our big boy ...

... turned 8 years old today.

Happy birthday, Alexander!

Love from Daddy ....

... and Mommy.

surreal ... great, wonderful and weird ... busted ...

It felt a bit surreal to return to work after our long week holiday in London. I'm physically at work but my mind's mentally off someplace. Coming to work last Tuesday, I was somehow dazed and could not remember my own door code (I finally got help from a colleague of mine after standing outside my door for a good 5 minutes or so) ... even worse was when I turned on my computer and could not remember my login password (nothing really new ... it happens all the time after spending my long holidays). I simply could not make up my mind what was I to do - grrrr! Mental block, they called it.

****

Something great happened while I was away from work. Our company has announced its new and final matrix organisation where we are expected to be more effective and motivated in undertaking our tasks and deliver the "goods" for the company to be profitable. My boss got promoted to the Level 3 hierarchy in the new organisation which gave her the title Vice President for Feminine Category and Development, and she, (bless her!) retained me as her Assistant. It was wonderful news, of course! I have to remember to ask her if I'd get a raise, too. Anyway, my new position , as such, now gives me a new title: Assistant to the Vice President for Feminine Category and Development - whew! That's quite a long title! I'd very much like to keep it that way and hope the Swedes will not shorten it the way they normally do when they print their business cards. It would look weird and look like this:

(my name)
Ass. to the Vice President
Feminine Category and Development

How cool is that? I'd better make sure to order my business cards myself ... you'll never know.

****

Alexander can't help talking about our recent trip to London - both at home and at school. Last Monday, on our way back home to Gothenburg while waiting to board our flight at Stansted Airport, we met the headmistress of Alexander's school and she put on a serious face and said: "Alexander, you missed school today." Busted! Alexander went silent and then replied sheepishly: "Yes, and so did you." To that the headmistress laughed and said: "Well, we'd better be in school bright and early tomorrow." Alexander weaved a big sigh ... he was almost sure he'd be in trouble.

Happy Valentine's Day!

We had a lazy morning today. I feel so pampered today as my boys served me breakfast. This is one of my small pleasures ... and the heart day has only begun!

Only 2 more nights in London before we head back to cold, cold Sweden. Somehow, our weeklong escapade in London seemed all too short - there's still too much to see!

We just had a light lunch and plan to lounge a little bit before we hit the London streets again. Today, we have no specific itinerary ... so let's wait and see where our wandering feet take us on yet another exploration day.

See you later!

Images of war

Here are some of the images I've captured during our visit to the Imperial War Museum in London, UK

Europe under German occupation

Rifles and foot gear during the long cold winters of war

Liberation day ... an awkward reality

Liberation day ... an image of despair

Hitler ... the man who bear responsibility of this war !

"Can we stop war?", asked Alexander.

Our Friday the 13th ...

Hah! I just realised it's Friday the 13th today. 'Had a spooky day?

Anyway, today is yet another visit to a museum. We went to visit the Imperial War Museum at the Lambeth Road. We took a bus from Horseferry Road which took us across Lambeth Bridge and discovered the best place to take a full view shot of the Westminster Abbey and Big Ben - it was quite a picture!

The walk to the war museum from Lambeth Bridge took us about less than 8 minutes. I've looked forward to this visit as I've heard so much about the Holocust exhibits from this very museum. A blogger friend of mine narrated her experience during her visit to Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp as used by the Nazi in Germany, the very place where Anne Frank and her family expired towards the end of the war. I simply couldn't pass on the opportunity of visiting the Imperial War Museum while visiting London this time around.

And true to its reputable review, the exhibits did not disappoint. I was moved by the narrations of those who survived the Nazi war as a child. The mere thought of how parents had to send their children away for their own safety was heartbreaking. While walking through The Children's War exhibit, we met an elderly English woman who was a war veteran pilot who graciously shared her experience during the war against the Nazis. Alexander listened intently to every word she said - we could only say a meek "thank you" as she left us to continue our visit. Alexander was silent for a while as we listened to the audio tapes and watched the visual aids along the way, and then finally asked: "Can we stop war?", "Why do grown ups fight? They are ruining everything!". I knew right there and then, I need to explain things as they are and hope he would understand.

There were other interests at the museum which amused Alexander - the war tanks and submarines and cars and aeroplanes. Now and then he would ask if they were for real, if they were the true size of a tank or a fighter airplane. He got all too excited to see a Spitzfire airplane hanging on the ceiling above us. What attracted him the most was the interactive visit to the submarine exhibition where children are taught the basics and science on how to survive inside the submarine and how its mechanical and technical equipments work under water. He was fascinated by the small space where they sleep and how they go around the sub through the small tubes.

My first stroke of bad luck, on a Friday the 13th and all, was losing my hat (again!). I always manage to lose my hat whenever I'm in London, clumsy me! Good thing I had a spare 'coz I'm one who easily catch a cold going around without a hat on a cold and windy day.

Leaving the war museum, Alexander threw in a request:

"Can we go to Waterloo?"

"What do you want to see in Waterloo?", asked my husband.

"You know, Abba's Waterloo".

My husband and I just looked at each other. Oh, well, of course, he's got to see Waterloo (he's seen the London buses with Waterloo destination signs since we arrived London last Monday). And so we walked the short distance from the museum to the Waterloo station to satisfy his curiousity - and how satisfied was he!

From Waterloo, we took the Underground tube to the Oxford Circus station. It was getting dark and we were also feeling a bit hungry. We strolled the stretch of Oxford Street for a look-see and stopped by some shops that caught our fancy (it's still sale week in London). On our way up to the Marble Arch Station, we stopped by at a Marks & Spencers store for some groceries.

As we climbed in the train bound to the Victoria Station, comes the announcement: "This train is held due to a track fault at the Green Park Station. You may stay on the train or find other alternative transport to your point of destination." Great, we thought. The held-up took about 15 mins, but it sure felt like forever to my very hungry boys. Now, that is another stroke of bad luck to me - my second on a Friday the 13th.

When we finally got home, I immediately set off to prepare another quick night meal - pizza and chicken nuggets. Being a Friday and all, Alexander was quick to point out it's fredagsmys (cosy Friday). So, after dinner, we brought out the cashew nuts, chips and ice cream and clumbered to the couch and watched a kiddie film on TV. It was actually a great way to cap our Friday the 13th day.

So, how was your Friday the 13th?

Here's to another day ...

I was up early this morning and uploaded the pictures we took from yesterday’s outing. We visited the Bristish Museum and was quite overwhelmed by the exhibit. Alexander, as usual had plenty of questions. His interest was amazing, but it waned towards the end of our visit.

This season’s main exhibit at the British Museum is about the Myth and Reality of Babylon. It also showcased its most unusual find of mummies, burial rituals, jewelry, armory, pottery and sanskrit writings. The collection of money used during the early years were also interesting, and the clock exhibit is also quite unique. It was a very impressive collection and would make one wonder what was it really like living in those age and time. I know I did wonder, and so did Alexander. “How do they take a shower?”, he asked.

Having some more time to spare, we opted to return to the Science Museum, simply because Alexander would like to spend more time playing in the museum’s Energy exhibit - an interactive play area for kids teaching them the importance of energy and electricity. And to cap our day out, we went to see another IMAX 3D film called Space Station. After the film, Alexander declared: “I will be an astronaut when I grow up!”.

Don’t worry, he changes his mind every single day. Just the other day, he wants to be a fireman. And the day before, he wants to be a street musician. And day before that, he wants to be a policeman. And so on, and on, and on ….

We're loving it!

We’re really getting the hang of going about our business in London and loving every minute of the day as we continue our interesting escapades around town. Equally interesting to see is how Alexander has adapted very well to our crazy day-out itineraries. “Where’s our next stop, Mom?”, he would ask. He knew exactly where we are and would recognise which buses we’re suppose to take going back home. He would also recognise landmarks as the Trafalgar Square, the Hyde Park, Picadilly Circus, Regent Street and the Westminster district with its obvious popular architectural structures as the Big Ben, the Abbey and the Scotland Yard building.


Yesterday, in a drizzle of rain, we went to visit the Science Museum for the day. If during our first visit to London with Alexander was all about toyshops and amusement parks, this time around it’s a lot different as his interests has changed dramatically - he’s now more interested about real cars, how its engines work, and he’s all too keen on all there is to know about the car and its different models. He’s so passionate about these in the same manner as his Dad - boys and cars do go hand in hand!

Our all day sphree at the Science Museum paid off. Alexander had so much fun and has paid attention to details of interesting things he’d seen at the museum. My hubby and I took turns in explaining things to him to satisfy his curiosity over things which fascinated him. The IMAX 3D cinema was the highlight of our visit when we watched a film called “Fly Me to the Moon” - it was a beautiful cartoon story about how the 3 flies joined the first trip of men to the moon. It’s very educational and cinematically made with children in mind.

Anyway, today’s outing had been to Harrod’s (more on this visit on a later post). From Harrod’s and in search of something to eat, we took a bus to Picadilly Circus and from there we headed off to Leicester Square and found Chiquito, a Mexican Grill Restaurant right next to the Pizza Hut - boy, it was a great find of a restaurant! After our late lunch, we went to visit the Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum. It was fun to watch and observe Alexander as he gape in awe over the things he saw inside the museum. “Is that for real?”, he’d ask many times over. We were very satisfied when we went out of the museum - quite an intense experience for Alexander, if I may say so. Having a couple of hours more to spare, we went for a stroll and look-see at the Covent Garden. We stumbled on a street performer who unexpectedly called in Alexander to assist him in some of his tricks - it was a disaster! And ever so kindly in true British irony, the performer apologised to the crowd saying: “Ladies and gentleman, this is not Alexander’s fault but mine - it was I who chose him.”
As it started to rain, we hurried to try to get a bus at the Garrick Road to Trafalgar Square. From there we hopped to a Victoria Station-bound bus to bring us back to our flat. We arrived Octavia House and was greeted by the porter who opened the door for us - we were soaking wet!

Getting into our flat, I immediately hung our coats to dry and sent the boys to a quick and warm shower while I prepared some sandwiches. Right now, as I am writing this, the boys are decked and sound asleep.

Oh, how I love some peace and quiet …

Yes, we’re having a grand time just being lazy and bumming around London town. It’s one big busy metropolis, but hey, we’re loving it here!

NOTE:

This post was meant to be published at 11 February 2009.

Back in London ...

We arrived on a rainy and bustling London town after 2pm yesterday and Alexander's very excited as we took the train from the London Stanstead Airport to the Liverpool Street Station. He looked forward to this trip and has even made specific plans on what we are to do.

Arriving at our appointed flat, we simply dropped our bags and dash out of the rain in search of someplace to eat. As we walked the stretched of Victoria Street, Alexander exclaimed: "It smells like pizza!". And so we walked in to the nearest Pizza Hut, and boy how we goobled down our pizza slices down to the last bite! We realised there and then how hungry we were. We hadn't had a bite of food since 7am ... we had a slice of bread and tea (choco for Alexander) before we left to the airport in Gothenburg.

This time around, we bought our Oyster Card for one full week to allow us to travel around London by bus and the Underground. Alexander had a thrill as we shuttled and changed tubes from the Westminster area to St James, Green Park Mayfair, Soho and back. Our last roving stop last night was the Picadilly Circus where Alexander watched in awe the giant screens all lit up under the rain. "Wow", he said. Before getting to our bus home, we took a short peek at the Ripley's Believe it or Not-house and Alexander enjoyed watching the real sized dolls dancing and singing and even interacting with the passersby taking refuge from the rain. Oh well, we will definitely be back for a good look-see.

From the bus station, we walked in at Sainsbury to get some food to stuff our empty fridge back at the flat - milk, bread, juice, cheese, bottled water and some cups of yoghurt.

When we got to the flat, the mother hen in me got in full gear - fixing things at the kitchen, stacking clothes in the drawers, unpacking our bags, prepared our evening quick meal and all that. My boys discovered the wireless broadband connection, got our laptop hooked online and they took turns in surfing the net. Boy-stuff!

Turning in for the night, I realised I had very, very sore feet - waaaahhhh!

Ladies and gentlemen, KEN LEE!

Where was I when all this happened last year?
This is the Bulgarian version of the American Idol. Valentina Hassan took my breath away!
Find out why ....




And mind you, she came back with a vengeance!
Listen to her improved version of KEN LEE ...




Quite a spirit, eh? I bet you can't duplicate that. If you try, you're nothing but a second rate copycat - he!he!he!