Chester and North Wales

Warren's mom came for a visit so last weekend we headed north to Chester, one of the best preserved walled cities in Britain. We were impressed by the Rows (the street featured below) which have two levels of shops with continuous walkways. We liked the covered walkways a lot since it was raining most of the day. 

Just beyond the city walls lies St John the Baptist's church, a building dating back to 1075. The eastern end of the church was abandoned in the 1500s and now stands as ruins of a medieval chapel and choir. 

Since I love touring churches, we also went to Chester Cathedral which was formerly a Benedictine abbey built on the remains of an earlier Saxon church. The cathedral was refinished in the Victorian era but the structure dates back to the 12th century. 

The ceilings are often my favorite part of these magnificent churches, and the Chester Cathedral did not disappoint!

Chester was a really great town to visit. It is small enough that it only took one day to see the sites we were most interested in seeing.  

The next day we took a bus tour of northern Wales and Snowdonia National Park. One of our first stops in Wales was Llandudno. We were visiting on Remembrance Sunday and the weather was bad so the pier was really empty but it was still beautiful and the town had amazing Victorian buildings. 

In Conwy we saw the castle and city walls which were built by Edward I in the 13th century during his conquest of Wales. 

The Conwy town walls are a UNESCO world heritage site and have been described by some historians as one of the most impressive walled circuits in Europe.

Conwy is also home to the smallest house in Great Britain. Our guide told us that the man that lived there was over 6 feet tall and couldn't stand up straight inside the house, which has two floors. And I thought my little London flat was small!

By the time we made it to Snowdonia National Park it was pouring rain. Warren and I still tried to take some photos but sadly none of them turned out and we got absolutely soaked. 

We had a great time in Chester and North Wales despite the downpour. We also ended up staying an unplanned night in Wolverhampton because our train was delayed and we missed our connection to London. But even with all that it was still a great weekend. 

Armistice Day

November 11th is Armistice Day in the UK and Veteran's Day in the US. Here in London there is a marked difference in how this day is commemorated compared to what I remember in Omaha. 

In the weeks leading up to Remembrance Sunday (the Sunday before November 11th) and Armistice Day, volunteers sell paper poppy lapel pins and other poppy merchandise for the Poppy Appeal (British Legion). 

Starting at 11am on Armistice Day, the entire nation holds two minutes of silence to honor those who gave their lives in World War I, World War II, and all later conflicts. This even extends to London emergency sirens and some even pause their online posting as a way to show respect. 

All over England people wear poppy pins, stores have special signs, taxies and lorries have poppies adorning their car hoods/bonnets showing their support. It is nice to feel a part of a positive movement that brings the country together for a common cause. 

Americans And Their Peanut Butter

I love a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, especially with crunchy peanut butter. Peanut butter is something you can find in almost any grocery store in London, but typically just one brand and usually just creamy. So I sort of stopped eating very much peanut butter. Over the last year I kind of forgot about all the peanut butter that is available in America. Peanut Butter & Co make really fancy peanut butters. They have a chocolate one, honey blend, and even cinnamon and raisin.

I'm not even going to go into how many candies America has with chocolate and peanut butter, but I did find this milk inspired by Reese's. I'm pretty sure it is seasonal for Halloween but I bet there would be demand for it year round. 

Peanut butter and jelly is a staple in the American diet. Some companies have even done the hard part for us and combined them already. I saw pre-mixed jars of PB&J, fruit snacks, pop tarts, and frozen pre-made sandwiches, crust removed of course. 

What better way to start your day than with peanut butter cereal? I grew up with Cap'n Crunch's Peanut Butter Crunch as a special treat. That stuff is amazing. 

We also love us some peanut flavored granola and breakfast bars. 

I'm not sure why it took so long for Pop Tarts to start a peanut butter line but I've heard good reviews from friends about these. I've seen the peanut butter ones in the American section at Partridge's in London but they are pretty expensive. Too bad I didn't have room in my suitcase. 

And who could forget about dessert? (Remember that those chocolate and peanut butter Pop Tarts are for breakfast.) I saw several kinds of peanut butter refrigerated cookie dough in addition to regular peanut butter cookies (peanut butter Oreos not pictured). A classic American cookie is a Peanut Butter Kiss, where you bake a peanut butter cookie, then press a Hershey Kiss on top while it is still warm, see bottom right for image. 

If you aren't in the mood for a delicious peanut butter cookie, maybe some ice cream is a good match for you. I found all these varieties in just one store without even trying very hard. It is amazing how much we love our peanut butter!

Pumpkin Spice Overload

This weekend I made a last minute trip back home for a family event and I was excited to see what differences I would notice between Omaha and London from the America side. Since it is autumn I've seen a ton of seasonal foods, but none more than pumpkin spice flavored foods. We do have pumpkin products in London, but it is over the top in America. Pumpkin spice has always been popular but it seems to have seeped into every product imaginable. 

I saw pumpkin egg nog, milk, cookies, baking chips, cake mixes, candy corn, muffins, chocolate bars, and oatmeal. I do like pumpkin so I bought a few things to bring home with me for Thanksgiving later this month. 

When The Smiths Come to Town

Last week Warren's aunt and uncle came to visit us and I had a great time playing tour guide in this wonderful city. Here I am with Warren's aunt on the Millennium Bridge with St Paul's Cathedral in the background. Some may recognize this bridge as the one destroyed by Death Eaters in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. 

We walked past this beautiful carousel on our walking tour of the Queen's Walk along the River Thames. It was fun to see some parents and kids going for a spin even on a cold and rainy afternoon. 

The Queen's Walk took us all the way down to Tower Bridge, which looks absolutely amazing lit up for the evening. 

Over the weekend, Shelly and I went shopping and bought these matching scarves on Oxford Street. Great timing, too, since the weather has started getting really cold. 

We went out for dinner at the new Dishoom location in Soho. Below is a photo of our desserts: Pineapple and Black Pepper Crumble (left) and Chocolate Pudding with Kashmiri Chili Ice Cream (right). Both were delicious!

Shelly and I went to see Matilda Sunday afternoon and then met up with the guys at Rock and Sole Plaice in Covent Garden. This is my favorite fish and chips place in London and it was just as good as ever. 

On our way back after dinner we walked through Chinatown. It was busy even on a Sunday evening. 

We had such a great time with our visitors. I was sad to see them go, as usual. I was surprised that even Poppy had a good time since she usually doesn't like having intruders in her space. 

Crime Museum

The Metropolitan Police have loaned some of their Crime Museum artifacts to the Museum of London for a special exhibit. The crime museum began in 1870 and is typically used in training new officers and detectives. 

The exhibit includes original evidence from some infamous cases including the Kray brothers, the Great Train Robbery, and the Acid Bath Murderer. Below is a photo of an old lantern outside a police station, also on display.

The exhibit shows how solving and punishing crimes has changed since the Victorian era. There were displays with general information on courtroom drawings, evidence used to convict the accused, death masks, and capital punishment. Then in the second room they had information on specific crimes including the perpetrator, the victim, and how the crime was solved. It was really fascinating and the entire exhibit was put together really well. 

 I went on a weekday afternoon with my friend Lisa and was surprised that the museum was packed with people. But I suppose this is an opportunity to see things typically not available to the public and I'm glad I was able to go. 

Queen's English as a Second Language Part 10

Wahey--an exclamation to show delight possibly like "yahoo." Pronounced wuh-HEY!

Toilet cubicle--toilet stall

Get caught out--caught unprepared in a difficult situation, as in "I got caught out by the rain this afternoon." 

Hundreds and Thousands--sprinkles, as in "I'd like a cupcake with hundreds and thousands, please." The name most likely comes from the fact that there are so many that they are innumerable. I will say that they are the harder type of sprinkles, not the soft ones. Also, notice two jars down that if you order ice cream with fudge on top you will be surprised to get pieces of hard fudge and not the warm chocolate sauce. I learned that the hard way. 

Muster point--meeting point, as in "Make sure everyone knows the emergency muster point." We use the term "muster" in the US but mostly to say "muster up the courage" to do something.

Right--real, as in "that guy was a right jerk!"

School leaver--someone about to finish secondary/high school. Early school leaver can mean someone who dropped out of school and didn't finish. It seems that the term "dropout" is also used here but "school leaver" sounds much nicer in my opinion. 

Bin--to throw away, as in "I'll bin this later when I get a chance." I know I've mentioned that a bin is a trash can before, but this seems like a bit of a different definition. In the US we use the term "trash" as a verb in the same manner. 

Blooming--used to add emphasis, as in "London is blooming expensive!" This is almost exclusively pronounced "bloomin."

Speak soon--talk to you later, as in "Okay, speak soon, bye." Of course, these are completely interchangeable but you will almost exclusively hear Americans say, "talk to you later" before hanging up the phone whereas Brits say, "speak soon."

And now a short note about pronunciation. These next two photos would never work in the US. This first one is making a play on words with the term "has been" but in the US that is pronounced "has bin" instead of "has been." 

And I'm assuming this sign below is meant to rhyme but there is no way this rhymes with American pronunciation because we pronounce it "fit-er" and "peet-uh" whereas here...I have no idea how it is pronounced here. I can't make the rhyme work in my head.