Christmas Without the Fam - What's a Monkey to Do?

As you may know (or maybe not), we decided to stay in London for Christmas. All of our friends here were out of town or with family. So we were pretty much on our own, gulp.

The holiday got off to a bad start because (oh shit) I effed up our Christmas Eve reservations. I accidentally made a LUNCH reservation at Hix in Soho, instead of a dinner reservation. Yeah so Dave had to work, lunch was not a possibility. OK, it's fine. 

I just need a last minute dinner reservation in London on Christmas Eve, no problem - yeah right. I ended up with a Christmas miracle reservation at 36 by Nigel Mendham. Thank god for someone else's last minute cancellation. The meal was good and the wine was better - a £50 2007 Joseph Faiveley burgundy = happiness. The restaurant even had traditional English Christmas “crackers” for us. I had honestly never heard of these before, but then I am German and Irish.

So (for those of you non-English, or perhaps just ignorant to the ways of the English like me) they are small Christmas packages that make a popping noise when you pull them open. Fun, sort of. Then inside the cracker is a paper crown, a bad joke, and some small prize.

I got a crown and toe nail clippers. Effing sweet!

Dave got a crown and a plastic fancy pen, NICE.

And don’t think we are totally selfish a-holes, all dinners out and hotels. On Christmas Day I woke up at the crack-of-ass dawn (ya know, about 7:45am at this northern latitude), and went to do my usual Tuesday volunteer shift at the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home. After all, the dogs don’t know it’s Christmas – they just want some love and a walk.As an aside, I recently read Bill Bryson’s Notes from a Small Island. One of the things he describes is the English propensity to get quite excited over the smallest of luxuries. For example tea: really tea is just slightly tasty brown water to which, you add some milk. Then you drink this with a scone of some other bready-type-of-thing with raisins or even sultanas (if you are really going crazy). The English go mad over their afternoon tea with a giddy gasp of “oohhhhhh tea”, Mr. Bryson’s words – not mine. Mind you, this is a good thing! If you can’t find an appreciation for the simplest pleasures in life, you are probably a bit sad. So I can understand the excitement over the whole Christmas cracker-thing having read Mr. Bryson’s observations. I mean, the crackers we got were really funny - but kind of lame.

In case you are wondering a typical shift for me includes lots of cleaning floors, comforting stressed dogs, teaching basic commands, giving treats, and walking dogs. Today we had special donated Christmas treats to give to each of the pups, as shown in that photo over there on the left! (Insert yet another shameless plug for donations to my London Marathon fundraising effort here.) It was an unforgettable way to spend Christmas morning for sure. Dave joined me a bit later that morning for dog walking in the rain, what a trooper.

Working at the home with a bucket of soapy water for cleaning, ew.

\It cleared up after my shift was over, so Dave and I walked all the way from the home back to the Savoy Hotel where we stayed for the holiday (the Tube was closed for Christmas). Uhm this is a bit further than you might think, and really not recommended due to the city’s propensity for sudden rainstorms. However, we were lucky this fine Christmas afternoon, and we had a sunny and peaceful walk along the Thames. It was such a joy to be in London, walking in the sun and taking in the views, without the usual crazy commotion and traffic.

We had Christmas dinner reservations at Bar Boulud at 8:00pm. We tried our best NOT to drink the entire afternoon beforehand, but it was raining and everything was closed for Christmas (except for pubs). What to do, what to do? Apparently, find an uber-cheezy casino and play games! We were BIG winners on the Toss the 10 Pence game. This thing is a complete rip-off and totally addictive.

You cheap plastic watches will be mine!

The satisfaction of victory, priceless.

BTW - I got that dinner dress at a used clothing store for £5.

Dessert at Bar Boulud.

On Boxing Day (December 26^th), we had to check-out of the gorgeous Savoy Hotel - only after treating ourselves to breakfast in bed. Normally, I am wayyyyy to cheap to spend $40 on hotel coffee, bagels, juice, and fruit, but WTF it was Boxing Day after all.

Dave was meant to live like this.

We spent the rest of the day avoiding the shopping areas and sales like the plague, and instead went for a run and cooked up some chili. 

So despite missing my family and dog this holiday, I really tried to put it aside and just be happy enjoying the peace and quiet of what is probably my last Christmas in London (*Insert melancholy sigh here*).

As an aside, one of the Wireless connections coming up in my list at the cafe I am at right now is called “Olly the Hung Horse”. I love this person, whoever it is. I almost spit my tea out seeing that one, right after gasping “ohhhhh tea”.

Christmas in London

The Monkeys are spending the Christmas holiday in London. I am not sure exactly how this happened - us being stationary for a holiday, that never happens - but here we are. I suppose we figured it was going to be our last Christmas in London (we are scheduled to go home in June of 2013), so why the hell not see what sort of festing we could do in Blighty. Here is/was the lineup so far:

* Yesterday we went to a Chelsea versus Aston Villa Game (Chelsea crushed 8-0).

Pregame parading.

  

Passing the flag around, this is big over here and super cool to watch.

* After the game yesterday, we went to Winter Wonderland - a (strangely) GERMAN festival in Hyde Park, complete with German beer, sausages, Spaetzle, and other such foods. Weird, but I am always for for a Bratwurst - withhold all dirty comments. Pervs.

Recreating Oktoberfest, or something like it.

• And then there was Zip-lining over Winter Wonderland - this would SO not be possible in the USA due to various liability laws. You jump off a windy platform and fly over crowds of hundreds of people on a pretty half-ass zip-line set up. Needless to say, it was VERY fun.

Preparation.

 

This should probably be illegal, that is the zip line there.

 

You just step off the platform, I look scared.

• There were also rip-off carnival games at Winter Wonderland......Dave loves that shit.

 

Dave was convinced he could master this- not so much.

So what is next:

• A 2-night stay at the Savoy Hotel!
• Christmas Eve and Christmas dinners at various fancy places.
• Christmas Day volunteering at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home (and here is yet another shameless plug for donations to my London Marathon effort for the home).

I have been asked by like 10 people, "what are you doing for Boxing Day?"

Then I had to ask, "when is that again."

For reference, Boxing Day is December 26th. It is a big holiday over here, way more important than Christmas Eve, it seems. I have nothing planned because I didn't know it was a thing there. So I have no idea what we will do. I assume EVERYTHING will be closed. Ideas are welcome and appreciated if anyone knows of something going on.

On Saturday we leave for Austria to ski for a week at St. Anton, and I am so excited I could tinkle. Pray for snow and Merry Christmas. xo

London Marathon 2013 - I Need Your Help

That's right y'all.

I have never done this before and will probably never do it again. I am running a race (the London Marathon, obvi) to support a charity - the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home.

I am now one of those charity-racers that I have made fun of, I really have - honestly. As in, why not just do a race and raise money separately. How do these two things go together? What about the charity overhead, how do you know the charity is doing good work, where does the money go, why not just donate your race fee and expenses and sleep in the day of the race......blah blah blah. I am cruel and heartless, and apparently a hypocrite. 

Because here I am, asking you all for money.

I have been volunteering at the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home here in London for about a year now. One day a week, I go to the home and clean kennels and/or walk, play with, feed, train, and snuggle with dogs. Rough job, I know.

You would not believe the amazing work that goes on at the home, on behalf of the staff as well as the army of regular volunteers. People sometimes say to me, "I could never do that - isn't it sad." Actually, it isn't sad at all. These dogs are so well cared for. They are given medical treatment, trained, loved, and (as needed) the old fixeroo. They get to run through the on-site agility courses. Most impotantly, any dog can stay as long as they need to - until they find a home.

There are quite often tears of happiness, not sadness. Generally, this occurs when a very sweet dog gets rehomed, especially if it is one of the longer-stay doggies like Marcel here.

Me and Mutley on our walk at the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home!

The home has the most dedicated and knowledgeable staff who work SO hard, I mean the work is really physically hard. After completing my short 5-hour weekly volunteer shift, I am toast. I don't know how they do it every day for 40+ hours each week.

The home receives ZERO government money. They are fully funded by donations. And only positive reinforcement is used when training! I can fully vouch for the effectiveness of this organization, I am amazed each time I volunteer. These are just a few reasons why I am, asking you all for money.

This is where you come in (in case I haven't mentioned it before), I need your help raising £2500 - which is a lot-o-cash because that number is in £ not $ (ouchie). You can donate here: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/AmieAshton. There is no fee and Virgin Money doesn't take a commission or anything.

So donate on behalf a dog you own, have known, love, have loved. I am doing this for Sammy because I miss him more than a normal person should.


I'll keep you posted on my training. I normally follow a rather non-typical training plan, we'll just see how it goes.

AND THANK YOU! xo

Miami Byotches

So after a visit to San Francisco for work, I decided to make a stop in Miami for a week on the way home to the UK. Nice.

A week in Miami in December when it is cold and dark in London, what could be better? Not much, well maybe Hawaii - but that is a reeeeeally long flight from London after all.

Anyways - my little sister ditched her hubby and 18 month old and joined me in Miami for part of the stay. After all the time I spend with Dave, it was nice to share a room with a female who doesn't mind having E! on in the background while we are getting ready and futzing about in the room. Dave HATES E!. I love it in a I-need-to-zone-out and-not-think-about-Syria kind if way. Plus my sis always has great hair products for me to borrow, yet another reason she is perfect to share a room with. 

So what did we do, not a lot...... Our days generally consisted of coffee, a walk/run/bike ride, a nap on the beach chairs outside of our hotel, a discussion of an outing that we were never actually going to do (day cruise to the Bahamas, tour of the Everglades, driving to the Keys, kayaking, etc.), then cocktails. That is about it.

Sorry Mom, this is like the only pic of the two of us.

Overall, I did like Miami. I am not sure I need to go out of my way to go there again, especially since it is a 6-hour flight from San Francisco and Hawaii is closer. However, Miami has a few things going for it:

• Warm water and clean beaches
•  Reasonably priced hotels, we stayed at the perfectly acceptable Park Central Hotel for just $139 a night
• Cuban food, especially from Puerto Sagua - you MUST eat here if you come to Miami
• Stone crab at Joe's, we were lucky enough to be there during stone crab season (October through May) and ate at Joe's twice
• The vibe, dancing, and music at night is so cool, there is so much energy you will never be bored in Miami.

I feel so happy!

Yes - a giant shell-encrusted dreidel and menorah, explained by Finny.

Miami has its downsides, to be sure (sorry to be a downer but this is shit that I wish someone would have warned me about):

• Walking past the 100 identical restaurants along Ocean Drive (near our hotel) is an awful experience, you get hassled to the max by the staff to sit down and eat/drink. The restaurants are not very good and are ungodly expensive. Avoid at all costs, except for a few of the more noted restaurants like Quinn's or Avalon.
• Clarify the price of what you are ordering, especially with drinks. The drink prices are rarely listed on menus. One day we paid $25 for two Coronas and then $18.95 for a mojito - I am not kidding. Getting ripped off REALLY ruins my day.
• It is not pedestrian/bicycle friendly, even though they have the Deco Bikes scheme now - you cannot really ride safely many places. I am probably just jaded by my recent experience with European bikefriendlyness though.

 

I was meant to have coffee on the beach every morning.

Miami - You Are Hot

Hello from Miami! I am working outside at my hotel by the bathtub-sized pool - in the shade of the palm trees (no wifi at the beach or else I'd be working down there). This does not suck.

I am so happy to be missing the London deep freeze right now I could cry. I met my sister in Miami on Friday and we had an outstanding weekend, which included a lot of swimming, dancing (like the white girls we are), and drinking fishbowl-sized glasses of mojitos and bloody marys. My sis left yesterday, but I am staying through the week. Dave is meeting me today for a few days of R&R after his eyeball appointment in Utah yesterday.

Here is what I will say about Miami:

The men are sexy.

The women are sexy.

It's hot and sweaty.

There is music everywhere: Samba, drums, dance, Tango, Spanish guitar, good (and sometimes very bad) R&B, etc.

And lots of alcohol.

I really like it here.

But then, I am a SoCal girl at heart. I am happiest when my first decision of the day is whether to put on underwear or just wear my swimsuit again because I will be in the ocean shortly anyway. Generally, I just wear my swimsuit.

Well I'll post some photos later. I didn't bring a purse with me so I haven't really been taking my camera anywhere to get photos. Only my room key and a credit card will fit down the sweaty front of my shirt, no room for a camera. I am such a classy lady. 

The Things You Notice

It is true what they way about travel, it makes you appreciate your own backyard.

I am back in SF - and it is nice to be here. The weather has been relatively warm, at least compared to London. I have been running along the eucalyptus/pine smelling tails around Stanford, and going to Yoga again. It's just comfortable.


A few things I have noticed:

• There are a lot of cars, and a lot of traffic. It took me 90 minutes to get from Palo Alto to Los Gatos the other night, wtf.
• People are very picky about what they eat (no gluten, local only, no soy, no nitrates, no dairy, no meat, nothing with a face, no carbs, no yeast, etc.). I can't keep it all straight. This is probably just a Bay Area thing though.
• I really miss Mexican food. I don't think there is a single pinto bean or tomatillo in all of the UK. And the Brits think that ketchup is spicy......
• Americans are really, really friendly. I have talked to more people at Yoga Source in 2 days of yoga than I have in London in 18 months of yoga. LOVE.
• There is a lot of TV, always on and in every room. The Brits don't seem to watch the same amount, nor do they generally have TVs in bedrooms or kitchens and such. I never really thought about that before.
• The green Bay Area hills are so beautiful. I really took the topography for granted. I can't wait to be back on my bike out there riding.

Anyway, what I am saying is that it is nice to be "home" and I am really looking forward to our spring return to friends, warmer temperatures, triathlon, and Sammy.

I HATE Driving

I really effing hate driving. I am already dreading our arrival at SFO on Friday and picking up whatever Kia Rio P.O.S. rental car I reserved. Perhaps it is the soul-draining traffic in the Bay Area, the a-holes that constantly cut you off or drive 3 mph in the fast lane, the environmental guilt I feel, the cost of gas and insurance......I could go on and on.

And this may make me sound like a severe alcoholic (not entirely false), what I mostly hate is that one of us can't drink if we drive somewhere. This is becoming an issue because we have two parties to go to on Saturday night when we are in the U.S. My problems are so monumental - not really.
 
You see, I have been taking the Tube for the last year and a half. While often crowded and not without it's own problems, I still love it (just don't get me started on how much I HATE seeing people eat on the Tube - so GROSS). Mass transit makes sense on a million levels, and talk about the most effective birth control ever. Dragging one kid/stroller on the Tube is feasible, that second kid/stroller is almost impossible, and a third is just simply not possible - unless you are Posh and have eight nannies or something, then I suppose you'd have a car. But I digress......

Living in London, you really take for granted that you can meet friends for drinks after work, have a bottle of wine with dinner, grab a mid-day beer at the farmer's market or movie theater (yes it's true you can drink at the movie theater - so awesome), and no one has to worry about drinking and driving and the subsequent DUIs, crashing, running over small children, etc.

So until we figure out a solution to our dueling-parties dillema for Saturday night when we are back in the U.S., it will probably end up being a "not it" contest. Ya know, where both of us shot-gun a glass of champers upon arrival at the first party and whoever finishes first is "not it", and doesn't have to drive. Presumably because you finished your glass first and are therefore, drunker.

Upon writing that I am realizing what a stupid game it is. So unless we can get two bikes (also a bad idea after cocktails), we will just have to figure something out. Damn you car friendly U.S.

Istanbul for Thanksgiving - a.k.a. Turkey on Turkey Day (Country#15)

Did I only plan a trip to Turkey for Thanksgiving just because I thought it would make a good blog title? Well Maybe. 

OK actually, I have wanted to go to Turkey for years, and it is only a 3 hour flight from London.

I really loved Istanbul. That is all there is to it. It felt exotic, cosmopolitan, ancient, and modern all at the same time. I thought I would feel out of place - seeing that I am a woman and all. I have heard stories about traveling to middle eastern countries, being really white and female - you can be made to feel self-conscious or uncomfortable. I thought I would feel out of place, or unwelcome. However, this was definitely not the case.

I was also worried about not being able to find a cocktail. Never fear - apparently, Dave is an expert at beer-finding in the shadow of a mosque. 

Seeing as we really only had 2 full days in town, we stuck largely to the Istanbul biggies:

The Blue Mosque  - This 400-year-old building is just beautiful, This is the first mosque I have ever been inside. I had to wear a veil and we had to take our shoes off to walk on the GIANT rug covering the floor.

Super cool.

The Hagia Sophia - Built as an Eastern Orthodox cathedral in 360AD, then became a Roman Catholic Church, then became a mosque. It has been a museum since 1935.

Inside the Hagia Sophia.

The Archaeological  Museum- the entry fee may have been the best $3 I have ever spent in my entire life. They have so much material, they don't even know where to put it. You would not believe the 2000-year-old columns and statues they placed in the outdoor areas and courtyards. There was just no where else to put them in the museum.

One of like a million cool tombs in the museum.

 

The Basilica Cistern - This was Dave's favorite because it was cave-like and underground. The Basilica Cistern is the largest of several hundred ancient cisterns that are located under Istanbul. It was built in the 6th century and supplied freshwater to the town and palace as late as the 19th century. Cool. 

  
The Grand Bazaar and Spice Market - Anything and everything you could want in an amazing, old maze of a space. Crowded and bustling, but I liked it (surprisingly). Dave thought it was Walmartish - whateva Dave.

 

Valens Aquaeduct - Built by the Romans in the 4th century and later restored and upgraded by the Ottomans. I love me some good ruins, and yes one of the main city roads goes right under the arches.

It is hard to be so self-important and serious about life when you are surrounded by ancientness like this.

Topkapi Palace - The worst $12 (plus another freaking $7 to see the harem buildings) each we spent in Turkey. I know, the palace is 400 years old and beautiful - but it was also really crowded. We went here after the Archaeological Museum, so we may have just been museumed-out.

The view was amazing though!

Nice.

 

We made time for immature funny business at the palace too.

Hearing the hauntingly beautiful call to prayer several times each day made you feel like you were not in Kansas anymore. They project the call to prayer from the loudspeakers atop the Mosques, how very modern. Here is a video from our hotel rooftop.

A few Tips for Istanbul........

Watch Your Cash

You can spend a lot or a little money there. It simply depends on your tolerance for the searching out cheaper restaurants and activities. Generally, in the tourist areas around the hotels and major sights, you will pay standard American/London prices for everything. Going cheap isn’t hard, it simply requires some walking and a bit of curiosity.

Make Sure Your Guidebook is Current

My guidebook was from the secondhand store, written in 1998 (whoops).

Do Your Hotel Research

Our hotel the Neorion Hotel (with their hammam, perfect location, amazing rooftop terrace, and free sunset drinks) was outstanding - at at about $100 a night, how can you go wrong. You can stay at the big chain hotels, but they are waaaayyyyy on the other side of the city. Do yourself a favor and just stay HERE!!!!

Watch the Sweets

I am not sure about the Turkish Delights and other sweets that are sold EVERYWHERE in this city, I just didn't quite get it. Dave seemed to think it had to do with the Muslims not drinking. Apparently, the Morons LOVE their sweets and ice cream too, and they can't/don't drink either. Interesting theory Dave. I suppose we all have our vices.

Who can I pawn these off on?

We are off to the US on Friday. Anyone want to run long on Sunday? Hills please! Rancho maybe?

Running Update

Well I am running again!

The plantar fasciitis in my right food has been behaving and, as long as I baby it, the metatarsalgia in my left foot is finally getting better. No pushing it for me though, I know I will pay. And it isn't as if I can take "time off" my feet here if something does flare up, which is probably why these injuries have lingered for so freaking long.

After all, I live in London and have no car. It is a long walk and lots of stairs to get pretty much anywhere I want or need to go. I bet that without even trying, I walk 5 miles per day. And I haven't worn heels (except for twice) since I moved here...... 

I have been running about 3 days per week, and between 5 and 9 miles per run. I got a new pair of very neutral Mizuno Rider running shoes (as opposed to my previous super-supportive Asics GT 2170s). I have weaned myself off my arch supports and supportive shoes, because I believe they do more harm than good for me personally based on my size and gait.

While I am not a barefoot running advocate, I do think there is a lot of BS marketing out there for the purposes of selling you $150 of relatively worthless shoes every 300 miles (for the record, I also think that 300 mile guideline is a giant load of crap too - but we love buying crap in the US, after all).

I like this article about running shoes (though you can pretty much think that you are in fact, a chicken and find some article online agreeing with your chicken-as-self premise). This is from that article:

Your basic running shoe design, ".....is based on a cushioning/pronation paradigm that simply is not as true as they want us to believe. That paradigm needs to be reevaluated. It’s not founded on good science but rather initial ideas that made sense with no science behind them, but upon further review may not stand up to testing."

Anyways, I figured this all out during my Trigger Point Dry Needling sessions (man I love that shit). My calf and foot prefer not to be controlled. And if you have any tight muscles that just won't work properly, give Trigger Point Dry Needling a try.

Why Amsterdam Rocks - Aside from the Obvi.....

We took a quick trip to Amsterdam over the weekend. It is less than an hour flight from London, which is made more than bearable thanks to KLM's random Dutch snacks and free mini-Heinekens.

I love Amsterdam! This may have something to do with the contact high one gets while strolling through the center of town, but it doesn't diminish the fact that the Dutch seem to enjoy life.

We met two friends over there and had a lovely time, but then it is hard not to enjoy Amsterdam with it's canals, architecture, and happy residents zipping about on their bikes.We had cool but dry weather, perfect for wandering the city.

Sometimes I hate going into museums when the whole city itself is a giant gorgeous museum, but I got cold (shocking) so we went to the Rijksmuseum. I saw my first Vermeer through the 20 or so dumasses fresh off the tour bus who EACH had to have several pictures of themselves with the effing paintings. WTF. This is one of my new pet peeves (and I have many): people who take photos of paintings in museums, but then I am becoming a really intolerant byotch in my old age.

In case you want to know, we stayed at the Hotel Plantage. It is about a 10 minute walk east of the town center, which is nothing for us hardy Londoners. On a really cool note, my recent German lessons helped me out on this trip. Dutch is a strange sounding language to an English speaker. And while the Dutch are all polyglots, if their English wasn't so good, chances are they knew some German. It was nice not to have to revert to always pointing and grunting.  

I know the Netherlands has their share of problems, but the Dutch have an appreciation for life that is SORELY lacking in the USA. You don't need a giant car, giant house, and lots of wasteful junk and expensive crap to be happy. You need time to enjoy life and ride your bike, the Dutch just seem to know this implicitly.

So here are a few Reasons Why Amsterdam Rocks:

• There is the obvious, marijuana smokers inside - dirty cigarette smokers outside. How civilized!
•  A Dutch appreciation for the art in the everyday; kitchen utensils, clothing, household bits, shoes - they are just so well designed and interesting. All just to make life pleasant.
• A staggering variety of beverages at the cozy cafes: mint teas (see photo), krieks and Belgian ales served in half-pint glasses, strange colored sodas, mulled wines, ciders, etc.  
•  The most amazingly involved fathers I have ever seen (outside of Denmark).
• An appreciation for "different" clothing, hairstyles, lifestyles - it's all good. The Gap would fail here.
• BIKE EVERYWHERE - kids, adults, really old peeps, dogs, babies.....they are all on bikes no matter the weather, and have the right-of-way over cars. LOVE! And no one is overweight in Amsterdam, unless they happen to be British or American tourists.
• Glorious, slightly tilted 17th century architecture.
• People don't use their cell phones in the restaurants and cafes, they talk to each other - sorry, I just have cell phone rudeness overload lately.
• Pets allowed inside cafes and restaurants, this is cool in most of Europe too (OK, I have seen it in the UK, France, and Austria).

 Well we are off to Turkey on Thanksgiving purely because I thought it would make a good blog title (get it, Turkey for THANKSGIVING). Then, we are off to the USA for a visit. More on that later.

On a final note.....does this seem like an Oxymoron? Talk amongst yourselves.

What's Up In Whitstable......Not a Whole Lot

We'll file this trip under "well, why the hell not". We took a 2-hour train ride from London to Whitstable to spend a weekend in a kitschy seaside town. Whitstable is located on the east coast of Britain on the North Sea, not too far from the mouth of the Thames.

I know what you are thinking, why would anyone go to the British seaside in November? Truth is, we have trips to Amsterdam, Istanbul, then the US coming up in the next few weeks. Neither of us could face an airport right now. Did I really just say that, I am so freaking SPOILED......

So here is what happens in British coastal towns pretty much year round: take the train in from London with throngs of people, you rent an overpriced shack on the beach (generally try to bring at least five family members you don't really like), you wear woolens and wellies to look the part, you eat seafood, you try to imagine it is not miserable, cold, and drizzly.

Our overpriced fishing shack, at least it was 10 feet from the water.

The little bar outside our shack, it might be nice if there was EVER a warm day.

Since it rained on Saturday, we had to find indoor activities so I didn't freeze. It was league day at the bowling alley so that was out, oddly there were two bowling alleys in this little town. So we walked in the rain, went to assorted pubs, and ate seafood. Oh AND we found the arcade and occupied ourselves the children's penny gambling games.

That is my own personal hell, choppy sailing in cold weather. Why.......

Fun times, look at those a-holes in their wellies checking out the tide pools.

Lunch was 25GBP, plus I sat 2 inches from the fireplace.

 

Of course, there are reasons why people come to Whitstable. They have the cutest little downtown ever with the most lovely non-chain shops. Why people go on vacation and shop at the Gap, I will never understand.......

We did get some sun on Sunday and cruzed the beach, checked out the Whitstable Castle (really lame), and ate more seafood. Can I just recommend Wheelers Oyster Bar to anyone that goes to Whitstable. It was the highlight of our trip. I'd take the train out just to eat there again.

Puppets freak me out, I don't know why.

 

I look cold, because I was cold.

Dave in his happy place at Wheelers Oyster Bar.