Milan - The VIEW!

My friend Ami, and her friend Darla, came to visit us in London recently for 2 days from Dallas and then we headed to Milan for the weekend.

Ami had the fantastic idea of renting an apartment. It was amazing to walk into it for the first time, and discover the view of the Duomo.


There are no hotels on the square - so no other way to get this view and experience in Milan unless you live there. Amazing!



We had a relaxing few days of wandering the city, shopping (I couldn't wait to get back to 2 of the places I found last year with Lauri,) and enjoying the aperitivo hours.

For our 5th anniversary, (symbolically wood,) TJ gave me grapes vines. During the whole of 2010, I get to visit the vines, watch them grow, pick the grapes when ready, and create my own labels for the bottles of wine I will receive.


This is all through Chapel Down, in Kent. We started drinking their rose last summer, and met with the wine maker at the Taste of London. He was generous with us, and even let us help ourselves to the last of the vast selection of oysters he was serving. He and his wines have made an impression on us.


A few weeks ago, we made our first of hopefully seasonal trips to my vines. I really want to see them in all seasons.

We started the trip (the first in our new car, thanks to the 'scrappage scheme', the same as the cash for clunkers in the US,) with a lengthy 2.5 hour drive from London through the rainy towns leading us to Kent.

We were racing to make a late lunch booking - and our efforts were thoroughly rewarded. The lunch and atmosphere at Richard Phillips got us all excited about all of our potential next visits. It was a lovely combination of modern and traditional decor, and modern and traditional Sunday pub lunch cuisine.






We had a brisk walk of the vines during their winter sleep.



I cannot wait to see them in a few months time, when they begin to awaken. It is a perfect present for me! I look forward to enjoying it in all of its stages throughout the year. I can't wait to celebrate our next anniversary with a sip of 'my wine.'

Bright Star

I majored in English at Cortland. My choice of major came about after a nasty spell of student teaching during hunting season where the 2 kids in class gave me blank stares the whole time. I quickly changed from Education to straight English.

My favorite classes at Cortland were with Professor Alwes. She was active presence on campus and a vocal feminist. She lead the 'take back the night' marches and reproductive rights debates. She once asked me to meet her at her office hours and proceeded to admonish me for taking place in a fraternity 'beauty contest' fundraiser.

I took many classes with Professor Alwes on the Romantic Poets. I fell in love with the works of William Blake, Wordsworth, Coleridge, Byron, Shelley and Keats.

It was such a joy to me to discover that Emanuel Swedenborg, (the founder of the religion of the church where TJ and I were married,) was a great influence on William Blake.


After living in Hampstead for over a year - I finally visited John Keats' House. It was a beautiful day with the KCWC spent looking at art that inspired Keats in a private area of the British Museum, a walk around Hampstead, a visit to Keats' house, and lunch at a local pub.

Talking about literature and specifically Keats and the Romantics brought me right back to Professor Alwes classes. I remember leaving them inspired, walking back to the sorority house in the deep snow, with a huge smile.

"To see a world in a grain of sand
And a heaven in a wild flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand
And eternity in an hour."

Castle Life

To celebrate TJ's birthday, I searched for perfect place to relax and recuperate. The challenge was to find a place within driving distance from London, (TJ was coming back on a red-eye from Boston and I couldn't make him get right back on a plane) not too far, but something unique.

I chose Thornbury Castle. It would be the first time for us to stay in a castle together, (my first time ever, TJ reminded me that he actually lived in a castle in France for a summer, tough crowd to plan for...)






It was a lovely, relaxing weekend. We were greeted with a roaring fire in our room, a decanter of Sherry and a bottle of wine made from grapes grown on the property.



We ate hearty robust English meals, went for long walks and a few runs, caught up on sleep and welcomed the next year together.
On one run, we went off-road to neighboring fields and had two comical incidents.

The first would have been amazing to watch as we gingerly ducked under a cord that we thought was filled with electricity - no, it was just a cord no need to be so concerned.

The second was us being excited about running amongst old fish ponds created hundreds of years prior in order to capture fish from a local river. On the map they looked huge and we headed off to run a few miles amongst them. Well, they were much smaller in person, and alas our run was much shorter.




Happy Birthday TJ!

Wintery Wonder

It was a true winter, both 'back east' and here in London. We loved seeing the snow in Manhattan over Christmas and came back to a white London after our holiday travels.


TJ came back to London first, and I stayed another week in New York to be with my dad for a heart procedure. Once back in mid-January, the streets were white and it was cold...I couldn't wait to get out in the Heath to see the glory.



A good long walk in the cold air did wonders for my jet-lag and helped me put the experiences of the past week with family and friends into perspective against the chaos of a flat filled with the clutter of un-packed suitcases.

(Where would I put all of that peanut butter?)

I truly giggled as I found this woman walking her path from one side of the Heath to another. Her enviable daily commute, conducted stylishly in pink Wellies and covered by a pink umbrella.








The snow stays longer in Hampstead as we are higher than the rest of London. The sidewalks were covered with snow and ice, making everyone walk in the streets. I had a few slip-and-slide episodes coming home from the tube, and TJ resorted to wearing Merrills to and from work.

I loved it and the coldness of the entire winter. It was quoted as the coldest winter in 30 years. We were warm and snug in our flat and enjoyed a few weeks of being home, not traveling, resting and relaxing. A lovely way to start the day, and a solid start to my New Year's resolution.