London

You can probably tell by the Cotswolds pictures that our vacation weather wasn't great.  London, unfortunately, was more of the same.  Cold (in June!) and rainy.  Most days, we looked like this.

Striking a pose under an awning, waiting out a storm. 

We did some interesting things that might not always be on people's lists when visiting the city.  The first was a tour of Lloyd's of London.  I think the idea came about because Mom had to work one day, so one of her colleagues took us across the street and showed us around.  I didn't know what to expect... we had to get really dressed up, and went through pretty serious security.  I walked away thinking insurance was really cool, so that had to be one awesome tour, right?   

After Lloyd's, we had dinner with some of Mom's work friends, who took a great picture of us on from the balcony of the restaurant.

Later, we went to the East end of the city in search of a Banksy gallery, and came across some famous street art.  

When we finally got to the teeny tiny and very crowded art gallery, we were not disappointed.  It was way cool... too bad we couldn't afford the good stuff.  Actually, I take that back - Bizzy got stickers.    

The rest was filled with what you might expect... Indian food, Tate Modern, National Gallery, Borough Market, Tower of London, St. Paul's, and some shopping.  We walked our bums off, and had a great time.  

PS - This was our attempt at an Abbey Road photo (never mind the fact that we were in Notting Hill).  It was hopeless, but Ryan's poses make the pictures pretty funny.

Cotswolds

We're back in Lugano!  After a VERY long vacation.  We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, but it's nice to be home (and wearing clean, wrinkle free clothes).  I'm going to try to catch you up chronologically, starting with Cotswolds.

Cotswolds is beautiful.  Just picture the English countryside... two lane roads, quaint cottages, sheep and cows, and low, rolling, green hills.  And, a collection of very odd and very British sounding towns, like Crudwell.  That's where we stayed, actually.  It was my favorite part of the whole trip.  We had our Crudwell base, and went on day trips to Stonehenge, Malmesbury, Lacock, Bath, and Avebury.

Talking about a "base in Crudwell" might conjure certain images, but chances are they're the opposite of this beautiful hotel.

 
   

    








It may seem strange (by comparison) that I only have two pictures of the legendary Stonehenge.  The problem with Stonehenge?  It was raining sideways.  You can walk a fixed ring around the stone formation, and we did, for the most part heads down, in about 15 minutes.  By the end, we were completely soaked.  Mom actually stayed in the car.













We had much better luck with the second henge, in Avebury.  The stones were scattered around the town - there were houses, fields, and sheep, and we could walk through all of it.

Other day trips took us to more little  towns, and more little adventures.  One of which came in the form of meeting Winston Churchill's illegitimate grandson, who is apparently a potter (not making this up).  Mom bought a bowl, we bought a mug, and hours later, we left, knowing more about Native American teeth, Roman numerals, and Japanese eating habits than ever before.  We had no idea where the conversation was going or when it would end, but it was certainly entertaining.  I had to take a picture.  

One of our trips took us past a cow pasture, where we somehow convinced Bill to stop the car and let Bizzy and I get out.  We all stared at the cows.  They stared right back at us.  Neither party could quite wrap their heads around it.

Then, all at once, they decided we were not to be trusted, and the stampede began.  Cows must communicate telepathically, because the whole herd was up and running in a matter of seconds.  

Aside from the hotels, animals and ancient rocks, the actual towns were extremely picturesque.

And yet somehow, Bath stood out.  It was almost strange how all the buildings were consistent in both style and color (Georgian and beige).  But not strange in a bad way... in a very other worldly pretty way.

The Roman baths were amazing to see.  We even got to taste real Bath water!  It wasn't great, though.

So, that's Cotswolds!  Next up, London, Belgium, and Amsterdam.

The Start of Summer Vacation

My semester is officially over!  This girl is one (gigantic) thesis away from graduating.  So, we're going on vacation for a really, really long time.  My mom, Bill, and Bizzy are headed this way, and they've planned quite a holiday.  Here's the lineup: Bath, Cotswolds, London, Bruges, Brussels, and Amsterdam.  You might not see a post for almost three weeks, but we'll try.

We come back to Lugano for two days, and then we're off again... this time, meeting Ryan's mom and sister.  We're thinking of going to Sardinia... people here say it's easily the best beach in Italy, and one of the best beaches in Europe.  We'll see!

Our friends in Europe think nothing of vacationing all summer, but I still can't believe it.  I guess I'll enjoy this while I still can.


PS - The weather hasn't been so nice lately (amendment to previous post - visit Switzerland in April or EARLY May).  I woke up to this last weekend... Ryan usually reads on the outside couch, but this morning it was pouring outside, so he moved the furniture, opened the door, and tried to replicate the experience.  It works, too.  In a terrible rainstorm, you can still open all the doors to the balcony, and nothing gets wet.

Hair Spiders

To be updated at a later time...

Baby Switch

A lot of our friends are having babies these days.  I have to say, I am loving baby-free life at the moment, but that doesn't mean I'm not slightly jealous.  About a year ago, a switch went off in my ovaries head, and I can't seem to switch it back.

I first noticed it in Venice... we were in this tiny shop where old, Italian ladies were hand-sewing lace, making baby clothes, table cloths, and lots of doilies.  I almost cried looking at a bib thinking we just had to get it for our future child(ren), and what a story it would be to say we bought it during our carefree life in Europe.  Ryan's response... "um, no."

It happened again in Zurich.  I went to this really cool store that mostly sells kitchen gadgets, but (conveniently) also has a baby section.  Where, after lots of mental back and forth, I successfully managed to walk away from a set of blocks (mostly because they were really expensive).

Then in Florence, I came across this little gem.  I got smarter, and started taking pictures.  For those reading, this may be proof of my insanity.  For me, this is a tool I will use to find my way back to this photo album.    

Ryan thinks my wanting to hoard items for a child that doesn't exist is crazy with a capitol C.  And is not ashamed to tell me.  And even though I know it's crazy, fictional baby K would have a lot of cool stuff by now!

It happened again today.  I was perusing a favorite blog when I noticed this.  And there was the switch - must... have... bunny lamp.  It would look perfect in my pretend nursery.

PS - let's hope this kid takes after Ryan.  
 

Short Trip to Zurich

I just got back from Copenhagen, and I can't wait to get my friends' pictures.  I stupidly decided not to bring our nice camera (didn't want to carry it all day), and the battery on my little one died after taking three pictures.  But the trip was amazing... I think I solidified relationships that will last beyond the borders of Europe.    

Because I don't have pictures of Denmark to share, I thought I'd post these of our short trip to Zurich.  I wasn't so sure about this camera app, but because this little vacation wasn't (necessarily) something special, I thought I'd really try it out.  I'm still undecided, but the pictures from the train ride are amazing.  Definitely cuter than they would have been with a regular camera.  I guess I'm just opposed to using something sort of "cool," because I'm not cool, and because I might want pictures that aren't fuzzy and splattered in five years.  But for now, they're cute.  And I like the way they capture the colors of the landscape.

Here we are at the train station about to leave.  Ryan is giving me the "are you crazy" look, and I'm laughing mid bite.  These are ridiculous pictures.

After waiting a while (the train was really late), we were finally on board.

Ryan had to be in Zurich for training, and I used the trip as a way to work on my thesis without distraction.  I waited (somewhat patiently) for Ryan's classes to be over, so we could both go out for the evening.

The weather was beautiful (if you're keeping track, I've said this a lot lately. Definitely visit Switzerland in April or May).  This is what it looks like around 6:30 pm - full sun.  It finally gets dark around 9:00.

  
We had dinner at the most amazing Thai restaurant.  Every dish had a distinct flavor, and they were all good. The dessert was both fantastic and funny (if you have third grade humor, which sometimes, Ryan does).

After dinner, we hit up our favorite candy store (double dessert, I know, but we do not pass up a chance to buy sour straws).

And because we had captured everything up to that point, we captured the tram ride back to the hotel.

I had to leave the next morning, a day ahead of Ryan, to be back for a meeting.  I love the train ride home... it's both scenic and relaxing, and the little app was able to capture it all.  So, in conclusion, Zurich was awesome (always is), the camera app will be used again (albeit sparingly), and I much prefer school work if this is my view.