Fly Tipping

This is a British term for illegally dumping waste, also called sneaky dumping or dumping on the fly. This is happening on a massive scale across the United Kingdom. We find that this country takes environmental protection very serious. I am made aware of this each time I take a driving lesson. I am taught to drive slower, map out your route for a shorter distance, and never stomp on the gas. Always be patient is the rule when saving fuel and reducing emissions. I would never pass this exam without these instructions, because I am doing everything wrong.

Bath

The city of Bath is located 100 miles west of London. We took a weekend getaway here and along with a sunny day we were joined by thousands of tourists. This is the site of Britain's only hot spring. Discovered by the Romans 2000 years ago people still go to enjoy the natural hot spring that still bubbles to the surface. Most of the ancient ruins are now uncovered and is a must see for most UK visitors, and is now the most popular spa in the country. Here Julie leans against one of the 2000 year old columns but had to move away quickly as a large crack appeared. (lower pic) The beautiful Bath Abbey built in 1499 sits at the same location.

UK Driving License

After living in the UK for over one year my International license in no longer valid. So I applied for a full UK driving license and have been studying this book for 10 days. "Aren't I dedicated" This book has a total of 926 possible multiple choice questions and nearly 200 different road signs to learn. So it's a lot of studying and memorization. Today I passed the Theory Test I am happy to say. It was a computer generated test with the 50 questions and then a practical hazard reaction test also on the computer, in a local testing center. This is 10 times more difficult than the US driving test. I believe the English are better drivers because of this. Now I will schedule my practical driving test. I have been driving here for over a year but I signed up for a few driving lessons, just to be safe. I was shocked for all of the mistakes that I made. You are supposed to set your bloody hand brake and go into neutral each time you stop, either at a light or even in traffic. Not only am I dealing with all of these road signs, but these roads are full of faded stripes and warnings, all in different colors and all with a different meaning. Can you believe it!

Novelli

Jean Christophe Novelli is dubbed as the nations favourite French chef. He is the winner of many culinary awards and has been the TV Chef on several prime time TV shows. The Novelli Cooking Academy is one of the best in the world. Julie met this cooking genius at her Brighton branch which is one of the largest UK branches with 65 employees. After an extensive remodel, The "flagship" branch had a grand opening which was attended by several top UK Barclay's executives. Novelli headlined the event with a fabulous cooking demonstration. I'm sure that Julie's cooking will now improve drastically, I'll let you know when that happens.

RECORD SNOW

Here in the south of England this never happens. Most of the local people don't ever remember this much snow all at once. As we stayed up until 3 in the morning watching the Superbowl, we also watched an unbelievable snow storm. Within about 6 hours well over a foot of snow piled up. This would never be much of a problem in the Pacific Northwest where we are from. In the UK you can't imagine the problems this caused. I don't believe there is a snow plow, snow tire, or even a snow shovel in the whole country. Most of the public transportation was shut down and many flights canceled. All of the schools in Surrey County where we live were closed. As I walked downtown most businesses didn't open, cars were all stuck and mail didn't get delivered. Here's what it looked like in our courtyard and from our balcony.