Paris

We took the Eurostar from London St Pancras on Wednesday morning, arriving in Paris early afternoon. After finding some lunch, we made our way to our hostel...well, we tried to. Because of the way the streets are differently named on either side of the main street we were walking on, and because we walked on the "wrong" side of the road and didn't see any street names we recognized, we turned around and got ourselves completely lost. Unfortunately, no Parisians could help us, because apparently they do not know the names of streets (other than the main arteries)--it seems they navigate entirely by landmarks. Finally, Karen asked someone to show us where we were on her map, and we figured out where to go. After a good hour of walking, we finally made it to our hostel, hot and tired. The hostel itself was quite lovely. Located on Rue Montagne de Ste Genevieve, it was nestled among many quaint cafes, patisseries, boulangeries, etc. Inside, there was free computer/internet use as well as a fridge and dining room with a few dishes at which to make simple meals, and we had a room to ourselves off a small courtyard with a sculpture at the end.

That night we got to the Eiffel Tower and got some nice pictures of the 5-minute light show that comes on at 10 pm (note: the tower is lit all night, but there's extra flashing lights for 5 minutes).
The lines at 11 pm to go up the tower were still formidable! Karen also had an interesting experience there. On the way there, we passed many people selling keychains of the Eiffel Tower 5 for 1 euro. Karen finally succumbed to one of these merchants. She gave him 20 euros and he gave her 10 back, but was very slow about returning the rest of her change. She pressed him for it, and he slowly gave her another 5 back. Just as she was wondering if she had misheard the price, the French police came running after him. He dropped his merchandise and fled the scene. The cops colllected his loot and dropped the chase. They offered her as many such keychains as she wanted, but not her money back. Friday we saw similar keychains on sale for 2-3 euros each inside the Tower, and confirmed our suspicions that these other merchants are ripping them off the legitimate dealers. One man shouted "5 for a euro," and then as we passed him by, yelled "6 for a euro!" "7....!"

Thursday we spent the day meandering around the Ile de la Cite and the Ile St. Louis. We quickly discovered that the Seine River is a magnet for Parisians all summer long. The city had free lawn chairs for public use, (free) fishing rods and balls available, and "le plage"--a beach that is created by putting many tonnes of sand down on the road by the river (e.g. the road is closed to vehicular traffic during the summer months when it becomes a haven for Parisians to bring a book and read or a picnic lunch. There was a library there for people to borrow books for a couple of hours to read, and various playgrounds and ice cream trucks and things there too.
Notre Dame Cathedral is on Ile de la Cite, and we opted to take the free short-line entry over the paid guided tour that was several miles long. It is a magnificent church and I will post pictures of it when I can. Then we wandered around Ile St. Louis for a bit. Every other building there was a creperie, it seemed. That evening we went on a boat ride along the Seine...saw some lovely stone bridges, the Louvre, the Musee D'Orsay, and the Eiffel Tower among other things.

Friday we hit the Eiffel Tower at 8:30 to beat the crowds to the lineups. The view from the top was quite spectacular, but I also enjoyed the elevator ride up the tower...you're in a glass elevator inside this metal mesh of 15-20 000 rivets and joists and whatever going up on a diagonal incline...different than anything else I've ever experienced. So then we got to the cafe on the second floor and found they were selling "Nutella to Go"...said spread with a few mini-breadstick-shaped biscuits. Karen had to try these, so we munched on our snack on the green turf of the fake garden on the second floor of the Tower.

After the Tower, we headed to the l'Arc du Triomphe, a monument commemorating all of France's wars since Napoleon. The Arch itself is in an island surrounded by 12 streets all leading off it like bicycle spokes, and somehow with no traffic lights or even marked lanes, drivers manage to navigate their way around it. It is a bit scary for pedestrians trying to cross these 12 outer streets, and there is no way to get into the island in the middle (crossing some 6 lanes of traffic, approximately...like I said, it's not marked) except by finding one of two underground passageways that take you under the road to get to the middle.

From there, we headed on to the Place du Concorde, a large Egyptian needle-like monument that is due east of the Arch. This was the opening to the Jardins du Tuileries, a network of beautifully landscaped and maintained gardens interspersed with little cafes and lots of picnic benches, fountains, and sculptures. After eating lunch there, we headed to the Louvre to check it out. It is a huginormonstrosity--encompassing the size of say, half a dozen football fields laid end to end, the architecture is beautiful, with marble columns, painted ceilings, guilded furnishings, and many beautiful sculptures and paintings. After finding out that the price is only 6 euros on Friday nights, we headed home for a few hours to relax. We came back about 7 pm and saw the Mona Lisa and some of the Italian painters from the 17th and 18th centuries, as well as German, Flemish, and Dutch painters (Peter Paul Rubens and Van Dyck are the two names that were somewhat familiar to me). We came back to our hostel around 10 and went to a local cafe that had some nice-looking desserts before coming back to our room for a glass of wine before bed.

A word about Paris transportation--the centre of the city is very well covered by transit options. There are 24 different metro and RER (longer-distance, faster trains) lines bissecting the city. Many of the metro stops feel like you barely leave one stop before you reach the next one. If you know where you're going, you can get places very quickly indeed. However, the signs for the metro were few and far between. Several times, we got on the wrong train because two or three trains going in different directions stopped at the same platform. Paris' train network is very complex and extensive, so much so that buses seemed hardly to run in the city centre. Taxis and buses, so important to the London scene are peripheral in Paris.

Today, we had some delicious egg and cheese crepes (1 each) as well as a dessert crepe each for our brunch, before setting out for a few more hours at our favourite places along the Seine. Then we returned to the train station to set out for Bruges. We left around 4, arriving in Lille for the first leg of our journey around 5. Because our train was late arriving and because there was only 6 minutes between trains, we missed our direct train to Bruges. However, we figured out an alternate way, taking the train towards Cortrai (Kortrijk) where we transferred to another train for the last little bit of the trip. We met two other girls who were also going to Bruges (to a hostel nearby) and a Dutch couple who were very helpful in giving us directions about where to go--far more helpful than the clerks in the ticket office in Lille. So we had a good trip, and arrived in Bruges around 7:30. We took the Welsh girls we travelled with to their hostel nearby before getting to our own. So we have tomorrow to explore Bruges and then we visit several (former IVEP) friends near Koln (Cologne). Cheerio...

London

Monday and Tuesday we toured around London. We started off Monday by taking the ferry from Tower Pier (just behind the Tower of London) to Waterloo Pier. We went up the London Eye, something I enjoy doing every time in spite of the 17 pound pricetag. After that, we met David and headed toward Westminster. We had a picnic lunch in the courtyard of St. Thomas Hospital and headed on to the Houses of Parliament. We were told that it would be a two-hour wait to get into the House of Commons to witness a debate, but only 20 minutes for the House of Lords. As we were running out of time, we opted to do the latter. Then David bid us farewell and we continued on to Maxwell's for dinner. I got a hamburger, something I do quite often at Maxwell's as I don't make burgers just for myself ever. After wandering around Trafalgar Square for a bit, we headed home.


Tuesday, we started off at the Changing of the Guard ceremony at Buckingham Palace. Then we headed back towards the Houses of Parliament where we were able to get into the House of Commons with a relatively short wait. Karen, who has witnessed debates in the Ontario legislature before, was highly impressed with how politely and respectfully the British MPs addressed each other. There was no shouting, no interrupting, but with cordially addressing of "my honourable colleague" (to members of other parties) or "my honourable friend" (within the speaker's party). Questions asked were actually responded to, rather than deflected with some other comment or put down. We walked over to Kensington Gardens and wandered around the beautiful gardens for a bit before going to the piazza in Covent Garden for dinner. The highlight for me was the show that night...we went and saw Thriller Live. Various musicians and dancers imitated MJ's style and moves from his Jackson Five days through to his most recent songs. I realized I (partially) know more MJ songs than I thought I did. It also shed some more light on the man he really was--very well done.

When I get some more time, I'll update what we've done in Paris the last few days. Til then, adieu...

Stratford

Hi again...much has happened in the last week...where to start? First, to note that while I have lots of photos on my camera, the laptop at the hostel I'm at currently won't accept my SD card--too big--so I can't share any photos yet.

I met Karen without difficulty on Saturday morning at Leicester Square tube station. Apart from hassles with Canadian officials in Toronto about the size of her toiletry supplies--she had to spend $27 and change for nine 100 ml bottles to store shampoo, hairspray, etc in--she had no difficulties on the flight. We had a full English breakfast (toast, eggs, sausages, bacon, stewed tomatoes, and one gigantic fried mushroom) at St Martin-in-the-Fields Cafe in the Crypt before heading to Marylebone station to catch our train to Stratford-upon-Avon. We spent several hours getting out to our hostel, and then back into town, as our accomodations were somewhat removed from town and the buses only ran twice an hour. Once we got back to town,we went to Shakespeare's birthplace and toured around the Tudor home that he was raised in.

We walked around the Festival Theatre a bit--they're doing major renovations on the Royal Theatre now--and found the Courtyard Theatre where we were headed for As You Like It. We had dinner there before the show. The theatre itself was set up in a theatre-in-the-round kind of set up, several balconies set up in horseshoes around the stage. Afterward, we relaxed with a drink at Encore, a local pub nearby.

On Sunday, we made the decision to stay around Stratford for the day, as our day had been rather brief the day before (like many other places in England, everything closes by 6). We took a boat tour along the Avon River and then visited both Anne Hathaway's cottage (Will's wife) which was a show of lovely flowers and herbs as well as Mary Arden's farm (his mother's home when she was growing up). Stratford was gorgeous, definitely very Shakespeare-themed. Karen and I both saw how ON has tried to replicate it, with the numerous willows growing along the river, the cute boutiquey stores along the main street and of course all things Shakespeare.
Apparently, Stratford receives the second-most visitors each year (after London), of any city in England.

The trip back to London took almost four hours due to closures of several tracks. We transferred twice, and on the trip from Leamington (pronounced Lemmington) Spa to Reading (pronounced Redding) we shared a crowded foyer space (no chairs, just 8 other passengers, sitting on the floor or standing wherever they could find a space) including a slightly wild-eyed man who claimed to have invented a new device that would allow parents to track their child's every move 24 hours a day.

The Days are Jam Packed...

Hello again...school is finished and I'm about to set on an epic adventure--can you tell I'm excited?! Yesterday was and today is a blur of activity...packing, sorting, getting last-minute things for the trip, moving most of my things to my new home in Chase Cross, dropping unneeded things off at the thrift store, changing my address, getting my hair cut, buying euros for the trip, exchanging last-minute emails and phone calls with Karen about what we're each bringing.

Here's my new home in Chase Cross: 20 Bushy Close Romford RM1 4WN. That's my house on the left.
Romford (the nearest town with a rail station) at about 11 pm on Wednesday night on my way back to Barking.
Last night, David and I went to one of the Proms...this is the famous British Proms that go on for most of two months over the summer. Britten, Prokofiev, and Shostakovich were all on the war-themed program. The people in the centre on the lower level all paid 5 pounds for a standing (promming) space in the middle.
This afternoon, I'm going to the LMC for one last game of Settlers with my Menno friends before heading off. I'm also dropping off my laptop for care with one of my friends there, since I'd rather it not be sitting in an empty house (either Barking or Chase Cross) for the duration of my trip. I will check email as often as I can on my trip when internet cafes are available, but our original plan to use Karen's Notebook backfired when it (bought a month ago specifically for this trip) died on her. So this is it...adios amigos. I'm looking forward to having lots of stories and photos to share in the next month.

Wine and Cheese Party at the LMC

So much has happened...where to begin? Last week, I spent a lot of time and energy trying to figure out where I'll be living after my Europe trip, and how the move will be accomplished. After looking at two other options, I have settled on the option of moving to a village called Chase Cross, northeast of Barking. I'll be getting a double room in a modern house, which I'm sharing with three others. My biggest concern, that it would be far from Tube/train options appears to have been unfounded. Since I will be gone in August, Jody (the manager of Accomodations Solutions, who provides my housing) will move my things for me. The purging and packing has begun already, and will reach fever notch on Thursday/Friday just before Karen's Saturday morning arrival.

The last weekend before Karen arrives passed quickly. I went to a TimePlan social in Romford (a town just south of Chase Cross) Friday night, where I met two of my three flatmates, Esther and Ann. We had a good chat, and it was good for both them and I to meet each other now. As Ann commented, it's a bit disconcerting leaving on holiday, wondering who will be living in your house when you arrive back. We all felt good about the exchange, and I have their phone numbers to make arrangements this week to go and see the place before my trip.

Saturday I went to the LMC for an afternoon of Settlers with some friends from Wood Green. I played virtually no games the first months I was here, so it's nice to have found some friends who enjoy doing that. Then we headed off to Hampstead Heath (a large park area in NW London) for a birthday picnic. Three of us brought nearly identical foods, so there was plenty of carrots and hummus to go around! We nevertheless had a good time.

Yesterday, I went to Barking Baptist in the morning to say goodbye to friends there. They have just moved back into their main sanctuary after about six months of meeting in the fellowship hall during renovations to the sanctuary. So I was there for the re-dedication of the sanctuary. Then I flew home, grabbed lunch on the run and left again in about 7 minutes for Wood Green. We had a small group yesterday, as many folks were away, and some were helping at the London Catholic Worker soup kitchen yesterday. We considered the theme of journey through the lectionary readings and the songs we sang. As well, we welcomed back a newly-married Will, whose bride is still in China, awaiting processing of immigration documents before she joins him here in 2-3 months time. He invited us all back to the LMC afterward for an impromptu wine and cheese party to celebrate with him. It was a lovely day to sit in the garden and chat with friends over nibbles.

So now, I have three days of tutoring left followed by two days of packing/visiting my new house/changing all my address information. The excitement is building...

Two weeks left...

Hello again. It's been a busy weekend here and I have neglected until now to update my blog. As it is looking increasingly like a no-work day today, I think I will do it now.

I had a great weekend, no schoolwork at all. I met David down at Canary Wharf on Friday night for a concert, Requiem in Blue. Unbeknownst to me, David had brought homemade shortbread with strawberries and clotted cream, after I had expressed to him a month or two ago that I like having strawberry shortcake for my birthday. As he is vegan himself, I appreciated the gesture very much.

We had a lovely concert, a Requiem written by Harvey Brough, an ecclectic composer/performer/

conductor/musician who works with a broad variety of musical genres. It was based on the Requiem mass text, but with interpolations of various other musical bits...everything from Black is the Colour of my True Love's Hair, to Old Abram Brown is dead and gone, to Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child, as well as improvised solos by various members of the band. The ensemble on stage included a bass guitar, violin, flute, french horn, harp, lute, organ/piano, and two soprano soloists, as well as five adult choirs and four children's choirs. It reminded me a bit of Britten's War Requiem, in which you have all the dissonant, jarring, despairing music of war sung by the soloists and adult choir, with hope entering occasionally in the angelic voices of the children's choir, a stark contrast.

After the concert, we joined some other church friends (one of whom sang in one of the adult choirs) and went to a pub for drinks.

On Saturday, I went to Parliament Hill again for some fresh veggies and fruits. I do miss being close by to farmer's markets here, but savour the opportunity when I can get it. I'm enjoying fresh strawberries again this week!

Sunday, we had a fellowship meal at the LMC again--after several days of hot, muggy weather almost rivalling S Ontario summers, the humidity has lifted somewhat, so it was quite lovely for sitting out in the garden. In yesterday's service, we remembered the two-year anniversary of a young woman who died from cancer at the age of 20 with an offering to help other young people who want to attend social functions (for example MWC) that Esther enjoyed. We also had a speaker come to talk about diverting our taxes away from the military budget for the purposes of peace. I think it's a good idea, though I'm unsure how effective it is. As someone else pointed out, if it's a small group of people diverting their taxes, the government could just use 0.1 percent of everyone else's taxes for defense.

The countdown is on now for Europe. I have a maximum of ten (probably nine now, since TimePlan still--at 9:55--hasn't called me for work today) days of work left. Karen has booked all of our accomodations as well as the train trips, and I've been doing some thinking about activities for London, as well as other activities during the trip.

After several weeks of hot, sunny weather, this week looks to be much rainier, which is mostly good since the plants need it by now. Just as glad though, that I won't be supplying for most of the week, as kids get major cabin fever after several days of rain keeps them indoors.

Hope this finds you well. Ciao...

Canada Day, London-style

The weather here has been lovely for the last two weeks...oops, better not say that too loud or it may change on me. We've had mostly sunny days, mid-to-high twenties. Hard to believe we changed the calendar to July this week. I've been here in England over ten months now...a lot has happened in that time, though it's felt like it has gone quickly.

On Thursday evening, I came home from school, dropped my teaching junk in my room, and headed into Central London for the Canada Day festivities in Trafalgar Square. Unfortunately in my hurry, I neglected to take my cell phone or camera with me. Knowing how busy Trafalgar Square can be when there's an event on, I wondered if I would find David whom I had arranged to meet there.

Anyway, I got there and found a mass of Canadians (plus a few wannabe Canadians) decked out in red-and-white, some Blue Jays or Team Canada jerseys around. Tim Hortons was there, the first Timmy's I've seen in ten months--there was a line about three miles long, and a sign saying, "Sorry, no more iced capps", and there were booths selling curly fries (also foreign to Britain), Sleeman's beer, and bison burgers. Bombardier was there, showing off some new train carriages they're building for Transport for London, the governmental body that operates public transportation here. I walked around for a bit without finding David, and then ran into one of my Nipissing friends (Erin) who was there. I chatted with her and the friends she was with for a bit, and then took another walk around. I did find David then, and we walked around together. He was interested in trying some Canadian food. We settled on curly fries and waited in another long line for that, only to find when we got to the front that they were charging 5 pounds for a medium-sized basket of fries. We decided that was a major rip-off and walked away...the bison burgers, which were quite good-sized, were also selling for 5 pounds, though as a vegetarian David wasn't interested in that. We headed back to the Timmy's tent and stood in the line, which did move pretty quickly. David was quite favourably impressed with their coffee and the Boston cream donut he had. He also entered a draw for a free flight to Canada with a UK operator that leads tours across Canada.

We also ran into Wayne and Lois, some other Wood Green friends, just back from a two week anniversary-trip to Scandinavia. Lois had seen my Facebook post that morning and decided to check it out. They had a band shell set up with various individuals and groups performing and she wanted to hear "The Canadian Tenors," a group I wasn't familiar with. We stayed until a bit after 9 and heard most of Sarah Harmer's act, the only performer whom I was familiar with.

There was certainly lots of patriotism in Trafalgar Square on Thursday night. One of the performers asked people to identify which sports teams they supported, from which I surmised that most of the people in attendance were likely Ontarians, given the Senators and Leafs fans. Not too surprising...the vast majority of Cdn teachers I know are from Ontario as well. One of the teachers I talked to commented that her thought was, "Timmy's! I've gotta go there...and then after she had been, she thought, "Oh yeah...their donuts really aren't all that special..." Lots of homesick Canadians were looking for a little piece of home in London on July 1.

In any case, it was fun to be there and celebrate my country's birthday--in spite of my misgivings about the terrible things that happened in Toronto last weekend. Methinks Harper, McGuinty, and the Toronto Chief of Police have a lot of explaining and apologizing to do.