London

My German friend went to college in London, and when she asked me if I wanted to go with her and a couple of friend's to London for the weekend, I felt like I should definitely take advantage of the opportunity (to be shown around by a "local"). So last weekend, Bryan graciously watched the children, and off we went (it is only about an 1 1/2 hour flight). We had a really nice time, and it was nice going to cafe's for each meal, and seeing many of the highlights of the city once again. Having taught World Geography last Semester, I was especially excited to go to the site of the Prime Meridian in Greenwich (where longitude and latitude meet at zero degrees). I got to stand on the exact line - Very exciting for me! We took in the Depeche Mode Concert at the Millenium - which is where the Gymnastics events for the Olympics are going to be held in 2 years. That was an interesting experience :-) I got to go to "TK Maxx" - (in England it is spelled TK instead of TJ - funny), which was fun because shopping like that is quite limited in Germany. We walked through China Town and it was all decorated for the Chinese New Year. I also got to see the Parish Church (pictured) of the church in which my ansester was baptised in the 1800's (my parents have been doing a lot of geneology research and have found a strong link to England (specifically London). Bryan jokes that he "always knew that I was a Brit" :-) We had a really nice weekend, and the best part for me was the reception I got by my kids when I returned - I had never gone off for a weekend, and I definitely felt loved upon return (a great feeling). The one downer is that my camera started acting up again half way through our trip, so I may post more pictures later if I can get a copy of my friends' photos.