One Good Flush...

I must admit that it felt really good to come back to the UK. It was strange how homey it felt. I can only imagine how homey the States will feel in March. At least, that's what I'm hoping. Or maybe I don't want it to feel that homey so that I won't mind coming back here to live a few more months abroad. But I digress... so I was relieved to be back in the motherland with fellow English speakers and so excited to show London and Cambridge to my Harry Potter loving family.

We disembarked the tube and emerged street level at the Gloucester (pronounced "Glah-ster") Road stop in Kensington, and we checked into the Radisson. Compared to the tiny 2-star, red-light district "hotel" with a crazy singing concierge in Paris, this cozy, festively decorated lobby was nothing short of the Ritz. Only one tiny problem - upon receiving our room keys we overheard the front desk receiving multiple calls involving the hotel water supply, or should I say, the lack thereof. At this point, an infuriated (and rather daft) American male came stomping and pointing into the room to yell about how he was too irresponsible to know which Radisson he was staying at so he had been wandering the city from Radisson to Radisson all morning. And this was somehow the hotel bell boy's fault. So that was a nice little distraction from the real issue. A main water line had burst, and the entire neighborhood would be without water for an indeterminate amount of time. But we were assured that the problem was being addressed.

Surely by the time we get back from dinner, it will be on. Nope. Surely by the time we go to bed we will be able to brush our teeth, wash our face, etc. Nope. Ok, well let's go to the local grocery store and get some bottled water. That way we can at least get one good flush in before morning. Surely they will have it back on when we wake up. Wrong again. Time to get Sandra on the phone to the front desk. Yes sir, we would love to be moved to the 5-star Mercer Street Hotel in Covent Garden. Free breakfast for the rest of our stay as well? Please and thank you! I have never been so excited to go without water for 12 hours. That second hotel was the swankiest place I have ever laid eyes on or stepped foot in. They had Apple Mac Minis attached to the flat screen TVs in every room, ok? Capital P-O-S-H.

Once the whole moving process was accomplished, we spent the next couple of days hitting the usual sites of the city. (Not only is it strange that the UK feels homey, but it is also strange to me that Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, St. Paul's, and other world famous places are now 'usual' to me.) In an odd and totally undeserved way, I am proud to show off these places, like I somehow have a claim to them because I have lived near them for three months. Can't really explain it. Guess I have just never lived anywhere that millions of people put on their travel bucket list. And what's more, all these places are being amped up - refurbished, cleaned, etc. - before the Olympics. So we have been getting to see the absolute best versions of these places as they are unveiled, before the bazillions of athletes and fans descend on the city in a few months.

We are just like the Royal Family. My dad's name is Charles, for goodness sake. It's perfect. I'm Kate. Jordan is Pippa. Ok, maybe this analogy doesn't really work. Because then Matthew would have to be my dad's son, William. And we are married. So that would be like I married my brother. I don't know. Forget it. But you can still associate me with Duchess Catherine. Love her.

Recently renovated statue in the roundabout outside Buckingham Palace. It was so shiny!

This is below the golden guys. Not sure who the little dude on the ball is.

Christmas orchestra concert at The Royal Albert Hall. The Trinity Boys Choir sang some of the carols. They were fresh from the Michel Bublé television spectacular. Nifty.

In the nose bleed section but loving it!

My trendy man fits in so well at these artsy/cultural functions.

Send in the mounties! The sign said, "Beware. Horses may kick or bite. Thank you." Hence my uneasy smile. 

We thought this little MC Hammer shuffle done by the palace guards was hysterical.

St. Stephen's Tower

Beware, The Phantom of the Opera!

The weirdness of this candid shot pretty much sums up the weirdness of our experience at Phantom that night. The show was impeccable. It was the audience that caused problems. The Asian girl in front of us fell asleep and practically laid on my dad's shoulder after her head fell forward into the back of the man in front of her. A French couple with insane Albert Einstein hair whispered really loud the whole time. Matt got a headache. It was eventful to say the least.

Two other things Matthew and I had never seen were Kensington Palace and the Princess Diana Memorial Fountain. Now I know why. No disrespect, but they were both highly disappointing. I didn't even take any pictures of them. The highlights were the swans who tried to eat my sister's H&M bag and the squirrels who climbed up a stick she was holding. Exhilarating.

If PETA didn't hate us for this...

... they now hate us for this. Don't worry, my dad's a veterinarian. Had the squirrel ingested the stick or the swan swallowed the plastic bag, he could have resuscitated them. No problem.

That was when we knew we had exhausted our time in London. Back to King's Cross (with a little detour at Platform 9 3/4) and onward to Cambridge.

So proud of these Hogwarts pupils.

After the break-neck speed of Paris and London, Cambridge was dead. Much less exciting than its normal, bustling, bike-riding self. Everything was shut down. Everything. Colleges. Shops. Restaurants. And I thought Boxing Day (Dec. 26th) was England's version of Black Friday. Well, apparently not in Cambridge. It turned out alright though. I think everyone welcomed the change of pace from frantic to relaxed.

Jeff got to ride my bike and accompany Matthew to the grocery store. Of course, it was mandatory that he rock the headlamp.

We opened our Christmas presents (after devouring some Nutella crepes), and my dad was pretty excited about his Girton scarf. He later tried it on with Matt's HP robe to complete the ensemble. And no, those are not feathery pants. He is wrapped up in our fake fur blanket. My family did not take kindly to the cooler temperatures of the EmiGrants' thermostat.

Jeff was so enthusiastic about his new robe that he yelped. Meanwhile, Matthew modeled his new sweatpants Tom Cruise style by jumping on the furniture.

 And Matthew and I cooked our first Christmas ham, which turned out pretty tasty.

The next day we taught my family our tried and true technique of walking into the colleges past the porter's lodge like we own the place. Didn't work. They were actually locked this time.

So, we had to take a punting tour because that was the only way we could visit any of the colleges.

As a result, Matthew and I have now memorized the tour so we can regurgitate it to future visitors and save some money by hiring only the punt and not the guide.

All in all, this non-traditional Christmas was more than I had hoped it would be. Of course, we missed the big family gatherings, the Mimi meals, the fireplaces, the pets; but, we had what was most important. We had Jesus (the reason above all reasons to celebrate) and we had our love for each other. We are beyond blessed. Thank you, Lord.