GERMANY - Christmas Markets

Stuttgart Christmas Market

The christening of Graham's nutcracker

The big brother of Graham's nutcracker

Fran and her brother Philipp

Esslingen Christmas Markets

Schwaebisch Hall Christmas Markets. This is the town Fran's grandparents lived in, and their house is on this street.

Nuremberg Christmas Markets

Fran drinking mulled wine to keep warm

Lebkuchen (gingerbread) - all shapes and sizes

The little prune men. They are made from prunes and toothpicks and then given little outfits. Locally they are known as 'Hutzelmaennchen' - a tradition that is particular to Nuremberg

HURRAY!!!!

Thursday, 23 October 2007

12pm

Graham gets a call confirming that his visa application has passed!!!!

This may not seem such a monumental event but......it is actually, especially considering that it took almost three months, a refusal , then an appeal and another six weeks to get an anwser.

So we're really really really really chuffed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Down by the River Side

Ex tube trams converted into a cafe somewhere near Liverpool Street

where we hired our bikes from

A perfect morning, the Thames sparkling, HMS Belfast and Tower Bridge in the background

Graham on London Bridge

Compulsory coffee stop at Monmouth, Borough Markets

The first of many bridges as we head west along the South Bank

View east to St Pauls

The girl power bridge - built entirely by women during WWII

London Eye

Big Ben

Westminster glowing in the sun

Looking back east from somewhere near Chelsea

Battersea - ex power station now being (very slowly) remodeled into a mixed use scheme with apartments and retail. It will take years of works and huge investment just to ensure the building is structurally safe for re-use, but the setting is awesome.

Lunch down by the river in Richmond in a wee german Biergarten, loving the Kartoffelsalat (potatoe salad), Currywurst and Sauerkraut. One of the great things about London is that you can get anything...provided you know where it is. Thanks Jess for telling me about this one!!

A human musical mobile - trapeze artists and musicians suspended from a crane - one of the spectacles at the London Mayor's Thames River festival, also taking place that day

Walthamstow - the dogs

One of Fran's colleages retired a few weeks ago and decided she wanted to have an after work do 'at the dogs', so we paid a visit to Walthamstow Stadium, reputedly the biggest dog race track in England. It also has possibly the worst neon sign in Britain.....I'm sure you would see this from space!!!

Catherine and Beth with their picks for the first race of the night

Feeling lucky the beginning.....this feeling quickly wore of as our individual picks proved to be no good, Fran's pick consistently placing last. After five races the four of us started chipping in for trifectas, one of which was successful!!!

Catherine, Beth and Fran at the finish line

Edinburgh AB's v Scotland

We left for Edinburgh from St Pancras and King's Cross so finally a chance to see Platform 9 and three quarters....

Fran & Mike

Emma, Adam, G & F

Amy, Leona and Patrick

Paul on the mic on the occasion of his 30th at The Dickins

Fran, Shaw, Mike and Graham on the way to Murrayfield to see the All Blacks in action

With Adam and Emma and Mike and some of his friends outside Murrayfield before the game

The Haka - 60,000 plus people and you could have heard a pin drop

This is where the 3x optical zoom ain't enough...

Nuclear power stacks somewhere between York and Newcastle

Training it up to Edinburgh