Two more sleeps and then back home....

My last post on this trip...it has been long and I am missing my family, friends and kitty.  As I sit in Amsterdam on Beulingstraat just around the corner from KoningsPlein and the flower market I feel very lucky.  First of all to have such good friends and family and to have had the opportunity to travel to so many different parts of the planet.  But to sum it all up - click your heels Dorothy - 'There's No Place Like Home'.

I can't buy any more stuff as my bags are bordering on over-weight so I will have to be focused on marketing and managing sales of jewellery when I get home.  Not my favourite thing to do but I do like the creative part so that will just have to be done.  I will send my Etsy link when I have anything to view.

Today kind of brought closure to the trip.  Wandering around the Kelverstraat on my way to the Hema - ok don;t laugh I know it is an in-joke at home.....these two red-faced, icy cold women around 60 stopped me and asked me if I spoke English.  I admitted to that fact and was asked "where the malls were" in a rather nasal, demanding tone very reminiscent of my original home town.  The word "love" was not added so I could only assume that these two elderly Scousers (both wearing 'Amsterdam' toques with earflaps) were frozen and in need of immediate warmth.  I quickly mentioned the Bijenkorf (big department store) was nearby but if a cup of tea was needed then the Hema was the place to go.  They thanked me and quickly scurried off.  At least they didnt ask me where they could get English beer.....hahaha

Just goes to show that you can take the Scouser out of the 'Pool but you can't take the 'Pool out of the Scouser.....anyway it sort of came full circle.

Off to meet up with my friend (amie) Christelle tonight for dinner in a small Belgian restaurant she knows.  We only meet in the groovy of the world...St Petersburg, New York and now Amsterdam......goodbye until next blog.

London is a pretty cool city these days - at least I haven't got lost.

Been in London a few days now and thoroughly enjoying myself.  Had to deal with having not received my replacement Landed Immigrant card inspite of a 6 mth wait - another fifty bucks and visit to London and Kafkaesque waiting for the consulate to approve my re entry I now clutch a one-time etry visa for a permanent resident.....big money grab but made me come to London and glad I did.

Having a thorougly cool time seeing plays in the West End - the old half price ticket booth in Leicester Sq is now a formal building and not a tatty old trailer.  I have enjoyed two performances - one An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde and the second play The Rivals by Sheriden, a restoration comedy.  I have really missed seeing performances of this quality and feel fortuante to have the opportunity to be here in the capital of England.

Westminster looks suitably old and the Houses of Parliament and so on have kept their charm tho lots of scaffolding around.  I must go and find the statue of Boadicea and take a few shots.  Queen Victoria had that built as she admired the queen who came before. 

Bad news on the Tarot paintings of Lady Frieda Harris tho - I did track them down but unable to view due to their fragile state - an Annie Liebowitz clone abologised but was adamant they could not be seen = boo hoo.

Seeing all the sights as one would expect - not to impressed with the British Museum as they have darn well gone and moderised it - pillars still mighty impressive out front tho - saw some Buddhist artefacts but the exhiit much smaller than I anticipated.

Tomorrow its the Vic and Al Museum - Harrods and the Tate Gallery plus a visit to Highgate Cemetery with no rain - I hope.

Went to Vivienne Westwood's store - couldnt afford anything but it was groovy...

Left Nepal and arrived in Liverpool

Arrived back in Liverpool safe and sound and had a deep and good sleep in down comforter.  Lovely day that I missed...haha

Have to admit that the customs and immigrated was the fastest I have ever been through plus the luggage arrived within five minutes - this combined with an early arrival of the flight made for a fast and easy arrival to the homeland.

Four days until I leave Nepal!

It is hard to believe that a month has passed by and I will be on my way back to Liverpool for a couple of weeks.

Nepal is a country that has many problems - too many to write about but it is in essence a fascinating place.  Buddhism is alive and the Dharma is in action here big time.  I have met so many wonderful, dedicated people working hard for change here and truly motivated to help one of the poorest countries in the world.

I met J from the Chicago area who is wealthy for sure but has his own foundation to help kids in SE Asia and another J from Chicago who has been helping Thrangu Rinpoche projects around the world for 20 years.  She has an MA in Business and I can see how much she loves the monks and her work.  I met K, a Kiwi who lives just north of Boudha here in Kopan who runs an animal rescue out of her home.  J is 77 and a massage therapist and acupuncturist who jokes about riding motorcycles in Laguna Beach back in the day...another Laguna Beach woman I met here was a journalist in Afghanistan.  J lives in London, from Poland originally who feeds the hungry dogs and sponsors 3 kids in SMD school....the list goes on and on!

Yesterday I went shopping in a "free trade" store for gifts and had a delightful time - born to shop!  Found some lovely, hand-made local items including table runners made from stinging nettle fibre.  I found truly cashmere and silk scarves and was truly overwhelmed by the traffic, pollution and noise - honking of horns is incessant here!  Funny thing is I am getting used to it!

I was with G who was very patient with me in my fervour of buying - she knows ALL the good places to shop!  I was then just stopping at the Yak n Yak hotel for a drink as the nuns from Tara Abbey were taking her to dinner when the head nun them.  I was happy to sit and to spend time chatting with Manku about her life as a nun - she is a smart cookie and one of the nuns who used to ride a motorcyle when they were building the nunnery.   It was a delightful dinner and I must say I am going to really miss being around the monks and the nuns here - Victoria will be a strange place to be with no burgundy robes passing by and noone to greet with a Tashi Delek!