Re-Discovering Warwick Castle

Sunday morning we got up bright and early and the boys got a taste of an English B&B "continental" breakfast.  I got Sawyer to try out a crumpet loaded with peanut butter, honey and a bit of Nutella.  He really liked it, as I do...yes, it does taste good like that.

We drove through a beautiful area known as the Cotswolds which is just a region in England that was once known for it's sheep raising and because they were so wealthy they have these amazing honey colored stuccoed homes and beautiful churches.  It's just one small beautiful village after another in a hilly, winding road area.

We made our way to Warwick Castle where we ended up having to park a mile away from the castle gates in a field that they use for overflow parking.  There were probably over 1000 people at the castle and this was the first time we had been there "in-season" so they had all the jousting, bowmen, bird's of prey shows and more going on.  

We went to the jousting match first and then while the guys walked around the castle walls we watched the flame blower.  Addison met a few little friends that she got to run around with which made it very enjoyable for her and us.

We were able to following the guys around the castle and waved at them when they reached the tallest tower.

We parked our stroller in the "pram parking lot" outside the main house of the castle so we could walk around inside to see all the wax figurines and such.  

They have changed a lot of things at the castle like the layout of the walk through and they have also made the castle dungeon a much bigger thing.  You know have to pay extra to go in it, which we've never had to do before so the boys didn't get to see the claw marks on the wall and the torture devices.

Since Casey, Sawyer and Kevin are active hunters and bowmen they found the medieval bowman to be quite fascinating.  He talked about the various types of arrows used by soldiers and stories of how this particular gentleman had been able to shot all types of arrows from almost every place on and around the castle.  What a sweet job they all thought this guy had.

At the end of the day we made our way to the hillside along the river in order to watch the trebuchet fire.  This also the coolest firing of the trebuchet that Kevin and I have seen as well, because they must have added weight to it because it moved through the sky slower and left a really cool fire trail behind it.  Everyone had a great day!

Stonehedge and Bath

This morning we headed out on the 3 hour journey to Stonehedge.  Kevin and I visited Stonehedge when we came over a few years ago, but never went inside the gates.  This time we were getting in free with our English Heritage membership which was awesome.  We also got the boys in with us because you can have up to 5 people under the age of 19 and Sawyer technically is of the age, but we snuck Casey across because he still looks pretty young.  

After Stonehedge our plan was to spend the rest of the afternoon and overnight in Bath.  Well, most accommodations for Bath and this area were require two nights stay a few weeks ago when we were calling around, which we just weren't going to do.  So one gentleman hinted to us that if you call a day or two before we were planning on being there, some people might give up on getting two nights and go ahead and book you.  So we took the chance and after calling about 3-4 places on our drive down I found one for us to stay and at a quite a good price.

Stonehedge was quite nice and bit neater to at least me this time around than the first time I had seen it.  It's kind of one of those things that get hyped up so much and when you really get to see it that you get a little disappointed.  I think what made the difference was getting go in the gates and walk around and listen to the commentary to give it a little more personality.  I think it helped enhance Casey and Addison's visits as well...hee hee.

They do have the area roped off and you are not allowed to go up to the stones anymore because people were actually chipping away at the stones to take away souvenirs.  Addison doesn't quite understand the meaning of things being roped off, so at one point she took off on a mad dash towards the stones and Kevin had to hop the rope fence and grab her back.  It kind of looked like a escaping convict and of course everyone sees her do it and is pointing at the little girl in pink trying to defy the law and get up close and personal with the rocks.

After getting our fill of Stonehedge we started to head out when tragedy struck...Jane blew up!!! Yes, Kevin plugged the SatNav it to get us on the go and it popped and started to smoke.  We were at a loss for words because, we totally rely on this thing.  I mentioned before leaving the house that I should run in and get my GB map, but Kev said "Naw, we don't need that."  The only map I had was a not very detailed one that was included with our English Heritage book.  So needless to say we had to go back to the old school means of navigation with maps and signs.  I did ring up the B&B to get directions from them but I tell you, I really think the inventor of the SatNav should get a humanitarian award for keeping marriages together.  Life is so much easier traveling with your spouse and/or family when you don't have to stare at a map and look for signs and playing the blame game when someone turns the wrong way or takes the wrong exit.

We finally managed to find our B&B and they gave us some instructions to a scenic overview of the city so we walked through a bunch of residential areas and then up through a school yard over a grass track to a park that have a beautiful overlook of Bath.

Kevin and I also visited Bath before and really enjoyed it so we were excited to bring some other people to see it.  From the top of this hill with our telephoto lens I could take pictures of the hotel we stayed at before, the abbey, the Circus, the Royal Cressent and I could even catch a shot of guys playing cricket in the fields below.

Next to actually get down into town we had to take a pretty steep walk down a course of trails with wood and stone steps.  Kevin and Casey carried down Harrison in the pushchair while I carried Addison down most of the way.  The only thought running through my mind was that somewhere else we were going to have to climb a steep hill back up to our B&B...yikes!

We did a nice little walking tour around town and after catching Casey and Sawyer staring aimlessly around I had to ask if they were okay.  Casey replied that they were just trying to take it all in.  Now that I've been here for two year, the atmosphere of a true city centre has become so normal to me and it's quite fascinating to others...it's one of the things I remember enjoying so much about going to different towns around the country.  We stopped for ice cream and into a few shops before we made our way to the Circus.  The name comes from the Latin 'circus' meaning oval or circle. 

 It is an architectural phenomenon that was inspired by the Roman Colosseum but rather than being admired from the outside like the Colosseum it's beauty comes from standing inside and viewing all the beautiful town homes lined around the circle.  The Circus has three streets that radiate from it and as you come into it you face a beautiful building vs another street.  I particularly like the small grove of very old Plane trees growing in the center.  It was a great place to sit and rest in the shade and people watch.

We did walk up around to the Royal Cressent which is another architectural classic.  It is one of the finest examples of Georgian architecture in England.  It is just down the street from the Circus so from an arial view they represent the sun and the moon.

After our walk we decide to take the boys to another of our most favorite restaurants in England - none other than Pizza Express.  The staff was super nice to the kids as they usually are, but this time they both got chef's hats.  After dinner most of the city centre was dead because all the shops had closed around 5:30 or 6, which really threw the guys for a loop thinking that things should be hoppin' in the evening time in a downtown...again a big difference in our American to English cultures.  

We did end up having to struggle our way back up a pretty steep hill on the way back but we did put some miles on today.  The kids did great and while I got them settled, Kevin and they boys got to hand out together at the pub next door.

Burghley House and Pub Grub

Last night Kevin decided to actually take the day off on Friday to spend with us all.  Right away in the morning we left the kids with the boys so I could bring Kevin to his theory driving exam and to pick up the minivan we rented for the weekend.  Of course he manages to pass with only missing a couple of questions and he studied only 1/3 the amount of time that I did.  

I was pretty proud of myself with the rental van because I called around to a ton of places and got all different kinds of quotes but somehow I managed to get the Hertz people to drop their price from 365 GBP to 150 GBP, and then while we were in there Kevin somehow got them down to 140GBP.  So I've learned a valuable lesson in bargining...if I actually try it, I might get something to come out of it.

For lunch we packed up a picnic and brought the boys out to Burghely House.  Of course the house happened to be closed that day and the water gardens were jam packed with small children because school was out and it was hot outside. So we just enjoyed our picnic, flying Addison's kite and walking the grounds.

That night we treated to boys to some English pub grub and brought them to one of my favorite places to eat in Peterborough - The Cuckoo.  The weather was beautiful so we thought we'd sit outside, but then as most hot English days do, it got really chilly as the sun went down so we moved inside.

Casey enjoyed his first ever duck dish and all of us enjoyed the sampler platter of fine English starters like battered mushrooms with garlic mayonnaise, marinated prawns (shrimp), chicken and chorizo skeweres, garlic ciabatta, pigs in blankets served with onion chutney and smoked paprika mayonnaise...yummy!!!

Harry and Addison enjoyed their meals very much, but enjoyed hugging on each other after dinner.

My Brother and Cousin Come to Visit

The day after we got back from Paris I was pleased to drive down to Heathrow and pick up my brother Casey and our cousin Sawyer.  They both have been so excited to come visit us and finally found the best time to make the trip.  They both weren't sure what they wanted to see while they were here so being the crazy sister that I am, I set up pretty aggressive site-seeing tour.  I know people come over to "just see us" but they are making the trip all they way to England so I want them to make the most of the long trip.

On Thursday we headed to Castle Rising so they could see their first castle.  The kids and I have been there a few times now, but we always see something new.  

They really got into taking pictures.  I actually caught more pictures of them taking pictures of each other.

Addison showed them the really deep well in the basement of the castle.

Addison was so excited to have her Uncle Casey (Tasey - as she pronounces it) come to visit her.  It is all she talked about for weeks and she followed him all over like a little puppy, but I don't think Casey minded.

We had ourselves a little picnic at the castle then we drove on to Old Hunstanton where we found the nice sandy beach I had always heard about.  Casey had never seen the sea/ocean anywhere before so we thought this would be fun.  It's amazing how far out the tide was.  I sat up on the beach with Harrison while Casey brought Addison out to the water.

While the boys did some exploring, Addison and Harrison had fun playing in the sand.  It was a really nice day with hints of sun, but going to an English beach is so funny.  Most of the people we saw were wearing long pants and covered up in blankets. It seemed to be a typical English summer day though, high of 70+ and it was just warm enough to put your toes in the super cold water.

Harry's first time to the beach.  He tried eating the sand but I worked hard to divert his attention by digging his feet in the sand.   

It was a beach of a day!!!

Paris Day 4 - Notre Dame & The Louve (kind of)

This morning as we asked our front doorman which bus to take to get to Notre Dame Cathedral and the Louve, he told us that the Louve museum was closed today.  WHAT???  I did not do a very good job researching when things were open and closed.

Anyway we headed towards the cathedral and as we walked up we saw this brilliant looking car that had people popping out of the top to take pictures.  It was actually a special tour that people had paid to take.  It looked like a pretty interesting way to see Paris.

Pictures do not do this place justice.  The ornate carvings are unbelievable and I didn't notice at first but later Emily pointed it out that the three doorways are all different shapes of arches.

Here are some gargoyles that perch at the top of the towers down on the lowly visits.  Where is Quasimodo??

Inside the cathedral is amazing.  I've seem dozens of cathedrals now and even though most of them are very similar, they all have some amazing differences.The stained glass windows are particularly amazing and the stories they depict.

Well, it couldn't have been a better day than today to spend walking around in a museum because it poured rain for almost 2 hours and then misted off and on while it was windy and cold.  Just as it started to pour down, we were next to some shops so we picked up a few souveniers and then ducked into the Hunchback of Notre Dame cafe for lunch.  It was really cool to see this really low cloud covering the top of the Eiffel Tower.

After the rain stopped we got to enjoy the bit of river walking we got to do and as we gazed and gocked at the sights we had to be mindful of the huge puddles of water in the streets that were being splashed up on unsuspecting people by passing cars.  This is La Conciergerie which was once the royal palace and then a prison.  Hundreds of prisons were kept hear during the French Revolution and later executed at the Guillotine in various places around Paris.  I had flashbacks of reading Tale of Two Cities and the crazy lady saying "Viva la resistance." 

Eventhough we didn't get to go into the Louve, we got to marvel at how it looked from the outside.  The biggest thing that I wanted to see inside was the small painting of the Mona Lisa...all the more reason that I have to go back to Paris some day.  Emily and I were a bit bummed that the place was closed but we had fun anyway.

Kevin and I had some fun with the pyramid entrance for the Louve.

The kids finally woke up from their nap so we posed for a family picture.  

We really got the picture that bike riding was a pretty big deal in Paris when we saw the rent a bike, but it was still pretty cool to see the bike lane "full" of Parisians getting around town.

Well the weather started to turn on us again so we thought we better head back to the hotel and make our way back to the train station.  A big wind gust came up on us and Emily must have gotten the defective "brally" (umbrella) because it doesn't quite look normal.  She was due to have something happen because Kevin and I had our train station episodes already.

Our train trip home went very well and when we pulled into Peterborough, Mike and Debbie were their to pick us up.  It was a great holiday and we so appreciated that Emily put up with us for four wonderful days, she is truly a very special person to our family - Lellie - The Super Sitter!!!

Paris Day 3 - Our Fullest Day of Fun

This morning we ventured to see the Arc de Triomphe.  We started out our adventure by hoping on the bus which we found was much, much easier than traveling on the Metro.  The stroller just pops on in the back without much problems.  Also you get a much better view of the city above ground.  The arch is very impressive in itself but one of the most amazing things is what surrounds it...the world's largest and scariest roundabout.  With 12 avenues radiating from this circle and it being about 5 lanes wide, it is any wonder why there isn't an accident every 5 minutes on this thing.  We actually saw some people walk across it to get to the arch (which is stupid because there are stairs and a tunnel that go under the street.)  Then we saw little cars zipping in and out of huge busses and in this picture you can barely see the lady riding her bike between the black and silver minivans on the left.  It is INSANE!!!!

Napoleon built this triumphial arch in honor of all of those who fought for France, but in particularly in the Napoleonic wars.  It is the second largest arch in the world.

Underneath the arch is the Tomb of the Unknown Solider from World War I.  In 1920 it had the first eternal flame in Eastern and Western Europe since the one for Vestal Virgins' was extinguished in 394.  It was a visit to the arch that Jackie Kennedy remembered after JFK was assassinated and that is why she set up the eternal flame at his grave site.  I tried explaining the story to Addison, but she was more interested in running around.  

We then took a walk down Charles du Gaulle Avenue where all the high street stores are found.  We stopped in this Peugott dealership and saw this "James Bond" car that had a custom jet ski built into the back end.

Next Kevin took the kids for a little walk while Emily and I checked out Lois Vuitton.  Okay...the air in this place was took expensive for me to breathe.  I thought it might be fun to get a little something though since this was the flagship store for LV, but after seeing that just a little coin purse was 160Euro I about died.  The handbags started at around 400 Euro and that was a very little one.  I found some sunglasses that I really, really liked but they were 180 Euro.  Now maybe they would have been worth getting but I have two kids and when one of them would think it would be fun to step on them or scratch them I would have to throw up.  So I decided to just wait until the next time I return to Paris without having two young children who need to have money for college before I buy myself a 600 Euro handbag.  I can still dream though....

Funny thing in Paris, we seemed to eat a lot of Italian food.  One of the coolest things is that we ate outdoors more than inside, but that is what you do in Paris in the summer.  We stopped at a little Italian bistro for pasta and pizza to add a little variety to Addie's food intake.  Kevin helped her learn how to roll up the  noodles on her spoon.

Now Kevin got kind of adventureous on his pizza this time.  He ordered parma ham with garganzola cheese.  It was the worst thing I had ever tasted for a pizza...well maybe just the part with all the thick cheese.  Now France has some really stinky cheeses and so does England and I think if something spells bad it has to taste bad as well...but that is just me.  Kevin got most of the pizza down but it was really too strong for me and Emily about spit her bite back out because it wasn't her cup of tea either. 

Another thing we noticed in Paris is that there are a ton of sushi restaurants and a lot of them deliver.  Here was a guy who pulled out a little white bag and probably brought a sushi lunch to some guy working in the high end Toyota dealership just down the street.

Emily and I saw some young girls doing some fun poses by the Metro sign and thought we'd try it too.  OKAY...I AM REALLY OLD because I felt like an complete old lady trying to get up on the stone railing and I was so scared to death of falling backwards that I just stuck my arms out while Emily wrapped herself around the post.  

We took a little ice cream break in the park to cool down, but that didn't keep Emily and Addison from running around.  Addison found a walnut shell and Emily broke it open to find that the shells made a heart shape.  Addie and Emily must be destined to be good friends for life!

Our initial plan for the day was to walk to the Louve museum, but half way down the Charles du Gaulle Avenue Emily pointed towards some really neat building so we decided to take a detour.  This is the Petit Palais which houses the City of Paris Museum of Fine Arts.  Now we didn't go inside but the outside of the building was beautiful enough for us to adore.  The front arched door was so ornate.

We stopped on the Pont Alexander III bridge for another wonderful view of the River Seine and Eiffel Tower.

At the end of that road is Les Invalides which houses the museum of the French military and Napoleon's tomb.  We didn't have time to go in but I really wanted to see Napoleon's own horse that they have stuffed and on display.  There is also an amazing display of old canons on the outside.

On that TV program that we watched it also showed the couple finding some men playing bocce ball in a dirt courtyard.  Well, we happened to find them as well.  Bocce ball is a very popular game in Paris, but most particularly with the older generation from what we are told.  These guys were serious though.  They had their own balls and most of them had small tape measures on them to get a precise measurement.  You could tell some of the oldest gentlemen had played a year or two because they could make the ball fall pretty much where ever they wanted even in the uneven rocks and dust.

We kept on walking and attempted to go to the Musee Rodin so we could walk around the gardens and see the famous "Thinker" statue, but the museum is closed on Mondays...go figure.  So we walked on to the Jardin du Luxembourg which we heard was a really nice place.  It was but it had a few quarky things going on there.   One cool thing was that it had another Statue of Liberty which is the smallest of the three that I knew about, but the first I had gotten to see.  The middle one was about 3 blocks from our hotel and the largest one is in New York City.

We sat and got some more ice cream and while Addison slept, Harrison had a ball eating ice cream and getting it all over.

Now the biggest and quarkiest thing about this park was that you weren't allowed to sit on the grass.  It took us a bit to figure how serious they were about it, but after Emily (the daring little Brit) got swooshed off the grass by the patrol office we understood why all these chairs were sitting on the gravel walkways.  We were just flabberghasted and frustrated because all we wanted to do was stretch out on the grass and let Harrison crawl around a bit...which we did end up letting him go around a bit.

After Addison woke up we thought we would find a playground for her to have some fun in since we made her ride most of the day in the stroller.  Well the one really nice play ground that they had charged you 2.60 per child and 1.50 for parents....ahhhh, yeah we decided to just let her ride on the merry-go-round which was frustrating too because they said she was too little to ride on the horses and she would have to be strapped into the basket.  She wasn't too happy at first but then when another little girl sat with her she was happy.

We kept walking through the park and funny enough we found some people sitting on the grass.  Here there was actually a sign that said it was permitted to sit on this 50 foot by 50 meter section of grass and it was jam packed.  

These are permanent ping pong tables set up in this one park and what made them so cool was that these two old ladies (and I'm sorry they were pretty old) were playing and were pretty competitive with each other.

On our metro ride home we had a lady try to get through the handicapped gate as we were going to go through with the stroller and we held back because we thought that wasn't fair for her to do.  Well, we ended up being total hypocrites because we all ended up walking through under one ticket and didn't even think about it until after we had done it.  Sorry miss...

It's always fun to see all the different types of signs in different countries because often you can't read the language but you can get the jist of what they are trying to sell.  Lots of signs we actually see have both the native language and some type of English on it which I think is pretty crazy.  I did get a kick out of this sign promoting "Wall Street English"...I wonder what that is because I guess I speak American English and Emily spoke British English...is there really another type of English???

 

That evening we ordered the kids some pizza for dinner and Kevin and I went out for dinner at the French restaurant that Addie had broken the wine glasses at.  It was a nice little place and we had some amazing food and a great bottle of wine.  

Tonight since we went out to eat alone, we thought it would be fun to go back to the hotel and get Emily and the kids to walk with them up to the Eiffel Tower.  I did have to take this opportunity to take a picture of the lift we had at the hotel.  The mirrors inside were an attempt to make it feel a little bigger but you really couldn't get much more than 4 people in it and still be cramped.

On the way to the Eiffel Tower we stopped by the French Statue of Liberty which was just a few blocks from our hotel out the edge of the island in the middle of the Seine river.  It is one of many replicas found throughout France and the US.  It's just funny to think that I've seen two of them in one day, but I've never seen the real one in New York (someday I hope).

Here again is another picture of Kevin and I with the Eiffel tower, but this is the best night one we got because Emily has mad photography skills.

Kevin was so happy to be able to share this moment with his little girl.  He told me how excited he was to tell Addison one day when she is much older that they got to sit and watch the lights flicker on the Eiffel Tower together.

This was a late night for the kiddos but I think they really enjoyed getting out.   I'm sure one day they'll get totally embarrassed that I brought them out in the PJs to see the Eiffel Tower at night.  It was so amazing and again one of those times that you just have to sit there and take it all in.