A couple of GREAT nights on the town...

Family,

And a good evening to you from across the Pond after a GREAT evening in the Mother Country. So first off - there is a group of screaming 20 year old naked people on the balcony directly opposite us. I have seen more in the last 20 minutes than I did during the whole of my time at Scores in Las Vegas - talk about a great show! And for the record - muffin puffin is the one who noticed it (Liz - picture hairy naked guy x 50) - just another crazy night in the Taylor household!

Secondly - condolences to Brother Ray Tavares and his family. After a year of planning, they found out at 1 AM this morning that their general admission tickets to the women's halfpipe had been canceled due to the warm weather and unsafe conditions of the snow along the pipe. Damn, brother - I am SO SORRY. Here's hoping that the hockey match still on the docket more than makes up for it.

So, recapping last night - JT and I had decided that, despite the desperate need to keep my MLR's (that would be muffin land rovers) from regressing back to muffin tanks, we needed to break the "exercise and salad at home" cycle and venture out into the city to make the most of our time here. Consequently, at 7:15 PM we were at The Compass, trying a new West India Pale Ale and having a date night. We had SO MUCH FUN - it was just so nice to relax and chat for a bit, not thinking about work and being outside of the normal routine. I LOVE YOU, PUMPKIN!!!!!

Dinner that night was at Spices, a place that JT and I once visited with the Prime Minister (that would be Andy Carter) and which had stood until last night as the place I regarded as THE BEST Indian in the city. And whilst dinner was great again last night (the cook comes out and speaks to you personally to help craft your dish), I must honestly confess that the Rajdoot is better and is officially THE BEST CURRY HOUSE IN LONDON. Given all the spots we've hit, that is some SERIOUS praise.

The highlight of the night - we found BENGLA BEER!!!!! Backstory on this - me, muffin, and the posh puma used to hit up a curry house in Chester called India Flava, and the highlight was the fact that they served Bengla Beer. I still remember one of Puma's better conversations:

Posh Puma (PP): (to the waiter) "This Bengla Beer is good."

Half Drunk Waiter (HDW): "Thank you, sir." (vigorous head shake)

PP: "Where in Bengladesh is it brewed?"

HDW: "Is not from Bengladesh, sir. Is from India."

PP: "It's called Bengla Beer but it's NOT from Bengladesh?"

HDW: "No, sir - is from India."

PP (looking at bottle): "But right here on the bottle it says 'Made in Bengladesh.'"

HDW (dumbfounded): "Is incorrect, sir. Is Indian beer." (walks off, puma and I cackle)

We promptly went home and passed out, but I did pop up this morning to put in 50 minutes on the bike! That's right, Armstrong - FEAR THE REAPER!

This evening I rolled to the local, the Cat & Canary, where I had drinks with some of the work peeps - Lynn Barron (first trip to Europe - hope you enjoyed!), Fiona Clark, Rob Rose, and Owain Morgan (just for 1 Mabs, no worries!). We had some drinks and then dinner, and I must confess - C & C (Music Factory) does one of THE BEST burgers in the UK - WOW, I was impressed.

I rolled home around 11, where I found my muffin just finishing work and getting ready for bed. Yes, I know, I know - I am a bad husband. But I will make it up to her tomorrow during the Lady Gaga Dance Party! Stay tuned...

Okay, that's all the news that's fit to print. Chat tomorrow!

Love,

Sam and Jenny