Winter Whiteness

Turns out we are having one of the coldest Winter's in about 30 years. Great. Just what I needed after 3 back-to-back Summers. Although, these Northern hemisphere ones barely cut the mustard.

I am still deciding whether I like this cold Winter. It does mean some of the white stuff and reduces the chances of rain, but it is cold. Here's where I begin my journey to work. This is my first stretch of road next to our place. Yes, I am still riding my bicycle to the train station.

A picture of our local circus.

Where I catch the train in Vauxhall.

And where I get off in Twickenham. There was a lot more snow the further you get away from central London.

When I get to work.

Bella had heaps of snow out near her work. So much so that she worked from home a couple of days. Although she did make it in one day when about only 50 of the 150 worker's in her council office turned up.

And at the back.

But it does mean there are some nice places to explore that look completely different. This is Wimbledon Common.

Just warming up the snowboarding jackets for a couple of weeks time.

A snowman

The sculptures got pretty creative. (An elephant)

About as big a hill as you get in London. Sleds and sledders of all shapes and sizes.

A picture perfect pine.

But mostly, it was nice just to wander wherever you like and get lost.

Or have a seat.

And my first attempt at rolling up a snowman ball.

It didn't get much further than this.

Christmas Break

Well we didn't quite manage to swing the white christmas in London. We got some snow before and after, but the 25th of December was actually a pleasant day of about 4 degrees and clear skies. I think we even managed some sunshine. This was quite lucky, as there is no public transport in London on Christmas Day, and we had a 45 minute walk to get to our Christmas lunch/dinner/extended eating and drinking session.

We started the day with phonecalls home, presents to unwrap and a two course breakfast. We then rugged up and trundled off to Tessa & Ben's place for an orphan Christmas. There were about 8 aussies celebrating together. There was plenty of food and drink, but it still doesn't feel like Christmas to me without the hot weather.

Boxing Day came and instead of settling down to another round of eating and a game of cricket, we headed to the airport for 6 days in Spain, in an attempt to escape the Winter. There was also other incentives including food, culture and forcing ourselves to drag some spanish out of a corner of our minds.

We arrived to a pleasant 15 degrees and sunshine. It was great. We fly into Seville in southern Spain. A city where orange trees line the streets and are in all the parks. We eventually succumbed to temptation and discovered why the oranges are left in the trees. Whilst in a park by ourselves we snatched a couple and peeled away. It was possibly the most sour thing I have ever tasted.

Seville is a big bull fighting city with one of the oldest 'Plaza de Toros' in Spain. The season runs through the Summer with fights on every weekend. I was initially wondering how much they could tell you about a ring of dirt that some people and a bull run around in. But we learned that bullfighting is a significant part of the Spanish culture and remains strongly supported. The stadium is sold out with tickets ranging from 20 to 130 euros. For your 130 euros you get the same brick seat, but you are seated in the shade and are nice and close to the action. Bullfighting actually consists of 6 people against 1 bull and it lasts around 30 minutes. The matador first, then 2 men on horses with spears, then 3 men with swords and finally the matador again but with a sword. At the end of each fight the bull is killed by the matador with a sword through the back of its neck and into the heart. There are usually 6 bulls for each day. Afterwards, all of the tapas bars and restaurants advertise who is serving the day's meat.

The matador is judged by both the crowd and the royal box. A matador has not been awarded the maximum 3 trophies in this ring for around 70 years. It is obviously still a violent sport by today's standard but I thought it was great that something so old remains such a strong part of today's culture. Perhaps they have a greater understanding of where the food on the plate comes from, rather than browsing supermarket shelves or maybe it's just the more relaxed European outlook on life.

Speaking of relaxing. The spanish sure do know how to take it easy, have a seat in the sun and watch the world go by. And I did too.

The only building to compete with the city's cathedral is the royal palace, called the Alcazar. The Alcazar was established as a Muslim fortress in 913. However, Southern Spain was fought over during the crusades sometime between the 12th and 15th centuries and eventually became Christian ruled. But rather than knocking it down, they continued to add to it. As a result it is a mishmash of both Moorish and Christian influences.

Regardless of who built it, it is most impressive and chock full of history. Seville was the administrative capital for the exploration of the Americas. The altar below contains possible the first painting of native american indians. This altar is where Magellen and Elcano prayed before setting out to sail around the world in 1519.

The food was a whole new, amazing cultural experience too. It's all about tapas. Both lunch and dinner start with a drink before you even think about food. Still, at 1 euro for about a pot of beer, it's quite easy to do. Then it's time for food. Lots of meats, of vary ages and types. The most expensive being Jamon Serrano, which is cured ham from pigs that live in the mountains and double their weight in six months, eating nothing but acorns. Goat's cheese, eggy quiche things, calamari, and morsels of pork/chicken en salsa. But as much as it is the food, it's also the atmosphere. The place isn't any good unless you are standing shoulder to shoulder and people are reaching over you to place the order. Keeping a tab, with chalk, on the bar in front of you. And you don't just eat at one place, choose at least three or four, so you get to wander around and try things.

There were also plenty of moments of ahhh, that's were the South Americans got it from. The plazas and their extensive tile work are a great reason to wander from one corner of the city to the other.

For the last 2 days we decided to head to the coast to have a look at the city of Cadiz. Possibly one of the oldest cities in Europe. It is also the port from which Columbus sailed on some of his voyages to the Americas.

We scored some rain, but we also got some sunshine. However, the wind was constant. It was still nice to be beside the seaside. Apparently the beach above is packed during the Summer, though there was barely a sole on it this day.

So, a good dose of Spain we had, but I still think we need to come back in Summer when the place would have a completely different feel and pulse.

Here are some more photos.

Spain

Winter in London

So I'm sitting here on Christmas Eve, waiting for Santa Clause to turn up, so I guess I can give you an idea of what London is like in Winter.

Well it's sunrise around 8am and is dark by 4pm. Now, when I say sunrise, this is the official timing. Whether there is light or not depends on how much cloud/fog/pollution is around on that particular day. We have had a cold snap recently and London has had a dusting of snow on the ground. Some of the outer areas of Greater London have had up to 3 or 4 inches of snow. We've had minimums of a couple of degrees below zero, and maximums of a couple of degrees above. The weather changes quickly from cloud to sun many times a day, but the coldness has remained.

Still, there are moments of pleasure. We took the opportunity one sunny weekend to have a wander around Hampton Court, which is an old palace dating back to Henry VIII. He used it when there was a particularly bad outbreak of the plague that he wanted to avoid. It of course includes a large portion of obligatory hunting grounds (below). These a just a great green space to escape the greyness of London's urban landscape.The sun strength still takes a little getting use to. Below is about midday with the sun at full strength. Note the length of the shadows.But, it does have it's benefits. It has been a good warm up to Christmas. Plenty of festive cheer (mulled wine) and they do put on a good show. This is Bella under some lights while wandering around Regent Street. It is also a time for firsts. Despite living in Canada for nearly 12 months, we never got around to ice-skating. London has a number of temporary rinks set up around the city. Before (we get on the ice).And after (we get on the ice).Now for some shots for the family. Firstly our London apartment Christmas Tree. And secondly, us.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

Winter in London

Two Big Ticks

The weather has turned here in London and Winter (and Christmas) is nearly here. But before Jack Frost takes hold, we squeezed in a few more trips to Europe. With so many different lcoations for travel in Europe, it is sometimes hard to decide where to go. But these two places were always at the top of our lists.

Italy
Italy was always high on my list of places to visit. While the sights and history of Rome would be amazing, what Italy is most famous for, in my opinion, is its food. And this was what I wanted to taste for myself. So we found some cheap flights and headed to the city of Bologna for a quick weekend trip. Located in central northern Italy, a university city from the 11th century and a city reknowned for good food. Perfect!

These weekend breaks are great, but they are a little rushed. We left home at 3:30am to catch our flight. But this meant we did arrive in central Bologna at 10:30am. Perfect timing for a coffee and a pastry. Cafes in Italy can be intense places. Lots of people bustling in and out, people standing and drinking coffee at the counter, not knowing where a line begins and ends, lots of noise from the espresso machine and people chatting away in Italian. A vibrant and energetic setting. So, an espresso and a pastry, both 1 euro each, in a busy cafe was a great introduction to Italy. Needless to say the coffee was great.
So we filled in the day, wandering around, soaking up all that is Italy. Great public spaces with obligatory fountains, cathedrals, churches and markets. Fruit and vegetables never looked so good.The house of meat. All cured meats.Seafood.Or the highlight, pasta. Bologna is the home of tortellini and tortelloni (small and big). Oh, and that place Parma that invented parmesan cheese. It's just down the road. Here's a wheel as big as a 4x4 tyre with a few chunks of cured meat on top.So yes, we ate our way through Bologna. Pasta has never tasted so good. Vino by the litre. About 4 coffees in 24 hours and 2 servings of gelato, which was also amazing.

The coffee was great (have i mentioned that yet) and we tried it in a variety of forms. Espresso, cappuccino, machiatto and latte. The coffee oozes out of the people. Anyone on the street could make you a great cup. The cleaning lady in our hotel, also doubled as a maid to serve breakfast. She whipped up a tasty and memorable cappuccino. Good shot, perfect quantities, great milk texture. However, I think my favourite was the macchiatto.
We quickly caught on that it was a lot cheaper to have your coffees at the bar. People don't stop to have a coffee in Italy. It's a mad rush to place your order, wait at the bar, and pick it up and drink it as soon as the barista places it before you. And then fly out the door like you are a busy person. Of course, you can take your time if you like. There are some cafes with people, who sit and wait and are there to be seen, but that's more in the sunny plazas.

So Italy, I hope to see you again soon.

Paris, FRANCE
It's kind of like London. It is referred to so often, that you really need to experience it for yourself. Some people don't like Paris, some do. We would make up our own mind. So once again we jumped on the Eurostar and took the train to Paris. It really is a great way to travel.
With only just over 24 hours in Paris, we were on a tight time frame and knew we couldn't do everything that we wanted to. So we started with the big ones.
Arc de Triumph. Napolean's symbol of victory for the conquering French, however it is now a war memorial for all of those that died. Is that irony or just confusing?
Eiffel tower from the bottom and from the top. I can tell you that it takes 669 steps to get to the second viewing platform and i saw all of them twice. The view was quite good too.
And Notre Dame from the back. Quite spine tingling when the pipe organ starts up when we were wandering around inside on a Sunday morning.
And some more gargoyles on one of the other monuments. I forget the name but I liked it.Add in a few croissants and that was about all we had time for. We also climbed the steps up Montmatre, to take in the night lights up Paris. We then had a great dinner somewhere up there. Some fois gras and sauces on meat that only the French could create.

We enjoyed Paris and can't wait to get back there again.

Click below for more photo-y goodness.

Two Big Ticks