San Sebastián Memories

Bad photos, we all have them and some of us more than others. When I got my first digital camera, I thought it would be the end of the bad photos of my disposable camera days. Now I know the digital camera is not a miracle worker - it just put an end to waiting to find out that you were pulling a gormless face that previously might have taken weeks to discover. But what if you could go back a have a retake of one of your bad photos, which would you choose?

When I first read the premise behind Russell's 'No More Bad Photos Competition' I thought it was going to be difficult to choose a photo, but once I sat down to write my entry one photo jumped out at me immediately. It was the first "couple" photo of Luke and I, taken on our first weekend away together to San Sebastián in March 2009.

Luke and I met during my first week in Pau, when we were introduced by my host mother, Domi, who was Luke's boss. (My apologies to the ones who already know this story.) We began dating almost immediately after meeting, but everything was casual. After all at the end of the summer I would be going back to America and Luke to England. The idea of it being anything serious, at the time, seemed impossible.

To this end, perhaps to convince ourselves more than anything, we tried to steer clear of what I would call "coupley" things. We didn't have any photos of just the two of us, if we were in a photo together someone else was always with us. We didn't call ourselves boyfriend and girlfriend. And perhaps most important of all, we didn't have the "so where is this going?" conversation that seems to plague so many relationships.

Our bubble of avoidance was shattered in mid-March when Luke asked if I would be interested in going away with him for the weekend, just the two of us. We considered going to Biarritz, but we had gone there a number of times already with our group of friends. Plus there was a strong likelihood that our friends would get the urge to go to the beach and join us. So we decided on San Sebastián - home of tapas, Basque cuisine, surfing, and the most Michelin star restaurants.

We spent the weekend laying on the beach, eating amazing Spanish cuisine, and visiting the same gelato place more times than I can remember. We taken a number of photos of each other but so far didn't have one of the two of us together. That changed on our last day on top of the San Sebastián Aquarium (we also discovered our mutual love of aquariums) when we finally had our first couple photo.

It is a little dark on our faces, and the pose is awkward because rather than find someone to take it for us, Luke is holding his hand out. But it still makes our photo album because it is our first.We may have fallen in love in Pau, but San Sebastián is where it all changed for us. I had no idea then that three years down the line I would be living in England, married to the incredible man posing right next to me.

We've often talked about going back to San Sebastián, the place where our relationship changed to the more  serious. Someday we will, and we'll pose on top of the Aquarium like we did that day, but this time I think we'll ask a passer-by to take the photo for us.

Remember: The truly bad photos are the ones that don’t exist at all.

Erin x

Entry for In Search of a Life Less Ordinary's 'No More Bad Photos Competition'

ANSWERS: How well do you know the Queen?

Last week I shared with you the quiz I took at my work's Diamond Jubilee celebration. If you haven't completed it yet, then stop reading now and go take the quiz. And as promised here are your answers. I hope you did well, and found out something you didn't know about our reigning monarch of 60 years.

My score was 8/12, but how did you do? What did you learn? Let me know on Quintessentially English's brand new Facebook Page or tweet to me @essentialerin!

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1. Which month of the year did the Queen accede to the throne?
     February

2. Where was the Queen when she first heard the news that she had become Queen?
     Tree Tops - Kenya

3. How many dogs does the Queen currently own?
    Six - 3 Corgis and 3 Dorgis (a cross between a Dachshund and the Corgi)


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4. Who played the guitar on the roof of Buckingham Palace to mark the Queen's Golden Jubilee?
    Brian May

5. What colour does the Queen traditionally wear when visiting the Vatican?
     Black

6. Who designed the Queen's dress for her wedding and coronation?
     Norman Hartnell

7. Where are the Crown Jewels kept?
     Tower of London

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8. Which of following historic events has NOT taken place during the Queen's reign?
     a. The end of food rationing in the UK
     b. The moon landing
     c. the building of the Berlin wall
    d. The Festival of Britain

9. The Queen's coronation was the most watched event on television at the time, even though only 5.5 million households in the UK (about one third of the population) had televisions. How many households have TV today?
     a. 1 Million
     b. 13 Million
    c. 26 Million
     d. 50 Million

10. How many miles of motorway did the UK have in 1952?
      0 - The first motorway in the UK opened in 1958.

11. The position of women in the workforce of the UK has changed since 1952. Today approximately half the workforce is female. What % of those employed in 1952 were female?
      a. 0%
      b. 10%
      c. 24%
     d. 33%

12. Which iconic musician said the following at the 1963 Royal Variety Performance in the presence of the Queen? "For our last number I'd like your help. Would you people in the cheaper seats clap your hands and for the rest of you just rattle your jewellery."
   a. Paul McCartney
  b. John Lennon
   c. Brian May
   d. Bob Dylan

Erin x

QUIZ: How well do you know the Queen?

I mentioned in my post Diamond Jubilee Celebrations (Part 1) that we had taken a quiz at work in honour of HM Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee. I had a few comments and emails requesting that I share it with you lovely people, so here it is as promised! 

I'm sure you can beat my score - 8/12 but don't cheat and use Google like so many of my colleagues did! 

 All rights reserved by The British Monarchy

1. Which month of the year did the Queen accede to the throne?

2. Where was the Queen when she first heard the news that she had become Queen?

3. How many dogs does the Queen currently own?

4. Who played the guitar on the roof of Buckingham Palace to mark the Queen's Golden Jubilee?

5. What colour does the Queen traditionally wear when visiting the Vatican?

6. Who designed the Queen's dress for her wedding and coronation?

7. Where are the Crown Jewels kept?

8. Which of following historic events has NOT taken place during the Queen's reign?

              a. The end of food rationing in the UK

              b. The moon landing

              c. the building of the Berlin wall

              d. The Festival of Britain

9. The Queen's coronation was the most watched event on television at the time, even though only 5.5 million households in the UK (about one third of the population) had televisions. How many households have TV today?

              a. 1 Million

              b. 13 Million

              c. 26 Million

              d. 50 Million

10. How many miles of motorway did the UK have in 1952?

11. The position of women in the workforce of the UK has changed since 1952. Today approximately half the workforce is female. What % of those employed in 1952 were female?

              a. 0%

              b. 10%

              c. 24%

              d. 33%

12. Which iconic musician said the following at the 1963 Royal Variety Performance in the presence of the Queen? "For our last number I'd like your help. Would you people in the cheaper seats clap your hands and for the rest of you just rattle your jewellery."

              a. Paul McCartney

              b. John Lennon

              c. Brian May

              d. Bob Dylan

UPDATE: For the answers please click here.

Erin x

Diamond Jubilee Celebrations (Part 2)

Not even the Queen could keep away the bad weather that always seems to come with a bank holiday weekend. While we all had visions of barbecues in the back garden the always unpredictable English weather had other plans. As they said repeatedly on the BBC "the rain could not dampen our spirits". Therefore the planned barbecue we had for Sunday moved to an indoor party at Neil and Nicola's house.

We all dressed in red,white, and blue - even Neil who is known for his Grinch-like tendencies when it comes to dressing up. We drank English cider, ale, and even toasted the Queen with a bottle of English sparkling wine from Kent, which was surprisingly good. While Nic finished preparing the food, all English fare, we watched the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant.

Over 1,000 boats mustered on the River Thames to pay homage to Her Majesty, making it the largest boat procession the Thames has seen in over 300 years. This 1,000 boat flotilla even achieved a new Guinness World Record for the world's largest parade of boats. The procession was led by the Queen on the Royal Barge, which also included Prince Charles, Camilla, Prince Harry, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and of course Prince Philip.

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At first as I sat drinking a Crabbies' Ginger Beer at the kitchen table I wished I could be in London, despite all the rain, to witness the event. More specifically I wished I could be on the Royal Barge, my Grandmother has had me practising my curtsey since before I could walk properly. After about an hour of the procession though I began to realise just how many 1,000 boats were.

True it was amazing to see, but I started to feel a bit sorry to the Queen having to stand there and wave for hours on end. There must be so many times in a royal's life when all want to do is just say 'sod it' to the world and stay in bed.

The Union Jack table at Neil and Nicola's

On Monday, I spent the day in Milton Keynes Centre shopping or as I like to call it honouring the Queen by boosting the economy. That evening there was A Concert at Buckingham Palace organised by the BBC. It was supposed to be attended the by Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh, and other members of the Royal Family. Unfortunately the DoE was sent to the hospital as a precaution for a bladder infection, probably caused from his hours spent the day before unable to move for hours, he is 90 after all!

I wish I could say I loved the concert, but if you follow me on Twitter, you'll know this was not the case. I would describe the first half as an assault on my eardrums. It started with Robbie Williams screeching 'Let Me Entertain You'. Perhaps it is because I didn't grow up listening to Take That, but I just don't get Robbie's appeal. He appears to be an arrogant tit if I'm honest.

I then suffered through will.i.am, Jessie J, JLS, and Gary Barlow with Cheryl Cole (who is now styling herself as Cheryl). To be fair to Mr. Barlow I actually don't mind him. As a member of Take That I didn't grow up listening to his music, but I look at him differently than Robbie Williams - he writes the music and doesn't come off cocky like ol' Robbie.

It wasn't all bad, in fact there were some genuinely good performances, I shouldn't be so quick to tar the whole thing as bad. For example I loved Lang Lang, Elton John, Kylie Minogue, Madness, and Paul McCartney. I unfortunately missed the performances of the official 'jubilee single' and Tom Jones, both of which I wanted to see.

In retrospect the Jubilee Concert wasn't all bad. I just felt bad for the Queen having to sit through some of which was on, although she didn't have to sit through the worst of it. I think that was the epitome of  'God Save the Queen'.

The Concert ended with Prince Charles paying homage to his mother or "mummy" as he called her at one point and leading the crowd in three cheers for the Queen before she lit the National Beacon. A truly spectacular end!

Erin x

Diamond Jubilee Celebrations (Part 1)

HM Queen Elizabeth II is celebrating her 60 year reign this June. This is only the second time a monarch has reached this landmark with Queen Victoria celebrating this achievement in 1897. Events have been taking place throughout the year reaching their peak this weekend with official events all over London and a street party in every corner of the United Kingdom (and globe).

Celebrations kicked off for me on Friday at my company's Diamond Jubilee street party. We were given a dress down day (as long as we maintained the patriotic colours) to mark the occasion. Our usual boring canteen was bedecked in Union Jack bunting, a table full of traditional British fare, and a CD on loop of British fan fare (i.e. 'Rule Britannia').

Our longest reigning employees.

Our longest "reigning" employee was named 'queen of the day' meaning she had to wear a Queen Elizabeth II paper mask, while our Managing Director acted as the Duke of Edinburgh. There was a raffle draw but the closest I got to winning by misreading one of my numbers and taking a tin of shortbread, which I had to quickly pass on to the rightful owner. There was also a quiz on the Queen, which I scored 8 out of 12 on, the highest score achieved not using Google might I add! One of my better, if not best, days at work.

On Saturday, Luke and I drove up to Southam to celebrate with his family. First we attended Southam's street party (see I told you there were a lot of street parties planned). It appeared the whole town, and several others, had turned up for Southam's street party, or perhaps the population was larger than I imagined. I spent my time dodging prams and trying to find a token seller as I was instructed that was the only way I could ride the mechanical bull or play any games.

Stilt walker at the Southam street party

Unfortunately, we never did find the elusive token sellers and so I had to appease myself with 2 books from the charity shop and having a piggy back from Luke all the way from town centre to his mum's house. After Luke had a breather we went to Pam and Mick's house for Jubilee barbecue. With our little cousins, Sam and Isaac, around we would need all the energy we could muster as the first words Isaac uttered were "you hide, I'll seek".

St. James' Church on a walk back from town centre

After an hour of playing hide and seek, we moved the party inside where Isaac used the Union Jack table cloths to wrap me up as giant British present. We would later use these same table cloths to create a "boys and Erin den" as Sam put it which the boys (and nearly us) fell asleep in as the night came to a close.

The Jubilee festivities didn't end on Saturday, we've had two more days full and one more day to go, so stay tuned and God save the Queen!

Erin x