Some people we meet are traveling for 3 months, 5 months, even a year. Some are single women, traveling alone. Some are using English (often the only common language), maybe their second, third or fourth language, to communicate as they go from country to country. One Seattlite is riding his bike through [...]
We just left our peaceful haven at Frido and Xenia’s villa (Dame de Salema) along the southern coast of Portugal. Of all the little villages in the Algarve, we chose Salema on Rick Steves’ recommendation and were so glad to have found this gem. This is a great example of why Rick’s books (and others [...]
When in Rome, we ate dinner at the Beehive every night. We got to chatting with Laura, the cook, and learned that she had a friend from a small mountain town in Tuscany who was coming to stay with her for the week, leaving his apartment free. We took the intercity bus through th beautiful [...]
I’m drinking a glass of wine (yep.) and eating a nice crusty piece of fresh bread with green olive tapenade and another with a perfect, garlicky white bean spread and fresh tomato slices. KPLU (Seattle’s public radio station) happens to be playing (I guess they get it from the internet or something) in the [...]
Today we’re on the Cyprus Island, which is actually its own strange little country. The north is occupied by Turks, the South by Greeks and it has an odd British influence. The cars drive on the wrong side of the road, the steering wheels are on the wrong side, and the prices are listed in [...]
I am the proud Godmother of the two-day-old Olivia Lois Copeland, born to our dear friends Maren and Jon Copeland. I cannot wait to meet her! Welcome to the world, sweet Olivia.
 Tyler and I are off to bathe in the thermal baths on the mountain top…
Today we went to Mass at the royal cathedral in the Hofburg Imperial Palace in Vienna where we heard the Vienna Boys’ Choir sing, accompanied by a live chamber orchestra. Yesterday we saw where Mozart lived, and organ he played and walked along the Salzaug river in Salzburg. Two days ago we had beers with locals at a “Stammtisch” at the [...]
I feel a little behind in the posting department. A lot has happened since our last entry. A few highlights:
While trying to whittle down the trunk of our Christmas tree with a flimsy Ikea bread knife, Tyler sliced his thumb and won a trip to the German emergency room. We still haven’t received the bill [...]
We will be home in 90 days. I know this because, starting today, we no longer need visas or SOFA cards or any of this crazy and confusing non-sense we’ve been dealing with. We can officially “out-process” and effectively “re-enter” the EU as tourists for a 90-day stay. I also know this because it means [...]
Our friend Nancy came for a week-long visit and helped me cook my first turkey. We bought a frozen turkey on Friday night for our Saturday night Thanksgiving party for 25. (This was completely my fault, by the way.) Tyler and I spent the entire night taking turns getting up every hour [...]
