Friday, January 02, 2009

Highlights of 2008

I'm not going to dwell on anything negative about 2008, so here are some highlights.


Best Holiday
Most of my holiday time was absorbed by wedding-related activities, but even if I'd been on a dozen holidays, it would have been hard to beat our week in San Francisco. I loved it so much, I'm going back again in 2009.

Best Wedding
Is it wrong to compare weddings? I went to so many, it seems an obvious category. My sister's wedding wins easily. It wasn't the most lavish, the most expensive or even the most romantic, but everyone had such a good day. I spent all day either laughing, smiling or crying! She did have the best cake too.

Best Meal
Brunch of "Vanilla French Toast with Warm Berries" at the Cafe de la Presse in San Francisco. Not something you can eat everyday, but so gorgeous I still think about it months later. A late runner-up would be our meal on New Year's Eve at Jamie Oliver's Italian restaurant in Bath - great service, great food and very reasonable prices.

Best Discovery
The outdoor swimming pool near work. Not that I'm ending the year any fitter, but I did give it a good go at various points and I hope to improve in 2009.

Life is far from perfect but I'm entering 2009 with a roof over my head, a secure job and a great OH and family.

Happy New Year!

4 comments:

Mellifluous Dark said...

Happy New Year, sweetheart! And how lucky to be going back to San Francisco... am envious.

I hope 2009 is a wonderful one for you and yours.

Anonymous said...

Glad you enjoyed SFO. Where else have you been in the US?

Most visitors from abroad visit NYC or the CA cities (LA, SFO, etc.)initially, and those are must-sees, but they are so unlike the rest of the country. They represent some extremes culturally, and most of the US is vastly different from that.

I hope you get to come back and see some other places. SFO is terrific, but it's probably low on my top ten places to visit here!

SandDancer said...

M - I have only really been to those places you list, plus Florida when I was young, but I am aware that they aren't like the rest of the country. It is such a massive place that I wouldn't expect it to all be the same and in a way I imagine each state to almost be like a different country. I would love to travel across the whole of the USA, but unfortunately I don't drive which does limit me somewhat.

Anonymous said...

I wouldn't say each state is like a different country. It's more regions of the country that differ, especially culturally.

Both coasts are extremes -- you don't find a lot of cultural harmony between the coasts and the heartland. The South also has its own flavor but probably agrees more with the heartland culturally, and believe it or not, the Northeast and the South still don't get along all that well after that Civil War thing. :)

Not driving could be an issue in getting across the country. You'd have to go by bus or train or splurge and hire a limo to take you on tour! Now that would be a marvelous trip!