Home again, home again, jiggity-jig. We loved our vacation time in Europe but are very happy to back the good ol' USA. I tried to keep a decent journal during our trip, so I'll be updating with detailed, photo-heavy posts (note: they will be back-dated to the actual day the incidents occurred) but for now I thought I'd give some key numbers:
Nights slept abroad - 15
Countries visited - 2
West End shows attended - 1
Glasses of champagne consumed - 10 each, plus a bottle
Museums visited - 8
Churches/cathedrals/basilicas visited - 13
Eucharists attended/received - 4/3
Evensongs attended - 1
Art pieces correctly identified by Michael - every one he tried
Art identified by Naomi before Michael - none (in my defense, he's a Quiz Bowl nerd who took 3 Art History classes in college, I took AP Humanities in college and can divide art in to 3 categories: Love It!, That's Art? and Meh.)
Dog poop encountered on the sidewalks in Reims - to numerous to quantify
Royal residences (current and former) visited - 4.5 (didn't go in Buckingham)
Books read (not counting travel guides) - 10 (All by me - yes, I admit, most of them were fluff, but I did read a Tale of Two Cities for the first time ever. Figured it was apropos - and man, the French had serious issues!).
Night I started having "digestive issues" - 13
Day I started wishing we were back home - 14
Most miles walked in a day - 6.2
Most miles it felt like we walked in a day - at least 100
Average minutes to get our check after finishing dinner in France - at least 15
Steps up to Sacré Coeur - lots and lots
People the elevator in our Paris apartment held - 3 (clearly not Americans)
Train rides - 7 (it really is an excellent way to travel)
Last moment taxi rides, 3 hours before the flight back to the States - 1
Royal encounters - none
British tabloids with Kate on the cover - every single one, every single day we were in London
Times I've dozed off writing this as I'm still recovering from jet-lag - 3
And so, on that note, I'll call it a day. Be on the lookout for more detailed posts soon!!
