So it begins

I love cheap stuff!

Published Date : May 7, 2004

I received the final estimate on my flights today.  Only US$1330 (CDN$1800)!!!  That’s based on 2004 fares since they don’t have the 2005 prices in yet, so I can expect it to go up a bit, but dang that’s cheap!

I bought my insurance yesterday through Insure and Go.  It will cost £335 for 18 months with adventure sports cover.  Darn good deal if I do say so.  I’m planning on paying the balance on the Mid East/Africa expedition when I get paid at the end of the month.  I’m going to speak to occupational health at work this afternoon to see about starting my vaccinations.  It’s all coming together.

The plan for the weekend is to head to Leeds Castle with Gray, Victor and Peter (two Swedes from the house).  It’s worth noting that Leeds Castle is actually in Kent, not in Leeds.  Anyway, supposed to be the best castle in Britain and they’re holding a food and wine festival this weekend.  Free samples perhaps?

Castles, free food and lots of wine!

Published Date : May 8, 2004

Leeds Castle

Today was a pretty good day if I do say so myself.  Victor and Peter bailed so it was just Gray and I, but it was a fun day.  We caught the train from Victoria Station (£22.50 for the combo train ticket with entrance to the castle) then a shuttle bus to the castle from Bearsted station.  It took about an hour and a half to get there.

The weather was typically grey and damp – this is England after all – but it was well worth the trip.  As at most prominent castles in the UK, the gardens were gorgeous, and we enjoyed wandering around them.  We also saw the Dog Collar Museum featuring over 400 years of dog collars, took a stroll through the castle, and spent much of the rest of the day partaking in free samples of cheese, fudge, wine and every type of preserve you can imagine.  Can’t say I was overly impressed with the English wine, but it was something new!

Overall it was a good day.  We didn’t make it to the garden maze though, which I was looking forward to.  Another time perhaps.  We finished off the day with a mad dash for the shuttle bus back to the train and made it just in time.

Summer has arrived

Published Date : May 17, 2004

Fulham Palace

The sunshiny summer weather is finally here.  Yay!  I must admit that I had forgotten how nice London can be during the summer.  It’s amazing what a difference the weather can make.

On Saturday, Gray, his friend Sally, and I took full advantage of the sunshine and did a walking tour around Fulham.  We ended up going all over Fulham, Parsons Green and Putney, but the best part by far was Bishops Garden and Fulham Palace Gardens.  They were incredible.  It’s always great when you find a hidden gem of green in the middle of London.  An added bonus was that all the flowers were in full bloom. We couldn’t have timed the visit more perfectly!

My parents get here in 5 days.  I’m really looking forward to seeing them again.  I’m starting to make some plans for some sightseeing and things to do.  Hopefully the weather cooperates.

Happy reunions

Published Date : May 22, 2004

It was a bit of a long day today.  I spent the morning and most of the afternoon shopping ie; spending money that I really shouldn’t.  I picked up a water bottle with a built-in filter that should save me a fair bit of cash once I get on the road.  Just fill it with water from any source and it filters out all the bugs and (hopefully) prevents me from getting sick while saving me heaps of money by not having to buy bottled water all the time.  I also picked up some new hiking sandals; my old ones finally bit the dust after 5 years of heavy wear and tear.  I haven’t been able to find anything similar to my old ones here in the UK, so I’m trying out some Tevas.  They’re supposed to be pretty good so we’ll see how she goes.  I also picked up a replacement trekking towel as well.  My little chamois towel has served me well, but it was time for something newer and bigger that packs just as small.

The big event of the day was seeing my parents again after 11 months.  I met up with them at their hotel in Kensington and we went out to a pub for dinner.  The food was definitely unique.  British pub meals are always a bit of an adventure – you get your traditional British fayre or you get the ones that are trying to go upmarket and try out new and “trendy” meals that never quite work in a pub.  Sadly, ours were the latter.  It filled the void though, so I won’t complain too loudly.  We finished off the evening with a stroll around the neighbourhood to reacquaint my parents with London traffic.

All in all a good day.  It was great to see mom and dad again after so long.

Walking and more walking

Published Date : May 23, 2004

The Cutty Sark at Greenwich

Far too much walking today.  I was up early and over to my parents hotel to pick them up.  The plan was to do a walking tour of Greenwich.  The tour started from Tower Hill, but unfortunately the two train lines that serve Tower Hill station were both closed for engineering works.  We were all set to take the other lines around the long way and walk between the last two stops, but at the last minute my mom decided that she wanted to get out at Picadilly Circus and see some of the sights.  We had a lot of time to kill before the tour started and I couldn’t remember how long a walk it was to the Tower from Picadilly so I said sure.  Turns out it’s a good hour walk along the river.  We got there with 5 minutes to spare before our tour started.  Starting a two-hour walking tour after already doing two hours of walking probably wasn’t the wisest move!

As for the tour, it was excellent.  It started with a half hour river cruise from Tower Hill to Greenwich which provided us with a much needed rest.  We were shown a couple of museums,Greenwich Park, the Royal Observatory and of course the markets.  After the tour I pointed out my old digs to my parents, good old St Christopher’s Inn. Then we made our way through the Painted Hall, and the Maritime Museum before heading up to the Observatory for the obligatory picture straddling the Prime Meridian (the line that divides the Eastern and Western Hemispheres).  The Painted Hall was quite impressive, but none of us thought much of the Maritime Museum.  After a quick stroll through the markets, we headed back into town.  After showing off my humble abode, we went for dinner and called it a night.

Added note:  the Tevas worked out pretty well with all the walking today.  10 hours in brand new sandals and no blisters, although I did get some bruises on my ankles.  Definitely not as good as my old MEC sandals, but they’ll do.