The Proposal

Dan and I are engaged!

He proposed last Wednesday evening; a week earlier, he casually suggested we go out to dinner at some point in the future.  I agreed, and we decided to go on either Tuesday or Wednesday.  We chose Wednesday, obviously.
He was in the bathroom shaving beforehand, with the reasoning being that he would be "among civilized people" for the first time in a while - we hadn't left the apartment (except to run errands) in over a week. 
Seeing his trimmed beard prompted me to don classier attire, and I also put a bit of effort - just a bit - into subduing my unruly hair; as I stepped out of the bathroom and into the hallway I noticed that Dan was also dressed nicely.
We went downstairs, got into the car and headed to the restaurant (earlier in the week he had given me the choice of either Spanish or Italian; I chose Italian).  It was sprinkling as we pulled into the parking lot, and as I walked up to the front door of the ornate building I remarked that I was glad we were dressed somewhat formally.

THE PLACE

Dan opened the door for me, then led us into Dino's, bypassing the first few dining rooms and heading straight for the back of the restaurant.  We ended up at a small table tucked neatly into the corner, where we glanced through the menu and placed our drink orders (water for me, wine for him).

THE PROPOSAL

After comparing entree choices, we made our selections and I leaned back, ready to relax and wait for our meals.  Dan reached over and took one of my hands in both of his, then began telling me how special I was, and how he wanted to spend the rest of our lives together (since our four year anniversary was approaching, I assumed this was his annual glad-to-be-with-you speech; I honestly had no idea what was coming!).  Not understanding why he was so nervous, I attempted to lighten the mood by throwing in a joke or two.  After a bit of this back-and-forth wordplay, he suddenly tossed a small box onto the table and spit out his all-important question:  "Will you marry me?"

THE AFTERMATH

I was so stunned that I didn't say anything for a long moment.  A waitress appeared out of nowhere, hovering near our seats, and Dan quickly hid the ring under the table while I looked away.  After she left, he looked at me and produced the ring again, while I laughed and finally answered his question:  "Of course!"

Our food appeared after a while (pasta and salmon for me, pork medallions in mushroom sauce for him) and we ate dinner and conversed; I was so excited that I honestly can't remember much of what we talked about.  For dessert we were served tiramisu and one shot of espresso each (which ultimately led to us being awake until the evening after). 
As we walked out of the front doors of the restaurant a few hours later, I looked up and noticed that it had begun to snow.  I pointed this out to Dan, and he looked down at me and smiled.
It was absolutely perfect.

My ring!

BONUS:

Since our engagement, I have talked non-stop about my dream wedding; subsequently, Dan has forbidden any mention of our upcoming nuptials (at least for the time being).  Of course I defied this command, with disastrous consequences:

Crabby Cabbies and More

We all had a very nice time in London, despite the seemingly bitter title of this post.  We did (almost) everything we set out to do, and had a fantastic time doing it:

THE SHOW:  WICKED

Heidi and I at the Apollo Victoria theatre

The show, of course, was absolutely delightful.  We had a fabulous time, although Dan claimed to have nodded off at some point in the first act; Heidi agreed that the show had a prominent "girl-power" theme and would not appeal to the average guy.

THE FOOD:  INDIAN

We decided to stop for a bite to eat before seeing Wicked:  Dan was in the mood for Indian food, and Heidi and I took that suggestion and ran with it.  We found a small Indian restaurant directly across the street from the theatre; the sign said it was closed, but according to our watches it should have been open already, so Dan went ahead and tugged on the door handle.
The host came to the door and informed us that the restaurant was, in fact, not open (it was then that we discovered our failure to reset our watches), but he let us in anyway.  We sat at a table chatting for a while until the host returned and presented us with the following offer:  he would bring out various dishes for us to try (what he described as 'the best of the best authentic Indian cuisine'); a feast of lamb and chicken and rice and curry.  We took him up on his offer, and did not regret it.  The food was absolutely delicious!

Indian food

I was a bit nervous when he laid the bill on the table, but that was (almost) the best part of all:  our meal was pretty cheap (unless I managed to erase the actual cost from my mind), plus we got complimentary chocolate mint squares.

THE HOTEL ROOM:  TINY

I knew that our lodging would not be the best; after all, Dan and I were aiming for convenient and affordable (keyword:  cheap).  A few days after I made our reservation Dan approached me, a worried expression on his face.  'Did you read any of the reviews on this hotel?' he asked.  I told him I hadn't, and wasn't sure if I wanted to know what he had discovered. 
I spoke with Heidi later- she hadn't yet reserved her room, at that point- and we decided that the hotel would be considered suitable as long as it met one very important condition:  no bedbugs.
All in all, it wasn't that bad:

Entrance to our (tiny) room

The rest of our room

THE ESSENTIALS:  TOURISTY FUN

We started out early the day after the show:  we began by heading over to the Tower of London.  Before arriving at our desired location- led by Dan and Heidi's collection of maps and travel pamphlets- we found ourselves at a Merchant Navy memorial; I read an inscription on one of the plaques which honored the Sailors who have "no grave but the sea." 
We stood around for a while before heading across the street to see the Tower.  It was much more involved than I orignally thought, and we spent a significant amount of time there, searching for torture chambers and execution sites, and finished our tour with an on-site lunch of fish and chips (questionable ketchup included). 

Later in the day, we took the tube to check out the Parliament buildings and Big Ben; as soon as we stepped onto the sidewalk I glanced up and saw the huge clock towering above us and the massive London Eye across the street.  We took a couple of pictures and eventually wandered over towards Westminster Abbey, then argued in a highly civilized manner over which route would take us most quickly to Buckingham Palace.  Before heading that way, however, we decided to take a detour to Trafalgar Square, where Dan took pictures of various statues while Heidi and I went to a cafe to purchase coffee and brownies (due to the dining-in surcharge, we took our goodies out to the curb and consumed them there).

After passing a Changing of the Guards ceremony involving horses (which we couldn't see clearly due to a inconveniently placed guard shack), we headed to the palace, crossing what we believed to be Hyde Park and arriving at the gates the same time as nightfall.  We did manage to get a good view of the building, and snapped a few photos to commemorate the experience.
As we traveled back to the underground station (our shoes muddy from crossing through the grass instead of staying on the sidewalk), Dan mentioned how easily it would be for us to drop by the King's Cross station (the site of the infamous Platform 9 3/4, as all worthy Harry Potter fans know) and take a few pictures there as well.  Of course, Heidi and I took the bait.  Unfortunately, we were not aware of the Platform 9 3/4 monument set up on the wall outside, and instead bravely wrestled our way inside of the station to take photos:

 

In "disguise" at Platform 9

The "real" Platform 9 3/4 (per Wikipedia)

THE CABBIES:  CRABBY

London cabbies have a system:  they line up and collect customers in the strictest order.  Therefore, a cabbie may wait approximately half an hour or more in line before getting an opportunity to find someone in need of a ride. 
This was the case when Heidi and I were making our way back to the hotel; we were returning from a short shopping excursion while Dan visited the British museum (we parted ways earlier that morning after devouring an "authentic British breakfast" of eggs, bacon, toast, and beans in a very adorable diner; we were to meet him later at the hotel).  After a bit of walking my knee began to act up (both of them, unfortunately, which resulted in excrutiating pain), and Heidi insisted we take a cab for the remainder of the trip (a 5-10 minute walk, admittedly).  I didn't argue, and we made our way to the front of the line of cabs, only to be crabbily rebuffed by the cabbie with the explanation given above.
So we walked away and sat on the curb, and after a five minute rest continued on our way.

THE WEATHER:  SUNNY (OVERALL)
Amazingly enough, it was sunny for most of our trip, which was a good thing, since Dan lost his hat at some point during our various bus/tube rides.

Showtime in London

Dan, Heidi and I have purchased the following:  3 day, 2 night hotel reservations in London, accompanied by three Dinner Class (a.k.a. "cheapest admission possible") theatre tickets for an evening performance of Wicked.  We are incredibly excited and cannot wait to see the sights and experience everything (well, as much as we can) the area has to offer.

Wicked poster, courtesy of londontheatredirect.com

Of course, immediately after booking the flights and reserving the hotel rooms, I was informed that my work schedule had changed; Heidi and I were both scheduled to work the morning of our return (our flight, however, would not arrive in Germany until later that afternoon).  We were faced with the choice to either reschedule our plans or swap shifts with other co-workers.
Considering the fact that Dan and I are leaving soon, and we were extremely reluctant to give up our coveted airline/hotel rates, we decided to stick with the original dates and (successfully) plead with our peers.

WEATHER UPDATE

Surprisingly, the weather has been relatively warm for the past week or so.  Some people have even reported leaving their windows and doors open for extended periods of time (we haven't; temperatures of mid-60 and lower do not equate "warmth," in my opinion).  I have to admit, though, my walks to and from the car have been rather pleasant.

FARE THEE WELL, VOLVO (AND AAFES!)

Alas, Dan no longer has the wonderful vehicle that has taken us on numerous adventures (Belgium and the Netherlands, to name a few); it was given to a junk dealer after a sudden indisposition and several unsuccessful attempts to sell or negotiate with a local mechanic.  We shall certainly miss our dearly departed friend.

On a happier note, yesterday marked Dan's last day of compulsory subjection to AAFES policies.  He is looking forward to a few days of rest and relaxation before undertaking the next task:  planning the remainder of our trips in the local area (and slightly beyond).

SOLD!

PHASE I

About a week ago, Dan and I sat down and made a list of items we would like to sell on Ramstein Yard Sales, in order to raise a bit of money for our upcoming trip and keep our shipping expenses relatively low.  We decided to list nine items first - with full-color pictures - ranging from a  black clutch I had lying around, to Dan's Volvo.  There was some initial interest, particularly for a rolling storage unit (originally priced at $15; ours listed for $5), but not many people were willing to venture far beyond the Ramstein base (approximately 15 minutes away).  Most potential buyers were determined to have the items delivered to a spot more convenient for them:

Subject:  2 Wooden Chairs

Potential Buyer (PB):  I would like to buy these chairs.  2 of mine broke and look a lot like this!

ME:  You will need to come to Mehlingen to view/pick up.  Please let me know if you are interested.  Thanks!

PB:  Isn't that pretty far away?

ME:  It's about 15-20 minutes away from the Ramstein east gate.

PB:  That's what I thought...


It wasn't long before we finally became frustrated with the entire ordeal, and Dan exclaimed, "Screw 'em!  We're trying to sell stuff, not run a charity organization here!"  I kept that in mind while dealing with our other prospective buyers, though their constant nagging eventually began to irk me beyond belief.

A few minutes ago, however, our first buyer appeared to pick up a pair of bar stools, priced at $10/each.  Ka-ching!

PHASE II

Although Dan has already informed his employer of his impending resignation, I have yet to complete this task.  I wonder if informing the scheduling department of my last day, before notifying my actual employer, qualifies as a professional no-no?