RON DUPLAIN WAS SPENDING THE WEEK IN LONDON!!
As you've probably noticed, I was more than excited by the chance to see a familiar face from home. Seemingly by chance, Ron arrived in London last Sunday for a business conference and would be staying in England until the following Friday. Booked solid with conference events until Wednesday evening, we decided to wait until Thursday afternoon to meet up in Guildford. An experienced European traveler, Ron had no problem catching a train from London to Guildford and arrived early enough in the afternoon to see a few sites around my small British hometown. After a few quick hugs at the train station, Ron, Bill, and I endured the typical English drizzle and headed towards Guildford castle to walk around the Norman ruins. Today, there isn't much left of the castle beyond the foundation and walls of the main tower. In its prime, the entire castle grounds were surrounded by a widespread wall with the main tower located near the perimeter of the barricaded land. Most Guildford natives recommended skipping the castle ruins mainly because there are many better-preserved castle remains elsewhere in Britain, but with little to do in Guildford, I didn't mind the 1-pound admission fee for the chance to show Ron the best view of the city.
After wandering through the castle gardens and a bit of downtown Guildford, we strolled towards campus to relax with a few drinks at the main campus pub. Though there wasn't much to see in Guildford as fas as touristy landmarks are concerned, the three of us had a great time catching up on news, laughing over stories from home, and just enjoying the chance to hang out with fellow Ohioans. Taking a restaurant recommendation from my British classmates, Bill and I took Ron to a small Portuguese restaurant called "Nando's". The restaurant was unique in that I've never tasted Portuguese food or wine before, and I must say that I was pretty impressed. Wanting to try as many different nationalities of wine as possible during this semester, I quickly discovered that Portuguese white wine trumps Greek white wine (my last glass of wine ordered in London). One of the best parts of dinner was listening to Ron tell us about his European travels with his wife, which included Scotland, England, France, Belgium, and Germany. (Needless to say, his stories were part of the motivation for Bill and I booking flights to Munich the very next day!)
With stomachs full and appetites satisfied, we took a short walk to Bill's house to pick up our bags where we left them earlier in the day. An avid beer and liquor connoisseur, Ron graciously handed off a partial bottle of Scotch that he wouldn't be able to pack into his carry-on luggage for the flight home. While in Scotland on his honeymoon, Ron and Tekla (his wife) visited a Scotch museum where they learned the history of Scotch and the art of Scotch-tasting. Passing on his knowledge and trying a few sips ourselves, Bill and I quickly agreed that blended Scotch is probably one of the best liquors that we've ever experienced. To be completely honest, Scotch is probably the one liquor that I would drink straight on the rocks because any other additions would ruin the taste of this smooth beverage.
Feeling slightly light-headed from the Portuguese wine and few sips of Scotch, I cut myself off the alcoholic beverages a little early and walked back with the guys to campus to watch a few minutes of Bill's fencing practice. Since the fencing team was only teaching drills to the beginners, Ron and I left UniSport early and decided to grab hot chocolate at a small campus cafe. Enjoying a steady stream of conversation and the best hot chocolate in town, we later met up with the fencing team at the cafe after practice and introduced Ron to a few of our classmates and friends. Chatting over coffee and drinks, we hardly realized the late time until the cafe employees started to close shop for the night. Walking Ron back to the train station to catch a train back to London before midnight, I was a little sad to see a great friend head back to the US. However, the chance to see someone from home while halfway around the world is so rare and incredibly fun that I was quickly reminded that I only have eight more weeks before the my next American visitor arrives in London -- my amazing boyfriend Craig, of course.
Thanks again, Ron! Your visit to Guildford was the small reminder of home that I've been missing over the past month. Bill and I had an awesome time catching up with you on Thursday night.
Seeing Ron made me realized that sometimes you never know who you may see in Europe!
After wandering through the castle gardens and a bit of downtown Guildford, we strolled towards campus to relax with a few drinks at the main campus pub. Though there wasn't much to see in Guildford as fas as touristy landmarks are concerned, the three of us had a great time catching up on news, laughing over stories from home, and just enjoying the chance to hang out with fellow Ohioans. Taking a restaurant recommendation from my British classmates, Bill and I took Ron to a small Portuguese restaurant called "Nando's". The restaurant was unique in that I've never tasted Portuguese food or wine before, and I must say that I was pretty impressed. Wanting to try as many different nationalities of wine as possible during this semester, I quickly discovered that Portuguese white wine trumps Greek white wine (my last glass of wine ordered in London). One of the best parts of dinner was listening to Ron tell us about his European travels with his wife, which included Scotland, England, France, Belgium, and Germany. (Needless to say, his stories were part of the motivation for Bill and I booking flights to Munich the very next day!)
With stomachs full and appetites satisfied, we took a short walk to Bill's house to pick up our bags where we left them earlier in the day. An avid beer and liquor connoisseur, Ron graciously handed off a partial bottle of Scotch that he wouldn't be able to pack into his carry-on luggage for the flight home. While in Scotland on his honeymoon, Ron and Tekla (his wife) visited a Scotch museum where they learned the history of Scotch and the art of Scotch-tasting. Passing on his knowledge and trying a few sips ourselves, Bill and I quickly agreed that blended Scotch is probably one of the best liquors that we've ever experienced. To be completely honest, Scotch is probably the one liquor that I would drink straight on the rocks because any other additions would ruin the taste of this smooth beverage.
Feeling slightly light-headed from the Portuguese wine and few sips of Scotch, I cut myself off the alcoholic beverages a little early and walked back with the guys to campus to watch a few minutes of Bill's fencing practice. Since the fencing team was only teaching drills to the beginners, Ron and I left UniSport early and decided to grab hot chocolate at a small campus cafe. Enjoying a steady stream of conversation and the best hot chocolate in town, we later met up with the fencing team at the cafe after practice and introduced Ron to a few of our classmates and friends. Chatting over coffee and drinks, we hardly realized the late time until the cafe employees started to close shop for the night. Walking Ron back to the train station to catch a train back to London before midnight, I was a little sad to see a great friend head back to the US. However, the chance to see someone from home while halfway around the world is so rare and incredibly fun that I was quickly reminded that I only have eight more weeks before the my next American visitor arrives in London -- my amazing boyfriend Craig, of course.
Thanks again, Ron! Your visit to Guildford was the small reminder of home that I've been missing over the past month. Bill and I had an awesome time catching up with you on Thursday night.
Seeing Ron made me realized that sometimes you never know who you may see in Europe!
1 comment:
You were quite the host! It was amazing to meet up with you on the other side of the world...
Bill and Julia, the visit was memorable, to say the least!
-Ron
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