Travel – SIP, SAVOUR, & SEE

Ski school

January 14, 2020

I remember skiing in the alps as a kid. We went as a family, and while I know I do not remember it all, I remember being in complete awe over the size of the mountains. I loved going up to the top of the mountain, and I thought that our ski instructor was amazing. I have been on an off the slopes since that time in the alps (decades ago…) and my last attempt at skiing ended in a horrific accident, which subsequently resulted in four knee operations. I decided after those operations that I didn’t really care about…

Travel

A tale of Shanghai

May 17, 2019

I really didn’t know what to expect. Truth be told, I had never really had a deep interest in traveling to China. I shouldn’t say that. I know I shouldn’t say that… China has an extraordinary history. It is one that seems almost impossible to fully comprehend, since it is thousands of years old and spans dozens of dynasties. Many people warned me in advance “You know, they don’t speak English there… they only speak Chinese.” This was not a problem for me. Speaking Chineses in China made sense. The idea that I would have to bend to the traditions…

Uncategorized

Ready.Set.GO!

July 13, 2018

Door to door it was about 28 hours of travel. TWENTY EIGHT! That is not something to be taken lightly and especially not when you are traveling with a four-year old. But we did it, and there were no meltdowns unless you count the fact that we were turned away at the American Airlines Business Class lounge in JFK even though we had purchased business class tickets. But, that happened, and we moved on. And then we got to wake up to gorgeous sunrises over the Atlantic Ocean, the energy of South Beach, and the fresh ocean air. Yup, it…

Travel

An Uncommon visit

July 9, 2018

This week we are going on vacation – vacation back “home” where we will do the round and make the visits and somehow try to make it not seem as exhausting as I think it will end up being. This might seem common. People all over the world go “back” to somewhere and visit their homes. This year however will differ in that we will go up and down the Eastern Seaboard – family and friends on on the list, and my intentions are to try to keep these extraordinary memories alive for my daughter. Since we moved abroad our…

Kids' Zone

It’s time to say goodbye

June 27, 2018

I remember in pre-k back in the US I had a friend named Kiyono who was from Osaka, Japan. Her father must have been studying at graduate school or something. She and I became fast friends, and I was fascinated by the fact that she wasn’t from America; it is safe to say I loved it. In fact, I was incredibly disappointed when I had dinner at her house, and we ate with forks. I must have thought that given the fact she and her family were from Japan they would of course eaten with chop sticks. Yes, I was…

Travel

The end of a journey home

January 8, 2017

The hardest part is the end. It is knowing that we only have a few days left, and we are about to start saying our goodbyes. There is never enough time or an appropriate way to say goodbye. It never ends well. There are always tears and the sickening feeling that you might not see some people again. That is is a very real fear. And then you realize it is real. Saying goodbye sometimes means forever. Sometimes the hug that you give to a friend, a loved one will be the last one you give, only you have no way…

Travel

Have toddler…will travel with benefits

August 24, 2016

Summer has passed too quickly. No, technically it isn’t over yet, but I work in academics, and as soon as the students start coming back to campus that sign summer is coming to an end right now. That being said the heat is at times overwhelming and the humidity is heavy and often feels like an extra weight pushing you down. But summer is over. The holiday, which we were all very much looking forward to, has come to and end. Holidays are incredibly different since we now travel with a kid. A great kid, but the days of sleeping in…

Travel

Joy in Jaipur Part 3

January 29, 2016

Dazed, confused, overwhelmed, and exhausted. No, I am not talking about the bride. I am talking about us. Late nights and entirely too much to see and take in led to an immediate sensory overload for us all. I kept thinking to myself – if this is how I feel I cannot begin to imagine how the bride feels. There were moments in between the wedding events when we managed to see a bit of the city and take in some of the sites. We were given a puppet show along with a song and the musical instruments to pull…

Travel

Joy in Jaipur Part 1

January 15, 2016

We were on our way back to India for a wedding. The last time we went to India was in 2012, and we spent a short time in Mumbai. This time was going to be different – we were headed to the Northwest part of the country where people promised me that the traffic would be calmer, the nights would be cooler, and the moments of frustration would be fewer. I was not so sure – we had just returned from a three week trip to the USA for the Christmas holiday, and I was exhausted, jet lagged, and ready…

Travel

Healing in Vietnam Part 1

January 6, 2013

We needed a break – a break from it all. From work, from the sand, from the desert, from our lives, from everything. Months earlier we decided that we were going get away – for a while. We have had no shortage of traveling over the past year: Oman, Sri Lanka, England, USA, France, India, and Nepal have all made it into our passports and memories. However we wanted something that might not have been heavily influenced .by the West just yet. So during dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant in Dubai Dr. H suggested we look into a holiday to…