My brother's visit to Europe

So today my brother is on his way back to the US. He has spent the last 12 days with me and Jamey here in Europe. We spent the first few days seeing the sites of London. The day he arrived, we went to a horserace in Windsor, had some traditional fish and chips, and didn't win one single race! Still, we had a fabulous time. On Tuesday, Lloyd got out and saw some of the sites in London, Leicester Square, Piccadilly Circus, etc. That night, we had a lovely italian meal at a place called Stef's near Oxford Circus. Great fun! On Wednesday, Lloyd saw Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey, Big Ben and Parliment, all the sites! That night, we spent the evening in Chiswick (a bourough of London near to where we live) and had dinner at a great spanish tapas restuarant. We ended the evening by having a couple of pints in the local pub by our house. On Thursday, Lloyd met me for lunch and then he spent the afternoon in the British Museum of Art. This is actually something I've not done yet, but would love to go sometime.

For the weekend we traveled to Tenerife, Spain. This is actually in the Canary Islands, which is quite near to the coast of Africa. Ah, Tenerife, the weather was amazing, the food was excellent, the people were friendly, the beaches were gorgeous, we really had a fabulous time! We hiked around a volcano (no, it wasn't errupting), we sat by the pool, soaked up some sun on the beach. One of the best things was this kareoke bar called the "Memphis Bar". Yep, the theme of the whole restuarant was ELVIS!!! It was brilliant! Lloyd played tribute to Elvis by singing "Polk Salad Annie", I've not laughed that hard in a long time. He and I did a duet of the Grease classic "You're the one that I want". I sang Shania Twain and Britney Spears, Lloyd did a Garth Brooks solo. Oh, and we can't forget my Alabama number "Mountain Music". No one had ever heard the song sang there in that bar, but the whole audience were singing along with me by the end of the song. And they loved it when I started clogging (in my flip flops)! It was such a great night, such a great trip!

After we returned from Spain, my brother saw the Tower of London, Madame Tusauds Wax Museum (he even got a photo with Amy Winehouse)! Then last night, we ended his trip on a great note. We met in Leicester Square at one of my favorite spots, Ruby Blue, and had drinks and dinner. Then we saw the West End show, "Chicago". WOW, it was so so good! I would definitely see it again, brilliant ("and all that jazz")! Now, Lloyd is on his way back to NC for the weekend to see Mama and Daddy and to pick up the girls, then they are all heading back to Texas, back to reality. Taylor and Ava have been with my mom and dad, getting spoiled beyond repair! Luckily they have a week back at home to get back on schedule before school starts.

I guess summer is coming to an end soon, but Jamey and I have a few more things to look forward to before bringing in the Fall. Anyway, farewell to Lloyd. We had such a great time, and can't wait to do it again! Miss you already and love you always!

4th of July trip

For the 4th of July, I made a trip home to NC. The first week was spent visiting family and friends in the hometowns. I enjoyed seeing those that I saw, but it's funny how everytime I go back, I see fewer people than the time before. The week flies by, and it's almost impossible to fit everything (and everybody) in. I'm glad, though, that the time I do get to spend with my family and friends from back home is so valuable, not just shooting the s&@t. I always miss home when I go back there, but once I return to the place I now call home (Reading), everything goes back to normal. I would like to have some visitors from the US though, hint hint!!!

So the second week of the trip to the US was spent at Wrightsville Beach, one of my favorite places! We have a bit of tradition going on, to go there every year for the 4th of July. It's great because so many friends know that there's a place we can all meet the same time every year. We had a blast this year, as my pictures demonstrate. Can't wait for our next trip!

Finally, the last few days of the trip were spent in Manhattan. I absolutly love NYC! I've been several times before, in the winter months, but this was my first summer visit. It gets pretty hot in the Big Apple. We had a great time there. We sat front row for the "late show with David Letterman" and "Live with Regis and Kelly". We met Regis and Kelly and that was just a dream come true! I've always been a Kelly fan, and my mom loves Regis. They acted the same in person as they do on TV, very down to earth. We saw lots of celebrities on this trip. I also did some sightseeing on my own while Jamey worked. I visited all the designer stores and drooled over it all. Oh yeah, sightseeing. Jamey and I visited the Empire State Building and the area where they are rebuilding the World Trade Center. We went to Central Park and visited Strawberry Fields, the memorial for John Lennon. We also ate dinner one night at Tavern on the Green, which is a swanky restuarant in Central Park. I can't wait to go back to New York, which won't be long from now, long story. Okay, end of Blog for now, I have other matters to attend to. Cheers!

Our trip to Sweden

Yesterday, Jamey and I got up early and took the train to Helsingor, Denmark to visit Hamlet's Castle. We were both pretty impressed. The decorations were immaculate and all the things found inside were very interesting. There was one section called the casemates, which was like a dungeon. The only light down there was oil lamps. It was pretty spooky. I believe that the casemates served as the storage area back when the castle was being used for living. After we saw the castle, we took the ferry over to Helsingborg, SWEDEN. Yep, that means I can add another country to my list of those I've visited. This makes 15 for me! We walked to the castle in Sweden, but did not go in as it was already closed for the day. We did take some pictures there. After walking around town for a bit, we stopped into a local coffee shop and had a mid afternoon treat. We walked around some more, then stopped into a pub to have a couple of pints. We then went on to find a place to have dinner. We ate on a boat restaurant. It was really neat and the food was great. For an appetizer, we had a trio sample platter of fish and snapps. This is a very popular dish for the Scandinavians. The snapps are what several of my friends/family would call the "Danish Moonshine". It is pretty potent, but it's actually quite good with the fish. For our main course, we had more seafood. It was all really good. The atmosphere was nice, and the company of Jamey was great as always! We left, and took the ferry/train back home. It's pretty cool to wake up in one country, travel to another, and then return to sleep in my own bed, all in the same day. The perks of living in Europe I guess! We had a great time, and Sweden was awesome.

Today we have had a relaxing day at home. It has snowed even more. It's very cold outside, but the sun did shine for the most part of the day. I watched American Idol this morning on TV. We are about 2 weeks behind the US. My favorite is Taylor (the grey headed guy). He makes me laugh, so he's my favorite. I'm off for now. Write more later ~Jac