Spent the morning getting more stuff done. I'm not even able to sleep in as I have so much on my mind. One day last week I was up at 6:30am to drive Keith to work and stayed up! Hopefully next week it'll be more of a leisurely time off!
Picked Keith up at lunch time and went into town to get his haircut. While he got beautified I did some shopping for Matthew's birthday gift and was quite successful. Keith had to go back to work so I dropped him off and came back home.
I spent some more time with the French training and am really enjoying it. It's getting a bit tougher and definitely keeping me on my toes!
We went to Speedy & Rach's in the evening to watch a movie.
Wednesday, 30 April 2008
Tuesday, 29 April 2008
iMac Upgrade
Three weeks until I go home!!!
This morning I went to Trispen, just outside Truro, to Tom's to get our Mac upgraded. He was quick to replace the old RAM with the new and I was on my way. I stopped into Matalan in Truro to do a bit of shopping and went to Pizza Hut for lunch for their buffet.
I was excited to get back to hook the Mac back up. So much faster! Now I can start my French course. I spent a few hours and really enjoyed it. The software has been set up as immersion training so there is no English throughout any of the course. It's very colorful and easy to follow. They cover pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, reading and writing. Although I know some of the basics I started at level one so i could learn them better and refresh. So far it's been pretty simple, but I have no double by the time I get to level 3 (the highest) I'll be pulling my hair out. I really hope I get something out of it.
This morning I went to Trispen, just outside Truro, to Tom's to get our Mac upgraded. He was quick to replace the old RAM with the new and I was on my way. I stopped into Matalan in Truro to do a bit of shopping and went to Pizza Hut for lunch for their buffet.
I was excited to get back to hook the Mac back up. So much faster! Now I can start my French course. I spent a few hours and really enjoyed it. The software has been set up as immersion training so there is no English throughout any of the course. It's very colorful and easy to follow. They cover pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, reading and writing. Although I know some of the basics I started at level one so i could learn them better and refresh. So far it's been pretty simple, but I have no double by the time I get to level 3 (the highest) I'll be pulling my hair out. I really hope I get something out of it.
Monday, 28 April 2008
Getting Things Done
Another week ahead to get things done - doctor's apt, placing duty free order, sending mother's day cards, Mac upgrade, sending Ryan Spearin's gift, birthday shopping for Matthew, railcard renewal, and the list goes on.....
I finally booked my travel to London. I had planned to take the overnight sleeper train but it was going to cost £100. I continued searching for another option and discovered it would cost less to stay in London for the night. So I booked a train up in the afternoon of May 19 and a hotel for the night and it's costing more than half the price at £45! I'll also be able to get a better sleep hopefully as the sleeper can be soothing but rough at the same time. I just have to catch the tube to Gatwick Tuesday morning and I'll be on my way home!
Also finished mine and Tanya's (cousin) main travel plans. Bought our train tickets back to here when we arrive in London on June 25th and booked our hotel room in London for early July when we spend a few days before she flies out. I'll still have to do a few other arrangements as we may stay in Bath for a night before we go to London.
Placed our duty free order today. We want to make sure we have it in time for our Canada Day festivities on Saturday, June 28th.
Customs take awhile to clear orders so we have to give plenty of notice.
I finally booked my travel to London. I had planned to take the overnight sleeper train but it was going to cost £100. I continued searching for another option and discovered it would cost less to stay in London for the night. So I booked a train up in the afternoon of May 19 and a hotel for the night and it's costing more than half the price at £45! I'll also be able to get a better sleep hopefully as the sleeper can be soothing but rough at the same time. I just have to catch the tube to Gatwick Tuesday morning and I'll be on my way home!
Also finished mine and Tanya's (cousin) main travel plans. Bought our train tickets back to here when we arrive in London on June 25th and booked our hotel room in London for early July when we spend a few days before she flies out. I'll still have to do a few other arrangements as we may stay in Bath for a night before we go to London.
Placed our duty free order today. We want to make sure we have it in time for our Canada Day festivities on Saturday, June 28th.
Customs take awhile to clear orders so we have to give plenty of notice.
Saturday, 26 April 2008
Hungover
Oh my God I'm too old to stay up until stupid o'clock in the morning! I finally dragged my ass out of bed around lunch time. James was long gone and Biggles didn't move until an hour or so later. Keith was full of ambition for some reason and was up earlier, did a little cleaning then started mowing the lawn. Wish I felt that good!
For the evening we went to Speedy and Rach and ordered pizza with them and Dave.
For the evening we went to Speedy and Rach and ordered pizza with them and Dave.
Friday, 25 April 2008
Speedy's Pirate Party
Rach took the afternoon off work so she didn't have to rush home from work to the party. She picked me up on her way back from work and we went into Asda to buy some accessories for our costumes and a cake for Speedy. We had planned to go to a pub for lunch but ended up spending too much time at Asda shopping. Instead we grabbed sandwiches and ate in the car.
She dropped me off at home so she could go get ready. I picked Keith up at work and before long Dave was here to get him. The boys were getting ready at Rach & Speedy's and she was coming back here to get ready with me. She arrived back at 5pm and we spent an hour and a half getting dolled up. James (from my work) showed up and the poor guy got stuck getting ready with the girls. The three of us piled Rach's car with the rest of the balloons and headed to the Godolphin.
People tapered in all night and we had quite a turn out. As I wasn't hosting this time around I didn't shy away from drinks and having fun. We had a great time. Afterwards a bunch of us headed into town to dance the rest of the night away. Biggles and James were crashing at ours so we all headed back in a cab - as my feet hurt so much from my boots I couldn't walk any further! Back at our place we whipped up some traditional bacon sandwiches and eventually crashed around 5am! What a great night.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=109283&l=fe283&id=732460083
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=109290&l=35e73&id=732460083
She dropped me off at home so she could go get ready. I picked Keith up at work and before long Dave was here to get him. The boys were getting ready at Rach & Speedy's and she was coming back here to get ready with me. She arrived back at 5pm and we spent an hour and a half getting dolled up. James (from my work) showed up and the poor guy got stuck getting ready with the girls. The three of us piled Rach's car with the rest of the balloons and headed to the Godolphin.
People tapered in all night and we had quite a turn out. As I wasn't hosting this time around I didn't shy away from drinks and having fun. We had a great time. Afterwards a bunch of us headed into town to dance the rest of the night away. Biggles and James were crashing at ours so we all headed back in a cab - as my feet hurt so much from my boots I couldn't walk any further! Back at our place we whipped up some traditional bacon sandwiches and eventually crashed around 5am! What a great night.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=109283&l=fe283&id=732460083
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=109290&l=35e73&id=732460083
Thursday, 24 April 2008
Trevarno Garden Estate
As it's a beautiful day I decided to take some time to enjoy it. I've been meaning to visit Trevarno since we moved here and finally made time today. What a beautiful place. I spent a few hours in the afternoon and really enjoyed it. They have the gardens and they also have an estate walk. I decided to do the estate walk as well which is about 45 minutes. It was a bit odd as it takes you through the forest and even farmers fields! At one point I felt I was the only person in the world. I was in the middle of a field with nothing but farm fields for miles and a few cows beside me. It was strange really. But relaxing. I took a ton of pictures of course and you can see them by pasting the link in your browser:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=108870&l=7a0de&id=732460083
It has also been a week of trying new recipes. On Monday I made cabbage rolls and they were so good. Today I made a spicy that shrimp and noodle soup which was also really good. Loving my new Canadian Living cookbook - Keith is too!
After supper Rach and Speedy came over and we blew up a bunch of balloons for Speedy's birthday party tomorrow. Then we all went to the Godolphin Club where they're having the party. Rach and I did some decorating while the boys played with the sound system equipment to make sure they knew how to use it for tomorrow.
After we finished we headed back to our place for a few hours to choose a bunch of music. We put together a crazy mix of metal (Speedy's favorite), 80's, 90's and a bit of everything else. My job tomorrow will be to burn the disks.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=108870&l=7a0de&id=732460083
It has also been a week of trying new recipes. On Monday I made cabbage rolls and they were so good. Today I made a spicy that shrimp and noodle soup which was also really good. Loving my new Canadian Living cookbook - Keith is too!
After supper Rach and Speedy came over and we blew up a bunch of balloons for Speedy's birthday party tomorrow. Then we all went to the Godolphin Club where they're having the party. Rach and I did some decorating while the boys played with the sound system equipment to make sure they knew how to use it for tomorrow.
After we finished we headed back to our place for a few hours to choose a bunch of music. We put together a crazy mix of metal (Speedy's favorite), 80's, 90's and a bit of everything else. My job tomorrow will be to burn the disks.
Wednesday, 23 April 2008
Lady of Leisure
I am now officially what the English call 'a lady of leisure'. Which is a really nice way to put 'unemployed'! However the week has been less than leisurely. I started my to do list and it may take me awhile to finish it! Mostly admin stuff to do including booking my travel to London for my trip home, travel back with my cousin on my return, our trip to London on her return home, buying luggage and an external hard drive, and so many other things. It sounds easy enough but I take forever to book accommodation and make travel plans. I have to carefully plan it all out and research the places to stay and find the best deal. So a quick task for someone is a days work for me!
I did buy some luggage on Tuesday at Tesco. I finally found a large piece that was half decently priced and good quality (I hope!). I had been looking for awhile but as I mentioned previously, there is little choice in Cornwall so it can be tough finding something you need. I do a lot of online shopping now!
We've determined our Mac needs a memory upgrade so I contacted the guy I dealt with at my work and he gave me the info I need on what to buy and is going to install the RAM for me next week for free! One of the times online shopping comes in handy.
The Canadian Detachment in London has offered the CF spouses a year of free online language training. I immediately signed up! It's the Rosetta Stone language center which is quite well known. My aim is to learn some French. I've noticed that the year subscription allows you to learn a variety of languages, depending on how long it takes you to learn one language you can move onto another and another until the year is up. So after French maybe Spanish? German? Swahili!
Today I went into Trago and bought 2 canvases, paint and some paint brushes as I'm going to paint some kind of bizarre creation to hang in our livingroom. I never finished the livingroom the way I wanted to and it's a bit drab and needs some colour. I figure 'll add some red and spruce it up. It ended up being an expensive trip as I got a damn parking ticket! The equivalent of $60! Ouch!
I did buy some luggage on Tuesday at Tesco. I finally found a large piece that was half decently priced and good quality (I hope!). I had been looking for awhile but as I mentioned previously, there is little choice in Cornwall so it can be tough finding something you need. I do a lot of online shopping now!
We've determined our Mac needs a memory upgrade so I contacted the guy I dealt with at my work and he gave me the info I need on what to buy and is going to install the RAM for me next week for free! One of the times online shopping comes in handy.
The Canadian Detachment in London has offered the CF spouses a year of free online language training. I immediately signed up! It's the Rosetta Stone language center which is quite well known. My aim is to learn some French. I've noticed that the year subscription allows you to learn a variety of languages, depending on how long it takes you to learn one language you can move onto another and another until the year is up. So after French maybe Spanish? German? Swahili!
Today I went into Trago and bought 2 canvases, paint and some paint brushes as I'm going to paint some kind of bizarre creation to hang in our livingroom. I never finished the livingroom the way I wanted to and it's a bit drab and needs some colour. I figure 'll add some red and spruce it up. It ended up being an expensive trip as I got a damn parking ticket! The equivalent of $60! Ouch!
Sunday, 20 April 2008
Shalom House
A month from today and I'll be home!! I can't wait!
We woke up feeling much more lively today. Speedy came over and helped Keith take all the bottles and grass trimmings to the recycling place and Rach and I hung out for a bit. They came back after supper for a few hours as the boys had course work to do together.
Yesterday Mom moved back home after a few months of being away. Many of you don't know this but Mom has spent since early February at a convent in Sydney Mines for women with addictions. The program is run by sisters and is a live in for women to learn about their addiction and how to live and cope with it. In January Mom had a bit of a rough time and went back to drinking. Her counsellor pulled some strings and got her into Shalom House (the convent) for a few months. We, including Mom, were very relieved and excited for her to go. Within a few days she was called that a space was available and she was off. She really enjoyed her time there and finished her program Friday. We're all so very proud of her.
Some of you may be surprised not to know this but it's something I don't often speak of. Not because I'm embarrassed (because I'm very proud of Mom) but because of that awkwardness of telling someone and them not knowing what to say. Also because I'm a big sook for Mom and it sometimes makes me cry -so if I don't speak of it then I don't have to worry about the waterworks! She is hoping to do another program in the fall for maybe a year so I'm keeping my fingers crossed it works out for her.
We woke up feeling much more lively today. Speedy came over and helped Keith take all the bottles and grass trimmings to the recycling place and Rach and I hung out for a bit. They came back after supper for a few hours as the boys had course work to do together.
Yesterday Mom moved back home after a few months of being away. Many of you don't know this but Mom has spent since early February at a convent in Sydney Mines for women with addictions. The program is run by sisters and is a live in for women to learn about their addiction and how to live and cope with it. In January Mom had a bit of a rough time and went back to drinking. Her counsellor pulled some strings and got her into Shalom House (the convent) for a few months. We, including Mom, were very relieved and excited for her to go. Within a few days she was called that a space was available and she was off. She really enjoyed her time there and finished her program Friday. We're all so very proud of her.
Some of you may be surprised not to know this but it's something I don't often speak of. Not because I'm embarrassed (because I'm very proud of Mom) but because of that awkwardness of telling someone and them not knowing what to say. Also because I'm a big sook for Mom and it sometimes makes me cry -so if I don't speak of it then I don't have to worry about the waterworks! She is hoping to do another program in the fall for maybe a year so I'm keeping my fingers crossed it works out for her.
Saturday, 19 April 2008
What a Mess!
I can't say I woke up feeling fantastic this morning but not as bad as expected. What a lovely mess when we got up. Thankfully Bungy and Cauffers were up and they had cleared all the bottles off the dining room table and put all the dirty glasses in the kitchen. It took Keith and I about 2 hours or so to clean up. The amount of glasses was such a pain - without a dishwasher! And I love how our feet stuck to our floor. Gross!
Speedy, Rach, Dave, Keith & I decided we needed a greasy breakfast so we went to a little cafe in Helston. It wasn't great, but kind of served the purpose. Keith and I came home and enjoyed a very lazy day watching TV.
Speedy, Rach, Dave, Keith & I decided we needed a greasy breakfast so we went to a little cafe in Helston. It wasn't great, but kind of served the purpose. Keith and I came home and enjoyed a very lazy day watching TV.
Friday, 18 April 2008
Cocktail Party!
As we have so much duty free alcohol we decided to have a cocktail party tonight. Also to celebrate me finishing work and Speedy's birthday that was on Monday past.
I had to stick around the house this morning as MOD was coming in for the annual gas inspection. Once the inspection was complete I headed to the big Tesco in Pool. I had a bunch of things to pick up for the party tonight. When I got back home I started a chicken pot pie I decided to make for supper. Around 3pm I was so tried (don't know why) I laid down for an hour's nap. Keith arrived home just after 4pm and informed me that people were coming over around 5-5:30pm! Aaaahhh! They weren't suppose to come over until 7pm. I had to stop with the pie as there would be no time to finish it or enjoy it. I was going to hang Keith at this point. I jumped in the shower and ran around like a nut trying to get everything done. People already started arriving when I was getting ready.
We ended up having a really good night with a great turn out. Almost 40 people showed up! That's a lot of people in our not so huge house. But it was all good. I got to meet some new people and watch everyone get looped. I stayed somewhat sober being the hostess. The beginning of the night was tame as they usually are, then later on when all the good spirits were gone (gin, run, vodka) out came the crazy concoctions. Jono had a great time with the blender and was the highlight of the party. I also brought out the chocolate fountain and the girls and I enjoyed that. Sid and Katie had brought their Twister game with them so that was put to good use. Always dangerous to play Twister at a party.
I think the evening finished around 3-4am and a bunch crashed with us. We ended up with about only 6 bottles of alcohol left. Mission accomplished!
Two albums of the night:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=107578&l=06374&id=732460083
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=107580&l=652a2&id=732460083
I had to stick around the house this morning as MOD was coming in for the annual gas inspection. Once the inspection was complete I headed to the big Tesco in Pool. I had a bunch of things to pick up for the party tonight. When I got back home I started a chicken pot pie I decided to make for supper. Around 3pm I was so tried (don't know why) I laid down for an hour's nap. Keith arrived home just after 4pm and informed me that people were coming over around 5-5:30pm! Aaaahhh! They weren't suppose to come over until 7pm. I had to stop with the pie as there would be no time to finish it or enjoy it. I was going to hang Keith at this point. I jumped in the shower and ran around like a nut trying to get everything done. People already started arriving when I was getting ready.
We ended up having a really good night with a great turn out. Almost 40 people showed up! That's a lot of people in our not so huge house. But it was all good. I got to meet some new people and watch everyone get looped. I stayed somewhat sober being the hostess. The beginning of the night was tame as they usually are, then later on when all the good spirits were gone (gin, run, vodka) out came the crazy concoctions. Jono had a great time with the blender and was the highlight of the party. I also brought out the chocolate fountain and the girls and I enjoyed that. Sid and Katie had brought their Twister game with them so that was put to good use. Always dangerous to play Twister at a party.
I think the evening finished around 3-4am and a bunch crashed with us. We ended up with about only 6 bottles of alcohol left. Mission accomplished!
Two albums of the night:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=107578&l=06374&id=732460083
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=107580&l=652a2&id=732460083
Thursday, 17 April 2008
My Last Week of Work!
Today would have been my brother Jamie's 30th birthday. A bit of a sappy morning for me as I drove to work thinking about him.
Wow, my last week of work. It ended up being a busy week getting everything cleared up that had to be done. But I'm happy to be busy as it made it go by quickly. Thursday was my last day and the guys spoiled me rotten. They gave me an amazing bouquet of flowers, a bottle of pink champagne and an iPod Shuffle! Then afterwards they took my out for a drink. It was very nice! They had my iPod inscribed 'we'll miss you and your cakes'. It was really cute. I was always taking them in some kind of sweet and in England they kinda group sweets together as 'cakes' or 'pudding' when it's dessert. It was sad to say goodbye but I'm also very excited to have some time off to get all my 'to dos' done which seems like an exhausting list at the moment.
Yesterday I picked up a trimmer for Keith at Trago. He finally found one he liked so I picked it up on my lunch break. Thank God as our yard desperately needs some TLC.
As I wasn't interested in cooking by the time I got home we ordered pizza for supper and watched a movie.
Wow, my last week of work. It ended up being a busy week getting everything cleared up that had to be done. But I'm happy to be busy as it made it go by quickly. Thursday was my last day and the guys spoiled me rotten. They gave me an amazing bouquet of flowers, a bottle of pink champagne and an iPod Shuffle! Then afterwards they took my out for a drink. It was very nice! They had my iPod inscribed 'we'll miss you and your cakes'. It was really cute. I was always taking them in some kind of sweet and in England they kinda group sweets together as 'cakes' or 'pudding' when it's dessert. It was sad to say goodbye but I'm also very excited to have some time off to get all my 'to dos' done which seems like an exhausting list at the moment.
Yesterday I picked up a trimmer for Keith at Trago. He finally found one he liked so I picked it up on my lunch break. Thank God as our yard desperately needs some TLC.
As I wasn't interested in cooking by the time I got home we ordered pizza for supper and watched a movie.
Saturday, 12 April 2008
St Mawgan Shopping
This morning Keith & I headed to St Mawgan. We visited Mole Valley in hopes of finding a trimmer but with no luck. We spent the next hour or so visiting the surrounding outlet stores, one being a surf shop where Keith finally found a good deal on a wetsuit and bought it. I bought gloves for my suit so I'm getting closer to having all the kit.
Since we were here we went to the RAF base to the American Exchange store (NEX) to buy some stuff. It turned out to be quite a shopping day - not that Keith would want to admit it. On the way back we stopped at the Norway Inn for a late afternoon drink and munchies.
In the evening Rach and Speedy dropped by to pick us up and we went into town to the Five Stars pub/bar to meet up with everyone. There were quite a few of the crew out. Rach and I ended up leaving the boys and went to the Beehive to dance. Eventually the boys met us with us and it was home time. We had a great night as Rach and I usually do.
Since we were here we went to the RAF base to the American Exchange store (NEX) to buy some stuff. It turned out to be quite a shopping day - not that Keith would want to admit it. On the way back we stopped at the Norway Inn for a late afternoon drink and munchies.
In the evening Rach and Speedy dropped by to pick us up and we went into town to the Five Stars pub/bar to meet up with everyone. There were quite a few of the crew out. Rach and I ended up leaving the boys and went to the Beehive to dance. Eventually the boys met us with us and it was home time. We had a great night as Rach and I usually do.
Friday, 11 April 2008
MOT & Oil Change
Keith and I were both back to work this week. I can't believe I finish work next week.
Dropped the car off at the garage this morning to have it's MOT (like our MVI) and oil change done. Thankfully there were no problems. Whew!
Keith had the day off too so we spent it getting stuff done at home - insurance renewals, car road tax, tax claims, etc.
Dropped the car off at the garage this morning to have it's MOT (like our MVI) and oil change done. Thankfully there were no problems. Whew!
Keith had the day off too so we spent it getting stuff done at home - insurance renewals, car road tax, tax claims, etc.
Saturday, 5 April 2008
Truro Shopping
It was a nice day so we headed into to Truro to the market and to check out the fancy dress shop. Speedy's birthday party is in a few weeks and it's a pirate theme so we have to find costumes. We poked around the market, then checked out a pine furniture outlet we've been eying. Wow, the furniture is amazing. Such a huge selection, Keith and I could easily go broke in there. Hopefully someday we'll come back to buy a nice dining room table and chairs set.
On the way home it was B&Q as Keith is trying to find a grass trimmer for the yard. There seems to be little choice in the surrounding area but that's typical for everything in Cornwall really. We'll head to Mole Valley next weekend to see what we can find.
I spent the evening making some appetizers from my new cookbook. Quiet evening of movie watching and enjoying the apps.
On the way home it was B&Q as Keith is trying to find a grass trimmer for the yard. There seems to be little choice in the surrounding area but that's typical for everything in Cornwall really. We'll head to Mole Valley next weekend to see what we can find.
I spent the evening making some appetizers from my new cookbook. Quiet evening of movie watching and enjoying the apps.
Friday, 4 April 2008
Jamie's Moving to England!
Jamie's UK visa got approved today!!! Oh my God! Can't believe it's actually going to happen. She'll be moving to Cornwall in May. It'll be great to have a girlfriend so close. Congrats Jamie!
Ugh taxes. Taxes this year are a bit painful for us. With our out of Canada posting and me working in two countries it's not going to be the straight forward file I'm used to. Done some research today trying to find out where to start. I'm going to put it off now until I'm finished work and have more time to look into - mostly because I really don't want to think about it!
Ugh taxes. Taxes this year are a bit painful for us. With our out of Canada posting and me working in two countries it's not going to be the straight forward file I'm used to. Done some research today trying to find out where to start. I'm going to put it off now until I'm finished work and have more time to look into - mostly because I really don't want to think about it!
Thursday, 3 April 2008
Back Home
It's always strange to me when coming home is in another country. Never thought I'd call England home!
We had a fantastic sleep. Premier Inns do guarantee a good night's sleep and that we had. Got on the road just before lunch. Drove for awhile then stopped for lunch and to get petrol. I slept most of the way still bagged from the travel. It was really nice to be home. We even arrived to 17C weather! Good deal!
We had a fantastic sleep. Premier Inns do guarantee a good night's sleep and that we had. Got on the road just before lunch. Drove for awhile then stopped for lunch and to get petrol. I slept most of the way still bagged from the travel. It was really nice to be home. We even arrived to 17C weather! Good deal!
Wednesday, 2 April 2008
The Baths
Another nice day! We definitely got lucky. We headed straight for the Pest side this morning on a mission to finish off our gift shopping and return to the Buda side to relax at the bath for the afternoon.
We did a lot more walking and stopped at a cafe for breakfast. We finally found the large indoor market we had looked for yesterday. This place is massive. There are two floors. The bottom floor is chalk full of food vendors with vegetables, fruits, desserts, meats and more paprika than you can shake a stick at. Really wish we had such a thing at our finger tips.
The second floor is the touristy area where the vendors are selling gifts and Hungarian wares. I had read before our trip to be carefully in this place and that prices range from one vendor to the next. We spent sometime here and I bought a few items. We then grabbed a quick bite to eat and headed back to Buda.
There are several baths in Budapest and we were lucky one of the popular ones was close to our hostel. There was one other I would have preferred to visit, but wasn't as convenient. We went to the Gellert Bath. It was quite confusing at first (as I'd be warned in the many articles I read before hand) trying to determine what we needed to pay for and if we wanted any treatments. I was going to have a foot massage but it ended up being too confusing. We paid for just the afternoon in the baths (pool, thermal baths, etc). We paid for a tiny little cabin which was a changing room basically where we could change and leave our belongings. We first tried out the pool that was beautiful. It was surrounded by tall stone pillars/columns and at every corner and around the sides stood stood lions that pumped water into the pool. The ceiling was glass allowing the sun to shine down on you. Wow what a place! The pool wasn't as warm as I would like so I didn't stay long.
We then checked out the thermal baths and spent quite awhile here. There were two half moon shaped pools - one bath/pool was 36C and the other was 38C. So one just below body temperature and the other just above. As Rach would put it, they were 'lush'. As soon as you get it you can feel every muscle in your body relax and all tension disappears. Good for our feet we have spent so much time on! The 38C was my favorite. Next was the Turkish steam room. My God it was hot! You can feel the moisture dripping from your body and it's so hot it's hard to breathe. Quite the experience! In the same area is a very small pool maybe the size of a bath tub that is of freezing cold water. Apparently a Hungarian tradition is to dip in the cold pool after the hot. No way in hell was I trying out the tradition!
We spent the last hour soaking in another pool - not sure of the temperature but it was a bit cooler than 36C. We then showered up and dressed and were off to the Brasserie next door for supper. We had a really good meal - still loving the Hungarian food - and headed back to our hotel. The meal cost us HUF 9603.00! Haha - that's only about $60.
The Hungarian Forint (HUF) makes you feel rich when you're carrying the money as one of the photos Keith took of me will show - I'm holding a 10,000 HUF bill but it's only worth about $62. The other side of the coin, it feels like you're spending a fortune when you buy something!
Back at the hostel we finished packing up and the shuttle was there to pick us up. We headed back to the airport. Goodbye Budapest! We discussed the trip on our way to the airport and decided we had a really good trip but probably wouldn't rush back anytime soon. It was short but it was the perfect amount of time. I really enjoyed visiting another country and learning about another culture. There's really something amazing about being in a city/country where you can't understand the signs and the many discussions around you. It was also amazing to see the communist side of the city. I don't know anything about communism but you could see and feel the coldness it left on some parts of the city. What a great experience to visit.
We sat in the airport and had a few drinks and chatted away. We then waited forever in a line up to check in, I got caught with a paid of fold away pliers in my carry on (Haha - had no idea these were tucked away deep in one of the pockets - they'd been there for years and it hadn't been picked up in the Bristol airport!) and then our flight was delayed about an hour and a half. That was painful!
We eventually arrived back in England around 1am, hopped on our airport shuttle to our car and drove to our hotel. We crashed so card we didn't move until 10am the next morning.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=103717&l=694d3&id=732460083
We did a lot more walking and stopped at a cafe for breakfast. We finally found the large indoor market we had looked for yesterday. This place is massive. There are two floors. The bottom floor is chalk full of food vendors with vegetables, fruits, desserts, meats and more paprika than you can shake a stick at. Really wish we had such a thing at our finger tips.
The second floor is the touristy area where the vendors are selling gifts and Hungarian wares. I had read before our trip to be carefully in this place and that prices range from one vendor to the next. We spent sometime here and I bought a few items. We then grabbed a quick bite to eat and headed back to Buda.
There are several baths in Budapest and we were lucky one of the popular ones was close to our hostel. There was one other I would have preferred to visit, but wasn't as convenient. We went to the Gellert Bath. It was quite confusing at first (as I'd be warned in the many articles I read before hand) trying to determine what we needed to pay for and if we wanted any treatments. I was going to have a foot massage but it ended up being too confusing. We paid for just the afternoon in the baths (pool, thermal baths, etc). We paid for a tiny little cabin which was a changing room basically where we could change and leave our belongings. We first tried out the pool that was beautiful. It was surrounded by tall stone pillars/columns and at every corner and around the sides stood stood lions that pumped water into the pool. The ceiling was glass allowing the sun to shine down on you. Wow what a place! The pool wasn't as warm as I would like so I didn't stay long.
We then checked out the thermal baths and spent quite awhile here. There were two half moon shaped pools - one bath/pool was 36C and the other was 38C. So one just below body temperature and the other just above. As Rach would put it, they were 'lush'. As soon as you get it you can feel every muscle in your body relax and all tension disappears. Good for our feet we have spent so much time on! The 38C was my favorite. Next was the Turkish steam room. My God it was hot! You can feel the moisture dripping from your body and it's so hot it's hard to breathe. Quite the experience! In the same area is a very small pool maybe the size of a bath tub that is of freezing cold water. Apparently a Hungarian tradition is to dip in the cold pool after the hot. No way in hell was I trying out the tradition!
We spent the last hour soaking in another pool - not sure of the temperature but it was a bit cooler than 36C. We then showered up and dressed and were off to the Brasserie next door for supper. We had a really good meal - still loving the Hungarian food - and headed back to our hotel. The meal cost us HUF 9603.00! Haha - that's only about $60.
The Hungarian Forint (HUF) makes you feel rich when you're carrying the money as one of the photos Keith took of me will show - I'm holding a 10,000 HUF bill but it's only worth about $62. The other side of the coin, it feels like you're spending a fortune when you buy something!
Back at the hostel we finished packing up and the shuttle was there to pick us up. We headed back to the airport. Goodbye Budapest! We discussed the trip on our way to the airport and decided we had a really good trip but probably wouldn't rush back anytime soon. It was short but it was the perfect amount of time. I really enjoyed visiting another country and learning about another culture. There's really something amazing about being in a city/country where you can't understand the signs and the many discussions around you. It was also amazing to see the communist side of the city. I don't know anything about communism but you could see and feel the coldness it left on some parts of the city. What a great experience to visit.
We sat in the airport and had a few drinks and chatted away. We then waited forever in a line up to check in, I got caught with a paid of fold away pliers in my carry on (Haha - had no idea these were tucked away deep in one of the pockets - they'd been there for years and it hadn't been picked up in the Bristol airport!) and then our flight was delayed about an hour and a half. That was painful!
We eventually arrived back in England around 1am, hopped on our airport shuttle to our car and drove to our hotel. We crashed so card we didn't move until 10am the next morning.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=103717&l=694d3&id=732460083
Tuesday, 1 April 2008
Hello Budapest!!
A year ago today we left Canada! I can still remember this day last year like it was yesterday. have dinner at the Shoe Shop, saying goodbye to my brothers and Julia and George taking us to the airport. Then saying goodbye to Halifax. A month and a half and I'll be back for a visit!
Woke up to a nice day - thank God! I forgot to mention were stayed on the Buda side which is the older part of the city whereas Pest is the administrative side and is more modern. We learned immediately when we went out in the sunshine that the Buda side has a lot of graffiti - not just the area we are staying in. Which also doesn't look dodgy at all in daylight when you notice the surrounding areas look the same.
Keith and I had no idea where to look for food so we just wandered and eventually found a like shop. I had a tea biscuit that was more baking soda/salt than anything else. I'm not even sure what Keith had. It was something on a bun. Haha. I can't even explain it really. But it was good. And we couldn't ask because the lady didn't understand us!
Once our bellies were full we decided to follow the map and go to Castle Hill. Castle Hill is home to the old Parliament, the Castle and several landmarks/tourist attractions. This area sits above the rest of the city and overlooks the Danube, Buda and Pest. It's beautiful! It is quickly visible that this district is home to some of the richer things in Budapest as it's so clean, no graffiti and the buildings are beautiful. We spent several hours here walking around, shopping and just checking things out. We also popped into a cafe for lunch where we enjoyed our first bowl of goulash soup. So good!
We visited Fisherman's Bastion which you can see in our pictures (link at the bottom). It's an open stone structure that overlooks the Danube and Pest. The views from here are incredible. We didn't go inside the Castle but we walked around the grounds. It was a bit disappointing as I've become accustom to English castles (old and beautiful) but the Buda one was let's just say - I didn't even realize it was a castle! I had to keep looking on the map as I thought I was missing it. It's not a fancy building but has beautiful, manicured grounds. We visited the vendors who were set up around Castle Hill and bought some cinnamon funnel cake that was also really good.
Mid afternoon we decided we saw everything we wanted to on Castle Hill and we headed towards Pest. We walked across the famous chain bridge (which is lit up at night and is very nice). Once on the Pest side we walked to the new parliament building. It was a bit of a walk but well worth it. This building is magnificent! Topped with spires with very medieval architecture it takes your breath away. I was hoping to do a tour but it was closed for tours today. Dammit! And there's no time tomorrow. So I just took a ton of pictures of the outside. We then strolled the streets of Pest and eventually got thirsty so we stopped at a pub for a drink on the outside patio.
We decided to do an evening dinner cruise on the Danube as a romantic way to celebrate our past anniversary. The trip was somewhat of an anniversary gift to ourselves, so the dinner cruise topped it off nicely. They started the cruise off with a glass of champagne for everyone and there was a large buffet with a great spread of Hungarian appetizers, mains and desserts. The food was fantastic. I've decided I really enjoy Hungarian food. There is no shortage of paprika either. We cruised the Danube past the parliament building and under the chain bridge (which was lit up as it was now dark) and past many other sites. They also had live music playing. We really enjoyed it.
After the cruise we walked around a bit - to walk off all the food - then we walked back to our hostel. Lots and lots of walking!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=103710&l=7159f&id=732460083
Woke up to a nice day - thank God! I forgot to mention were stayed on the Buda side which is the older part of the city whereas Pest is the administrative side and is more modern. We learned immediately when we went out in the sunshine that the Buda side has a lot of graffiti - not just the area we are staying in. Which also doesn't look dodgy at all in daylight when you notice the surrounding areas look the same.
Keith and I had no idea where to look for food so we just wandered and eventually found a like shop. I had a tea biscuit that was more baking soda/salt than anything else. I'm not even sure what Keith had. It was something on a bun. Haha. I can't even explain it really. But it was good. And we couldn't ask because the lady didn't understand us!
Once our bellies were full we decided to follow the map and go to Castle Hill. Castle Hill is home to the old Parliament, the Castle and several landmarks/tourist attractions. This area sits above the rest of the city and overlooks the Danube, Buda and Pest. It's beautiful! It is quickly visible that this district is home to some of the richer things in Budapest as it's so clean, no graffiti and the buildings are beautiful. We spent several hours here walking around, shopping and just checking things out. We also popped into a cafe for lunch where we enjoyed our first bowl of goulash soup. So good!
We visited Fisherman's Bastion which you can see in our pictures (link at the bottom). It's an open stone structure that overlooks the Danube and Pest. The views from here are incredible. We didn't go inside the Castle but we walked around the grounds. It was a bit disappointing as I've become accustom to English castles (old and beautiful) but the Buda one was let's just say - I didn't even realize it was a castle! I had to keep looking on the map as I thought I was missing it. It's not a fancy building but has beautiful, manicured grounds. We visited the vendors who were set up around Castle Hill and bought some cinnamon funnel cake that was also really good.
Mid afternoon we decided we saw everything we wanted to on Castle Hill and we headed towards Pest. We walked across the famous chain bridge (which is lit up at night and is very nice). Once on the Pest side we walked to the new parliament building. It was a bit of a walk but well worth it. This building is magnificent! Topped with spires with very medieval architecture it takes your breath away. I was hoping to do a tour but it was closed for tours today. Dammit! And there's no time tomorrow. So I just took a ton of pictures of the outside. We then strolled the streets of Pest and eventually got thirsty so we stopped at a pub for a drink on the outside patio.
We decided to do an evening dinner cruise on the Danube as a romantic way to celebrate our past anniversary. The trip was somewhat of an anniversary gift to ourselves, so the dinner cruise topped it off nicely. They started the cruise off with a glass of champagne for everyone and there was a large buffet with a great spread of Hungarian appetizers, mains and desserts. The food was fantastic. I've decided I really enjoy Hungarian food. There is no shortage of paprika either. We cruised the Danube past the parliament building and under the chain bridge (which was lit up as it was now dark) and past many other sites. They also had live music playing. We really enjoyed it.
After the cruise we walked around a bit - to walk off all the food - then we walked back to our hostel. Lots and lots of walking!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=103710&l=7159f&id=732460083
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