I'm not having the best experience with Blogger at the moment, so I've decided to jump ship and try Wordpress for a bit instead. Please save a bookmark for our new site at:
www.cashandcarried.wordpress.com
We'll see how it goes...and if it doesn't work out I'll be back!?
I've managed to figure out an app for my iPad to post on blogger so hopefully i will update more frequently. Now, to figure out the easiest way to link up my photos. Guess that will have to come later...I know you are dying in anticipation to see the finished product!!!
So we've been up to alot this year and I know I haven't posted in quite some time. Our latest adventure took us to Dartmoor, Devon to a wedding. Tim & Amy lived with us for quite a short time several years ago before they travelled the world. They were the ideal roommates and one of our few British friends. We were honored to be invited to celebrate with them, thier family and friends in such a lovely part of England. We did several english 'firsts' on this trip and hope to go back to experience the rest of Devon soon.
Our first rental car...huge compared to UK standards! Matt found it a bit scary when I hit a curve and brushed up against the hedges a couple of times. I felt sorry for the people behind that watched me brake every time a car approached or we drove up behind some cyclists.
Our first english wedding...not too flashy, very 'country', and gorgeous setting! Family made the bunting in the tents, there was fresh condiments, tasty chocolate fudge, and a quirky church for the service.
Our first trip to Devon...small lanes, random animals in the roads, friendly B&B!
There is alot going on this summer and word has it that the weather isn't expected to get very warm for very long. So while Texas is in a drought, most of England is under a constant drizzle. 'Global Weirding' as they call it....
Okay, I stole this from Jessica but thought it'd be a nice little excercise:
A. Age: 30, and proud of it! Of course I still get carded for alcohol (it's 18 in the UK) so maybe I need to work on dressing my age?
B. Bed size: Queen...or 200 x 200mm in English terms.
C. Chore you hate: Laundry
D. Dogs: We abandoned our first born and have been talking about our second for 2 years now.
E. Essential start to your day: Reading the news...American and British.
F. Favorite color: Blues...blacks...pinks. Depends on the method of delivery.
G. Gold or silver: White gold...a little bit of both I guess.
H. Height: 5’5"
I. Instruments you play: Piano...which I've looked to getting back into but it isn't that 'cost effective' if you don't have one!
J. Job title: Interior Designer
K. Kids: Love kids, don't like stranger's kids.
L. Live: London, portions of my heart still in Texas.
M. Mom’s name: Madre
N. Nicknames: I've had them all: KD, KDogg, Kay-the-morning-funnel shaped-frog, Hopper, must I go on?
O. Overnight hospital stays: Nope...only one emergency room visit for a bad drug reaction.
P. Pet peeve: Loud obnoxious people on public transportation.
Q. Quote from a movie: I'm lucky if I sit through one without falling asleep...much less remember a line word for word!
R. Right or left handed: Both...mostly right but if it was put in a cast I'd probably do okay.
S. Siblings: Many and plenty from much younger to slightly older. What were they thinking?
T. Time you wake up: Whenever I need to...no need for an alarm though!
U. Underwear: Of course...
V. Vegetables you dislike: Haven't come across anything I didn't...more likely not to like the way they are cooked instead of the actual vegetable.
W. What makes you run late: Complete laziness...
X. X-Rays you’ve had: Back, teeth, and whatever else they do in the airports that they don't tell you about!
Y. Yummy food you make: Enchiladas with the works...a rare but delightful occasion.
Z. Zoo- favorite animal: The frogs are my favourite...but the meerkats were cute too.
So now I have recovered from a week away in Italy with one of my best friends of life so far. Italy was suppose to be a high school graduation trip turned into a 'crap we're turing 30' trip...turned into a reunion. I hadn't seen Rachel in 6 years since Matt & I left for our honeymoon...and Laura went to school in Mancester with Rachel 10 years ago! Please feel free to checkout the photos (some taken with my new wide angle lens!)
Leg 1: Rome
Day 1 - After a couple of days for Rachel to recover from her jet-lag we headed to Rome. We booked a great apartment right by the train station which was easy to get to and only blocks away from the Colosseum. We were settled and ready for the day to begin and started our wander around the city. We walked around the Colosseum, Forum, and ventured over to Pantheon and all the little spots in between. Stopping for a quick lunch and later dinner we were greeted with heavy rain! Drenched with an umbrella to share between us we walked back to our apartment for a night of wine and Gladiator (english dvd selection & tv were limited!)...but appropriate.
Day 2- Our first full day and decided to head to the Vatican. With a little bit of a late start we ventured over and took in the sights of the square, basilica, and AMAZING views of the city from the top. I thought my knees were going to fall off with all the stairs, but with a chance for a breather, a little shop on the roof, and the cold all helped! We broke for lunch and then headed to the Vatican Museum. This place is MASSIVE and we were shoo'd out of the Sistine Chapel when they were ready to shut down. It was actually quite nice because the cold and being off season crowds were minimal, which made for areas that we had to ourselves.
Day 3 - Full day set aside for the Forum and Colosseum. Talk about history overload! Loved it all but really wish I knew more about Rome when going through it all. We had the help of audio guides that we shared which was a godsend. I learned alot of stuff in Architecture School....but that was YEARS ago! We got kicked out of the Colosseum (and was disappointed we didn't go to the basement level, which I thought was open now!) at closing and it poured down raining. We decided to go back to the apartment and have dinner.
Leg 2: Venice
Day 4 - We hopped on a train to Venice (buy tickets early, you'll save lots of money!) and were on a practically empty car by ourselves. When we hit the edges of Bolgona we were in mainly tunnels....until a break where snow appeared! I swear Rachel was going to kill me! I promised Venice would be different...see Day 5. Once we got there we met Laura from her boat via the airport and went for dinner for a much needed introduction and catchup. After wandering around the city and getting adjusted for a whole bunch of alleyways we called it a night. Our B&B was lovely with a bridge and canal right outside our window. We were amazed by the singing gondoleers passing below our window throughout the afternoon!
Day 5 - Up for a continental breakfast at our B&B we were ready for a full day. Rachel & I booked a special tour of Doge's Palace (the governmental building of Venice). We caught up with Laura and ventured around south Venice. We found a little pizza joint to grab lunch and something to drink...and get out of the cold to let our digits defrost! Then found Tonolo's bakery with some DELICIOUS! baked goods only made during Carnival season. Hot out of the fryer...with a cup of hot 'italian' chocolate...perfect! We ended the night with some dinner, although my black pasta didn't go over well with the girls, and hit the sack!
This update is just a skim of the adventure, but it was definitely a trip that was filled with fun, laughter, and new adventures. I believe I caught up with Matt (and then some) and hopefully we'll make a return to do the things neither of us have done just yet. Although the weather wasn't bright and shiny, I think that this was a perfect time of year to avoid the crowds, enjoy the sights, and take part in Carnival!
Day 6 - H
I didn't make that title up....it was literally what it said for the recipe. We've been here over 4 years now and after SOOO many different variations (and a hunt down for buttermilk more than once!), I FINALLY think I found the perfect and simple pancake recipe. So out goes the craving for Aunt Jemima box mixes and in with the stuff from scratch!
Ingredients
135g/4¾oz plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
2 tbsp caster sugar
130ml/4½fl oz milk
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2 tbsp melted butter (allowed to cool slightly) or olive oil, plus extra for cooking
To serve
Maple syrup
Butter
Preparation method
1) Sift the flour, baking powder, salt and caster sugar into a large bowl. In a separate bowl or jug, lightly whisk together the milk and egg, then whisk in the melted butter.
2) Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture and, using a fork, beat until you have a smooth batter. Any lumps will soon disappear with a little mixing. Let the batter stand for a few minutes.
3) Heat a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat and add a knob of butter. When it's melted, add a ladle of batter (or two if your frying pan is big enough to cook two pancakes at the same time). It will seem very thick but this is how it should be. Wait until the top of the pancake begins to bubble, then turn it over and cook until both sides are golden brown and the pancake has risen to about 1cm (½in) thick.
4) Repeat until all the batter is used up. You can keep the pancakes warm in a low oven, but they taste best fresh out the pan.
5) Serve with lashings of real maple syrup and extra butter if you like.
Enjoy...and maybe next time they'll last long enough for a photo!
It was sad to say that this entire break Matt & I ventured out of our flat only a few times for more reasons because we had to and less reasons that we wanted to. After a couple of days though we decided to get out and explore a couple of the places that we traditionally go to before Christmas. Unfortunately this was easier said than done as every place we seemed to go was disrupted or closed.
We headed to Whitechapel Art Gallery in East London to look at an art exhibit about the wars in Lebanon (http://www.whitechapelgallery.org/exhibitions/walid-raad-miraculous-beginnings). It was more of a documentary display through the viewpoint of the artist, but was interesting to see. I vaguely remember the event when I was young, but the small gallery space was a place that I've been wanting to go for some time.
Then we headed to Central London to grab something to eat which was made difficult by a closed overground station and an unfamiliar part of town. Our favorite american diner Ed's was closed for the holiday so we ventured around Soho until coming across the only open establishment we could find.
After walking over to Trafalgar Square to see the Christmas tree which is donated to the city by Norway as a thanks for England's help during WWII. It is decorated in the traditional Norwegian fashion with strands of plain white lights. After this we walked towards the river where we saw a stampede of people going into a gated area. Announcements in the tube said the viewing area for the fireworks shut by 9pm or when full so we assumed we'd go in and check it out. IT WAS PACKED! Anyway, we waited the 4.5 hours waiting for the display. I was surprised to find that so many people were packed in and just standing around while some were better prepared with food, champagne, drinks, etc. They started the Radio 1 broadcast with music and djs at about 10 and then a HUGE fireworks display...probably the largest we've ever seen! (More photos were added to the sidebar slideshow since my previous post) We pushed our way out of the space though and walked a couple of bridges down to catch the train, which wasn't too bad but took us another hour to get home.
It was a very long night and I hurt for the entire next day from all the standing, but it was a fantastic memory to share with Matt. Our anniversary started with a bang and ended with a wonderful Italian dinner at Carluccio's. One more day of holiday and then we're both going to struggle to get back on schedule. Neither of us felt like we had a holiday, but I guess we have a final number of pages in our yearly album for the memorable last few weeks.
(Have a look at the pictures in the sidebar of the festivities so far!)
After having both of our flights cancelled we had to accept the fact that we were not planning on coming home for the holidays. We had planned not to go home next year, but not having the choice was a bad pill we had to swallow. After a couple of depressing days we finally decided to go out and get a tree, grab some decorations, mingle with the shoppers, and have a dinner out. We had several offers to spend Christmas with others but with the trains shut down and the tube closed it was easier just to stay put. We went shopping for groceries (especially considering I had just cleaned out the kitchen of food thinking that it would spoil before our return). We loaded up on Christmas movies and spent tons of time talking to family over the phone.
Christmas day we watched the Elf movie (a Hopper Christmas Tradition) and got up and opened the random gifts we did have for eachother. We laughed about it all but appreciated the time we had together to enjoy eachother's company. We started to cook a meal big enough for 8+ people and had a late lunch...at about 3pm. I think this was the first Christmas EVER that I spent the entire day in my 'pajamas'....guess when Mom isn't there hounding me!
Boxing Day (don't ask me what exactly that is!) we went over to our American/British couple's house and had Round 2 of food and drinks. It was a nice day to just have some additional company and sit around and catchup and play Phase 10. Martin wooped us all though by finishing first (I would have won with the least amount of points if I wasn't 2 phases back!!).
I'm off of work all week and haven't been up to much except watching tv, knitting, cooking, cleaning, talking with my stateside friends and family. Tomorrow we plan to get out and see the city a bit. Matt has been working hard on his stuff so he needs a break. New Year's is still up in the air. I'm not sure either of us are prepared for standing out in the cold to cheer in the new year with the other millions of people on the cold river Thames. Big New Year's Day parade is scheduled to push forward despite several 'acts' being held up in the Northeast snow but we may see if we can get there too.