Brussels + Ghent

This is part 2 of our Belgium trip we took in the beginning of December. One of our top priorities in Brussels was visiting Euro Parliament. I am so glad we did, it was so interesting. We really enjoyed touring the buildings and their museum was so fascinating. We spent hours walking though and reading each exhibit. Pictured below is one of the many parliament buildings. As we were there right after the terrorist attacks in Paris security was really tight, but also there were not a lot of tourists. On our tour of the inside of the parliament building there were only two other people in our group. 

Edinburgh

Last week Ben and I took a weekend trip to Edinburgh. I did a lot of research into things to do and see but there was one small factor I didn't take into account. We had no idea that the England v Scotland 6 nations rugby match was also the same weekend. Apparently this rugby tournament is (and I quote a colleague) 'The super bowl of rugby'. So things got a bit crowded, and the weather wasn't cooperating for part of the trip, but we still managed to have a memorable time. 

Oxford

Last Saturday Lisa and I headed to Oxford for the day. Oxford is only an hour and a half away from London by train. We planned out our day so we could see all the things we wanted to see. First stop was the Bodleian Library. Three fun facts about this library; 1. It is one of the oldest libraries in Europe opening in 1602. 2. It is the second biggest library in Britain (after the British Library in London) with a collection of over 12 million items 3. The divinity school was used for several scenes in the harry potter films! Because this library is actively in use you can't just walk around. There are several different tour options, but for £1 you can see the divinity school unguided. 

Brugge

On our latest adventure Ben and I headed to Belgium. We took the Sunday afternoon train from St. Pancras and were eating mussels and fries for dinner. We stayed in an awesome airbnb right in the heart of Brussels. For our first whole day in Belgium we caught a train to Brugge. It is one of the most charming towns we have ever ben to. 

Strawberry Hill House

Strawberry Hill house is splendid example of Georgian Gothic revival architecture (it said so in the brochure). It also inspired the first gothic novel The Castle of Otranto. The house itself if full of wonders and oddities but when we went there was a special exhibit of sculptures by Laura Ford. I think the pictures really speak for themselves...

Jerash

For my birthday Ben and I went to Jerash. An ancient city with a history that goes back to 7000 B.C. It was conquered by the Romans 63 B.C. and inhabited until a strong earthquake destroyed a large portion of the city in the 8th century A.D.  This is one of the best preserved Roman cities in the Near East and the size of the site as well as the preservation of the standing structures was epic. 

Hadrian's Arch. This is the entrance to the ancient site. 

Mount Nebo

Last minute trips are the best. You get all the excitement of going on vacation but without having to wait to actually leave. Ben had an unexpected three day weekend in Jordan and I was able to fly out to join him for his long weekend. It was especially fortuitous because this three day weekend just happened to be over my 27th birthday! Party all around. My first full day there we decided to take it easy and drive to Mt. Nebo, which is only a 30 minute drive from the hotel we were staying at.  Even though it is called a mountain it is not like the mountains in Utah. We were able to drive right to the top and have a great view of the Holy Land.

The view towards The Holy Land. 

Longleat House

When Ben is home we like to alternate between little vacations and big vacations. As he travels so much it is not always a break for him to travel even more when he is home. For one of our little vacations we took a overnight trip to Somerset. The sites we wanted to hit were Stonehenge and Longleat house, both an easy drive from London. So we rented a fiat500 and hit the road. 

Frogmore House

Frogmore house is basically a guest house on the Windsor estate. It is only open to the public a handful of days every year because it is mostly used for guest of the queen. I went with my friend Rachael to visit it because it also happens to be where Victoria and Albert are buried. 

Highclere Castle

The final season of Downton Abbey has begun. I have been a Downton fan from the beginning but I am not sad that it is ending. Although I love the show I think the characters are becoming more and more one dimensional and taking on either 'pro change' or 'against change' sides on all topics. I highly doubt that in the 1920's there was this much talk of 'change' in a normal house hold. Hindsight is 20/20, and I think the writing of the show reflects the knowledge we have looking back on that time period. Nevertheless, I was super excited to go and visit Highclere Castle. The castle and grounds were beautiful. It is so fun that they use the castle as is for the filming of Downton. No pictures were allowed inside so all the pictures are of the castle and grounds.