Does everybody know what the above photo means? It is official: Erica from America (the horse) is a winner. Yes, my equine counterpart has finally won a race. It was all very exciting. Her odds were six to one when she came in first yesterday at Calder. I'm not sure what that means, but I'm happy she's doing her namesake proud. Also, how fun is it that her jockey wears a pink satin jersey?
Anyone who's met my step-grandfather (that means Lauren and Cory) will recognize him in the winner's circle photo at the bottom. Huzzah! For those of you confused by this post, read here to learn more about who Erica from America (the horse) is and how she came to be such an incredibly famous racing horse. No sarcasm, I assure you.
Cory and I are gearing up for a European adventure next week, of which I will write all about. In preparation, I'll be doing a few posts about our European trek from this time last year. These adventures were not previously written about, as at that point I was still wrapping up my posts about the List of 52. I'm making up for the oversight now! In 2007, I watched an episode of "Passport to Europe" on the Travel Channel. For those who haven't seen it, it's hosted by a lady called Samantha Brown, a lady I am often very jealous of. She was in Nice for that episode, but half the program was dedicated to a little village just outside Nice, somewhere called Eze.
The place looked magnificent. It was a tiny medieval village on top of a mountain, a place that had remained unchanged for approximately 800 years. I was in love with it. I didn't know how or when, but I promised myself I would one day find myself in that charming little haven.
It was serendipity that finally brought me there four years later. Cory and I were on a Mediterranean cruise that would be making a one day stop at a port called Ville Franche sur Mer. Whatever that meant. I did a bit of research pre-cruise to see if there was anything interesting nearby that we could visit, and was delighted to discover there was. Eze!
For anyone who's seen "An Affair to Remember," you'll recall Eze as the beautiful spot where Debra Kerr goes with Cary Grant to visit his grandma.
Getting up to that mountain wasn't the easiest of tasks. We took an incredibly perilous cab ride around the mountain. Once up there, though, I forgot all about our cab driver nearly careening off a cliff. It was blissful. Check out the photos below, in which I do my best Debra Kerr impression. Cory looks pretty un-Cary Grant in the last photo, however. I snapped his picture once we reached the bottom of the mountain, and I think he was done with my photo-taking by that point.
Here's a video we took of a pretty little spot. It looks like we're in someone's private back yard, but we're not. This is what the whole village looks like. Also, strain your ears to hear Cory warn me about not falling off the mountain. We have a lot of conversations like that.
Does everyone know the theme music to the Harry Potter movies? Bah bum bah bum bum, bah bum bum, bum bah bum bum bah bum...Please think of that music as you read this. Also, I apologize to those of you who haven't read the books or seen the films. It's going to sound like I'm speaking a foreign language from here on out.
Lauren and I are crazy people. To prove this to ourselves, we decided to turn the premiere of the eighth and final HP movie into a holiday extravaganza. In the past, Lauren and I have shared many a Harry Potter memory together. It's been a while since we've lived in the same city, however, and it has reduced the number of times we can dress up as wizards and frighten our friends. So, last fall we made a vow to each other that whatever else was going on at the time, we would find a way to be together for the last film. And together we were.
We spent the weekend of July 15th in Orlando, deciding that visiting Universal Studios' Wizarding World of Harry Potter was the perfect way to spend our downtime in between frequent viewings of the film. We were those crazies who camped out for the midnight viewing, and we aren't at all ashamed about it. Cory joined us a day into the trip and we got to experience the 3D version, which, unsurprisingly, was a lot like the 2D version.
When we weren't sitting in a movie theater, we were giddily skipping up and down the streets of Hogsmeade. I should note that Lauren and I made a trip to the place last year for the grand opening, so we were seeing it with experienced eyes. It hadn't lost its luster. Here's a photo of us in the Hog's Head Pub. The Hog's Head Pub! Notice Lauren is drinking a Butterbeer while I'm enjoying a Hog's Head Brew. We have different taste buds. The theme park has a neat little store based off Ollivander's wand shop from the books. You have to wait quite a while to get in, but it's worth it. Once inside, one person per show gets picked to go through a custom wand buying experience. Lauren and I almost died with excitement when we realized Mr. Ollivander was eyeing her up. Here's a video of Lauren getting fitted for her wand, as all students getting ready for their first term at Hogwarts must. I didn't capture our squeals of joy as we exited the shop, but I'm sure you can imagine for yourselves.
Now, here are some random pics of the trip. Cory weathered a quintessentially-Florida downpour by playing Ms. Packman. Also, enjoy a photo of what I would look like as a Nascar driver. It's in my future, I'm sure.
