30 July 2009 Canterbury, Dover, Hastings

Canterbury Cathedral

Welcome again, to the Tiny Paper. I realize that we have back to back entries, but with Neil in London today I felt that it would be nice to blog about our latest tour while it was still fresh in my mind.

On Tuesday we packed our overnight bags and drove south east. Taking the shore all the way to Dover, and finally ending in Canterbury. The drive itself was peaceful and relaxing, and it was a beautiful day. We packed cheese and tomato sandwiches, grapes, and water, and we stopped at a South African specialty shop in Newhaven to pick up some biltong. We spotted some dried mango and picked that up as well. Then we drove along the shore toward Hastings, where we stopped to get a few pics on the beach, and of the net huts along the shore. Hastings hosts a re-enactment of the 1066 Battle of Hastings every year during Hastings Week, which I would love to attend on 17 October for the Bonfire and Fireworks display.





the Hastings net huts and a cool vendor kiosk

We then drove on to Dover, to visit Dover castle. The Keep was closed for renovations, and had been since October-- to re-open on Saturday. Still, the castle has loads to see, and we walked the very steep, heart attack inducing grounds to the lowest point (the war tunnels), to the tip top (the lighthouse and abbey).

With the magnificent sea views--on a clear day you can see the coast of France, which we did-- fabulous and numerous buildings and museums, and the unique and intriguing wartime tunnels, we decided that coming back to Dover with Michael would happen soon enough. We enrolled in the English Heritage program, so that we can attend for free entry in the future, and bring up to 12 children with us!!! (ew...why?) ;P


The castle keep



The lighthouse and abbey

We had a picnic lunch of our cheese and tomato sandwiches and grapes whilst sitting against the wall and admiring the view in the picture above, then trudged downhill (thank God), to the car and proceeded to Canterbury, where we had booked a room for the night.

We arrived about an hour later at The House of Agnes. We couldn't have been more pleased with the location. We were told that due to renovations we would be unable to use the parking that was alloted, so we were given a ticket to park in one of the pay parking lots. It was only a few steps away from the Inn, so we weren't bothered at all by this supposed inconvenience. The Inn was only a block away from town center, where a quaint pedestrian High Street waited.





As we walked down High Street, admiring the old and unique architecture, we were amazed to look down a side street and spot the Canterbury Cathedral. Of course, we walked that way, and spent the next few hours exploring the grounds of the Cathedral and some of the rooms. We did not take the tour, as we decided, again, that we would come back with Michael and do the tours with him, but there was no need, as our time was filled with all of the sites one could see in a day.




The cathedral has many distinct architectural features, gardens, and ruins. Our favorite location being an herb garden surrounded by ruined walls of a building that we can only imagine was once there.


The cistern below, was one of the water collection points that provided water to the entire Cathedral.




We ate dinner at The Weavers Restaurant, which not only provided an unusually cozy atmosphere, but delicious food and lovely service. Neil had a T-bone, and I had a turkey and cranberry pie. I am still craving more of it. It was amazingly good. The Weavers also is the host of the river tours that are pictured below. There are many river tours in Canterbury, as well as a host of museums and gardens all within walking distance.

I am eagerly awaiting our return to Canterbury. We have fallen in love with this gem, and highly recommend it as a weekend getaway.

Til next time

Part 3 London / Brighton

The Brighton Pavilion. A UNESCO World Heritage Site and English Heritage Site



Welcome to the third and final installment of Meet the Luczaks British Invasion. It isn't easy to fit in all of the wonderful things to see and do in the United Kingdom with only a week. Indeed, it is impossible, but we managed to do quite a bit more in the last few days of the visit.

On Monday, the 21st, we took the train into London. Our first stop was Buckingham Palace and we had the surprise privilege to view the changing of the guard. After viewing the time honoured tradition, we walked alongside Saint James Park, and were delighted to be met by the guard marching back up to the castle. We couldn't have been any closer to them, as you can see from the picture below.

In front of St. James Park. Me, Mike, Patrick and Mom (and I made that pink and green top!)

We then walked up to Trafalgar Square and settled on a pub for lunch. We ate at The Silver Cross. The food was nice and the pub traditional, but a bit pricey and because of it's very desirable location for tourist traffic it clearly doesn't feel the need to go the extra mile in service or quality. Still, we made the best of it and had a lovely lunch. (Well, Neil had a lovely lunch of our leftovers since they didn't bother making his order!)

We then went towards Parliament and Big Ben. This was the point were the tiredness began to settle in. Unless you are an avid walker, doing the bus tour of the sites if you are only going to have a day in London is probably a better idea. We took at break at this point and sat in front of Westminster Abbey. The square in which these buildings are located are steeped in history and there is plenty of people watching to do if you get tired of looking at the buildings.

We then walked along the Thames before heading up to Covent Garden, which is always milling with tourists and locals watching the various street shows. We stopped at Scoop, just off of Neal Street and got a few gluten free gelato cones. Then while the grandparents and child rested, Neil and I snuck off to Forbidden Planet and grabbed some comics for the trip, most notably a nice Batman comic for Michael to read on the plane on his way back to the States for his summer holiday. We then caught the train home, having had a very full day.

On Tuesday we drove south to Brighton, which is one of my favorite places on earth. We ate at Frank and Bennies, the family favorite, and queued for the Brighton Pavilion tour. The Pavilion looks as if a tornado picked it up out of India and plopped it down on the English coast. It is totally out of place and ridiculously conspicuous. Inside, a bit of a cheesy audio tour offers lots of insight into the lives and times of the royalty of the day. Unfortunately, no photography is allowed in the pavilion.

On Wednesday we rested and packed for the trip. Michael was very excited, and we were excited for him, but it was not easy to see them off at the airport. It was reported that the flights were fine, and Michael had a nice few days with my mother and Patrick before his dad picked him up. He is now happily swimming and playing video games in Virginia.

Til next time.

Part 2- Bath and Stonehenge

Welcome back to The Tiny Paper and Part II of the weekly blog.

Here we go, on a journey to Bath and Stonehenge, Saturday 18 July.

We packed up from our Bungalow in Wales and drove South West toward Bath, sadly having missed, due to rain, the outdoor Friday evening production of Merchant of Venice, or as Mike repeatedly, mistakenly referred to it as, "The Virgin of Menace". We were originally intending to go to a dog show in Mid England, but decided that we would much prefer seeing Stonehenge if we had to choose between the two. Since we were heading in the general direction of one of my most esteemed locations, I requested that we stop in Bath and see the Roman Spa and Pump House. One of the many locations on the UNESCO list of world heritage sights. UNESCO is The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation, and it has an incredible list of locations designated for their cultural and scientific significance. Bath, and the Roman Bath & Spa are both on this list.

At this juncture of the trip, it was clear that my travel mates were completely accommodating my wishes on this side trip. Neil was certain that I would be quite disappointed with the Spas, but since I had wished to see them for so many years, I felt that good or bad I would be satisfied having experienced what I had so long dreamed of.

I am also very fond of Bath, having first heard of it while reading Jane Austin novels in my late teens and twenties. It always seemed to me such a rich and historic place, full of special character.

After parking we walked over to the Jane Austin Centre. We briefly walked in, but people were packed in like sardines, and I had the impression that it was a rather over-rated gift shop. I can not state that as fact, as I couldn't see a darned thing, but that is what it felt like. I would like to visit Bath again, and I would definitely take a look at the Centre again to see if I missed anything interesting there.

(I look ridiculous in this picture because of the crowds and irritation in actually getting to FINALLY take the picture!)

We walked south, following the signs to the Roman Baths and Pump House. Bath does have a lot of character and it is a bustling town centre as well. We walked around a corner and we were faced with the most beautiful Abbey. Next to the Abbey was a very long line, in drizzling rain, for the Roman Bath and Pump House. I felt that I should carry this burden, as no one else seemed quite as keen to see it as I was, so I suggested they tour Bath Abbey, while I waited in line and obtained the tickets for the Roman Baths.

They were quite impressed with the Abbey, and we got our audio tour head sets for the Roman Baths. Michael was ecstatic about this new form of media, and quickly and enthusiastically set about finding numbers and programming them into his Audio device.

The Roman Baths are stunning. I have never seen anything quite as unique and interesting as this ancient YMCA. There is a plethora of artifacts, and the audio tour is interesting and complete. To walk on flooring that was once obscured, then excavated and restored to a fraction of it's once known splendor is a treat to the senses. White stone, green water, gemstones, pewter curse cards, and tombstones that had been found recycled as part of the cities walled defenses can be seen.

There are many corridors and rooms to discover, and there are signs that tell you that you are NOT to drink, or even touch the water as it is untreated. I am a bit of a worrier about illness as many of you know, but even the germs and certain death from the black plague could not keep me from dipping one finger into the hot running water that flows into the pool, and it touted to be 10,000 years old. In the picture below, Mike and I proudly display our naughty fingers....and I haven't died yet!



After our amazing tour, which we were all very pleased with, we decide to eat. We had lunch at gascoyne place. Check out Mike's fish and chips!

I could have spent several days in Bath, but we had an agenda, so off we went toward Salisbury and the infamous Stonehenge. A lovely 1 and a half hour drive through the countryside and little villages with thatched roof Tudor cottages.

It was raining when we got there, but stopped while we were about 1/3 rd of the way through the tour, which also conveniently supplied Audio sets.

Stonehenge is amazing. It is prehistoric, and mossy. You can almost see how cold and solid the stones would feel if you could touch them. The symmetry is beautiful, and you can only wonder what the plan was when these stones were moved here and what purpose they would serve. As you look around at the massive green mounds throughout the pastures, you learn that these are where bodies were buried thousands of years ago. Before we left, a rainbow appeared behind the heel stone, offering the perfect ending for our tour.

Part 3, to be posted in the next few days, will take us to London, and up to the very hour in which I write this now, wherein Michael is riding through the mountains of West Virginia, beginning his summer vacation in America.

Til next time

21 July 2009 Part 1

Welcome to the last week of Michael's year 2 education, and the beginning of our summer vacation!

Mikes school trip to the British Wildlife center. He said it was a very fun day, he saw otters and owls, amongst other things, and picked up a lovely 1£ souvenir that split open in his bed that evening, dusting the bedding and the boy, who had to be placed in the bathtub and cleaned off.

We awoke at 5:30am on Wednesday and quickly dressed before heading to Gatwick airport to pick up my mother and stepfather. They were on-time, and a bit weary from the travel, having come from West Virginia via Pittsburgh to Philadelphia, so we headed home for them to get a bit more rest and Michael went off to school.
It was report card day! Michael got the year 3 teacher he had hoped for and we were pleased with his report card. He is reading above average and I have tested him at a Grade 4 level (year 5 here), so approximately two years ahead of grade level. My brother Michael and I consistently tested 2 to 4 years ahead of grade level as well, so I believe that is fairly standard for our socio-economic background.

Maths are a little disconcerting. Particularly when I come in to the picture. I sometimes feel that Michael is not drawing a logical conclusion and just guesses. I become flustered and irritated, but Neil is very good at sitting with him patiently and figuring out ways to explain math that Michael can grasp. He is doing better, and he does meet grade level requirements, but I think that he is bright enough to be consistently ahead in all of his school subjects.

Over the summer Mike will be keeping a journal, and he kept the journal on our trip to Wales. He writes his three favorite things of the day, for penmanship and so that we can keep up with his days while he is gone, and drawing a picture each day. We do Three Favorite Things as a family discussion at dinner time each night, so this was an easy transition to put to paper.

On Wednesday Evening we drove to the pub right down the road from our house, the Hillside Inn. It is a quaint, traditional pub, and we chose a table in the back rear corner. The menu was loaded with traditional pub fair, and we all did our best to keep with the spirit of things by ordering the British favorites, with mom and Patrick opting for the Beef pies, Michael choosing his standard fish and chips, I tried the Toad in a Hole, and Neil decided to for-go the rib-eye and dig into the roast lamb. With a few drinks, some Bailey's and coffee, and truly attentive wait staff, I think that Mom and Patrick had a wonderful pub experience. The food was delicious.

On Thursday morning Mike dressed in his Uniform for the last time this year and Mom, Mike and I picked up his friend Harry for the walk to school. We were running slightly behind, but I chose to take them the pond way since it was the last walk to school for the year. On the way back, I took Mom through Milton Mount Gardens.
After an hour of frantic packing, Neil and I returned to the school to attend "Sports day". Michael was on the red "Saturn" team, and the children had a circuit of events eg. spoon races, wig races, hobby horse races..et al. in which scores were tallied with the final score leader at the end of the circuit winning the event. This year, Saturn won! With Venus in second and I don't even remember the other two teams, but I did make a mental note that there was no Uranus. We had a slight hand injury when Michael dove rather dramatically through the ring of fire, by some miracle, it wasn't a holiday cancelling injury!

Then off we drove to Wales. It was about a four hour drive, with loads of stunning scenery on the way. Once we arrived in the Brecon beacon area, we were met by roads that became more narrow with each subsequent turn, with 10 foot hedges on either side, leaving no room whatsoever for maneuvering, it was quite a shock when a tractor, or large bus, suddenly appeared in front of us, and either us, or them would have to back up to the nearest slightly less narrow spot, so that we could squeeze around each other. I would have been an absolute basket case, but Neil seemed to handle the pressure pretty well.

When we arrived at Wern-y-marchog it was raining and cold. A small, weathered woman in her 60's was washing a vehicle, and she barely gave us a glance, which seemed rather odd since we were sitting in her driveway and were an hour later than our expected check in time. We watched Neil converse with her, and it was looking rather tense. We heard Neil say "Are you joking?"

He walked back to the car, and proceeded to gather the reservation paper. The owner was not expecting us. No. We were not supposed to arrive until August. She was expecting someone else on Saturday. Wow.

All of this was sorted out and apologies accepted. We brought our luggage in and picked our respective bedrooms. The house was a sprawling bungalow, and the furnishings were warm and cozy. It reminded me of a dolls house, and the atmosphere felt genuinely that of a working farm. The kitchen was large and well stocked. The living room cozy with an electric and wood burning fire. Should that have mattered in July? No, it shouldn't have, but it did. In Wales, they never pack their woollies away. That was what the nice lady at the outdoor store told Neil as he picked me up a brand new pullover, as I only packed short sleeved items. We kept the heater on in the living room, and we looked out on the most spectacular panorama from the picture window. The greenest hills and pastures, with hedge fences, full of fluffy white sheep. Streaming water and a wind that pounded relentlessly through the night. We had a lot of privacy, and it was a definite immersion into the Wales countryside.

There were many magazines, local community maps an brochures, children's puzzles and a bookshelf stocked with books for both children and adults, which Michael was delighted with, as they had several Mr. Men books for him to enjoy.

I could comfortably stay at the accommodation for a month or more. It was absolutely lovely and perhaps we will visit again.

After checking in and dropping off the luggage we went to The White Swan. I was famished to say the least. It was 6pm and we were told that they don’t open or serve until 7. In fact, none of the local pubs and restaurants open before 7. They encouraged us to take a seat and wait. Gave us some chips and at 6:30 told us that the cook would make our meals. We were so delighted and it was very thoughtful of them to start early just for us. Neil, Patrick and Mom had the Leg of Lamb, Michael had the fish and chips, and I tried out the Beef and mushroom pie. All of the food was fantastic, but the real treat was the friend wait staff. Upon thanking the manager at the end of the meal, she gave me a warm hug and thanked me for being so complimentary. It really was a fantastic experience.
On Friday, faced with drizzling rain and hoping to see some magnificent Wales architecture, we drove an hour south to Caerphilly. Upon entering the town you can’t help but gape at Caerphilly Castle. A large moat surrounds the expansive and foreboding fortress, you are transported in time to an age of trebuchets and great halls. Cold, dank spiral staircases that led up to circular rooms with vast fireplaces. Murder holes and arrow slits at every turn.
Caerphilly has struck the perfect balance of exhibition and education. It is informative, yet not invasive to the experience. Michael was delighted to “discover” the castle, which, as impressive as it was for the adults, is the stuff of dreams for a seven year old boy.

After wards we had lunch at GLANMOR, and picked up pastries for the next day’s breakfast as well before driving to Cardiff with the hopes of squeezing in Cardiff Castle. We drove there knowing it was a gamble, as it was close to closing time. We didn’t make it, but I enjoyed driving through Cardiff, which is the capital of Wales and has some stunning architecture.

Part 2 of the week coming soon....

11 July 2009

I left you a little over a week ago promising an unveiling. I have opened Bomb knitwear on Etsy where I will be selling mohawk caps and other oddities that come to mind. The reason that I decided to do this is that I improvised a design that allows me to complete a hat in a few hours. While not selling well right now, I suspect to have good interest as the weather gets colder and my prices come down a bit!! ;) The hats are loads of fun to make, and wear.

We had a fantastic Fourth of July. I crocheted a few hats for us to wear and made one of those cool flag cakes that are the traditional cake of the day. Sadly threw away over a quarter of it! Oh well. The event was not all that it promised to be, but Battersea Park is lovely, and we had a relaxing and fun family day and managed to meet a few new people in the process. I also got a good amount of reading done on Divas Las Vegas , which is actually classified as "chick lit" and was the worst book that I couldn't put down! It was so ridiculous!

This month has also graced my computer with a brand new screensaver! My American son with a great big tooth missing!! WooooHooo Mike!!!!









The UK was graced with the worst heat wave in since 2003. I would only assume that this was due to my incomplete ability to cope with temperatures outside of my comfort zone of 68 to 74 degrees. With no air conditioning I pressed into the lounge floor (thank god for wood flooring) and let the only cool surface in the house keep me from dying of heat stroke. Two days later I was laying out in the garden, sipping a smoothie and reading. The heat no longer phasing me. After 20 years of central heating and air, I had no idea the body could acclimate so quickly to temperature deviations, an ignorance that I believe is shared by a mere 10 percent of the world (Americans).

This weather was a great time to break out the sprinkler that we found on Sale at Argos. If you aren't from the UK, or you have not lived here, I will explain quickly what Argos is. Argos is a store that you walk into and it has counters loaded with giant catalogs. You write down the catalog number and then punch it in at a kiosk that prints out a ticket. You then wait while the employees fish your items out of the warehouse. It is really weird, but it allows you to get some items at pretty good discounts. However, it doesn't work for everything, because as a consumer, I think most people like to actually touch the products before they buy them . Often times you can't get a really good idea of the quality or size of an item (particularly when you know inches and everything is in centimeters!!!!). However, for things such as a "Batman Duvet", clearly the quality and size are not too relevant. You just make it work because it's Batman. :)



We have had the work done in the kitchen this week. There were spaces to hold wine bottles in the fitted kitchen, and we had these removed to make more space for a new refrigerator. We were hoping to have the refrigerator installed before our company came to visit, but the refrigerator will not be delivered until July 26th. We have ordered the Hotpoint Quadrio, a sexy beast of a fridge that I can't help but salivate at every time I see it. Not only is it amazingly cool looking, it boasts an average 9.1 customer rating over 80 ratings!




Michael got the uniform for SFK Karate. He looks fantastic and he is progressing well with his karate technique. Yesterday was Michael's last class before his summer in America, and he will return to lessons at the end of August.



Last but not least, we have been working on the Garden again. There were just a few finishing touches to complete, and we are very happy with the looks of it. I had planted some sweetpea and a rogue brussel sprout had been growning in one of the patio beds, we finally bit the bullet and pulled them up to put them in the garden bed. I was also aware that half of the bed was useless due to an antfestation. After a quick run to the garden center and half a bottle of ant killer we have it down to about 100 of the little buggers.



Where the tree used to be we have made a bed of grasses and portulaca, as well as a palm tree that will eventually grow to 9 feet.



We added a clay improving soil to our garden beds and now the vegetables are really taking off.

And finally, the finished product!

Today was rainy and gray, but we went to the Library and picked out a few books to keep us busy for our rainy weekend. Mike is reading chapter books now and has read an entire Captain Underpants this afternoon before moving on to illustrate and write his own Batman comic.

Next week we will have loads of news, as my mother and Stepdad are coming to visit and Michael is flying back to the States with them for his summer holiday. We are going to Wales for a few days, a dog show, and who knows what else we may do and see!

Til next time!