It is one of those dreary gray rainy days today. Thankfully, the temps are a bit milder, so the roads are just wet and not icy.

Last night we went to see "The Return of the King." We both loved it. The movie lived up to all my expectations. I especially enjoyed getting a glimpse at Smeagol before he became Gollum. And the portrayal of Gollum was outstanding. The hobbits were the true heroes of this film, especially good ole Samwise Gamgee. I found the battles scenes to be excrutiatingly painful to watch. (Was it just me or did anyone else find the scenes with the giant mammoth-like creatures reminiscent of the monster machines in one of the Star Wars' battle scenes?) I'm inspired to reread the trilogy, which I originally read while living in Germany during my high school years and I've not reread it since. I remember clearly how riveting the books were -- true page-turners. Incidentally, the Lord of the Rings trilogy was voted number one in BBC's Big Read campaign, "officially" making it the UK's best-loved book. And even though I loved the trilogy, I'm not sure it deserves to be number one. But then again, I have to remind myself, the Big Read was basically a popularity contest and I'm sure the movies helped boost the popularity of the books. I was glad to see that at least one American book made it to the top ten ("To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee).

After the movie we had dinner at Betty's Cafe. The first time we've been there for dinner and it may be awhile before we go there again. Betty's is good but is oh so expensive. All told, dinner and the movie set us back about $100. Jeesh!! And we thought Tokyo was expensive.