British Invasion, Part 2: Shop (and Eat) 'Til We Drop

British Invasion, Part 2: Shop (and Eat) 'Til We Drop

It all began one day last March with an incredibly moving comment left on my blog by a young woman in England named Emma grieving the loss of her fiance to DMD. E-mails, instant messages, and webcam conversations ensued, and we quickly became the best of friends. Soon after, Emma met Gary and I became friends with him as well. Not long after, Emma and Gary began making plans to visit me here in Philadelphia. This is part 2 in a series chronicling their visit...



When I got up this morning, Emma and Gary had already been up for five hours! So they were more than ready for our first expedition -- to the King of Prussia Mall. To give you an idea of how much I love shopping malls, it took visitors from 4,000 miles away to get me to go to the largest mall on the east coast.

As I was a King of Prussia mall virgin, we met up with my friend Kimi, the "queen" of King of Prussia, who knows everything there is to know about that mall. We sent Kimi, Emma and Kimi's nurse on their merry way, and Gary, my nurse and I went shopping for manly stuff -- electronics, sporting goods stores, etc.

We all reconvened a few hours later at The Cheesecake Factory. This was also first visit for me, and I'm afraid it might not be the last! At least I won't have to cross an ocean to get there. Emma, a self-professed cheesecake lover, on the other hand, will! Let's just say that we all ate well. My English mates couldn't believe the portion size of our meals. The only negative part of the day was that the unfinished slice of chocolate cheesecake that I took with me melted on the ride. Thank you, Philadelphia in the summertime!