...when we first heard that a Central High School reunion was being planned in London for the year 2000. Since Central High School is located in England, Jay had written off ever seeing any of his classmates again. We were also interested in visiting London in the Year 2000, so we started saving and planning our trip.

We needed to wake ridiculously early- 2 AM, but we didn't mind because they weren't really sleeping anyway. We packed up the black Subaru Outback, locked up the house, and drove through the darkness to the Speedy Airport Parking. Jay found a coupon off the Internet for this place. Even at 4:00 in morning, the shuttle bus was right there to whisk us off to the airport. He dropped us off right in the front of the empty ticket windows. We were there at 4:30 A.M. in the morning. We were there before the crack of dawn. We were there before the espresso stands were open. We flew out of Sea-Tac airport at 6:53 in the morning to Philadelphia, and arrived at 2:50 or so in the afternoon, Philly time. It was hot and muggy, but at least the sun was out! The Philly airport had shops for just about everything you need to live on. They even had complete office supply stores that were selling Back-to-School supplies, spiral notebooks and packs of #2 pencils and such! They Philly airport was nicer on the inside than Sea-Tac, more like an older shopping mall. We left for London to the Gatwick Airport (south of London, a half-hour or so by train), and arrived at Gatwick Airport at 5:30AM (British time) in the morning the next day.

From the Gatwick airport, we took the train to the Victoria Station. We ended up transferring trains in the heart of downtown London in the middle of the morning rush hour- now THAT was an experience, I probably would not recommend it to others... I will never forget standing underground off to the side of the tiled, irregular 6-way intersection with nearly every square inch covered with scurrying commuters. The passageways tunneled upwards to the street level, while tunnels curved around and down to the subway levels. There was a non-stop flow of people, from everywhere, to everywhere, like a rolling wave of worker ants. Constantly moving rivers of people branched off in every direction. The flow of people backed up at the stainless steel gates, and again as the people channeled through tunnels in every direction. The only break in the river was after rush hour. The surge and energy of half a million underground makes a sold-out AC/DC concert seem tame. It was an amazing experience.

Once we figured out where to buy the tickets and which tunnel to walk down, we hopped a tube to the Watford Station. From there, we took a cab to the Watford Hilton. We were quite tired, so we stayed in our room for most of the day. We had a sandwich in the hotel restaurant and I was surprised at how bland their sandwiches compared to typical American ones.

The next morning we had the buffet breakfast, which had everything they had in England- fruit, cereal, juice, coffee, cold toast, omelets with everything in them if you want, blood pudding, porridge, fried bread, and some other stuff that I'm not sure what it was. It actually was great, except for the cold and dry toast :-)

After breakfast, we went on the tube and explored London. We made a (relatively) quick visit to the British National Museum where we saw all kinds of artifacts, from ancient Egyptian mummies to Roman and Greek statues and pottery and even a huge section ancient Chinese artifacts. Basically, if you could think of it, they had at least one example of it there. Miles and miles of displays (literally).

We went to wine bar called the Wine Wharf. It was great! The Wine Wharf had lots of comfortable seating in an old building that was freshly remodeled in a modern, industrial styled interior. They had a selection of aged vintage champagnes that were available by the glass (unheard of ordinarily). They also had a couple of top reds available by the glass, plus great food (fresh gourmet bread, authentic cheese from different places in the world [France, Italy, etc.], sandwiches, etc. to go with the wine). I wish we had a place like that over here! We even got to smoke our (legal) Cuban cigars in there. Wonderful depth on their list- they had at least one awesome representative of all price ranges for each kind of wine. They had great service as well. The Wine Wharf was run by the same people that run Vinopolis. We wanted to go through Vinopolis, but we were still quite jetlagged and we were running out of time before the reunion festivities began.

We went for a ride on the HUGE London Eye (the Ferris wheel). We took TONS of pictures up there. We met a real nice English couple and their adult daughter while waiting in Queue. (the English call their lines "Queues" instead of lines. On road signs, they say "Give Way" instead of Yield. On the underground system, they say "Mind the Gap" instead of "Do not step in the opening between the train and the platform.")

We also took the tube to the countryside that wasn't that far away from the city, where Jay lived for some of the time when he was a high schooler in England. Denham was the cutest traditional village with the most charming town circle, walled estates, ancient buildings, and traditional pub called the ‘Green Man’. Too bad the ‘Green Man’ was closed when we were there or else we would had a pint of Guinness. The Guinness in England REALLY is better than the stuff from the states. We tried some Guinness in Pittsburgh while we were waiting for our connecting flight back home and it wasn't nearly as creamy, smooth, and rich. The Pittsburgh Guinness was harsh and bitter with too much chocolately flavor in it.

Back at the Watford Hilton on Thursday evening, we met with two of the reunionists (Gigi Blunt and Karen Peth) and had a Guinness with them. The next evening (Friday) was a catered reception with some food, music, and refreshments and lots of picture snapping. Almost everyone from the reunion was there. They were all so nice! What an awesome group of people!

Saturday morning, we woke up early and had breakfast, but we didn't see anyone from the reunion like we were hoping to. Unfortunately, we were feeling so wiped out and jetlagged, we went back to sleep and missed the mid-day barb-b-que and tour of the school :-(( Fortunately, everyone else made it and took pictures for us.

We were awake and feeling relatively refreshed by the time of dinner/dance. We rode over to the former school on some nice charter buses and had a wonderful 3-course dinner and a heck of a fun dance. The dinner was yummy and the dessert was awesome- a kind of cake with fresh strawberries, frosting, and sweet cream poured over the top. I want to learn how to make that dessert! Yumm!! The dance portion was a blast- I got to dance almost the whole time! My legs were sore and tired the next day! The dance was over at midnight, so we rode back to the hotel in the charter buses and went to bed.

One of the funniest (and saddest) things about the trip was finding out that Jay's former high school has been turned into a petting zoo!!! Some of the alumni of the school feel (ha-ha!) that not much has changed between then and now :-)

It seemed like the English, overall, are more down-to-earth and more natural than most of us here in the Pacific Northwest, which I really liked. They tell it like is, but they also have better manners than most of us. Everyone in Europe (it seems) says Please and Thank You, Pardon me, etc. Even the kids and the pets were remarkably well behaved. No dogs yapping or kids bouncing off the wall like here in the States.

The other thing about England is that they allow smoking almost everywhere, including the lobby of the hotel. Both Jay and I could really smell the difference in comparison to the non-smoking places we have in the States.

I was surprised at how many products that are available in the U.S. are available in England. Basically, if you can think of it, it can be found over there. They even had Budweiser in almost every place that sold beer. Niketown, The Gap, Fords, Target, Costco, shopping malls, graffiti, Rap music, etc.- England had it all. Even the hotel was almost exactly like being in the States. Driving on the wrong side of the road was the main difference. The drivers in London are SCARY! They drive within inches of each other ALL the time, yet they never seem to get in wrecks and the cars have few dents or scratches. How they avoid hitting each other, I will never know.

Did you know that Jimmy Hendrix, in the early days, was not accepted in Seattle, so he went to London and become famous? I didn't know that!

Anyway, Sunday morning we got up and caught the Eurostar (the train that goes through the Chunnel) from London (Waterloo Station) to Paris (Nord Station). It took 3 hours or so to get there. The train was smooth and quiet since it runs on seamless track for much of the trip. The seats were comfortable and most of the countryside was green farmland. The urban sprawl didn't go on forever like it does around here.

Paris Nord was a busy French train station. We had to stand in a long queue to grab a cab over to the hotel. The Hotel Veronese was across town on a quiet little side street. Our room ended up on the (top) 6th floor where it was quieter and had a good view over the other buildings. The room was very affordable and traditional French- small and cozy with one window. We ended up staying there the whole time were in France. We basically moved into the neighborhood and did our grocery shopping there, went to the post office, the dry cleaners, the pharmacy, the camera shop for film, and of course, our favorite cafe. Phillippe was an awesome waiter there. We spent our fair share of time eating and drinking with a front row seat of the Place du Italy. Place du Italy was a roundabout with about 8 roads converging on it and pizza places all over the place. French people really do eat all kinds of food. We saw every kind of restaurant we could imagine in Paris. Every part of the world was represented. We ate at McDonalds one time and the Big Mac was almost identical to the ones over here, but the fries weren't right. They were a bit bland and a bit stale. The cafe food (affordable, everyday fare on every street corner) was better than even some expensive restaurant food here in the States. It was usually much richer and filling than domestic food. Sometimes a half a sandwich in France seemed like a whole one back home. The Italian food was more authentic in France than at home. The crusts were heartier without being thicker and not much tomato sauce or toppings on them. A whole egg (raw) was often plopped down in the middle of the pizza, then cooked like normal, as part of the toppings. Jay ordered a pizza with an egg in the middle and he seemed to enjoy it.

We also ate at the 3-star restaurant Marty’s. We had two great bottles of wine- a '94 Taillefer and a '94 Margeaux. The Margeaux was absolutely marvelous! One of the best I have ever had! It was even better to enjoy with some French cuisine. The Taillefer was less expensive, but can be difficult to find in the Seattle area. It was a bit closed still, a bit on the lighter side of full bodied, just right for appetizers. I started with some salmon (smoked, raw, and sliced thinly) and toasted country bread. Jay had a steak and I had the lamb stew for dinner. It wasn't like any stew I've had here at home. It was runnier, more like typical American soup in consistency, but much richer in flavor. The vegetables- carrots, cauliflower, whole beans, and potatoes- were definitely French. A knowledgeable person could probably taste which farms the vegetables came from. The creme brulle I had for dessert was out of this world!! I'm getting hungry just thinking about it.

Paris has more museums than Pierce County has espresso stands. The Louvre was huge and seemingly endless. Miles of displays including the Winged Woman of Victory and Venus de Milano. It seemed to both Jay and I that the famous pieces seemed less spectacular in real life than we expected, while some of the less famous items were our favorites. I was shocked to see small, hand blown glass vases that are 2,000 years old!!! I had no idea that Venetians knew how to blow glass so long ago. I thought glassblowing was a "new" thing (laughing to myself!) They had two little bottles with little handles on the side. They were similar in size and capacity to modern-day perfume bottles, except they were taller and skinnier, and the glass looked extremely delicate. Jay and I were also surprised to see ancient Italians that were mummified and buried just like ancient Egyptians. They were even buried in esophoguses just like the Egyptian ones, except the Italians would have a portrait of the deceased painted on the front of the esophagus where their head lays (we are not kidding!) We also saw the foundations of the old Louvre castle and more statues than I can shake a stick at, including six marble busts of Caesar in one room! I took pictures of one huge room with hundreds of ancient Roman statues in it. It was a bit overwhelming.

The Rodin Museum also featured hundreds of works by Rodin and his fellow artists. They even had several acres of park-like gardens with Rodin sculptures, including the ‘Thinker’. It would have been a great place for a picnic. The sun was out almost the whole time were in France. It was cloudy most of the time in England, but the sun did break out from time to time and towards the end of our stay in England. The weather and the temperatures were similar to the Pacific Northwest, in the mid-70's when the sun was out, but usually in the 50's and the 60's.

The Museum of Science and Industry was wonderful! It was a huge, 3-story building, complete with water

The Georges Pompidou

The Arc De Triomphe is big, but the most triumphant thing is seeing the cars navigate around it with running into each other. Eight lanes with NO LANES AT ALL!!!!! It is frightening just thinking about it. It is Total Road Anarchy in motion, with a stoplight on one side. But the bathrooms underneath it are fit for even Napoleon- marble floors, wood paneling, skylights, and your own personal water closet, with sink! It was cool.

We also visited the Crypt Museum underneath the Notre-Dame Cathedral. The Roman Empire took over Paris around 00 BC and there are some ruins from that era in the museum. Very cool. I liked the Crypt Museum more than Notre Dame Cathedral itself. The Cathedral was full of tourists, so we just walked around the outside of it. The Eiffel Tower was also full of tourists, so we just walked around the base of it. Then, we went for a walk in the park that was right next to the Tower, the Champs-de-Mars Park. There were mostly Parisians in the park- they are much nicer than the tourists were. We did take a Bateaux-Mouches boat ride up and down the Seine River, so that took care of most our urge for shameless tourism. We tried to look and act as much like a Parisian as possible. We were even mistaken for Parisians by an American! Typically, French people dress better than Americans do while wearing far fewer labels.

The wine at all the cafes and brassieres was ordinary wine that was much better quality than most the everyday wine here in America. It was typically fruit forward, somewhat easy going stuff with more than enough acidity, tannin, and terroir to hold up the food, even to pizza and steak and fries. I was a bit disappointed that most places didn't have what we would consider a "wine list" with at least 30+ selections on them. The cafes and brasseries typically just had about 6 or 7 items on it, listed by region- Burgundy, Bordeaux, Rhone, Provincial or Bordeaux Rose, Champagne, Burgundy blanc, and frequently an Alsacian or German white, too. They rarely listed the vintage or the winery on the menu. It was Wine Surprise! Most of the wines were great everyday wines, so it worked out well.

Jay and I took in Vivaldi's Four Seasons, performed by The Orchestre 'Les Violons de France,' France's best violinists. The concert was held at Elise St-Julien-le-Pauvre, Paris's oldest church, which is still in use today. The church was small in square footage, built with plain gray rocks, smells like a fresh basement, and is covered in an ancient grit (as opposed to ordinary grit). For such a small and plain church, the ceilings were amazingly high and the arches were beautiful works of art. They seemed so delicate in relation to the chunky base. I was rather wondering how that ceiling stayed up all this time, through W.W.I and W.W.II. The concert was candlelit and only held 150 people or so. The music was so clean and rich, synchronized, and perfect in every way. It was more than worth the rush across town to see it.

We saw the Joan of Arc statue. Strolled down the Champs-Elysees. It seemed rather commercialized nowadays, and a bit too suspiciously like a French version of Disneyland. The Renault Car Museum looks like it would be interesting as well.

I am also working my way through Le Cordon Bleu at Home cookbook. I have had good luck with French cuisine- I made a batch of Beef Bourgogne a few nights ago that was great! Today, I successfully made a batch of Sauternes Sorbet. Sauturnes is a very thick, rich, and sweet wine from France. In my sorbet, I substituted Sauternes (which is very expensive and difficult to get a hold of) with some Washington State dessert wine that I've had in my cellar for a while and is ready for drinking. The sorbet turned out great- it tastes like a combo of bananas, margaritas, and dessert wine. I am also going to try my hand at several French different potato dishes, Fresh orange ice cream with strawberry sauce, smoked salmon crepes, and onion soup. Yumm!