A Proper English Christmas….and Boxing Day

WOW…I woke up around 7:15 and thought, what the hell, it’s still dark out?! I looked up “sunrise in London” and it came up as 8:05…WHAT??..then looked up sunset and it was at 3:55…WHAT?? So, basically there’s only about 8 hours of daylight and it starts getting dark-ish. It’s great, though, in the morning… I slept in every day!
Christmas shoes!
Knowing I’d be in London for Christmas by myself I had to plan something to make it a bit special, since I wouldn’t be with my family. I booked a 3-hour lunch cruise of the Thames. Festive, beautiful, relaxing! The tube and public transportation in general doesn’t run on Christmas so I took an Uber over to Westminster pier, on the water right next to Big Ben and Westminster Abby. It was so cool seeing those iconic landmarks so close (although scaffolding was up around the Abbey so that spoiled the pics from the water) I was so excited and the cruise started out magically, with a cool view from the water and my charming dining guests, who were from Sardinia, Italy. BUT….the lunch took forever, was just okay in taste….and in the end I would definitely recommend a cruise, just not one that includes a meal. It reminded me of the time years ago in Paris when I was given this same advice when the was-band and I went for a cruise on the Seine…do the cruise, skip the meal..so much better.
A few weeks before I was to leave, one of my friends, Verinda, was over for our weekly mahjongg game and was talking about her London trip. She has lots of family there and I basically asked if I could crash her Christmas dinner…ballsy!??
She, very graciously, said “Absolutely” and said I would be treated to “A proper English Christmas dinner.” So immediately after the cruise I took another Uber over to her husband’s cousin’s home and it was a lovely, yummy evening.
Their home was so beautiful, with a big open kitchen with red accents, decorated for Christmas and the food was amazing…lamb; roasted potatoes; roasted veggies; mushroom/cheese pie, that I loved; homemade gravy; brussel sprouts; and homemade yorkshire pudding that was light and fluffy and delish! There were 21 of us at the sprawling table festooned with those fun poppers that contain little paper hats, jokes and surprises..kind of like a cracker jack box.
It was so much fun seeing the kids open their gifts with such excitement….there were gift opening sessions about every hour or so…FUN! It was such a treat to be part of a beautiful English/Indian Christmas and they made me feel so at home.
It truly was a special “proper English Christmas dinner” that I will remember always! I was too pooped to stay for dessert so no pics of that, but I’m sure it was just as fabulous as dinner.  I had a big walking day ahead of me…..
 ….Boxing Day
So, I went to bed really late…for me that means midnight…and slept until 9:00, which was awesome, but so weird at the same time. This was my wandering day and I didn’t care. I was in Camden Town (home of Camden Market and Camden Lock) by 10:15 and if you’ve ever been to Canal St in NYC it’s like that, on steroids! I went from booth to booth thinking it was a lot of touristy things…until I hit upon a couple of awesome shops and, not planning to, bought some funky, fun things.
you can tell what’s being sold at the store by the 3D display above each…it was wild to see!
Camden Lock…outdoor food market with an eclectic array of food choices…sitting right on a canal. Those are canal boats lined up.

After walking around for over an hour and having some coffee and a little snack at Camden Lock I ventured on to my next destination…Covent Garden and Trafalgar square.

Verinda’s cousin, Manjeet, had recommended I walk along the canal (instead of a busy commercial street) to make my way towards Covent Garden and what a great suggestion it was. It was so nice just strolling next to the water, seeing the locks, …the wandering is always the best part! After surfacing to the street, I found little alleyways and eventually made my way to Scarfes Bar in the Rosewood Hotel to sit down and read. I had done a little research before I left, googling “cozy pubs to read with a fireplace” and Scarfes was on the list. It’s actually quite large, but still felt cozy, and was so quiet when I arrived, I was seated in a little nook near the fireplace right next to bookshelves. What is it about a wall of old books that makes you feel like sitting and staying awhile?
unfortunately they were having a hard time getting the fire going
I sat there for almost 2 hours enjoying a glass of wine and a FAB book. It felt so
quintessential Dickens Christmas and the artwork is a rotating selection of cartoons…really funny…
check out this one with Donald Trump accosting Prime Minister May
I continued my stroll around Covent garden, slipping in alleyways, walking to Trafalgar Square to see the fountain, Christmas tree and large menorah.
It was Monday and I thought to myself “hmmmm, pizza Monday, I should find a cute little Italian place. I’m not kidding, I looked across the street from where I was standing and there was an adorable place called Cicchetti…that is Kate’s mom’s maiden name!
What are the chances?! Kate said she’d never come across anything with that name when she was in Italy during college. Of course, I had to have pizza Monday there! I tucked myself into the corner of the bar to people watch and to enjoy the chef orchestrate the food in the large open pizza oven.
yummy prosciutto and funghi pizza
I’d pretty much been walking all day…time to take the tube home and go to sleep…another 11pm evening! My feet were tired!
You cannot direct the wind, but you can adjust the sails!

….a little lost in London

After a bit of a flight delay, I landed in London around 2:30pm….and, after the long customs line, arrived at the apartment I’d rented around 5:00pm. I had dinner plans with my cousin, Beth, and her husband, Paul, the birthday boy, who happened to be staying in London on their way back to the states. Beth had made reservations at the coolest place, The Booking Room at the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel to celebrate Paul’s birthday…and Christmas Eve. It was such a cool venue…an old train station turned into a hotel, with restaurants and bar…and the train still operating right outside. We had a leisurely dinner in the historic venue and then headed our separate ways around 9:45.
My place was only 2 stops on the tube and I navigated that part beautifully….and then I exited the station. I turned on my cell phone gps to navigate me towards my apartment, and, thinking I was going in the right direction, turned it off to conserve the very low battery. I just instinctively turned the wrong way out of the train station. After walking 10 minutes it just didn’t feel like the same route I took when I went to dinner?? I looked at the gps, turned around and tried to follow the screen map…..and then I ran out of battery…IN THE MIDDLE OF LONDON!!!  UGH!! My apartment was on Crondall Ct…and I knew there was also a Crondall Street. To make a long story short, I asked at least 5 people where Crondall Ct was and nobody knew and, after roaming around thinking I was SOOOOO close I finally unlocked the door to my apartment at 11:35….WTF!!

my cute apartment

It was a bit reminiscent of my Montreal trip…arriving late, no idea where you are and need to get in touch with someone RIGHT NOW!! For this excursion I knew my phone would be charged and I’d have no problems…..uh, NO! I have three phone chargers scattered about my house and just grabbed one….the one that doesn’t really charge very well! I tried to charge it on the plane to no avail.
….but  had a little sense of relief knowing I had an external charger….which wasn’t charged!  Basically both didn’t work very well and I was screwed….
The moral of the story…make sure the place you stay in a foreign country is in a safe neighborhood, in case you need to wander a bit after dark…and don’t panic..you’ll get to your place eventually! …OH, and make sure your phone is charged or you have an external charger that you can use as a backup. I knew in London and Montreal that I’d be fine walking around, but it can still be a bit stressful at 11pm!
great statue at St. Pancras
You cannot direct the wind, but you can adjust the sails!

Motivational Monday…Happy New Year (one day late)

Today is the first blank page of your 364 page book. Write a good one!

How will you make the most of 2017?

You cannot direct the wind, but you can adjust the sails!

Motivational Monday…A few thoughts as we end 2016

 

I’m going to miss this man…& his wife….

“I know not all that may be coming, but be it what it will, I’ll go to it laughing.”…Herman Melville/Moby Dick

“Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark in the hopeless swamps of the not-quite, the not-yet, and the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish in lonely frustration for the life you deserved and have never been able to reach. The world you desire can be won. It exists.. it is real.. it is possible.. it’s yours.”…Ayn Rand/Atlas Shrugged

You cannot direct the wind, but you can adjust the sails!

Movie Reviews…Arrival…& SING

I was all packed and ready for my trip to London for the holidays and had a few hours to spare yesterday, so decided to see the movie SING!  ….but it was sold-out 🙁 which isn’t surprising given that it’s in the top three at the box-office, since it opened on Tuesday! I had heard that Arrival was good, so went to that instead.

Delightful, FUN, poignaint, FUN…and who doesn’t love a bunch of animated animals singing!? Oh, wait, that would have been my review if I had seen SING…’cause I know I’ll love it! Okay, Arrival…I really liked it. I’m not a big fan of sci-fi futuristic movies, but this was so much more than that. It’s about communication and world peace with a lovely family story thrown in. It was engaging and interesting…and it stuck with me for a bit after I left the theater..always a good sign.

So, that’s my quick review of Arrival. Go see it….and go see SING, because I know you’ll love it too!

Happy Hannukah, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Be the joy you wish to see in the world…. xo…jeanine

You cannot direct the wind, but you can adjust the sails!

Social media…”likes”, or something else?

Wow it’s been two years since I started this blog and sometimes I wonder why I’m doing it….and what social media is all about. Do you do it for likes, is it a popularity contest, or you just trying to share or capture the moments of your life.

Image result for instagram facebook twitter icons

As I reflected on this, I realize I do it because I really love the creative outlet of writing, and, although it does sound morbid and a little dramatic, I also do it because if I died tomorrow I know I’ve left a little footprint and my grandkids will know who I was and what I was all about….and that’s important to me. As I wrote last week, “tomorrow is never promised.” Sure, some may think it’s morbid, but I choose to think that it makes me live my life as if today were my last day. I’m truly grateful to see the beautiful sunrises at rowing in the morning…last week was a doozy!

I try to squeeze every last experience out of my day and life…whether it’s traveling, enjoying the company of my family/friends or just sitting on the couch and savoring a book for a couple of hours….all make me so happy!

Okay, so sure I look to see how many likes I have on an instagram photo (admit it, you do too!), but, more importantly, I truly love the idea of an online diary. It’s fun…and I go back every once in awhile to look at old blog posts or pictures to see how my life and outlook have changed (…and unfortunately how my weight has changed…ugh!)

As much as it sometimes takes over our lives, I choose to think of social media as a gift that was given to all of us. My parents didn’t have a clue what I was doing when I was at college in San Francisco or when I moved to Illinois, where both of my kids were born. When all my kids were on the east coast it was a great way to stay connected.  Just getting a random photo of the four of them when they were out to dinner together really warmed my heart. They knew how much I loved it and Taylor and Kate always made sure to send a pic, which made me feel like I was sharing in their evenings together. It’s hard to have my son and daughter in law 3000 miles away, but I get so much comfort from the pictures or videos they send or I see online. I get a little sense of connection to their life…and live, for a moment, in their space. It’s not as great as being with them, but that’s why I go to NY twice a year…and the pics in-between are just icing on the cake. I am so thankful that my daughter and her husband are only 12 minutes away and can share some day to day experiences.

one of the many photos they shared with me when they went out together on the East coast

So as much as I think some in my generation get a little disheartened with the whole “like” popularity contest, etcetera…the younger generation can just open their phone or go online to see a snapshot of their lives…instead of forgetting to get those photos printed from that memorable trip (as I’ve done before!) What a great memoir to have in the palm of your hands! So, embrace it a bit and be thankful for the technology that keeps us connected.

You cannot direct the wind, but you can adjust the sails!

It’s the HOLIDAY SEASON! random thoughts…

…okay I know you’re singing that song by Andy Williams!

andy-williams

A few months ago I got the season schedule for the Irvine Barclay Theater and saw “An Irish Christmas” on their calendar. Well, what a great way to start out the holidays! It was this past Sunday, right after Thanksgiving, and I loved it! Irish music, lots of Irish dancing, a little Christmas tree, some Irish history and just a warm, lovely show. They’ll be touring California, with a stop in Arizona, but the closest they’ll be back in SoCal is Dec. 14 in Thousand Oaks or Dec. 17 at Caltech in Pasadena…if you wanted to take a moment from the holiday madness to sit back and be entertained.

irishchristmas-jpeg imag2555

I also got to see the movie Jackie  at the OC Film Society screening this week and I was a bit underwhelmed. I have always admired Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, who doesn’t. She was poised and had so much class…and I loved the way she raised her children in NYC without much pretentiousness. I randomly rode in an elevator with her while shopping at Bergdorf’s in NYC in the early 90’s…who can mistake those fabulous sunglasses…yes, she had them on in the elevator. I digress… If I had watched the trailer I would have known that it was a small snippet of her life as first lady right after Kennedy was shot. I thought it was going to be much more of a biopic of her entire life, so, honestly, I was a little disappointed….but it was still interesting. I thought Natalie Portman’s performance was great (she’s had some reviews that thought it was a little too much “acting”) portraying her as I suspect Jackie was…guarded, rehearsed, always on, trying to live up to her new Kennedy name. On a totally personal note, I got all choked up when she puts on a record of Richard Burton singing Camelot because my dad used to sing it and it just caught me by surprise. It could hear him singing it like it was yesterday. Weird how songs and movies can do that to you. Anyway…would I recommend? Eh? If you’re a big movie goer and want to see all that’s out there, it’s worth seeing and well done, but if you’re the type who’d rather wait for the video release, I’d go with that.

jackie-poster

Well…it is the holiday season, so check out this list of events to go do and see in the coming weeks here in Orange County. A few of my favorites are our own neighborhood progressive hors d’oeuvre party at three homes (start one in your neighborhood!), the Balboa Island Holiday Home Tour (next Sunday 12.11), our team Christmas row, in costume, out to the Newport Jetty with other clubs and paddlers, xmas-rowthe Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade (12.14 thru 12.18)…and Roger’s Gardens never disappoints. Of course every mall will be decorated to the nines, there will be countless opportunities to see The Nutcracker….but sometimes it’s just nice to sit at home by the fire with Christmas music playing and relishing in the joy that the season brings (ignore the noise of holiday chaos!). Share some things going on in your area in the comments below!

elf-menorah
my little elf menorah

ps…check out the Barclay calendar as they have some awesome entertainers coming up (and it’s a lovely small theater), not the least of which is the AMAZING tap dancer Savion Glover. I’ve seen him numerous times and if you like dance…oh hell, even if you’re not a huge dance fan…he’s truly something to experience. He’ll be there February 10th & 11th.

You cannot direct the wind, but you can adjust the sails!

Motivational Monday…Holiday Sentiment

thanksgiving-2016

May you be Inspired by Giving…
Changed by Love
Filled with Peace
and
Touched by Miracles

After a magical, warm, Thanksgiving surrounded by family and friends I thought this was a great sentiment. Have a great week!

You cannot direct the wind, but you can adjust the sails!