The last 72 hours or so
So, we're back. I had intended to follow my earlier post with a recap, but right as I was about to start typing, something happened here that required my attention; basically, our downstairs neighbor (who'd been watching Lily and Lola all week) had one of his two Weimaraners run out of the apartment, and as far as we can tell, the dog still hasn't been found. The dog isn't wearing tags, doesn't have a microchip, and only responds to Spanish commands (as our neighbors are both from Columbia). So Kath and I spent a great deal of our afternoon running all around the neighborhood while he kept watch at the apartment, hoping the dog would come back. Needless to say, this was not the relaxing post-vacation vacation day we were hoping it would be; we're keeping our fingers crossed that our neighbors get some good news.
As for the rest of the trip; Friday night we did indeed see "Major Barbara" at the National, and it was indeed the dullest show we saw all week.
Saturday we went with Kath's parents to the National Portrait Gallery and had lunch in the beautiful space at the top of the building; afterwards we crashed out (well, Kath crashed out, and I got sucked into the rugby championships - go Wales!) and then had dinner with Mom and Paul at this little French place around the corner from the hotel.
Sunday was the flight; today we left from Springfield, MA and arrived here at around 11:30 or so. Once we got back from our dog search, I basically caught up with my long-neglected RSS feeds and am trying to keep myself awake as long as possible, so that I can get over whatever jetlag is still lingering in my system.
Overall, the trip was a lot better than I'd anticipated it being. I was taking a shower about 20 minutes ago and it occurred to me that I'd spent 9 consecutive days without listening to music, or reading any books, or playing any video games (and, also, not really eating what you'd consider a full meal), but I survived, and overall I had a pretty good time. I'm not sure I'd do this particular trip again, but at the very least I proved to myself that I am no longer afraid of flying, at all. Speaking of flying, Virgin Airlines is fucking AWESOME - best food I've had on a plane, ever, and the in-flight distractions are quite plentiful. (I am a little ashamed to admit that my first viewing of "No Country For Old Men" took place on the return flight, but hey.)
Finally, I just want to say that I'd prepared some playlists for the London trip that I'd never gotten around to listening to, and some of them included new songs that I'd not even heard yet. And so now that I'm back and able to listen to music again, I should mention that I've listened to the same song over and over again for the last 2 hours or so, and it is my current front-runner for Favorite Song of 2008: the French Kicks, "Abandon", off their forthcoming album.
As for the rest of the trip; Friday night we did indeed see "Major Barbara" at the National, and it was indeed the dullest show we saw all week.
Saturday we went with Kath's parents to the National Portrait Gallery and had lunch in the beautiful space at the top of the building; afterwards we crashed out (well, Kath crashed out, and I got sucked into the rugby championships - go Wales!) and then had dinner with Mom and Paul at this little French place around the corner from the hotel.
Sunday was the flight; today we left from Springfield, MA and arrived here at around 11:30 or so. Once we got back from our dog search, I basically caught up with my long-neglected RSS feeds and am trying to keep myself awake as long as possible, so that I can get over whatever jetlag is still lingering in my system.
Overall, the trip was a lot better than I'd anticipated it being. I was taking a shower about 20 minutes ago and it occurred to me that I'd spent 9 consecutive days without listening to music, or reading any books, or playing any video games (and, also, not really eating what you'd consider a full meal), but I survived, and overall I had a pretty good time. I'm not sure I'd do this particular trip again, but at the very least I proved to myself that I am no longer afraid of flying, at all. Speaking of flying, Virgin Airlines is fucking AWESOME - best food I've had on a plane, ever, and the in-flight distractions are quite plentiful. (I am a little ashamed to admit that my first viewing of "No Country For Old Men" took place on the return flight, but hey.)
Finally, I just want to say that I'd prepared some playlists for the London trip that I'd never gotten around to listening to, and some of them included new songs that I'd not even heard yet. And so now that I'm back and able to listen to music again, I should mention that I've listened to the same song over and over again for the last 2 hours or so, and it is my current front-runner for Favorite Song of 2008: the French Kicks, "Abandon", off their forthcoming album.
