London and the British Museum

We decided to spend another Saturday in London. We drove down, parked and took the tube into town. We spent the whole of the day at the British Museum.

The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture situated in London, England. Its collections, which number more than 7 million objects,[3] are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its beginning to the present.[a] (from wikipedia)

It was really beautiful. It is very overwhelming to think and see the number of different cultures and histories represented in one place. There is some controversy around returning items to their home country and I see some validity to their claims. However, it is too great a gift to have so many treasures in one place, for so many to glimpse and appreciate others histories and cultures. So, I think it would be a tragedy to let anything leave despite the capture or stealing of the items 100 or 200 years ago.

S liked the jewelry, X loved the swords and VW liked the knives and intricately carved metal. I liked reading the history behind things and then realizing I know about that person or event or wishing I did know about it. Some things that struck me were several items from Emperor Jahangir, of 17th century India/ Mughal Empire, builder of the Taj Mahal (written about in the The Twentieth Wife.)


The Rosetta Stone:

The Rosetta Stone is an Ancient Egyptian artifact which was instrumental in advancing modern understanding of hieroglyphic writing. …carved text made up of three translations of a single passage: two in Egyptian language scripts (hieroglyphic and Demotic) and one in classical Greek. It was created in 196 BC, discovered by the French in 1799 …during Napoleon Bonaparte's campaign in Egypt.

We also really liked the mummies. I also like the miniature carvings.

The museum is free, which is amazing. However, I understood how it could be free when we paid $45 for bad sandwiches at lunch.

We ate dinner at a little Italian restaurant off the Covent Garden Tube stop. It was mostly an underground winding tunnel of bricks. It was a fine meal, however X’s glass broke while he was drinking. It scared me half to death. We walked around a bit. X loved an out door musician playing Chinese music. He danced and danced.

Have a great Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving with the UST Gang

We missed our first Thanksgiving ever with the Brady UST plus friends party this past weekend. It was very difficult to miss it, as I look so forward to it every year. We were with them in our hearts. The same holds true for next weekend on the actual Thanksgiving. But we have a the great blessing of spending Sunday with the B family just outside of London, thanks to their kind inclusion of us.

Halloween Pictures

trick or treating


costumes

Downtown Groby

The town consists of a pharmacy, a bakery, a veggie store (all extremely small), mini market, fish stand, hair salon, newsstand, 2 banks and 2 pubs. It all fits over about 3-4 blocks.
Library above
Town Hall below
The Post Office is also a gift shop with cards, toys, office supplies.

Downtown Leicester

I Still Got It

I got ID buying wine at the grocery store today! The two clerks didn’t believe I was old enough. They must have been farsighted, but I will take it when I can! I had just finished telling VW last weekend, I can really see a difference from two years ago. I look so much older.

Cheers.

Dark

It is dark by 4:15 and still black out at 7 am.

Bond, Baby Bond

So we headed out with the neighbors again on Saturday (with much more restraint this time.) We saw the new Bond movie at the new theater in downtown Leicester. We watched from the executive lounge ($14 for a normal movie ticket and $24 the executive lounge). It was really wonderful. The seats were so comfortable and large, you could eat or drink at your seat. The movie or rather picture was really good. I was so determined not to like this Bond actor, but I think I like him better. Others commented that they miss the gadgets. I do, but I prefer less gadgets as opposed to more. After we ate out and headed home. Our neighbors have traveled a great deal, so it is great to hear more about the places they have been including Thailand, Dubai and a pending trip to Iceland (and the ice hotel.)

The kids had fun with our sitter. I almost panicked when she said she is moving. She said she still would like to sit for us, even though not in our postcode. The kids really like her and we had no tears at all this time.

British Book Phrases

American translation:
Sophie ran to her Mum and Dad ->
Sophie ran to her Mom and Dad

Please could I have my princess party in the garden? ->
Please could I have my princess party in the back yard?











American Translation:
She knew all her favourites off by heart ->
She knew all her favorites by heart.

said Mum ->
said Mom










American translation:
"How about crocodiles? Do they have bellybuttons?"
"They might" sneered the crocodile.

Two Weekends of Fun

We seem to be as busy here as we were at home. I have decided it is our personality to go, go, go. Our first weekend after vacation we tried to slow down a bit. We took the kids trick or treating to a few houses. It really isn’t much of a holiday here. I did decorate the house. Saturday, we all shopped for winter coats and random necessities.

Then oh me, oh my. VW and I went out with two other couples from the neighborhood. We had so much fun. We started with drinks at the neighbors, (we took a taxi,) then went to a proper Indian restaurant (yummy and spicy) and more drinks at the neighbors. (Think roll in the fire or limo ride ~ to those who remember.) It was great to hang out and chat and have some grown up time. We have once again been blessed with a great neighborhood. Our only sad point is the lack of same age kids for S and X. We are planning another outing soon. Sunday was spent in recovery.

This weekend we had B family come up from London (friend from VW’s HS that married a Brit and has been here 13 years.) It was a fun day and the kids played really well again.

Sunday we went to church, visited a nearby castle ruins and attended a birthday party. See what I mean, we just can’t sit still.

Cheers.

Election

The US election here was very big news. Most people are very excited about President Obama. Everyone always asks who you are voting for and who we thought would win.

Truly Random Thoughts

Foods are less sweet here, but you can really taste the cream in your goodies.

Candy is called sweeties.

Halloween isn’t a very big holiday.

When driving on the motorway (a two lane freeway, 70 miles an hour and no shoulder) there are these little food stands. They are generally made of wood and look like old trailers. They are literally right off the road as though you would pull over on the shoulder. One recently had a large sign posted “Under New Management.” Apparently you can buy hamburgers and sausages at them. Some of the counties have recently passed rules saying they must serve healthy options like salad and yogurt. The controversy is that these items don’t sell and the shopkeepers are simply throwing away money. It does seem that sometimes they have more laws about “protecting” you. I think adults should be able to eat all the hamburgers and sausages they would like. It is their butt!

Issues with knife violence is big here. There are lots of TV and radio commercials right now, trying to educate and prevent the violence. (Probably because guns are banned.)

Beef tastes different. I can’t explain why or exactly how, but it is. We can’t wait to come home and have steak and hamburgers.

I still struggle with driving on occasion. I get lost and miss turns off of round abouts. (AK how did you do so well here so fast!)

High School Musical (HSM) is all the rage. On the Marks and Spence site (Dayton’s) there is a HSM clothes section.’

They use the florescent yellow in the way we use florescent orange: Police and worker vests, traffic cones, emergency vehicles, etc.

Cheers for that: is often used for thank you.

Another School Report

I often think of the many differences in the school system from the USA. And then I remind myself, that being that S would have been only a kindergartner, I am remembering some 30 years ago in the schools. (EEEEk!) So, I will really learn the differences when we get home and put X in school.

The schools have lots of staff. Not much spent on building and accessories. Yet fully fitted rooms with white board computer screens, computer labs, French class, music class, PE and lots of hands on activities. In years 2, 4 and 6 they have field trips and overnights. In year 6 they actually have a one week trip. Independence is really encouraged and emphasized. As is being quiet and orderly. There is a school wide assembly everyday with k-2 and 3-6 together. Here they are told stories, read too, see plays, learn songs, you name it. Even the head teacher (Principal) and assistant head teacher take turns leading it. Hot topics are the environment, exercise and healthy eating, various religious traditions (Christian, Jewish, Hindu, SIKH). S just learned and taught us all about Diwali.

Diwali (or Deepavali) is a major Hindu holiday, and a significant festival in Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddhism, and Jainism. [3] Many legends are associated with Diwali. Today it is celebrated by Hindus, Jains, and Sikhs across the globe as the "Festival of Lights," where the lights or lamps signify victory of good over the evil within an individual. Diwali is celebrated on the new moon day (approx fifteenth day) of the month Kartika.[4]

The PTA has been working for two years to save enough money for a “dry” playground surface for the students to play on when it is wet. Currently the playground is just a big open grassy field. No fancy play equipment, etc. The new play area will be pretty simple by Minnesota standards. The parks tend to be much simpler as well. But kids are the same everywhere, they have fun where ever they are.

They have only a 6 week summer break, but a week in October, February and May and two weeks in December and April. I think this schedule would be a hard adjustment in the USA, but I really like it.

Cheers.

Random Cute Kid Pictures

A Holiday in Lanzarote, Canary Islands

I had never heard of Lanzarote before planning a trip there, so here is the scoop.

Lanzarote, a Spanish island, is the easternmost of the Canary Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 125 km off the coast of Africa and 1,000 km from the Iberian Peninsula. Covering 845.9 km², it stands as the fourth largest of the islands. The island's name means "the red mountains".

Ok, so I will start with, we left the camera in the trunk (or boot in Brit speak) of the car! We did buy a disposable camera, so I will post pictures as soon as we get them back (knowing me-sometime in 2010!)

Overall we had a great vacation. However, our accommodations were a bit disappointing and the pools were freezing!!!! We didn’t understand that the one bedroom kitchen unit for four meant only two single beds. Also, the kids club advertised as open until the end of October closed our second day (October 19th). They did have a kids disco which Sophia loved, followed by a show every night. “I am the music man, I come from Alowaya and I can play, I can play…..” The song will haunt me for months. Later review on wikipedia reveals the lyrics were actually "I am the music man, I come from down the way, and I can play...". It was some of the latest nights out VW and I have had in years! I see a future dancing queen in S.

I am so glad VW convinced me not to get the all inclusive. We had two grocery stores next door and a millions beachfront restaurants. We enjoyed some really great meals overlooking the ocean. Everyone at the resort complained about the all-inclusive meals. And the lack of things included in the “all-inclusive.” They even charged $6 a day to turn the TV on for example. Of course, who watches TV on vacation.

S made some wonderful friends at the pool and we even exchanged information with several families. One family we met at the beach (some distance from our hotel) turned out to be staying a few doors down from us at the hotel. The husband was in the same line of work as VW and had actually been to Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Crazy. Most people have never heard of Minnesota of course.

Both kids got really into playing on the beach. They built castles and hunted for shells and made friends. The water is a truly different kind of blue. Most of the beaches are covered in black volcanic rock and white sand blown over from the Sahara Desert. We went to Papagayo Beach one day (I hope the pictures turn out.) You walk down a rather crazy cliff to the beach below. It looks like a scene from a movie.

We also visited Timanfaya National Park. It was really cool. You take a bus tour through the volcanic rock mountains and over some pretty terrifying terrain. Next time, I would have a drink or two! It was absolutely lovely though. We ate BBQ at the restaurant cooked over the heat from the volcano.

The parkland is entirely made up of volcanic soil. The greatest recorded eruptions occurred between 1730 and 1736. The volcanic activity continues as the surface temperature in the core ranges from 100 to 600 ºC at the depth of 13m, which is demonstrated by pouring water into the ground, resulting in a geyser of steam which is an attraction for tourists.

We also visited El Grifo Wine Museum. It was really nice to see the history and tools used. We tried the wines and I liked the champagne best.

We also visited Jameos del Agua. I think it was our favorite attraction, and I know it was VW’s (mine might have been the wine museum.)

It is long lava tube which formed about 3,000 years ago when the Montaña La Corona erupted.
Molten lava continued to flow as the surface hardened, which in turn led to the formation of the tubes, which run down under the Atlantic. You enter the Jameos by climbing down a stone-staircase into the first cave known as ‘Jameo Chico’, which has been turned into an unusual bar / restaurant, with views over a small lake.

This natural lake has extremely clear water — regulated by the Atlantic Ocean — and is home to a species of blind albino crabs known as ‘Jameitos’ which are only found on Lanzarote.
Crossing the lake, by a narrow footpath, we find ourselves in the ‘Jameo Grande’

There is also a crystal-clear, turquoise pool is truly paradise, even if you can’t actually use it, as swimming is forbidden.

From the far end of the ‘Jameo Grande’ you can access the auditorium which has been constructed in part of the volcanic tube running down to the Ocean.

The auditorium has unbelievable acoustics and has been the setting for some memorable concerts.

I even got to use a little of my Spanish, however it must be really bad, because the people would say, “I speak English.”

One other thought, the island was very windy. So, it was a bit cold at times, however I am sure in the heat of the summer, the wind would be welcomed.

We ended the trip with a 4 hour flight delay. We arrived home around 4:30 on Monday morning. VW had to be at work early and I brought S to school late.

Cheers.