Insatiable Theic

I've moved!

2012-02-29T11:23:00.002-08:00

I've moved to a new site: mwgerard.com

But don't worry -- this site will remain open and all of these posts and comments are on the new site too.

All of my writings and posts will be housed at the new site.

Please stop by!

DAY TWO (cont'd): Edinburgh

2011-09-20T13:18:00.000-07:00

After a lovely stop for lunch at Canonsgate Arms, we walked (trekked, as it turned out) to the Royal Botanical Gardens. The walk was through a very cool part of town.

When we reached the gardens themselves, I asked a very helpful man named Neil if there was anything in particular I should see regarding Robert Fortune. Since reading FOR ALL THE TEA IN CHINA by Sarah Rose, I've become a bit of a groupie for Mr. Fortune. He was from Edinburgh originally, but they said there wasn't anything dedicated to him here.

An incredibly large plant fossil

Dozens of pepper plants, or various capsasin content

Gorgeous architecture

These "lily pads" were at least 4 feet across.

The "desert" hothouse

A view from outside

Yay! I found him. One of the plants he "hunted" and names.

With sore feet, we began the journey back to town.

We took a breather and enjoyed some cider at Jekyll & Hyde. Writer Robert Louis Stevenson is another of Edinburgh's famous sons.

We enjoyed a delicious dinner at Wedgewood's, then took a different route back to our B&B past Greyfriars Kirkyard, home of the famous Greyfriars Bobby.

Grammarian! My hero!

It seems a bit redundant to compare a theatre to an asylum, but there you have it.

Edinburgh Castle

2011-09-07T11:01:00.000-07:00

We left the hotel fairly early to get to Edinburgh Castle at opening time. We'd heard it gets pretty busy, especially if you haven't bought tickets in advance. We only waited about 20 minutes in line but when we left (3 hours later) there was a massive line that had to be at least 3 hours long.

The view of Old Calton Hill.

The castle isn't what you might think of. It's a group of several buildings, from different eras, behind heavy fortifications. And it's actually still an official posting.

The One O'Clock Gun is shot everyday so the ships in the harbor can synchronize their clocks.

Napoleon's flag, captured at Waterloo

The castle hill often served as a dungeon or prison over the years. The prisoners not only left interesting graffiti, they also created very artistic objects.

A forger's tools

Special dog cemetery

St. Margaret's chapel dates back to the 1200s

The Great Hall

After the Castle, and a quick photo with the musket guys, we walked down High Street to find some lunch. We ended up at a great little place called Canonsgate. And we made reservations for dinner at Wedgewood.

Walking down High Street

The lovely Wedgewood's restaurant. I highly recommend the Chicken Caesar Salad Soup. Yes, you read that right.

Our first day in Edinburgh

2011-08-21T15:51:00.000-07:00

As promised, I'm going to go back to our days in Edinburgh since I didn't have much chance to blog about them yet.

We landed at about 8am local time, but to our bodies it was about 3 in the morning. We stumbled off the plane, went through customs and found a very nice, very helpful young lady. As she showed us to the taxi stand, we saw Susan Boyle. She was arriving to catch an airplane. In the country for 30 minutes and already seeing famous people.

Our taxi driver was very friendly and nice as well. We quickly understood what welcoming people live in Scotland.

Our room wasn't ready yet, but we dropped off our bags and did a little exploring.

Jet lag was quickly catching up. So we stopped in for some tea to wait for the room to be ready. We found a lovely little cafe called Vincent's.

After a very restorative nap, we were ready to explore in earnest.

A very cool little antique shop

Lavender!

Our "neighbor". He was a glazier.

A view of the castle from Princes Street

The Sir Walter Scott Memorial on Princes Street

A pub called Guilford Arms

The Balmoral Hotel

North Princes Street

An arch built for Prince Leopold.

We discovered Old Calton Cemetery. It was on a hill, overlooking part of the city. One of the coolest things about this cemetery was that people's occupations were on their gravestones. It really made the visit more special.

Philosopher David Hume, one of Edinburgh's favorite sons.

There was a statue of Abraham Lincoln...?

Isabella is most likely a relation.

Across the street from the cemetery was a walk that David Hume proposed to the city council. He designed a lovely climb up Old Calton Hill which afforded wonderful views of the city, the river and some very cool buildings on the hill itself.

This memorial to Lord Nelson also has a ball on top that drops at 1pm everyday, in conjunction with the one o'clock gun . This was so the ships in the harbor could synchronize their clocks.

Looking back into downtown.

A view of Edinburgh castle from Princes Street

We began walking back towards our hotel. Despite what it looks like in these photos, it is about 930pm at this point. Edinburgh is so far north, it stays light very late -- in the summer.

The Surgeon's Hall Museum... more on that later

Pere LaChaise and Sacre Coeur: Paris

2011-08-16T15:54:00.000-07:00

On the outskirts of the city is Pere LaChaise cemetery. It's an enormous graveyard and is full of generation of families and famous ex-pats. There are several notables buried here, including Edith Piaf, Jane Avril, Stephan Grappelli, and Seurat, to name a few. It would be impossible to find all of these graves, but we managed to find a couple people you might recognize.

Menilmontant is a wonderful silent film.

Tree next to Jim Morrison's grave

We stopped by to pay our respects to Oscar Wilde. I was absolutely infuriated by the state of the head stone. It was (at one time) a lovely deco-style sculpture but it had been destroyed by graffiti. It was covered in notes in pink and red marker and black sharpie. It was maddening. I refuse to post a picture of it.

Good thing there was a fence around this one...

Chopin

Then it was back on the Metro to Montmartre and Sacre Coeur.

I was hoping for the neighborhood, artist's colony feel but unfortunately it was simply overrun by tourists and more guys selling awful trinkets.

The famous steps of Montmartre. Of course, Brassai's is better than mine.

We stopped at a grocery store to get some slightly more affordable food to eat for dinner, then crashed at the hotel. By this point, I couldn't wait to get on a plane and away from France. And I hate flying.

The next morning, we rode the Metro to Gare du Nord, then caught another train to Charles deGaulle airport. On that train, we suffered at the hands of incredibly awful, rude people who shoved our luggage into other riders. Then, at CDG, we stood in a line that was over an hour long because the United/Continental desk was so unorganized. Security was nonsensical, and trying to get a croissant at the Starbucks was inane because people didn't line up. Just rushed the counter.

Luckily, both plane rides were uneventful (although the transfer at Dulles was also ridiculous).

Keep watching this blog for more stories. I'll be revisiting the Edinburgh photos soon since I didn't have much time to post about it earlier.

Of Stairs and Hunchbacks: Paris

2011-08-14T09:23:00.000-07:00

Our last day in Paris and the last day of the honeymoon. We went to Ile de la Cite and Notre Dame first to try to beat the crowds. There was no one there and we just walked into the church. It's quite deceptive -- it is beyond enormous inside.

The railing along the Metro stairs

Palais de Justice

One of the famous Rose Windows, taken down during the war and reinstalled.

A view of the buttresses

We climbed over 400 stairs, up a small, winding, stone staircase, to a narrow walkway to view the famous gargoyles. Each one was a little different, which was very cool.

I cannot tell you how excited I was to see this guy.

Then we climbed another 100 steps or so up an even narrower staircase to one of the two bell towers and viewed one of the incredibly large bells -- like the one Quasimodo rang in The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Views from the upper roof

We made the very long and dizzying descent. As we walked back to the Metro station, we found a very cool nursery and florist.

And nearby was a retired Art Nouveau Metro station.

Next stop, Pere LaChaise...

Along Le Seine

2011-08-13T15:10:00.000-07:00

After we finished at the Eiffel Tower, we walked along Le Seine, on the way to Musee D'Orsay. The skies threatened to unleash, but no rain ever actually came down.

The Grand Palais

The Grand Palais left, Pont Alexandre III middle, Petit Palais right

The Grand Palais, from across the river

The view from Pont Alexandre III

Petit Palais

The Grand Palais

Pont Alexandre III

The Louvre, from across the river

Musee D'Orsay

There was a line approximately 2 hours long just to get into the museum, so we decided to pass. Instead, we crossed the river to the Louvre and Jardin Tuileries. And there was a line 3 hours long to get into the Louvre, so we skipped that too. Instead, we went for a stroll in the garden.

The gardens themselves were not in very good condition. It was almost as if they grounds crew had given up on trying to keep them nice. Also, there were people EVERYWHERE, being loud and obnoxious. Luckily you can't hear them in the pictures.

We followed the garden to Place de la Concorde, then wandered some more on some quieter streets.

After dinner, we walked back to Pont Alexandre III for a view of the sights by night.

Le Tour Eiffel

2011-08-12T10:59:00.000-07:00

Knowing it would be crowded, we left the hotel in plenty of time to arrive at the Eiffel Tower before it even opened. We waited in line that really wasn't very long for an elevator to take us to the 2nd level. It was bit overcast and grey, but the worst part was fending off the strange men who peddle their crap to everyone in line. Primarily they are selling cheap models of the tower, in different sizes. You get to pick 3 or 4 for just 1 Euro! Such a deal. Until the thing breaks or you get lead poisoning from it. Anyway, they were EVERYWHERE and don't seem to take a hint in any language.

Those of you that know me probably know that I hate elevators. I hate riding in them, seeing them, hearing them, anything. It all goes back to an episode of a TV show called Probe (but that's another story). So riding 3 elevators to 1000 feet is not my favorite. But, I did pretty well. I knew a great deal of the history about the building of the tower, and Otis' contribution to it. The ride was very smooth, and I just concentrated on the engineering of it all, rather than the fact I was stuck in a box climbing a structure.

That said, the views were great, and it really is an impressive structure.

Yep, we're going even higher.

Apparently, pickpockets are red in France. Very convenient.

We rode the elevator back to the second floor, then walked down the stairs from the 2nd floor to the 1st level. I highly recommend using the stairs at some point. You can see the iron work as well as get a great view of the elevator system.

Oh yeah. By the way, it's brown. Had no idea.

A very expensive restaurant in the tower

As I took this one, I got a few weird looks... and some copycats.

Walking down Le Seine

More from our afternoon in the next post.

Je N'aime Pas Paris

2011-08-11T10:12:00.000-07:00

I desperately wanted to. But I just didn't love Paris.

Tuesday, August 2nd was mostly a travel day from London to Paris. Getting luggage from the hotel, on the Tube, to St. Pancras, then on the Eurostar, through Gare du Nord, then on the Metro in Paris, then to the hotel was a bit taxing. Actually, the worst part was St. Pancras. Once we "officially" left London to board the Eurostar, it was chaos. No announcements, signs, or labeling -- in any language. Just mobs of people staring at a non-updated departure board. Ridiculous.

The train from London to Paris itself was perfectly pleasant and I didn't notice we were in the Chunnel until we came out of it. But Gare du Nord was a nightmare. In such stark contract to the well-mannered city we were in just a couple of hours before. Scammers were everywhere. Signage was incomplete. There were no staff members to help. It rather summed up the entire population as we experienced it: Every man for himself. Any chance someone had to get just a little bit ahead, despite what it might cause their fellow human, they took it.

We finally arrived at our hotel, which was quite lovely and on a quiet street. And determined to get the bad taste out of our mouths, we immediately set out on foot to the Champs Elysees and the Arc du Triomphe.

Tired and hungry (we hadn't eaten all day, really), we set off to find a small cafe or bistro in a less touristy area.

Despite our wanderings, the best we could find was a $27 hamburger. Yes. You read that right. And this was not a fancy place be any means. Exhausted and rather disenchanted, we made it an early night and vowed to do better the next day.

Sherlock's House - London

2011-08-09T11:15:00.000-07:00

Some might think that Sherlock's house is the only reason I went to England. It wasn't the only but I was positively giddy about it.

Subway tiles at the Baker Street station

In front of the museum

The museum is set up as though it were Sherlock and Watson's home. They each have a bedroom, as does Mrs. Hudson, plus their very famous study. The upper floors are devoted to the stories themselves and to various fan items. It's really great fun and quite "hands-on."

On the keeping of bees

What Sherlock would have taken with him just before Reichenbach Falls.

Evidence of his shooting skills

Mrs. Hudson sets a lovely table

In the study

Watson's desk

Watson's service revolver and his license to carry

Mrs. Hudson's room

Prof. James Moriarty

A letter to Sherlock from a child

Being that we were already near Regents Park, we went up to the zoo, which was a little disappointing, actually.

Baby monkey

Galapagos Tortoise

Meerkat

Finding a Quiet Corner in London

2011-08-09T10:56:00.000-07:00

After some very refreshing tea at the Orangery, we took a stroll through Hyde Park and went to Harrod's (see my previous post). We then headed off to see Wellington's Arch.

We intended to climb it but for some reason it was closed.

Underground station tile

So we went over to the Tate Britain to see the William Blakes. I got a bit teary.

These incredible engravings / prints we made in the late 1700s and only found in a used book sale in the 1970s. They are still very vibrant and moving.

We wanted to get to the Chelsea Physic Garden before they closed, so we grabbed a cab and headed the northern bank of the Thames.

Quite an old garden, as you see

It was founded as a garden to grow plants that could be used for medicines. It eventually morphed into a botanical garden as well, as plant hunters returned with exotic specimens. Robert Fortune, the man who bought back tea from China (as well as forsythia and rhododendron) served as the chief gardener for a time.

Many of the garden beds are arranged by category of what they treat. For example there was a bed for fevers, one for sinuses, etc. Other portions were dedicated to the various plant hunters (although nothing for Fortune, that I could find).

It was truly a beautiful little spot in the midst of the city.

And lots of lavender for me to inhale...

We walked back to Earls Court from Chelsea, with a stop for a snack and cider.

A building along the way

So much deliciousness

Can one monger iron?

Then off to bed...

A Truly Enchanting Palace - Kensington, London

2011-08-08T14:37:00.000-07:00

Kensington Palace is open, believe it or not, to visitors. None of the royals currently reside there (though Will and Kate are rumored to be moving in after his posting at Anglesea) but plenty of famous princesses have called the brick mansion home. The exhibit created a labyrinthine quest for guests to discover the history of seven princesses. It was utterly enchanting and artfully done.

Guests are even encouraged to open drawers, play with toys, sit on a throne and wander. It was incredible. And lovely. I can't recommend it enough.

{While photography was allowed, flash wasn't, and the lighting was dim, so please forgive the graininess.}

Princess Margaret's wedding tiara

Dress worn by Princess Diana at the Bolshoi

Some of the garden areas were undergoing construction, presumably for the upcoming Olympics. But the Sunken Gardens were still open and they were collecting secrets to be strung from the arbor. Yes, we wrote one up and no, I'm not telling.

"I have a secret crush on Prof. Snape!"

"I want to steal the crown jewels and wear all of them."

"I sometimes wish I was an Arsenal fan."

The Orangery in the background.

After a lovely stroll in the gardens, we took tea at the Orangery. It was built in 1704-5 by Queen Anne as a greenhouse for citrus trees (mainly oranges, hence the name). I had chocolate tea. Yes, you read that right. CHOCOLATE TEA.

Since we were in the neighborhood, and were already pretending to be royalty, we stopped by Harrod's. Just to say hi.

After that, a stop at Wellington's Arch, the Tate Britain and the Chelsea Physic Garden... stay tuned!

Off With Their Heads! More in London

2011-08-08T11:56:00.000-07:00

Our first stop this day was the Tower of London. Noted for two very different things: The place where several of Henry the 8th's wives were imprisoned and beheaded (as well as other royals) and where the British Crown Jewels are kept and on display. Photography of the jewels is not allowed and some of the other rooms are too dim for any good pictures. Still there is at least 1000 years of turbulent history in these walls. *shiver*

The White Tower

A very friendly Yeoman, despite his dour look

One of the Ravens of the Tower of London. As long as there are ravens, the empire will stand.

Then it was just a quick jaunt up some steps to the Tower Bridge.

We grabbed a bite to eat at Dean Swifts in Southwark and headed over to the Herb Garret and Old Operating Theatre. It is in the attic of a church and is accessed by climbing a narrow spiral staircase. So cool!

And from early medicine to an old cemetery. You might recognize the Brompton Cemetery from Sherlock Holmes (2009). Believe it or not, we didn't know before we went, but it was quite obvious once we reach the far end. Quite a fun discovery!

Royal Weddings, Clocks, and Trains - in London

2011-08-07T18:08:00.000-07:00

London can be frightfully overwhelming. It is far more spread out than I had imagined. Which meant there was little wandering from one place to another -- which I like to do. Luckily the Tube is extremely well run, clean and easy to use. It made getting around bearable. I still wish I could have been able to explore a bit more. But, it's just what London is.

In order to sort of help us realize that yes, we really are in London, we went to Westminster Abbey and Big Ben. Photography is not allowed inside the Abbey, but I took a few of the facade.

I was quite excited to visit Poet's Corner. Yep, I'm a nerd.

Just around the corner is the Parliament building and Big Ben. It chimed while we were there!

Bobbies!

I managed to "cut" out the very strange "performers" dressed in bad, cheap queen costumes, bopping around to weird hiphop music -- as if that is something that warrants some change. Unless we were supposed to pay them to stop...

After that, we went to the Churchill War Rooms. Located underneath 10 Downing Street, Churchill set up a strategic underground world with bedrooms, map rooms, communications, even a kitchen, in order to keep essential staff safe during the bombings. When the war ended, the rooms were locked up and just left. About ten years ago they were opened up as a museum. Fascinating place. And as if I didn't like Churchill already, he only seems even cooler now!

A German enigma machine

Color-coded pins for the maps

We stumbled across the Household Cavalry Museum, which is the Queen's official horse guard. In addition to a museum with the history of the unit, you can also see a the stables with the horses and watch the crew taking care of them.

Then up to Covent Garden to the London Transport Museum. A very fun museum that shows the various modes of public transport in the history of the city. Lots of train cars and omnibuses you can get on and pretend to be traveling in the good old days.

We made another attempt at finding a neighborhood to just wander around (we were ultimately foiled) but we did find the theatre playing Mousetrap - the longest continually-running show in the world.

The First Time I Saw London

2011-08-07T17:44:00.000-07:00

We had about five days in London, knowing there were several things we wanted to do. The first afternoon we arrived, we walked Regent's Street, saw Trafalgar Square and enjoyed numerous artworks at the National Gallery, then traipsed down to Buckingham Palace.

The station nearest our hotel

The BBC world headquarters

Looking down Regent's Street

Trafalgar from the window of the National Gallery

The lovely Trafalgar lions

The Queen is quite safe.

Weary from the travels, we called it an early night.

Out and About in Bath

2011-08-07T14:33:00.000-07:00

I simply adored Bath. The size of the town was just big enough without being overwhelming. It was very picturesque and immaculate.

A Jane Austen museum. Jane lived in Bath for about 5 years.

A very cool shop called "Found".

At William Herschel's home. His telescope lens-grinder. He discovered Uranus, the infrared light spectrum and numerous comets. His sister Caroline discovered many celestial bodies as well.

The Bath Postal Museum is fantastic! So much fun here.

Old Pultney Bridge. Shops line either side of the bridge (the only other one in the world is the Ponte Vecchio in Florence).

Parade grounds, at the Avon River's edge.

Bath is known for the 2000-year old healing baths built by the Romans. A great deal of the structure remains and the baths themselves were used up into the early 20th century. A natural hot spring feeds the baths and the water was thought to have restorative properties.

An original lead pipe, laid by the Romans.

Travels around Somerset: Wells, Glastonbury & Stonehenge

2011-08-05T14:11:00.000-07:00

We met up with some dear friends who live in England, not too far from Bath. We enjoyed a lovely dinner together, catching up and then they picked us up the morning of the 26th to take us around Somerset. Not only was it fantastic spending time with them, we saw more of the countryside than we ever could have since we had no car of our own.

First stop, Wells. It is the smallest city in England (to be considered a city, one must have a cathedral, which it does). It was also where the very funny film Hot Fuzz was shot. It is simply beautiful there, particularly Bishop's Palace and Gardens.

Fresh spring water bubbles up into a pond, which is then directed to a fountain in the main square, for all the people to use. The unused water then flows down the hill, on the sides of the streets, keeping everything clean.

We also checked out Vicar's Close, the oldest continually lived-in buildings in the UK. So charming, it is easy to see why!

After a pint and a snack, we headed off to Glastonbury. The town itself, though attractive, was completely overrun by those convinced that King Arthur was real, shall we say. Leaving the town center behind, we climbed the famous Tor. It afforded a view of the glorious countryside.

And since we spent little time in Glastonbury, we hit the road for Salisbury Plain and saw Stonehenge. We were fairly close and it seemed silly to miss it.

Behold the magic bunny in the center...

Then back to Bath for some delicious Indian food at the Eastern Eye and a pint at The Raven (which became a favorite hang-out of ours).

Leaving Edinburgh via the Train

2011-07-27T05:39:00.000-07:00

And heading to Bath...

Please excuse the weird reflections and sometimes grainy images. These were taken from a train window. From July 25.

Somewhere around Dunbar and Berwick-On-Tweed

The North Sea

A bit of castle ruin on the seaside

Darlington Station

Edinburgh: Day Three

2011-07-25T05:08:00.000-07:00

So these are from July 24th, our third day in Edinburgh. We had to take it a bit easy since we wore ourselves out by walking at least a dozen miles the day before.

The National Gallery of Scotland

The National Gallery is free and open to the public. They house several noted works of art including some by Van Gogh, Picasso, Cezanne, Gainsborough, Rembrandt, and Monet - as well as numerous national works like the Reverend Walker by Raeburn.

A pot of tea at Jenner's, overlooking the gardens

A view of the castle from below at Grassmarket Square

Stumbled upon (quite literally) the grave of Adam Smith, noted economist

View of West Bow from above, near High Street

A quick interesting milliner's shop in Grassmarket.

Edinburgh: Day Two

2011-07-24T15:18:00.000-07:00

Sorry - it has been so hard to find time to post! A few more pictures. More images, and stories to come, I promise!

Entrance to Edinburgh Castle

No relation, but a cool sign nonetheless

Palm House, Royal Botanical Gardens

Statue in honor of Greyfriars' Bobby

Greyfriars' Kirkyard

Edinburgh: More Day One

2011-07-23T00:43:00.000-07:00

View of the castle with a thistle in foreground.

Author of "Horology"

Gravestone in Calton Hill Cemetery

View of the Forth of Firth

View from Old Calton Hill to the northeast. The thing that looks like a firepit just right of center was part of Robert the Bruce's castle.

View from Calton Hill towards the city center, to the south.

The castle at a distance.

Edinburgh: Day One

2011-07-22T15:54:00.000-07:00

Still battling some jet lag and getting used to the fact that it is still like at 10:30pm. Here are just a few photos from today. Many more to come!

COMING SOON: Dispatches from UK and France

2011-06-16T19:34:00.000-07:00

About 9 months after our wedding, we are finally heading out on our honeymoon. Our plans is to start in Edinburgh, Scotland. We will then work out way south to Bath, Wells, Glastonbury and Salisbury, England, then over to London for several days. Lastly, we will take the Chunnel to Paris for three days before heading back home. It's going to be so much fun and I CANNOT wait to take hundreds of photos! I'll be posting them here as often as I can!

Paint The Town Red: Fab'rik Fashion Show

2011-04-08T11:18:00.000-07:00

As part of the Paint the Town Red campaign, a fundraiser for the Red Cross, Fab'rik hosted a fashion show of their spring clothing. A fun evening for a great cause. If you haven't visited Fab'rik yet, you must. Fabulous clothes, fun fashion, great prices with none of the snobbiness of a boutique.

My contribution to Revolving Floor

2010-12-21T11:17:00.000-08:00

Rebecca DeWinter just won't stay dead.

Read about her, and more, in the BACK FROM THE DEAD issue of the Revolving Floor:

http://revolvingfloor.com/issues/6/from-the-diary-of-mrs-dewinter/