Thetford Priory

There is so much history in this country that we don't have to go too far to discover something really cool. Thetford is a town very near the base; in fact it's heavily populated with US Air Force personnel who work here at RAF Lakenheath.

These are ruins of one of the most important monasteries in East Anglia: Our Lady of Thetford. It was founded in 1104 and owed much of its prosperity to a supposed visitation from the Virgin Mary. I thought the ruins were fantastic. It just shows that this country really is full of amazing little places!

Stonehenge, Bath, and other Auds and Ends

We had an action-packed weekend, and this entry can only be a partial accounting because we can't possibly fit it all in. Our trip began with a visit to Stonehenge, and let me be roughly the 80-trillionth person to say that Stonehenge rocks! It was amazing, and we had a great time. It's such an iconic place, and it was incredible to be there.

We also made a brief stop in a tiny village called Stockton, which is near Stonehenge. This is a picture of me in front of a church where my ancestor (John Terry) was a vicar in the 1500s! The church was locked up, but we enjoyed visiting the quaint village where my ancestors once lived.

Then we went to Bath, a place I've wanted to visit since I was 15 and began reading Jane Austen. The visit did not disappoint--it's an incredible place! There's definitely not enough blog space to show all the photos of everything we saw and did. (We took 210 photos this weekend.)

Here are the 2 sides of Pulteney Bridge, which crosses the Avon; you can tell why the side on the right is generally the one shown in photos, but we thought the "back" was cute too. Pulteney Bridge is one of only a handful of bridges in the world with shops built on both sides of it.

The Roman Baths were the most amazing part of Bath; they were built there by the Roman Empire about 2000 years ago. This photo also shows the beautiful Bath Abbey above.

This is a photo of the Circus, an example of the breathtaking Georgian architecture. The Roman Baths have been attracting England's elite for hundreds of years, and they've built gorgeous homes for their stays in Bath.

Below is a garden with the Royal Crescent (more Georgian architecture) in the background.

We also discovered this tasty beverage (Belgian chocolate milk), which Jacob described as "liquid awesome." We hope to find it again a little closer to home. We also enjoyed another fabulous pub meal; so far the food here hasn't failed to impress.

On our way home Saturday we made a couple of stops. The first was at Costco, which we've been excited to check out (yes, Dad/Garth, we made a Costco run). We thought they had lots of great products, but it's too far away to make our continued membership worthwhile (not to mention the unfavorable exchage rate).

We also stopped at this house: Audley End House and Gardens. During the winter months they give a special tour of the servants' quarters, which we took. The house was built in the 1600s and includes gorgeous Jacobean ceilings and other great artwork and architectural features from the time of King James. The grounds are extensive and beautiful! We will definitely return to this house (only about 30 minutes from our place) when more of the gardens are blooming this spring. Sometimes the house's reflection can be seen in the Cam, but I love this photo because you can see a beautiful black swan in the Cam instead!

I think this hedge is one of the more amazing garden features at the house.

Below is the view from the back of the house (notice the fountain).

Cambridge

Saturday we spent the day in Cambridge. It was only about a 25-minute drive to the park and ride, where we took the bus into the city centre. It was a cold, blustery day, but we managed to have a great time anyway.

(Jacob in front of the amazing King's College)

We're really excited to go back in the spring and punt in the Cam when the weather is nicer. We've heard that a person hasn't really seen Cambridge until she or he has seen it from the river. But with the wind and threatening rain, we didn't brave it Saturday. As you can see by the many stationary punts, we weren't the only ones who decided to wait until the spring!

One memorable activity we did participate in was eating at Chili's. It was a nice taste of "home," and we were delighted that the salsa tastes the same as it does in the U.S.



As you can see from the photo below (taken from the top of Castle Mound), Cambridge is a series of incredible, beautiful buildings and churches; it was like stepping into a different world! We also enjoyed walking around the market and the various shops.



We anticipate many future trips to Cambridge, and we really enjoyed our first one!

The Official Highway Code

Driving in the United Kingdom will be an adventure! We have both passed our driving tests and are ready to hit the road! After we both had the chance to test drive a few cars, we purchased a vehicle with the steering wheel on the right side of the car. (A 1998 green Toyota Camry) Test driving was a scary experience because it was the first time either of us drove on the left side of the road.

We recently had the privilege of studying the Official Highway Code in order to pass our driving tests here in England. I'm sure we would find funny moments from highway codes in the U.S. too if we really read them. But here are a few road signs and excerpts from the Code that we thought were cute or funny. We hope you enjoy!

• “Drive carefully and slowly when … passing parked vehicles, especially ice cream vans…”


• “When passing animals, drive slowly. Give them plenty of room and be ready to stop. Do not scare animals by sounding your horn, revving your engine or accelerating rapidly once you have passed them.”


• “If a road is blocked by a herd of animals, stop and switch off your engine until they have left the road.”


• “Take great care and treat all horses as a potential hazard; they can be unpredictable…”
  

•“If you are dazzled by bright sunlight, slow down and if necessary, stop.”

•“Older drivers. Their reactions may be slower than other drivers. Make allowance for this.”

•“Avoid distractions when driving or riding such as … arguing with your passengers or other road users”

•“Be careful of electric vehicles such as milk floats and trams.”

It's not just the traffic signs that are a little caricatured; we've grown fond of the "exit" signs indoors, such as this one right outside our hotel room.

To close this post, just a few other items we learned from the Highway Code:

• The word curb is spelled kerb in the UK
• It's not maneuver, it's manoeuvre
• A road is generally called a carriageway--but we assure you that no one drives an actual carriage
• There are a variety of different kinds of crosswalks. All of the following are actually for persons, not animals: zebra crossings, pelican crossings, puffin crossings, toucan crossings

Bury St. Edmunds

(St. Edmundsbury Cathedral)

Today we had the privilege of visiting a nearby town--Bury St. Edmunds (they call it simply Bury, pronounced like the word berry). We had a really fun time, and we already can't wait to go back when the Abbey Gardens and the Appleby Rose Garden are in bloom.

Bury's biggest claim to fame is the Abbey, which was largely destroyed in the 16th Century. It was previously a pilgrimage site to the remains of Saint Edmund, a king who was killed by the Danes in 869. In this photo you can see some of the ruins of the Abbey. There are even places where apartments have been built into the Abbey ruins (not pictured). These ruins are spectacular!

The St. Edmundsbury Cathedral is central point of interest. The parts of the Cathedral/Abbey compound that are original have been there since the 11th Century, like this Abbeygate which is 900ish years old! Pictures don't do it justice; it's breathtaking.

Being inside the cathedral was incredible; it's beautiful, with many stained-glass windows and an organ that sits high in the building so the sound penetrates the entire place (maybe even to the soul, I didn't calculate precisely). The ceilings are high and beautiful, and the whole experience of being inside is indescribable. Again, the photographs just don't adequately convey the beauty.

We also had the chance to enjoy local fare at the Queen's Head Pub. Here is a photo of our meals: steak and ale pie with chips and peas; and potato and leek soup with french bread. We're sure you've heard the rumors that English food is horrible, but we would like to report a very delicious meal today!

Another "important" feature of Bury is that it is home to Britain's smallest pub--the Nutshell (the pink building in the photo).

We also happened upon a bakery, where Jacob was drawn (magnetically, it seemed) to purchase a loaf of bread, which we are both enjoying tonight.



On an unrelated note, we're happy to report that we both passed our driving tests yesterday, so we'll soon be driving on the left side of these roads! Stay tuned to English Patience for future reports of our adventures!

Moose, Mushers and Minus 45 Degrees!

We've just had a huge Alaskan adventure before we head off to England this coming weekend. We did so many fun things while we were there, it's difficult to fit it all in!

When we arrived Tuesday night/Wednesday morning it was negative 45 degrees outside! We took a few pictures next to this bank's temperature marqee throughout the week. This particular picture was taken on the way home from the gym Thursday morning. Jacob was a bit insane to be out in such temperatures wearing only his gym shorts and short sleeves. Even I was almost frozen solid with my workout pants and long-sleeved t-shirt! (You can also see the dense ice fog in this photo--it's eerie and almost eliminates visibility altogether.)

Another highlight of our trip was watching the beginning of the Yukon Quest Sled Dog Race Saturday morning. It's not as big as the Iditarod, but it's a big deal in Fairbanks. (We even got to see the winner of the last Iditarod take off!) The dogs are magnificent, and we were amazed that they make it 1000 miles in these extreme temperatures! We were only out for about 30 minutes, but already our hair and eyelashes were freezing over. It's easy to see how that happens to the dogs and the mushers.

We took some great pictures of the mushers, and Jacob shot this video from the car when we came across a mushing team later that day on our way to the next adventure.

We couldn't believe we were doing it, but Saturday evening we drove up to the Chena Hot Springs, where we actually donned swimwear, walked out 20 yards in negative 20-degree weather (in only swimwear!) to the hot springs, and had an amazing time in the water! Even after we saw people come from the hot springs into the pool house with literal icicles hanging from their faces and hair, we still participated and had icicles of our own! The four of us had a wonderful time! The water was great (at 110 degrees), and when the moisture from the steam caused our hair and eyelashes to turn frosty, we tried to snap some photos. But the steam made picture-taking difficult.

On our way up to the hot springs, we searched for moose, and we saw 4; they are so big and gorgeous! The first one we saw was a cow, and we also saw a bull and a few other cows before the journey was over. (I wanted to call them does and bucks because I thought it sounded a little more euphemistic, but my parents corrected me.) Here's a cow we saw. She seems to see us too.

Later that night we went aurora-searching. We figured we couldn't come to Alaska in the winter without seeing the aurora borealis. We parked at the top of a ridge and waited past midnight but saw nothing. It wasn't until we started driving home that we began to see them. It was so fascinating to see a green light originating in the sky and undulating across in unexpected patterns--extraordinary! They were a little faint, but at least we can say we saw them, and they were really cool!

The best part of the trip was the time we got to spend with the Terrys; it was wonderful! That's all the narration I have, but here are some additional pictures from our trip.

The raw fur store

The Santa Claus House in North Pole, Alaska

Some beautiful ice sculptures (They actually cut blocks of ice from the river to make these; they're amazing!)

The Trans-Alaska Pipeline

Some crazy folks...

More from the hot springs (including someone we met there--Sandi)

And another picture of the dogs (including one that seemed to notice Jacob taking its picture)

Campaign Trails on the Santa Fe Trail

(Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed and implied in this post belong solely to Rachel; Jacob shares neither my level of passion for politics nor my excitement for the Democratic presidential candidates.)

If you’re reading this blog, you probably know me well enough to know that I am passionate about politics and that my political leaning is left. With Super Tuesday approaching and New Mexico holding its Democratic presidential caucus in just a few days, we’ve had a lot of political excitement with candidates and their representatives visiting Albuquerque. I have been extremely excited to attend a few events in the past couple of days, and the intent of this post is to describe my experiences (and display pictures I took myself at the events), not to preach the political beliefs I so fervently embrace. So for those reading this who find yourselves leaning right (which is probably an unfortunate majority of you), I hope you’ll keep reading despite the “blue” tint. I’ve had a whirlwind past couple of days!



The first event I attended was Senator Edward Kennedy stumping for Barack Obama at the National Hispanic Cultural Center here in Albuquerque on Thursday. My first impression when he entered the room was that he looks much older in person than he does on TV. Going into the event, I expected to see the iconic Ted Kennedy; instead I saw the elderly Ted Kennedy! But as soon as he started speaking I felt his energy and enthusiasm, and he seemed much younger than he had when he entered the room. His message was one of hope and optimism, something I’m sure we all want to have in our next president. He also spoke of specific experiences he’s had working with Senator Obama on various committees and groups in the Senate, which was interesting and enlightening. I was impressed and energized!




Later that afternoon I attended an event where the main speaker was President Bill Clinton, campaigning on behalf of his wife. He spoke to several thousand people – mostly young people – at UNM. I stood in a very long line in the 32-degree (and even colder wind chill) weather, and every moment was worth it! He is a brilliant orator, and his charisma and charm were palpable! The moment he entered the room was electric! He said some things I didn’t know about Hillary’s experience and credentials, and I was impressed. Bill has been criticized recently for turning the Democratic race negative, but in this speech he kept his message very positive. It was inspiring!




Friday morning Jacob and I braved the insanely large crowd to attend a Barack Obama town hall meeting at the convention center. Apparently the crowd was so large he had to speak briefly to 2 overflow crowds before getting to the actual event, where Jacob and I were lucky to get a seat (we were almost in one of those overflow crowds). The Obama event was an “economic summit” where he delivered a message about the economy, had a panel that talked about the economy, then opened it up for the crowd to ask questions. Just as impressive as the crowds he drew was his message and delivery. His message about the economy was practical and positive, and I think he has the ability to make the differences we desperately need right now.

The final event was Hillary Clinton at a local high school Saturday night, which Jacob and I both attended. I know I've run out of adjectives from describing the previous events, but let me assure you I attended the best last! Hillary was incredible! Her speech was awesome, and the room was pulsing with energy! I loved what she said about Iraq, immigration, education, etc. I especially enjoyed what she said about creating "green-collar jobs," which are jobs we'll need in our efforts to make the country more energy efficient and environmentally friendly. (This photo is a bit like "Where's Waldo"--she's in the middle with the bright blue shirt under a black suit. Chelsea Clinton also attended the event; she's a few people to the right of Hillary in a grey jacket.)

I can't believe I've done all this just in the past 3 days! It's so exciting!! Even though the Democratic caucus in New Mexico is this week, I won’t be voting. On paper I’m a registered Independent, so I can’t vote in the caucus. But just in case you wonder where I stand after all this excitement... I was leaning toward Obama before, but I’m increasingly impressed with Hillary Clinton. I’ll gladly support the one who gets the Democratic nomination. (If you’re interested in learning more about the Obama campaign, click here; if you’re interested in learning more about the Clinton campaign, click here. If, on the other hand, you’re interested in any of the Republican candidates, please reconsider!)