Easter in the Cotswolds

I had the fun privilege of traveling with 4 of my friends (2 from work and their spouses) to the Cotswolds for Easter weekend. In the UK, Easter is a 4 day weekend and a lot of people celebrate by doing some traveling, even if it's not far. The train ride we took was just shy of 2 hours, but it was like being in a different world! The weather was "typical" English - cloudy, a bit rainy, with some spots of sun - but that didn't dampen our spirits.

On Friday after a yummy lunch at the pub we were staying in, we took a long country walk on some steep footpaths. The Cotswolds are very hilly and we experienced the hills first-hand while we were scrambling up the muddy paths and trying not to slip and fall coming down! There were lots of sheep around and even though it was raining, we had a good time and felt that we got plenty of exercise so we could justify a 3 course dinner. :)

Saturday turned out to be a gorgeous day! We had arranged to rent some bicycles from a shop in another town so after breakfast, we headed over and picked them up. They gave us a very detailed map with several long rides through lots of villages highlighted. We had a fabulous time cycling up and down the hills (well, the uphills weren't too fabulous), checking out the villages along the way, taking lots of pictures of the countryside and enjoying the sunshine and sheep. I think we visited/cycled through 7 villages and they were all distinct in their way. We stopped in quite a few to do some extra "sight" seeing, including a long stop for lunch and a wander through the church in Chipping Camden.

On Sunday we celebrated Easter in the church in the village we stayed in. It was a traditional Anglican service in a beautiful building and I really enjoyed worshipping there! After church, we had a bit of a wander around, found some lunch and then headed back to London. It was a fantastic weekend and I'm so happy that it all went well and we were able to take a good break from the demands of London and work.

Dover Cliffs

Last weekend I once again started my day trips around the UK. Last year I was able to start doing these almost as soon as I moved here, but this year my work schedule was quite a bit different in February and March so I had to delay until April. Thankfully, the UK has impressed me once again and I am ready for more and more day trips in 2009!

I went with a work friend, Lauren, down to Dover where we explored the castle and took a hike along the cliffs. Thankfully the weather was SUNNY and pretty warm, especially since we were outdoors all day and walked about 10 miles, much of it uphill it seemed!

The castle has been there for hundreds of years, but was especially strategis in WW II due to its underground tunnels and crucial look-out points over the Channel. We toured the tunnels and wandered around the castle grounds some after we had a brief picnic lunch. We were both antsy to find the cliffs and start hiking in the open though.

After getting some interesting directions, we walked about 2 miles, mostly along a country road that wasn't quite wide enough for 2 lanes AND us, until we got to the beginning of the cliff paths. By that time, clouds had entirely covered the Channel so it was very difficult to see past the ferry docks, let alone all the way to France! But we enjoyed a good hike and took some fun pictures - which hopefully you enjoy as well!

Entrance to the underground tunnels

View of the castle from the cliffs

Me on top of the cliffs with the Channel behind me

The White Cliffs of Dover

A view down to the beaches below - the cliffs were literally bright white!

And in case you didn't believe I have a friend......this is Lauren :)

New Digs in the SW

I am all settled in to my new flat. I love the area and the commute has been easy so far (and no longer than my last commute). My flatmate is great! She is a flight attendant so is gone about half the time and when she's around is good to talk with and learn about the area from.

Speaking of area, my flat overlooks a private park which I walk through each day when I go to work. The park is beautiful and some of the trees are starting to bud so I know spring is coming! On the other side of my flat is a street that is completely lined with trees and lots of old-fashioned buildings. I live right across from a big, old church as well.

My flat is walking distance to lots of great parks and shopping and even some of the museums. Right after I do this, I plan to get out and do a little exploring on foot to see what I can find! I already went out this morning to the massive Tesco (grocery store) that is just 3 minutes away and was shocked at just how huge it was. I'm very excited to be in a new place, mostly because I have a new perspective on the city and get to explore new places!

Moving!

As has been my habit over the last few months, I took a few minutes one day this week to do some online flat hunting. I came across one that looked perfect for me and contacted the lady. I figured since it seemed so right that it would already be gone or some such thing so tried not to get my hopes up too high! However, she wrote me back and set up a time for me to come by on Saturday.

I spent about an hour yesterday looking around and having a chat with Louise. I took the room on the spot and am moving next weekend! My new flatmate is fun and outgoing and is a flight attendant on big, long British Airways flights. She and I got along well and even though I am moving into somewhere smaller, it is a much better location and the whole situation will give me a new perspective on London that I've desperately been needing!

So on top of lots of work, I have a busy week of packing ahead of me. I am currently procrastinating by writing this blog, but I suppose I should get up and attempt to pack a few boxes... I'll give you an update and some new pictures after I get settled in!

I'm alive - don't worry!

Some of you may have been wondering where I've disappeared to. The answer is - my desk. Even the porter (doorman) in my building saw me yesterday and asked if I had been gone somewhere because he never saw me coming home from work! This has turned into my busiest busy season yet but it's not all bad. I have worked some very long weeks and my brain is beginning to turn to mush, but I have learned a lot and feel that I'm settling into my new manager role.

So I haven't been able to take the day trips I was fortunate enough to take last year, or even wander around London. My weekends are generally spent at work and if I do have some spare time, I usually nap, read, catch up on emails or buy milk! The simple things. The truth is I have come to the point where I am exhausted mentally and physically, so the few hours I get on Sunday after work are so very precious.

Right before all of this started, we had a snow storm in London. It made international news, so I'm sure you heard about it. It wasn't very much snow by my standards, but it was so beautiful to see all over the city. Plus most of the transportation (well, the above-ground stuff anyway) shut down so most of the city had a snow day and I enjoyed watching people have fun in the park.

Well, I was just going to upload a picture of the snow, but apparently I don't have any and I'm too comfortable on my bed to go see if they are on my camera. Sorry, perhaps another day! For now I am going to concentrate on getting into bed and doing my best to have a good night's sleep before another very busy week.

Skiing in the Alps!

Last weekend I took another girlie trip to Switzerland and this time we went skiing in Davos. We were there just before the World Economic Forum, but didn't manage to see any famous movers and shakers. But we had a fantastic time skiing and enjoying the town. The weather was perfect all around - enough snow to have great skiing and enough sun to enjoy the lovely days.

Colorado Christmas

Just a note: I have formatted this NUMEROUS times and Blogger won't cooperate. So I'm sorry that the words get a bit out of whack farther down the page. :(

Every other year my mom's familiy all gets together for Christmas in Colorado. 2008 was a Geary family Christmas year! I was happy to be able to see all of my family at once after being away for so long...especially since they had all gotten together over July 4th without me! We always have a good time eating and catching up, as well as doing fun things together like shopping, movies and skiing.

This year was no exception as we all scored tons of presents (I brought everyone presents from around Europe which were a BIG hit!)...

had a great time laughing together...

cooked and ate more than our fair share of food...

went to tea...

played the wii...

rode the ski train to Winter Park...

did some skiing...

and generally did our best to stay warm!