Dec 17th - Jan 3rd - Back to London .... where is everyone?

It's great to be back again.  Waiting for the rest of the family to join for the holidays - omicron willing!

Hooray - negative tests!

The family gathered (which was my Christmas present).  London was wonderfully sparkly with lights everywhere, so despite the rather damp and miserable weather, spirits were raised (figuratively and literally!). 

It has been a very special week being together and enjoying the magic of the season: skating with the scenic backdrop of Somerset House, witnessing a Chelsea win, family games in the flat, sightseeing (London Eye, Harry Potter Studio tour), a chilly vintage open top bus tour of the lights in the West End, great pub grub, and no views (due to the poor weather) from the Sky Garden and Heron Tower!

  

And then they were gone....

Dec 4th - 17th - Tenerife

You know how when you have been on vacation, you need a vacation.  Well, I guess that's how we felt too.  After being on the move quite a bit we decided to relax and chill for two weeks.  Destination - Tenerife (yes, back to Spain).

Tenerife is one of the Spanish Canary Islands - just off the coast of Africa.  The black beaches give the clue that it is a volcanic island. We have had two weeks of relaxing at a hotel on the northern coast; an area that has sheer volcanic slopes, countless rock pools, small coastal villages, and plenty of surfers.

There is not much to do, so Paul has been a regular at the hotel gym and spa, while Julie reads a 830 page book!  It was a 'fail' on the quest for a decent coffee shop.  And Paul officially declares himself 'bored'!  Two weeks is a long time (unless you are the world's slowest reader determined to finish a thick novel). 

Next stop: London.....and the nightmare that is omicron.

Nov 27th - Dec 3rd - Flying around, and not flying around

A busy week. We returned to the UK where we were able to catch up with Paul's sister, Nicola who was finally out of lockdown in Australia and flew to England.  It was lovely to see her after such a long time.  Paul and Joe secured tickets to watch Chelsea v Man United which was a big deal; the match ended in a draw. Meanwhile Julie had plans to catch up with friends in UK and Belgium. Unfortunately her PCR test results did not get returned in time so she was unable to travel to Brussels.  A bonus couple of days were spent in London while Paul made a flying visit back to the US for dental and doctor, and booster appointments in between seeing Harry, catching up with friends at a trivia night, and over coffee.  Paul needed the caffeine to keep going. We met up at Heathrow airport early on December 3rd to fly to Tenerife.