Sunday, 28 August 2011
Mon Dieu, Le Tuileries, a wee small Musee and in search of Cadell
Bonjour Mes Amies,
What a splendiferous day. Started out with mass (unintentionally let me tell you) at Notre Dame. Totally forgot it was a Sunday and full of people worshipping. Had the beautiful opportunity though to listen to the most wonderful choir in a building with brilliant acoustics. Amazing.
Followed this with a wander up to the most grand building - the Louvre which apparently was originally built as a fortress palace for the Kings and Queens. It is MASSIVE. Even if one just took a passing glance at every piece of artwork in the Louvre, it would take at least nine months so a heads up to our work colleagues, we might be a little late getting back to work!!!!!! We are heading inside later in the week.
After that we ambles through Le Jardines Tuileries. It was all structured lines and statues but with some glorious flower beds of sage, salvias, dahlias and other perennials. Then onto Champs Élysées to re-enact the triumphant ride of Cadell but in a more pedestrian modality,
Siobhan erased more of the coating off the credit card at a great shop called Massimo Duttiand then it was time for a leisurely lunch and Fume and a dessert to die for of citrus custard and the raspberriest raspberries you have ever tasted. This place is incapable of producing bad food and wine - at least that is our experience thus far!
Am too tired to continue folks but will fill you in on our trip to Tour Eiffel and our boat trip on the Seine tomorrow
Bon soir
Kelly & Siobhan
Photo attempt No 2- this should work
Saturday, 27 August 2011
Photo Attempt No 1
Dear all,
See if this works to access a sample of our photos. Maybe copy and paste the URl into Google and see how it goes. Appreciate any comments or helpful tips.
http://photobucket.com/LondonKelly50
Kelly
Bonjour Paris -Heartbreak in the Marais and the Art of being Terminally Cool
Bonjour Mesdames and Monsieurs,
Comment allez vous ? Arriving at Paris Norde after a fantastic 2 hour train trip from St Pancras station in London we on the metro headed for St Paul in the Marais we were accompanied on our journey by a fellow playing chanson music on an accordion - natch. For money of course not just ambience.
Our first sight in Paris other than another bloody Starbucks was of an old gentleman who ambles past this very elegant drinking fountain. To our utter amazement he whipped out his false teeth and rinsed them in the fountain, popped them back in and the wished us a very upbeat "bonjour" and went on his way.
We arrived at our accommodation - a gorgeous little apartment right in the heart of the Marais, the most unchanged of the Paris quarters or arrondissements. It is complete with tiny tiny winding cobblestone streets and beautiful 16 and 17 century buildings beautifully preserved on the outside and modernized on the inside for comfortable living. At the ground level facing the streets are the most exciting array of specialty shops for clothing, belts, gloves, shoes, jumpers, jewelry etc and off beautiful wooden doors interspersed between these shops people and their dogs gain access to the staircases to their apartments.
Ours is No 24 rue de Sevigne and we had to haul our respective 19 kilo cases up 3 flights of a narrow spiral staircase. it is at this precise moment I love the century that I live in and someone clever invented lifts. I will petition the pope to make that person a saint as well! It's a bitch but at least we only have to do it twice during our stay!
We dropped off our bags keen to be amongst it. After some time of wandering we stopped at A local bar, they are virtually everywhere, and found ourselves in the middle of a highly dramatic scene of a rather drunken lady sobbing and crying into her Chablis. As we could't understand word , we improvised and decided that the stoic fellow with her and now plying espresso coffee into her in an attempt to sober her up, was breaking it off with her and had taken a new mistress. She of course was not happy with this turn of events. Perhaps we were the only tourists in the place but nobody else was turning a hair at this woman's antics.
It was over our petit Chablis here also that we toasted Michelle's birthday. The lovely waitress walked past and wished us a "appy birsday" we said it was an absent friend called Michelle, and the waitress said "appy birsday to im". We didn't bother to correct her gender assumption but happy birthday Michelle from the Marais!
We will tell you more about the place a bit later but the food and wine selection is simply mind-blowing. I do not understand how these people are not seventeen foot wide. They should have chronic heart disease, diabetes, and everything else associated with an excess of food. Appreciation and moderation seems the key but god, it must be hard. My arteries we hardening when I was just looking in the shop window of the La Frommage Shop.
Another thing, everything we read about the French mentioned their innate sense of style. When we first looked around I thought pah, that's rubbish these people look no more stylish than anyone else, then I realized they were tourists.......the Parisian would no more be seen with a jacket or jumper tied around the waist than fly - an affectation a certain Ms McQuaid has taken to in out short time here ! The older men prefer to wear their hair a bit longer and all men are wearing the casually looped scarf around the neck - tres cool. The women are very chic in both dress and attitude and it shows! We have found them however incredibly friendly and warm. Once you say bonjour in this musical way with an upward eflection and say "parlez vous anglaise" they say oui or non and they really appreciate that you have recognized the language of this country. They are really polite - false teeth man notwithstanding.
Finally before I sign off. These people stink. And no it's not the garlic. Everyone smokes- I mean everyone. Apparently the dire warnings and correlation between smoking and premature death haven't gained any traction here in Paris because they smoke everywhere. Walking the kids, having a wine, shopping, everywhere. I said to Siobhan I keep feeling the need to take up smoking again so that I can sit at a Chic little bar with my glass of Chablis and be terminally cool as well. The only trouble is that all I would manage is to look terminal !
We wandered across to Notre Dame and the across the Seine, through the Jardines du Luxembourg which are very beautiful. It's an accessible walking city with a slower and more intimate pace than the bustle of London but just as beautiful in a different way. We are very much enjoying the vibe Your Honour.
Au revoir for now
Siobhan and Kelly
Comment allez vous ? Arriving at Paris Norde after a fantastic 2 hour train trip from St Pancras station in London we on the metro headed for St Paul in the Marais we were accompanied on our journey by a fellow playing chanson music on an accordion - natch. For money of course not just ambience.
Our first sight in Paris other than another bloody Starbucks was of an old gentleman who ambles past this very elegant drinking fountain. To our utter amazement he whipped out his false teeth and rinsed them in the fountain, popped them back in and the wished us a very upbeat "bonjour" and went on his way.
We arrived at our accommodation - a gorgeous little apartment right in the heart of the Marais, the most unchanged of the Paris quarters or arrondissements. It is complete with tiny tiny winding cobblestone streets and beautiful 16 and 17 century buildings beautifully preserved on the outside and modernized on the inside for comfortable living. At the ground level facing the streets are the most exciting array of specialty shops for clothing, belts, gloves, shoes, jumpers, jewelry etc and off beautiful wooden doors interspersed between these shops people and their dogs gain access to the staircases to their apartments.
Ours is No 24 rue de Sevigne and we had to haul our respective 19 kilo cases up 3 flights of a narrow spiral staircase. it is at this precise moment I love the century that I live in and someone clever invented lifts. I will petition the pope to make that person a saint as well! It's a bitch but at least we only have to do it twice during our stay!
We dropped off our bags keen to be amongst it. After some time of wandering we stopped at A local bar, they are virtually everywhere, and found ourselves in the middle of a highly dramatic scene of a rather drunken lady sobbing and crying into her Chablis. As we could't understand word , we improvised and decided that the stoic fellow with her and now plying espresso coffee into her in an attempt to sober her up, was breaking it off with her and had taken a new mistress. She of course was not happy with this turn of events. Perhaps we were the only tourists in the place but nobody else was turning a hair at this woman's antics.
It was over our petit Chablis here also that we toasted Michelle's birthday. The lovely waitress walked past and wished us a "appy birsday" we said it was an absent friend called Michelle, and the waitress said "appy birsday to im". We didn't bother to correct her gender assumption but happy birthday Michelle from the Marais!
We will tell you more about the place a bit later but the food and wine selection is simply mind-blowing. I do not understand how these people are not seventeen foot wide. They should have chronic heart disease, diabetes, and everything else associated with an excess of food. Appreciation and moderation seems the key but god, it must be hard. My arteries we hardening when I was just looking in the shop window of the La Frommage Shop.
Another thing, everything we read about the French mentioned their innate sense of style. When we first looked around I thought pah, that's rubbish these people look no more stylish than anyone else, then I realized they were tourists.......the Parisian would no more be seen with a jacket or jumper tied around the waist than fly - an affectation a certain Ms McQuaid has taken to in out short time here ! The older men prefer to wear their hair a bit longer and all men are wearing the casually looped scarf around the neck - tres cool. The women are very chic in both dress and attitude and it shows! We have found them however incredibly friendly and warm. Once you say bonjour in this musical way with an upward eflection and say "parlez vous anglaise" they say oui or non and they really appreciate that you have recognized the language of this country. They are really polite - false teeth man notwithstanding.
Finally before I sign off. These people stink. And no it's not the garlic. Everyone smokes- I mean everyone. Apparently the dire warnings and correlation between smoking and premature death haven't gained any traction here in Paris because they smoke everywhere. Walking the kids, having a wine, shopping, everywhere. I said to Siobhan I keep feeling the need to take up smoking again so that I can sit at a Chic little bar with my glass of Chablis and be terminally cool as well. The only trouble is that all I would manage is to look terminal !
We wandered across to Notre Dame and the across the Seine, through the Jardines du Luxembourg which are very beautiful. It's an accessible walking city with a slower and more intimate pace than the bustle of London but just as beautiful in a different way. We are very much enjoying the vibe Your Honour.
Au revoir for now
Siobhan and Kelly
Last Hurrah for Jolly Old Blighty
A request for indulgence if you will as a postscript to me and my ageing memory.......
So that I remember some of the less tangible experiences about our brief time in London I just wanted to ensure that I captured them before moving onto the very different observations and recollections about Paris.
I will remember the cacophony of accents and languages coming at me from everywhere, the even tempered patience as people in this large and busy city queued stoically for their coffee, train ticket, gate access or order, their helpfulness and quiet pride in their royal family and their history. I will recall my amazement at the efficiency of their transport system that we can only dream of- let alone manage a multi zone automatic ticketing system. I will be pleasantly remind that it was no where near as expensive as I had been led to believe and how safe it was.
I will not miss what they laughingly call their summer in which one must always carry a brolley.
I will admire the skill of their bus and taxi drivers as they seamlessly moved throughout the
City. I will remember fondly the "green lung" of the city with the seemingly endless stretch of green parks from St James to Hyde Park and connecting to Kensington Gardens and what joy (and unique chance) it was to spend hours there in the sunshine. I will remember the cute squirrels scampering to and fro across these great expanses in search of acorns without fear of humans at all. Lastly I will recall the grandeur and the majesty of the place untarnished and in no way, lessened because of former glories. It is a thriving and pulsating modern City with it's history worn proudly on both shoulders.
PS; Sue Greenham, I found all the bloody telco phone card shops - Sqillions of them all in Oxford Street!
That's all about London
Good Evening to you.
Kelly & Siobhan
So that I remember some of the less tangible experiences about our brief time in London I just wanted to ensure that I captured them before moving onto the very different observations and recollections about Paris.
I will remember the cacophony of accents and languages coming at me from everywhere, the even tempered patience as people in this large and busy city queued stoically for their coffee, train ticket, gate access or order, their helpfulness and quiet pride in their royal family and their history. I will recall my amazement at the efficiency of their transport system that we can only dream of- let alone manage a multi zone automatic ticketing system. I will be pleasantly remind that it was no where near as expensive as I had been led to believe and how safe it was.
I will not miss what they laughingly call their summer in which one must always carry a brolley.
I will admire the skill of their bus and taxi drivers as they seamlessly moved throughout the
City. I will remember fondly the "green lung" of the city with the seemingly endless stretch of green parks from St James to Hyde Park and connecting to Kensington Gardens and what joy (and unique chance) it was to spend hours there in the sunshine. I will remember the cute squirrels scampering to and fro across these great expanses in search of acorns without fear of humans at all. Lastly I will recall the grandeur and the majesty of the place untarnished and in no way, lessened because of former glories. It is a thriving and pulsating modern City with it's history worn proudly on both shoulders.
PS; Sue Greenham, I found all the bloody telco phone card shops - Sqillions of them all in Oxford Street!
That's all about London
Good Evening to you.
Kelly & Siobhan
Shopping with Tania Turner, Lunch @ Selfridges and Siobhan's Big Day Out
Welcome shoppers to our last day in London.
We popped over to Bett's place to see her nice security team swap shifts but alas due the pouring rain.... No surprises there folks, the Changing the Guard was cancelled - possibly because they don't want to get their nice furry hats all manky and wet.
So back on the Underground and off to Oxford street to check out the shops. On the train was a Tania Turner look-alike. For those of you not familiar with "Tan" just google images of Tania Turner Footballers Wives and you will quickly get the idea. This woman had the worst case of tanarexia we have ever seen. No kidding she was oompa loompa orange. She teamed this skin colour with a lovely shade of white bleach blonde for her hair and she sported a set of talons that the British Olympic Team could easily use as swords in the fencing at next year's events.
She completed the outfit with way too tight trousers in a grey and slate blue animal print with a matching too short bolero jacket and accessorized with a bulging muffin top and lots of silver bling on everything! We wanted to just follow her but decided to head down Oxford street instead. oh and did I mention, she was on the wrong side of 50 by a fair way !
We perused the shops in search of worthwhile items. Lots of usual stuff and some good bargains in the way of fine merino wool jumpers and some jeans for Siobhan. The street was a virtual river of people flowing up and down this shopping Mecca.
On the recommendation of Chad we headed to Selfridges. We needed a break so it was to Selfridges we headed for a lovely lunch of minted pea soup with goats cheese followed by a wonderful chicken salad with Burford Brown Egg Mayonnaise served with a fabulous French wine that we couldn't pronounce the name of. More shopping followed in the afternoon which turned into late evening by which time we were pooped. A couple of restorative wines at a pub kept us going a while longer but soon we had to pack it in and pack it up in readiness for the train to Paris the next morning.
Also a special call out to the newly weds Pauline and Rob. Hope you enjoyed or have enjoyed your wedding celebrations with friends and family. Looking forward to hearing all about it when we get back.
So its cheerio from beautiful London and Bonjour tomorrow from Paris
Kelly and Siobhan
Thursday, 25 August 2011
Hello Undergrads
What a glorious day we have just had in the Cotswolds and Oxford - so named after oxen and the river or ford that they regularly crossed, pulling goods and wares. from Paddington Station we left an overcast London behind to bright blue skies of The Cotswolds. I felt like part of a film set in a Miss Marple mystery. the houses quaint and charming, the small villages a delight to amble through and the gardens...... What can I say, a riot of hollyhocks, delphiniums, granny bonnets and rambling roses. Truly truly beautiful.
From the tiny village of Minster Lovell we headed to a lovely larger village called Burford and had a cider and a half a pint of prawns with a garlic mayo - yum. Then we headed into the grand town that is Oxford that is dripping in history and presence at every turn. The first building The Sheldonian Theatre was built by a 29 year old draftsman who had never before built a single building - his name, Christopher Wren.
Underneath the university's formal buildings which are spaced all over the township interspersed with the 38 colleges where the students, Fellows, Dons and Deans actually live - seriously nice digs with lush gardens and quadrangles and gorgeous chapels that no-one really uses anymore. Underneath parts of the town underground, is the actual library storage areas with 240 kilometers of book shelving, where as a copyright library the Oxford University committee review all books, journals etc published every year and decide whether to keep them for the purposes of study.
It was a place that we would love to go back to again and stay at one of the residential colleges, and explore the township, the canals and the surrounding villages - just so quintessentially English!
Oh and I meant to add that the is a local pub he at Oxford called The Eagle and Child.....the students call it The Bird and Babe!!!!!
We are signing off before we are sent down
Love
Kelly & Siobhan
What a glorious day we have just had in the Cotswolds and Oxford - so named after oxen and the river or ford that they regularly crossed, pulling goods and wares. from Paddington Station we left an overcast London behind to bright blue skies of The Cotswolds. I felt like part of a film set in a Miss Marple mystery. the houses quaint and charming, the small villages a delight to amble through and the gardens...... What can I say, a riot of hollyhocks, delphiniums, granny bonnets and rambling roses. Truly truly beautiful.
From the tiny village of Minster Lovell we headed to a lovely larger village called Burford and had a cider and a half a pint of prawns with a garlic mayo - yum. Then we headed into the grand town that is Oxford that is dripping in history and presence at every turn. The first building The Sheldonian Theatre was built by a 29 year old draftsman who had never before built a single building - his name, Christopher Wren.
Underneath the university's formal buildings which are spaced all over the township interspersed with the 38 colleges where the students, Fellows, Dons and Deans actually live - seriously nice digs with lush gardens and quadrangles and gorgeous chapels that no-one really uses anymore. Underneath parts of the town underground, is the actual library storage areas with 240 kilometers of book shelving, where as a copyright library the Oxford University committee review all books, journals etc published every year and decide whether to keep them for the purposes of study.
It was a place that we would love to go back to again and stay at one of the residential colleges, and explore the township, the canals and the surrounding villages - just so quintessentially English!
Oh and I meant to add that the is a local pub he at Oxford called The Eagle and Child.....the students call it The Bird and Babe!!!!!
We are signing off before we are sent down
Love
Kelly & Siobhan
Wednesday, 24 August 2011
Political Palace and Playing Footballers Wives
Good morning Fellow Commoners,
This lovely summer day started with torrential downpour leaving entirely deserted, the area surrounding Westminster Abbey from the usual tourist throng. Siobhan was able to get a series of beautiful shots of this magnificent building on our way to tour Parliament.
Turns out that Parliament, or to give it's actual correct name, Palace of Westminster, makes Lizzie's shack look totally povo by comparison. As blown away we were by the glitz of BP, Westminster is on a whole new scale of grand. The royals used to live there apparently until a small fire around the time of Henry VIII which he used as an excuse to decamp with the family and give it to the people for Parliament.
The even bigger Great Fire of London resulted in it being built again by a guy called John Barry - it is a totally impressive pile. We had this sensational guide Tom who in very theatrical style took us on the same journey that the Queen makes to open Parliament each year. We went into the "Robing Room" where she dons her second best hat and cloak and walks to the House of Lords, she summons the pollies from the House of Commons and they get standing room only to hear her open up proceedings. We went onto the floor of both House of Lords and House of Commons and it was just magical. The Westminster system of facing opposite each other, as opposed to the semi circle which most other countries use including us, means it is meant to be blatantly adversarial not conciliatory.
The tour ends at the Great Hall where tHe royals lie in state and even some Prime Ministers. When the Queen Mum died in 2002, 7 million filed through in just 3 days to see the long term preserving effects that daily gin had afforded her.
Then it was time to play Footballers Wives , Robyn Trebilco, as we headed to Harvey Nichols in Knightsbridge for a champagne and a serious session of Ladies Who Lunch! We stopped off at Harrods, which quite frankly is gauche, tacky and feels like a Las Vegas casino without the opportunity. We headed to the Harvey Nichols 5th Floor to their champagne bar and restaurant, with Siobhan having made a slight detour to the Burberry section having eyed the most beautiful navy blue duffle coat with amazing tailoring and pleating. She decided to mull over the purchase and that of a pair of jeans over lunch. Over pistachio encrusted hake and some noice wine, we deliberated the relative value of a timeless coat. A very deep and meaningful analysis it was too.
Back shopping, Siobhan did purchase the lovely coat and will have to wait a whole year before she can wear it! What she doesn't know good people is that I intend to sew on the number 5 onto the back of it ! It is navy blue after all. That satisfying purchase ended our day but what still amazes us is that despite horrendous rainfall and a cool chill in the air these mad buggers still wander around bare armed and bare legged because it is SUMMER - despite all bloody evidence to the contrary.
Oh and in a terrible omission - forgot to tell you about the wedding frock which was displayed in the grand ballroom at BP. I have to confess that without the lovely Kate in it, it looked a bit plain close up. Siobhan thinks I am too critical because it has beautiful lace of the white English rose, the Irish shamrock and the Scottish thistle which was also the theme followed through on the five tiered cake made up of 17 separate fruit cakes...... But still I thought it was a bit ho hum.
We are off to Oxford and The Cotswolds tomorrow so let's hope the rain lessens off. A totally rain free day is simply too much to hope for here.
Toodle Pip
Kelly and Siobhan
This lovely summer day started with torrential downpour leaving entirely deserted, the area surrounding Westminster Abbey from the usual tourist throng. Siobhan was able to get a series of beautiful shots of this magnificent building on our way to tour Parliament.
Turns out that Parliament, or to give it's actual correct name, Palace of Westminster, makes Lizzie's shack look totally povo by comparison. As blown away we were by the glitz of BP, Westminster is on a whole new scale of grand. The royals used to live there apparently until a small fire around the time of Henry VIII which he used as an excuse to decamp with the family and give it to the people for Parliament.
The even bigger Great Fire of London resulted in it being built again by a guy called John Barry - it is a totally impressive pile. We had this sensational guide Tom who in very theatrical style took us on the same journey that the Queen makes to open Parliament each year. We went into the "Robing Room" where she dons her second best hat and cloak and walks to the House of Lords, she summons the pollies from the House of Commons and they get standing room only to hear her open up proceedings. We went onto the floor of both House of Lords and House of Commons and it was just magical. The Westminster system of facing opposite each other, as opposed to the semi circle which most other countries use including us, means it is meant to be blatantly adversarial not conciliatory.
The tour ends at the Great Hall where tHe royals lie in state and even some Prime Ministers. When the Queen Mum died in 2002, 7 million filed through in just 3 days to see the long term preserving effects that daily gin had afforded her.
Then it was time to play Footballers Wives , Robyn Trebilco, as we headed to Harvey Nichols in Knightsbridge for a champagne and a serious session of Ladies Who Lunch! We stopped off at Harrods, which quite frankly is gauche, tacky and feels like a Las Vegas casino without the opportunity. We headed to the Harvey Nichols 5th Floor to their champagne bar and restaurant, with Siobhan having made a slight detour to the Burberry section having eyed the most beautiful navy blue duffle coat with amazing tailoring and pleating. She decided to mull over the purchase and that of a pair of jeans over lunch. Over pistachio encrusted hake and some noice wine, we deliberated the relative value of a timeless coat. A very deep and meaningful analysis it was too.
Back shopping, Siobhan did purchase the lovely coat and will have to wait a whole year before she can wear it! What she doesn't know good people is that I intend to sew on the number 5 onto the back of it ! It is navy blue after all. That satisfying purchase ended our day but what still amazes us is that despite horrendous rainfall and a cool chill in the air these mad buggers still wander around bare armed and bare legged because it is SUMMER - despite all bloody evidence to the contrary.
Oh and in a terrible omission - forgot to tell you about the wedding frock which was displayed in the grand ballroom at BP. I have to confess that without the lovely Kate in it, it looked a bit plain close up. Siobhan thinks I am too critical because it has beautiful lace of the white English rose, the Irish shamrock and the Scottish thistle which was also the theme followed through on the five tiered cake made up of 17 separate fruit cakes...... But still I thought it was a bit ho hum.
We are off to Oxford and The Cotswolds tomorrow so let's hope the rain lessens off. A totally rain free day is simply too much to hope for here.
Toodle Pip
Kelly and Siobhan
Betty's Bling, Her Best Hat and Her Royal Humpy - aka I went to the "Torlet @ Buckingham Palace"
Hello Subjects,
Cannot believe we forgot to tell you about Betty's bling that we saw at The Tower. First off is Betty's best hat- it's called the Edward VII Coronation Crown and as such is only worn for serious grown up occasions. Her second best hat with lords lovely sparkly things on it is more her shopping hat which she wears on more regular occasions - you know, investitures, opening Parliament and the like - much like we all do really ! It's called the Imperial State Crown - as it weighs around 2 kilos I don't imagine she wears it while hoovering the palace much.
She has this long stick thing called a cypher - it has a nice shiny stone in it at the top and it's a paltry 53 carats. It was cut from a diamond of some 300 carats - I think she probably feels short changed - anyway it's blinding all the same and would be a fabulous pointer to use in a classroom. Lots of other little blingy things for everyday wear - sort of a Target range of bling for garden parties, mid week mass and the like.... But still likely to cost more than all our houses put together!
Next day having seen her accessories, we decided we needed to poke about her house to get a real sense of the woman to really understand our supreme leader of Australia. Nothing says more about a person than what sort of house they keep. And boy, could I keep this house.
We started off in the Queens Gallery to see what sort of pictures the royals are a fan of. Works from various brush fielders show a penchant for rural landscapes and farm scenes with the odd portrait of a long dead and relatively un-handsome relation hung here and there.
Next off into the mews- where they keep the coaches, the rollers (natch) and the horsies. This was fantastic. Their cars and some coaches have a colour unique to the Windsors called Royal Claret - that car that ferried the newest daughter in law to the church was there and its way cool. Not a mark on it . Cinderella's pumpkin coach has nothing on the royal coaches - they are magical with a Glass Coach (bridal state), the Irish Coach, a Scottish Coach and a gold number that would blow you mind which is the Coronation Coach. By the way did you know that we paid $350,000 for an Orstraylian Coach for Bett's Silver Jubilee. It has state of the art suspension so their royal rears don't get too tender, it has automatic windows and wait for it, it has it's own hidden generator onboard so that it can heat or cool the carriage. Can't have the poor loves catching their death.
Next stop was the state rooms. Turns out that a former king ( who became George IV) when he was Prince of Wales and then Prince Regent, so titled because he was given the gig to act on behalf of his old man who had gone a tad mad, was a Francophiles and collected all the bibs and bobs that furnish theses rooms. They are colour coded blue room, white room, red room etc wherein the furnishings match the porcelain he had collected - natch. This is where all the official stuff of the palace occurs. Lovely beautiful elegant junk fills all the spaces and priceless rich fabrics cover the furnishings and window treatments. This George guy makes Versace look loke Fletcher Jones in comparison . The windows open onto the
Garden and the day were there they were all open and it was fresh and quite lovely really. The Q and her husband live on one of the side wings in nice tweedy rooms in lovely autumnal tones - none of this brash guilding and ostentatious fabrics for them. The front view of the palace that we mainly see is actually all offices but the whole place has 286 bedrooms and 78 bathrooms which must play havoc with Betty's hands cleaning all those baths and showers.
Finally into the garden we strolled for some strawberries and clotted cream and finally some pictures. You aren't allowed to take pis inside which disappointed Siobhan no end. I think she was hoping to use the colour schemes and fabric choices to give Palace Gooch Upon Thornbury a bot of a facelift.
You are dismissed.
Baroness Kelly & Duchess Siobhan
rooms and this is where
Cannot believe we forgot to tell you about Betty's bling that we saw at The Tower. First off is Betty's best hat- it's called the Edward VII Coronation Crown and as such is only worn for serious grown up occasions. Her second best hat with lords lovely sparkly things on it is more her shopping hat which she wears on more regular occasions - you know, investitures, opening Parliament and the like - much like we all do really ! It's called the Imperial State Crown - as it weighs around 2 kilos I don't imagine she wears it while hoovering the palace much.
She has this long stick thing called a cypher - it has a nice shiny stone in it at the top and it's a paltry 53 carats. It was cut from a diamond of some 300 carats - I think she probably feels short changed - anyway it's blinding all the same and would be a fabulous pointer to use in a classroom. Lots of other little blingy things for everyday wear - sort of a Target range of bling for garden parties, mid week mass and the like.... But still likely to cost more than all our houses put together!
Next day having seen her accessories, we decided we needed to poke about her house to get a real sense of the woman to really understand our supreme leader of Australia. Nothing says more about a person than what sort of house they keep. And boy, could I keep this house.
We started off in the Queens Gallery to see what sort of pictures the royals are a fan of. Works from various brush fielders show a penchant for rural landscapes and farm scenes with the odd portrait of a long dead and relatively un-handsome relation hung here and there.
Next off into the mews- where they keep the coaches, the rollers (natch) and the horsies. This was fantastic. Their cars and some coaches have a colour unique to the Windsors called Royal Claret - that car that ferried the newest daughter in law to the church was there and its way cool. Not a mark on it . Cinderella's pumpkin coach has nothing on the royal coaches - they are magical with a Glass Coach (bridal state), the Irish Coach, a Scottish Coach and a gold number that would blow you mind which is the Coronation Coach. By the way did you know that we paid $350,000 for an Orstraylian Coach for Bett's Silver Jubilee. It has state of the art suspension so their royal rears don't get too tender, it has automatic windows and wait for it, it has it's own hidden generator onboard so that it can heat or cool the carriage. Can't have the poor loves catching their death.
Next stop was the state rooms. Turns out that a former king ( who became George IV) when he was Prince of Wales and then Prince Regent, so titled because he was given the gig to act on behalf of his old man who had gone a tad mad, was a Francophiles and collected all the bibs and bobs that furnish theses rooms. They are colour coded blue room, white room, red room etc wherein the furnishings match the porcelain he had collected - natch. This is where all the official stuff of the palace occurs. Lovely beautiful elegant junk fills all the spaces and priceless rich fabrics cover the furnishings and window treatments. This George guy makes Versace look loke Fletcher Jones in comparison . The windows open onto the
Garden and the day were there they were all open and it was fresh and quite lovely really. The Q and her husband live on one of the side wings in nice tweedy rooms in lovely autumnal tones - none of this brash guilding and ostentatious fabrics for them. The front view of the palace that we mainly see is actually all offices but the whole place has 286 bedrooms and 78 bathrooms which must play havoc with Betty's hands cleaning all those baths and showers.
Finally into the garden we strolled for some strawberries and clotted cream and finally some pictures. You aren't allowed to take pis inside which disappointed Siobhan no end. I think she was hoping to use the colour schemes and fabric choices to give Palace Gooch Upon Thornbury a bot of a facelift.
You are dismissed.
Baroness Kelly & Duchess Siobhan
rooms and this is where
Monday, 22 August 2011
Off with Her Head and other fun stuff!
Good Evening fine folk of the Antipodes,
Thank you Mr Lee for your help but I have yet to crack how to upload pics. It tells me that it's been uploaded using the URL (having saved said photos to photo bucket) but then they don't appear! Rest assured comrades we will keep trying. For now plain text will have to do.
We started the day with a wee bit of culture and headed to The Globe Theatre, the replica of the actual theatre Will Shakespeare staged his plays. It's a terrific space with it's plane oak seating, circular structure with a thatched roof that leaves a space open to the elements that the actors must continue to work through come rain or hail. Unfortunately unlike the old days, you are not permitted to throw your food or rubbish at the actors!!! Speaking of which, remember the cute young boy in Love Actually that played Liam Neeson's son ? Well, he was having an ale at the Anchor when we were and Siobhan twigged when all these young ladies ( as he is a young man probably in his early to mid twenties now) were requesting photos of him.
After the Globe we headed to the Tate Modern - a fantastic redevelopment of brilliant vision. We saw a couple of Picassos in there and Siobhan turned to me and said "I just don't get it with this guy" I agreed, to me, depicting women with five or six breasts and stuff Coming out of every orafice is just misogynistic . Don't care what the culture vultures say....... Perhaps Kate you could educate us both as to why this stuff passes as art!
From there we headed to The Tower. This was perhaps the place I wanted to see more than any thing as for years we have both loved English history - the more macabre the better. but surprisingly only 8 people were executed within the walls of the Tower grounds and 6 of those were women.......more bloody misogynists. Of those 6 women 2 were married to Henry VIII !! The many nobles executed were beheaded across the road on Tower Hill - apparently you had to be pretty important to warrant a beheading, most folk simply got hanged. Interestingly though, these lords and ladies who got the chop, was regarded as quite the entertainment event to get too. They sold food to the crowds who brought their children to watch and even had pre-beheading entertainment, a medieval Angry Anrson or Lionel Ritchie, if you will!!!
The place was incredible but given the lovely sunshine it was bathed in whilst we were there, the terror of the place was not in evidence. It looked like a beautiful castle with lovely grounds to wander around in and not a place of torture and murder at all. We think that perhaps it's a place to visit in the middle of winter to appreciate how forbidding and desolate it would be to someone waiting to die.
Well it's off to check out Lizzie's digs tomorrow and see how her joint would stack up against The Block!!
Talk soon - hopefully with pictures.
Siobhan and Kelly
Thank you Mr Lee for your help but I have yet to crack how to upload pics. It tells me that it's been uploaded using the URL (having saved said photos to photo bucket) but then they don't appear! Rest assured comrades we will keep trying. For now plain text will have to do.
We started the day with a wee bit of culture and headed to The Globe Theatre, the replica of the actual theatre Will Shakespeare staged his plays. It's a terrific space with it's plane oak seating, circular structure with a thatched roof that leaves a space open to the elements that the actors must continue to work through come rain or hail. Unfortunately unlike the old days, you are not permitted to throw your food or rubbish at the actors!!! Speaking of which, remember the cute young boy in Love Actually that played Liam Neeson's son ? Well, he was having an ale at the Anchor when we were and Siobhan twigged when all these young ladies ( as he is a young man probably in his early to mid twenties now) were requesting photos of him.
After the Globe we headed to the Tate Modern - a fantastic redevelopment of brilliant vision. We saw a couple of Picassos in there and Siobhan turned to me and said "I just don't get it with this guy" I agreed, to me, depicting women with five or six breasts and stuff Coming out of every orafice is just misogynistic . Don't care what the culture vultures say....... Perhaps Kate you could educate us both as to why this stuff passes as art!
From there we headed to The Tower. This was perhaps the place I wanted to see more than any thing as for years we have both loved English history - the more macabre the better. but surprisingly only 8 people were executed within the walls of the Tower grounds and 6 of those were women.......more bloody misogynists. Of those 6 women 2 were married to Henry VIII !! The many nobles executed were beheaded across the road on Tower Hill - apparently you had to be pretty important to warrant a beheading, most folk simply got hanged. Interestingly though, these lords and ladies who got the chop, was regarded as quite the entertainment event to get too. They sold food to the crowds who brought their children to watch and even had pre-beheading entertainment, a medieval Angry Anrson or Lionel Ritchie, if you will!!!
The place was incredible but given the lovely sunshine it was bathed in whilst we were there, the terror of the place was not in evidence. It looked like a beautiful castle with lovely grounds to wander around in and not a place of torture and murder at all. We think that perhaps it's a place to visit in the middle of winter to appreciate how forbidding and desolate it would be to someone waiting to die.
Well it's off to check out Lizzie's digs tomorrow and see how her joint would stack up against The Block!!
Talk soon - hopefully with pictures.
Siobhan and Kelly
Saturday, 20 August 2011
Majestic Dead People and the Majestic Buildings they reside in
Hello from Ye Olde England
Now, for those that know both of us rather well, you would be surprised to learn that on our second day we spent pretty much most of it hanging out with God! But because this God isnt Catholic, it was ok.
First up Westminster Abbey. A jaw droppingly beautiful building oozing history. Words will not do justice to what we saw and felt seeing the resting places of Elizabeth 1, Mary Queen of Scots, Edward VII et al.
You can sense the continuity of the rulers of this country when you walk through the place and the sense of time is something that is incomprehensible to a native of a country that is just a few hundred years old. I can only say that we were both blown away by the omnipotency of this place - a truly memorable experience.
I would go onto add that when given the opportunity to light a candle and write a prayer on behalf of someone, in this most truly remarkable place, Siobhan lit a candle and offered up a prayer that her mother Joyce get to see a Richmond premiership in the near future! Obviously some self interest in this offering I think.....Dad, I offered up one for you as well but as it's in a proddy church it probably won't count!!
we then headed to St Paul's Cathedral designed by Sir Christopher Wren and it really is his masterpiece. It's the fourth or fifth cathedral in this site and was rebuilt after the London Fire, as was 80% of London. It is gi-normous. It's is beautiful, evocative and yet you can sense that it is what it intended to be and that is, unlike Westminster Abbey, it is the people's church where all major civic events are celebrated.
We walked up a circular flight of 257 stairs so we could be in the Whispering Gallery which overlooks the floor of the cathedral from half way up the dome. Awesome. Guess who can't walk this morning!! Again words are simply not adequate or I cannot bring them together in a way to describe the beauty of the place nor the talent of the man who designed it.
Underneath is the crypt which houses great heroes like the Duke of Wellington, Lord Admiral Horatio Nelson and Sir Christopher Wren- his tomb being almost pauper like in it's simplicity when compared to the others but apparently that was very much in keeping with his nature. He kept his sense of ostentation and grandeur for his buildings not himself.
We left the company of these great people and headed down Fleet street to take in the great pubs like the Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese and Punch that used to be frequented by the likes of Samuel Johnston, Charles Dickens, Samuel Pepys and Oscar Wilde - we had to have a bevvie there in their honor!
After which we headed home to have a nana nap and then go out for dinner. eight hours later we woke up........Holidaying is hard work peoples, let me tell you!!!!!
Love
Kelly and Siobhan
Hi All,
Before I launch into our first full day, a call out to PETA or Chad for assistance please? Because we aren't saving to the computer, only the iPad, I can't upload my pics into the blog. Can you assist with simple instructions for how I can do this please ?
We started our day very early at 6 am with the effects of jet lag well with us. We had the streets to ourselves as we wandered around Kensington. The buildings tall and detailed followed the gentle curve of the streets. It was extremely quiet and the only noise was the sound of a periodic double decker red bus approaching through a light early morning mist. The imposing Albert Hall opposite the beautiful Kensington Gardens another of many examples of buildings rich in modern history but to us newbies in the colonies they seem so old and permanent.
Before undertaking a touring orientation of the place, we headed to Convent Garden and I nearly gasped (and we gasped a lot on this first day) as we walked around the corner, there was the very building that Professor Higgins comes out of and is propositioned by Eliza Doolittle to buy a floral arrangement for ha'penny.
We jumped on the touring bus and got a tremendous sense of the place. The Incredibly casual sense of commentary about all these major places, historical events and people hides a huge pride in their country's achievements and frankly it was awesome. These blokes could really build serious architecture and the statues commemorating their heroes and achievements are just stunning installations. My personal fave is a brilliant statute of Winston Churchill that just conveys the burden of state in his shoulders and stance as he stoically looks towards France wrapped in a bulky old coat.
We took an aquatic turn and headed up the Thames on the boat. The river is tidal and the level varies 7 meters from low to high tide. As we headed towards Tower Bridge, we learnt of Judge Jeffries aka The Hanging Judge. A real charmer! His job was to deal out justice to pirates who were very active on the Thames in days of yore. Not content to imprison these blokes, Judge Jeffries, would have the convicted pirates spiked, shackled and placed at the river's edge at low tide and then wait for the tide to drown the poor bastards. A pirate was not declared dead
until after two tides. But that wasn't the only questionable bit re tough sentencing, the Judge used to sit on the opposite bank of the Thames at a pub having a pint and watching the pirates drown - as I said, a real charmer!!
The south bank area home to groovy warehouse apartment conversions, brash new eateries and galleries is the nouveau riche area. For mine, I prefer the purpose built architecture of the established areas. We continued on past the Tower onto Greenwich - a startlingly beautiful township with the Royal Naval College, zero meridian and yet another great pub called Trafalgar overlooking the Thames and the new Olympic Stadium. Lots of work being done all across London with scaffolding on some key buildings get a wash and blow wave in time for the olympics. A minor criticism though in despite being a stunningly simple and accessible city to get around, they don't have enough public loos and the ones they do have you have to pay 50p to use -totally outrageous we think.
We headed back and scooted past where Maggie Thatcher lives, where used to live at 10 Downing Street, and the street that was copied for Mary Poppins. Just perfect. Cherry tree Lane or something similar. These places are so familiar and etched in our consciousness from either school, media or movies that you view them with a strange sense of deja vu despite never having been there before.
Into Soho we head, to end our first day. Our first pub that we see with all the patrons on the footpath smoking is kind of like the Laird with English accents , all jeans and flannel shirts and gay boys of a certain ilk. Oh and a scary fashion tip that may be heading our way, lots of men sporting what can only be described as The Freddie Mecury Look!!!! Short hair, Moustache and big sideburns..........uuuugggghhhhh!
Was intrigued by a restaurant called Hummus Bros with the tag line "Give Peas a Chance" but decided to head to a bar instead. Quelle surprise I hear you say........
Till next time
Love
K&S
Before I launch into our first full day, a call out to PETA or Chad for assistance please? Because we aren't saving to the computer, only the iPad, I can't upload my pics into the blog. Can you assist with simple instructions for how I can do this please ?
We started our day very early at 6 am with the effects of jet lag well with us. We had the streets to ourselves as we wandered around Kensington. The buildings tall and detailed followed the gentle curve of the streets. It was extremely quiet and the only noise was the sound of a periodic double decker red bus approaching through a light early morning mist. The imposing Albert Hall opposite the beautiful Kensington Gardens another of many examples of buildings rich in modern history but to us newbies in the colonies they seem so old and permanent.
Before undertaking a touring orientation of the place, we headed to Convent Garden and I nearly gasped (and we gasped a lot on this first day) as we walked around the corner, there was the very building that Professor Higgins comes out of and is propositioned by Eliza Doolittle to buy a floral arrangement for ha'penny.
We jumped on the touring bus and got a tremendous sense of the place. The Incredibly casual sense of commentary about all these major places, historical events and people hides a huge pride in their country's achievements and frankly it was awesome. These blokes could really build serious architecture and the statues commemorating their heroes and achievements are just stunning installations. My personal fave is a brilliant statute of Winston Churchill that just conveys the burden of state in his shoulders and stance as he stoically looks towards France wrapped in a bulky old coat.
We took an aquatic turn and headed up the Thames on the boat. The river is tidal and the level varies 7 meters from low to high tide. As we headed towards Tower Bridge, we learnt of Judge Jeffries aka The Hanging Judge. A real charmer! His job was to deal out justice to pirates who were very active on the Thames in days of yore. Not content to imprison these blokes, Judge Jeffries, would have the convicted pirates spiked, shackled and placed at the river's edge at low tide and then wait for the tide to drown the poor bastards. A pirate was not declared dead
until after two tides. But that wasn't the only questionable bit re tough sentencing, the Judge used to sit on the opposite bank of the Thames at a pub having a pint and watching the pirates drown - as I said, a real charmer!!
The south bank area home to groovy warehouse apartment conversions, brash new eateries and galleries is the nouveau riche area. For mine, I prefer the purpose built architecture of the established areas. We continued on past the Tower onto Greenwich - a startlingly beautiful township with the Royal Naval College, zero meridian and yet another great pub called Trafalgar overlooking the Thames and the new Olympic Stadium. Lots of work being done all across London with scaffolding on some key buildings get a wash and blow wave in time for the olympics. A minor criticism though in despite being a stunningly simple and accessible city to get around, they don't have enough public loos and the ones they do have you have to pay 50p to use -totally outrageous we think.
We headed back and scooted past where Maggie Thatcher lives, where used to live at 10 Downing Street, and the street that was copied for Mary Poppins. Just perfect. Cherry tree Lane or something similar. These places are so familiar and etched in our consciousness from either school, media or movies that you view them with a strange sense of deja vu despite never having been there before.
Into Soho we head, to end our first day. Our first pub that we see with all the patrons on the footpath smoking is kind of like the Laird with English accents , all jeans and flannel shirts and gay boys of a certain ilk. Oh and a scary fashion tip that may be heading our way, lots of men sporting what can only be described as The Freddie Mecury Look!!!! Short hair, Moustache and big sideburns..........uuuugggghhhhh!
Was intrigued by a restaurant called Hummus Bros with the tag line "Give Peas a Chance" but decided to head to a bar instead. Quelle surprise I hear you say........
Till next time
Love
K&S
Friday, 19 August 2011
In the Words of Precious Little, "Praise the Lord, We be in London Town "
Cheerio from England one and all,
The flight Melbourne Hong Kong very uneventful as we both slept the majority of the way, no highlights including the food, the movies and the quality of the qantas female uniforms - ghastly silver blue polyester frocks with aboriginal artwork vomited all over them that over time react rather badly to the static built up as the space waitresses move up and down the aisles on the aircraft carpet !!!
Got to Hong Kong airport around 6am to find the whole placed closed up, save for a couple of food places. Put our plans to buy a small PhD* camera on hold somewhat. This left us with a hour to kill over ordinary coffee and more fluorescent lighting.
The next leg proved more arduous and despite having to turn right rather than left when boarding and not enjoying those snug little capsules and jarmies in first class, this stage started with grave concerns for our mental stability. Immediately in front of us was not one set of new parents with a real live baby accessory but TWO. Each of these sets of dotting parents came complete with a wriggling, snuffling baby girl - one a few weeks old and the
other around the "sitting up by themselves" old. To say this caused me some consternation is
probably understating the situation somewhat.
However all my concerns about squawking, movement and distraction techniques being deployed in the need to entertain child were unfounded. These two little girls and their parents were just tremendous. And the little girls too cute for words. I must be getting soft in my old age !!
Shame the smelly, noisy, demanding young man behind us wasn't as well behaved. Still it wasn't all bad. We were in the middle section with Siobhan on the aisle seat. I was next to her and I had the dream fellow passenger - did not make eye contact, did not engage in any conversation at all and weighed around 90 kilos dripping wet! No oozing into my zone or space, so all good.
We arrived at Heathrow, brought the Oyster Card and were on the London Underground in no time headed fro South Kensington station. What a system. Our digs are just around the corner from
the station at Imperial college where we were to stay at Beit Hall (thanks for this brilliant tip Andrew Dureau) but they moved us to Tizard Hall which is right opposite the beautiful Prince Gardens - a small enclosed lush green space surrounded by terrace buildings. Amazing
and all this for 80 quid a night including a breakfast each morning in the Senior Common Room nearby on campus. For all these Enid Blyton children , I feel like I am part of the Upper Fifth at Malory Towers!!!!
The location is just mind-blowing. We are down the road from the Victoria & Albert Museum and
around the corner from the Albert Hall. The surrounding buildings and nearby shopping area are straight out of a film set. Once showered and settled in we headed out for a wander for the remainder of the day. We ended up in a pub - natch, The Zetland Arms built in 1845 and once owned by Charlie Chaplin's brother. Once I work out how to drive this thing , I will be posting the photos so come back to see the place at this post.
We are overwhelmed with the beauty, history and the grandeur of the place. We have a big day planned to orientate ourselves and in the meantime will get those pictures happening. In closing I will say this, if this is what these people call SUMMER, then I feel for them. It was sloshing down rain when we arrived, grey and a balmy 16 degrees!!!!!! They were walking around in t shirts, bare legs and thongs. These people are lunatics. Have to go out and buy
warm stuff pronto!
Love Kelly & Siobhan
*Means a "Press Here Dickhead" camera that does not require a degree in photography to operate said piece of equipment
The flight Melbourne Hong Kong very uneventful as we both slept the majority of the way, no highlights including the food, the movies and the quality of the qantas female uniforms - ghastly silver blue polyester frocks with aboriginal artwork vomited all over them that over time react rather badly to the static built up as the space waitresses move up and down the aisles on the aircraft carpet !!!
Got to Hong Kong airport around 6am to find the whole placed closed up, save for a couple of food places. Put our plans to buy a small PhD* camera on hold somewhat. This left us with a hour to kill over ordinary coffee and more fluorescent lighting.
The next leg proved more arduous and despite having to turn right rather than left when boarding and not enjoying those snug little capsules and jarmies in first class, this stage started with grave concerns for our mental stability. Immediately in front of us was not one set of new parents with a real live baby accessory but TWO. Each of these sets of dotting parents came complete with a wriggling, snuffling baby girl - one a few weeks old and the
other around the "sitting up by themselves" old. To say this caused me some consternation is
probably understating the situation somewhat.
However all my concerns about squawking, movement and distraction techniques being deployed in the need to entertain child were unfounded. These two little girls and their parents were just tremendous. And the little girls too cute for words. I must be getting soft in my old age !!
Shame the smelly, noisy, demanding young man behind us wasn't as well behaved. Still it wasn't all bad. We were in the middle section with Siobhan on the aisle seat. I was next to her and I had the dream fellow passenger - did not make eye contact, did not engage in any conversation at all and weighed around 90 kilos dripping wet! No oozing into my zone or space, so all good.
We arrived at Heathrow, brought the Oyster Card and were on the London Underground in no time headed fro South Kensington station. What a system. Our digs are just around the corner from
the station at Imperial college where we were to stay at Beit Hall (thanks for this brilliant tip Andrew Dureau) but they moved us to Tizard Hall which is right opposite the beautiful Prince Gardens - a small enclosed lush green space surrounded by terrace buildings. Amazing
and all this for 80 quid a night including a breakfast each morning in the Senior Common Room nearby on campus. For all these Enid Blyton children , I feel like I am part of the Upper Fifth at Malory Towers!!!!
The location is just mind-blowing. We are down the road from the Victoria & Albert Museum and
around the corner from the Albert Hall. The surrounding buildings and nearby shopping area are straight out of a film set. Once showered and settled in we headed out for a wander for the remainder of the day. We ended up in a pub - natch, The Zetland Arms built in 1845 and once owned by Charlie Chaplin's brother. Once I work out how to drive this thing , I will be posting the photos so come back to see the place at this post.
We are overwhelmed with the beauty, history and the grandeur of the place. We have a big day planned to orientate ourselves and in the meantime will get those pictures happening. In closing I will say this, if this is what these people call SUMMER, then I feel for them. It was sloshing down rain when we arrived, grey and a balmy 16 degrees!!!!!! They were walking around in t shirts, bare legs and thongs. These people are lunatics. Have to go out and buy
warm stuff pronto!
Love Kelly & Siobhan
*Means a "Press Here Dickhead" camera that does not require a degree in photography to operate said piece of equipment
Wednesday, 17 August 2011
Customs, vino, and a Box Cutter
Hiya,
Well Listeners,
We are sitting in the international area waiting to board the aircraft drinking a lovely Tasmania Pinot grigio and relaxing ........finally.
Can't write for long because those highway robbing bastards that are Melb Airport Corporation charge you $4.00 for 15 minutes of Internet useage...... It's not enough to rob you blind with car parking, crap food and hideous fluoro lighting that makes one I'll.
Anyways, we are feeling good and starting to get how imminent this finally is. A little hiccough on the way through. No queue at the checkout. BUt got to Customs and they tell me I have a box cutter in my handbag - what's a box cutter you may ask ? Well it's also known as a Stanley knife !!!!! Funny that I have left dad a Stanley knife to give back to our electrician Clint (dont forget Joe) who had left it at our place. But I really wasn't intending on hijacking the plane using said box cutter.
Turns out it was either my extender lash mascara or the suitcase weight measurement gadget. So all good and I haven't needed to have a cavity search or ended up on an episode of border control.
So to all of you from the both of us..... Thank you for all your lovely wishes and my beautiful camellia and saucepans. Stay tuned and hear all about our trials and tribulations.
Love Kelly and Siobhan
Well Listeners,
We are sitting in the international area waiting to board the aircraft drinking a lovely Tasmania Pinot grigio and relaxing ........finally.
Can't write for long because those highway robbing bastards that are Melb Airport Corporation charge you $4.00 for 15 minutes of Internet useage...... It's not enough to rob you blind with car parking, crap food and hideous fluoro lighting that makes one I'll.
Anyways, we are feeling good and starting to get how imminent this finally is. A little hiccough on the way through. No queue at the checkout. BUt got to Customs and they tell me I have a box cutter in my handbag - what's a box cutter you may ask ? Well it's also known as a Stanley knife !!!!! Funny that I have left dad a Stanley knife to give back to our electrician Clint (dont forget Joe) who had left it at our place. But I really wasn't intending on hijacking the plane using said box cutter.
Turns out it was either my extender lash mascara or the suitcase weight measurement gadget. So all good and I haven't needed to have a cavity search or ended up on an episode of border control.
So to all of you from the both of us..... Thank you for all your lovely wishes and my beautiful camellia and saucepans. Stay tuned and hear all about our trials and tribulations.
Love Kelly and Siobhan
Friday, 12 August 2011
The Home Stretch -four sleeps to go
Done! Packed and just 15 kilos!! I am a self proclaimed legend!
K
K
The Home Stretch - four sleeps to take-off
Buongiorno amicos,
Today is packing day. However in the interests of maintaining my skeletal structure and not requiring a RTW program at the end of my holiday I intend to approach this task ruthlessly and economically and ensure the lowest possible luggage weight.
It's a tad difficult because whilst we will enjoy high 20s temperatures in some places, it is autumn so we will need some clothes of considerable warmth. As a result I think there will be a lot of "Quanto costa questo" (how much is that) ...... Still if we are forced to shop for clothes and shoes in some of the great cities of Europe, who am I to argue!
Was reading in the big paper today that the Kath & Kim Fillum is being filmed in Italy whilst we are there, so who knows we could end up crossing paths at some point. God knows what the well heeled, well turned out Italians will make of those two swanning about their beautiful cities during their evening passeggiata. Or what Italians will make of the Kath and Kim pronunciation of their beautiful language.
So now I will start the task that is the first real tangible evidence of an impending holiday and get into co-ordinating and prioritizing required apparel to pack into my jazzy new red suitcase. Enjoy your weekend and my next blog will probably be from the evening skies zooming across Australia or the Tasman depending on if the plane turns left or right from Tulla.
Ciao
Kelly
Today is packing day. However in the interests of maintaining my skeletal structure and not requiring a RTW program at the end of my holiday I intend to approach this task ruthlessly and economically and ensure the lowest possible luggage weight.
It's a tad difficult because whilst we will enjoy high 20s temperatures in some places, it is autumn so we will need some clothes of considerable warmth. As a result I think there will be a lot of "Quanto costa questo" (how much is that) ...... Still if we are forced to shop for clothes and shoes in some of the great cities of Europe, who am I to argue!
Was reading in the big paper today that the Kath & Kim Fillum is being filmed in Italy whilst we are there, so who knows we could end up crossing paths at some point. God knows what the well heeled, well turned out Italians will make of those two swanning about their beautiful cities during their evening passeggiata. Or what Italians will make of the Kath and Kim pronunciation of their beautiful language.
So now I will start the task that is the first real tangible evidence of an impending holiday and get into co-ordinating and prioritizing required apparel to pack into my jazzy new red suitcase. Enjoy your weekend and my next blog will probably be from the evening skies zooming across Australia or the Tasman depending on if the plane turns left or right from Tulla.
Ciao
Kelly
Monday, 8 August 2011
Hi Everyone,
I have to confess that with all this trip preparation, I haven't posted anything new since 20th July. Slack I know but the house has never looked cleaner, the windows sparklier and the hard waste patrollers are now the proud owners of a broken wall oven, a clunky clotheshorse, rusted old power tools circa 1970 and a huge bag of bottles of nail polish!!! I had booked a hard waste collection through council but was nearly regretting that decision because each time I took stuff out onto the nature strip, yet another car had passed, stopped and souveniered yet another piece of our unwanted junk.
Only 9 more sleeps to go and we are off on our holiday. First stop London, then Paris and then to Bella Italia where I will see in the start of my fifth decade.
Yesterday we had my birthday lunch with the footy crew as I will be away. We had a terrific time at the Terminus Hotel in Clifton Hill - food and wine is great and the company was a hoot. Ms Viviette was an unfortunate scratching due to a debilitating back injury that prevents her from sitting down for any period of time. So in a show of collegiate support we ate and drank her portion of everything on offer!!!!!
After lunch some of us went to Sally's new abode. A very lovely home indeed with the best lounge room not to mention the walk in robe.......the crew gave me a stellar birthday prezzie which I just love and Viv also gave me a £10 note that used to entitle Poms to come here but she tells mee is only likely to buy us a cup of coffee in London these days. Who knows though, with this much talked about downgrading of the american credit rating and the likelihood of Italy coming close to the brink, perhaps we may be able to buy a castle that Betty and Phil no longer need or perhaps a Tuscan villa going cheap!
Someone might put some good gear out on their nature strips! You never know!
Ciao
Kelly
I have to confess that with all this trip preparation, I haven't posted anything new since 20th July. Slack I know but the house has never looked cleaner, the windows sparklier and the hard waste patrollers are now the proud owners of a broken wall oven, a clunky clotheshorse, rusted old power tools circa 1970 and a huge bag of bottles of nail polish!!! I had booked a hard waste collection through council but was nearly regretting that decision because each time I took stuff out onto the nature strip, yet another car had passed, stopped and souveniered yet another piece of our unwanted junk.
Only 9 more sleeps to go and we are off on our holiday. First stop London, then Paris and then to Bella Italia where I will see in the start of my fifth decade.
Yesterday we had my birthday lunch with the footy crew as I will be away. We had a terrific time at the Terminus Hotel in Clifton Hill - food and wine is great and the company was a hoot. Ms Viviette was an unfortunate scratching due to a debilitating back injury that prevents her from sitting down for any period of time. So in a show of collegiate support we ate and drank her portion of everything on offer!!!!!
After lunch some of us went to Sally's new abode. A very lovely home indeed with the best lounge room not to mention the walk in robe.......the crew gave me a stellar birthday prezzie which I just love and Viv also gave me a £10 note that used to entitle Poms to come here but she tells mee is only likely to buy us a cup of coffee in London these days. Who knows though, with this much talked about downgrading of the american credit rating and the likelihood of Italy coming close to the brink, perhaps we may be able to buy a castle that Betty and Phil no longer need or perhaps a Tuscan villa going cheap!
Someone might put some good gear out on their nature strips! You never know!
Ciao
Kelly
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