Thursday 13

GO SUNS (Thanks for wearing #13 Steve!)

Back in 1998/99 I was dreaming of going to the Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. I visited the USOC website on a regular basis and watched for airfare and ticket prices. Sadly, I did not make that trip because of timing. As a school teacher, it is very difficult to take a major vacation in August or September. But hope springs eternal, so I am looking ahead to 2012 in London! I have been to London twice…once on an Air Force deployment, and once on a trip with my grandmother.

For today’s list of 13, I want to brainstorm things I’d like to do if we can manage the trip!

1. Opening Ceremonies ...the tickets are outrageously expensive for this, but I love the pageantry, so if it’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing, you might as well go all out!

2. Any swimming events! I was a competitive swimmer in my younger years so this is my favorite Olympic sport.

3. Volleyball. Fun to watch, and it’s usually not a headline event, so tickets should be easier to get.

4. Soccer. B’s favorite sport! And bigger arenas mean more seats for less money.

That’s about it for sports, so let’s expand to the other cultural aspects of a vacation to London…
5. The Imperial War Museum. B. is a history buff, and this is a fantastic museum!
6. Westminster Abbey... I made a quick pass through the last time, but I’d like to slow down and explore.
7. The Silver Vaults. My grandmother took me here…the underground vaults that held the silver during WWII are now shops. Cool stuff!
8. The Tower of London. History, and oh my, the jewels!

We can’t forget the food!
9. Fish –n- chips with a pint…since I’m not much of a beer drinker, I’ll take a cider.
10. Indian. Delicious.
11. Chinese. On the Air Force trip, a buddy took us to the Chinese district. His criteria for the restaurant was “No Caucasians”…if the menus have pictures, just point and enjoy!

And for some trips to the countryside…
12. Stonehenge I felt such a calm presence as I walked around these stones. I believe that they were a place of worship for whoever put them there.
13. Dover…seems like a picturesque area.

I could easily list a bunch of places in Scotland that I want to visit also. Maybe I should look into teaching exchanges…this trip could expand from a week to a year very easily!