Sunny days - April 15th Weekend

The weekend of April 15th was absolutlely gorgeous. I spent the Saturday studying (pretty much all day), but then on Sunday I studied for a couple of hours in the morning, and then wanted to enjoy the weather. It was one of Christine's work friends last day in London (Eirik - he moved to Norway the following Monday), so we wanted to meet up with him. We had dim sum at a place by the water with Eirik and Andrew (another friend from Christine's work), and then went to Greenwich. I decided I wanted to try to fly a kite, so we purchased a kite in the market and went to the park. Unfortuantley, it wasn't windy enough, so I didn't try it. Christine did though! She gave it a valiant effort, but I think it stayed up mostly due to Christine running around. We ended the day by have dinner and a pint by the water (picture above). All and all, a great day.

Eirik

Dutch Navy in London

About a month ago, Christine and I were walking home and saw a massive sail boat. We walked up to it, and asked the guy standing guard about the ship. Turns out that it was a Dutch Navy training ship, and they were in the Docklands for a couple of days on route back to their home. To our surprise, they asked if we wanted to come on board to have a look. We took them up on the offer, and this sailor took us around. He was super nice, and it was a great experience. The ship was in perfect condition (due to the hours of care spent on the ship each day - as our sailor friend told us), and it was a great experience.

London Update

Its been a busy couple of weeks for Christine and me. A couple of Chrsitine's coworkers decided to quit after bonus time, which means that things have been super busy for her until the new replacements start.

As for me, its getting close to crunch time for the CFA. June 2nd is the day, and with any luck, I can forget about these exams for a loooong time... so, between now and then, my spare time is limited. Thus far, I try to study every weekend morning for a couple of hours, and then do something relaxing with Chrsitine in the afternoon. The weather has been great, so its been tough to get focused on studying later in the days.

Greenwich Mean Time

One of our favorite areas that we have discovered to spend a lazy weekend day is Greenwich. The market is nice, and then there is a beautiful park which you can relax and watch time pass... and if you want to literally watch time pass, you can head up the hill to the Greenwich Mean Time exhibit, the start of time! well, sort of.

British Museum Library

The British Museum is massive and we will need to come back to finish looking at other exhibits. this time, we only got to see some of the Egyptian exhibits and some roman statues. Here, I took a photo with the Reading Room behind me. it's a real reference library in the shape of a circle. it's very beautiful inside. we will have to come back again.

Chinese New Year

Gong Hei Fat Choi, or in other words, we wish you a properous year of the pig.

On Sunday February 18 it was Chinese New Year and Christine and I decided to go down to China Town to see the festivities.

It was absolutley packed, but we had a good time. We found a spot in corner, and the Lion Dancers came right by us.

Belgium Treats

Belgium is known for its wide seleciton of beers, and also the food. Leffe has always been one of my favorite beers, so when in Belgium... why not? Christine and I also had to try some of the chocolate whilst in Belgium, so why not a Crepe with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce? Delicious!

Brugge - Night time

In the evenings, the canals are lit up. It is really pretty to walk along, and it feels very safe.

One of the days we were there, we decided to have a trip into Brussels. We took the train, and then went on a site seeing bus to see the sites. Parts of the city were nice, but I was glad we stayed in Brugge.

Bicyclists in Brugge

In Brugge, it seems that the most popular mode of transport was the bike. People of every age were cycling around town, and as pedestrians, you always had to watch out for them.

Brugge

January was our 5 year anniversay and we decided to take a week holiday and go to Brugge, Belgium for 4 days. Its a gorgeous city/town with canals running through it. Next time we'd probably go in the summer and take a boat trip, but it was a relaxing couple of days.

Tower of London skating

A couple of days before Chrstmas we decided to have a night skate at the Tower of London. The idea was great, and the setting was pretty impressive (it was in the moat at the Tower of London), but the skating itself wasn't quite up to the standards of Canadina skating. The skates were all hard platic (and moist when you put your foot in), and the ice wasn't quite up to the Canadian winter quality. Overall, a good experience, but I don't think we'd rush back.

Christmas Eve at St Pauls

On Christmas Eve, Christine and I went to St. Pauls for the 4 o'clock carol service. Unfortunately, we were not alone in thinking this would be a fun thing to do. For when we showed up, there were probably a thousand people in the queue, and it was already completely full. We'll have to show up a bit earlier next year!

We are engaged!

On Christmas morning Christine made me the happiest person in the world! We got engaged and then spent the rest of the day sharing our good news with family. As requested, here is a picture of the ring. = )

Planet Earth

BBC has put together an amazing program called Planet Earth. We just watched the episode entitled from Pole to Pole, and it was amazing. For those who like Monkeys, penquins, polar bears or animals from the desert, there is some amazing footage!

Christmas Tree

This is our first Christmas Tree in London. One of Christine's coworkers kindly loaned us some ornaments, and we purchased the tree at a local grocery store.

It perfect for our needs, and makes it feel quite festive.

Dublin city centre

It was a bit chilly, but we had our warm jackets, so we managed to stay warm.

Another time we'll take a horse drawn carriage.

we were on our way into the city centre to do some christmas shopping. we were sipping coffee at a local cafe and found a department store called Penny's which sells day to day neccessities at a bargain.

Dublin - Saint Stephens Green

Brooks about to attempt to throw me in the water... nice guy. = )

Dublin - Scenery

This photo shows the giant needle coming up from Dublin. It is located on one of the major shopping streets, and definitely sticks out from its surrounding.

We walked up this main strip and also walked around a bit of central Dublin.

Dublin

Last weekend Christine and I flew to Dublin to visit Brooks, who had just finished his exams. It was great seeing him, and meeting a couple of his roommates. This photo is in a pub called Mulligans, which is one of the older pubs in Dublin.

After going to the pub, we went back to Brooks' place and watched the Toronto Maple Leafs win 9 -2. Not very Irish, but we had a great time.

Postbank Dinner

Last night Christine and I went to my work Christmas party at the Sofitel St James Hotel. It was a great evening, and Christine looked stunning!

During the evening, there was a raffle, and I was fortuante to win the big prize! It is a Christmas hamper from a gourmet grocer that will be delivered to our home later this week.

One thing we learned from the evening was to never take a cab into central London on a Saturday evening, as the journey took 1 1/2 hours (tube would have taken 45 minutes).