December 25, 2004
Christmas greeting and thoughts
Good morning! Merry Christmas. Not sure if anyone will actually read this entry on Christmas day or not, but it is appropriate nonetheless to post a Christmas greeting.
As we sit here in balmy Suffolk, England, we are wondering if this, in fact, will be our final Christmas in the UK or not. Most likely, yes. We both find ourselves thinking a lot about home this time of year and missing various aspects of home. Although, that being said, there are so many things that we are not wanting to let go of. We have met so many wonderful people over here, especially since moving out of Cambridge to Higham. I firmly believe in the notion that the people you become friends with while over here will always be close - no matter how many miles separate. I cannot imagine our lives without these people.
We are also not prepared to leave the absolute ease of travel. We have gone a lot of places and seen a lot of fantastic things in our 16 months over here. Yet, we still feel that there is so much to see and do. And, when it can be done for so little money, it seems almost like a crime to left it undone.
We have a lot of thinking and praying to do over the next few months as we prepare to make that decision. I ask that anyone who reads this also pray for us to make the right decision - whatever that may be. Whatever your personal thoughts are about what we should do, please think of us as we approach making that decision.
December 19, 2004
Ethan Meets Santa
Tonight, our village church had a candle light service at 5:30, followed by mulled wine and mince pies. After that, a surprise visit from Father Christmas (AKA Santa Clause) topped off the evening. Here are a few pics... (click on the picture to enlarge it)
Waiting for Santa
Santa and helper on a horse-drawn carraige
Ethan gets a present from Father Christmas
Bye, Santa. See you at our house on Friday night! Bring lots of toys!!
Legyen szíves elkészíteni a számlát? or "Check Please" - Budapest 2004
Europe has some incredible markets that are staples of the cities all year 'round. One of the most fascinating aspect of our travels and the thing that I, at least, look forward to the most on our travels is the focus on food and wine. The most common thread amongst all of the cities we've visited over here are the wonderous and immaculate public markets. And, at this time of year, the best of the best are the Christmas markets. Last year, our Christmas-season trip was Barcelona. This year, it was another "B" city - Budapest.
Budapest has been commonly thought of as the less hard-line of the former Communist-bloc countries. I mean, when you live in a city behind the Iron Curtain, the arrival of the "Golden Arches" of McDonalds - the first in Eastern Europe - you must be the envy of all of the other Commie countries. Especially when standing in line for bread is their weekly "night out".
Budapest was fantastic on many levels. The architecture, the people, the markets (of course), the sense of history and intrigue, the monuments, etc. All would have been utterly fantastic about this trip if it weren't for the antics of a certain 2-year-old. More about that later.
First off, the city was immaculate. It might have been the cleanest city I have been to. The enormous indoor market, Market Hall, was so clean, one might be tempted to actually eat the fresh veg and meats right there off the floor itself. This market had vendors selling everything from dried garlic and Hungarian paprika, to the local wines (Tokaji), to male livestock sexual organs (no, I am not kidding). Upstairs in this vintage building are vendors that specialize in little stand-up cafes and eateries. They whip up little Hungarian treats that are meant to be consumed rather quickly to get you back on your way. Just as Communism was beginning to wane, in the mid- to late-80's, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher visited this market. There is a photograph posted of her at one of the vendor's stands.
The rest of the city's architecture was interesting. I think it might be classified as what you may expect from European architecture, but what makes it interesting is the fact that Communism has left a very indelible mark on a lot of the shops and storefronts. All along the street, your eyes are drawn upward to the classical ornate architecture above you. When you look back to the street-level storefronts, it is striking how plain and ordinary some of them are. This was intentionally done to ensure a level playing field for all shops.
The monuments and the statues are impressive as well. There is a park called, interestingly enough, Statue Park. This is a park where they have taken old Communist statues that were ripped down (think of how they tore down Sadaam's) at the fall of the Iron Curtain and "resurrected" them here. Unfortunately, our visit was too short and rushed as it was to be able to get there. However, the city had great statues and monuments all over to fulfill that need. My favorite was Hero's Square. You really could feel the "Evil Empire" walking around that area. It was beautiful and not uneasy, but you really couldn't shake the feelings of the years of tension from the Cold War. Our goal is to get to more post-Communist countries before our time in the UK is over. Places like Estonia, Latvia, Czech Republic, Poland and Moscow or St. Petersburg are on our list. I imagine that the feelings I just montioned will be at their strongest if we get to meander through Red Square and the Kremlin.
Back to the markets. The reason for going there this time of year was for the Christmas market. Here is an open-air market where there is everything from jewelry to ironware for sale. There is the renactment of the Christmas story and traditional Hungarian stories along with music - traditional and more commonplace (like Mozart and Liszt) on a stage at one end of the marketplace. All over there are vendors selling hot mulled wine and grilled sausages, which we took full advantage of.
As for our boy, Ethan, he didn't have quite as much fun. Being two, no longer is he content to hang out in a stroller all day. He wanted out and he wanted out NOW. Then, there was no holding hands. Instead, he wanted to be as free as possible. I guess that's the way it goes. Come two, things change.
Oh, why did I title this entry the way I did? Because it seems that at every restaurant we went to, we had to use it to make a quick exit after a busy, fussy meal was finished.
(Quick note... I had pic of the Hero's Square monuments and statues, but for some reason, there are errors when I try to upload them. Hopefully, I can figure it out and post them later.)
December 15, 2004
Broadband - Finally!
Well, after much wait, the time has finally arrived where our tiny little corner of England is going to step up to the digital age and be equipped for Broadband! Tomorrow, the modem arrives in the post and we'll finally have the speeds to be able to update this site with greater ease and less time. So, keep checking back here often to see what we're up to.
After everything is in place with our Broadband service, we'll update the site with details of our recent foray into the former Communist enclave of Budapest, Hungary. OK, not your typical hard-line Reds, but Commie nonetheless. Here is a little taste of the pics we'll have on here...
December 03, 2004
December 02, 2004
Holiday Greetings from UK
This was supposed to be posted to the site last week for Thanksgiving. But, since we have such a slow connection, it really requires a lot of time to sit down to update the site. Hopefully, if British Telecom is correct, Broadband will finally be coming to our little village within the next couple of weeks.
So, anyhow, Happy Thanksgiving and the rest of the holiday season from us...
(click to enlarge)
An Evening With Gomez
Friday night was a great night out to see one of our favorite bands, Gomez. Great live performance in a tiny little venue. We and the rest of the crowd couldn't get enough. We went with Steph's Brit co-workers Doug Rush, his wife, Christine and the ever-present Dave Nutt and wife, Sue. Here are some pics...(click on pic to enlarge)
