Were coming home (via Paris)

After more than 4 weeks the team have all dispersed to different parts of Europe prior to heading home. For me it has been a couple of nights in Paris (via the Eurostar). Seeing the sites and even managing to ride a bike through the Boulevards of Paris has been a great way to finish the trip. I am currently sitting in a Cafe outside the Piccadilly Circus station getting ready to catch the tube to Heathrow. The 20 hours on a plane doesnt worry me as I know I have some very special girls at home that I wont to hug and kiss.

A day in London

As we had a free day on Wednesday the team decided to jump on a train to London. Our first stop was the National Science Museum . For lunch we caught up with a friend of Ruths after which we headed for a spot of shopping at Harrods. Before we knew it we had to jump on a train back to Orpington in time for our farewell presentation.

Serious study

Studying another culture's beer...it's a hard life! On Saturday night Ruth and Alison came across a beer festival.

Kidnapped!

Saturday afternoon we were met by the previous districts (D1120) GSE team that went to Virginia, USA in 2006. Alex, Rachel and Helen arranged to take us out for some relaxation and laughter. I was disappointed that we didn't make it to a football match (sorry Emir), but we did have a great time. After lunch and drinks at the club, we tried to go ice-skating, but found out we were too old for that time slot, so went bowling instead.

The dockyard

Saturday morning was spent with Denis, our very knowledgeable guide, showing us around the dockyard and Ropery.

Indian Restaurant

On Friday night my hosts, John and Moira, took Ruth and I out for an Indian. We certainly were rewarded for our fundraising efforts (and for looking silly with the ears) and were taken to Moira's favourite restaurant. We enjoyed some great food and even better company. Thanks!

Fundraising

On Friday night Ruth and I went with my host, John, down to the river for the fireworks display. Once there we donned fluro tops, grabbed a bucket and helped collect donations from patrons arriving to watch the fireworks. At first we were not doing so well, so John bought Ruth and I some flashing bunny ears to attract attention, this seemed to do the trick! In no time at all our bucket started to get heavy with coins, we even managed to score the first note of the night. I am still impressed the most by a guy offering me some hot chips!