Back in the UK

Hey A,

Well my 3 week stay in the states quickly turned into 6 fun filled weeks but now i'm back in the UK trying to find a job and somewhere I want to live.

While Liverpool has really nice people, a reputation of awesome nightlife and lots of history with both the Beatles and the Titanic i'm not convinced it's where I want to be.

So for the past few days I have been visiting my good friend from Australia Liz and checking out Bristol where she currently lives.  After a massive feast of the best Chinese food outside of China with very full tummies we slowly strolled back to Liz's along the river and I realised this has to be my next place to call home.

The Bristol job hunt is now on....so stayed tuned!

Loved seeing you and miss you heaps 

E xx

Milwaukee&Madison

In an effort to fill Emma's time with places and things she has never seen or done, we headed to Milwaukee on Sunday to visit my cousin and cousin-in-law (James & Abby).  After seeing the sights and staying the night, we headed over to the Madison area to show Emma some of our favorite spots.  


The highlights of Milwaukee (besides Abby & James of course!) include shopping on Brady Street and in the Third Ward, and taking Emma to the Safe House.  

We were sent on a mission all over the restaurant and luckily we had Abby who is a pro since she has been there so many times!  You can read more about the Safe House here.


In the Madison area we took Emma to the Mustard Museum, Mount Horeb and the Grumpy Troll, and the Henry Villas Zoo (which she loved!).  I had all kinds of other little stops planned, but the weather was freezing and we were ready to be home again.  

I am sure Emma will have lots to tell you about the zoo!  

S'Mores

I have introduced Emma to one of my most favorite foods of all time... S'Mores!  When I found out she hadn't heard of a s'more, and obviously had never eaten one, I had Paul fire up the Saffire grill so we could remedy the situation.  

Emma loves them!  I knew she would... and finally it was something that I talked up that exceeded the expectations!

We have added s'mores to the menu quite a few times lately... Yum!

Road-trippin'

Well hello!  Emma has been here for three weeks now and the time flew by so quickly that she decided to stay for another few weeks!  Lucky me!  It isn't everyday you get to spend time with your best-friend who lives half the world away.  


As Emma previously stated, we hit the road to knock out two more states on our quest to hit all 50!  Indiana and Michigan.  These were my highlights on the trip...


The Indiana Dunes Park...

New Buffalo, Michigan...

Amish Area (Shipshewana and Middlebury) 

The pretzels that we had at Ben's pretzels were out of this world!  I want to drive all the way back there right now just to get another pretzel (plus it was free pretzel Friday!  bonus!).  


We ended the trip at Paul's sister's apartment with dinner at an Asian-fusion place and a night on the town!  Needless to say the trip was a lot of fun... and we were blessed with perfect weather to top it off!  

On The Road Again..

Hey fellow roadtripper,
I'm so excited to be in the United States of Anna (America) again and already dreading the day I have to leave.

Even though the Indiana Dunes weren't exactly what I was expecting as someone seriously talked them up they were still great to see!! I had never seen beaches before with bare trees do that was a first for me.

Our next big stop...Amish Country!! Well that was an experience. I loved seeing the traditional clothes and horse drawn buggies instead of cars. While I'm not ready to throw away my shopping malls or even a car for a bonnet and buggy yet I adore their warm soft pretzel and they have some pretty amazing cheese too.

Our roadtrip ended with a very fun night out in Merrillville, Indiana with Annah and Brian. Steak n Shake is definitely a life saver!!!
Love E xx

Welcome Emma!

Emma is here!  I like to create a big to-do at the airport to make her feel very welcome in the good old USA...

I feel like with each visit the signs get a little better and the wording gets a little more creative!

Another very exciting surprise... the package Emma sent me from India arrived in the mail the same day that she arrived at the airport!

Evidently the gentleman that she paid to package the present "in a box" and send it "by air" wasn't listening... he sent it via sea and sewed it into a canvas satchel!

At least it arrived safe and sound, just like Emma did!

All Good Things Must Come To An End...

Hey A,
I can't believe its over! Our three month adventure ended where it began in Delhi but instead of sightseeing we were shopping and finally getting to see an English movie...Moneyball with Brad Pitt..love him!! India really wore us down and there we were in our prepaid taxi ten minutes from the hotel on the way to the airport and the tyre blows. The driver wouldn't refund our money or get us another taxi so we were stuck on the side of the road watching him change it, along with the usual male crowd. As a result of three months in India this followed by a lot of yelling and crazy driving, we are lucky to be alive.
I had never heard of Saudi Arabian Airlines until I saw their super cheap flight from Delhi to London on cleartrip.com. I was expecting a budget airline with the price of the flight but it was super nice. Lots of leg room and complimentary meals. They even have a prayer room and Muhammads prayer when taking off for those men walking around the plane in white towels and sheets! Besides all of that if you don't mind being stared at I would recommend them to fly with.
We had a seven hour stop over in Jeddah's most basic airport and a food voucher to survive on as the only food outlet wouldn't take credit card or Indian Rupees so I had to work a little magic to get some decent food! Haha. We managed a nap somehow and were again happy we had purchased sleeping bags and travel pillows before leaving Brisbane.
Each with a 20kg backpack and a suitcase we struggled through the London Underground to the Railway station for our two hour train ride to Liverpool.
So Liverpool is my new home. It's a smaller city than I expected but it has a lot of old English charm and some of my favorite stores as well as a Beatles Museum.
I can't wait til you visit so I can show you but first I'll being seeing you in my home away from home Rockford!!
Love E