London (winding down)

London has been a perfect way to wind things down.  As Court mentioned in her earlier post, we're staying at Hallman and Mike's flat in South Kensington.  It's perfect and they are so practised at having guests, they spoil you with their own personal guidebook full of restaurant, pub and shopping suggestions, your own tube passes, etc.

Here is the coffee shop/bakery/cafe just around the corner from their flat.  If you are ever in London, I beg you to try the almond and chocolate croissant from this place.  Amazing.  Mike swears they make the best cappacino in Europe, hard to argue.

We were so exhausted by the time we got here, we literally slept 16 hours the night of Jan. 1.  Our legs are giving out and there is just no more room to store information, so we've turned into just walk by, point, snap a photo tourists.  This is a square in SoHo, Leicester I think, that I liked.

Courtney doing her best Beatles impersonation.  I have the feeling I'm misspelling a lot of words on this post, oh well.  That is Abbey Road Studios (those are?) in the background.  Did I mention we're exhausted?

Our wonderful, overly gracious, highly cultured hosts, Mike and Hallman Ray, paying for OUR beers (wait, how did that happen?) at a fun pub last night.

The happy couple.  Guess who is wearing all new clothes, all purchased in Europe (not me); take a look at whose drink is already empty (not me); and finally, guess who is not reading over my shoulder and editing.

This is some famous gjioun' in London, and it's pretty.

London Eye, more impressive from the ground than Paris's Wheel of Excellence, to be honest.  Court and I's conversation about whether to ride it...me: "wanna ride it?" court: "naaah, you?" me: "nah."

That's been pretty much our same conversation for every sight, including Big Ben, which you can't go up in anymore anyway because it is now sideways, for those of you who have not been following the news from London.

Including Buckingham Palace: I'm no longer allowed to take the 'couple in front of famous thing' pictures because my face reveals the very intense concentration required of me to perform such a simple task.

This is a funny picture and will mean more to those who have known me for a long time.  Apparently, the same thing was written on my 1st birthday cake.  Yes, I have been made fun of by my family since I was 1.

Oh, but we did go to this amazing exhibit at the Hayward Gallery today of all this Andy Warhol stuff.  That guy was a cook but pretty dern amazing.  Easily the best art exhibit I've been to since I've been in Europe, including the Louvre.  We learned all about Warhol (although I'm suspicious Court already knew a great deal) and got to see a very large chunk of his work.

Headed home tomorrow, flight lands in the afternoon and Bo is picking us up from the airport because Matthew again refused.

Can't wait to see everyone.  Thanks for all the emails and messages of congratulations.

Bonne année (oops)

The past few days have been a crazy whirlwind of emotions, champagne, food, trains and new years resolutions. We have made it to London, the last leg of our trip...which is appropriate because we literally feel like we only have one leg left. We have exhausted ourselves and are very content to be taking full advantage of Mike and Hallman Ray's beautiful flat in the heart of London. Here are some pictures of our new year celebration. Bon Annee!

sneaky picture..can you find the camera?

breakfast at hotel du lys.

rip wishing he were ewan mcgregor.

duh...

don't let the smile deceive you...i hate the eiffel tower more than any monument in history.

remember that ferris wheel rip took me on after we got engaged...well, it is not so big from this view.

getting ready...tough decisions

new years eve dinner menu at amelie's restaurant.

rip has TWO fiances.

there she is....

we were about 15 metro stops short of midnight on the champs...ended up ringing in the new year on the subway..oops

rip became suddenly popular when he popped a bottle of champagne and passed it around.

we finally made it. 

another bottle...woo hoo

10 billion people

give it to me baby..uh huh, uh huh (we ended up at a club..details hazy)

L'Engagment (Part II--Courtney's Perspective)

For me, it started with a hot dog. (Rip's friends spare me your references to Freudian innuendos.) Other than the French baguette or the spicy mustard it comes with, there is nothing special about a Parisian hot dog. But for whatever reason I wanted one, and my sweet, ever-appeasing boyfriend stopped at a small hot dog hut off the Champs-Elysees to get me one. I savored my delicious snack as we continued our walk down the Champs. We came upon a small carnival section with a huge bumpy slide--the kind I used to love to ride as a little girl at the fair. I looked longingly at Rip, and he--much the same way my dad used to do--smiled and reached in his pocket for some Euros. I gave the carnival man my ticket in exchange for a piece of green carpet, and with the giddy alacrity of an 8 year old made my ascent up the ramp to the top of the slide. Oblivious to the preparations being made down below, I situated myself on the carpet and prepared for take off. There are two notable differences about this slide experience and those of my childhood. First of all, I didn't go as fast as I used to; those extra pounds forced me to push myself over the humps. And secondly, before there was never a man at the bottom with a ring and an important question. As I came over the second to last hump I saw Rip and thought "What is he doing? Has he fallen over? Why is that random lady taking a picture of me?" It was not until I came over the last hump that I heard the words "Will you marry me?" and realized that Rip's fingers were sparkling. The details of the following moments are hazy, but I'm sure there was some sort of affirmative response along with cheering from the small crowd that had gathered, pictures, tears, disoriented walking to random gardens off the Champs, hugs and kisses. Eventually our emotions began to settle and we continued our walk--me admiring my new ring and Rip explaining to me its history.

As some of you may have been, I was not fortunate enough to have known Rip's grandmother Mem. I have heard a lot about her though, and have a great appreciation for her and her influence over Rip. A couple of nights ago as Rip and I ate dinner outside the old Opera house I unwittingly yet preciently asked him to tell me more about Mem. From what I gather she was an amazing woman--strong and independent, intensely devoted to her family, and fiercely determined to live a full and happy life. The ring Rip slipped on my finger (there was confusion as to which one) was Mem's original engagement ring. So, Mem, thank you for this special privilege and for your role in making Rip who he is today. I wear it in your memory and in your honor, and I aspire to live as you did and love your grandson the way you loved him.

For me this experience has been grounding. We have walked along the streets of ancient cities and witnessed some of the oldest and most magnificent structures the world has ever known. We have traveled to great heights--St. Peter's, the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame--but the most special moment of the trip happened at the bottom of a slide. In the hundreds of hours Rip and I have spent together in the past few days we have struggled through culture shock, heightened insecurities and having no one besides each other to talk to. It has been hard at times, and we have learned a lot about ourselves and each other. Those of you who know Rip know that he is--probably more than anything--a good friend, a great person to have on your team. And I feel so lucky to call him my very best friend, and now, my fiance.

I suppose it started long before the hot dog craving ever entered my mind. Through whatever series of decisions, mishaps, heartbreaks, cathartic moments, stories, sounds, sights, smells, feelings, dreams, and life experiences Rip and I have come together to embark on a special journey. I don't know that I necessarily belive in the idea of "the one," but I do believe that Rip and I have something immensley special that niether of us has ever shared with any other person. At the beginning of this relationship a lot of you said to both of us "don't screw this up." Well, miraculously we have not managed to yet. Thank you all for the love and support you have shown each of us in your own special ways. We will need it now more than ever.

Happy New Year.

L'engagement

Court and I had a wonderful day in Paris today, despite the unbelievable cold.





We began with a church service at Notre Dame.

Followed by a wonderful brunch at a nearby cafe where we could look at Notre Dame from our seats.

Then we bought our museum passes and looked at some great art (Waterlilies, Monet in this picture).


















More art...

















Then took a walk down the Champs Elysees.
















The Champs is amazing. There are all kinds of amazing sculptures and buildings lining it. The half closest to the Arc de Triomphe is lined with some of the riziest stores in the world. The half closest to the Louvre is basically a permanent carnival. There's a lot to do. Including kissing elephants.












Including this giant slide that Courtney kept wanting to slide down. Take a look at her in the second lane from the right (blue) about one hump up, and take a look in the bottom left hand corner of the photo.












Big finish.












Fun slide, has no idea what I'm doing. She later said, "I was thinking, why is he not taking my picture? That's why I wanted to do this slide."









Still no clue...












Is figuring it out...















Ring on the finger.














She said yes...(shocking I know).













Pray with me that those are tears of joy. Otherwise, we're in for a long rest of the trip.

















Le ring! (I don't think that's the right translation).













This is about 10 minutes later after we both calmed down and were able to stop shaking -- wow, that's a nervous moment -- had no idea.










Then we had the bright idea to get up on this contraption. 9 euros a piece.

But it was worth it for the view.










We're headed out now for some champagne and dinner. Miss everyone and can't wait to see you all soon.

Paris!

Our hotel is old and nice and right in the heart of Paris -- Hotel du Lys. It has no elevator and we have to climb this winding staircase to our room. Breakfast is complimentary each morning and a great way to start the day.









We walked all over the city our first night and now Courtney has a knee injury and I have a back injury so we just have to sit around all day on the Internet (but for parents that might take this too seriously, we are okay).







Apparently our camera has some shutter speed deal that malfunctioned, but Courtney says this is art. Right before we took this picture, we saw a guy get hit on a motorcycle, which was scary, but he was okay.









Dinner the first night. You don't want to know how much this glass of pink champagne cost -- we didn't know until the bill came. This was a very nice restaurant where Victor Hugo (of Les Mis, Hunchback of Notre Dame fame) used to eat. It was SO formal that we were nervous the whole time that we were messing something up and whispered the entire meal for fear we'd be kicked out.



We finally fulfilled my hope of going out on the town. This is me at one of Paris's top clubs/bars: Kong. It was nice but had nothing on Bellbottoms.








Courtney: smaller than that lady.












Efficiency: see two monuments at once.

Paris has all these chocalatiers on the street that put all these amazing little snacks (one step up from M&M peanuts) in their windows. We finally got drawn into the Godiva one and this is us eating our truffles.

Opera Garnier during intermission at the ballet we went to last night. Very opulent and proper. We bought some scalped tickets and were nervous they were fakes, but it worked out.

So....this is us at dinner after the ballet as we were realizing we messed up. The prince killed the bad guy, saved the princess and everything seemed great. The curtains came down, the crowd cheered, and the lights went on. So we got our stuff and left. As we sat at the restaurant waiting to eat, we noticed no one else left until like an hour later. Apparently there was a THIRD act? oops.