Tyler’s Take….
Hello! Tyler here, and I'm here to tell you about our trip to the UK so far. From the beginning of the trip to now, I've had a great time. From the front flips into the Travis swimming pool, to the priories of England, it has been a great experience for me. Some of my favorite things to do so far have been: jumping in to the Travis pool, waiting with suspense at the Travis airport hoping to catch a flight, visiting 1,000 year old castles and cathedrals, and having loads of tea! As I'm typing this, we're in the Space A military base in Mildenhall watching France demolish Switzerland and soaking up wifi like it’s life support. Anyway, that's all the time I have for now, cheerio! (hehe, cheerio...)RJ’s wRitings….
Some of my favorite parts of the trip have been going to the pool at Travis, getting to see the cockpit of the KC-10 military place we flew to the UK in and talking to the pilots about the flight instruments that control the plane, going to the Travis air museum and getting a poster that has a picture of a plane on it.Ray’s Ramblings….
Things I have learned since being in the UK.Number 1. Contrary to what I have been told, there are no scantily clad women here. It almost seems everybody here wears a parka. The person next to me could be 22 or 82 for all I know. That being said, the people here are super friendly. They will stop in their tracks to let you know where the closet petrol (gas to you Americans) station is. Put up with my nonsense of not knowing how to work the pump… (There was no payment for my credit card at the pump so I went inside to pre-pay, but the lady looked at me like I was crazy for a minute and then said, “Oh, you must be from the states… over here you pump, then pay.” with a British toothy smile.)
Roundabouts, roundabouts, I will be dreaming of roundabouts. Every couple of miles there is a roundabout. They have all kinds of roundabouts. Some with lights, some with stuff in the middle, some with a flat middle, some with single lanes, double, and even triple lanes. Some appear to have multiple lanes that aren’t marked and people are switching lanes in the roundabouts. I have only pulled a Chevy Chase once so far, but there have been many times I have entered the roundabout of death with a high shrieking sound, hoping to make it out the other side. Just writing about it makes me dread the next time I enter one. Thank God tomorrow is a bus/subway/subway switch/walk to a hotel in London day.
And speaking of God... If some of you think some of my self-reflection moments are sacrilegious, let me tell you something. Far worse things have been done in those churches. Beheadings of kings, queens, and bishops have occurred in those hallowed halls. So deal with it. Though looking at my pics, I think I would have been a killer priest!
Well that’s all for now. I can’t wait to go to London which I have been told is a super happening place. Sounds like London just can’t wait to see me! CDR Dailey signing out.
Lisa’s Lot....
Apparently Ray only learned one thing in the UK. There is so much to catch up on. I will try to make it short… The flight we were sure to get on to Hawaii was delayed for at least a day, but the next flight out was to the UK, so we jumped on! RJ, Tyler, and I got to go up to the cockpit and chat with the pilots. Too bad we could only see clouds, but a fun adventure anyway.After a day of catching up on sleep, we rented a car and Ray learned how to drive all over again. The high shrieking sound was the three of us screaming through the turns! Thank goodness all the roads are small and the speed limit is low! We are not letting Ray drive to London as we all want to continue living.
I’m surprised Ray didn’t mention anything about the radar museum he took us to. I’m pretty sure we were the only ones under 70 years old visiting. If you ever have trouble sleeping, give Ray a call and have him tell you about it. I guarantee you’ll be asleep in no time!
We made it to the east coast of the UK to a town that had a video arcade on every corner. I am not exaggerating at all. The weird part was that they were all empty. It was a strange place, but we stayed at a cool little mom and pop B&B.
We have visited a few different castle and cathedral sights, which are so cool. No picture we took will ever compare to seeing them in person. It is hard to impress upon the children that the cathedrals were built close to 1000 years ago. At the Norwich Cathedral we happened upon a film set. The BBC was filming Tulip Fever starring Judy Dench (although we didn't see her). They took a break at 6pm and we got to sit through service and hear the organ and choir in this immense cathedral. It was really amazing!
There are a few new pics on the Pics page, more to come later today hopefully. Off to London we go! Cheers!