Italy 2008

Italy: if you haven't been, you need to go.

Peek-a-boo from Cinque Terra

Vineyards on the cliffs, still cultivated by hand

The Italians know what's up

Along the Cinque Terra trail

Portofino- so quaint and lovely

Quite a respite for the wealthy

Favorite haunt of Truman Capote and many others

MMM, gelato

Genoa's architechture

Chocolate Lumpy Bumpy

Yes, this is the real name of a dessert.  I saw it and had to try it despite the questionable name.  It is definitely chocolatey, definitely bumpy in shape, but, fortunately, not lumpy in texture.

Jersey Seen From Above

I got to fly in our friend Tony's private plane on Monday-- it was so fun!  Tony owns a share of this neat fabric (almost oil-cloth like) plane made in 1944, the oldest flying plane in Jersey.  It's a two-seater and we took off right after a huge British Airways jet.  It was so peaceful and beautiful- really the best way to see the island!

Me getting out of the plane

Captain Tony

View of St Aubin's bay

The SW corner of Jersey

Corbière Lighthouse

Mussel beds in the east...yum

Gorey Castle in the east

The quarry

Elizabeth Castle in St Aubin's Bay

View of St Ouen's bay's beach

Now if I could just fly with Anne and Josh... tee hee

London with Diana

While in London I got to see Diana Tiefa, who is now working for the 2012 London Olympics committee, planning, organizing and budgeting the whole thing.

Diana's cute flat in Greenwich

Just like the old days...

Jersey International Airshow

Every September Jersey puts on this amazing air show with aircraft from around the world, including planes that were used in WWII, Vietnam and Korea.  The Royal Air Force "Red Arrows" were really great.  We went out in a friend's boat to view the show from St Aubin's Bay.  The last picture is us being towed back to the marina by the Jersey Coast Guard (dead battery).

A plane over Elizabeth Castle

The only good picture I have of the Red Arrows... google them for better pics.

HMS Ocean in the bay

We were towed by this huge boat at about 25 knots... way too fast and scary for me!

Thank You for the Music, ABBA Tribute Concert

Yes, that's what we did this weekend! It was great! 35,000 people in London's Hyde Park paying tribute to the amazing music of ABBA through Kylie Minogue, Chaka Kahn, The Feeling, Jamie Cullum, the London cast of Mama Mia and others. If I had to do the same again, I would, my friend Fernando.

Enjoy the pictures below, and follow the link if you want to listen to the concert yourself (via BBC iPlayer). If you follow the link, I suggest starting about 5 minutes in. Voulez-vous?!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00mnd4b/Thank_You_For_The_Music_A_Celebration_Of_The_Music_Of_ABBA/

Read more, Chiquitita: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8253998.stm

... cuz somewhere in the crowd there's you...

The ultimate Super Trouper, Kylie Minogue.

Thank you for the music- for giving it to me!

If you're up for an absolutely hilarious ABBA medley sung by Steve Coogan, try this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiI5-c6GNz8