R&R 2014, Part 4: A British Medley

Following our day at Windsor, we returned to London for one last farewell show (West End Bares) before  heading to Anwarul's house in Henley-on-Thames.  And now Part 1 is in sync with Parts 2 and 3.  Whew!  On to Part 4...

Henley-on-Thames is, approximately, a 1.25 hour drive west of London.  For this and all of the travels planned for the days ahead, Anwarul rented a car.  Because he's awesome.  Also, because he's
British and, generally speaking, would prefer taking public transport when at all possible but the bloody Americans had to come visit with all of their luggage.

Sadly, we didn't do much exploring of the town; It served primarily as mission headquarters and was really just a place to lay our heads between bouts of tourism.  Plus, TJ developed a cold on our last day in London and spent most of his down time sleeping.  

We did have some great food at a local pub, a traditional Sunday roast,  and access to a washing machine that didn't require quarters...which was pretty awesome after a week in a hotel room.

There were also cute duckies and a mid-transformation mermaid statue that was pretty cool.

I'm sure there will be opportunities to properly explore in the future; I'd hate to think London and its surroundings have left my life for good.  But for now, we must move on with the adventuring that has been, not what could be. 

September 8, 2014

Thorpe Park is a theme park located between Chertsey and Staines, approximately thirty miles southeast of Henley-on-Thames.  Built in 1979, the park caters mainly to young adults and teenagers (or us older folk that haven't yet developed back problems) due to the vast majority of attractions being roller coasters and other thrill rides such as Saw-The Ride (yes, the movie) and Stealth.

The Angry Birds 4D Experience and the Tetley Storm in a Teacup did not count amongst the thrill rides.

This was an amusing day for us (good outcome for a trip to an amusement park, don't you think?).  TJ and I always try to sneak in a trip to a park whenever possible, and since we met Anwarul during our last trip to Disney World, it seemed to be a fitting inclusion for this vacation.  Now, don't get it twisted; Thorpe Park is no Disney World...but it did have an all you an eat pizza buffet and a Dairy Queen, so...

September 9, 2014

If you had told me that I was going to fall in love with Stonehenge, I would have told you that I thought you were crazy.  I mean, sure, as far as Bucket List items go, it's pretty high up there (and I was SUPER bummed for having missed the chance to see it when visiting London in 2001)...but it always struck me as the kind of thing you would queue up for, look at for five seconds, snap a picture of, and then walk back to the parking lot or bus stop whence you came.   

I was more than elated to find this was not to be the case.  The site and its surroundings, which were added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1986, feature a fairly expansive interactive indoor/outdoor museum space, a 360-degree time-lapse video showing Stonehenge through the ages, and models of Neolithic houses that would have been prominent at the time in which Stonehenge was built.  As for the ruins themselves, I don't know why I was surprised to find that I could walk all the way around them.  I mean, duh, right?  Have you ever seen a photo or video that looked like there was a fence or something that kept you on one side of it?  I sure haven't.  And yet, there I was.  Surprised.  At least it was a happy surprise.

Stonehenge, located two hours west of London in Wiltshire, is one of the most famous sites in the world.  The prehistoric monument consists of the remains of a ring of standing stones set within earthworks, an artificial mound made up of piles of earth, gravel, sand, rocks, or debris.  These stones were raised more than 4500 years ago by sophisticated prehistoric people and are aligned with the movements of the sun.

Archaeologists are still trying to determine just exactly what its purpose was, though evidence suggests that it could have been a burial ground as well as a site for memorial services.  

Moving on down the road, we found ourselves in Bath, 97 miles west of London.  Bath became a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1987 due in large part to the Roman spa which is its namesake (Though it was known as Aquae Sulis in 60 AD when the facilities were built).

The Roman Baths flourished between the first and fifth centuries AD.  The facility was built around the only natural hot spring located within the United Kingdom, with temperatures rising to 46ºC/115°F.  The remains are remarkably complete and among the finest in Europe.     

Next door is the beautiful Bath Abbey with its 56 panel stained glass window depicting scenes in the life of Jesus Christ.  The Abbey has been a place of Christian worship for over a thousand years, though it has undergone many transformations and changed during that time.  Beginning life as an Anglo-Saxon monastery, it transitioned into a Norman cathedral before becoming the Abbey we see today.  King Edgar, the first King of all England, was crowned on this site in 973, beginning a long history of royal coronations here.

 The most moving sight from our travels was found within the walls of the Abbey:  A prayer and shrine for peace between Gaza and Israel.  To say this touched us emotionally, given our closeness to the conflict, was an understatement.  The prayer follows.

Lord God of compassion, whose will is for peace built on righteousness, we pray for peace in Gaza and Israel:
for an end to hostilities, for comfort and help for all who suffer, and for reconciliation between Palestine and Israel, through Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace.
Amen

After feeding our souls, it was time to take care of our stomachs.  Number One on the complimentary "26 Things to Do in Bath...and Beyond" brochure and map was a meal at a place called Sally Lunn's Historic Eating House and Museum.  This probably means that Sally's descendants advertise heavily with the tourism board, but whatever.  The food was delicious...if not strict with the regulations on how to eat it.  Sally offers a variety of dishes that incorporate her famous buns, one of which you will typically receive open faced and quartered.  You do NOT get to select top or bottom half, though if you wish to dine with a friend, they say your odds are increased of getting one of each.  O...kay.

I think she's crazy.  But girlfriend can cook.

September 10, 2014
Home to the 11th Duke and Duchess of Marlborough, Blenheim Palace is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (1987) and is famous for being the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill. 

With its gorgeous construction, gardens, and museum space, Blenheim kind of puts to shame a certain Palace found in London some 62 miles to the southeast.  Sorry, your Majesty.

Possibly the most exciting aspect of the palace was found within the Pleasure Gardens (mind out of the gutter, perverts), in which we discovered the Marlborough Maze.  We couldn't believe it!  Our very first hedge maze!  And we OWNED it.  Woo!  

Oxford was the last stop of the day.  It was fairly brief.  Poor Anwarul had wanted to show us around the University grounds, but a lot was closed off to tourists and I wasn't about to enroll so late into the term.  Plus, we were rapidly losing energy as we entered the homestretch of this vacation.  We still managed to see a few things, though:

L: Museum of the History of Science;  R: Radcliffe Square

 L:  Hertford Bridge, aka "The Bridge of Sighs";
R:  The University Church of St. Mary the Virgin

September 11, 2014

Manchester was our final stop on the England leg of this journey.  I'm sorry to say it was only to go to Starbucks and the Hard Rock Cafe as we passed through on our way to Edinburgh.  BUT!  We did see a lovely shopping plaza as well as a nightclub called "the birdcage."  Reason enough to go back, one supposes. 

Next time we will wrap up this vacation with a brief trip to Scotland.  Hang in there, folks!

Back in the Saddle

Wow.  All I can say is...wow.  I have never been so tired in my entire life, and all I do is sit in a classroom all day.

I had NO idea that language training would be so exhausting.  Or that transitioning between posts could be so frustrating.

The government will graciously pay to ship your car to your next post for you, free of charge.  Or to Washington, DC so that you can have it with you during your training.  But they won't do both.  What this means is that at some point, should you choose to bring your car along for every step of the journey, you will be responsible for a fairly large shipping bill.  That's where a posting in Mexico or Canada is so helpful:  your vehicle can be driven across the border.   Of course, that's slightly more difficult in Mexico, where drug violence has resulted in a ban on driving across large swaths of the country.

And so it was that on the evening of Sunday, October 21st we said farewell to our Jeep Compass, our pets and whatever belongings we could shove into the car and watched as they all disappeared into the evening darkness, piloted by a man we had never met before.  In order to avoid shipping fees we entrusted them all to the brother of the previous ACS chief's boyfriend, who was to meet us at the Nuevo Laredo airport the following afternoon.  As we went to sleep that evening, thoughts of never again seeing our car, in which we had just invested $3,500 in unexpected last-minute repairs, danced through our minds.  Oh, yeah.  The animals, too.  But mainly the car...  

Everything went as planned and we were ecstatic to arrive in Nuevo Laredo early Monday afternoon to find that no animal had used the backseat as its own private bathroom during the course of the overnight, eleven-hour drive.  Whether he was kind enough to stop and walk them, I can't say...though given that he still had all ten fingers and none of them had run off into the desert, I'll hazard a guess and say that didn't happen.  Either way, this plan saved us from a headache like the one we experienced importing our pets INTO Mexico.

After dropping the driver off at the bus station, waiting in line at the border for thirty minutes to return the Jeep's import permit, waiting another twenty minutes to cross the actual border, and then spending twenty minutes at the Laredo, TX DMV to get a temporary vehicle registration for the state of Texas so that we'd be street legal (Yes, only twenty minutes at the DMV, can I get an 'Amen'?) we were ready to begin the thirteen hour trek to Pensacola, FL, where we would renew our Florida vehicle registration.  Gotta maintain that Florida residency, y'know?

We spent Monday night in San Antonio, made it to Pensacola the next evening and then, following another short trip to the DMV (Seriously, did they improve their efficiencies or what?!?!), set our sights on Atlanta, where we stopped to rest and have a short visit with our friend David Z.  David is a friend from Orlando who, after changing his name to DZ set off on a quest for lyric-writing stardom that has seen him travel to NYC, LA and now Atlanta.  He's had many adventures along the way and appears poised to finally have his dreams come true.  I wish him well.  But this is my story, so we're moving along.

After our evening in Atlanta we made our way to Williamsburg, VA, where we set up camp for the next two evenings.  We're theme park people.  We're also Halloween-at-theme-parks people.  With that in mind, TJ pushed us through lengthy travel hours early in the trip so that we would arrive in Williamsburg in time to spend a full day at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, and a night at their Howl-O-Scream event.  The rides were fun, but the haunted houses were kinda...well...I wouldn't say they were bad, per se...just that the ones at Universal Orlando, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, and Kings Dominion are much, MUCH better.  I did get to meet Cookie Monster, which was pretty awesome.

Saturday, October 27th found us finally rolling into Oakwood Falls Church, the corporate housing community that was our home for nine months in 2010 during TJ's A-100 and subsequent Spanish and Consular training, and will be our home again for the nine months of his Arabic and Economics training.  I wasn't too thrilled with Oakwood last time.  I think we both almost cried when we first laid eyes on it, and I distinctly remember TJ avoiding direct eye contact for fear that it would start a fight.  Throughout the course of our previous stay we were subjected to limited parking spaces, unsightly clutter in our hallway and on the community grounds, and lots of loud construction noises.  That was all due to a large wave of home renovations that the property was undergoing at the time, and I must say that it has paid off.  We have been here for a month and are thoroughly enjoying the new Oakwood.  I still wish it was closer to DC, but with pets there's not a lot we can do about that.  Plus, it's close to The Foreign Service Institute, where we spend most of our time anyway.  But let's not get ahead of ourselves.

We arrived with just enough time to unload the car, meet our friend Jhonny for lunch, and start unpacking before it was time to start thinking about stocking up on provisions.  You see, Hurricane Sandy had decided to come to town that weekend, too.  Anyone that knew us at the time joked that we brought "Snowmaggedon" with us last time, and a hurricane this time.  Writing this, I am reminded of my dear friend Bernard the Snowman, who kept me company during my first few days working at home the last time around.  I'll be with TJ at FSI this time, but I smell snow on the horizon...I think Bernard will be making a comeback very soon.

As more information is gathered about the storm, we are learning that her impact on the region was more devastating than that of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans back in 2005.  At the time all we really knew was that it pushed our Arabic classes start date from Monday, October 29th to Thursday, November 1st.  We were fortunate enough to maintain all utilities throughout the storm and to face no traffic obstructions in the aftermath, a lucky streak that has been with us since our days in Central Florida facing that region's vicious hurricane seasons.

When access to FSI was finally granted, new problems arose.  Through a payroll error either in Guadalajara, Mexico City or Washington, my final paycheck did not drop.  I should have received it on November 2nd; I finally got paid on Friday, November 30th.  I've heard from other EFMs that have served at other posts that they've had issues getting paid properly as well, so going forward I'll just assume that EFM abuse is an unacceptable yet unavoidable par for the course.

 TJ faced his own pay drama when it was determined that our second night in Williamsburg would not be covered under his travel reimbursement because we had not actually travelled anywhere.  He had previously been told that it didn't matter how much we travelled on a given day so long as we departed post when instructed and arrived for training when scheduled.  The new instruction says "Well, yeah, okay...but you have to travel a little."  Right.  Anyway, per diems and travel reimbursements take forever to receive, so we're still waiting on what we will be receiving.  My final paycheck was nice to finally obtain, but it was sad knowing that my portion of the income will be missing for the foreseeable future.  Upside of being an EFM:  Free language studies/  Downside of being an EFM:  Your job disappears when your partner/spouse leaves post.

Oh, we also found out last week that the tenants living in our house are moving out at the end of December.  Hah.

Somewhere along the way, we hit the campaign trail in support of our favorite presidential candidate, finding ourselves only slightly disappointed when she lost...

...then settled in for our favorite holiday feast.  Thanksgiving was a quiet affair, just the two of us and our friend Joey, who brought a lovely arrangement of bread stuffed inside a homemade cornucopia.  I'm ashamed to say the only photo I took was of the food...and that I still haven't managed to master the art of food photography.  We spent that evening at The Kennedy Center, watching American Idol runner-up Constantine Maroulis and gay icon Deborah Cox tear up the stage in Jekyll & Hyde.  The performances were amazing, but that doesn't save the show from a lack of coherent plot.  The critics seem to agree.

Beyond the above, not much has happened while we've been in town.  We've walked the National Mall, had a few drinks on the town, and studied...studied...studied.  Oh, and slept.

Learning a language as a full time job is exhausting.  My two month "let's-learn-how-to-go-to-Wal-Mart"  course toward the end of our last stay in the area was a cakewalk compared to this.  I now understand why TJ used to come home from work exhausted and lacking the desire to do anything but nap, watch television over dinner, and go back to bed.  I used to give him such a hard time, and now I can but apologize for being an unsympathetic jerk.

We start our second month of Arabic tomorrow morning.  We've pretty much got the alphabet and basic pronunciation down, along with several key words and phrases.  We're not even close to being able to have a decent conversation.  I never managed to obtain fluency in Spanish, but I'm able to communicate effectively.  And, one month into Arabic, I sure feel like I'm fluent in Spanish.  Woof.

We've seen a lot of recently released movies and chowed down on the foods we couldn't find in Guadalajara.  We've wandered out on the weekends and made a couple of new friends.  But nothing "new" has happened since we've been back.  Until today.

Today we managed to muster up the energy to accompany some friends from Guadalajara on an adventure to Mt. Vernon.  It was a lot of fun and I can't wait to tell you about it.  BUUUUTTTTT, it's the first truly new thing we've done since arriving, so that will get its very own post within the next few days...if I can manage to stay awake after class, that is.

Mexico City, Day 4: Six Flags

Back in March of 2010, I used Six Flags Over Texas as an analogy for Flag Day.

How ironic, or maybe just appropriate, that our first post ended up being one of a tiny majority to actually have a Six Flags.

TJ and I are theme/amusement park enthusiasts. When we tell people that we visit these parks during vacations abroad, they look at us like we're crazy fools who have wasted precious hours in an exotic locale. Maybe they're right. But for us, it's a day well spent. The food, the attractions, the theming, the costumes...they always give you just a little bit more insight into the country you have found yourself in.

Six Flags Mexico is no exception.

For example, the very first thing we noticed about the park was that, despite the gates opening at 10:00, there was no food or beverage to be found until after 11:00. This speaks to a culture that tends to have late breakfasts, later lunches, and horribly late dinners. Not something we've adjusted to yet, and we totally forgot to grab breakfast on the way. Even Vicente, a native Mexican, was getting a little restless for some yum yums. And if the flock...no, army...of birds that surrounded us as we finally sat down to eat are any indication, we were definitely not alone in our thinking.

The second thing to strike me was the cross-promotional material for other Six Flags parks. The only sister park to get any mention was Six Flags Fiesta Texas. This particular park is located in San Antonio, which of course is home to a large Latino/Hispanic population. According to the 2006-2008 American Community Survey, the racial composition of the city breaks down as follows:

• White: 68.9% (Non-Hispanic Whites: 28.9%)
• Black or African American: 6.6%
• American Indian: 0.6%
• Asian: 2.0%
• Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islanders: 0.1%
• Some Other Race: 19.4%
• Two or More Races: 2.4%
• Hispanic or Latino (of any race): 61.2%

So, clearly, Six Flags Mexico knows who they cater to.

The third thing that we noticed was that the labor-intensive attractions, such as the Batman Stunt show and the Terminator X, cost extra. Typically, price gauging of this sort is reserved for sky coasters and the like, but it seems to work here. The current General Admission price for Six Flags Over Texas is $36.99, compared to $30.98 for Six Flags Mexico. What this means is that a cheaper ticket price is offered for those that may just wish to bring their families to the park to enjoy the rides and not worry about the loud, violent, potentially scary shows (Note: We cheaped out and didn't pay extra for anything).

As for the rides, they were pretty much standard Six Flags fair. You have your mandatory Superman and/or Batman ride. There was a gravity house, which I haven't seen since I was a wee lad. There were bad magic and dance performances. There were overpriced carnival games. Overall, it was your typical amusement park experience...which accounts for the fact that we didn't take many pictures that day.

I know, I know. I should be ashamed of myself. But I'm not. I had a lot of fun, despite "almost" starving to death. And I got a nifty Daffy Duck mug and a Flash hoodie, so I'm all set for memories.

But I do want to share one last observation with you.

Mexican Robin is smokin' hot.

2010: The Best of the Rest

2010 was filled with more twists and turns, highs and lows, smiles and tears, endings and beginnings, and hellos and goodbyes than any other year of my life. These was the most incredible 365 consecutive days I have ever experienced.

They weren't all happy. In fact, some were downright unbearable. But they were all incredible.

And the mind boggling thing is that this is only the beginning. In a year filled with so much change, it is sometimes hard to comprehend that the majority of that change, the nine months we spent living in Falls Church, VA, was only a precursor to the lifetime of change ahead of us.

I've been blogging off and on since February, but as I look through a year's worth of photographs, I realize that I only scratched the surface. I would like to end 2010 with a few of my favorite memories (in no particular order, but mainly chronological) that, for one reason or another, never made it into this blog.

Tequila! with Brad and Tristan;

Winter Park boat tour with Nisrine and Maya

Saying goodbye to Alfie and Sylvio

Lunch with Minnie and Ryan;

1st EVER Dumbo ride;

Meeting the cast of my fave Disney flick

Last night out in Orlando and TJ makes a new friend;

TJ hamming it up right before getting assigned to Guadalajara;

Yann and Charles drop in from Fance

Patrick comes for a visit gets mugged, er, hugged on the Metro

Meeting the Peanuts Gang at Kings Dominion;

Turning 30 in a new city

Wizarding World of Harry Potter with Kris and Troy;

Universal's Rising Star with Craig, Dan, Marciano, and Kristyn

One last visit with my parents before starting my new life abroad;

TJ posing at the Consulate Posada seconds before a pinata stick almost clocked me in the head;

The pets arrive safely in Mexico

What a crazy year it's been! But well worth all of the headaches that come with any life transition.

I hope that the New Year finds all of you healthy, happy, and living the life that you've always dreamed of.