I am now officially unemployed!! I signed off the Queen Elizabeth on June 9th, and have been relaxing with Nick's family in Southampton all week. Nick and I went down to a place called Calshot Spit to wave goodbye to the QE as she sailed away without us. It was a surreal and wonderful feeling to see it leaving without us on it! I've never seen it do that before.
We have had one week in England, adjusting to life on land, sleeping at normal times, with sunlight and no ship white noise in the background. We have been splitting our time between family time, sightseeing, relaxing, and doing visa paperwork. As of today we have sent Nick's required documents along to the US Embassy, notifying them of his readiness for the final interview. Between now and then we have some final papers to organize, and he will attend an official medical exam. Hopefully he will have an interview date by the end of August!
Now for the fun stuff we've been doing. We got to see the London cast of the show Wicked while we were up in London renewing Nick's passport so it is valid for 8 months after his potential travel date to the US. The theatre where Wicked is located sits around the corner from the passport office, so as we walked past it we popped in to check if they had any "day seats", tickets that are only released on the day of each show and can only be bought at the theatre's box office. They had two front row seats off to the side, and we were thrilled to take them! So much cheaper than buying tickets any other way. I love the show anyway, and this cast was very talented, but what a treat to be in the front row!! I also enjoyed hearing songs I know so well sung with British accents. It made me giggle. Things rhyme differently than in the American version. Other things we've done are: visiting Kew Gardens, going to the top of St. Paul's Cathedral, window-shopping in the famous Harrod's department store, going to see the Mary Rose (Henry the VIII's ship that sank in 1545!!), and visiting a wartime-style working farmhouse and one of the oldest churches in England. And a special mention to the Warner Brothers Harry Potter Studio tour!! It was incredible, I can't say enough good things about it. What a treat to walk through the actual sets on which the cast and crew spent 10 years filming. I also have new appreciation for the talent, skill, and work that went into every single prop and set piece in the film. To be able to examine each object up close was so interesting. I will enjoy watching the films again, with new eyes!
Tomorrow we begin the next part of our holiday - a visit to Nick's Aunt and Uncle in the Rhone-Alpes region of southeastern France. They have a chalet that they have renovated right at the base of Mount Blanc. Talk about "wow"!! I can't wait to see it. We will be staying with them for about a week, hopefully doing a little bit of hiking around the mountains. I'm excited to add a new stamp to my passport, since the nearest major airport is actually Geneva, Switzerland! Bring on a new country!
We have had one week in England, adjusting to life on land, sleeping at normal times, with sunlight and no ship white noise in the background. We have been splitting our time between family time, sightseeing, relaxing, and doing visa paperwork. As of today we have sent Nick's required documents along to the US Embassy, notifying them of his readiness for the final interview. Between now and then we have some final papers to organize, and he will attend an official medical exam. Hopefully he will have an interview date by the end of August!
Now for the fun stuff we've been doing. We got to see the London cast of the show Wicked while we were up in London renewing Nick's passport so it is valid for 8 months after his potential travel date to the US. The theatre where Wicked is located sits around the corner from the passport office, so as we walked past it we popped in to check if they had any "day seats", tickets that are only released on the day of each show and can only be bought at the theatre's box office. They had two front row seats off to the side, and we were thrilled to take them! So much cheaper than buying tickets any other way. I love the show anyway, and this cast was very talented, but what a treat to be in the front row!! I also enjoyed hearing songs I know so well sung with British accents. It made me giggle. Things rhyme differently than in the American version. Other things we've done are: visiting Kew Gardens, going to the top of St. Paul's Cathedral, window-shopping in the famous Harrod's department store, going to see the Mary Rose (Henry the VIII's ship that sank in 1545!!), and visiting a wartime-style working farmhouse and one of the oldest churches in England. And a special mention to the Warner Brothers Harry Potter Studio tour!! It was incredible, I can't say enough good things about it. What a treat to walk through the actual sets on which the cast and crew spent 10 years filming. I also have new appreciation for the talent, skill, and work that went into every single prop and set piece in the film. To be able to examine each object up close was so interesting. I will enjoy watching the films again, with new eyes!
Tomorrow we begin the next part of our holiday - a visit to Nick's Aunt and Uncle in the Rhone-Alpes region of southeastern France. They have a chalet that they have renovated right at the base of Mount Blanc. Talk about "wow"!! I can't wait to see it. We will be staying with them for about a week, hopefully doing a little bit of hiking around the mountains. I'm excited to add a new stamp to my passport, since the nearest major airport is actually Geneva, Switzerland! Bring on a new country!
