A Holly Jolly Christmas

This time of year always seems busy... First, there is Thanksgiving (which the Brits do not celebrate in case anyone was wondering), followed by my birthday, then Christmas, and lastly, New Years. I apologize for not having posted a new blog in some time. However, we haven't done much of interest other than the day to day tasks.

Thanksgiving

For Thanksgiving we found ourselves with some old friends from our previous base, the Harrisons. They hosted a pot-luck dinner which is always nice (means less cooking!). We brought sweet potatoes, with marshmallows of course!

Funny story with the sweet potatoes.. First, sweet potatoes here are GIANT! Really, they are enormous! They are also not nice and roundly shaped as what we're used to in the states. These potatoes are wonky- for lack of a better word. They have all kinds of groves and pits that make peeling them difficult. Not only are they difficult to peel, but you need a chainsaw or some sort of heavy duty power tool to cut them into pieces!

No, my large butcher knife was NOT dull. Anyone that knows my husband knows that we cannot have a dull knife in the house. His philosophy is it's better to cut your hand off with a sharp knife than to have to make more than one cut with a dull(er) knife.

Well, once I had mashed and added some yummy ingredients- butter, brown sugar, etc. I topped them off with marshmallows and placed them in the oven. 30 minutes later, the marshmallows hadn't changed! Now, it would seem obvious I had forgot to turn on the oven.. WRONG, it was on 350. I don't care what people say about each oven having a mind of its own, but once you've got the feel for it, it's great.. This oven is IMPOSSIBLE! I turned up the heat to 400. Marshmallows got a little softer, but we didn't have time to wait, but I was determined to have my toasted mallows...

I decided to turn on the broiler. Genius! In less than 10 seconds I had perfectly browned toasted marshmallows. However, my oven wasn't too happy I outsmarted it and filled the oven and house with smoke. The fire alarm wasn't too happy with the oven's revenge and started screaming bloody murder! The fire alarm really doesn't like the oven anyways, it's always going off on it... And just so you know, I'm a pretty excellent cook! I have witnesses that can attest to that (and my superior cooking skills).

So, with the sweet potatoes in tow we went to Thanksgiving where they were most thoroughly enjoyed! And we played Crimes Against Humanity afterwards. If you know what that is, I'm sure you're laughing. If not, I'll just leave you confused.

Birthday

For my birthday, we invited our friends over to our house for dinner and games. I made pot roast, which I did in the Crock Pot (fool proof!) and very delicious! We've made some new friends that are just amazing, and it's been great getting to know them! We played the Game of Things in which each person writes a thought about a particular category/phrase that is read out loud. Then each player, in turn, tries to guess who thought what. Pretty fun! I can say I had a great birthday!

Best of all, Jacob baked me a cake, chocolate with chocolate icing!

Christmas

As far back as I can remember, I've always had a Christmas tree that had the color coded branches that you had to build the tree with. There may have been 1 or 2 years before I went off to college that my mom had one of the pre-lit trees that come in 3 parts, but my tree in college and our first years of marriage were the color coded branches.

In our attempt to downsize, fearing we wouldn't have a lot of storage space, we got rid of that tree. Even though Jacob hated that tree, I wish we had it. It reminds me of home and of Christmas. However, we did buy a new tree, pre-lit and in 3 pieces. I hate it. It doesn't fluff right, and I think the manufacturers are getting skimpier on the branches and needles! And no, we can't have a real tree- I'm allergic. But, we've got some pretty neat ornaments that are memorable to us which I LOVE!

Jacob initially had to work Christmas Eve, but a couple hours before he had to go in, he received a call saying he'd be on standby. So, Christmas Eve we had our Christmas together and our friends, the Perkins came over.

Christmas Day, we went with the Perkins to a friend's house for Christmas. Again, we had a potluck and I was making the desserts. Most of the week I had been baking- apple strudels, pecan clusters, homemade pound cake, and brownies! We didn't stay as long as we normally would have, but we had stayed up pretty late Christmas Eve...

We also got to Skype our families back home which was great! It's difficult being so far away from our families as we are both family oriented people, but we are very fortunate to have great friends here to share our adventures with.

New Years

Not sure what our plans for ringing in the New Year may be, but we do have an exciting adventure in the works coming up! I can't wait, but I'm going to leave you in suspense until my next blog (which shouldn't been too long await, fingers crossed)!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Have a cup of tea!

The WILDer side of Britain...

Bahnam Zoo

After the GPS took me in what seemed like every direction BUT the zoo, I was able to find the place. In defense of the GPS, the zoo was located in a small village in the middle of nowhere. The zoo was larger than it seemed, though a somewhat chaotic and unclear path layout. There was much to see from penguins, to birds, to the big cats. We saw the "Birds of Prey" exhibition which was pretty awesome. They started off by letting a couple parrots fly around before bringing out the owl, hawk, and vultures. If ever to visit, it's a must see! There was another show that wasn't as great as the "Birds of Prey", but it was still pretty good.

Some of the enclosures you could walk through. The marmots were very fun! They burrowed holes and would chase each other around making funny noises- so cute! We were also able to walk through enclosures with lemurs which is surprising since they have FANGS!

Speaking of fangs, getting to see the snow leopard and tiger feedings was an interesting experience. The tiger could stand pretty high on its back legs. The personnel feeding the tigers said that there are more tigers in captivity than there are in the wild. 

Thetford Forest

We drove out to Thetford Forest; one of the many forests in the area. They have many activities such as zip lining and trails to walk, bike, or even use a segway. We opted for walking since our bikes have not arrived with our other goods.. We'll have to bring them out to the trails another time. It was funny seeing people actually riding Segways through the forest- not a usual manner to get around in the woods.

The woods were beautiful and lush green. There lots of ferns and moss ground covering, really tall pines, some cedar, and other types of trees. I don't think pictures can do enough justice, especially for the trees trunks that seemed to be a sea-foamy blue/green color and had ground moss growing up the tree. We ran across a slug, probably the first wild "animal" I've seen besides pigeons. There were signs for elk crossings.. maybe another time.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

November 14-16

We were able to see the inside of the Ely Cathedral. The city was holding a Christmas fair/market. Vendors lined the walls of the cathedral selling their products. While the fair was nice and there were many interesting vendors, the elaborate carvings and details were spectacular! It was breathtaking! I cannot imagine the amount of time and the attention to detail that was put into building the cathedral. One room in particular was interesting. All the stone statues of people were headless. At some point in time they were crushed and destroyed. And I'm not talking about a few, more like a hundred!

The same weekend we also went to see reindeer at Scotsdale's Garden Center in Fordham. We didn't know what to expect, but the garden center was much more than we thought. It was like a nursery, mini Hobby Lobby, boutique, and cafe all rolled into one! I think I've found a new favorite place! I just wanted to buy out the place, especially the Christmas decorations, and I already can't wait for spring! I'm excited to have a flower garden again!

Anyways, we started looking around the inside of the store and went to the cafe for breakfast. The Sunflower cafe was very delicious! We had the Sunflower breakfast- eggs, bacon (ham), sausage, hash browns, and baked beans. It was a lot of food! Afterwards, we made our way to the reindeer. The garden center had two, both with horns although they were losing their felt (a common occurrence). One was seemed pretty shy and didn't seem interested in getting close to the spectators. However, the other reindeer wasn't shy, especially when people were offering food! The handlers for the reindeer gave people pellets to feed the reindeer. Its wet nose tickled my hand! 

What is grey, goes "arf arf", and likes fish? The grey seals of Donna Nook!

November 23

The long awaited trip had finally arrived... We had to get up around 5am, suffer a 2 1/2 hr bus ride (one way), and cold rain, but it was worth it! The Perkins and us went on a base sponsored adventure to see the grey seal colony in Donna Nook. The adults were like grey blobs of fat with big eyes, whiskers, and claws. They just wobbled and slid across the wet beach... or just laid there. We did see a couple of instances when two seals would fight each other. They make the silliest sounds and noises! The young pups were mostly white. There were a few that mostly likely had just been born.

November and December is when the seals give birth to their pups along the sand dunes. It is quite an interesting spectacle. There is no human interaction/interference (there were two fences keeping the people from being able to touch or get close). Some of the informational signs stated that 10% of the pups born would die at birth and another 40% wouldn't live to their first birthday. Another interesting fact is that baby seals are already born with their adult teeth! They stay with their mom for about 6 weeks until their white fur coat is shed- we actually saw a momma seal scratching the pup and the fur coming off. Seals are very powerful and can be aggressive- I mean they are massive creatures, teeth, and they have claws, even on their feet! 

On the way back from the seeing the seals, we stopped at a little farmer's cafe to warm up and getting something hot to eat. The cafe even had plants, fruits and veggies, canned goods, wines, etc.. We purchased a bottle of mead that I can't wait to try. Our guide, Cindy, kept pointing out interesting things to see and do, my list is just growing!! 

Here is some information about where we were and the seals protected:

Donna Nook National Nature Reserve

A Haunted Ely

Halloween

My friend and I made a girl's night out to theater for a scary flick, Ouija. The movie itself was okay. It had the potential to scary, but failed short. The story line was pretty interesting. The highlight of the show was actually the previous. During the preview for the follow up the Woman in Black, a rather suspenseful and terrifying scene happened and Holly dumped the contents of our popcorn on me! We managed to save some of it.. it was good popcorn. 

Prior to the movie, I handed out candy to trick-r-treaters. There were quite a few out and about in our neighborhood despite that the sun was gone by 5:00 pm! I don't think I'll ever be able to get used to the sun setting at 4:30 in the afternoon or earlier! 

Still, Halloween wouldn't be complete without some local town ghosties...

Hauntings around Ely

"Meet at Oliver Cromwell's House at 7:30pm for our Ghost Tour around one of the most haunted cities in Europe. You will hear stories that have travelled through the ages as well as more recent tales. Ghostly sighting guaranteed!"

Who could resist seeing the ghosts of Ely. Holly and I went on the ghost tour, and I'll try to see if I can remember some of the stories....

The first ghost story was outside Oliver Cromwell's house. The guide told of a story long after the death of Oliver Cromwell. The family that lived in the house received a visit from a married couple. On night, the wife of the visiting guest awoke to find herself across the room and being grasped by a man! He was muttering something along the likes of "this is not how it should be". After the ghostly encountered, the woman climbed back into bed without even waking her husband! Upon recalling the incident, she is said to have not known if the ghost was in her world or if she was in its world as it was so real. The ghost is believed to be Oliver Cromwell himself in contemplation of his own character in deciding the fate of the King that once reigned. 

Also, the sounds of children (believed to be Oliver's 8 children) can sometimes be heard laughing inside and outside the home as well as Mrs. Cromwell. A fun fact that was noted is that Oliver Cromwell's house is the oldest building still standing. Part of the house was constructed as early as the 1300s! 

Now not all the ghosts rumored to have been seen were people; some were of animals as well. Another ghost story told was about a dog, the Black Shuck, that is seen crossing the A10 road around tea time. Many have been certain they hit the dog and stop to check their cars only to find nothing. Around the 1950s, a woman was walking home at night by herself. She had no lighting to see clearly and was nervous. As she walked, a calmness surrounded her and she looked and saw a black dog beside her. She wasn't really a dog person, but seemed that the dog was rather nice. The dog followed her to her home and waited for her to unlock her door before vanishing. 

In the part of Ely that was once built for the militia, there is a ghost, a nurse that walks the street carrying a lamp to light the way. 

What was once a merchant's home has now been divided into 3 cottages. Built during the medieval period, the place may be home to a large medieval woman that enjoys looking at fine jewelry. The author of a book about haunted Ely used to live in one of the cottages, but she herself never saw the ghost. A visitor staying with the author did as very well possibly her cat. 

A particularly well known ghost is St. Etheldreda at the King's School. One night, three little boys watched as a blue hand (the hand of St. Etheldreda) glided up the staircase. During the 1600s, St. Etheldreda's shrine was destroyed. Apparently, St. Etheldreda's hand was taken and passed down from generation to generation until it eventually made its way back to the Etheldreda's Roman Catholic Church in Ely, which had been known to be inhabited by a poltergeist. Once the St. Etheldreda's hand returned, the poltergeist stopped. The hand is said to be displayed and is no longer blue, but wrinkled and brown.

The Dean of the King’s school took up residency in the old monks’ building. He had a little girl that claimed to see a menacing monk in a black habit standing at the foot of her bed staring at her. Where there should have been a face, there was only black. When she told her father, he stayed one night in her room, but nothing happened. The girl moved to another room, but the presence followed her.

There have also been stories of cheerful monks, tap dancing ghost, even Charles II’s mistress, Nell Gwynne.

The last story of the night was about body snatchers. Doctors in London used to be able to easily get the bodies of dead criminals or vagrants that had died in the streets for research purposes. However, soon a law was passed disallowing the practice. The doctors resorted to practicing on animals. However, they soon found animals and humans weren't similar enough. They began hiring grave diggers to provide them with bodies. The grave diggers would bury the poor dead souls during the day, mark the grave, and come back at night with a wooden shovel to dig up the body. They were eventually caught and body snatching a thing of the past. Some people have claimed they have seen a man carrying a shovel and sack headed for the graveyard. Others have said they have seen a young girl wandering in search of her body.

If interested in more ghostly tales about Ely, check out “Haunted Ely” by Vivienne Doughtly and Margaret Haynes. I think I'm going to have to get a copy for myself! 

My life in boxes

We've been in England for 2 months now, give or take a few days. Unfortunately when we came over, our belongings were still on its way... estimated arrival- end of October. At first it didn't seem like 2 months would be so hard to live without our stuff. I mean we had some things, clothes, air mattress, phones, and lap top. We purchased some cheap pots and pans (and when I say cheap, I mean poor quality!) to make simple dinners. What I took for granted were all the kitchen accessories that make it easy to make a meal. We've been eating off throw-away plates and plastic silverware. Lucky for us, our friends Holly and Anthony let us mooch off of them and use their kitchen and living room. 

Well, here we are, at the end of October, and I can say I've never been so HAPPY to see boxes and boxes of stuff! It's almost like Christmas came early- rediscovering all that we have. Nothing can put a damper on the joy of being able to cook and bake again! The only downside is organizing everything in a new place and feeling like things are missing The movers that pack our belongings in the states and the ones that unloaded our stuff here were really great and helpful. We did have a few damaged items- couple deep scrapes on our dresser and dining table, broken leg on the sofa, broken handle on my griddle... Still, our new place is starting to feel like a home (despite that our downstairs is now covered in empty boxes)! 

The next few days (and possibly weeks) will be organizing all the little things. Poor Jacob may have to help me move furniture around until I figure out how I like it!

We haven't really gone anywhere since London. However, we did go to this Holiday Bazaar that had a bunch of local vendors. It was really neat to see culture, tradition, and art. We followed up the Bazaar with the Ely Apple Festival. We tried some apple ciders and juices and saw Morris Dancing- a traditional style of dance in England. I even got varieties of tulips to plant for spring.    

London in a Day...

London in a Day (Walking Part I)

The long awaited trip finally arrived! We had planned several trips to London, but for some reason or another we didn't go. We finally went, and London did not disappoint. We road the train to Kings Cross Station. The end result incorporating everyone's places to see ended up making a large circle around much of London; a feat that seemed easier in theory than actuality. At the end of the day, we left London tired and with aching feet, but it was worth it!!

Here's a rough estimated route of our trip

First we headed to Regent's Park. Unknown to us, there was an art festival in progress. Artist's life size artwork was displayed throughout the park. Some were realistic while others were more abstract.

We continued through Queen Mary's Gardens until we came out near Baker Street. We saw 221B Baker Street, the very address of Sherlock Holmes!

221B Baker Street

The residence of one, Sherlock Holmes. Unfortunately, there is no actual 221B Baker Street. However, at 221 Baker Street there is a bank..Sherlock fans do not need to despair, there is a Sherlock museum around like 4 or 5 Baker Street that says 221B Baker Street.

Our path continued to Piccadilly Circus and walked past numerous shops. We stopped for lunch at a Ramen noodle house then continued to Trafalgar Square.

We continued our way through the Whitehall Gardens until we reached the Thames River and followed it to the Parliament building, Big Ben, and Westminster Abbey. Across the river, was the London Eye and Aquarium. We continued our journey along the the Thames; taking in the sites. We passed a bar handing out free samples of beer, tables lined with used books, and even street performers. Took our picture with Charlie Chaplin.

We stopped to admire the Globe Theater. It would be really neat to be able to see a Shakespearean play while we're here (add that to the bucket list)! We crossed back over the Thames and walked down to the London Tower.

Tower of London

In the fall of 2014, poppies were all over the grounds in honor of those who've fallen during the First World War (1914-2014). It was a beautiful sight to see. At sunset, the Roll of Honor is done, a tradition in which the Last Post plays and members of the fallen are read.

London has so much history, we didn't have time to see everything. It goes without saying we will have to take multiple trips to see more of London and see some of the sites we saw more in depth. 

London Day Tour (Bus Part II)

Our "Tour-London-in-a-Day" trip was non-stop sightseeing and information. We saw so much of London from Kensington Palace, Buckingham Palace, the changing of the Guards, West Minister Abbey, St. Paul's Cathedral, Tower of London and so much more!

I've taken several trips to London now; however, London is the type of place that no matter how many times you go, you can always see something new. I was pretty excited to get to see inside St. Paul's Cathedral as I always see the building, but never have had the opportunity to see inside!

The first Cathedral was built and consecrated in 604. There have been several built, the latest one during the English Reformation when King Henry the VIII split from the catholic church and more than 1,400 years, a cathedral in honor of St. Paul has stood in the same spot in one of the city's highest areas.

During WWII, a group known as St. Paul's Watch, took on the responsibility of putting out fires and protecting the Cathedral. Fortunately, the Cathedral only suffered to major bomb strikes. During one of the strikes, a bomb landed on the south side steps, but did not detonate. Because of St. Paul's Watch, services were held as normally as possible.

What I found very interesting is the American Memorial Chapel, otherwise known as the Jesus Chapel, is a commemoration of the soldiers stationed in the UK during WWII. The stained glass window depicts the flora and fauna of North America.

There is also, currently on display for the centennial, a book of all those that gave their lives during WWI. It is protected so you can't just go and look through it, but each day the pages are turned. Prince Charles and Diana were married in St. Paul's Cathedral rather than the traditional West Minister and Queen Elizabeth II's Golden and Diamond Jubilees were held here as well.

The changing of the guards was pretty neat to watch and a very popular tourist event. For security reasons, the changing of the guards happens at a random time, although, somewhere around 11:00. We happened to have to wait quite a while as they did the change rather late.

Misadventure

Last weekend (Sept. 27) we decided to head to the East Coast... Of England. The Great Yarmouth to be exact. We didn't have an kind of itinerary but going for a nice drive and seeing the sights. We decided on our way we'd stop at the Broads, which is a forest, a really big forest.

We followed the road signs since the road signs and our GPS didn't agree.. Eventually, we ran out of road signs indicating where we could find a designated area to explore. We back tracked our way back to the main highway; taking a detour to see if another way led to the Broads, but again, no luck.

Once we made it back to the main road, we decided to follow the GPS to the Broads. The GPS took us to the middle of nowhere, to a big open field, and not a forest. Completely baffled, we decided to continue our journey to the coast. However, it seems that was not to be our fate. Our "new to us" vehicle started spitting out oil from the exhaust. 

There we were, on some back road/private road that didn't seem to be used often, miles from base in a country we were still getting accustomed to. Accustomed, as in realizing that most towing companies operated from 12 am to 12 pm, and it was 12:30 pm. After probably 5+ failed attempts to reach towing services that didn't specify hours of operations on their site, we reached one that would be able to get us back to base. 

The good side to being stranded on some back country road was the view. The day was gorgeous and warm. There was a field with a small windmill in the distance. Another field had cows, swans, and an worn old bridge that went over this small stream covered in green algae. The road sign picture below is where our car broke down :(

I think, for me, it's going to be a little while before I'll be able look back on this day and laugh and say "remember when". However, despite the stress over the car breaking down; overall, the day was nice. The day was spent with great friends and full of adventure... Or maybe misadventure?

The Plain White T's/ Diana Gabaldon

Moving 5,000 miles, across the Atlantic Ocean, to a country I've never been to has been the most stressful time of my life. Leaving family, friends, my job, my routine, etc. was very difficult. Being a part of the military lifestyle is sometimes hard due to deployments, exercises, long work days, and I'm just married to the military. 

Despite the hardships (they can be overcome), there are so many good things about the military that I enjoy. Lifelong friendships (even if you only get to spend a small time together), housing when needed (although housing isn't always the greatest- so I've heard), opportunity to travel, and little things that they do for military and their families such as providing the commissary, base exchange, and even concerts! 

The Plain White T's

The other week, I was completely run down from in-processing as I'm sure Jacob was too. We heard from our friends that the Plain White T's we're going to be performing for the military! For those that don't know their music, YouTube it RIGHT NOW! The band is going around doing an Armed Forces tour and playing for our military away from home. 

We went with our friends, met some new friends, and really enjoyed the night. I cannot tell you how refreshing it was to just relax and unwind. Afterwards, we got to meet the band and take pictures! They were really awesome! 

Some songs from Plain White T's:

1,2,3,4

Hey There Delilah 

The Giving Tree

The Rhythem of Love

Our Time is Now

Diana Gabaldon

Author of the Outlander series did a USO tour and I was able to get my copy signed as well as a couple other authors.