Searching for…

…wi-fi, part 2.

As you know, the husband and I were in Europe for a bit. I took pictures! (Of course I took pictures). Here are a few of them.

After having to waste the first day shopping for clothes (really, I hate shopping) I met my friend Claire and we went to see the Changing of the Horseguards. I love horses. I think they’re just gorgeous. 

We walked through St. James’ Park to Buckingham Palace where we saw some people who must be important to the royals standing on top of the building. I have some not so great pictures taking up space on my hard drive, but I didn’t want to take up space here.

After seeing the horses again we walked back to the hotel to pick up the husband and walk to the Tower of London. The Tower currently has a tribute to fallen British citizens from the First World War – by the time it is finished it will contain over 888,000 red, ceramic poppies. The event runs through 11 November.

We rode the Thames Clipper from the Tower down to Greenwich where we saw the Cutty Sark. The Cutty Sark was built as a Tea Clipper although that’s not why I wanted to see it. My parents, for many, many years had a box labeled “Cutty Sark” – but it was for the whiskey, not tea. As far as I know, the actual ship was never used to transport whiskey or any other type of liquor.

The next day the husband and I took the Eurostar train to Paris. I went with an open mind. Surely the French couldn’t be as snooty as everyone said they were… I was wrong. But they did have some lovely things to look at.

Another train filled the next day when we went up into the northern part of the UK to see my friend Kate. I’d been wanting to see the bar/cafe she managed and it really was spectacular. If you’re ever in Newcastle go say “Hi!” to Kate at Tyneside Cinema Bar Cafe. Have the grilled cheese sandwich. It was amazing.

After the husband finished the movie I’d promised he could see while I visited with Kate, we walked down to the quayside. One of the things I love about Newcastle is all the bridges. There is the Gateshead Millenium bridge that tilts to allow boat traffic through and then there’s the other (I can’t remember the name) that pivots on a center point. I love bridges. I love trains. I love Earl Grey tea. And so, I love Newcastle.

It was a not so early morning the next day that took us out to Heathrow to fly to Berlin. I find culture shock harder to get over than jet lag, and there was plenty  of culture shock to be had in Berlin. Although, because of a trip to Denmark and couple of years ago, I was sort of ready for it. It’s the ten year old kids out tagging buildings in broad daylight. It’s the obvious disregard for… anything… with the practice of throwing spent cigarettes on the ground. It’s the Wiener Schnitzel (I won’t do that again).

Although the husband had work related reasons for being there (but he wasn’t working) we did get to see the Brandenburg Gate, The Reichstag, and the Tiergarten. And, while he was wrapped up in watching a show the next day, I went to Zoo Berlin. It was great. I probably missed half of it. They have a Cat House! I don’t think I’ve been to too many Zoos that have a house for cats. I believe it is currently undergoing renovation, though, or at least I hope so because it really needs it. I was unable to read the signs because they were all in German.