Thursday, July 14, 2005

little secrets

As one travels, you come to appreciate that every place has its wonderful little secret. Some restaurant that is great, a hidden alcove with ancient drawings, or a local that makes that place special. Its taken me a while but I have found that little secret that Plymouth has.

Jess.

Jess is the spritely young lady at the YMCA who teaches aerobics, pilates, and gives massages. I was introduced to her by my friends whom also take classes with me and she was a strongly recommended for her massage-skills. I have never had a massage before and with the tension building in my back from hunching over this damn computer so much, I decided to take my friends advice and book an hour with Jess. Simply put - amazing.

I wasn't expecting much and I went in with the idea that I would be oily and slightly more relaxed when I left. I was wrong. Jess did an amazing job on me and I feel like "my aura has been cleansed" (as my hippie friends would say). Its been several hours now since I felt Jess purging the knots from my muscles and I still have this feeling of tranquility. With sleep-time just moments away, I know I will drift off easily as my body is so happy with the decision that my mind made; I'm sure the two of them (mind and body) will be refreshed tomorrow for the end of the 3rd week of school.

Jess is the little jewel in Plymouth's pocket and I hope she stays around for at least another year so that I can allow her to beat the tension out of me again. Heck, I need to get her to do that again before I even leave Plymouth! In any case, if you are ever in Plymouth, Devon, England - stop in and let this wonderful young lady put you in a state of comfort and joy.

Wednesday, July 13, 2005

modest bride


modest bride
Originally uploaded by bethany2784.
Flickr is a nice place to put photos on the web, sometimes you never know who is going to be looking at them though. :)

As I was making my way around the site, this picture was brought to my attention via flickr's "Everyone's" link. It is a wonderful photo of a woman named Bethany on her wedding day. Click on 'modest bride' or 'bethany2784' to see the rest of her pictures.

Why post it? Just cuz its cool...

Monday, July 11, 2005

pillion

It was another gorgeous weekend here in Plymouth and never one to shy away from getting out to enjoy the weather, I took a friend of mine for a spin. We wandered around the English countryside and I really wish I could tell you where we were. Truth be told, I have no idea. The bike just told me where to turn and I followed its lead. It does talk to me, I swear!

While we were out, I gave her my camera to snap some shots.



This is just one of the cool pics that she took while we were out. This was on our return through Plymouth. This is the Barbican, as seen from the pillion's perspective.

Thursday, July 07, 2005

the dangers of riding

Obstacles to watch out for on this ride - my pillion passenger took this picture of an oncoming horde on our last ride. MOOOOOve outta the way!!!!

are bikers really clones?

With the upcoming good weather here in Plymouth this weekend, I think its time to put on my REAL biker outfit...

Saturday, July 02, 2005

rugby rivalry

This was outside the Walkabout bar here in Plymouth.



One of my friends from my graduate studies is from New Zealand and has taken me out a couple of times to watch the All Blacks (NZ rugby team) play. This year the Lions made a tour of NZ and will play 3 matches (two down, one more to play next week) against the All Blacks. The Lions are a rugby team made of the best from the UK (England, Ireland, Wales, Scotland) and there is a slight rivalry between the two teams.

So I was happy to go out with my friend and watch the All Blacks do their best against the Lions and I was not to be disappointed. Despite a slow start from the men in black (remember the name), they punished the Lions with a fierceness and won 48-18. Here's how they start the match, with their haka.




But I just thought that the poster advertising it was kinda cool, especially since it makes fun of the Lions in a country where the Lions are from!!!

plymouth scenes

not much to say except, "I wonder what he is drinking..."