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Eire is for Ireland
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| Thursday, March 29, 2007 |
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This past weekend we made a wee trip to Ireland. We wanted to hop over to see Jenna in the North and Paul and Melonie (Mel’s cousins) in the South before the impending “10 weeks till due date” travel ban. We caught the late flight into Belfast, and as it turns out Ciaran was on the same flight, so that was cool to chat on the way there – kudos to Ciaran for reserving us the emergency exit aisle! That’s about as close to First Class as you get with easyJet.
Jenna and her mum picked us up from the airport and took us to stay at their summer home in Port Stewart for the night. What a beautiful spot! A panoramic view of the ocean and just a short walk to the beach. On Saturday they took us driving through Northern Ireland. We visited a couple of ruined castles, the Giant’s Causeway, and had some lovely strolls along the beach. We also witnessed quite a few very brave surfers catching the waves. The weather was nice and sunny, but I’m sure the Atlantic was still frigid. On Sunday we visited with the Armagh meeting which was most enjoyable, everyone was so friendly to us.
It was really sad to leave on Monday morning. After spending just a weekend with the Agnews we felt like we’d known them for years! Jenna took us to the train station and after a sad goodbye we caught the train to Dublin. As we rolled south across the countryside, we reflected on the amazing people God has brought across our path during the last year and a half. This i ...
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The Knowledge
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| Saturday, March 17, 2007 |
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It’s been proven: London cabbies have bigger brains. Brain scans show that London taxi drivers have a larger hippocampus (the part of the brain associated with navigation – absent in most men) compared with people in other professions. As we have learnt first-hand since moving to London, navigating your way around this city is a brain-straining feat – and one that a mere mortal shouldn’t attempt without GPS.
London cabbies don’t have GPS though, and neither do they have a dispatch centre to call for directions. In order to become a licensed cabbie, you must pass a gruelling test called the Knowledge. To pass the test, one must prove they have a detailed knowledge of the 25,000 streets, major buildings and open spaces within a six mile radius of Charing Cross, and a more general knowledge of the major routes throughout the rest of London. They have to be able to recite 320 routes in either direction with all points of interest along the way, and account for traffic disruptions at the same time. An aspiring cabbie studies for three years before taking the test, and usually requires at least 10 or 12 appearances before receiving a passing grade.
Imagine my surprise, then, when one day I laid a real stumper. It was on our way back from a recent trip, sometime after midnight when the Tube had closed. We hauled our suitcases across a desert ...
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The “M” in GMT
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| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 |
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The dust has settled from our move, and we awoke this morning south of the river. The historic docks of West India Quay and the towers of Canary Wharf are behind us, and Greenwich is our new home. Glad it’s over, too. Of the four moves (yes, four) we’ve endured over the past year and a half, this was definitely the most stressful.
Of course, having Canadian-sized furniture doesn’t help. For the past three weeks I’d been going back and forth with property management to get approval for use of a furniture crane. Taking our couch out the patio doors and five floors down to street-level is the only way to have it removed, due to the size of the tiny elevators and narrow hallways in the building. I paid the property management office a visit on the morning of the move to let them know that things would soon be underway. “Hi. The moving truck and furniture crane will be arriving in an hour. Here are the registration numbers of the vehicles.” “Oh, but you don’t have approval yet.” “SAY WHAT???”
I’d provided all the documentation, and more, that they’d asked for. Site photographs, operator certifications, risk assessments, insurance documentation, DNA samples from all the movers, a litre of blood, and a letter of reference from QEII. No worries. But as I stood there, mouth open in the management office, I was faced with the reality that we may not get this couch out after all. Do I try to sell the couch to our landlord? Saw it up into cubes and g ...
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Mamas & Papas
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| Friday, March 02, 2007 |
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The other day we went on a reconnaissance trip. Neither of us knows the first thing about prams or buggies or anything like that, so we went to a well-known store in London to check out the goods and take some notes. The store is called Mamas & Papas and is located off the shopping mecca of Regent Street (nestled uncomfortably close to the likes of Burberry and Coco Chanel).
The store itself is immaculate, brightly lit with grand displays and groovy lounge music playing in the background. I sent Mel a text when I got there and she responded that she was upstairs in the café. (Note #1: any nursery products store with an espresso bar selling Peter Rabbit Organics could well be indicative of high prices). They may only charge £5 for a cappuccino, but they’ll get you later when you buy that mahogany change table...
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It’s (going-to-be) a ____!
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| Wednesday, February 21, 2007 |
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We had our 22-week scan today. Beforehand Mel downed an espresso, a chocolate bar, and a glass of cold water. This ensured that baby:
1) will be a coffee addict like dad
2) will be a chocolate addict like mum
3) was wide awake and kicking for the scan!
Since the little one was flying on cloud nine (or rather, *kicking* on cloud nine), it allowed the “scanographer” (or whatever she’s called) to see the gender of our little baby. I’m glad we were able to find out. Now we don’t have to refer to “bump” as “it” anymore, we can now refer to “bump” as...
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The Drawbridge is Down but Nobody’s Home
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| Friday, February 16, 2007 |
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I love castles because they bring me back to a totally different era. Not only can you admire the architecture, but you can walk through the different rooms and learn about the lives of the people who lived there centuries ago. It’s always interesting how much of a contrast life was back then to life in the present day.
The only example of a fortified medieval castle local to Brussels is 13 miles south in the small town of Beersel. I bought a ticket for a train with one connection from Bruxelles Gare Centrale. Changing trains is a big deal in a foreign country. You have to pay attention to each stop to make sure you get off at the right one, then you have to find the right platform for your connection and make sure you get on the right train at the right time to complete the journey. Not easy when everything is in another language, and any small mistake could land you in the middle of nowhere...
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Bruges
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| Thursday, February 15, 2007 |
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I had read of Bruges that to step into the city’s Old Town was to step right back into the Middle Ages. It wasn’t an exaggeration. If I hadn’t watched myself I could’ve been photographed walking around with my mouth wide open half the time. Bruges was among the wealthiest cities in Europe during the Middle Ages, and as it was spared the ravaging of WWII, its monumental buildings and cobblestone streets remain largely untouched.
The city is thread together by a network of canals, and in the winter they sometimes freeze and allow for skating. Today was 10C and sunny, so didn’t get to inject any Canadiana into this pretty little European town this time.
In 1482, one building was used to imprison Crown Prince Maximilian of Austria. When the prince was later freed, being the brutish fellow that he was, he exacted a cruel and harsh punishment upon the poor citizens of Bruges...
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Place de la Wha?
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| Wednesday, February 14, 2007 |
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Apparently first time visitors to Brussels are often confused with the long street names. Not sure what’s so confusing about “Place de la Vieille Halle aux Blés Oud Korenhuis,” but anyway, after the Czech Republic this is a walk in the Parc aux Bruxelles.
I started the morning by going to the Grand Place, considered by some to be the most beautiful square in the world. The esplanade is surrounded by Flemish Renaissance-baroque guild-houses from the 17th century, the neo-Gothic King’s House, and the 15th-century Gothic Town Hall. I don’t know all about those architecture styles, but believe me when I say it’s a grand place! In the Grand Place there is a statue you can rub for fertility, which I stayed well clear of after what happened in Prague. We might end up with twins!
Next I paid a visit to Brussels’ oldest citizen, Manneken-Pis. This is a statue of a little boy, gleefully doing what little boys gotta do. So the “oldest citizen” is just a “wee lad,” actually...
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Bruxelles Bound
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| Tuesday, February 13, 2007 |
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As I write this, Mel and I are somewhere under the English Channel travelling at a couple hundred kph. We’re heading to Brussels via the Eurostar, which connects Britain to the continent (or as the Brits say – connects the continent to Britain). I can vouch that the Eurostar is a million times better than the previous method of crossing, by giant hovercraft. I have quite a few sea-sick childhood memories of that journey.
The reason for this speedy “Chunnel” crossing is a rehearsal for a corporate recruitment event in April that Mel is helping organize. Sounds like a neat event, actually. Every year P&G tries to woo the continent’s top graduates by inviting them to this annual week-long event in Brussels for a right good brainwashing session. Bill Gates never did that for me, but I’m not bitter ;-)
Belgium is a small country of 10 million people, bordered by France, Luxembourg, Germany and the Netherlands. It is known for its wealth of historical attractions, art, culture and cuisine. It is also called the Capital of Europe, since the European Union HQ is based here (*yawn*).
Anyway, I actually got to try out my French when ali ...
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Four Seasons
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| Thursday, February 08, 2007 |
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It all started about three weeks ago in the middle of January. Mel gasped, her jaw dropped and her eyes popped wide open. She was pointing out the living room window to something outside. “Look!”, she exclaimed. I looked and saw nothing. “The plant!” She was referring to the small, potted lilac plant that Jenna gave us last summer. It had bloomed beautifully at the time, but once summer ended we left it out on the balcony for dead (sorry Jenna, we are about the least plant-friendly people we know!). It had been sitting out there all dry and shrivelled up for months. But now it was blooming! In the middle of January! Then last Saturday, as it was nothing but sunshine and Mel was doing a “craft day” at the hall with some of the girls, I headed down to Greenwich for a walk. Sure enough, the flowers in the Greenwich Park flower garden were pushing up and approaching half-bloom. Cherry blossoms were opening. I even saw a baby fox playing with some pigeons. It was seriously the nicest February day I’ve ever experienced. Well, that was last Saturday, today is Thursday, and in between we’ve had all four seasons. In fact, today was the biggest recorded snowfall in England in the past decade. A whole whopping 5cm! If you thought hurricane force winds could cause a fair spot of bother, well just imagine what 5cm of snow can do. According to this evening’s paper, up to 1 million people in L ...
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