So Many Picture Links
We had a great trip to the UK. Gobs and gobs of pictures here. In London, we saw Westminster Abbey and Kensington Palace, took the Tower Bridge tour, failed to tour the Globe Theater, and walked over the Millennium Bridge. The only bad weather we had was the day we went to Stonehenge. It was rainy, windy, and cold, but we still had a great time. The audio guide did drone on and on though. Moving on to Cardiff, we really enjoyed touring Cardiff Castle with its much superior audio guide and awesome trebuchet. I do have a number of pictures from the Dr. Who exhibit as well as the fountain that leads to Torchwood HQ. From Cardiff, we went to Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch to get an awesome passport stamp and then to Conwy to tour another castle. Walking around Conwy is interesting as it is a walled city. The castle was also nice except for the group of obnoxious teenagers. From Conwy, we went north to Edinburgh for yet more castles. Edinburgh Castle and Holyrood Palace are both really interesting to tour. We had a bit of excitement at Holyrood when a fire alarm went off, and everyone had to be evacuated to the court yard. There was no fire, so we got to continue our tour fairly quickly. Also in Edinburgh is the Elephant House Cafe where J.K. Rowling wrote the first Harry Potter book. One of the toilets in the women's bathroom was decorated to honor this. I also enjoyed the Scotch Whiskey Tasting Experience. We hopped over to Glasgow for an afternoon and felt that was sufficient time spent there. The Glasgow Cathedral and Necropolis are quite nice, and there is a museum of religious life and art nearby. They have the first permanent zen garden in Britain. Back in London we toured the National Gallery which was very impressive and very large. We did not spend much time at the British Museum since we were pretty worn out from all the museum-ing at the National Gallery, but we did see the temporary exhibits. Brooke also got a better picture of the Rosetta Stone than the last time we were here.
For the last volunteer meeting at the zoo, we got to go behind the scenes in the cheetah enclosure. Pictures here. It was really cool to see the animals so close up. They really are so much like house cats. The zebras were fairly good natured, and we got a great view of the maned wolves, lured close by treats. I really like learning about how the zoo runs and how the animals are cared for. I hope the next meeting will be behind the scenes at the reptile house.
Natalie and Judith were here last weekend. We spent Saturday at Monticello. Pictures here. That place is in the middle of freaking nowhere, but the drive was worth it. The museum, house, and grounds were all really interesting. The house tour was made better by our tour guide sporting a bow tie. Sunday, we hit a few of the Smithsonians to check out their temporary exhibits. The crocheted coral reef at Natural History was pretty awesome, but I think the pop-up book exhibit at American History was my favorite of the day.
In belly dance news, I'm performing in the spring show April 30 and May 1. Tickets can be purchased here. I'm dancing in Show 2. Mom and Dad are coming up for the weekend, and Mom's staying for a few days extra. I think I'll be able to take off work at least one of the days she's here. Maybe we'll go down to Annapolis for a change of scenery.
If anyone wants to go to the DC101 Chili Cook-off, let me know. I'm going and meeting up with one of my coworkers and her boyfriend, but I think I'm going earlier than they are. She's really only interested in seeing Weezer, and I want to go early enough to see Neon Trees and maybe Panic at the Disco. A regular ticket ends up being about $50 with all the stupid fees, but I still think it's worth it to see 2, maybe 3, bands that I like.
For the last volunteer meeting at the zoo, we got to go behind the scenes in the cheetah enclosure. Pictures here. It was really cool to see the animals so close up. They really are so much like house cats. The zebras were fairly good natured, and we got a great view of the maned wolves, lured close by treats. I really like learning about how the zoo runs and how the animals are cared for. I hope the next meeting will be behind the scenes at the reptile house.
Natalie and Judith were here last weekend. We spent Saturday at Monticello. Pictures here. That place is in the middle of freaking nowhere, but the drive was worth it. The museum, house, and grounds were all really interesting. The house tour was made better by our tour guide sporting a bow tie. Sunday, we hit a few of the Smithsonians to check out their temporary exhibits. The crocheted coral reef at Natural History was pretty awesome, but I think the pop-up book exhibit at American History was my favorite of the day.
In belly dance news, I'm performing in the spring show April 30 and May 1. Tickets can be purchased here. I'm dancing in Show 2. Mom and Dad are coming up for the weekend, and Mom's staying for a few days extra. I think I'll be able to take off work at least one of the days she's here. Maybe we'll go down to Annapolis for a change of scenery.
If anyone wants to go to the DC101 Chili Cook-off, let me know. I'm going and meeting up with one of my coworkers and her boyfriend, but I think I'm going earlier than they are. She's really only interested in seeing Weezer, and I want to go early enough to see Neon Trees and maybe Panic at the Disco. A regular ticket ends up being about $50 with all the stupid fees, but I still think it's worth it to see 2, maybe 3, bands that I like.