FNCE 2016!

The weekend before last was the annual four day Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo.  Last year it was held in colorful Nashville but this year the location was in a less-exotic location: Boston. 

The best thing about being local was that we were able to bring home a big sack full of goodies from the expo every night, unlike last year when I was strictly limited to what I could stuff into my carry-on bag.  The other great thing about having it nearby was that I could visit with Bo and commute with my FSU dietitian friend Emily! 

Over 10,000 attendees!

The opening speaker was Barbara Corcoran.  She has a TV show but I've never heard of her :o(  There were, however, some actual celebrities of the nutrition field who gave great talks. 

One of the best parts was visiting the expo hall.  There were over 300 food-related exhibitors, all with treats, samples, and other fun giveaways. 

The stash.  I think my favorite freebies were the neat vegetable and nut t-shirts--they will make fabulous additions to my growing collection of food shirts.

Once again, Chobani delivered.

Kellogg's had a made-to-order cereal bar

Stinks they didn't have almond milk for Emily :o(  What are people who are allergic to milk and soy to do?

Goats are great

Food demos were everywhere

It was so great to see Bo and to hang out with Alice (outside of work)!

Final City Walks

Friday, Oct 7th: This was the day for our big walking tour of The City.  Although I really love my self-guided walking tours, I found it immensely difficult to do them during this trip.  This was because of the understandable crowds of humanity that made pausing to follow a guide book nearly impossible.  Well, maybe this was a sign to put down the guidebook and look up! Experience the city!   

Jogging along the canal at 6am was the only way to escape the crowds.

Jogging along the canal also provided some stellar sights, like some grunge near Camden Lock Market.  Mom and I will be in this vicinity the next day.

The original Twinings shop (est 1706) was a "must see"!

Temple Church (1185), headquarters of the Knights Templar.  I was very disappointed it was closed :o(

St Bride's Church.  The steeple was the inspiration for the tiered wedding cake!  Can you tell?  Mom and I caught a noontime quartet concert here.

Obamarama!

We crossed the river to the South Bank to spend a little more time in bustling Borough Market.

I had been dreaming of getting a meat pie!

Wild highland venison burger and wild boar hot dog at the same stall.  I came around several times for samples.

One additional "must do" was catch an evensong, and Southwark Cathedral by Borough Market was our pick (they were setting up for quiz night!). The music was phenomenal and the service was one of the trip highlights.  The ruffled collars the boys choir wore was the icing on the cake :o)

We poked our head into the Tate Modern but I think we were both pretty worn out after the big day.  We crossed the Thames again, this time via the Millennium Bridge, and headed back to the hostel to expire the evening.

Saturday, Oct 8th: Ah, our final day!  It was time to do some window shopping, after a quick cultural activity, of course.  The Victoria and Albert museum was massive... so we just moved on to Harrods.    

Christmas World

Lots of overpriced food

Wow, Harrods really does have everything, like this yak chair.  (Visitors, keep in mind that this place really is just a large department store, one with some strange "extras".) 

Explanation, please.

Now this was my type of market!  Grungy, grimy, Camden Lock Market sprawled for many, many blocks.

The locks were quite the sight

And the shops (and people!) just got more and more bizarre

We made sure to get our afternoon lattes one last time before heading home.

We had dinner just down the road from our hostel.  Just like Italia!

We stayed by Kings Cross.  Yes, here is Platform 9 3/4, and with a sprawling queue, a professional photographer, security guard, and guy waving a Gryffindor scarf one could wear for a dramatic photo.  I wonder what Harry would think?

Our little private room at the hostel.  This was about when I realized I lost my wallet sometime after having pizza :o(  Not the best way to end a trip but at least I didn't loose it at the beginning!

Thanks, Mom, for a truly wonderful trip!

Stonehenge and Bath

Thursday, Oct 6th: Our most anticipated excursion was a day-trip to Stonehenge and Bath.  Like many people, Stonehenge is something I had been wanting to see my entire life, ever since I was little and heard all sorts of conspiracy stories about aliens building it.  Even though these days I am doubtful of aliens being responsible for the stones, they are still incredibly fascinating; watching them rise seemingly out of nowhere, from the middle of humble Salisbury Plain, was quite a memorable spectacle. 

 

A good view of the heel stone (far right) in relation to the circle

A sturdy bird perch

Leaving Salisbury Plain

Time for a Roman Bath!

It's sad to think that people came from miles around to bathe in psychedelic green water.

Gemstones (used for personal seals) from the 1st century AD found in the Roman drain.  Folks should have taken their rings off before jumping in!

A bubble man in the Bath town center

Lovely, Gothic Bath Abbey

Bath's oldest house (1482) still churns out the famous Sally Lunn's Buns, made with a 300 year old recipe!  I wonder if they have always been so massive??

We took an extremely brisk tour of the city with our bus tour guide. The ironic thing about this man was that he didn't seem to actually like tourists.  Maybe that is why only Mom, myself, and one other woman showed up for his tour??  His only real redeeming quality was that he seemed to be pretty sharp with history.  Oh, and he took us to see a sight Mom had been extremely excited to see...

The Royal Crescent.  Mom seemed more excited to see this than Stonehenge ;o)

The Parade Grounds