Hi all! Got a little too
ambitious with this update. Despite the best of intentions (was optimistically
hoping to get all the photo albums caught up and a bunch of pictures posted
months ago), it has taken even longer than usual and is months later than
expected. As I have been getting more recent photos digitized on a CD, as well
as printed, I am hoping to speed things along in the future.
Since the
last update... Shelly's dad visited us shortly after the holidays. Though we
spent the weekend with him (and evenings), he spent the other time exploring on
his own. We managed a nice dinner with James & Wendy, caught a Tottenham
match up @White Hart Lane (Tottenham v. Southampton), and saw a play called
Stones In His Pockets. The play was a bit unusual in that two actors played the
parts of a bunch of characters, yet they never changed their costumes (only
their voices, mannerisms, etc). Took a little while to make sense of
everything, but as it went along it became more and more enjoyable.
Had
a wonderful visit to Italy in February, although getting there was quite an
experience. In and around that time, we had a number of foggy days. On a couple
of occasions (including the day we were due to fly), the fog did not lift for
the entire day. As our flight was from Stansted (which is north of the city),
we allowed quite a bit of time to get there (it is not our favorite airport,
and we have previously had problems with the trains). Just as the train was
about to pull away from the station, a Stansted Express employee indicated that
there were numerous delays and cancellations due to the weather. However, they
recommended still going out to the airport. Called the airline, but all they
could tell me was that the flight was not cancelled. When we got to the
airport, it was a huge mess. Few flights were taking off except (amazingly) for
our airline, Go (Buzz, EasyJet and the others were largely being cancelled). We
did eventually take off (albeit delayed - the inbound flight was affected and
subsequently late arriving), making our departure much later than expected.
Despite a harrowing taxi ride from the airport (certainly seems that we find a
disproportionate share of aspiring Indy drivers), we finally arrived at our
hotel sometime before 11:00pm. Unsure we were going to find a restaurant open
(definitely a little more difficult than it would have been in southern Italy)
we found a place and enjoyed some local wine and pasta (with a Bolognese sauce,
of course). Bologna is not known for its tourism (probably more Brits than
anyone else, likely because of the low cost flights from the UK), but there is
quite a lot to see and the food is up to the usual Italian standard.
Experienced Lambrusco wine for the first time. If you have not come across it,
it is a very good, slightly carbonated red wine. From Bologna, we drove south
towards Siena. Actually, spent more time "stopped" on the Autostrada, than
driving. Got caught up in a protracted incident just before Florence. It was
nearly two hours before we were moving again, though there was no evidence
(vehicles, emergency vehicles) as to the problem causing the backup. Siena was
beautiful; our first Italian walled city. Parking was a little interesting
(took quite a while to figure out where we could park, and the woman at the
B&B was too busy having a screaming fit on the phone to help us). Much like
August, it would seem that everyone (at least in the more touristy areas) takes
large portions of January - March as an extended holiday. The town was
extremely quiet, probably nothing like the summertime. Apparently, Siena is
known for its bi-annual horse race in (around the perimeter) the center piazza
(Piazza del Campo). From the pictures I have seen, looks like it would be an
amazing time to visit. After Siena, we drove northwest to San Gimignano. For
reasons that became evident as we left the next day, San Gimignano is called
the Manhattan of Tuscany. At one point, the city had dozens and dozens of
towers that give the impression of skyscrapers from a distance. Unfortunately,
only about 14 - 16 remain. Would be fairly accurate to describe San Gimignano
as a smaller-scale Siena. Enjoyed the peacefulness and lack of tourists until
dinnertime, when it was a little difficult finding a someplace open to eat. On
our return drive to Bolonga, we had enough time to stop and explore a walled
town (on a hill, surrounded by vineyards) we had noticed on the drive between
Florence and Siena. The town turned out to be Monteriggioni (very small,
idyllic little town) and most of the wines we had been enjoying (Vernaccia,
etc.) were from the surrounding countryside. There is little to the town except
for a couple of shops, B&Bs and restaurants. Of course, everything was
closed except for a single restaurant. Surprisingly, it was bustling inside
(probably because there is virtually nothing else in the area), with equal
numbers of Italian business people and tourists.
Jen Boyle stayed with
us before and after her visit to Uganda (February). In addition to catching up
with us a bit, she had the opportunity to catch up with a couple of her Ugandan
friends (who all call her Jennifer). Just saw her again this past weekend as
she was connecting in London on her way to Zambia. Sounds like she is finally
doing some of the project development work that she has been interested in
pursuing.
For Valentines Day (actually, the weekend afterwards), we
rented a car from Heathrow Airport (thought it would be easier than picking it
up in London proper) and spent the weekend in the Cotswolds. Started in
Moreton-In-Marsh and continued on from there. Spent the night in Shurdington,
which is just south of Cheltenham (southwest corner of the Cotswolds) at a
B&B called The Greenway. Though much more than we usually spend on a hotel,
the room was very comfortable and dinner was especially good (would definitely
recommend it!). Spent Sunday driving around the winding roads and visiting a
few of the little towns in the area (Bibury, Bourton-on-the-Water, the
Slaughters, etc). Although not a badly hit as areas in Devon and Cumbria, most
of the touristy areas will take years to recover financially from the food
& mouth outbreak and associated restrictions.
Within a week of each other,
Shelly left her camera in a taxi and I left my Palm Pilot behind on the x-ray
machine in the Dublin Airport. Amazingly, our cabbie turned the camera into the
Lost Property office, and the night I arrived back from Dublin someone called
to tell me that they had my Palm Pilot. Apparently he noticed the London
address on the back (fortunately, I had labeled it), and thoughtfully brought
it back to London with him. The camera had to be retrieved from the London Lost
Property Office. Learned that all items left in a train, bus or taxi (in
theory) end up at the Lost Property Office. Luckily, we knew specific details
about the camera, so we were able to precisely identify it. Took a week or so,
but it eventually showed up. All we had to pay was a finder fee (10% of the
value of the item) which is passed along to cabbie as an incentive to turn in
lost items.
Received another great deal (by mail) for travel on
Eurostar, so we spent a March weekend in Paris. It was a similar deal to the
one we received by mail last year (discovered that we traveled on the same
weekend both times). Had a much more enjoyable time on this visit. Stayed more
in the middle of the city (4e - Right Bank), not far from the
Hôtel
de Ville. The hotel was very nice (found it in the Karen
Brown guide). Enjoyed two very good meals (both recommended by our hotel - the
owner of the first restaurant was kind enough to translate nearly the entire
menu for us!) and found lots of the little concentrations of shops and
restaurants much like I thought we would find on our initial visit. Visited a
beautiful chapel called Sainte-Chapelle. The church itself is not particularly
spectacular, but each of the windows has elaborate stained glass. Can only
imagine what it is like inside on a brightly sunny day. The experience was made
especially memorable when an group of students (probably a choir group) treated
other visitors to several songs. The acoustics are definitely amazing! Still
have not made it to the Lourve, but we did make it to the
Musée
d'Orsay Impressionism exhibit. Not nearly enough time to take in
everything, but well worth the visit.
After well over a year with
Shelly's college roommate, Steph, we have finally brought our cat, Daisy, to
the UK. Not a experience we wanted to put her through, but we are happy to have
her here and anxious for her to be out of quarantine (Shelly's friend Shelly
refers to it as the Kitty Clink). For those of you not familiar with the UK,
Britain requires all animals to be quarantined for 6 months. In the past year
or so, they have reduced the period for many of the European countries and
various island nations (actually, Hawaii is included in that list), but it's
not clear how long before the rest of the United States will be included
(speculation is a couple of years). Flew her over about 3 months ago (she flew
Thursday, arrived Friday). Though a little worse for wear when we saw her that
first weekend (15 hours in a crate and variety of jabs from a vet will do that
to you), she was happy to see us. Each time we see her, she seems a bit more
settled. She is due out of quarantine in September.
Near the end of
March, we met up with Beth & Alan in Rome. Alan was there for a big Exxon /
Mobil meeting just north of Rome and Beth decided (reluctantly, no doubt!) to
join him. We met in the city on Saturday morning. That first day was gorgeous
with lots of sun (the first we had seen in a while - ended up a little
sunburned!). Revisited the Coloseum (sans all the exterior scaffolding it had
the last time we were there) and Vatican City (Shelly & Beth passed on the
climb up the St Peters copula). Had our requisite return to the Trevi to throw
coins in the fountain (the legend is that whoever throws a coin in the
fountain, is destined to return). Enjoyed an amazing meal the first night,
though a little too much food, wine and limoncello (of course). What else would
you expect in Italy!?!
Kristin Rath was over for a few days (sans Brian)
to visit her sister Michelle, before she (Michelle, that is) moved back to the
States (she returned a couple of months ago and is now living / taking classes
in NYC). That Friday, the four of us went to Sing-A-Long Sound of Music at a
theatre in Leicester Square. What a blast! Reminds me a little of Rocky Horror.
There are various props and parts of the movie where you are expected to
participate (the words to the songs are projected on the bottom of the screen,
like laser Karaoke). Helps to have a few drinks before you go. Met up @Browns
to catch up, have some wine and grab a quick meal before the movie.
We
have been continuing our recreational German classes (keep telling Shelly it is
in preparation for our eventual move to Germany). Finished the first two parts
of the first section and are over halfway through the third part (it actually
began the week we were in the States). It has been enjoyable, and there is a
core group of people that have continued on from the beginning. I had a
terrible string of missed classes (coinciding with various deadlines and late
nights at work) but have become more consistent again recently. Noticeably,
Shelly is remembering more and more of her high school German and our teacher
seems to enjoy having a number of more advanced students in the
class.
Rob & Suzy (Foster) were here for a week near the beginning
of April. Aside from the mandatory visit to one of our local pubs (Kings Head
& Eight Bells), we had dinner at a couple of nearby restaurants (Ebury Wine
Bar, Admiral Codrington), took a "flight" on the London Eye, and walked around
Westminster Abbey (been here for more than 1½ years, but it was our
first time inside), Kensington Palace and Windsor. As luck would have it, we
were able to get them tickets for Mamma Mia (only expected we would find
tickets for a less sought after show). They definitely seemed to enjoy it as
much as we did. After our visit to Windsor, they went on to stay overnight in
Bath before returning to London and flying home.
Had an enjoyable visit
to Amsterdam over Easter weekend (planned the trip way back in January!) with
two other couples. Got there shortly after noon on Friday, and returned on
Monday (both Friday and Monday were UK Bank Holidays). Unlike our previous
visit we had several very long and relaxing meals (including a meal at the
Supper Club which involved beds and half-naked man carrying a cross - think we
decided it was pretty much the anti-traditional Easter brunch) and got to do
some touristy things - Ann Frank house and Van Gogh museum.
One of
Shelly's colleagues, Tony, arranged Charlton v. Aston Villa (Premiership)
tickets for a big group of us (mostly people from her office). Ended up being a
pretty lively match. Charlton was up 2 - 0, but lost a man to a booking (red
card) before halftime. Ginola, brought in for Villa at the beginning of the
second half, quickly contributed and the match ended in a 3-3 draw (the tying
goal was scored in the last 10 seconds).
Shelly surprised me with
tickets to "Baddiel and Skinner Unplanned" for my birthday. Without realizing
it, I have run across their show on the BBC. Basically, they just sit on a
couch in the center of the stage and talk, fielding questions from the
audience. Near the start of their show they get a volunteer from the audience
to act as secretary (they are suppose to write down, on a chalkboard on stage,
all the topics that are discussed). The person they chose was a DJ, who seemed
to relish the attention. As you can imagine, the topics were all over the
place.
Shelly was back in the States at the end of April to visit family
/ friends in Pittsburgh before meeting me in Maryland to visit my parents (I
did not fly back until several days later). Caught up with a few people in and
around Washington before attending Mike & Kirstin's wedding on Saturday.
Wish we could have seen everyone. Seems there is never, nearly enough time.
Will probably plan the next trip sometime after the summer (though no definite
plans yet).
Spent the first weekend in May with Greg & Alethea and
our little friend (their daughter), Leah, in Berlin. Enjoyed a long, relaxing
weekend without the usual rushing around trying to see as much as possible.
Aside from learning that Leah gets dancing feet whenever she hears a Robbie
Williams song, we did manage to visit Schloss Charlottenburg, the Reichstag,
and wander around the Tiergarten (unfortunately, the weather was not
particularly cooperative so missed out taking in a biergarten).
Not sure
how they heard about it, but Wendy & James arranged for tickets to a taping
of a long running television program called Blind Date (with Cilla Black - the
format is similar to the Dating Game). It was the first time I have ever seen
the taping of a television show. Although we were still there for nearly 3
hours, there were surprising few retakes. Forgot to ask when the show was going
to broadcast, so we probably missed seeing the edited version on TV long ago.
Might have been even more fun to see the follow-on show when the paired-up
couples are back to tell about their holiday together (the first girl was
especially "interesting").
Friends from Annapolis, Judy & Eric, made
it over for a visit a few weeks ago. Eric had to travel to Copenhagen for work,
so they worked out a stopover in London (to see us and some other friends,
clients). From London, Eric went on to a client meeting in Copenhagen and Judy
took the Eurostar to Paris to visit her friend Noel (think they were meeting up
in Germany, to fly home together, after their respective trips).
My work
is a huge story in and of itself. Things have been extremely crazy and very
unsettled since the holidays. Negotiations with the Met (London Metropolitan
Police) were terminated months ago. Since then, our company has been moving all
the expats back to the States. Though I was in the process of taking over as
Technical Director in Reading, I have been put on notice as well (it has been
reiterated as recently as this month). Do not have a return date, though I am
the only remaining American and have been told to expect a call from HR (to
arrange the moveback). We would like to stay here for a little while yet.
Unlike the others, our situation is complicated with Shelly's job so I would
definitely look for something here for a period of time (probably through the
end of next year). Would expect things to be sorted out in another week or so
(hopefully). More recently, things have looked a little more encouraging on a
number of fronts including other opportunities, a potential PRC / UK buyout,
etc. Been spending some time out of the office recently involved with various
meetings / demonstrations for a number of potential procurements including the
Garda in Dublin, Wiltshire Emergency Services (Police, Fire, Ambulance),
Northamptonshire Police, North Wales Police and Merseyside
Police.
Better bring this to a close before it can be considered a
novel. Will write more soon (promise, not so long between updates)!
Take
care, and miss you all! Norman
P.S. Per usual, check out the website
when you get the chance. I have posted tons of new pictures from Spain, Italy,
the Cotswolds and a number of places / sites within England.