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Published: November 28th 2006
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Ribs- The Begenning
Nice example of hearty nosh. Al & Sam in Richmond, Virginia
For those of you who are not aware, Jona is visiting his Uncle 'Up State' and we'll be reuniting tomorrow on a 11 hour coach trip down to South Carolina :-/ Big country.
Onto our second week in the States and we're currently on the sofa watching the 'Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade'. Having bought the Turkey yesterday and Alec and I (Sam) are loosening our belts in preparation for some hearty nosh. To be honest though, our belts have been loosened all week as our hosts have been spoiling us rotten! From Burgers to Ribs, Shrimp to Cookie Dough, Southern Fried Chickin' (finger lickin' good...) to Pancakes and Waffles, let’s just say we're ready for the winter. And don't forget the Turkey.
Sam and I (Alec) have been very fortunate to stay with his Uncle and family in Virginia. From the time we arrived on Saturday afternoon we have been treated like kings by the Barton's who have made sure we experience everything American.
Uncle Paul has taken us out to see some of the sights, including the Harleys, the Diners and the Gun Store.
Un-believable. The shop had everything from pistols to automatic weapons and if that wasn't enough you could get hunting bows, cross bows, long bows... Proper job.
It's been really nice to have some time to relax and stay in an American household. We did intend to visit Monticello, Jefferson's home, and do some more touristy things but to be honest we enjoyed spending time at home with the family. Plus the weather and the Thanksgiving traffic haven't been so great.
To further our 'American Experience' we have been watching lots of films including the new Bond and Gone With The Wind, a must see movie as we're in southern country. Jane and her boyfriend Evan are two rather articulate, interested and perhaps strong-viewed cats and have been giving Sam and I some hearty debate in all areas. We thoroughly enjoyed their stimulating company.
Alex Barton has had a lot of British competition this week from us, weather it be Chess, Risk, Computer Games or Lasertron. With James Bond still on my mind Sam and I were looking to show the Yankees how there is a little Bond in all of us Brits. However, we
Turkey
Ohhh! Nice one Sunshine! unfortunately took a trouncing from Alex, and the 15 strong birthday group who were no bigger than 3ft and still in single figures (age wise).
Alex also dared to wake us this morning by spraying whipped cream all over us whilst we slept as cherubs. Apparently it's a tradition. Well if so, we picked it up real quick and I pinned him while Sam took his revenge. Sam is not the most merciful of gentlemen early in the morning, especially after antics such as that.
It's been really nice for me (Sam) to spend time with Uncle Paul and his family, especially my cousins as I hardly ever see them. We all got on well and even big Al said he felt a little emotional on parting.
Jona in Vienna, Virginia
My mini-break away from the main team ended when I met up with Sam and Alec in Richmond Greyhound station. We compared experiences over the week we had been separated and found many similarities. Most involving food.
Like Sam and Alec I had the pleasure of being a part of an American Thanksgiving meal. From
Carving
The required arty shot - the turkey was absolutely enormous! the moment I woke up to the time of collapse 14 or so hours later I was bombarded with fantastic food and drink which made us merry. I was amazed when a tray of Sweet potatoes with melted marshmallow was brought out to be eaten with the Turkey. It actually tasted fantastic; a lot of American food is sweet though!
I was staying with my Uncle Jerry who lives in a town outside of Washington DC called Vienna. For thanksgiving we were joined by family from Dianne's (Jerry's wife) side, whom it was a pleasure to meet for the first time. They included a new addition - Marc from Rio in Brazil. It was interesting to compare observations of America, and he was glad to see that I have packed some flip flops from Brazil which Simon brought back from his travels (sorry if you read this Simon - you had two pairs).
Meanwhile it was great to see Josh, Brian and Rachel who are one of many branches of cousins I have over in America. All in all I appreciated the home comforts which I know I will miss later on in the trip.
One of the highlights for me was cruising around in my Uncles Mercedes Benz with the top down. That was fun. Weaving in between the massive trucks that everyone drives here, it is very rare to see a car which doesn't look brand new. Apparently a lot of people use a leasing system where you hire a car for a few years before returning it (for no return).
I helped out with the pre-thanksgiving shopping which was another eye opener, if that’s the right expression. Basically it seems as though every shop here is the size of Ikea. Coscro, Best Buy, Linens 'n' Things - it was amazing to see the selection and quantity of everything. I resisted the many temptations for the sake of travelling light - my rucksack was less than 9 kg in the airport. In fact travelling light does have its downsides, especially when it's often colder in the DC area than back home!
We had fun on Wednesday night when I met up with Brian’s friends. We squeezed around 11 people into a people carrier designed for a family. They found it funny when I took a photo, the flash
Clarence Greenwood
"The church wasn't honest
The state put the youth in a harness
Creatin' hostility among us
Teacher said no college
Still the kid's gotta get a check with a couple commas"
The sound was realy clear - which is great when listening to his songs for the first time.. lit up the car - "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT??” They scream. "The LAPD" I reply. Funny English boy who thinks that everything in America is like the movies...
So we all headed downtown to watch a local band called Citizen Cope who have made it big across America. The music was funky, chilled guitar music which has become the soundtrack for the first leg of my trip. I am now a "Cope" fan - many songs have been added to my MP3 player.
During my time at Jerry's I contacted some more family. It all seems to be shaping up for the American part of our journey - with people to meet in South Carolina, Dayton, Cleveland, Buffalo, Boston, New York...
I read one comment at the end of the last blog who asked us if the "Yankees were eating all our money". Well in fact we are spending a lot less due to everyones kind hospitality. The only real expense is travel, and that's to be expected I guess. After notching up miles by Plane, Merc, People carrier, Greyhound and soon train - the journeys themselves are part of the fun!
The 9.30 club, Washington DC
We arrived at about 10.30 to catch the opening words of the opening song To everyone who left us comments on the previous blogs: Keep them coming! It's great to get feedback on what we are doing.
Next to Clemson University, South Carolina.......
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Cherril & Robert
non-member comment
Hi Sam!
We are so impressed with Sam and his transAtlantic lifestyle! Watch out for those Southern belles. We'll have to have a whip round at New Year to get you a Harley. Love C and R