UK Circuit 2006

Hey there, I've been running behind on my posts but I have a lot to share. Particularly a little trip that I just took...a series of belated posts will follow but at least you'll get the gist of my trip. The purpose was to cover as much of the United Kingdom as possible in 9 days. Groups members included Mami, Tia Susana, prima Camila, and me. Landing in London on March 10, 2006, I collected my things and hitched the Heathrow Express into town...Bayswater Station of the Underground. Price £14.50...for those who don't know the current exchange rate is about 2:1...so we're talking ~$30. Ouch. Anyway, needless to say that it was immediately clear that the trip was going to be an expensive one. Renting a car at $100/day not including gas, bed and breakfasts at $200/night, and meals at $20/each took a toll on the wallet. We cooked our own meals as many times as possible, whenever there was a kitchen accessible. Tia Susana and Mami were experts at throwing yummy meals together as shown in the picture above. The grovery store experience in the UK was very interesting mainly with their selection of produce. Almost 95% of the fruit and vegetables are imported from all over the world. Green beans from Guatemala, apples from South Africa, pears from Argentina, grapes from Chile, peas from Kenya, etc. Great Britan is covered with lush green pastures that are dedicated extensively to livestock...mainly sheep and cattle. Prone to heavy rainfall throughout the year, it was clear that the land was once a heavily forested area but since has been converted to grasslands. This explains how the Brits evolved as a super power since mideival times. The abundance of wood (chief source of fuel and construction material in those times) allowed them to evolve quickly. Now it seems Britain has no trees older than 100 years. You can tell while driving in the coutryside as all the trees are neatly lined up.

One of the main highlights of my time in London was going to see The Producers Musical...a very funny production from Mel Brooks, it served as an entertaining event for us all. "Springtime for Hitler"...sounds like a hit!

You can check out the rest of the pictures from the trip here.