Long time, no post

I have not fallen off the face of the earth, as some might be led to believe by the lack of activity here. I was reading my last post, about my upcoming travel, and just had to roll my eyes. That trip to Talahassee? Yeah, total cluster. Not worth explaining in detail. Suffice it to say, my first flight was cancelled (someone smelled smoke on the plane) which threw absolutely everything off. Thankfully, though, the Friday training got postponed, so at least I didn't have to follow up the screwy air travel with 10 hours in the car. It's been rescheduled for this Friday, but since my schedule permits, I'm going up the night before, so the driving is a little more manageable.

Last week I was in Providence, Boston, New Hampshire, and Vermont. I really wish I'd been able to do some sightseeing in Boston, but the weather was awful (rain, then snow, and quite cold). But the snow in Boston was nothing compared with the snow in Burlington, VT. So very pretty, and so very cold. The icicles outside my hotel window were pretty wicked.


The granite from which the roadways were carved accumulate snow and ice in a fashion that can only be described as hard core!


On the way from Boston to Vermont, I passed right near Hanover, NH, home of Dartmouth College. I attended Dartmouth for one quarter in 1995, during my senior year. UC San Diego had an exchange program with the Ivy League school, and I was lucky enough to be one of a dozen or so students chosen to go in the Fall. That was my first time living outside of CA, and it was really fun. I wish I'd been able to explore more, but being without a car made that difficult. Besides, I had to study like mad. Dartmouth kicked my butt academically! I got two B's and an A...yikes! Anyway, it was super windy when I was there, so I just did a quick little go-round of the quad area.


I saw these mailboxes and thought it was funny how buried they were.


In London news, we finally booked our plane tickets, so it's official! June 9-18: London, baby! I'm actually flying from LAX, because we found an awesome deal on British Airways. It's about $400 cheaper than me flying from Raleigh, so I'm going to use my free Southwest ticket to fly out to LA a couple days before, and that way Nicole and I get to fly together. Plus, come on, British Airways is sooo much cooler than what I would have been flying--American Airlines.

We've pretty much decided on what hotel we want to stay at. Good ol' Rick Steves recommended it, and the location sounds ideal. Premier Inn at County Hall. Right near the London Eye and the Waterloo tube stop.

I feel like the hard stuff is done and all that's left to do is plan the days, but really, that's the meat and potatoes of it, so I better get cracking! I've read through Rick's overview of the sights, and I think we'll have enough time for most of what we want to see. There will probably be only one day trip, out to Stonehenge. Originally I wanted to include Bath and the Cotswolds, but with just eight days on the ground, I'd rather focus on exploring London to its fullest. Simple is good. More time to relax, because it IS a vacation, after all!