The Best of Blighty

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England: 9th - 16th August 2009

Our trip to England started, as previously mentioned, with a fabulous garden party to celebrate Rami and Jen Seth´s 40th anniversary.  We learned two things that day: rain on your wedding day IS lucky, and once a party animal, always a party animal.

Leaving Nottingham, we headed west to the Peak District based on a recommendation from Dee & Derek who raved about Alstonefield Manor, a B&B run by Jo and Robert.  We couldn´t pass up such a glowing recommendation, so we checked in.  The sun was blazing away when we arrived, and after tea, scones, and fresh strawberry jam, Jo recommended that we set off immediately to enjoy the countryside, English weather being predictably unpredictable.  What we found as we walked was a gentle, rolling countryside dotted with small villages, stone bridges, and content cattle. In the Peak District, we had difficulty differentiating hills from knolls and creeks from rivers. We expected to be greeted by Hobbits any minute.

The next morning, Jo and Robert served up the quintessential English breakfast by candle light, proudly noting that everything tastes better when cooked on an Aga. We had to agree.

Along with the beautiful countryside, we also got a chance to enjoy Chatsworth, of Mr. Darcy fame. Since the Peak District is near Nottingham, we got one more chance to see Roma, Billy, Anjuli, Andy, Rami and Jen before setting off for London.

Now, one thing about London: it´s living proof that a gas price of $7 per gallon does not stop traffic jams. But, eventually, we made it to Twickenham to the home of Ben, Nix, and Bea. We planned to celebrate my 40th a few days early in London.  And while I expected a nice dinner, Ben blew my socks off by taking us to a very swish club in central London on a perfect summer evening. The wine and food were tops, and there was never a happier 40 year old!

And the celebration continued with the U2 concert the next day.  Let me start by saying that everyone needs a friend like Stacey.  Stacey knows about things that the rest of us mere mortals have only the vaguest inkling.  For example, she got tickets for U2 months ago.  But, while she could have simply bought general admission tickets, the trader in Stacey identified an arbitrage opportunity with a social conscience:  she got tickets in "the Red Zone", where proceeds go to charity.  But also, you get to be right up front.  The boys continue to prove their showmanship with plenty of new and old material delighting the intimate crowd of 80,000.  And it was great to see Stacey and Stuart again after months on the road.  We had a blast.

But, with liver function at a post-Hong Kong low, it was time to say goodbye to our friends and family in England and head down to Dover for the crossing to France and subsequent trip down to Barcelona, our final stop in Europe before heading to South America.

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Photos

Bono on the big screen!
Not that we needed the screen to see him. Thanks to Stacey we had the best seats in the house.

Chatsworth
aka Pemberly

Celebrating Doug's 40th with Ben & Nicola at a very swish club in London
Illegal photo taken in the club. Sorry Ben, I didn't know the rules!

Comments

[Sarah]

luckies
Oh sooo lucky to see U2 at Wembley and up close! Any more concerts coming up? I think you should do one in every city even if it's some random! Concert tour around the world.... Doug, looks like you had a wonderful 40th. The book looks great! Happy Birthday.