Rushing around the streets of Boston

thinking that I'll definitely bring family here just as soon as kids are mature enough to appreciate history

I forgot how big and clean the city is, and I think it just got more beautiful since my last time here.

The most amazing thing this time though is the view from the office window. I've no idea how I'd would get anything done had the desks been right by this window. Very distracting

 

The Universe made me a little gift for the end of Tax season this year

and among all the flat options  throughout London I was looking through the one that jumped out at me was a 2 floor flat with "master bedroom" separated; with washer and dryer right next to Belsize park area, between 2 subway stations, close to Haverstock Hill road with all the grocery shops, bakeries and restaurants. A small grocery shop is a minute away from us, so I get there almost every day for food supplies, water and snacks, and -oh, my Buddha, what amazing olives, charcuterie and duck liver pate I get from just this ordinary small shop.
The area is quiet, the rent is absolutely modest given the prices in this neighborhood. Definitely, this little flat in a quite court was saved specifically for us.

Kids can finally watch Peppa Pig in... her native habitat and I swear, they can eat a whole pack of strawberries, grapes or donut peaches while watching it.

The closest pub, Washington is 2 minutes away and Von Zobel enjoys it on his nights out, since in the days of FIFA World Cup in the evening the entire London is out in pubs and on the streets (those who would not fit the pubs) and it looks like it is fun for him to dive into the pub-and-football culture especially now.

My nights out generally include jogging to and in the Belsize Park, exploring the neighborhood, and trying to breath in as much London air as I can while still here. And the view from the top of the hill obliges to pull yourself together, admire what you have and what's still to come, and make some strong, meaningful promise to yourself.
I made a couple.

Brighton looks small half the life down the road.

I remember it greener, cleaner and more spacious sixteen (bloody hell!) years ago.
Chinchillas and Von Zobel love it though: colourful pebbles, sea gulls, Peppa Pig and Bus kids machine rides, ice-cream and... a great playground! After exploring the town we spent probably 2 hours at the playground and pool area.

Travelling anywhere in the UK with kids is great, provided you have enough water, sunblock and there's food and ice-cream within walking distance. Great public transportation helps - Chills fell in love into the real trains and the tube! Oyster card makes it convenient to get on board and visit all major sights.

Also, I did not expect to run into so many great playgrounds across London. Most of them have water, sand, company of local kids - so it's really hard to persuade Chills to walk away even when they're all soaking wet and barely stand on their feet.

And what sense of joy I get from reading on the fruit and vegetable package that it's fully recyclable:  Both the cardboard box and the wrapping film! Almost everything is recyclable and can be dropped off in recycling bins on major street - so you don't have to feel like a pig traveling with a large family... You can get pretty much anywhere with a stroller (theoretically though; the crowds in the center were still an issue...). Streets are neat and clean and I can not imagine what it takes to keep such a diverse, busy megapolis clean, safe and well organized.

I can't believe I was just recently planning to book a trip this year- for the upcoming 2019; and even sooner than that - here I am, along with boys who love their summer vacation! So good to be home; it had to be done years ago...

This city is shiny, dazzling, inspiring, breathtaking.
It whirls you, pushes you up, carries you away and throws you into the depth and  thickness of parks, flowers, joggers, double-deckers, crowds, business suites, pubs, black Range Rovers, play-grounds, red brick, heat coming up from the pavement, corner stores, bikes, glass skyscrapers, dogs, strollers, ice-cream stands and meaty leaf ivy sprouts across brick fences.

Home at last.

Back from first resort family vacation.

Classic vacation with 2 toddlers full of digging holes in sand and building sand castles, putting on layers of sunblock morning and evening, running to and from waves, finding shells, watching pelicans, ships and boats,  and admiring a few local cute animals who were all, for simplicity, called "squirrels".

Good preparation helped a lot. We brought just enough clothes to survive a week, having had 1 laundry done mid-way (Arthur got sick just before leaving and was periodically throwing up over me on the way to Cancun. He woke up perfectly healthy the first morning in Mexico though). Chills loved their new sandals with lights, swimming trunks, hats and UV-protecting T-shirts (ordered in bright Orange, which worked out great to spot one of our kiddos at a distance). Arthur's responsibility was to carry in his toddle backpack their beach bucket, spades and cups, a boat, a submarine and 2 cars. Yep, we brought our own stuff, and that was one of the best decisions for everything was durable, used on a daily basis and could be conveniently put into the bucket and carried around.

Food deserved a separate compliment, for Chills could always find something to enjoy. Even for the kids that eat literally anything- the variety was ample. For the first 2 nights, they asked pasta for Dinner- of course, something that's not often offered to them at home :) On the third night they asked for ribs and more interesting yummy things with their pasta and the pasta remained almost untouched :) But all the time through the vacation they enjoyed ribs, meat, soups, veggies and fresh fruit to the extent that I was beginning to worry coming back to simple home menu will be hard for them. Fresh watermelon, passion fruit and "pink" ice-cream were daily must-haves. And a sudden discovery as food that they can eat non-stop was... red caviar. Even though for neither of them this was the first time they tried it - but they both must have the "red caviar savoring" gene as on those few nights the buffet served caviar - they would literally eat as much there was in front of them. And if they were in the middle of a desert when I finally made it to the caviar and brought some to the table - they would stop in the middle of their ice-creams, grabbed soup spoons and quickly attack my plate. And once there was no caviar left they would return to their ice-cream as if nothing happened.

Another thing I was happy they enjoyed was mini-disco after dinner. Their social life definitely started early - they loved to be dressed up in their cute evening shirts and look sharp,  loved to be part of the action on stage and especially loved getting candy treats after the dance. Only apparently they decided not to repeat the movements they were shown, and do their own dance instead - something less energy consuming and making them look cool and mysterious.

Now that this first trip is done, it will only get easier. Next step is to renew Arthur's passport this summer or sooner, and then - to decide if we can attempt trips to Canada and Spain by the end of this year.

I completed my first scuba dive in 5 years.

Since 2012 I was in a constant pregnancy-breastfeeding-pregnancy-breastfeeding mode, and then Chills were too little, and now, years down the road, I managed to schedule a dive and what's more important - during Chills' day nap time. Priceless.

Surprisingly enough, not all the skills were lost. Actually, none of the skills were gone but a good chunk of the vocabulary was. I could do the basic exercise, assemble my scuba set, but a regulator... what the heck is a regulator?! Oh, that stuff that was in my mouth for the past 45 minutes? Oh, thaaaat regulator!..

 So, my wetsuit soaked the water of the Caribbean once again and later, on the boat back to the shore, I noted the dive did not trigger my asphyxiphobia and muscle memory serves me well. Indeed, when I was last diving I might have been thinking that was the most insane thing I had ever done. Did I have a clue that I would soon have 2 kids back-to-back, pass CPA exams, switch from Global Mobility to PA, become a columnist on time management and efficiency, start learning martial arts and would go through a good dozen of other life-changing revelations? Every experience changes me. I am a different person from the one I was 6 months ago, let alone 6 years. And yet - here I am, my wetsuit, aviator sunglasses, salty breeze and sun in the face, wide grin and salt in the hair... That indescribable state of being - not "me" but still me...

Anna Maria - definitely a great place to live a quiet, slow-paced life.

Although Chinchillas  tend to disagree and use a brief family vacation for running around by ocean-side, scream (especially when refusing to go too close to the ocean) and enjoying the pool. The latter though, seems to have been their favourite pastime: splashing in the pool completely naked and running around the pool with one toy or another, also... aerating their bottoms. Ocean, beach buckets and towels, sea shells - we're just like a real family on a beach vacation now.
And 3 hour flight feels like a piece of cake now after almost 24 total hours spent in International traveling each way this summer!

As for Von Zobel and I, we finally tried bicycles with child chariots - and they did turn out to be a fun and convenient way to get around the island with kids. Apart from all the loading and unloading the kids, and buckling them up, of course - Chinchillas did not enjoy this either. Should we buy a couple in Colorado though, we would stick to riding mountain bikes with hand-brakes (yes, our bicycles in FL were old-fashioned!), but the little "honking" parrots on the wheel were a good idea and made Chinchillas laugh.

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.

Jurmala turned out to be a very interesting place:

although much as to what I was expecting from just seeing videos and pictures of the town, the actual town spirit was an interesting mix of late 90-s early 2000-s of the post-Soviet area and modern Eastern Europe. The beach is Sochi-long, but unlike Sochi is a sand beach (hot sand!) and is followed by a stripe of pine forest along the shore. I do not think I have ever swum in a sea while enjoying strong pine smell floating above water. By the number of ice-cream booths and stands Jurmala can compete with Venice and its gelato stores at this time of year. People are nice. The hospitality of our hosts is beyond description.

A long conversation with people of our generation about jobs and unemployment, government and politics, local view or EU vs Russia and high expectations of the Land of Great Opportunities is very informative and extremely thought provoking. A long conversation with people of slightly older generation about the economics, politics, doing business in EU and globally is, well, very informative too!

Riga is a little cute gingerbread town to be crissed-crossed for a day, especially with a great guide such as one we had. Looking back it is it hard to believe how much we managed to stuff into this one day: from the main city attractions to driving through the Moscow Vorstadt (all sprinkled generously with historic information, gossip, anecdotes and jokes), to the Riga Central Market (beer with cannabis, anyone?), to real Uzbek food (never thought chebureki could be that delicious. How do they manage to pour broth inside??).  A separate highlight of the trip to the market was that the gift to us - a "dream of an immigrant" bag filled with "taste of nostalgia" fish products worth of 8kg - safely made it to Slovenia.

Santa Fe leaves an impression of one extended cozy and clean arts & shopping mall.

At least this is the view from the city center. It would probably be nice to just hang around the city for a day or two, dropping into various stores and then sitting on balconies of street bars at happy hours with live music...  Don't see many more potential activities there for... travelers with no commitments :) But as 3/4 of our gang were non-drinkers this time, and Von Zobel would not allow us all to suffer live music on a balcony of a bar just for his sake, we had to adapt our travel program.

One thing I started admiring Santa Fe and the near suburbs for right from the start is the well preserved and perfectly maintained style of architecture. I don't think I saw just nearly as many adobe buildings and houses in AZ; nor did I have a chance to see such good examples of Spanish colonial architecture yet (or something a little more unusual).

Even though we managed to visit a museum or see a sight during every 1/2 day: either before or after lunch - it still feels like we did not see much. Maybe because we're spoiled by Denver and local museums and botanical garden looked bigger and more existing on the internet when I was making the trip agenda. Or maybe - the reason they were not too big was that we managed to visit at least one point of interest in 1/2 day. :)
El Rancho de las Golondrinas though was a nice exception - we came there for a Civil War event, and despite the heat and large distances we had to cover without stroller (yes, it's great to have sportive husband!) we did not want to leave.

"Dad, cover your ears, aim, fire!"

And of course we all found the mill to be the coolest place at El Rancho! Dr Chill wanted to come back there 3 times:

Another thing that was literally knocking me off my feet in Santa Fe was lilac. It's abundance, the lush bunches of flowers in various colours and smell! I haven't smelled lilac so flavorful since probably my childhood, and  now couldn't walk past it: the smell seemed to have its very own body and texture, soothing and relaxing. Too bad no one came up with a digital smell picture technology yet :)

Maui is much more of a tourist place compared to the Big Island-

just as Von Zobel warned! Hence - more traffic and less solitude on picturesque stops around the island on Maui :)

More of green vegetation; less of volcanic dark rock - tastes differ though...  Maui views look more like most card pictures and less real. Maui fish in tourist snorkel spots are way more cheeky, throwing their schools at and around the swimmers. It was the first time in my life that I had fish swim so close to me, almost feeling that it is about to stretch out its fin and knock on my mask.
On the whole - very nice snorkeling by Monokini crater, although not as nice as by Captain Cook Monument.

Von Zobel, who snorkeled religiously twice a day, did claim there was way more to see by our hotel too than by Monokini crater. Quite possible.

Sunrises and sunsets are just as peaceful and romantic on each island.

The fruit stands are more impressive on Big Island though. The fruit were larger, juicier and tastier. There are fewer fruit stands by our hotel on Maui, and of those we saw of the other side of the island over half were abandoned or closed, citrus fruit were not as flavourful as on the Big Island, passion fruits were sour like hell. In addition to these first world problems :) ice cream shops were not everywhere to bump into. Shame - would love to try local ice cream without making a detour from our route.

That was compensated by great seafood and drinking coconuts.

The weather was amazing; not too hot during the day, and still in the lower seventies-upper sixties in the evening. Not a single cloud; no annoying humidity. Yes, on top of everything we were extremely lucky with the weather, the ocean and the beach. Von Zobel claimed the beach to be one of the best in the US - that might very much be so! :)

All in all - we had a wonderful time in a wonderful place. I would come back. To try local scuba diving, boogie board and local beer I missed this time.
A very much needed rest and adventure before being grounded for the next 18 months :)

Finding yourself by the ocean, on a warm sunny day

In the middle of winter in priceless.

I finally begin to listen to my body again. Not just live the "right way" - automatically doing what I know is right for me and what I got used to - but to also deliberately listen to how my body responds to food, exercise, emotions, surroundings, air, body cosmetics. Now the time to take a step closer to myself is especially right :).

It's a great feeling -to have 5 days and so much to fit into these 5 days. 

The ocean is beautiful

the weather is great and the local fish for lunch is delicious. We've actually been very lucky with lunches: tried the best fish markets in the city for lunch and never been disappointed.  Dr. Chill was enjoying same white fish, grilled veggies and salad or jasmine rice we had, all with good appetite of growing young man :) Naturally, we were adjusting our menus to what a young toddler could eat, but it was well worth it!

I'm endlessly happy we made it to San Diego; it's been a while we travelled outside of Denver. Four long months to be exact.  Now we have a few day chance to reboot mind, enjoy the view of the ocean and being covered in sand, and driving along the coastline with no specific destination set, getting out of the car when we see a beach we like. That is not to mention more down-to-earth perks of our trip, like free beer at night  "receptions" in the hotel and amazing playgrounds, and the mere fact that no one got sick despite the chilly ocean wind every now and then.