ran straight through for 90 minutes with no interval. I think of all the times I could have benefitted from an interval, this was it. Despite the fact that the play was excellent, by 21:00, which was 02:00 our time, my eyes were closing and I was struggling to stay awake. An interval, and a chance to walk around and stretch my legs, would have been most welcome!
Still, I woke up good and proper after the show finished when Rob and I met Hugh and Daniel backstage :).
I loved this play. It was quite shocking in places, but absolutely riveting (despite the overwhelming urge to sleep). Just the two of them, with very little in the way of a set - just two chairs and a lamp, really. Fantastic. And very lovely in real life too :).
We got a cab into the city at around 5pm, which made the journey quite long, but not too bad. Our hotel gave us an upgrade - in fact, we worked out that we were upgraded by two levels of room, not just one. Our room was stunning, with a lounge area, big dining table, separate bedroom, even a mini-kitchen - but the best part about it was the view. Here it is, overlooking St Patrick's Cathedral.
We had just enough time to order some room service before we headed out to the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre to see A Steady Rain starring Hugh Jackman & Daniel Craig. The play started at 20:00 and ran straight through for 90 minutes with no interval. I think of all the times I could have benefitted from an interval, this was it. Despite the fact that the play was excellent, by 21:00, which was 02:00 our time, my eyes were closing and I was struggling to stay awake. An interval, and a chance to walk around and stretch my legs, would have been most welcome!
Still, I woke up good and proper after the show finished when Rob and I met Hugh and Daniel backstage :).
I loved this play. It was quite shocking in places, but absolutely riveting (despite the overwhelming urge to sleep). Just the two of them, with very little in the way of a set - just two chairs and a lamp, really. Fantastic. And very lovely in real life too :).
Friday 13 November 2009
Birthday Treats
Rob gave me my birthday present last weekend so I could take it to Geneva with me: -
But today I also got a beeyootiful bunch of flowers: -
And a card, which he said is possibly the best card he's ever bought: -
But today I also got a beeyootiful bunch of flowers: -
And a card, which he said is possibly the best card he's ever bought: -
Tuesday 10 November 2009
Absolutely The Last One, I Promise
Isn't it amazing how a wedding can give you something to write about for months??
I picked up our wedding album from the photographer today. It's enormous - and really heavy! But the pictures are great. We also got a 20-image 5" x 4" album, which is great for showing people who are interested but not interested enough to sit through 120 pictures...
I picked up our wedding album from the photographer today. It's enormous - and really heavy! But the pictures are great. We also got a 20-image 5" x 4" album, which is great for showing people who are interested but not interested enough to sit through 120 pictures...
Monday 2 November 2009
I Am What I Am...
The final show on our West End weekend itinerary was La Cage aux Folles, which we decided to see as John Barrowman was starring as Albin. I've been a fan of John Barrowman for years, since I saw him in Sunset Boulevard at the Adelphi over 15 years ago, long before Captain Jack and Torchwood and brought him into the mainstream. He was playing a limited run in this show so we decided to see it while he was still there.
This is a great feel-good musical. If you've read my previous reviews you'll know that I like my shows to give me something more than just a few hours' entertainment, and while this show didn't move me in the way others do, the fact that the acting, songs, dancing, costumes and humour were all of such a high quality gave it the extra something I needed. The part of Albin was made for John Barrowman (well, not literally; it was made for Harvey Fierstein, but you know what I mean), and Simon Burke, who is a famous theatre actor but who I don't think I'd seen in anything before, was excellent as Albin's partner, Georges. The music is very melodic and easy to listen to, and the six-packs on the Cagelles, the dancers in the 'La Cage aux Folles' club, werea sight to behold... :).
This show must also be the only one I've seen where the number of men in the audience at least equals the number of women, and is certainly the only one I've seen where it's acceptable for men-only groups to attend!
This is a great feel-good musical. If you've read my previous reviews you'll know that I like my shows to give me something more than just a few hours' entertainment, and while this show didn't move me in the way others do, the fact that the acting, songs, dancing, costumes and humour were all of such a high quality gave it the extra something I needed. The part of Albin was made for John Barrowman (well, not literally; it was made for Harvey Fierstein, but you know what I mean), and Simon Burke, who is a famous theatre actor but who I don't think I'd seen in anything before, was excellent as Albin's partner, Georges. The music is very melodic and easy to listen to, and the six-packs on the Cagelles, the dancers in the 'La Cage aux Folles' club, werea sight to behold... :).
This show must also be the only one I've seen where the number of men in the audience at least equals the number of women, and is certainly the only one I've seen where it's acceptable for men-only groups to attend!
Sunday 1 November 2009
You Don't Fancy Us, Do You Miss?*
After some shopping on Oxford Street for a Christmas present for Jen, and a thoroughly unimpressive lunch at the cafe in John Lewis, we headed over to the Victoria Palace Theatre for the matinee performance of Billy Elliot: The Musical.
This is a show that Jen and I have overlooked in the past because there was always something else that we wanted to see more. Mistake - this musical should be at or near the top of any theatre-goer's list; it's incredible. Being a show about dancing, the choreography is amazing, but what makes it amazing is that it's all done by a 10-year-old boy. It obviously wouldn't be nearly so impressive if it were a performance of some ballet troupe or other.
The language was unbelievably blue, although we knew to expect that. As it's set in the North East of England, and being a North-Easterner myself, it made me strangely proud of my roots - something I don't say all that often.
This show has everything. I laughed, I cried (a lot), I was blown away by the choreography. I just wish I hadn't waited so long to see it.
* The title is a line from the show - after Mrs Wilkinson suggests that Billy audition for the Royal Ballet School and tells him she will give him free, private coaching. Brilliant.
It's Show Time...
Jen and I just went on another of our crazy 3-West-End-shows-in-a-weekend-plus-shopping-and-eating-too weekends. We arranged it fairly recently, and having just watched this video for about the thousandth time since seeing the show last year, I stipulated that one of the shows had to be Jersey Boys, not only because I was desperate to see it again, but because I knew Jen would love it too.
After an initial confusing few minutes before we realised there were 2 H&M stores at Oxford Circus, our meeting point, we finally found each other and just had time to drop Jen's bags off at the hotel before heading over to the Prince Edward Theatre.
I would live in the dress circle of the theatre if I could. I love shows so much that I don't think I'll ever tire of them. And while I wish Rob liked them more, as long as he doesn't force me to go and see horror films with him I won't force him to see musicals, plus I've always got a willing companion in Jen.
I've written about this show before so I won't repeat myself again, but suffice to say that it didn't disappoint. Again, the language was a bit blue, but it certainly wasn't the worst we would hear this weekend, and all four principals were fantastic. Actually, one was a little off, but it didn't detract too much. What did annoy us slightly was the woman sitting next to Jen, who clearly thought people had paid good money to hear her sing. Despite that, we both enjoyed ourselves immensely, and after a lovely post-show Italian meal in the restaurant next-door to the theatre, we headed back to our hotel.
Monday 26 October 2009
Nawlins
We arrived in New Orleans on Monday afternoon and went straight to the gym to blow away the travel cobwebs - and also because we hadn't been on Sunday, like we said we would :). Between Monday evening and Thursday evening I didn't see Rob a whole lot as he had conference stuff to do and people to see, but I spent the week hanging out with Keri, Annabelle and Corgan, which was very cool.
Tuesday we went to Audubon Zoo, which was a trolley ride away from our hotel downtown, then we had a walk through the Garden District on the way back to the hotel. On Wednesday we had a walk around the French Quarter and got roped into taking a horse & carriage ride round the area, which we hadn't planned on doing, but it was great. Thursday we visited the Louisiana Children's Museum then walked back towards the French Quarter, stopping at Cafe du Monde for some beignets. Then on Thursday evening all the SpringSource people who hadn't already left to go home went out for a meal on Bourbon Street. Afterwards I went with a few of the guys to the bar in our hotel, but left after one drink just after midnight, when I heard they were planning to stay out for a while. Rob didn't get in until 05:00, which pretty much put paid to us doing anything on the Friday as he went straight back to bed after breakfast at IHOP, so I went to New Orleans City Park with Keri, Keith and the kids. On Saturday after the Donalds left, Ben, Rob and I had a look around the French Quarter (me for the third or fourth time; them for the first) then we left Sunday to come home, arriving this morning. Actually, I came home; Rob went straight from T5 to T2 at Heathrow to get on a plane to Prague for another conference...
New Orleans is an interesting place. Our horse & carriage tour guide told us that the French Quarter didn't actually get damaged all that much during Katrina - everywhere up to about 12ft above sea level was flooded, but the French Quarter is 14ft above and was barely touched. My first reaction to that was 'Great!' At least the main historial and tourist area wasn't badly affected. But that then led me to ask 'So what's its excuse for looking so shabby?' Sure, it's old (well, by American standards it's old), and I guess that brings with it a certain amount of charm, but I think the French Quarter in particular has crossed the line from 'charming' into 'a bit tired'. We didn't find a whole lot of jazz in New Orleans. What we did find a lot of were bars and strip joints. Which I'm sure will interest some people, but me not so much.
All in all, a worthwhile trip to visit a new city; glad I've seen it, the weather (barring one afternoon and evening when there was a storm) was much nicer than at home, and some areas - the Garden District and Audubon Park in particular - are beautiful, but it's no New York.
I didn't take many pictures, but here are a few: -
At the Zoo
French Quarter
St Louis Cathedral
Corgan making bubbles at the Children's Museum
Cool Statue/Monument in Woldenberg Park
Steamboat (obviously)
Tuesday we went to Audubon Zoo, which was a trolley ride away from our hotel downtown, then we had a walk through the Garden District on the way back to the hotel. On Wednesday we had a walk around the French Quarter and got roped into taking a horse & carriage ride round the area, which we hadn't planned on doing, but it was great. Thursday we visited the Louisiana Children's Museum then walked back towards the French Quarter, stopping at Cafe du Monde for some beignets. Then on Thursday evening all the SpringSource people who hadn't already left to go home went out for a meal on Bourbon Street. Afterwards I went with a few of the guys to the bar in our hotel, but left after one drink just after midnight, when I heard they were planning to stay out for a while. Rob didn't get in until 05:00, which pretty much put paid to us doing anything on the Friday as he went straight back to bed after breakfast at IHOP, so I went to New Orleans City Park with Keri, Keith and the kids. On Saturday after the Donalds left, Ben, Rob and I had a look around the French Quarter (me for the third or fourth time; them for the first) then we left Sunday to come home, arriving this morning. Actually, I came home; Rob went straight from T5 to T2 at Heathrow to get on a plane to Prague for another conference...
New Orleans is an interesting place. Our horse & carriage tour guide told us that the French Quarter didn't actually get damaged all that much during Katrina - everywhere up to about 12ft above sea level was flooded, but the French Quarter is 14ft above and was barely touched. My first reaction to that was 'Great!' At least the main historial and tourist area wasn't badly affected. But that then led me to ask 'So what's its excuse for looking so shabby?' Sure, it's old (well, by American standards it's old), and I guess that brings with it a certain amount of charm, but I think the French Quarter in particular has crossed the line from 'charming' into 'a bit tired'. We didn't find a whole lot of jazz in New Orleans. What we did find a lot of were bars and strip joints. Which I'm sure will interest some people, but me not so much.
All in all, a worthwhile trip to visit a new city; glad I've seen it, the weather (barring one afternoon and evening when there was a storm) was much nicer than at home, and some areas - the Garden District and Audubon Park in particular - are beautiful, but it's no New York.
I didn't take many pictures, but here are a few: -
At the Zoo
French Quarter
St Louis Cathedral
Corgan making bubbles at the Children's Museum
Cool Statue/Monument in Woldenberg Park
Steamboat (obviously)Monday 19 October 2009
Capital City
This week it's the fifth annual SpringOne conference, but this year it's in New Orleans in October rather than Florida in December. I didn't go last year - a combination of no holiday entitlement left and no money, plus the fact that I'd been for the previous three years - but with the change of location this year, I decided to go. We knew there was no way we could get a direct flight there from the UK, so we took the opportunity to do something we've been talking about for years - at least, since we started watching the West Wing - and spent the weekend in Washington DC. Turns out there was a flaw in our plan though, as none of the direct flights from DC to New Orleans was with anyone who partnered with our trans-Atlantic BA flight, so we ended up connecting in Dallas, but it was pretty painless, as connections go.
It was pouring down when we got to DC on Friday afternoon. In fact, just walking 5 or 6 blocks from a restaurant back to our hotel was enough to soak Rob's shoes and socks right through, so he resolved to find a pair of slightly more waterproof shoes on Saturday morning. In true man-on-a-shopping-mission style, he walked into the men's shoes department of Macy's, picked up the first pair he saw, tried them on, liked them and bought them. And put them on straight away, leaving his rain-soaked shoes at the store. He remarked that these new shoes were great because they struck a balance between smart and casual - they didn't look out of place with jeans but they were equally good with smart trousers, so he would probably wear them next week at the conference, instead of wearing the shoes I had packed for him. That was when I remembered I had forgotten to pack his more formal shoes…
Weather-wise, Saturday was pretty much a repeat of Friday. After Macy's, we got the Metro over to Capitol South and had a look around the Library of Congress, then we walked across the road to the Capitol Building and did the free tour. We walked up the Mall towards the Washington Monument but it started raining really heavily so we ducked into the Air & Space Museum to escape the rain for a while. Turned out everyone else had the same idea - it was packed. So we got the Metro up to a micro-brewery Rob had found and had a late lunch. We were pretty wet and cold by then - we had brought waterproof jackets with hoods etc, but once my jeans were wet through and my legs got cold I started feeling a bit fed up. Plus we were both quite jet-lagged so we made our way back to the hotel via the White House, got in our pyjamas, watched a movie, ordered milk & cookies from room service and went to bed at 9pm. Bliss.
Sunday was colder than Saturday, but it was dry, which made for a much better sightseeing experience. We started out at the Jefferson Memorial and walked to the Lincoln Memorial via the Washington Monument and World War II Memorial, then we walked across the bridge and into Arlington Cemetery. We got to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier just in time to watch the changing of the guard ceremony, and we also saw the Kennedy graves. Then we walked up to the Iwo Jima Memorial, jumped on the Metro at Rosslyn (remarking that we hadn't realised that the place where President Bartlet got shot was quite so close to Washington) and rode back to our hotel.
I loved the Jefferson Memorial. It was far more beautiful - and less crowded - than the Lincoln Memorial. I really liked Washington generally: it was quite European in its feel; it reminded me of somewhere like the Ringstrasse in Vienna. Well worth a visit.
Next stop: NOLA.
It was pouring down when we got to DC on Friday afternoon. In fact, just walking 5 or 6 blocks from a restaurant back to our hotel was enough to soak Rob's shoes and socks right through, so he resolved to find a pair of slightly more waterproof shoes on Saturday morning. In true man-on-a-shopping-mission style, he walked into the men's shoes department of Macy's, picked up the first pair he saw, tried them on, liked them and bought them. And put them on straight away, leaving his rain-soaked shoes at the store. He remarked that these new shoes were great because they struck a balance between smart and casual - they didn't look out of place with jeans but they were equally good with smart trousers, so he would probably wear them next week at the conference, instead of wearing the shoes I had packed for him. That was when I remembered I had forgotten to pack his more formal shoes…
Weather-wise, Saturday was pretty much a repeat of Friday. After Macy's, we got the Metro over to Capitol South and had a look around the Library of Congress, then we walked across the road to the Capitol Building and did the free tour. We walked up the Mall towards the Washington Monument but it started raining really heavily so we ducked into the Air & Space Museum to escape the rain for a while. Turned out everyone else had the same idea - it was packed. So we got the Metro up to a micro-brewery Rob had found and had a late lunch. We were pretty wet and cold by then - we had brought waterproof jackets with hoods etc, but once my jeans were wet through and my legs got cold I started feeling a bit fed up. Plus we were both quite jet-lagged so we made our way back to the hotel via the White House, got in our pyjamas, watched a movie, ordered milk & cookies from room service and went to bed at 9pm. Bliss.
Sunday was colder than Saturday, but it was dry, which made for a much better sightseeing experience. We started out at the Jefferson Memorial and walked to the Lincoln Memorial via the Washington Monument and World War II Memorial, then we walked across the bridge and into Arlington Cemetery. We got to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier just in time to watch the changing of the guard ceremony, and we also saw the Kennedy graves. Then we walked up to the Iwo Jima Memorial, jumped on the Metro at Rosslyn (remarking that we hadn't realised that the place where President Bartlet got shot was quite so close to Washington) and rode back to our hotel.
I loved the Jefferson Memorial. It was far more beautiful - and less crowded - than the Lincoln Memorial. I really liked Washington generally: it was quite European in its feel; it reminded me of somewhere like the Ringstrasse in Vienna. Well worth a visit.
Next stop: NOLA.
Thursday 1 October 2009
The Pines
Our staff team (minus Smithy who was ill) just got back from 2 nights away to discuss the various aspects of the Church's work. We went to a house called The Pines in Coldwaltham, which is a place in the middle of nowhere the other side of Chichester. I went for a run each morning, and yesterday morning the sunrise was beautiful, so I resolved to take my camera with me this morning. Trouble was, the sunrise was rubbish this morning. Typical.
Still, I took some pictures while I was on my run. I really must read that Lightroom book I borrowed off Andy and learn how to use it - these pictures are just slightly retouched using iPhoto.
I think this one would look nice if I could black-and-white out the background. It's pretty much there already.
It took me forever to get this shot. I had my zoom lens on the camera, and it took me so long to find the dragonfly through the viewfinder that by the time I did, it had flown off again. I'm really pleased I got this one in the end.
Monday 28 September 2009
I Heart the Big Smoke
Rob & I spent this past weekend in London. We got the train up on Friday afternoon, checked into our hotel and went straight out to meet Brent, Joe & Tara for a meal. It was amazing - it called itself 'Healthy Meal' but there was so much of it; I'm not sure it was all that healthy to eat such a large amount of food in one sitting :).
Saturday was our shopping day. I mentioned at work last week that I was looking to buy a ring in London and one of my colleagues told me to call her friend, who owns a jewellery wholesale business. I spoke to him on Friday, and he gave me the name and address of a jewellery shop in London that they supply. When we got there on Saturday, they had been told to expect us, and they gave me about 17% off the price of the ring I chose, plus a bottle of champagne to take away. Result! It's not what you know...
I also got a watch and a handbag, and two separate opportunities to speak some Italian. Rob got a key ring. But it's a nice key ring.
In the evening we met up with Joe and Tara again and went to see The Shawshank Redemption at the Wyndhams Theatre. I don't know how faithfully the West End production sticks to the original play, Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption (or even how the film fares against the original, for that matter), but as a stand-alone piece it was pretty good. By no means as good as the film, but there's only so much you can do with a play about a prison escape when you can't actually portray the guy crawling through miles of sewage pipe. There were some noticeable differences between the play and the film, but as I said, taken in isolation it was a great way to spend a couple of hours on a Saturday night.
On Sunday we got up early and walked down to HTB for the 09:30 service, then afterwards we made our way back towards the hotel, walking past Harrods just as it was opening :). We had a quick browse around before going back to the hotel to check out and get the train home.
The more I go, the more I love London. I couldn't live there, but it's great for a few days.
Saturday was our shopping day. I mentioned at work last week that I was looking to buy a ring in London and one of my colleagues told me to call her friend, who owns a jewellery wholesale business. I spoke to him on Friday, and he gave me the name and address of a jewellery shop in London that they supply. When we got there on Saturday, they had been told to expect us, and they gave me about 17% off the price of the ring I chose, plus a bottle of champagne to take away. Result! It's not what you know...
I also got a watch and a handbag, and two separate opportunities to speak some Italian. Rob got a key ring. But it's a nice key ring.
In the evening we met up with Joe and Tara again and went to see The Shawshank Redemption at the Wyndhams Theatre. I don't know how faithfully the West End production sticks to the original play, Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption (or even how the film fares against the original, for that matter), but as a stand-alone piece it was pretty good. By no means as good as the film, but there's only so much you can do with a play about a prison escape when you can't actually portray the guy crawling through miles of sewage pipe. There were some noticeable differences between the play and the film, but as I said, taken in isolation it was a great way to spend a couple of hours on a Saturday night.
On Sunday we got up early and walked down to HTB for the 09:30 service, then afterwards we made our way back towards the hotel, walking past Harrods just as it was opening :). We had a quick browse around before going back to the hotel to check out and get the train home.
The more I go, the more I love London. I couldn't live there, but it's great for a few days.
Saturday 19 September 2009
So That's What That Thing Does...
Rob bought me an SLR camera over 2 years ago, just before we moved down here, and I have never used it out of Automatic mode. Until today...
We both went to a 'Getting to Know Your Digital SLR' course at Portsmouth Dockyard today, and learned the basics like setting aperture, checking shutter speed, adjusting white balance and ISO settings, the rule of thirds and hotspots. I learned about depth of field and had fun taking pictures around the dockyard, experimenting with my camera's settings, getting blurry backgrounds, moving the focal point from one side of the picture to the other, etc. Here are a few un-retouched first attempts.
We both went to a 'Getting to Know Your Digital SLR' course at Portsmouth Dockyard today, and learned the basics like setting aperture, checking shutter speed, adjusting white balance and ISO settings, the rule of thirds and hotspots. I learned about depth of field and had fun taking pictures around the dockyard, experimenting with my camera's settings, getting blurry backgrounds, moving the focal point from one side of the picture to the other, etc. Here are a few un-retouched first attempts.
Monday 14 September 2009
Do You Hear the People Sing?
6 of us went to see Les Miserables on Saturday in the West End. I love living just over an hour from London! Only one of us had never seen it before, and by the time we came out of the theatre, between us we had seen it 24 times...It's over 4 years since I last saw it, so it was about time I saw it again. It really was just as good the sixth time as it was the first! The guy playing Valjean was the understudy (we saw the matinee performance) but he was absolutely awesome - when he sang his diction was really clear so you didn't miss what he was singing, which as you may know is one of the things I look for. Javert, on the other hand, was less articulate, and I was worried that Cathy, who was the Les Mis rookie, would miss what he was singing about, but she said she followed everything OK.
Having listened to the music countless times over the past 20 years, I have to say I'm a bit fed up of most of the better known songs in this show. What I love, though, are the not-so-famous songs and interludes, in particular One Day More, the Act I Finale, and the Epilogue from Act II. [NB: Don't click these links if you don't want to know what happens! But if you haven't seen it, rectify that as soon as you can!] One Day More is possibly my favourite ever song: it combines the 'theme tunes' of all the main characters into one song and took months to write, but it was well worth the effort.
It turns out most of the people I work with haven't seen Les Mis either. I feel another trip to the Queens Theatre coming on...
Sunday 23 August 2009
This is the Life
Yesterday we went up to Hook to meet up with Rob's best man and his girlfriend. We had a really lazy couple of days - it was bliss. Spa treatments on Saturday afternoon followed by a dip in the jacuzzi, afternoon tea (heavy on the cakes again, not so much with the sandwiches) then a walk round the grounds, a delicious evening meal and a celebratory bottle of champagne - which I felt compelled to drink most of, as the others weren't drinking, and I didn't want to see it go to waste…
Today we were back in the spa for an hour, then we had a lovely lunch before setting off back towards our respective homes. Good times.
Today we were back in the spa for an hour, then we had a lovely lunch before setting off back towards our respective homes. Good times.
Monday 17 August 2009
Time Flies
It only seems like a few weeks ago that I was flying up to York for the weekend to celebrate Jen's 30th, and it's her birthday again already. I drove up this time, on Thursday, and for once I got a really good run; it took less than 4 hours to get there. Which may or may not have been due to the fact that I was flouting the speed limit :).
On Friday we went to Harrogate, which is only about 20 miles from where Jen lives and only 40 miles from where I was brought up, but I can't remember the last time I went there; it must be easily 20 years ago or more. We spent the morning in the Turkish Baths, which was basically a series of steam rooms, ranging from warm through hot to very hot, plus a freezing cold plunge pool. The 'warm' room was just the right temperature for the two of us to sit and chat, then we jumped into the pool (and jumped straight out again - brrr!) every half-hour or so to cool off. Lovely!
We went for lunch at Betty's, Harrogate's other famous landmark. We had afternoon tea, which in hindsight was possibly a bad idea: there was a lot in the way of desserts and not a whole lot of savouries, but it was still delicious. We were amazed at the number of all-male groups eating there - it's most definitely a girls' restaurant, and I would have imagined any men who went would have been taken by their wives/mothers etc, but there were plenty of male-only business lunches going on, and even a couple of builders at the table next to us. We did a bit of window-shopping after lunch, then drove back to York.
Saturday was a fairly slow morning, but we did manage to make it to Cafe Concerto, one of my favourite places to eat, in time for lunch. Then we made our way over to the pottery painting place (I've really got a thing for it at the moment!) and met my lovely friend Sarah who'd driven down from Stockton to meet us. We spent the afternoon painting pottery (surprising, I know) - Sarah and Jen did mugs; I did a square plate. Again, I didn't spend any time beforehand thinking about what design I might paint, but I did find a Mackintosh-style rose to copy. I spent far too long on it and Sarah & Jen were finished well before me, as is apparently becoming the pattern on these occasions. In fact, I still had a big chunk of the plate in the top-right corner that was untouched, but we had run out of time and I noticed a sign on the wall saying 'we can add a clock to any piece for £5', so I asked them to do that ;). And seeing as it isn't 17 August and I do actually have the glazed, finished article, here's a picture.
I was a bit disappointed in the paint coverage of the lines - it was really difficult when the paint was wet to tell which parts had been covered once, which twice and which more than that. Plus the tick-tock of that thing is LOUD! Still, it goes perfectly with the decor in the spare bedroom, so it will live in there.
Saturday evening Jen had the girls round for drinks and nibbles, so we spent the rest of the afternoon preparing for that, then on Sunday, Jen's birthday, Mum & Dad came down and we all went out to lunch at a great little pub. We had a very lazy afternoon back at Jen's before I left at around 18:00 to drive back home.
On Friday we went to Harrogate, which is only about 20 miles from where Jen lives and only 40 miles from where I was brought up, but I can't remember the last time I went there; it must be easily 20 years ago or more. We spent the morning in the Turkish Baths, which was basically a series of steam rooms, ranging from warm through hot to very hot, plus a freezing cold plunge pool. The 'warm' room was just the right temperature for the two of us to sit and chat, then we jumped into the pool (and jumped straight out again - brrr!) every half-hour or so to cool off. Lovely!
We went for lunch at Betty's, Harrogate's other famous landmark. We had afternoon tea, which in hindsight was possibly a bad idea: there was a lot in the way of desserts and not a whole lot of savouries, but it was still delicious. We were amazed at the number of all-male groups eating there - it's most definitely a girls' restaurant, and I would have imagined any men who went would have been taken by their wives/mothers etc, but there were plenty of male-only business lunches going on, and even a couple of builders at the table next to us. We did a bit of window-shopping after lunch, then drove back to York.
Saturday was a fairly slow morning, but we did manage to make it to Cafe Concerto, one of my favourite places to eat, in time for lunch. Then we made our way over to the pottery painting place (I've really got a thing for it at the moment!) and met my lovely friend Sarah who'd driven down from Stockton to meet us. We spent the afternoon painting pottery (surprising, I know) - Sarah and Jen did mugs; I did a square plate. Again, I didn't spend any time beforehand thinking about what design I might paint, but I did find a Mackintosh-style rose to copy. I spent far too long on it and Sarah & Jen were finished well before me, as is apparently becoming the pattern on these occasions. In fact, I still had a big chunk of the plate in the top-right corner that was untouched, but we had run out of time and I noticed a sign on the wall saying 'we can add a clock to any piece for £5', so I asked them to do that ;). And seeing as it isn't 17 August and I do actually have the glazed, finished article, here's a picture.
I was a bit disappointed in the paint coverage of the lines - it was really difficult when the paint was wet to tell which parts had been covered once, which twice and which more than that. Plus the tick-tock of that thing is LOUD! Still, it goes perfectly with the decor in the spare bedroom, so it will live in there.
Saturday evening Jen had the girls round for drinks and nibbles, so we spent the rest of the afternoon preparing for that, then on Sunday, Jen's birthday, Mum & Dad came down and we all went out to lunch at a great little pub. We had a very lazy afternoon back at Jen's before I left at around 18:00 to drive back home.
Sunday 9 August 2009
Waiting...
Ben, Jill, Rob and I went into London yesterday to see Waiting for Godot. Actually, we didn't go to see that play - we went to see Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart star together in a play, and it just so happened that the play was Waiting for Godot.
Having got home and read the wikipedia entry on the play, it appears that there are numerous ways you can interpret it. The most obvious interpretation to me was that the play is a metaphor for life (although not my view of life) - nothing of consequence happens in the play, and the point of it is that there is no point - we're born, we go through life one day after another and we die. As I said, not my opinion at all, and it made me feel quite sad in parts.
McKellen played Estragon (with a fantastic Lancashire accent - just how he would have sounded if he'd never left Burnley) and Stewart played Vladimir, while Simon Callow played Pozzo and Ronald Pickup played Lucky. I would have paid to watch such great actors just stand on a stage and do nothing, so it was nice that they put on a play while I was there, but I can't say I would be desperate to see this play again. Apparently it's one of the most influential plays of the 20th Century - which only solidifies my view that the enjoyment factor of a play/film/TV show etc is inversely proportional to the amount of critical acclaim it receives. Remember The English Patient? And Gone with the Wind? And Casablanca? And Cabaret? And Children of a Lesser God? And... you get the idea.
As we were standing in the lobby before the play started I felt something sharp on my thumb and wondered how on earth I could have been burned by a cigarette while indoors. I raised my hand to see what it was and there was a wasp attached to my thumb. I shook my hand up and down to the point of hilarity and when I looked again only the wasp's stinger and half its body were still there. We were half an hour early for the play, so I had time to remove the stinger and hot-foot it to the nearest Tesco for some TCP and cotton pads. So if you were sitting in the balcony of the Theatre Royal Haymarket yesterday afternoon and wondered what the awful hospital smell was, that would be me.
Having got home and read the wikipedia entry on the play, it appears that there are numerous ways you can interpret it. The most obvious interpretation to me was that the play is a metaphor for life (although not my view of life) - nothing of consequence happens in the play, and the point of it is that there is no point - we're born, we go through life one day after another and we die. As I said, not my opinion at all, and it made me feel quite sad in parts.
McKellen played Estragon (with a fantastic Lancashire accent - just how he would have sounded if he'd never left Burnley) and Stewart played Vladimir, while Simon Callow played Pozzo and Ronald Pickup played Lucky. I would have paid to watch such great actors just stand on a stage and do nothing, so it was nice that they put on a play while I was there, but I can't say I would be desperate to see this play again. Apparently it's one of the most influential plays of the 20th Century - which only solidifies my view that the enjoyment factor of a play/film/TV show etc is inversely proportional to the amount of critical acclaim it receives. Remember The English Patient? And Gone with the Wind? And Casablanca? And Cabaret? And Children of a Lesser God? And... you get the idea.
As we were standing in the lobby before the play started I felt something sharp on my thumb and wondered how on earth I could have been burned by a cigarette while indoors. I raised my hand to see what it was and there was a wasp attached to my thumb. I shook my hand up and down to the point of hilarity and when I looked again only the wasp's stinger and half its body were still there. We were half an hour early for the play, so I had time to remove the stinger and hot-foot it to the nearest Tesco for some TCP and cotton pads. So if you were sitting in the balcony of the Theatre Royal Haymarket yesterday afternoon and wondered what the awful hospital smell was, that would be me.
Thursday 6 August 2009
More Wedding Photos
Fed up of hearing about the wedding? Well, keep it to yourself if you are, but don't worry, this is positively the last post I'll put up about it (I think).
The hotel provided two disposable cameras per table, which we thought was nice. But a combination of the cameras not being particularly high quality - they said on them 'not recommended for indoor use' - and the fact that most of the photos were taken by people under 10 years old meant that I paid £88 to have them all put onto CD and find out that it probably wasn't worth paying to have them put onto CD...
Still, there are some nice pictures, and a couple of very nice ones, although as I say, the picture quality isn't great. Anyway, if you'd like to have a look, I've put the better ones here, and my favourites are below.
The hotel provided two disposable cameras per table, which we thought was nice. But a combination of the cameras not being particularly high quality - they said on them 'not recommended for indoor use' - and the fact that most of the photos were taken by people under 10 years old meant that I paid £88 to have them all put onto CD and find out that it probably wasn't worth paying to have them put onto CD...
Still, there are some nice pictures, and a couple of very nice ones, although as I say, the picture quality isn't great. Anyway, if you'd like to have a look, I've put the better ones here, and my favourites are below.
Saturday 1 August 2009
Check These Out
Instead of a guest book, we asked everyone at the wedding to sign a picture mount, then got the photographer to print us a black & white copy of one of the photos he took to put inside the frame. Thanks for the suggestion, Jill - I'm really pleased with how it turned out: -
We also got this beautiful applique tapestry from Nikki, Will & Evie. We opened it on the morning after the wedding and I cried :)
Finally, for the last 20 years my Mum has made some fantastic embroidery samplers as wedding gifts for most of the weddings she's been invited to (and even some she hasn't). After all these years of admiring the ones she'd done so far, I was quite surprised to find out that she wasn't making one for us, but Mum said she thought I wouldn't want one (I guess the hint-dropping chain broke down somewhere, eh Jen?). So, with three weeks to go before the wedding, she put this together and Dad presented it to us during his speech on the day.
Finding a spot to hang the photograph was easy - our hallway lends itself very well to black & white pictures, so I just had to re-position two B&W shots of the New York skyline to give the new picture pride of place. Picking a spot for the other two is proving more difficult. All the pictures we have on the walls downstairs are meaningful to us - embroideries of the houses I've lived in, photos, paintings, prints and maps of places we've been etc - except for two large pictures of flowers in the lounge. I have a feeling they won't be in the lounge much longer...
We also got this beautiful applique tapestry from Nikki, Will & Evie. We opened it on the morning after the wedding and I cried :)
Finally, for the last 20 years my Mum has made some fantastic embroidery samplers as wedding gifts for most of the weddings she's been invited to (and even some she hasn't). After all these years of admiring the ones she'd done so far, I was quite surprised to find out that she wasn't making one for us, but Mum said she thought I wouldn't want one (I guess the hint-dropping chain broke down somewhere, eh Jen?). So, with three weeks to go before the wedding, she put this together and Dad presented it to us during his speech on the day.
Finding a spot to hang the photograph was easy - our hallway lends itself very well to black & white pictures, so I just had to re-position two B&W shots of the New York skyline to give the new picture pride of place. Picking a spot for the other two is proving more difficult. All the pictures we have on the walls downstairs are meaningful to us - embroideries of the houses I've lived in, photos, paintings, prints and maps of places we've been etc - except for two large pictures of flowers in the lounge. I have a feeling they won't be in the lounge much longer...
Tuesday 28 July 2009
End of an Era
I was very sad to hear of the death on Saturday of Harry Patch, the last surviving World War I veteran in Britain and one of only four surviving WWI Veterans in the world (Briton Claude Choules now lives in Australia; Frank Buckles is American and Jack Babcock Canadian). Harry Patch was 111, and his death came only a week after that of fellow WWI veteran Henry Allingham, Britain's oldest ever male and the world's oldest man (113 years, 42 days) at the time of his death.
Part of the reason I was so annoyed at the numpty who called the office last November during the two minutes' silence at the Remembrance Day service was that I was actually semi-crying, having watched Harry, Henry and Bill Stone (who died on 10 January this year at the age of 108) each lay a wreath at the Cenotaph. It was very poignant, watching these three frail men so utterly determined to stand up out of their wheelchairs and lay wreaths to commemorate the lives of their friends and colleagues who died in service to their country. After Henry Allingham died a couple of weeks ago, I remember thinking how sad it would be to see just one veteran at the Remembrance Day service this year; I imagine for Harry Patch it would have been a lonely moment, so perhaps it's better that he passed away too before November.
We have lots of reasons to be thankful to these men, and to the thousands of others who fought in that conflict and all conflicts since then.
Feeling melancholy today. Normal service will be resumed next time :).
Part of the reason I was so annoyed at the numpty who called the office last November during the two minutes' silence at the Remembrance Day service was that I was actually semi-crying, having watched Harry, Henry and Bill Stone (who died on 10 January this year at the age of 108) each lay a wreath at the Cenotaph. It was very poignant, watching these three frail men so utterly determined to stand up out of their wheelchairs and lay wreaths to commemorate the lives of their friends and colleagues who died in service to their country. After Henry Allingham died a couple of weeks ago, I remember thinking how sad it would be to see just one veteran at the Remembrance Day service this year; I imagine for Harry Patch it would have been a lonely moment, so perhaps it's better that he passed away too before November.
We have lots of reasons to be thankful to these men, and to the thousands of others who fought in that conflict and all conflicts since then.
Feeling melancholy today. Normal service will be resumed next time :).
Sunday 26 July 2009
Wedding Season Rolls On
This weekend it was the turn of Becky and Rob (her Rob, not mine, obviously), and we had a great afternoon watching them get married and chatting in particular to Rob's aunt, uncle and cousin who'd come down from Scotland for the wedding. Becky was in on a secret plan for Rob's sister to fly in from South Africa for the week, and she had spun Rob a yarn about a super-duper sale at Debenhams as the reason she had to go out at 5am on Friday, when she was actually driving to Heathrow to pick up Caroline. It was a really lovely day, and Cathy, who made my wedding cake, did a fantastic job yet again on Becky & Rob's cake.More photos are here.
Friday 24 July 2009
So Far So Good
Work went from one extreme to the other this week. Monday and Tuesday were really quiet as all the staff were away, many of them in Uganda. Thursday and today, on the other hand, were the opposite - everyone back from Uganda, but most people going away again this weekend so trying to get a month's work done in 2 days. Chaos, but I loved it.
There wasn't a great deal for me to do this week, as I mentioned on Sunday, and there won't be for the rest of the summer, so I'm just going to do three days next week and possibly only two the week after. I'm going to try and get the office running really smoothly while things are quiet; we'll see how that turns out...
There wasn't a great deal for me to do this week, as I mentioned on Sunday, and there won't be for the rest of the summer, so I'm just going to do three days next week and possibly only two the week after. I'm going to try and get the office running really smoothly while things are quiet; we'll see how that turns out...
Sunday 19 July 2009
... And New Job
I'm starting my new job tomorrow. I'm working 20 hours a week (5 hours a day every weekday except Wednesday) as Operations Manager at our church. I've been volunteering there a few hours a week since March, and was offered the job a couple of months ago. I'm really looking forward to it - the rest of the summer should be quite quiet in the office, but from September it will get a lot busier.
Now that the wedding is over, I'm really glad to have something to occupy my time. I loved not being at work for the last 6 months, but without the wedding to organise I imagine I'd get very bored very quickly :).
Now that the wedding is over, I'm really glad to have something to occupy my time. I loved not being at work for the last 6 months, but without the wedding to organise I imagine I'd get very bored very quickly :).
Friday 17 July 2009
New Hair...
After we got engaged, I grew my hair so I would have more options when it came to a style on the wedding day. While I loved how it turned out on the day, and while being able to tie my long hair back came in handy in Japan - my straighteners didn't work there because of the difference in electricity voltage, and the humidity turned my fringe into a frizzy mess, so I pulled it all back, something I wouldn't have been able to do with shorter hair - nonetheless I was sooo glad to get to the hairdressers yesterday. I still wanted the option of drying it wavy or straight, so I had about 5 inches off the length and had my layers cut in again.
Here's straight:
And wavy:
Plus, I can just to say get it into a pony tail for the gym :).
Here's straight:
And wavy:
Plus, I can just to say get it into a pony tail for the gym :).
Wednesday 15 July 2009
I'm a Twitterer
While we were on holiday, Rob convinced me to get a Twitter account. I'm yet to be persuaded that Twitter is anything more than information overload, but I'll give it a try for a while. Feel free to follow me, or if you don't have a Twitter account, my most recent tweets are in the sidebar on the left. Here goes...
Monday 13 July 2009
Honeymoon: Bintan
After a less-than-perfect 16-hour journey to get here, which included me coming within milliseconds of throwing up due to turbulence on the plane then going one better - twice - on the boat from Singapore to Bintan island, we finally arrived and the journey was all forgotten. Our villa is gorgeous, the resort beautiful and food delicious. Sure, I could live without the mosquitoes, but getting bitten every night despite having covered myself from head to toe in insect repellent AND sleeping inside a mosquito net while Rob takes no such precautions and is left well alone is highly annoying a small price to pay.
We went on a mountain bike ride out to a local fishing village, read lots of books (Rob), played lots of Bejeweled on the iPod (me), sunbathed by the pool, had spa treatments, went to a beach barbecue, played tennis (well, tried to, at least) and had 'Dinner on the Rocks' - a fabulous 6-course meal with our own private waiter on an outcrop of rocks just off the beach.
As this was the relaxing part of our holiday, we didn't take many photographs (particularly as we forgot our camera on the mountain bike ride), but the ones we did take are here. These are my favourites: -
Back to reality tomorrow :).
We went on a mountain bike ride out to a local fishing village, read lots of books (Rob), played lots of Bejeweled on the iPod (me), sunbathed by the pool, had spa treatments, went to a beach barbecue, played tennis (well, tried to, at least) and had 'Dinner on the Rocks' - a fabulous 6-course meal with our own private waiter on an outcrop of rocks just off the beach.
As this was the relaxing part of our holiday, we didn't take many photographs (particularly as we forgot our camera on the mountain bike ride), but the ones we did take are here. These are my favourites: -
Our villa
Our bed
The pool area
Back to reality tomorrow :).
Friday 3 July 2009
Honeymoon: Tokyo
Well, Tokyo is unlike anywhere I've ever seen before - possibly because there's nowhere like it in the world. It's a huge sprawling place, 23 cities in one. We visited lots of different things: the Gardens of the Imperial Palace; Ginza, the main shopping district; Akihabara, the electronics district; Shinjuku, the main business district; and Shibuya, an area popular for its shops, restaurants and nightlife.
Our enthusiasm for sightseeing was waning a little bit, so we took things at a slightly slower pace. We had also had our fill of miso soup and noodles for a while, so we went to Friday's and the Outback Steak House for our evening meals :). The weather was quite a bit cooler here than it was in Kyoto, in fact it was drizzling most of the time, but that didn't spoil it too much; we were glad of the break from the heat and humidity.
We didn't go to too many places that warranted picture-taking, but the pictures we do have are here. The two pictures below were taken from the 8th floor of our hotel, looking out at the road outside Shibuya station. The number of people crossing the road each time the lights changed was incredible; exactly how I imagined Tokyo to be :).
So, having spent 11 days sightseeing, we're now looking forward to 10 days of doing absolutely nothing in Indonesia...
Our enthusiasm for sightseeing was waning a little bit, so we took things at a slightly slower pace. We had also had our fill of miso soup and noodles for a while, so we went to Friday's and the Outback Steak House for our evening meals :). The weather was quite a bit cooler here than it was in Kyoto, in fact it was drizzling most of the time, but that didn't spoil it too much; we were glad of the break from the heat and humidity.
We didn't go to too many places that warranted picture-taking, but the pictures we do have are here. The two pictures below were taken from the 8th floor of our hotel, looking out at the road outside Shibuya station. The number of people crossing the road each time the lights changed was incredible; exactly how I imagined Tokyo to be :).
So, having spent 11 days sightseeing, we're now looking forward to 10 days of doing absolutely nothing in Indonesia...
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