VACATION ~ PARIS ~ PART FIVE

(Remember to click on the photos to enlarge them)

Friday June 17, 2011

We flew from London Heathrow to Charlie De Gaulle in Paris. Again they make you walk f.o.r.e.v.e.r to get to customs. Of course we had more to carry because I had been shopping:) It really wasn't that much but Mark was a little upset about it because the longer we have to walk the more he has to help carry it for me.

Traffic in Paris was horrible from the airport but it was also the time of day. Our taxi driver actually pulled over on the freeway to take a pee! It seemed like forever to get our Hotel. Phil and I were talking about how nice it will be to unpack since we will actually be here for 8 nights.

So we get to the Hotel which was very nice. Has one of those cute tiny lifts that the max is 4 people. Our room is lovely only small. Small is okay, we have a door that opens to a view but guess what? No dresser!! So I am still going to have to live out of my bag. I was pretty upset about this. Sometimes I'm like a little kid when I don't get my way. So we meet with Phil later and he has no view but has a dresser. Mark thought the view was better then a dresser, I didn't agree at first but he was right. I did live out of my suitcase the entire 3 weeks.

Ali came in from London by train. So we all went out to dinner to the Julien which was delicious. I didn't take pictures and the dessert was so worthy of a picture. (same place we went to on our anniversary so you will see pictures later)Walking can be very hard for me and it was a bit of a walk. Mark keeps wanting to tell them to slow down but I don't want to be the issue/problem.

Saturday June 18, 2011

On Saturday we sleep in a little. Phil and Ali went out without us. We meet up with them over at Notre Dame. No one wanted to wait in line to go inside. It started to pour and the wind was taking every one's umbrellas out of commission. We stood for the longest time under an awning with freezing wind and rain hitting against us. When that stopped we headed over to a little cafe and had the best omelets. It is so funny because they actually drink alcohol all the time. Funny to see eggs with a glass of wine. But if you can't beat them you join them and I did! Then we headed over to the Mus'ee d'Orsay. It was a long line for tickets and by the time we got inside it was an hour before closing and it was free! Got to see paintings by Manet and Monet. I have never studied art so I never knew there was a Manet. I had never heard of him before.

I know you see some blue sky but it was really raining a lot. I wish we could have gone inside, it was really beautiful to see Notre Dame.

There was a bridge with love locks everywhere with couples names on them. We also watched this street performer but he wasn't very good.

We ended up taking a taxi back to the hotel. (Phil and Ali took a bus) We waited for almost 45 min. in the wind and cold (some drizzle) to get a taxi. Very busy time after all the places close.

Had plans to go to dinner at eight. Went to a very nice place called Ambassade d' Auvergne that was recommended by the Hotel. It of course was a bit of a walk but I was okay. This place was wonderful & exquisite. We had some very different things that were delicious. That was Mark's cheesy mashed potatoes that our waiter was whipping up. Since I didn't want to try something new I had the chicken, Mark had duck. The service was excellent. We didn't get back until almost midnight.

13 more days to go!

Just wanted you to know that even though I may bitch a little bit in these posts I really had the best trip ever.

BECAUSE IT'S THURSDAY

Isn't that a great reason to blog? I have a bunch of random going on in my head. I think it may be from lack of sleep. Why is it that when you have to get up early for something the next day you seem to toss/turn and watch the clock all night. My shower time was 4:45am and of course right before that I got really sleepy.

Something else I have realized and have been trying for a few months now is that when I drink wine later in the evening I seem to not sleep well. I may fall asleep but tend to wake up more during the night. I sleep much better if I don't drink so I pretty much only drink socially now or maybe on the weekend with Mark. I do much better if I drink late afternoon/early evening. I think it has to do with the sugars in the wine.

So why am I up early and why am I at Starbucks again? Well most of you know this already, my internet was fixed yesterday morning. As it turns out they had a problem on their end which they didn't discover for a few days. How could they not know that? Here we thought that something must be wrong with our box when it was their box all along! Why does it take six days to have a technician out? Why is it that 3 phone calls took over 3 1/2 hours of my life and I would venture to guess that over three quarters of that time was spent on hold after each transfer to a new department. What I really didn't like is that after 20 minutes of holding one particular time they said I was transferred to the wrong department!

So the reason I am at Starbucks today is because Mark is having Lasik surgery on his eyes today. He has wanted to do this for several years now but chickened out before. He actually researched, found a place and went for the consultation but never went back to have it done. Well about 2 weeks ago their was a Groupon I sent to him on Lasik. He actually checked it out and found out it was the same place he had intended to go to before so that's where today comes in.( a little prayer would be appreciated) So they ask for the person driving them to not wait in their waiting room if possible because it can get crowded. They call you about 1/2 hour before he is ready to leave and it takes about 3 hours. The procedure doesn't take long at all but they have to stay afterwards to make sure all is well. So since we are about 30 miles away from home I thought why not do Starbucks.

Actually I have to admit that Tuesday was my first time going to Starbucks with a computer. Truthfully I was nervous. What I found is that it was actually fun, something out of the ordinary for me. It was nice to get out of my office at home and actually see people!! So I thought why not try that again. I'm not really a coffee drinker. I do like the Frappuccinos a lot. Hey it's got my last name in it! Actually I am hooked on the Green Tea Frappuccino. Since it's really early (7:30am) I decided to try a coffee. I am not one of those people who knows how to order with the different this and thats that people put in so I thought I would just try the Skiny Vanilla Latte. Funny how I got a Skiny but also got their Glazed Lemon Pound Cake. So much for the skinny!

Did you ever wonder what your brain thought about before blogging. I swear on the Bible that mind is always blogging. It's like I'm forever in blogging mode. Obviously I don't blog about 99% of it and your welcome!

I thought I would leave you with a funny today.

WEDNESDAY HODGEPODGE

1. July is National Ice Cream month...your favorite flavor? Soft served, hand dipped, or frozen yogurt...which do you prefer? And technically yogurt is not ice cream but its hot outside so I'll let that slide for today.
I love Dairy Queen, next would be Butter Pecan Ice Cream.

2. When you travel do you tend to pack too much or too little?
Always too much but since I have been traveling more the last few years I think I am getting better at bringing less. I even managed to wear my pajama's more then once on vacation and my jeans too! I go on vacation again in under two weeks.

3. What's your favorite cleaning product?
I just can't come up with anything. I know that sounds strange but my daughter has been doing most of the housework. I do like a spray glass cleaner that we buy at Costco, it's awesome but it's not as earth friendly as I would like. My daughter loves the Method products.

4. Which is the greater tragedy-an innocent person imprisoned or a guilty person set free? Explain.
There you go Joyce with the tough question. I think they are both great tragedies but I would hate to see the innocent person suffer in prison with the abuse that you hear about.

5. What's the longest trip you've taken by car?
We have driven from Illinois to California a few times, I think those are the longest by car. I did that trip with my parents when I was little. Did it with Mark when I was pregnant with our son 33 years ago and also did it when we moved to California over 20 years ago.

6. tennis-golf-canoeing-biking...pick one.
I will pick golf but having done it in years.

7. What sound drives you crazy?
Can't think of one right now.

8. Insert your own random thought here.
I may not be linked up today since I don't have internet. I hope this comes out okay, I'm doing it quickly at Starbucks. Hopefully I will be up and running at some point today since I haven't had internet since Friday morning!

VACATION ~ LONDON ~ PART FOUR

(Please remember to click on the pictures to enlarge them)

Wednesday June 15, 2011 and Thursday June 16, 2011

Wednesday - London to Worcester

I didn't sleep well. I can tell you that since we left home Friday the 10th I have had little sleep. Never slept on the plane. Next night I think I got about 4 hours, next night about 6 and last night about 4 again. I don't know how I am able to do all that I have done the last few days on so little sleep. It's mainly about the beds.

We got up and ready to leave. Phil went to get a rental card, picked us up and we did the two hour drive to Worcester. What beautiful countryside we saw. Rolling fields with sheep, just what you would expect. Actually there was one sheep with one sleeping next to it leaning over with it's head in the fluffy fur of the other sheep. It was an aww moment. Saw lots of cows too. Living in California for so many years you forget how the cows lived in Illinois and Wisconsin. They may say that California cow are happy but really they are not in my opinion. Got checked into this quaint hotel called the Diglis House Hotel and the guys took off to the office for a meeting.

I am not really good at doing somethings and couldn't get myself hooked up with internet. I kind of got tears in my eyes. That I am sure came from exhaustion. So I went out for a walk. We are right on the waterfront but I am going to do that tomorrow and also head to the Cathedral. What I need to do is laundry and find the laundromat. I walked over the the famous Museum of Worcester Porcelain. I didn't do the tour, which I should have, so I just shopped. They no longer make the porcelain, the economy closed them down a few years ago. That is just so sad. I really wasn't going to buy anything because I told myself that I would not bring breakable items home. I did however break that rule and got Amber an small plate.

I decided to sit and get my notes down from yesterday, along with some from today. I will be going to their charming restaurant to eat. I think I will spend the evening reading. Not much on TV and I need an evening of quiet. Mark had a dinner out with his office.

So this was my delicious dinner.

Thursday June 16, 2011 - Walk around Worcester, UK

So Mark and Phil dropped me off at a shopping area in the town of Worcester where we are staying. I shopped for 4 hours. Didn't by a lot of things but found some things for the kids. Lots to carry home! Had a great little sandwich for lunch. Took lots of pictures of the little shops and Church's. Oh and at the little candy shop I bought Flying Saucers. Do you remember those? I almost bought some at Harrods but didn't think I could take them home. Then I saw several little packages but I figured they would get crushed. So I ended up finding some in town today and they are in a plastic container that is pretty light. Just maybe I might have to go to the P.O. in France and ship our treasures home. Check out White Stuff and Fat Face online. Two really awesome stores where I found some gifts for the kids.

Worcester is know for the Cathedral. I never did get inside but I walked around it and got down to the River Severn walk which took me back to the Diglis Hotel. Stopped and had a glass of white wine. The day started out cool and rainy but it turned into a lovely day. I loved all the brickwork on the walk and took pictures of swans, the Worcester Bridge and the people in the water rowing. I am sure there is a name for it but I don't know off hand. I haven't had any internet access. Got onto my email with Mark's computer for a short time yesterday.

Some things that caught my attention and needed a closer look.

A little bird came and visited with me as I sat on a bench.

So I wanted to do laundry today. I thought Mark and Phil could drop me off and I would just walk back or find a taxi. Mark insisted that we do it at the hotel. Before we came here, maybe six week ago I told Mark that maybe I should/could do laundry at Phil's parents house. Mark said absolutely not, that would be terrible. So now all he is saying is that Phil thinks you should do laundry at his parents house. I said no since Mark put the hex on that weeks ago and I pointed that out to him today. So anyway we had maybe two loads of laundry to be done. Take a guess what it cost? 100 pounds! Now I know we are not paying for that but that's just stupid. That is like $160. in US money. I must admit it was nice walking into the room and having all your clean clothes laid out on the bed! I know in Paris I am going to the laundromat that is 1/2 a mile away from the hotel.

Here is a mixture of things. The bags from the two stores I mentioned. A For Let sign, I love how they say certain things. The painted ceiling moulding in the bar area where they painted the ivy. Some sidewalk art, the Worcester Porcelain Museum, wine on tap, the bar and a delicious dessert we had while we waited for Phil to pick us up on Friday morning. See the coin? Ali, Phil's friend, works at a coin mint shop and was able to get me the engagement coin. I was thrilled and so happy to have it.


Tonight we are going out to dinner and will be meeting Phil's parents. They have lived in Worcester since Phil was 2, I believe he is in his 40's now. His mother brought me a card welcoming us to Worcester. I will have to get a picture of it to show you. You open it up and the whole front and back is a beautiful painting of the town. Then tomorrow we travel to Paris. I should get my second stamp. The stamp I may not get is Italy because we are driving over the boarder but I am certainly going to ask!

After dinner, which was a lot of fun and delicious Chinese food, we went to a very old bridge where a war was found many, many years ago. That's all I know.



So 14 more days to go!

VACATION ~ LONDON ~ PART THREE

(Please remember to click on the pictures to see them larger)

Tuesday June 14, 2011

Win some, lose some:

I was going to take a Bus Tour today but I thought I would pick it up later in the day. I decided to start out at Kensington Palace so I got myself a taxi. I told him I want to get as close to Kensington as I can. I know the tours can drop you off blocks away. So he took me to Kensington but tried to get in a side gate. He said "I'm trying to get this lady closer" and the guard looked at me like "who the heck is she" and told him to go to another gate. Then we came up to another closed area, not even a gate that you could see through. A guard came over and opened the gate and he let us through. So he dropped me off at the back of the Palace. There was a small gate, he said the police will open it for you and took off. So I went over to the three policeman and they said they can't open the gate.

I walked over to the small gate and rang the button. A woman came on and I told her that my taxi driver dropped me off here and left. She said did you want to tour the palace, I said yes and she opened the electronic gate and let me in. That's how my day started!

I realize now that somehow that was meant to be because as I started walking towards the palace I heard a helicopter and it landed in a clearing near that gate I came through. It was a royal helicopter. (No I Didn't See Anyone) Many people came over to watch. The police told us no pictures. Then the woman from the gate speaker told him that we can take pictures. So a woman walked up to the helicopter, the pilots got out and put on their suit jackets, they talked for a little while. About 10 minutes later a small car came out and drove right up to helicopter door and whoever it was got on to the helicopter. We could not see the person but is as very exciting. I call this a win.

So I went over and did what was called The Enchanted Tour, something new to Kensington Palace. It really wasn't that great but I thought I would at least be able to walk into some rooms that maybe Princess Diana had walked into. This tour would be cute if you had young children because you have to play a game guessing who stayed in which rooms! Normally you would enter the front gate and go on a tour of some rooms and Princess Diana's dresses. There is scaffolding up and there was a gate in front of the gate. I managed to take some pictures but was a bit disappointed. The Palace is now closed for renovations because William and Kate will be living there soon. I will call this one a lose.

Then I went to find the Princess Diana Memorial Fountain. Well let me tell you that I walked for what felt like 10 miles but it was probably just a couple. This walk was in Hyde Park. Well wouldn't you know that the fountain was closed this week for maintenance. Another loss for me! I took some pictures of some flowers around the area. In doing this I also missed the Serpentine Fountain which I really wanted to see :( Walked around a little more then headed over to were I saw some cars and buses and thought I would then get onto The Big Bus Tour and head over to the Tower of London. (this is where I come upon the most beautiful wild flower patch I have ever seen.) Well I wasn't near any of that so I walked hoping to find a stop somewhere. I did see the Royal Albert Hall. After awhile I walked back to an area where I had seen taxi's. It took a very long time but I finally got one.

So I asked him to take me to the Marble Arch because I know that we caught a tour bus there on Sunday. Well he couldn't drop me off right there so I was a few blocks away! I saw a money changer place and needed to exchange some money, needed some cash for the taxi later that evening to a hotel near Heathrow airport. (see earlier in the day I was checked out of the Marriott and I had them hold my luggage and a car was being arranged for me later in the evening) So I went to change some money and it was $1.99 for each pound. That mean my $100 bill became approximately $50. I also tried another one that I saw that was $1.70 American for each pound which was better but still not great but I need the pounds. When I went shopping on Monday at Harrods I spent something like 94 pounds which I thought wasn't that bad for all I bought but really it was $154. US!

So I went over to get the tour, the guy asked me what I wanted to see and I told him the Tower of London. He said because of the distance (across town) and with their stops I wouldn't get there in time for any tours. He suggested I take the underground. I said no but he said it's really easy and he gave me exact directions. Well I did it! OMG you have to walk down a hundred of stairs. (actually one woman counted them and said it was 123) Then I saw people going up on escalators so I thought I would be okay. So I got on, after several stops I was to get off and get on another line. It was a long walk and more stairs, this time up but I did it and made it to Tower Hill. Well the worst thing was that it was stairs up, no escalator. I knew I wouldn't be taking it back. I was totally exhausted from my day and couldn't do that again.

So I got there bought my ticket and saw the Crown Jewels. I didn't do much else because it's all up hill and upstairs. Then I went out and got some pictures of Tower Bridge. I had seen it the other day but with the rain we didn't get to stop and couldn't take any pictures through the wet bus windows. Got myself some quick fish and chips because I was hungry. I had seen some taxi's by Starbucks to I went over and got one. At this point it didn't matter to me the cost. It was 28 pounds to where I was going. Do the math!

There were some wire animals on display that had placed around the area. During 2011 an exhibition was hosted at the Tower with fine wire sculptures by Kendra Haste. I thought they were cool.

Got back to the hotel and had a glass of wine as they got my luggage and waited for the car to the airport hotel. (this was a 45 pound ride)I think I was there by 8pm, took a bath, put my pajamas on and Mark got in around 10pm. We actually got some food and wine from room service.

A few miscellaneous pictures from London.

Five down 16 more days to go!

UPDATE AND FAF

MAMMOGRAM UPDATE:

If you don't have time to read this or are here for Fat Ass Friday I want you to know that all is well and I do not have breast cancer. Thank God for the blessing he has given to me. I talk to God each day but I was truly being a pest the last few weeks with this recheck hanging over my head.

Normally my mind is writing blogs in my head each day. The last few weeks I have gone from being dead & buried to being a breast cancer survivor who had a double mastectomy with reconstructive surgery with new smaller perky breasts. I am not making light of this, I know several people who are breast cancer survivors, those who lost their lives and those whose cancer has recently returned. My heart aches for them, I pray for them all the time. I also support several cancer research centers with donations.

Maybe 15 years ago my MIL and I were talking about breast cancer and other female cancers. We were actually talking about medication for menopause at the time. She mentioned to me that the first thing they do is take woman off of birth control pills and hormone replacements pills. (I'm not sure if this is still true) I often wondered if these diseases are more prevalent because of the use of these medications. Maybe, maybe not. I also thought that maybe I wouldn't get breast cancer because I was only on birth control pills for one year. I had reactions and at that time, 40 years ago, they didn't have the options of all the varieties available today. Also I did not use hormone replacement therapy to go through menopause. I am a firm believer that if our ancestor could do without it so could I! We also do not have any breast cancer in the family but I also don't know my mothers history after age 56 since she passed away.

So when I went on Tuesday for the mammogram I was really nervous. Yet in my head I knew that I most likely would not know anything for at least a week. I hate that! So I got called in and the mammogram was done on my left side with more intense/close up pictures taken. The woman said I will take these to the doctor to make sure we don't have to do more, just wait here. So I waited, then she came to get me telling me that my ultrasound would be next and that the doctor should have the results in about one week and they will send me a letter also.

So I am sitting in this long hallway, only one chair, waiting for my ultrasound. I hear the doctor in the room with a woman telling her that there is nothing to worry about at this point, we will check again in six months. I was sitting there thinking that that was pretty good news, wonder if I will be so lucky. Doctor went back to his own office and the technician went in to drop off some paperwork to him. (Yes, they keep a doctor on staff so no one has to go home and wonder. Whether it is good news or bad news they tell you on the spot what they know according to what they see) So as the tech is closing the door to the doctors office I hear him say "I don't see what they think they saw on Pucci." I got a little excited but knew that the I still needed to have the ultrasound.

So here I am like I said, all alone in this long hallway sitting in the one and only chair when Wendy the technician came out. I had to laugh because she asked for Deborah Pucci like she was speaking to a large waiting room full of people. I kinda waved my arms and said here I am, in a joking way. So the ultrasound was done and I was so worried. It seems like it took forever and I kept feeling some pain as she pressed over certain areas. I thought this is going to show something. So she was done, took the pictures to the doctor and then they both came in the room.

He said you have a very tiny cyst that is benign and it is nothing to worry about. I told him that I had a cyst removed from my right breast 25 years ago. He said they have learned a lot since then and don't remove them anymore. He told me just follow up with my yearly mammograms.

I thanked him, he left the room and I started to cry. I could not believe the gift that God gave to me. I do believe things like this give you a different look at your life and what you need to do to improve it so you can live longer. Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers.

******************************

I haven't been around in awhile. I am not really working as hard on this weight loss as I should be. I was a bit disappointed when I got home from my 3 weeks in Europe. I thought after being so active each day, walking an average of 4 hours a day I thought I would have lost some weight. I didn't even eat that much while I was gone, food just wasn't a priority for me which is unusual. I did have a dessert with dinner on the days that I was actually out having dinner. Remember I was alone a lot and often just grabbed something quick to eat. Well I weighed exactly the same thing when I came home.(206) Maybe I lost some inches! So I am trying to watch what I eat and make better choices since I've been home. I have managed to drop 6 pounds!

Starting weight ~ 212
May 13th ~ 206
July 22nd ~ 200
_______________________
Total lost ~ 12

VACATION ~ LONDON ~ PART TWO

(Please remember to click on the pictures to enlarge them)

Monday June 13, 2011

Today the 13th is rainy and cold again. Mark went to Finland today. I am running late. Will skip the tour until tomorrow when it should be 72/sunny. Today I believe I will grab a taxi to Harrods to shop. I am pretty tired today. Yesterday was a real workout and my feet are still swollen! (funny how I thought my feet were swollen yet they were nothing like when we were in Italy)

Took a taxi ride to Harrods. Had a very nice man. He even showed me the street where the picture for the album cover for Abbey Road by the Beatles was taken. Had fun walking around Harrods, took several pictures. Bought some cute gifts for the family, mainly gifts with Harrods on them. The markets in Harrods are beautiful.

Had a delightful lunch. The pasta of the day was Mac & cheese. Had a cool lemonade drink. Then I had a cafe latte and scones. OMG they were delicious. I couldn't get enough of that clotted cream. There was a memorial there for Princess Diana and Doti Fayed.

Harrods is unbelievable.

Then I crossed the street to get some pictures. Bought some post cards and stamps! Tomorrow I am heading to a bus tour. Hope to see the Tower of London and do the tour of the crown jewels. Also want to visit the Princess Diana memorial in Hyde Park. Hope to get to Kensington Palace and maybe see some of Diana's dresses on display. This has been a blast. I love being able to see what it's all about and finally visit the place where Princess Diana lived her life, I admired her so much. Hope I can enjoy Paris this way. This has been amazing. So different from the states!

Since this is a smaller post and couldn't include Tuesday because it's wordy, I decided to show you the basic itinerary of our trip. Click to enlarge it.

Thanks for stopping over, 17 more days to go!


Today is one of my best friends birthdays. It's Amy over at Keeping up with the Schultz Family. Head on over to wish her a happy birthday and meet her new baby boy Tyler John who was born last Thursday.

WEDNESDAY HODGEPODGE

Head on over and join us!

1. July 20th marks the anniversary of the first time man stood on the moon. Flash forward 42 years to July 8, 2011 which marked the start of the final Space Shuttle mission. Should we continue to explore space? Should nations devote more or fewer of their resources to exploring space? Would you want to go into space if the opportunity arose?
I remember it well. Yes I think we should, I think people rally around it and think that's a good thing for our morale. Yes I think I would like to go into space.

2. What are three things in your freezer?
Beside the normal Ice Cubes: Ice Cream, Lou Malnati Pizza and Smoothie mixes. Of course there are Daiquiri mixes too!

3. If you could see any band/artist perform live tonight who would it be? It has to be someone living...no Beatles, Elvis, etc.
Scotty McCreery if he was doing tours, otherwise I say Barry Manilow.

4. Ice-cubed or crushed? Or are you one of those people who don't like ice?
Cubed!

5. The owner of a small restaurant outside of Pittsburgh recently announced he was banning children under six, saying they regularly disrupted other customer's meals. You can read the story in more detail here but isn't this a perfect topic to discuss in our Wednesday Hodgepodge? Have at it friends...what are your thoughts?
I think it's wrong, not fair to families who want to go out and can afford to go out.

6. What was your first car? How did it come to be yours?
My first car was a VW my dad picked up for me and I hated it and didn't want it. My first new car was a 1969 1/2 Maverick from Ford. Got it near the end of my senior year and my parents helped me to get it. I would keep up the payments when I started working after graduation.

7. If I had a nickle for every time I _passed gas_I'd be rich.

8. Insert your own random thought here.
You know that I rarely watch videos on blogs but every once in awhile I can't resist. This one is really cute so if you have time, after you comment, head on over and visit with Joanne at 10minutes2breathe. You will find it hard not to smile!

POST IT NOTE TUESDAY

VACATION ~ LONDON ~ PART ONE

(Please remember to click on the pictures to make them larger)

Friday June 10th, Saturday June 11th and Sunday June 12th

Day One (which turned into day two after a 10 hour flight)

Los Angeles LAX to LHR London Heathrow

So these are the notes I typed out each night or the next morning. I was going to make changes but then I thought I should leave them as I wrote them and only add things in that I forget or didn't have the information on when I wrote these notes.

We were picked up by a limo at our house to take us to LAX airport. They picked Phil up first and then came and got us. (company uses this service) We had plenty of time when we got to the airport. We were actually very early because Phil had a flight an hour before ours. We all sat down and had a nice meal before our flights. Something I wasn't told in advance, because Mark knew how I would react, and he was right, that we both had center seats and not together! Well it turned out okay, they were able to get us an isle and center together. Sometimes I wonder why it even matters. Mark puts in his headphones and falls asleep, getting angry if I try to talk so I may as well sit alone!

Flight was very good and very long. I could not fall asleep. I got up a lot and walked around. I do of course love the little individual screens with the movies. So arriving in London I was obviously pretty exhausted. Never did the passport things before so I was going a little slower then Mark who is a frequent flyer and has little patience with me. I am use to being dropped off at our Ontario, CA airport, walking through the door and basically dropping off the luggage, landing in Tampa, getting my bag and walking right out the door to my dad who is waiting for me.

Well the walk from the plane to luggage was pretty long and the walk with the luggage was forever in my opinion. Sorry, I am a bit overweight and have COPD. (we learned quickly the next time to get one of those carts!) Now even if I was a perfect weight this would still be very challenging for me! Mark was kinda sort of, in not the nicest way saying to me, you should have known that you couldn't have handled this and stayed home. Yep, that made me feel awesome, NOT! I just figured we were both a little testy and let it go.

Needless to say we are in a new country, don't really know our way around and are a little grumpy from the plane. We were told by Phil, a UK born man who now works in CA with Mark, that he suggests the Express Train to Paddington Station and then maybe a taxi. That's what we did and it turned out okay. Let's just say I was excited, amazed and extremely overwhelmed and wondered how I was going to get around being totally lost in a big city. But I told myself to just push myself. See the hardest thing at that point was the fact that on Tuesday I have to check out of the hotel near Regents Park and get to the airport hotel because Mark will be flying in late that night and the next morning we head to Worcester. I wasn't sure I could do it alone. I didn't over pack but luggage can be heavy for me. So here I am tonight in the hotel not sleeping again.

Pushing myself to the limit, keeping up with Mark pays havoc on my lungs. We decided to go out from the hotel for a walk and grab some dinner. Well with swollen ankles and being up for well over 24 hours it wasn't that easy for me. We walked over to Primrose Park but when I saw it was hilly I just sat for awhile and Mark continued up the hill to look over at Regents park. We ended up at a cute little place called The Primrose and had a meal. Mark had a mushroom soup the was super thick and delicious, then he had olive mashed potatoes with fish. I had a delicious pizza and a lemon crepe for dessert. Then we came back to the hotel and had a glass of wine in the bar area. I took a quick shower and it was late enough that we could fall asleep for the next day. I did that for about 1 hour and here I am typing, praying to God to help me to feel well tomorrow.

Passed a church on our walk and of course the cute mailbox. I am in love with the chimneys. As Mark walked to see the top of the hill I took my first picture of the skies of London. I know that some of you reading this remember the cloth cords from years past. I was surprised to see one on the iron. We were at a Marriott. Didn't get a picture of Mark's dinner or my dessert. I do that often, I get so excited to eat!

I have lungs that are burning, I'm all aching with chills. So I turned the air warmer, put on some socks and snuggled up in bed after taking some medication. Well then after about an hour I was all hot! I feel pretty good right now as I type this. I think it's 1:30am and I need to sleep. We are doing a Bus Tour tomorrow with Phil and a female friend of his named Ali. Okay I'm going to head to dreamland now.......that's the plan! I'm thinking that maybe I just need a good poop!

Day three: Sunday

So I never really got any sleep again. About 3 hours and boy did we have a full day today. Unfortunately it was windy, rainy and cold but we did The Original Bus Tour with Phil and Ali. It was awesome to see all the wonderful landmarks of London. Did a short stop at an art museum.

Yes that first picture is from the window of the tour bus. We obviously couldn't sit on top. The weather did clear a little bit for some pictures. That was The National Gallery we went to but we mainly went in to see the Sunflowers by Van Gogh. I always look when I go into a museum for the signs about the use of a camera. I didn't see any so I took the picture and then I got my hand slapped by a museum person :) The living wall is something that you see around London in different areas. This was outside of the museum. That ship in a bottle was outside the museum too. The giant horse head was over near the Marble Arch in London and it's awesome. As I went around this area a few times on the bus and with a taxi driver I did see a statue of a giant hand holding a VW. I was never able to get a picture of it.

Being such a miserable day, we were cold and wet, we didn't get off the bus very often. Hope to do the tour again so I can get off and see a few other things up close and personal like I saw Buckingham Palace. It was surreal, I loved it. The day we were there was the day after the queens birthday celebration. It would have been fun to see that. Also since we left the palace is now open for tours since she is on vacation. Also Kate's wedding dress is now on display to. I did have some fun shopping in the gift shop.

We went to a pub, had some beers and I had my very first London fish & chips. I also fell in love with that vinegar and salt stuff you sprinkle on it. Yummy. You can see a picture of what is called London Eye which I would have loved to have gone on , The Jelly Baby statue, the Marble Arch at Hyde Park and St. Paul's Cathedral where Princess Diana was married. I never did have a chance to go back there. So now I have something to see the next time!!

We started out with breakfast at the hotel, had that afternoon snack and ended with a great dinner at a small quaint place where I had salmon. The hotel gave us a map with several places listed on the back. We grabbed a taxi and went to the first place we decided on and it was closed. We grabbed another taxi and went to the next place which was also closed.

Third times a charm. We went to the next place called La Collina which was so charming. We sat right by a fireplace in what you would think was the living room of a home years ago. Only had about six tables and I had the feeling that they hadn't been open long. Their description said "Italian restaurant that offers a brilliant menu, charming service, a garden and a kitchen you can watch in action from the table downstairs." We never went downstairs but there was a spiral staircase going down where they brought the food up from. Even though it was a cold/rainy day it was also a wonderful day.

Okay, only 18 more days to go!