Been a while

Wow, It has been over a month since the last time i blogged anything. I would like to say that I have been too busy but that isn't true. There have been plenty of times when i could have sat down and written something but I haven't wanted to take the time. So here is a little synopsis of the trip that I just got back from. I was in Vegas working twelve hour days and not enjoying much of it. I did have some good company and I was happy about that. The guys that i was with were good dudes who wanted to do pretty much the same things as me. Problem is, when you have six guys sharing the same van it can be difficult to get everyone moving in the same direction at the same time.

I was able to get away for one of the weekends and went up to St George to visit some old friends. It was incredible to see everyone and just enjoy the time that I was spending there. I am really looking forward to being back states-side. You don't realize how much you miss something until you get a taste of it and then have it taken away again. Only a couple more months though and we will be within driving distance of almost anyone in the family and friends circles!!!

The Church!!

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This weekend took us to a bar down in Kentish town, London called the Church. It is something of a legend over here. They open the bar at 11 am Sunday morning and close at 3 pm. We got a little lost on the way once we got out of the tube! But it made for a nice little detour and we were able to get some breakfast out of it. Which was good because when you leave from Mildenhall it takes about two hours to get to London and then another hour on the tube so no one was up early enough to get breakfast. When we got there the line stretched all the way around the block but it only took about a half hour to get in the door! It is hot and sweaty inside but with the recent ban on smoking you can see across the whole place. The first thing that you do is stand in a queue for vouchers that you then stand in another queue and trade for beer. We waited for about 20 minutes and we didn't go anywhere. Jessi took matters into her own hands and worked her way up to the front in about 3 minutes! She bought enough vouchers for everyone who came with us and we quickly made our way over to the beer queue. This one went a lot quicker and before long everyone had a bag of beer tied to their hip. A voucher buys you three beers in a bag, and you tie this bag to your belt loop to keep at least one hand free for participation in the various acts that come on stage.
We found ourselves a little spot where we could stretch out and enjoy ourselves. We danced and sang along to all of the songs that we knew and a few of the ones that we didn't know! There was this crazy lady who was sprinkling glitter all over the place and everybody in our little group was absolutely covered by the time we left. The thing that I like the most about the church is that it seems like everyone gets along in there. It does not matter who you came with you will, at some point, end up with your arm around someone screaming along with some song at the top of your lungs. Maybe it is because it is a daytime event but it seems that there is never any drama surrounding the day.
When the church closed down, we got back on the tube and took it to Cambden town which is a Gothic area of London with one of the best markets in the world! You can get all kinds of clothes and crafts but we went straight to the four blocks that hold the food booths. We walked through half of the booths before deciding on Chinese food and ate our fill. Then we got back on the tube and went to Kingscross Station where we caught the train up to Ely and finally made it home. It was an intoxicating day and one that I would not repeat on a weekly basis but it was well worth waking up early on a Sunday!

Auction

Jessi and I went to an auction this last weekend. It was the first time either one of us had been to one and it was kind of intimidating! But let me give a little back story first. There is a little barn two towns over that acts as an auction house for antiques on the weekend. Patrons are encouraged to come around on Friday and peruse the merchandise, making notes of anything that they are interested in. Then Saturday morning at ten the auction starts and the items are put up for bid around the room. The whole process takes from 10 in the morning until 5 in the evening. There is a camper that parks out front and offers a variety of different sandwiches and there is a little tea shop around the back. People are constantly coming and going throughout the day and if you see something that you want but have to leave before it is time to bid on it you can make what is called a commission bid and then the people who are still there begin the bidding with the price that you put down. Several items are sold this way as people usually put the max that they are willing to pay for an item and no one is willing to top it. The gentleman who does the part of the auctioneer goes non-stop from 10am to 5pm with only an occasional pause if there is some kind of confusion. Well, Jessi and I went Friday night and found a couple of items that we were interested in and then got up the next morning and headed down. Before we made our first bid we were both pretty confused because the guy was just zipping through items and he was a little hard to understand, having a fairly strong English accent. Jessi caught on just in time and was able to get nice little display case for 11 pounds! After that we started to get the hang of it. We left for lunch and came back in the afternoon having had our eye on a couple more items. There was a really nice little china hutch and Jessi got into a bidding war with a lady. It is hard to know when to call it quits when you are in the middle of bidding and the guy is talking so fast. It can be pretty confusing but Jessi finally backed down and let the lady win. There was another little number that had our eye and I started bidding on it. Wouldn't you know the same lady started in on me(she obviously had good taste if she was willing to go for the same stuff Jessi and I were going for). I had set myself a limit but I tell you, when you are there it is a lot more simple to raise your hand and keep the bidding going. I ended up getting the corner cabinet but for 5 pounds more than I had been willing to pay! We both had our eye on a couple little items and we were both able to get them. I got the little typewriter(it still works) and Jessi got the wash basin and jug. It was a really neat experience but one that our pocketbooks won't let us take more than once a month!

The Simpsons

This weekend Jessi and I went to see the Simpsons! It was a good little trip with a couple of friends we went to ASK which is a little Italian Restaurant right outside of the movie theater. They have this red chilli pepper olive oil that you put on your pizza that is Awesome! Jessi found this website that allows you to make a Simpson character that looks like you. This is the "family portrait" of the Sims-psons and the Bates-sons. I thought it was kind of neat!


We also went out to the local pubs on Friday. It was our first time out since England went smoke-free in all of it's public buildings. It was kind of nice to be in the pubs and be able to see more than a couple of feet in front of you. Here we have Jessi and the girls taking and shot whereas I try to stick with the more predictable beer!

Venice

Aaaah, Venice. This is a trip that Jessi and I had been trying to go on for quite a while. We thought that we were going to be able to go back in April but for a multitude of reasons ended up putting it off until now...July. We got there Late Saturday morning and were immediately astounded by the heat and the humidity. It had been raining in England for two weeks prior to our departure and neither one of us were ready for the wave of heat that hit us. We smiled in unison as we looked at each other and felt that our holiday was under way!

In true J&J Bates fashion we took a wrong turn right out of the departure gate and ended up getting on the wrong bus-boat. Bus-boats run all over Venice and the system is fairly easy to use once you get the hang of it. They are, however, remarkably slow in the water and quick at the ports. If you are not in the queue for boarding then you can fully expect not to get on as they stick to a tight schedule. Apparently, there are two lines that run in the city and we had purchased tickets to one and gotten on the other. The gentleman collecting tickets informed us that we either had to pay for the bus or get off at the first stop. Well, at that point we were all out of Euro's so we got off the bus in Murano, an island known for its intricate glass work. Loaded down with all of our luggage we didn't dare go into the shops for fear of knocking something over. We finally were able to figure out the bus stops and got onto the right bus to take us to our hotel, or so we thought. At the next stop the bus attendant informed us that this was the wrong bus and ours would be here in a few minutes. We were both quite hungry and thirsty at this point so Jessi stayed with the bags while I went off in search of an ATM and some food and drink. I got back with two mini pizzas and two waters just in time to catch the next bus and we were finally on our way to the hotel. We arrrived at the hotel at about 5 pm, 6 hours after we had stepped off the airplane. We were both exhausted from being in the heat all day with our "England Weather" clothes and our bags. After this adventure everything slowed down and we enjoyed the remainder of our trip at a leisurely pace.

The island that housed our hotel is called "Lido." It is a long thin island with beaches on one side and typical Venetian coast on the other. Everything on the island was within a few minute walk from the hotel and we were able to find quite a few good restaurants and cafe's on the center strip. For the most part we ate while we were in Lido. The restaurants and cafe's offered "traditional Venetian cuisine." Which meant a lot of pasta and pizza. We ate pizza the first day and told ourselves that we would try something different everytime we ate. We did manage to try a few different meals but ended up sticking with the pizza followed up by the Gelato for the most part...and um..um..um..it was good!

Our second day we went into Venice proper and saw some of the sights. We started at Piazzo San Marco and walked through the city to the Grand Canal. There were all kinds of people and pigeons in the square and everyone stood in the shade in between dashes to the shops and sights. We walked through the back alleys of Venice and every turn was a view perfect enough to be Mural. Jessi got to take a lot of pictures and I just hung back and enjoyed the views.













Monday we discovered why the Italians spend so much time sitting in cafes and drinking wine in the shade. We had noticed a little grocery store in the center of town and went in to buy some water and snacks for the beach. The shop was very crowded and the people pushed and shoved their way into the lines at the counters. I was amazed at the difference from the pace of life that is evident on the street. From there we went to the beach and spent a few hours alternating between beach towel and sea. We also went to Burano which is a beautiful, colorful, little island that is known for it's lace production. The buildings are all painted in vibrant colors, the windows and doors were open both to the shops and the houses and we were able to peak in and see some of the locals at work in their homes. As is our luck, we got there right as everything was closing down and so had a quick coffee and got back on the boat bus, promising ourselves that we would go back the next day when the shops were open.




The next morning we went back to Burano and did some shopping. There was a lot to see for such a small island and we were able to get lunch at one of the restaurants. When we were getting back on the boat bus at the end of our stay the heat and the cramped spaces proved to be a little too much and Jessi and I were forced to skip the bus in favor of some time in the shade and a nice cool towel on the neck. We made it back to Lido and decided to take the rest of the day easy, trying to avoid the sun and get re-hydrated. And of course...a little more shopping!

Wednesday morning was the last day of our trip and we were both ready to get back to nice, cool, England. The heat proved to be a little too much for us after having lived in the moderate English climate for 3 years. We had a leisurely breakfast and lunch and caught the boat bus back to the airport. It was a lovely trip and a very well needed break from the rapid pace of everyday life. And oh, let us not forget the amazing food, from muscles, to spaghetti bolognese, and pizza to gelato. We start our diet on Monday!!

Cambridge Festival

We went to Cambridge this weekend. There was a music festival going on (the headliner was a Beatles cover band). We took some friends and hung out. There were a lot of food booths and i got a burger made of some sort of lamb and another meat, I didn't have the moxie to ask what it was. I am not sure if the English are learning to cook better or if I have become immune. Maybe they have managed to kill off most of my taste buds!
I barely fit into the ride we went on but the guy assured me that there was no weight limit. It was a fun little up and down ride that spun around at the same time...sort of like a mix between the "teacups" and a really high Ferris Wheel. It was creaky and a little rusty but a lot of fun.

There were some pretty sweet fireworks at the end and Jessi Spoke the Star Spangled Banner...also tried a new type of Cider...Old Rosy! Rosy's name was being cursed by the end of the night! All in all a great night and a really nice change from our usual local pubs!

Test

Sarah sent me an email that told me about this place. I thought that I would give it a try. I think that it is a little more my speed than MySpace. I will let you know how it goes!

This is a picture of us up in Scotland. This is just on the Southern border of Scotland! We are going to Venice this weekend!! I will let everyone know how it goes!