The Olympic Torch

The Olympics are about to start here in the UK. Technically they are "in London," but actually there are a few events spaced throughout the country. Some events are happening fairly close to where we live but they are not sports of great interest to us so we did not go out of our way to obtain tickets. 

However, one of the really cool parts leading up to the Olympics here has been the torch relay that has been taking place throughout the UK. The torch was lit in Greece and then made its way to this island and has traveled to over 1,000 towns throughout the UK and has been carried by nearly 8,000 torch bearers. It has been on tour for the past 70 days. It has traveled within 10 miles of everyone in this country which is pretty remarkable. 

A few weeks ago the torch was coming straight through our little town - and not only through our town, but it was being carried down the street at the end of our block! It was a very neat afternoon and much to our surprise, it seemed the entire surrounding area descending upon our town to see the torch in person just as we did too. 

We did not expect the masses of crowds for the route through our town so by the time we made it to the end of our block, we unfortunately did not have great views because of the crowd. 

Crosby got a lift from Daddy and she had the best view out of the three of us....if only she were as interested in watching the torch relay as we were! 

There was a large procession that came before the torch bearer, starting with the police squad. 

Then there was a torch parade with fancy buses, music, dancers, and lots of Olympic paraphernalia. 

Major Olympic sponsors such as Coco-Cola took part in the torch parade. It was quite festive and lively as these big floats went past the crowds. 

Crosby's attention span was of course that of a toddlers - very short. She seemed more interested in walking around and looking at the crowd of people rather than the parade for the torch. 

Now can you see the flame? Look carefully - it's near the left side of this photo near the Union Jack flag. It was a brief moment and it was difficult to capture on camera due to the crowd, but it was cool to see it whiz by us in person....and now tonight we will watch the opening ceremonies (from the comfort of our living room via TV) with the rest of the world where the flame will arrive and light the start of the games. 

London calling

While Carrie was here visiting, we took advantage of some sister time and spent a full day in London. It was all-too-short but really nice to get into the city for a bit of time. I have not spent any amount of time in London since Crosby has been arrived and I miss going into the city to shop and sight see. Scott was traveling again for work so Crosby had a day at home with our nanny and Carrie & I took to London. Although it was rainy (a constant theme here this April and spring), we had a great day eating and shopping.

On the train into the city....sisters not to be missed in bright orange!

At the train Marylebone train station there was a movie being filmed. There was a sign posted that anyone walking around the area could be in the future movie. I am still unsure what movie it was but I will keep my eyes peeled for our big screen debut.

For lunch, we headed to the Notting Hill neighborhood to a pizza place called Otto. Since Carrie is celiac, she had read in advance that Otto has a gluten free cornmeal crust pizza. Celiac or gluten consuming, this restaurant is not to be missed! We had a bbq pulled pork pizza with cheese, coleslaw and onions - a bit different but it was utterly delicious and tasty. 

It even felt like we were close to home with the beverage selection available from Goose Island Brewery in Chicago!

After lunch we wandered around Portobello Road in Notting Hill and made a stop at the Hummingbird Bakery. They even had a gluten free cupcake selection which was great.

London was decked out for the Jubilee and the Olympics. Oxford Street was flying the Union Jack all over - and the taxis were festive too.

To continue on the theme of eating, after a bit of shopping around the city, we headed for a full proper afternoon tea at Claridge's Hotel. When we arrived there was a crowd of papparazzi and also a crowd of teenage chidren standing out front. While we did not spot any celeberties, I think my online research was correct to hint that Johnie Depp was staying there that day.

The hotel offered a full afternoon tea for celiacs too so it was perfect so we could both enjoy nearly the same things. 

Tea sandwiches, scones, desserts and of course lots of tea! 

It was definitely one of the best splurges for a wonderful day out for these sisters who don't get together as often as we would like!

NFL in London

Once a year since 2007, the NFL has traveled to London for a football game at Wembley Stadium. Since we have been here, we have been in the country for almost every game the NFL teams have played in England, however there have not been teams of great interest to us (or should I say of interest to Scott) until this year.

When it was announced that the Chicago Bears would be playing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Scott knew immediately that he wanted to attend this game. I think I heard him chanting "Bear Down, Chicago Bear" as soon as he first heard the Bears would be coming across the pond.

So, we purchased tickets with some friends and made the journey down to Wembley Stadium in London for the game last Sunday evening. It was a bit strange to experience an American football game in a British setting but it was definitely a fun experience!

One of the first big noticeable differences in attending a football game in the UK was that the concession stands were serving British fare, and not American hot dogs, nachos, and pretzels! It felt rather strange to have options such as fish and chips available at a football game, but I went with it and ordered scampi and chips. The pre-game field show was interesting. The Goo-Goo Dolls performed and the Buccaneer cheerleaders put on a show (since they were considered to be the "home" team for this game). We were there with our friends Holly & Kevin. Holly & I had a good time chatting and watching the game while the boys talked sports the entire game! Also as part of the pre game field "show," both the National Anthem and God Save the Queen were performed. And along with the songs, there were American flags on the field (as you see with the people standing underneath the red, white, and blue colors), and then the seated attendees in the stadium held up red, white and blue papers to make a large Union Jack out of the crowd. It was very cool.

Given the high population of Americans who live in London (close to 500,000 in London alone), I thought the crowd would mainly be made up of Americans. However when God Save the Queen was performed and the crowd chimed in, I realized we, as Americans, were in the minority for this game.

Luckily for Scott, we were able to see the Bears beat up on the Bucs in a great game. It was fun to have a little bit of an American sporting tradition over here, even if it had a British "twist" to it.

Buckingham Palace Tour

Yesterday my friend Holly & I went into London for the afternoon to go tour the Buckingham Palace State Rooms. The palace only opens for tours once a year while the Queen normally heads north to her residence in Scotland for her summer holiday.

Since this summer season is quickly approaching the 3rd anniversary of our arrival in the UK, I was determined to see the palace state rooms before we leave the island! Scott really did not have a great interest in going to see the palace rooms and luckily Holly's husband wasn't as keen on it either, so we decided to make the journey ourselves.

We booked our tickets in advance (such a key point - allows for VERY minimal queuing) and so we were able to basically walk right up at our specific time slot and began the tour of the state rooms.

So many interesting things to learn about Buckingham Palace beyond just browsing around at the magnificent splendour inside. Buckingham Palace is Queen Elizabeth II's official residence, and has been the official London residence of Britain's sovereign since 1837. The state rooms at the palace have been opening to the public for just the past two decades, since 1993, after a fire at Windsor Castle. Initially the summer opening was a way to pay for the damage at Windsor Castle but the tours have become so popular that the Queen has continued it every summer when she goes to one of her country homes for about 8 weeks.

Buckingham Palace has 775 rooms!!! These include 19 State rooms, 52 Royal and guest bedrooms, 188 staff bedrooms, 92 offices and 78 bathrooms. Buckingham Palace is not only the London home of The Queen; The Duke of Edinburgh, The Duke of York, The Earl and Countess of Wessex, The Princess Royal and Princess Alexandra also have private offices and apartments located within the Palace. Unfortunately we did not get to see these private bedrooms and offices but the state rooms that we did see were quite lovely indeed. No photos were allowed to be taken inside the palace but I did get a few outside...

Everything from the entrance, to the exit, to the temporary restrooms and temporary gift shop were set up specially for the Summer Opening of the State Rooms.

In the gift shop at the end of the tour, mini wedding cakes from William & Kate's wedding were available for purchase. Apparently the British have fruitcake covered in fondant at their wedding for their cake. Not my choice of a cake, but then again I am not British!

The temporary gift shop at the end of the tour.

Holly & me at the end of our tour - the back side of Buckingham Palace.

The highlights from our tour of the state rooms included: Seeing Kate's wedding dress, veil, shoes, tiara, earrings, flower bouquet, and the wedding cake (I wonder if it were a replica cake though?). We also got to see the red room where many of the "official" photos of William & Kate were taken at the palace after their wedding ceremony. It's pretty cool to me to think that whenever I see that photo of them in the future, I will remember walking in that same room of the palace when I went for a visit! The other bit that stood out to me was a "secret door" that the Queen uses to enter one of the state rooms - a short cut for her from her private residence area. After taking the main tour now of the state rooms, I think it would be really cool to tour the back hallways and private residence areas of the palace....but I guess everyone else would want to do that too!

Our little American

Since Crosby was born here in the UK and not in the US, we had to register her birth with the US government and US Embassy in London in order to gain her American birth certificate, social security card and number, and American passport. We wanted her to become an official American as soon as she was able. Unfortunately, just because Crosby was born in England does not mean she automatically gains British citizenship. Now, if the reverse situation happens (a British couple has a baby in America), that child does gain automatic American citizenship....

Since we knew we wanted to take Crosby on a trip back to the US in the spring, we wanted to secure her American citizenship paperwork and passport as soon as possible. However the process requires an in-person visit to the US Embassy in London, so a bit of time was needed for me to recover so I could be up for a day out with a newborn in tow.

First, we had to register Crosby's birth in the UK and obtain her UK certificate of birth. Then we had to have Crosby's passport photo taken (of course not simple task since the US passport photo has to be a different size than a British passport photo!). I was very proud of taking Crosby on my own for her photograph to be taken. It was my first outing with her on my own, and I went right after my parents left to go back home. She will use this photo until she is five years old. I think it's crazy because she has already changed, just a few weeks after this was taken.

Once we had her photograph taken and had her UK record of birth paperwork in order, we were then able to make an appointment at the US Embassy for our in-person appointment.

Last month when Crosby was just over one month old, we took a quick day trip down to London to visit the US Embassy there to apply for Crosby's paperwork in person. We were able to just drive straight into the city, park right on the square by the Embassy and Crosby was a perfect baby for the big excursion. We walked through the square in front of the Embassy and took this picture in front of the US Embassy there.

With Dad/Scott in front of the gates of the US Embassy, Crosby sleeping through most of the visit there!

Crosby's US passport has finally arrived. Hooray! Just in time for Crosby's first trip with mom to the US!

Amy Visits England

My dear friend Amy who lives in Chicago came to visit us the other week for a break from her daily life. We had a great time exploring our area of England, drinking lots of tea, and also spent a few days in London to catch a play and eat (quite a bit) of food!

Amy at Lord Leycester Hospital in Warwick. Although called a "hospital" the buildings were used as retirement homes for soldiers who were injured whilst fighting for Queen Elizabeth I or had simply become aged. The master behind the plan was Lord Leycester, the Earl of Leicester, Lord Dudley.

We went for afternoon tea and sandwiches at a lovely little tea room in Warwick.

The sights in Warwick, so picturesque.

On Friday, we traveled into London for a bit and our first stop was lunch! The location - La Fromagerie.

Of course we indulged in the meat platter and cheese platters of the day. I am not sure if the baby was really allowed to have all of that cheese but luckily it seems that the baby may just enjoy it just as much as I do!

Amy at LaFromagerie.

Saturday morning's first stop was some shopping on Portobello Road.

Strolling the colorful (and busy) streets of Notting Hill.....

Window shopping, antique shopping, and more.....

Scoping out all of the famous sellers along the way at the Portobello Market.

After all of our Portobello Road shopping, it was time for some food shopping at The Borough Market. Amy loved it just as much as I do!

We had some raclette from the food stall with the very long queue....

And a giant Brat with sauerkraut and all!

While at the Borough Market, we also visited the famous Neal's Yard Dairy Cheese shop there. The cheese selection was beautiful and the cheese sellers were super helpful and very friendly.

Back up north in the middle of England, we continued Amy's visit with a day trip to the towns in the Cotswolds.

When we arrived in Burton-on-the-Water, there was a lady riding her horse through the water in the town.

Scott came along for the Cotswolds adventure too!

Amy & me in Burton-on-the-Water.

Pretty houses in the Cotswolds....

And a stop for afternoon tea and scones at a new location of Huffkins in Stow-on-the-Wold.

On Amy's last full day in England, we decided to venture down to Windsor Castle. Unfortunately we did not get to see the Queen while we were there, but we did enjoy touring the massive castle and seeing the nice town of Windsor.

Approaching Windsor Castle's grounds.

Inside the castle walls.

Amy at Windsor Castle.

And in keeping with the theme of Amy's visit, we stopped for the full afternoon tea service in Windsor. The cakes and (crust-free!) sandwiches were delicious.

What a royal and elegant way to spend the afternoon! Come back soon Amy!