People are on the move every holiday season. It might be expensive and inconvenient especially given the inclement weather but nonetheless, getting together for us is important. Our parents, (wow I still have the both of them, they're in their 80's) are important and every day that they are alive is a gift to us. Life is the most important gift, family is the most important gift. We celebrate this not just at Christmas but every day. While the Christmas menu is not traditional, everyone pitch in to ask for what they like. It was hard work, coordinating the cooking times and running around with a camera to capture the moments.
A few years ago all three were in High School, today they are all in college. One is graduating in a few months. Time flies, if you want to do anything, the time is now. In a few days another year will have gone by.
Cheesy leeks a la Jamie Oliver.
Here I'm cutting the Panettone to make the bread pudding.
A large quantity of mussels as appetiser. We finished it, it was a lot, I was worried, I didn't want leftover mussels in my fridge
There is serious eating going on here.
I'm a lazy cook, I was supposed to sieve the blancmange instead there are flecks of grated orange peel at the bottom. Anyway it tasted just a good. Blancmange a la Annie Bell (British Country Living magazine).
All gone
We found some old family photographs and had fun looking over them after we pulled the Christmas crackers. Our Christmas tradition is a melange of British and American. We used to live in a former British colony.
This was a great morning after, a feeling of achievement that we pulled off another great Christmas. This was not the dreaded morning after when you have to go to the drugstore for the 'morning after pill.' I can't help it, I have to throw that in after all I'm a Pharmacist. My sister and her family has to come from New Jersey. Traveling is expensive. One of my staff is in Mexico this Christmas to have his son christened at the local church there. It's going to cost a few thousand dollars, they have to invite the whole village. It's expensive but well worth it. Life is about experiences and about making memories. I hope you had a great Christmas.
The rock-cut churches are supposed to be the jurisdiction of UNESCO. For some reason some locals (yokels) got the UNESCO authorities to allow them to use this rock-cut church as a water cistern. They walled it up and had water collect in the cave to stored. There were beautiful frescoes in this church but have disappeared due to water damage, at least the lower portion. The washed out frescoes showed the level of the water. For another good reason the water was drained and the remainder of the frescoes are allowed to be seen again. It is very heartbreaking to see natural weather damage but to experience first hand, the disappearance of the frescoes at the hands of modern people is unforgivable. Byzantine art and architecture is a less popular art form and is dwarfed by ancient Roman art and architecture and ancient Greek of the same. The world would have lost a lot if these rock-cut churches with their frescoes are gone. 
