Our Trip to Lille, France
We took the Eurostair train through the "chunnel" to Lille, France which is an experience in itself. The Eurostar speeds you through the Channel Tunnel (aka "chunnel"), one of Europe's biggest infrastructure projects to date, costing $15 billion. The tunnel is 31 miles, of which 23 miles are underwater. Its average depth is 150 feet under the seabed. The channel crossing time for Eurostar is only 20 minutes. The ride is unbelievable smooth! And it is so fast, taking only 1 hour and 40 minutes to get to Lille. Jeremy took it to Paris earlier in the week, which was about 2 1/2 hours!
Our hotel, L'Hermitage Gantois, the city's only 4 star luxury hotel, was gorgeous! There was so much art displayed it felt like it was a museum, and they had a specific area to display local artist's work on a rotating basis. As much a historic monument as a hotel, the restoration of this 15th century hospice buildings has beautiful courtyards, library and chapel. Very nice!
FRIDAY
While Jeremy worked on Friday, Sophie and I ventured out to Euralille, Lille's shopping mall. Lille is known for its shopping as the mall is designed to serve more than 10 times the population of Lille. It was opened in 1994 when the "chunnel" opened. It has 140 shops, a hypermarket (supermarket and other goods like Target on a second floor), a hotel and offices. I was not impressed, no comparison to the Mall of America and stores are closed on Sundays! Sophie and I spent the afternoon at Lille's Natural History Museum, which was interesting and kept Sophie's attention for almost two hours.
SATURDAY
Saturday was a full day of activities. We started with the Palais des Beaux-Arts (Fine Arts Museum) which is France’s second national museum after the Louvre in Paris. It was built in 1889-1892 and includes works by Claude Monet, Vincent Van Gogh, and Pierre Auguste Renoir, and many well-known French artists of course. The 19th century sculptures are worth viewing, and there were some interesting, temporary interactive art displays as well in the lowest level.
Next, we took a one hour tour of the city via bus. It was interesting and a good break from the cool weather and walking, Sophie fell asleep almost instantly...This is always a great way to see a city quickly.
Walking around Lille that afternoon spent some time in Les Places (Grand Place) a pedestrian only area surrounded by shops, a central fountain, a theatre, restaurants and more, it is the heart of Lille. The Vieille Bourse, the ornate 17th century merchant exchange building, one of the most beautiful buildings in Lille. The detail in the woodwork was amazing! Other beautiful buildings in the area included the Opera House, Theatre du Nord, and St. Maurice.
We toured the Notre Dame De La Treille next. The foundation stone for this church was laid in 1854 and work was finally completed in 1999 (yes those years are correct!). The chapel and apse were built by the end of the 19th century but the project was abandoned in 1947. For decades Lille had the distinction of being a city with a 3/4 of a neo-Gothic cathedral, until an architect designed the 21st century facade (we weren't fans of this new work, looks odd). The church inside is amazing with beautiful stained glass windows, huge pillars and high ceilings.
Near our hotel was the Porte de Paris. This is one of three remaining gates of the city and is the most striking. It takes the form of an Arc de Triomphe (in Paris). The Porte de Paris was erected in 1685-1692. A drawbridge crossed the landscaped moat garden. It is located around the center of a busy traffic roundabout. It is quite beautiful! Across the street from this is the Town Hall Belfry, a 341 foot bell tower opened in 1932 after the original was destroyed in a fire in 1916. 
SUNDAY
We started this day out with a walk to the Marche' de Wazemmes market. Our tourist book says "more than a mere market, this is an occasion. The Sunday morning Marche' de Wazemmes is the stuff of legend". The market includes food, clothes, antiques, pets, bric-a-brac, etc...It felt very similar to markets we have been to in other cities such as Mexico and China, just that it was French. Interesting, but huge crowds to fight through. It was an experience.
Next we took an adventure on Lille's public transport system the VAL, opened in 1983, it was the world's first automated subway. It was quick and easy to get around on. A bus was our next connection to get to the Musee d'Art Moderne (Museum of Modern Art). This musuem is home to 20th century masterpieces including pieces by Pablo Picasso, Fernand Leger (one of our new favorites, he has pieces at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and Walker Musuem!), and Georges Braque (whom Jeremy loved!). The day we visited was the last day the museum will be open for 2 years due to some rennovations.
FOOD IN NORTHERN FRANCE
We did not have great food while in Lille. It is not a very vegetarian friendly city, so I didn't have many choices. I did venture out and ordered a cheese plate with specialty cheeses from the north region, two of three were okay, the third was unbelievable strong smelling and tasting! The vegetable of the north served to me was endive, which was quite good. We had pizza once, which was okay. Jeremy was not overly impressed with the meat he had including steak, burger, and pepperoni. But nothing beats a French boulangerie (bakery)! We did enjoy our breakfasts with fresh bakery goods (thankfully we walked it all off each day!).
FRENCH ATTITUDE
Ahh..it is alive and well. I tried to take a cab from the mall to the hotel and am not exactly sure what the cab driver said to me but my summary of the conversation was "you lazy/fat American your hotel is close, take a right, left, left and you will be at the hotel, so walk..." not sure, but it is probably close. Our first cab drive actually took his tip out of the money Jeremy gave him before he gave us change. And, when checking out of the hotel, no thank you, come again, nothing. Our French definitely needs some more work before our next trip back...
WEATHER
Yes, it was warmer in Minnesota than it was in France during our trip. Having to walk around so much we got some good chill from the wind--it was nippy!
Overall, it was an interesting trip with some beautiful sites. A great place to shop. A quick weekend trip from London on the train. Au revior!
A Language All Their Own...
Even though the Brits speak English sometimes it seems like a different language, spoken and written.
Their alphabet is the same as ours, except for the letter Z, they call it Zed, not Z. In Sophie's music class the other day we were singing the alphabet and we loudly sang Z whilst the rest of the class sang Zed. The main map guide of London is called the A to Zed (we have this in two sizes, mini and Super Scale) a must for getting around, but I never put two and two together until Sophie's class...
The Brits do not seem to like the letter "Z" at all. If words have the letter Z within them, like we would spell it in the states, they use an "S", for example:
US = realize UK = realise
US = organization UK = organisation
US = specialize UK = specialise
US = recognize UK = recognise
the list of words goes on and on like this...at first I thought I was catching typos, and I was feeling quite clever, but no, I was just being American.
The other thing the Brits like to do is add "ou" to many words. For example:
US = favorite UK = favourite
US = flavor UK = flavour
US = behavior UK = behaviour
Other words that are spelled a bit different that I have realised: checks vs. cheques, airplane vs. aeroplane, and while vs. whilst.
Brits like to use the word "scheme" which means plan. Also they like to use the word "queue" instead of line. "Hey - You bloody bloke the queue starts back there." I never have any idea where I am actually supposed to be queueing. Baths vs. pool is another and lovely and brilliant are also heard daily...Maybe I should start an American guide to the British language guide...
Dali, Picasso, and Florence Nightingale
Plans for London adventure today were adjusted slightly--Jeremy and Sophie had a daddy-daughter day in the flat since Sophie has a bad cold, but I still ventured out with a friend, Renee, from the US (thank you Jeremy!).
The first stop and a majority of the day was spent at the Dali Universe. Located on London’s South Bank 
with a waterfront vista overlooking the Palace of Westminster and Big Ben, County Hall Gallery makes its home in the historic County Hall, next to the BA London Eye. The Dali Universe is an exhibition featuring 500 pieces of Salvador Dali's work. The permanent exhibition was very interesting and quite diverse. From sketchings to watercolors to sculptures to erotique art. The fine art gallery was very cool--your opportunity, for a small fortune, to own a piece of original work by Dali or Picasso. It was fun to dream that I could afford one of these pieces...
There was also an exclusive collection of over 100 rare and unseen works of Pablo Picasso on exhibit as well for a limited time. This included etchings, lithographs, ceramics, tapestries, and photos of Picasso at work. It was not as impressive as the Dali exhibit, it was a bit of a let down actually. I guess that there was a reason why these works may be not as popular. I love Picasso, but this was not what I expected.
Next was a visit to the Florence Nightingale Museum. This was an interesting museum and included more documents and personal memorabilia than I would have anticipated. She was an interesting woman who was quite determined and dedicated to improving health care. When Renee and I were looking at the gift shop items the attendant asked us if we were visiting the musuem because we were nurses--that was amusing. I am guessing that nurses are quite attracted to this museum and Florence may have motivated a nurse or to into the field...
There were several other things that were on the agenda to be covered, but there was just not enough time to do so. The remainder of the South Bank area to be continued...
Tate Modern Museum
On Sunday 15 January 2006 we started the day at the Tate Modern museum. The Tate Modern is the national gallery of international modern and contemporary art. It showcases art from 1900 to present day masterpieces.
The building itself was massive, but not impressive. It looks industrial and a bit gloomy--the art inside is incredible of course. There is plenty to see, but not so many pieces that it is overwhelming. There were pieces by Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali, Claude Monet, Jackson Pollock, Andy Warhol, Piet Mondrian, and Henri Matisse. There are some great views of the city from the Tate as well, including St. Pauls Cathedral and the Millennium Bridge. We enjoyed our visit, time well spent.
As we continued to explore the Southwark and Bankside area of London we stopped into the Bankside Gallery for a quick visit. This gallery is the headquarters of the Royal Watercolour Society and the Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers. They have temporary displays of contemporary watercolours on display for purchase (most of which are quite spendy!) but enjoyable to see. The gift shop has some nice and interesting items.
The Southwark Cathedral is also in this neighborhood and we stopped in to see it. This church became a cathedral in 1905, but some parts of it date back to the 12th century, when the building was attached to a priory and many of its medieval features remain. Shakespeare was the cathedral's art director in the early 1900's. The memorials, architecture, and tombs are fascinating. You can just feel the history in this building. It is gorgeous and worth a stop. I would love to see this again!
The Borough Market, though only opens on Friday and Saturday is located right by the Cathedral. We were at this market in October. It is a fun market to visit. It is primarily a food market selling gourmet foods from Britian and Europe, lots of things to sample before you buy! A great place to catch a casual lunch.
We also walked by Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, which is a reconstruction of the Elizabethan theatre where many of his first plays were performed. The wooden circular structure is open in the middle leaving some of the audience exposed to the outdoors. They offer shows in the summer, which we plan to take advantage of this experience--hopefully we can afford a seat with a roof over our heads...this is London...
Other points of interest in the area we saw by walk-by only including the Vinopolis (a city of wine on the banks of the river--I plan to visit with my sister Jill if she visits), Clink Prison Museum (an old prison), London Dungeon (chamber of horrors), the Design Museum (devoted soley to modern and contemporary design), the HMS Belfast naval gunship, and finally, we walked by the Cardinal's Wharf, which is a small group (very small--only 3 houses!) of 17-century houses, almost not worth mentioning...
Overall, it was an interesting day out, the highlight of course the Tate Modern. Thanks to our friend Renee from the US, also currently in London on a 2-year position, for joining us for this day out. Renee also gets credit for the photos, we didn't take any that day. Cheers!
50+ Degrees and Mowing?
Today was an unbelievable day in London! It was over 50 degrees Fahrenheit and very sunny! When Sophie and I walked to a playgroup this afternoon some guys were mowing the grass in the park! What a sight! And this morning on the way to the doctor's office (known as "surgery" here) to make sure Sophie's thumb wasn't broke after she pinched it in the door, I saw some bulb's coming up in a garden. Could winter be on its way out already? The Welsand's are really going to be in trouble when we move back home to Minnesota--we are getting spoiled here...
Culinary Challenges
Cooking in a London kitchen is an experience onto itself. The equipment, the ingredients, the terms, all lead to an interesting adventure for the novice.
Everything in our London flat is small, especially the kitchen. Jeremy and I cannot both physically be in it at the same time. Our fridge and freezer are about 1/3 of what they were in the states. I had so many left overs after our Christmas meal that we couldn't fit them all in the fridge, we had to freeze some of the food.
The cookie sheet I brought from home didn't fit into the stove, not even close. The roaster Jer bought to cook our Christmas turkey in didn't fit either, I had to bend the handles to be able to close the oven door. Every time I turn the oven on, I have to check in a book to convert the temperature from Fahrenheit to Celcius. For the Christmas meal I actually had to write down when each item would go in and come out to be able to cook the turkey and all the sides.
We have had difficulty in finding some ingredients for our recipes that there just doesn't seem to be a substitute for, like bread crumbs, powdered sugar, unsweetened chocolate. And if you can find an item that is not common in the UK, you will pay a lot for it. I paid $7 for 2 cups of Crisco from the American section of a deli so I could make Christmas cookies with Sophie.
The measurements are mostly in metric, so a calculator and appropriate measuring utensils are a must. You have to convert alot of products, for example, butter is not sold in sticks but blocks that are not marked so you can just cut off what you need, and the baking powder is not double acting like in the US, so you have to remember to use twice as much if from the UK, or half the amount if from the US. There are many different types of flour, sugar and cream products so you need to know figure out what is the best substitute, which can be challenging... I have a guide to living in London that has been extremely helpful for this transition, especially in the kitchen. Every time I try to make a new meal I have to reference the book. I am proud that I haven't burnt anything (to badly anyway), or started anything on fire with the gas stove.
All the slight or major differences in terms can also drive you a bit mad when comparing US vs. UK: french fries vs. chips, chips vs. crisps, candy vs. sweets,
cookie vs. biscuit, dish soap vs. washing up liquid, eggplant vs. aubergine, faucet vs. tap, ground beef vs. mince, jello vs. jelly, jelly vs. jam, lemonade vs. lemon squash, 7-up vs. lemonade, oven vs. cooker, paper towels vs. kitchen roll, hand towel vs. tea towel, saran wrap vs. cling film, sink vs. basin, supper vs. tea, take out food vs. take-away, wax paper vs. grease proof paper, zucchini vs. courgette. By the time I get everything straight we will be home in Minnesota...uff da!
London's New Year's Day Parade
Happy New Year to our family and friends! Today we went to London's annual New Year's Day Parade in central London. There were more than 10,000 performers representing 20 countries world-wide, with more than half a million people crammed London's most famous streets to see the parade as it weaved its way along the 2 mile route over 3 hours. We positioned ourselves along the route near Trafalgar Square (up front with only 1 hour of waiting beforehand) and viewed 1 1/2 hours of the parade before we were frozen. According to the parade souvenir newspaper, when the parade started 20 years ago it had only performers from the US and the UK and apparentely was better known in the US than it was in England at first!
The parade was interesting. It had some similarities to parades in the states and some things which made it unique. There were alot of marching bands from the US. The Brits are not known for this, which surprised us! Marching bands are actually quite new to England according to the parade commentator. The British marching bands had few people, plain costumes, and a range of really young kids to older adults. We didn't see any British cheerleaders either, all were from the US. They have a Donkey society here, didn't know that, there were more than 30 donkeys in the parade. The red hat society is really popular here--they had a huge group of women in the parade. Another cool piece of the parade was the huge parade balloons--Sophie loved these.
Another unique piece of the parade is that each borough of London, there are 31 in total, takes part in the parade. Each borough is supposed to reflect the characters of its community. Parade watchers can text message a vote for their favorite and the winning 3 boroughs get nice cash prizes. We were so surprised that most boroughs didn't do much at all--one borough only had two old guys dressed up as jester's walking with the sign with their text #! It was hilarious! The borough we live in had about 30 people watching with matching shirts, a bit better than the jester's, but still not great--it wasn't even photo worthy! I think I had a better float in college for the social work association that I coordinated myself!
The parade was definately interesting and worth the wait to capture the feel of an annual London event.
Walking around Lille that afternoon spent some time in Les Places (Grand Place) a pedestrian only area surrounded by shops, a central fountain, a theatre, restaurants and more, it is the heart of Lille. The Vieille Bourse, the ornate 17th century merchant exchange building, one of the most beautiful buildings in Lille. The detail in the woodwork was amazing! Other beautiful buildings in the area included the Opera House, Theatre du Nord, and St. Maurice. 
We toured the Notre Dame De La Treille next. The foundation stone for this church was laid in 1854 and work was finally completed in 1999 (yes those years are correct!). The chapel and apse were built by the end of the 19th century but the project was abandoned in 1947. For decades Lille had the distinction of being a city with a 3/4 of a neo-Gothic cathedral, until an architect designed the 21st century facade (we weren't fans of this new work, looks odd). The church inside is amazing with beautiful stained glass windows, huge pillars and high ceilings. 
