Magic, Movies & Mayhem

For three days, in the steamy heat of Orlando, we became brave explorers. At the Magic Kingdom, we hurtled through space on Space Mountain, then up the wet Splash Mountain and down the Big Thunder Mountain. We met 999 ghosts and ghouls at The Haunted Mansion. We visited the Swiss Family Robinson’s tree house, and flew with Peter Pan. We spun madly on the Mad Hatter’s Tea Cups, took a cruise into the Jungle, and sang with the Pirates of the Caribbean (yo ho ho, it’s a pirate’s life for me!) We took a brief trip down memory lane into It’s a Small World [Mr G’s fave ride when he was a wee lil five year old!]

That was day one. Over the next two days we headed to Universal Studios for more adventures. We survived the Incredible Hulk Coaster – twice. We visited the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, where we took a forbidden journey through Hogwarts with Harry, Ron and Hermione. We visited Olivander’s for wands. We rode the Chinese Fireball and the Norwegian Ridgeback in the dragon challenge. At this point, we need refreshment, so we stopped at Three Broomsticks for a cooling Butterbeer for him, and lemonade for me. Hogwarts and Hogsmeade were created so realistically, it felt like we were actually there.

There was the Men in Black training event, where we had to shoot aliens (just like in the movie.) I got twice the number of points as Mr G, and passed! We got absolutely soaking wet on the Ripsaw Falls and the Jurassic Park River Adventure – but thankfully the Florida sun dried us up in no time at all. We flew with The Simpsons through Krustyland (I accidently knocked out one of Mr G’s contacts just before this ride started, so he only saw half of it through one eye…)

If I had to pick one, my favourite would have to be the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit at Universal Studios. On this rollercoaster, you pick a song at the beginning to accompany your ride. The ride starts with a slow, 90 degree vertical climb before plunging into twist and turns. The songs accompany the ride perfectly (I chose Evanescense for the first ride, Gloria Gaynor for the second) and having music pounding in your ears as you’re thrown around and upside down by this ride just makes the whole thing more unforgettable.

On the last night, we were mesmerized by La Nouba at Cirque du Soleil, a fitting end to our magical stay here.

We must have been bone tired after all those adventures, because the next day we slept in and nearly missed our flight to Boston. We made it with just a few minutes to spare, and fortunately the flight was delayed!

We arrived in Boston on Friday afternoon and after a quick meal, headed to Cambridge to see Harvard. It was a short cab ride away and we stepped out of the cab and into the most beautiful campus. The university is a stunning 375 years old, and the part of Harvard Yard which is open to the public is like a beautiful park, dotted with old large trees, surrounded by majestic red brick buildings. The lawn was scattered with students sitting under the trees, reading, chatting, sleeping. John Harvard was overlooking the yard, dressed in his summer clothes. It felt a little weird, walking around a campus as a tourist, rather than a student. After soaking up the atmosphere, we had some homemade ice cream and caught a movie (The Help – highly recommended!) and headed back to the hotel.

The next day we walked all over Boston. Or at least it felt that way. We had brunch in Back Bay before heading to Trinity Church (Mr G wanted to see it because it appeared in the movie National Treasure…) The amazing stained glass windows at the church were well worth the trip. Then we followed the “Freedom Trail” to the North End which took us to some important sites of the American independence movement. We visited Beacon Hill, the Old North Church, and the State House. It was a living, breathing history lesson.

In the evening, we decided to head to Chinatown for dinner. Chinatown is next to the theatre district in Boston and since we had no other plans for the evening, we decided to try and find a show. The first theatre we stopped at (Wang Theatre) had tickets available for Chris Tucker’s stand-up tour! Perfect.

Now we are on a train from Boston to New York. Since today is the 10 year anniversary of 9/11, I really didn’t want to take a flight. It’s a 4 hour train journey (plenty of time to write a long blog!) Anyway, Mr G is telling me that I should leave something for him to write, so I’ll end it here J

Mrs G

Southern Decadence

Three nights in New Orleans, and I’m starting to speak like an American! I know, I know, but the accent is so infectious y’all!

But I guess there’s a little more to it then that. There is something truly beautiful about N’awlins. The Southern drawl is just one part of its romance. The people here were in most part great – Southern hospitality isn’t the myth I thought it was. Perhaps a little exaggerated in the stories, but from our three days here, there definitely seems to be a genuine openness with everyone we have met.

So, we got here three days ago. First stop was Bourbon Street. And, this place well and truly lived up to its reputation. We were here during the Southern Decadence festival (equivalent to the gay Mardi Gras). Every where we looked, there were half naked men – half of whom looked liked they had been chiseled from rock and the other half of whom looked much more like me – sort of round and cushiony!

Anyway, drunk naked men aside – we were here for food! So we pressed through the masses of people and found a Cajun place, and set in for some good ol’ southern cuisine. A little gumbo, some jambalaya, some crawfish and a little alligator tail, all mixed up with some Cajun spice and hot sauce! And of course, everything came in American sizes. And when one consumes that much grease in that short a period – the result is inevitable!

So while Mrs G stayed out for a little jazz that night – I had to hurriedly race home to deal with the consequences of my experiment with Cajun cuisine!

Day two in NOLA started out with a little (and I have to emphasise that it was little this time) breakfast made up of American pancakes, topped with some maple syrup and butter love in this classic diner! It was great! Felt like Mrs G and I were back in America in the 50’s! We spent most of the day just wondering around the French quarter, sampling some beignets, listening to the street side musos, and poking our heads into the many quirky shops around the city.

We also got to experience some picketers bible bashing at the Southern Decadence parade. It was exactly as they show it in the movies! Red neck hill-billy types with frumpy overalls and scraggly beards promising hell fire and damnation to the leather wrapped revelers!

Getting caught up with the touristness of it all, we decided to sign up for a Ghost tour of New Orleans. While I expected to be well and truly disappointed by this – it probably was the highlight of the trip here! I hadn’t realized how steeped in history this place was! Violence, disaster, epidemics seemed to all be a natural party of the city’s history. Every corner seemed to have a story associated with it.

Anyway, after being well and truly impressed, we went out and listened to some jazz at a few places just beyond the quarter. The standout had to be the act at the Spotted Cat – a nice cosy little place with cash only payments that looked like it hadn’t changed for the last 50 years! The trombone player was pretty phenomenal!

Mrs G and I spent much of the third day lazing around and enjoying American TV.  Probably the best day in New Orleans yet!

- Mr G

PS. We’re now in Orlando. Spent the entire day at Disney world.. but that'll be the subject of of another blog!

NY & NOLA

We’ve just arrived in New Orleans and it is wet.  Turns out, we’ll be sharing our weekend with Tropical Storm Lee – here’s what CBS news says:

Tropical Storm Lee is making this holiday weekend a dangerous wash out for residents along the Gulf Coast. The slow-moving storm pounded Louisiana and Mississippi Saturday, causing flooding, forcing evacuations and knocking out power to thousands. It had maximum sustained winds of 60 mph.

Grreeeeaaat. Note to self: check the weather update next time.  

This morning we were in New York and it was HOT. I started writing a blog post there, but due to technical issues (aka lack of internet access) couldn’t post it. So while we contemplate how to amuse ourselves in this stormy weather, here’s one I prepared earlier:

It’s 7am in New York and time for breakfast.

We arrived yesterday afternoon at JFK airport.  The sun was blazing, blue skies as far as the eye could see (quite a change from the greyness of London!) Getting through customs was (surprisingly) relatively painless - hopefully that continues for the next four flights we need to catch here.

We took a yellow cab from the airport to Manhattan. Just saying that makes me feel like I’m in a movie! And really, the whole place does make you feel like you’re on a film set. The yellow cabs, the brownstone buildings, the street names – everything about New York so far has a strange familiarity – surely a result of watching too many American shows on TV.

Later today we’re heading to N’Orleans but we’ll be heading back to NY for 3 days before we go back home.

Back home is London! We haven’t found a flat yet but we have found Little G - an additional member of our family :) She is a little 6 week old Leonberger puppy,  a round fluffy ball of fur, and the cutest thing you’ll ever see! Now that we’ve found her, we need to find a place that will have us all.

We spent 2 days last week flat-hunting but haven’t found anything yet. Mr G wants an open plan living area, I want a gas hob, and Little G wants some open outdoor space. We haven’t found a place that meets all of our criteria, and it looks like we may have to compromise on some of our wish list. The rental market in London moves incredibly quickly – by the time we see a place listed online and contact the agent, it’s already under offer.

But all that can wait for 2 weeks. For now, we’re on holiday in the US of A. It’s 7am and time for breakfast.

Mrs G

PS. While we were in London, we went to this nice mexican place for KC’s birthday, called Wahaca. And I gotta say that they had the nicest shrimp salad taco!

Sorry had to mention food – its been to long since we blogged about the good eats we’ve been having.

Mr G

P.P.S After that blog was written, we ventured out into the West Village and had an incredibly huge and tasty breakfast of eggs bene with bacon roasted potatoes, which we then walked off around the area which was like a mini-tour of the SATC set – Perry St (Carrie Bradshaw’s apartment), the meat-packing district, and the playground where Miranda took Brady all the time! What did I say about NY being a big film set? Unfortunately I didn’t take my camera to breakfast but will do next time!

Mrs G

The G's are off!

We're on our way!


We fly out of Singapore tonight. First into London for three days, and then on to New York, New Orleans, Orlando (and more importantly, Disneyworld!) and Boston!


The last week's been great! Aside from the friends and family (having the cuzzies from KL here was especially fun!), the sublime food and the tropical weather, its been so much fun just milling around with Mrs G! 


But having said that, I'm definitely looking forward to having her all to myself for a little while! 


But, with leaving any place, there always is a little bit of sadness. In this case, I'd imagine that it probably would be a little bit more pronounced for Mrs G, but its been somewhat contagious. I guess its a bit of leaving the familiar and comfortable behind and a bit of trepidation about what will await us on the other side of the globe. Its hard not to compare what is with what one imagines may be. When the familiar brings such joys, new adventures will inevitably be accompanied with a  slight glaze of anxiety!


But, with Mrs G in hand, I'm sure that whatever happens, we'll have a ball of fun along the way! 


- Mr G

Movin’ on…

Since Mr G has already posted twice, and being on holiday means he has vast amounts of time at his disposal with which to ponder and blog, I figured I better get in on the action before this blog becomes The Adventures of Mr G.


Today was my last day at work, and ahead stretches five weeks of freedom. The movers came yesterday and packed up our things – our life fits into 21 boxes (of which 7 are filled with books!) so we are well and truly on our way.


With my last few days in Singapore creeping by, I’m beginning to feel a little nostalgic about this place. I should have known this was coming. The same thing happened when I left Guernsey (of all places) at the end of 2009.


While I was living there, Guernsey was like The Rock, a place from which to escape at the first possible opportunity. 70,000 people, virtually non-existent summers, a main shopping street the size of Jackson St in Petone… There was really nothing good about it. And then I left.


And almost as soon as I left, I began to miss it. No, seriously. There were some redeeming features about the place (the blue-bell carpet that appears every spring, and the stunning Fermaine Bay beach café deserve honourable mentions) but what I missed most were the people I met there. The friends I made in Guernsey (they know who they are!) made it feel like home.


The same thing is happening here in Singapore. I may have been known to moan and whine about life here (tropical-sized cockroaches, incredibly rude service, no ‘keep to the left’ rule on over-crowded footpaths…) but now that Mr G is here, and we are finally moving on, I am feeling quite sentimental. I will miss the constant warmth, and the variety of good food available 24/7 (and cheap too! $3.50 for chicken rice, anyone?), but most of all I will miss the people I have met and known here. Weekend pedicures with Mrs D, movies in Row D at Illuma, early morning runs at East Coast, Korean dramas. I will miss my Singapore Family when I’m gone.


Truly it doesn’t matter where you are, what matters is who you’re with.


- Mrs G

The Birthday

To pick up where I left off.. The birthday.

Turning 31 may seem to be somewhat of a non-event. But in my case, this was probably one of the most notable birthdays I've had for a while. It was my very first birthday as a married man, the first day that I was living with my wife and the first birthday in more than a decade away from the Welly krew. All in all, an important one to remember.

So, as one would expect with all birthdays in Singapore, I spent most of it eating. Breakfast in the morning made up of peanut butter and toast, followed by a brunch of 2 minute noodles, lunch with parents and uncle (involving some of the most scrumptious steamed fish with lemongrass, and peking duck, I've ever had), some mid afternoon twisties, hot dog buns and curry puffs for snacks, all polished off with a yummy plate of chicken rice for dinner! The food coupled with a good dose of cowboys, aliens and a few stand-up comics made for a pretty good day all around..

While the food and activities (and the very cool pressies that I got) definitely made the day lots of fun, it was the ability to glance over my shoulder and see Mrs G standing right next to me that really sealed the day. The immeasurable pleasure of seeing her, holding her hand and just generally being silly with her absolutely made the day!

So, now day 3 in Singapore; Mrs G is back at work; and I've spent the vast majority of the day napping. Its 4.30pm now, and I think about time for a shower. The holiday is definitely in full swing now.

- Mr G

The Beginning

It appears to me that the best place to begin a journey is of course at the beginning. And this, is my beginning to the Journey. Mrs G still has a few more days to go, before her beginning, but, in the spirit of getting things rolling, we thought that I could at the very least get started..

So after the most unusual week I can remember in Wellington, I began my journey. Leaving home was far more difficult than I could have anticipated. It is far to easy to take for granted the love and affection when we are home. The prospect of leaving it behind was only made bearable by the idea of the journey - and most importantly sharing that journey with Mrs G!

So having got on the plane, I made it to Singapore! The heat, as always, is depressingly hot! But seeing Mrs G through those glass walls as I picked my bags up off the carousel made it all worthwhile!

So, now it is the morning of the first full day of our journey, and my birthday to boot! Time to make some plans for the day methinks!

- Mr G