The truth about transatlantic travelling with 2 toddlers is that

at some point you can find yourself carrying a suitcase and a bad and fighting with a (nearly) 3 year old who wants to pull a carryon suitcase his weight and almost his size. Or - carrying 3 bags and having an exhausted 1 y.o. passing out in your arms, so you have to carry him as well because the airline insisted on checking in the stroller at the same time as the rest of the baggage and not by the gate.

The flight to Reykjavik thus did not go too well: chinchillas were exhausted, angry, throwing tentrums in the plane and completely unable to sleep and unwilling to play. The flight in Reykjavik was delayed and we got some extra time to enjoy overcrowded space with overfilled trash bins from which chinchillas constantly tried to pull something out and either put in their mouths or pretend to do so to see parents' reaction(always negative).

Coming back to my town-base is always great: I get transportation flexibility and (relative) freedom of movement within the town, the variety of food that works for us and ability to get it any time, and this year I absolutely appreciate my kids sleeping in a house where an A/C can go on on a hot night, and going back to my gym again! Yep, the little joys of  middle class :)
The weather is still very nice, the tomatoes are ripening and the outdoor pool is still open to kids' fun and enjoyment!

Slovenia of this year is hot, beautiful and delicious

Although energy and time consuming at times too - this being vacations with 2 toddlers and 2 parents. The Bled lake is beautiful and absolutely unchanged in the past 2 years; Chinchilla Sr went into his bell-loving phase, identifying every church on our way as "Kolokol! Bom-bom!". Chinchilla Jr is running around fearlessly (all the fear having being transferred to his mother who is trying to catch him by the collar before he dives into the lake), falling down and trying to snack on something dirty - the dirtier the yummier! Both kiddos are happy with the routine of walks, swimming pool, playgrounds and good food. Besides, the need taught them how to share the Bob stroller and a waffle ice-cream cone. And I realized how un-used I got to playgrounds with pieces of broken glass, cigarette butts and shiny candy bar and ice-cream wraps. And yes, apparently no one considers bringing toys to playground either :)

The Lake Bled holidays reminded me of typical European fests with... a bunch of everything and a crowd of people on top of that :)  Found a new great restaurant near the lake. Managed to use local buses to get back to the village from the lake: if you're alone with 2 little kids, either a bright smile to the driver or looking worn out by two kids will qualify you for driver's full help with loading and unloading the stroller.

Got some weird unidentifiable stomach virus, which led me to involvement with Slovenian healthcare system, having my passport taken from the ER room by mistake (!) by some US boy (!!) that the ER personnel had no contact info with (!!!). Got  the best medical advice form the doctor on duty: "Enjoy life and be happy!". I wonder if it bears a connection with my physician conclusion that I do not rest enough and should absolutely start sleeping more?..

All in all - a very interesting experience - spending over a month abroad, and that's over 10% of the year. Where will it go from here?

Streets of Ljubljana.

Graz was on our travel list for quite some time,

So we were glad we could finally make it there.

Having spent a day in Graz (+ all the driving time to Austria and back) we did not make it to absolutely all sights and museums we wanted to visit, however managed to fit it quite a bit: climbed up all the way to Schlossberg, wandered along the shady alleys tried to find US & Canada on the plastic shields on the top of the castle pointing to various cities, but could not and concluded the directions were depicted in the 13th century before Americas were discovered.
Took pictures of the Clock (Glock) tower from different angles from the top, walked downhill and took pictures from different angles from the bottom of the hill. Then caught a group of pleasant German-speaking ladies and asked them to take some more pictures of the Clock-tower with all four of us.
Scared a café waiter (as well as the rest of our group) by my German. Scared myself with the thought that although the waiter did ultimately understand me, I had just uttered an Americanism in German, for "Wir sind fertig fur die Rechnung" say the Germans not.
Cooled down in Mausoleum and climbed up vintage stairs to yet another Tower with bells. I could not help taking pictures of BOMMM! for Chinchilla Sr, he's going through his bell phase.
Dropped by a pharmacy, left with a bag of sleep, cold and immune support remedies.

 

 

Dropped by Hoffbackerei  Edegger-Tax, left two strudels.

Rushed to the Glockenspiel to see the figures dance. Left thinking each one of us could do better dancing after such a huge stein of beer.

Found on the map Toys R Us (!!!) just 7 minutes away from the Graz center, rushed there, came back within an hour with half a dozen of toys, sidewalk chalk, toddler bottle and a teether. I was greatly impressed by their inventory, and not as impressed by their prices...

Had time left to have another 0.5 l beer.

On the whole Graz gives an impression of  a typical town that used to be pretty well-off to have its center done in beautiful architectural style, and with quality good enough to last hundreds of years. While the parts remote from the center might not be that interesting, the proximity to the center does reveal the contrast of the streets and squares being more spacious, and the houses - more interesting in ornaments and brighter in colours.

Udine is completely full of tourists

 and does look like a good mix of Rome and Venize (just as tourists guides warned us!). In fact, as you cross the border (hm, absolutely no one at the border on Saturday morning) you can tell you are in a different country.

The city center is clean, hot and hosts a nice flee market. We walk around glancing at some interesting items: some Russian china and tableware, souvenir mock Faberge eggs, binoculars and flasks with Nazi cross?.. I do wonder who would buy such things even in this part of the world.

The stores are packed with people. We end up stocking up clothes (while time permits) in large stores carrying both men's and women's clothing - to get our tax free paperwork completed :)

A granny in the coffee shop we got our first shot of double espresso/cappuccino in seems to understand my Italian and gives me a sweet smile. The owner of a little basement-type café in a little street just steps away from the shops barely understands English and does not speak a word of it, so with some help of our limited Italian and improvised sign language we end up with great wine and a simple but delicious mortadella sandwich. By the way, you could kill somebody with that  huge stick of motradella...

Gelatto is yummy, just like Slovenian. Sprits in the little café above a creek we have our light lunch at - are a killer. Literally, whatever they add to it that looks like soda and not proseco - is not soda at all. I realize it when we start talking about a couple of German cyclists that join the rest of their group late, I suggest that's because they got lost driving around a krožišče  and I totally lose it.

On the way back home I keep thinking that it's a shame we won't make it to Florence this time.