I dot anoder bad dold (translation: I have another bad cold). However that isn't going to keep me down, I'm in Spain, I have a great love, and, I adore his family and apparently they adore me. They are already asking us "when is the wedding?" I'm not going to attempt to write that in Spanish. I am amazed how much Spanish I've retained, I don't use it as often as I would like, but, I guess it's like riding a bike, you never really forget.

Now if I can just rid of this stupid cold once and for all, I'll be very happy. Tomorrow we head off to Majorca Island, Spain. If you are unfamiliar with Majorca, it is an island located off the coast of Spain. It's very beautiful.

Well a nap for now, tapas later, and, depending on how everyone is feeling, we might head out on the family boat for a bit. It's been a wonderful vacation, I just wish I could have enjoyed it without a cold, make that two colds.

In Spain and Catching Another Cold...

Well, here I am in beautiful, warm, sunny Spain - Barcelona to be exact. And, I have met my love's family who have been welcoming, loving, and very wonderful in every sense. I feel like I've known them my whole life even though we have just met.

Unfortunately, I picked up another cold in Paris or the one I had decided it wanted to come back for another visit. The only consolation I have is my love's entire family have colds too. So, instead of enjoying this vacation, I'm spending most of my time in bed, and, not in a good way. We went to the beach, a bit cool to swim but, I'm trying to sweat the cold out. It's not working. Someone once told me that it isn't true love unless you get sick. That statement never made sense to me, it still doesn't, but, if going through another cold means this one is going to stick around, then bring it on!

Well, I am gathering my stuff head, runny nosed self together, since it's time to go out to dinner. Yes, I realize it's 10pm in Spain but that's just the point, I AM IN SPAIN! This is a very normal time to go out to dinner.

One thing for sure, the Europeans live much better than we do in America. They are not lazy, get as much done during the day as we do, but, yet they still know how to make time for love, family, and, recreation. I could live here easily... Yes, really

The Romance of Paris Can Bring About Unexpected Delights

If you ever doubted that Paris is among the most romantic cities in the world, if not THE most romantic city in the world, I would like to put your doubts aside. Oh yes, I know I've been missing in action for the past couple of days, however, I am very happy to report it is not due to a relapse of either of our cold; rather, the joy of the passion we've been expressing with each other.

Now, I don't want to imply we haven't left the hotel, we have indeed, but, we finally found our rhythm in the most intimate of ways, and, it has been fantastic. And the most unexpected twist of fate presented itself these past few days. I don't know how or why, but, I'm kind of engaged to be engaged. My love has vowed to me we WILL be returning to Paris within a year's time, and, we will become engaged at that time.

Truthfully, I'm a bit nervous. I've been down this engagement path before and it ended in disaster, but, I am throwing caution to the wind, and, just allowing things to proceed in it's most natural of courses. If we are meant to be together, if this one is truly "the one" then fate will take our hands and show us the way. If this is merely another heartbreak waiting to happen, then I will enjoy every moment I can until that time to say good-bye crosses our path.

I'm also feeling a bit more pressured now, since Monday we fly to Spain, and, I will be meeting his family for the first time. I'm trying to keep my composure to present the best possible me and not some blathering, self-centered, stereo-typical American.

More later...

The Chunnel of Love

For those who have never taken the Chunnel via the Eurostar, it is a vastly worthwhile experience. No hassles that one would normally encounter at the airport, it's all very - civilized. Feeling much better from our recent bout with bad colds, my love and I boarded the 10:25 am Eurostar to Paris. It was - well - romantic really.

It gave us a chance to really talk, and, really explore our feelings for each other since our respective colds really had us beaten as our trip began earlier this past week. It turns out we have more in common than we first realized, and, I dare to say that this is going to be a lasting relationship. We share the same ideas and ideals and our hopes and dreams for the future are identical. The trip on the Eurostar went by all too fast. Before we knew it, we were in Paris.

We then proceeded to our hotel on the Left Bank, in the heart of Saint Germain des Pres, the Hotel Montalebert. It's a small hotel with tons of charm and Parisian romance.

I must cut this short, we are going on a River Cruise for dinner. More to come tomorrow!

On the mend, today we did some sightseeing

Foregoing our evening out last night, my love and I stayed in, made love and rested. This morning we both woke feeling better than our past few nights. My fever broke, and, while my love is still running a temperature, color has returned to his face, and, his temperature is down, not yet below 99 but, at least on the way down. So, cough drops, nasal spray and tissues in hand, we went out and took the double decker tour bus. While it's was a very pleasant temperature while walking about London today, riding on the open part of the bus proved to be too cold, especially for a couple still fighting relatively bad colds, and, we opted to sit on the lower deck that is enclosed.

I should tell you this is not my first time to London, but, this is the first time I ever ventured to take one of these truly touristy tours, and, much to my surprise. It was great! We began our tour at the Victoria Station/Grovenors Garden location. On the tour we passed Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, and other landmarks throughout the city. The great advantage of this tour was we could hop on or hop off as many times as we liked, and, opted to get off and explore the London Aquarium. It was a lot of fun, and, strangely enough a bit romantic as we kisses in front of the shark tank. For that reason alone, I will always cherish with great love and affection the plush toy shark my love bought for me as a momento of our time in London together. Feeling a bit hungry, but, didn't want anything heavy, we found a Japanese restaurant called Ozu located very close to the aquarium. It was good, but, it was the tea that really hit the spot.

By this time, we were both really feeling tired again, and, hopped on the tube and proceeded back to the hotel. We napped in each others arms for a short while, and, now heading out again for the evening. I will post again tomorrow and, Wednesday we head for Paris! Ooolala!!

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It's nearly 4pm here in London, we went to see the King and I at Royal Albert Hall last night, it was very enjoyable as far as the show, but, I can see my love was miserable (in spite of the brave face). We went straight back to the hotel after the show, and, we slept in very late, I think did us both a world of good. I actually have color back in my face today, and, my love isn't sneezing, coughing and just miserable as he was yesterday. We finally rose around 12:30pm, and, went out for brunch. After brunch we proceeded for some light shopping and browsing in Harrods.

We're back at The Goring for a rest, and, going to cut this short since we're heading down to tea right now.

More to come so please check back!

Traveling, Europe and Sex to Cure Our Colds

My bags are packed, my car service is ordered, my new love interest has called me no less than 10 times in the past 48 hours, and, my cold is as bad as it was yesterday. I'm going to the doctor this morning, and, then to the pharmacy to arm myself with everything I can to help this rotten cold clear up from my head and chest. I'm dreading this flight tonight. Didn't think things could get worse for me, guess again? My love interest also now has a cold. Amazing how many people either had, have or are coming down this cold.

We vowed that we are going to throw our original itinerary out the window, and, just rest up in London for a few days. If we feel up to it, we'll do some very light sightseeing tomorrow and take one of those double decker bus tours, however, I'm sure jet-lack coupled with my cold will get the better of me, and, since my love's cold just began last night, he'll probably be feeling worse tomorrow. More likely than not we will probably spend tomorrow in bed. (Turns out sex is good for a cold: click here for more information)

I have no idea what we're going to do about our show tickets, I'm sure by tomorrow night my new love will be very much under the weather and, making him (and me) go out in the rain which is forecast tomorrow for London would be crazy. I'm sure we'd both end up with pneumonia and, no show is worth it.

So, we spent last night rearranging our Eurostar (train) tickets and, pushed our departure to France back until Wednesday, and, as a result we wouldn't have as much time in Spain for me to meet my loves family and friends but, we will get as much done as we can.

Off to the doctor for me. The next post will be London!

Almost Vacation Time!

Well it's almost vacation time for me, and, I'm excited. I am heading to Europe to see my newest love interest. He has an amazing itinerary lined up for us. We are meeting in London and will end up in Barcelona all over the course of two weeks.

Yes, I will be posting the entire time. Have computer and WiFi, can travel! My journey will begin via British Airways in their Club World (business class) section. I hate overnight flights, but, it's all part of the adventure. Luckily, Club World is fairly nice, I don't believe I'll get a full sleeper seat but, regardless, it will beat being in the sardine class in economy.

So upon landing we will spend a few days in England, then we are taking the Chunnel via the Eurostar to Paris for a few more days, and, then finally on to Spain. This is truly going to be an exciting time. I've been to Europe before, but, being able to travel with someone native to a country I am visiting brings an added amount of excitement, especially since I have a budding relationship with this person.

I believe our main concentration will be the city of Barcelona, where my special friend lives. I've been to Barcelona, and, cannot wait to return to this very beautiful city. I leave on Friday evening on Friday (June 30).

Did I mention I'm excited? :D

Under the Tuscan Sun - Oh that white dress!

If you've never read or seen the movie "Under the Tuscan Sun" the story is about an American woman who finds herself divorcing, and, through a series of events she ends up buying a villa outside of Florence, Italy. It's a wonderful story, and, if you're looking for a good summer book, this one comes highly recommended (or if you're looking for a chic flick this is a good one to rent.)

In the story, our heroine, Frances, has a dream that she needs to buy a white dress before meeting one of her romantic encounters. And by the photo above, you can see what I mean when I say "Oh that white dress!"

Why is it so hard to find a white dress that equals the one Dianne Lane wore in the movie? A white dress with style and class. I've tried doing internet searches to see if I could locate a replica of that white dress and, no one seems to know of anywhere or anyone that offers a dress similar to it.

Furthermore, why is it that all the designers seem to copycat each other regardless of the garment? If designer A puts out a long dress and calls it a maxi dress, then designers B, C, D, etc also put out a long dress and call it a maxi dress. And, this doesn't apply to just the maxi dress but, nearly every piece of clothing out there.

Personally, I am tired of everything being marketed to the trashiest, lowest sector of society. These are the same people who watch reality tv, who value looks over intelligence, and, generally speaking, cannot speak or think independently for themselves.

Surely I cannot be the only person out there who feels this same way. How many times have you gone into your favorite department store to find absolutely nothing close to what you are seeking? Even the most upscale department stores and boutiques fall short in offering something other than what everyone else is showing.

One thing is for certain. I do LOVE that white dress. And, personally, I cannot wait to return to Italy to see if our Italian counter parts are having more success in finding better fashions.

So, who wants to come with me? Anyone want to go Italy and go shopping?

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