Ode to Grandma Jo

We said goodbye to Grandma Jo today, and she hopped on a plane back to Colorado. Frankie was totally devastated, and cried for an hour after she left. It broke my heart a little too.

I can see why Frankie was so upset--We had a great time while grandma was here. It was great to see her, and we had a blast exploring Bath and just hanging out around the house in Maryport.

I thought that Jo was a very adventurous traveler, and was especially brave when it came to British food. While she was here, she tried:

Roast pigeon

Black pudding (Which is really not pudding at all, but rather a sausage made from dried blood. I hate the stuff. It’s what I imagine a scab would taste like.)

Spicy parsnip soup

English custard (Sort of like cooked vanilla pudding, right from the stove)

Sticky toffee pudding

Pork cheek

Cider

Mushy peas

Rocket (Which I love!)

English tea with milk and sugar

Roast chicken crisps

Marmite (Which is even more repulsive than black pudding, if you can believe it. Frankie’s thoughts on Marmite: “When I tried it, it felt like someone had punched me in the neck!”)

Firey ginger beer

Hand-drawn English bitter (Kind of warm...Kind of flat.)

Duck breast

And, of couse, traditional English fish and chips.

Jo is a bit of a picky eater, so it was really a kick to see her taste all of those different foods. I’m not sure she actually *liked* too many of them (aside from the sticky toffee pudding), but we were really impressed by her willingness to try new things.

We’ll miss you Grandma Jo. Come back soon!