Good Day/Bad Day

Yesterday had a bit of both. This week has been a bit of recovery - from a week in Barcelona for me for work, (my first European event in my new role) and then a vacation for us together in Spain, (pictures of both to follow.)

After arriving back in London late on Monday night, I've spent the last few days trying to catch up on sleep and life here.

Yesterday, I was coming home from work on my normal commute:
-15 minute walk to the train
-15 minute train ride from Kingston to Wimbledon
-30 mintue Tube ride from Wimbledon to South Kensington
-15 minute walk or 5 minute bus ride from the S. Ken station to our flat
(ok, ok I know, a bit of me feeling sorry for myself =)

Being as tired as I was, I opted for the bus ride instead of the walk home. So I wait for the bus, on a line. The man in front of me is on his cell phone and slowly moves forward. I am the last person on the bus - squeezed in.

The bus starts the route, and the driver asks me to step back. Having no where to go, and faced with a sea of i-pod wearing commuters who are guarding their own inch, I answered back, "Sir, where would you like me to go?" He continues on.

Next intersection the same thing, "you NEED to move back." Me, "I have no where to go."
"Well I can't see, you need to move back."
"Where would you like me to move to."
"Well I could just open the door and let you out right here."
"Fine, let me out."

So there I was. Walking, in heels, proud and angry NYer head high. "That will show him."

As the bus speeds by me.

All fed up and frustrated by this experience, I decide to forgo the gym and go home, finish unpacking, stopping at the corner flower stand on the way.

I have gotten in the habit, about twice a month, of stopping and getting flowers for the flat. Each time, I check the bin and pick out a few stems that they deem to be old and have put in the trash. The first time I did this, we had a rose that lasted 2 weeks. It's a little quirky I admit, but it helps me justify the expense of the flowers and is fun to get something beautiful that someone else is throwing away.

This night, as I pick out 5 stems and see a rose in the bin., the flower seller notices my interest. He notes, "if you are intersted in that rose, would you like these," and gives me a dozen silver and white roses.

Going from being kicked off the bus, to walking down the street with over a dozen roses -
ahhh, what a day.

Happy Birthday August!

Our nephew August turns TWO today!
He's coming, (along with Rob and Karen,) to visit us this summer, and I already have a huge list of things that I want to show him in London.
Just seeing pictures of him can brighten any day.

I mean, come on, just look at how cute he is!
We love you August- Happy Happy Birthday!

Israel - Tel Aviv - May 07

For a month or so I had known that I'd be going to Israel for work, and it was always interesting to hear people's reactions which ranged from the 'is it safe / are you nervous' end of the spectrum to 'cool, that should be great'. In response it was my contention that there are 100+ public companies there, many of which are also listed on the NASDAQ (one on the NYSE and a few ADRs) - and they all have investors... and most of those investors are risk averse / not overly speculative - so it must be ok.

- I got to Heathrow very early, concerned about security, and checked in really quite quickly (it turns out that leaving Ben Gurion Airport is where the quad-stage security is experienced). As an added bonus BA selected me to have an upgraded seat on the way out, and a window seat was key as our flight path took us straight over Paris, Zurich, Venice (missed that view - was watching the movie), down the Dalmation Coast, over the Greek Islands, and then the corner of Turkey.

My first impressions were that Tel Aviv was a bit run down and maybe a bit rough around the edges -- and even though I knew it was right on the Mediterranean I did not expect it to truly be a beach town - and the attitude/dress, etc. of its inhabitants tend to reflect that as well. I was not super impressed with what I saw initially, but the city really started to grow on me the longer I was there and the more that I explored the different areas near the hotel.

I knew that I was going to like our taxi driver for the whole visit (Michal) when on the first morning on the way to a meeting she turned to me at a light and said, "you know you are not going to see any camels or tanks here right? Americans always want to see camels..." - to which I laughed out loud (hoping that it was a joke - which it was).

I made sure that I frequently requested camels the rest of the trip...

One morning I took a run up the beach to Jaffa - which may be the oldest port in the world? It was fascinating to see and feel just how old it is, and apparently there is an historic market just outside it and a number of good restaurants that will require further exploration (and photographs) on a future visit.

I also spend a few evenings exploring Sheinkin Street - which is the Fillmore Street of Tel Aviv (for those non SF'ers, it is home to a collection of coffee shops, boutique clothing and jewelery shops, restaurants (there are 'milk' and 'meat' restaurants throughout the city - never do they have both), juice bars (the fresh juice places are fantastic), and a surprisingly really good, and cheap, pizza place.
-- Kind of a trendy area, but not overly done up or built up, and every Tuesday one of the streets off of it has a large crafts market that spans multiple blocks (with security at all entrance points to look inside handbags/backpacks, etc. as they do at all hotels corporate headquarters, and most restaurants - especially those near the US Embassy along the beach.)

- and then later in the week Michal introduced (and taught me how to pronounce) Neve Tzedek, a neighborhood that is kind of tucked away and frequently overlooked. It is much less touristy than Sheinkin St - and has a lot more charm -- being the first area build on outside of the port behind some dunes which eventually became Tel Aviv (the dunes are long gone, replaced by all of the hotels and beach restaurants). Apparently it was terribly run down a decade ago, but has now experienced a tremendous revitalisation (that's right - Brit spelling) and is now a coveted (and surprisingly very expensive) place to live because of its architecture and European village type feel of small streets, independent shops and good restaurants. In fact, I think my best meal since moving to London was had here - a great salad with shaved cheese and crispy sweet potato bits, and lamb chops in a honey/mint/orange sauce with a bit of spice and potato mash (yep - another Britism). The restaurant does not have a website - so I cannot post it (here is a recent review)- but all aspects of it were great, from the service at the bar (did not have reservations) to the decor / atmosphere, etc.

One thing that I was amazed by was that the city seems to have cats like Connecticut has squirrels...
they are seen all over the place, and apparently there is a program in place to capture, spay/neuter them, and take care of them - it was just interesting to see them darting across the street (here is one not fazed in the least by the beware of dog sign).




Two of my other favorite photos of Tel Aviv are:
and

and more can be seen here on this photo page.

Israel part 2 - Jerusalem

There was one meeting in Jerusalem, which I was very interested to see. After a meeting at Bezeq (the largest telco company in the country) I had asked if we could briefly visit the Old City and to see the Dome of the Rock and the Western Wall -- both of which we have all heard so much abut growing up and in the news, but for me they both just seemed do foreign / far away.

Well - that is no longer the case as evidenced by me here in my cardboard Kippah / Yarmulkah:

Getting to the wall was a bit of a challenge - there is a bunch of security entering the Old City, then the taxi had to wind in and out of these very old small streets to get close to the entrance - where there is more security... once in there were surprisingly few people. I had not known that there was separate access (and a divider at the wall) for men and women, or that I needed headware, or that when approaching the wall I'd be surrounded by a handful of students and two rabbis, one placing his hands on my head and offering a prayer for me and my family, the other tying a red string on my left wrist (it is still there today - apparently I have to leave it on until it falls off by itself for good fortune...) - and then they all asked for money/donations (I gave some shekels to the kid that showed me where the hats were located).


Seeing the wall up close - and the dome from a distance, and all that goes on there was a fantastic experience (I do not envy the Orthodox dress in what was irregularly warm for early May temperatures at 36 C - I instantly turned pink out there).

I also had some great pastries from a local coffee shop - and on the way back we stopped off in an Arabic town known for their hummous which I unfortunately do not have any photos of (nor can I remember the name right now) - but it was also a very good and interesting experience - and again cheers to Michal for the recommendations and local knowledge because she definitely enabled me to see things that I would not have even known were there otherwise.

More images can be seen on the photo page here

Weekend Update - Relaxation.

This weekend was truly relaxing for us. TJ was recovering from back-to-back trips (Endinburgh and Tel Aviv,) I am preparing for a 12 day trip to Spain, (TJ joins me at the end of it,) it was raining on and off, and we had absolutely no plans.

So we pretty much stayed in, slept well, did laundry and relaxed. The bulk of the day was spent in comfy clothes, papers laid out, and 3 laptops going at once....our idea of a lazy weekend.

As I had to venture out to do some errands in preparation for my trip, I had lunch out both days. It turned out that I've found my two new favorite places:

1. The Drayton Arms

Its at the end of our street- about 3 blocks from the flat. What appealed to me was walking in and seeing how many different groups of people where there, having some lunch, or a pint. A family who ranged from 10-60 years old, a bunch of Sloaney Pony girls in their 20's with long hair and wellies, and their counterpart guys with blazers and popped collars.

Plenty of couches, good menu and nice selection of wines...perfect place for a weekend lunch, or to stop on the way home from the tube.

2. The Trafalgar

It's right next to our grocery store (Waitrose,) and at night looks hip and swank. The type of place that I picture meeting a friend out for a glass of wine...so until that day comes, I have no problem picking up what's left of the Sunday Times and heading there myself. I had a lovely glass of sparkling rose and a fabulous roasted beet, goat cheese and rocket (arugula) salad. Pictured all of my dear friends there, with me, in some way.

SO next time you go out and see that nice woman there eating by herself...give her a smile because she may have just found her new favorite place.

What did you do this weekend.....(Comments pls!)

Gullane #2 and North Berwick

I had a work trip scheduled since January to Edinburgh to attend the annual Association of Corporate Treasurers conference and came up with the brilliant idea of 'wouldn't it be great to go up a day early and play a round of golf in Scotland?' while on the course during My First Round of English Golf.
It took a few weeks more to convince my colleague that it was feasible - the tipping point for him was when I booked two tee times and sent him the links (pun intended) to the courses I had lined up:

Gullane #2 (/gul-in) was the morning round with a 8:31 tee time - a neat old course that starts right in the center of the town, climbs over a hill out through a nature preserve towards the coast.

Highlight: I could feel the game coming around and was hitting the ball solidly

Lowlight: four swings to extract the ball from a single bunker on a par three - leading to a lovely quadruple bogey 7. Photo evidence is provided on the photo page.

It was a fun course to play and an excellent prelude to the 'main event' which was:

North Berwick (/ber-ick) at 1:17.
The courses were about 5 miles apart, and when booking times the affable Sam at North Berwick assured me that it would not only allow us enough time to make the second tee time - but that we'd have time for a bite to eat in the clubhouse first.

He was right - we finished the first round at 11:40.

It was overcast in the morning, but as you can see on the photos that I took throughout the day
HERE that we ended up with one of those somewhat rare perfect days (perfect being subjective as some would argue that Scottish golf deserves high winds/driving rain - but I'll take blue, cloudless skies and a breeze just strong enough to make it interesting any day)

North Berwick is known as possibly the second oldest golf course (after Mussleburgh a bit further west down the coast) with the game being played on the same spot since the 1790's.

Like other great old golf courses it is a bit quirky in spots where one has to navigate a stone wall (photo on the right is my tee shot that is closer to the wall than it looks - it was tough not to flinch when hitting the next shot to the green) that runs through the course in several places, including right in front of the 14th green (see photos)- but that just adds to the charm. It is also the home of the most frequently copied golf hole in the world - the par 3 Redan where I chunked a 4 iron short, high, and left into the wind that was by far my worst swing of the day - resulting in a pretty good save for bogey.

Highlight: best ball striking round in years coupled with making every 6 footer and in faced - and capped by a birdie at 18 in front of the clubhouse.

Lowlight: the previously mentioned swing on the Redan hole - just ugly.

It was one of the best golf experiences I've ever had - and North Berwick gets a spot in my top 5 favorite golf courses played -- a list that might now look like:

• St. Andrews Old
• Pacific Dunes
  
• Sankaty Head
• North Berwick
  
• Olympic Club par 3 course (yes the Lake Course is a great track - but I still like Harding Park equally as well so the par three gets the nod based on the 'fun to challenge' ratio)
  

results:
Gullane: 80 (with the quad)
and
North Berwick: 72 (finally, a decent result!)

First Guest

My mom became our first guest this past weekend, as we celebrated yet another bank holiday. (We have no idea why we had off on Monday....)

TJ was in the middle of two work trips - one to Edinburgh, the other to Israel, so he joined us for Mom's first night, and then went right back out to Heathrow.

We took mom to Indian food the first night. We chose to go back to this restaurant, (Noor Jahan) that we had been taken to during our visit in November, when we were still making the decision if we would move here. At that time, the restaurant seemed in the middle of this fun street - with lots of people out, and it was a great mix of interesting food with bustling atmosphere. A few weeks ago, we were out with the couple who took us there that night in November. We told them we planned on taking my mom there when she visited, but couldn't remember where it was. "Right down at the end of your street," they answered.

Just when I think I know where I am....



Noor Jahan did not disappoint and we may take many of you there when you come to visit!

So mom and I spent the weekend seeing as much of Chelsea as possible, and squeezing as many activities in as we could. We went to the theater (The Lady from Dubouque with Maggie Smith,) a few museums, (National Portrait Gallery, which has a great spot for cocktails or a cup of tea while enjoying the amazing view, and the Natural History Museum where we were the only adults in there without a small child,) the cinema, (Painted Veil) shopping, (Campden Market, Harvey Nichols, numerous shoe stores and Harrods,) and ate well - yum Wagamama's.

My mom was a trooper. She flew in on a red eye, walked for hours over London, and never mentioned being tired from jet lag once.

It somehow doesn't feel like home, until your mom (and dad) see it. Life is a bit blurry around the edges until you share it with those you love. They help bring it all into focus.

We have one down, we just need visits from Sparky, Kathy and my dad. We love you all.

Pictures from the weekend travels are here.

Fagan Family

I had to share these sweet pictures of Molly and Connor Fagan.
Ohhh, those blue eyes and baby legs. SO FUN! You know, if we didn't miss Mags and Jon enough, they had to do this!

Arsenal v Fulham : 29 April 07

Thomson has a box at the new (this season is the first played there) Emirates Stadium
which is great - however the tickets are very rarely accessible - so when they came up recently for use by our group I jumped at the opportunity. There is only one tube station on the entire system named after a football club, and it is wedged right in the middle of a residential street...

The new stadium is a bit 'sterile' - but it is also very impressive. It holds over 60,000 fans (this game's attendance was 60,064) - and Box 89 contributes nine of those seats. My colleague and I met up with clients at the tube station at 1 to head out for the lunch buffet in the box - but before going in we had to stop in to check out the "home fans only" Gunner's Pub (photo above).

The pitch/field is amazing - not a 'wear' mark on it (there are half time and post game divot repairers and they hand mow it with 4 normal lawn mowers).
Lunch was salmon, indian spiced monkfish, rice, salad, and a penne dish - all a very far cry from normal stadium fare (I still think it would be more fun to just have a hot dog and pizza buffet - but it is not my call)
- before the game a guy from Ladbrokes comes around and takes bets as well... I went a bit nutty and wagered a whopping £tenner on four different bets:
match result: £4 on 3-1 Arsenal
first goal scored: £2 on within minutes 11-20
first goal scored by: £2 on Gilberto and £2 on Francesc Fabregas

The box is a very fun experience because it is right above the away supporters' section (notice the white shirts in the photo -- all the stadiums here have a specific section for the purpose and dedicate a percentage of tickets to the opposing club) so all throughout the match the volume is fantastic with their cheers, taunts and songs - so you feel like you are right in the middle of it all without being 'right in the middle of it' - because as civil as most games are -- there have been a few fan clashes at matches this year and it is best to keep your distance from the away supporters.

It was 1-0 Arsenal at the half after a minute 8 goal by Julio Baptista (yep - there went those three bets), and the first half was highly entertaining... however after the half Arsenal looked complacent and the game got a bit slow until a bloop goal by Fulham - and then the game turned up a notch. Arsenal immediately responded to make it 2-1... and with about 10 minutes left I (and several others who had made a similar bet) had a legitimate shot at having picked the correct score. Sure enough - a penalty was called with five minutes left and was converted and the stadium got really loud -- it was just great - but then the next few minutes (and the three minutes of injury time were just torture as there were two legitimate scoring opportunities that would changed the outcome, not of the game - but for me).

So not bad: 9-1 odds paid me £40 for some reason in my first football wager and it was an all around great day - here is a short video from my camera with sound that does a decent job of sharing the 'feel' of the stadium:

Ahhh- I'm settling in. Proper.

Good news from the past day or two:

GOOD NEWS:
1. We noticed it stays light - sun does not start truly setting - until 9:00 pm here now. IN MAY! It also rises -brightly - by 6:00 am. That makes me very happy. I LOVE the sun and almost cannot wake up until I see it.

2. I got to go to yoga class tonight. On a Wednesday. A class that started at 5:30 pm. I was there. (For someone with an hour and a half commute, this is bliss.)

3. First time ever, in the past 3 months, where this section seems to outweight the other section in the day-to-day life category.

BAD NEWS:
1. I was turned down by our downstairs neighbor, to use her basement level aparment, under the street storage area, for a bike I wanted to buy. You could count this in the good news section as it now prevents me from looking a bit like Mary Poppins. The model I wanted had the flat handles, and brown wicker baskets in front. AND BACK. And I was going to use for when I went "to market."

But they are really cool, I promise!