Traveling Tuesdays: Five Things to Do in Sydney, Australia

Five of my favorite things to do in Sydney Australia: 

Sydney Opera House at night

1. See the Sydney Opera House- 

This is the one place I knew I wanted to visit in Australia. Honestly, I didn't know much else about Sydney before we were there. The Opera House is even more impressive in person than in pictures. Built on a little peninsula surrounded by the Bay, it is Australia's crown jewel. It is hard to understand how big it is until you're standing in front of it. 

Opened in 1973, the Sydney Opera House is not only the symbol of modern Australia but also its premier tourist destination, drawing visitors from all over Australia and the world. It is on the UNESCO World Heritage List and packs its schedule with several productions a year, making it one of the world's busiest performance arts spaces. 

Opera House up close

There are restaurants all around it and a beautiful park nearby, so you can make a day of exploring the area. We tried to have a quick bite to eat at the little bar/cafe under the Opera House but it was packed full an no tables were available, so plan ahead if you want to try it. 

One of the things I loved most about the Opera House was going inside and seeing the Sydney Orchestra perform one of Mozart's symphonies. Live music in general is a gift. I always marvel at how a full orchestra of all these different instruments and people melds into one spectacular unit. 

There are plenty of types of performances you can see. There are tickets to anything from Broadway shows, to important speakers, to orchestra performances. The Opera House also offers many different types of tours throughout the building. If we get back to Sydney I would love to try one of those.

2. Climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge

This was so much fun, a little bit scary, but super safe. We purchased tickets for sunset which turned out to be one of the most amazing experiences. They give you all the equipment, windproof suits, headsets, harnesses, and a quick safety training class. Everyone has to leave their phones in the lockers provided for
clothes and belongings. Dropping a phone or something else from the top of the bridge, not only would be terrible for you but could seriously injure anyone on the ground or water below. 

Sydney Bridge Climb guides recount the history of the bridge and other cool facts about Sydney and they take pictures for all the participants which are available for purchase later. Absolutely do this if you get a chance! Almost all the people that were in our group were from Australia, so it's for everyone, not just foreign tourists!

3. Go surfing!

URBNSURF Fun!

If you've followed me for very long, you know that I have an extreme phobia of being in the ocean- well any big water. I love looking at oceans, lakes, and rivers, I just don't like being in them or for that matter on tiny, tippy boats in them. So when
my husband told me he had signed us up for surfing lessons, my stomach dropped. "No you didn't," I said, hoping that he was only joking, even though I knew he wasn't. 

The last time we had a surfing lesson in Hawaii with our son, I was so scared, I always made sure to be closer to shore than them. Of course I didn't want sharks to eat them, but I couldn't help it, I had to have them in between me and the deeper water.😂(yes, I am embarrassed to admit this) This time, my husband had sympathy for me. Our surf lesson was in a giant wave pool at URBNSURF where they have a surfing school. Yay!! I wouldn't be eaten by sharks that day! 

We took an adult beginner level group class. For the first time, I really enjoyed surfing. I could focus on the technique of staying on the board instead of worrying about what was in the water. (Yes I know, thousands of people surf all the time all over the world and never see a shark-I just can't help it.)

This is definitely another activity I would do again! 

4. Take a ferry boat to the beach

Manly Beach

The ferry is such an easy way to get from place to place in Sydney and a great way to snap pics of the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. Until we were on the water, I hadn't realized how hilly Sydney and its surrounding areas were. Many of the little suburban towns are built on small hill sides overlooking the Bay. 

Our first ferry trip was to Manly Beach.  The town of Manly was a cute little town that kind of reminded me of the smaller California beach towns around San Diego. 

I've always loved beach walks ever since I was a kid. My grandparents would walk with my brothers and I up and down the beach in Naples, Florida, which seemed to go on forever.  

Manly Beach is not very big but its picturesque setting made a lovely place for families to come surf, play beach volleyball, or share a picnic together. There were two things I particularly noticed here that was different from most beaches I'd been to in the U.S. Almost no one had their phones out trying to snap the perfect photo of themselves "enjoying their best life" and almost everyone was involved in physical activity. Hardly anyone was just laying around on a blanket getting sun and drinking.

5. Visit the Taronga Zoo 

We loved riding the ferries around Sydney Harbour and one day we took the ferry to the Taronga Zoo. I couldn't wait to see the koala bears! They were just as adorable as I expected. Big cuddly lumps of fluff just hanging out in the trees. One had a baby on its back trying to grab some leaves but mostly enjoying

snuggling with mama. So cute! I thought seeing koala bears in person would help my husband be able to distinguish between koalas and pandas-he insists (mostly just to annoy me) that they are really the same creature. They both eat leaves and are cute and fluffy. He still thinks they're the same even after seeing them. :)

The zoo had all the major animals you would normally expect and some you wouldn't seen before, like Tasmanian Devils-which look like really fat raccoons with no stripes and platypus who were so elusive we didn't see those even though they were there. We spent a couple hours enjoying everything from the reptile house to the seals. Then it was time to go find some shade and a nice place to eat.  Sydney by the way has some great eats which I will post about another time!  

All in all Sydney was great! Can't wait to get back!

Have you been to Sydney? What are your favorite things. 

Hope your having a great week!

Love, 

Kathy💕💕

 

Traveling Tuesdays: Ancient Temples of Angkor Wat--Otherworldly

One of many ornate towers of Angkor Wat

Ever since I heard there were ancient temples discovered in the northwestern jungles of Cambodia, I dreamed of one day visiting Angkor Wat. I thought of myself as an Indiana Jones type explorer trudging through the jungle...well minus all the bugs, spiders, and snakes. 

Actually, I'm not even all that adventurous. I'm terrified of being in the ocean or any big water. I'm scared of bears and other large creatures with big teeth, and I'd much prefer staying at a nice hotel than roughing it in the wild. But I LOVE to travel and see new places, it inspires me and fuels my imagination.

Luckily for me, my husband is adventurous and last April we ended up in Siem Reap, Cambodia as part of an extended trip around Asia. We only had two days in Cambodia so on the day we were visiting the temples, our Tuk Tuk driver, Tiger, picked us up in the morning from our hotel in Siem Reap. We drove about a half hour to the temple grounds which cover over 400 acres of land. Angkor Wat and its surrounding temples are deemed the largest religious site in the world. 

Devatas 

The temples were built over a 30 year period from about 1110-1150 AD. They were built by the Khmer people during the reign of King Suryavarman II and dedicated to the God Vishnu. Throughout the temples, the walls are covered in bas relief carvings of Hindu Gods, Apsaras, Devatas, and scenes depicting the ancient Hindu texts the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. 

Several years after the death of Suravarman, Jayavarman VII, ruled the Khmer empire and converted to Buddhism rededicating Angkor Wat to Buddha.

 It is now a fascinating mix of both religions, with statues of Buddha, Vishnu, and the Hindu inspired bas relief carvings.

I found out recently that Angkor Wat was never "lost" at least to the local monks, the Western world simply "rediscovered" it in 1860. That fact, though, doesn't take away from the temple's otherworldly mystery. 

The temple grounds are a hugely popular tourist destination and the day we were there was no exception. It happened to be part of the Cambodian Songkran Festival (New Year's) so many locals were visiting the temple as well as foreign tourists. 

In 2018, there were over 2 million people that came to visit. Many Buddhists and Hindus alike come on religious pilgrimages. They kneel before Buddha in silent meditation, leave offerings, light incense, and pay homage to the wall-length battle scene in the Ramayan where Rama defeats Ravana. 

Aside from the splendor of the architecture, one of my favorite moments visiting, was when a family with three teen girls dressed in the beautiful, traditional Khmer silk sampot, were trying to get selfies in front of the most photo worthy spots. They laughed and joked with each other as they posed for pictures-exactly like our kids at that age when we took them to New York City or Yellowstone National Park. 

Bas relief wall carvings 

Some times you dream of visiting a place for a long time and then when you finally get there, it doesn't live up to what you expected. 

Buddha with flower offerings

That was not the case here. It was breathtaking. At one point there was a steep staircase(almost scary steep!) that climbed nearly to the top of the temple where you can look out over the vast surrounding jungle. 

How many people throughout its 900 years have looked out over this same scene. It's eerie and beautiful at the same time, like somehow your connected to those souls that have set foot in the same place, you have shared that same space, not in the same time but nonetheless you can almost feel their presence, as if some of their energy stayed behind. 

Every so often we would come across a bullet hole in the stone walls. A relic from the more recent past, when the ruthless Khmer Rouge took over Cambodia.

It was pretty crowded when we were there around mid morning. Most of the travel sites suggest getting there early to see the sunrise over the temple and beat the crowds. I'm not sure if it would be less crowded since everyone advises it, but it would definitely be cooler at that time. 

It was an oppressively hot and humid day and my choice of clothing to modestly cover my shoulders and knees(required to visit) wasn't quite breathable enough, so I wasn't too disappointed that we only took a half day to see as much as we could. It was not nearly enough time to even see half of the complex.

The grounds were a huge maze of temples and forest intertwined. A few times, we met up with our driver, Tiger, who took us across bridges and through gates that led to other temple buildings. He told us much of the history as we drove and he pointed out special spots. One was the King's palace, I can't remember which king built it though, and one temple was supposed to be where he was buried. 

He told us what this gorgeously ornate temple was to the left--but I can't remember. There is far too much for my brain to absorb in one day. 

At one point, a monkey crossed our path on his daily commute, he didn't even seem to notice we were there. Another monkey, much more serious looking, sat on a shaded corner of the outer wall, like an ancient temple guard keeping an eye on the intruders. No more than ten feet from us a whole family of monkeys in a tree broke out into a turf war, screaming and chasing one another up and down the trunk. Despite all the human visitors, this was still their jungle.

Ta Prohm-"Tomb Raider" temple

Even the trees don't respect the man-made boundaries. At the Temple of Ta Prohm, where Tomb Raider was filmed with Angelina Jolie, the trees are taking back the jungle, trying to erase our footprints. Their giant roots are consuming the temples, leaving areas of rubble in their wake. I'm not sure what was more impressive at Ta Prohm, the intricately carved temples or the trees here.

It looked like science fiction, like somewhere on another planet.  

If you ever have a chance go visit Angkor Wat and immerse yourself in this stunning other world. 

This video below shows the massive heads carved on one of the bridges leading to a temple gate.

For more info on Angkor Wat check these out:

Lonely Planet

Britannica.com

World Pilgrimage Guide

UNESCO

Have you been to Angkor Wat? Do you like to travel? What's one of your favorite places to visit?

Have a great week!

Kathy :)

New York: Love It or Hate It

View from a  rooftop bar

New York City. 

It seems that whenever I tell people I'm going to New York, I get two responses;

"Oh I just LOVE NYC!"

or "Oh really? I hate New York."

My husband and I adore it. Every chance we get, we escape our life in Cleveland and catch a quick flight to the Big Apple. For us it's only 59 minutes away. So as long as there are no delays or cancellations at the airport its super easy to get there. 

As soon as the Manhattan skyline comes into view we sigh, feeling somehow like we are home again. Though we both grew up in the Midwest and have lived in Ohio for 18 years. 

Yes, it is dirty especially on trash day. Yes, sometimes you will see an occasional rat running down by the subway tracks. Yes, it is crowded and there are homeless people lying on the sidewalk.

But 1.6 million people live in Manhattan alone and on weekdays the population swells to 3.9 million according to the World Population Review that's approximately 170,000 people/square mile on a workday.  If you count all five boroughs there are roughly 8 million people, double the amount of Los Angeles. Fun fact, there are also over 800 different languages are spoken in NYC! That's pretty cool!

Of course there will be problems with that many people. But there are so many positives. Here are just some of them.

1. You can pretty much find any type of food you could ever want to try. You can go as fancy as you want spending thousands on a meal, especially if there is alcohol involved, but there are plenty of cheap eat options. A few weekends ago, my husband and I stuffed ourselves with the most delicious pork buns and dumplings in Chinatown for under $20! 

Brunch is my favorite meal of the day and two of my favorite spots are Jack's Wife Freida and Balvanera. Hmm I'm getting hungry just thinking about them.

2. The entertainment available is infinite. From small intimate comedy shows, new plays, and less well-known bands to the glitz and glamour of Broadway, superstar performers like Billy Joel playing Madison Square Garden, or a night at Saturday Night Live. Oh and don't forget all the professional sports you can watch. They have it all, baseball, hockey, basketball and football, take your pick! You can find whatever type of entertainment suits you. 

3. Roof-top Bars. There is nothing like watching the sunset over the NYC skyline at a rooftop bar sipping a Negroni or a Paloma! 

4. There are an endless amount of beautiful cathedrals, historical museums, art museums, and historical places to visit, like Alexander Hamilton's grave and Fraunces Tavern and Museum which was a key meeting place in the Revolutionary War period. 

5. Shopping! You can buy anything you could possibly want in NYC. 5th Avenue has all the super fancy big name stores like Gucci, Dior, Tiffany, Bergdorf Goodman etc. Even if you're not buying they are fun to browse.

Brooklyn Bridge

6. The parks are great! Of course Central Park is the biggest of them all. You could spend an entire day there; walking around, enjoying the lake, taking a boat out on the water, just sitting in the grass having a picnic, getting your exercise by running or biking in the park, and there are pull up bars and other gymnastic work out equipment in some parts of the park. 

Washington Square Park is another of our favorites. We could spend hours sitting on a bench by the fountain simply enjoying the weather and people watching--and ooohing over all the cute doggies that walk through. 

7. We also love that NYC is such a great walking city. You would never have to take a car, you could walk pretty much anywhere, and when you're tired or in a hurry (or it's pouring down rain and you forgot your umbrella) you can always take the subway or grab an Uber. We have clocked over 20,000 steps in a day on some trips. 

After all New York City is one of the top destinations in the world to visit! We already can't wait for our next trip!

What do you think? Love it or hate it? What are your favorite spots in NYC?

Kathy :)

Walking Through Time- Marie Antoinette

There's something about the past that intrigues me, sends tingles up my spine.

When I first learned of Marie Antoinette, I was about 12, but from that moment on, I was hooked on history.  I wanted to learn more about this girl, who was not much older than I when she was sent to France to become Queen and then tragically beheaded by a people who had come to despise her.

A few weeks ago, my husband and I took our three kids ages 20, 18, and 13 to Paris to take a walk through time and get a glimpse of the past.

Le Procope, opened 1686, rue de l'Ancienne Comedie

We began our time in Paris with a private French Revolution walking tour, which my husband arranged through Paris Perfect. This was a great way to get our kids, especially our 13-year-old son, excited about seeing historically important places. Our guide, who spoke English very well, took us among other places, to the oldest street in Paris. It was here that the first ever cafe in Paris opened in 1686, called Le Procope which served a new drink called "coffee" to guests such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Voltaire (who supposedly drank 40 cups of coffee daily), Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin and many other historical figures.

As part of our tour, our guide took us into Le Procope where we sat, drank coffee and discussed the past.  The cafe is now kind of a living museum displaying various items including the writing desk of Voltaire as well as a copy of the last letter that Marie Antoinette wrote to her sister-in-law to bid farewell to her daughter and son only hours before her beheading on October 16, 1793.  As we stood there surrounded by our children, looking at her tear stained letter sealed in a plexiglass case, I wondered if I could have been so eloquent in saying the last goodbye to my children.

Her words still echo in my mind, "...I feel profound sorrow at leaving my poor children: you know that I only lived for them and for you, my good and tender sister...let him (my son), never seek to avenge our deaths...My God, how heart-rending it is to leave them forever! Farewell! Farewell!..." (The original letter is housed in the French National Archives, English translation found at Tea at Trianon)

Royal bedchamber in Versailles

In my search for more of Marie's life, we traveled to the town of Versailles, about 50 minutes southwest of Paris by train.  Here, at the Palace of Versailles, we strolled through the splendor Marie knew as her home.

I had to remind myself that Marie, daughter of the Empress of Austria, was sent away to France to be married to Louis XVI at only 14.  She and Louis lived here in the palace surrounded by the court, servants, and luxury.

Panorama view of the Gardens of Versailles

The gardens of Versailles with their neatly shaped plots and magnificent fountains are well worth the few extra euros to visit.  I could have spent the entire day exploring them...my mind often slipping back to a time when the women strolling along the paths wore large hooped skirts and powdered wigs stretching sometimes over three feet high.  I could almost hear Marie's playful footsteps rushing off to her Petite Trianon, her private country quarters on the outskirts of the gardens to get away from the constant pressures of the court.

My daughter, Jess, in the gardens at one of the main fountains

Only five years after arriving in Paris, Marie's life  would change forever.

Upon learning of the death of King Louis XV, their only real parental or monarchical guide, Louis XVI and Marie fell upon their knees, cried, and exclaimed, "O God, guide us, protect us! we are too young to reign" from the Memoirs of Marie Antoinette.  She was only 19 and now she would be Queen of France.

I love my daughters, ages 20 and 18. I think they're amazing and very talented, but I can't imagine them or anyone their age being capable of ruling an entire kingdom. Anyone with teenagers knows that they are much too guided by their passions and often cannot see what consequences their actions bring.  It seems tragically pre-destined that young Marie would incur the wrath of an already impoverished people while trying to navigate being a newly married teenager, a young mother, as well as a Queen.  

Near the end of our time in Paris, we visited The Conciergerie, a former medieval palace turned prison, where Marie was held leading up to her trial as well as just before her execution. This was where she spent her last night alive, where she wrote her last letter.  We stood in her cold, stone cell and somehow I felt her aura near me. Her sadness at leaving her children. I could hear her pen scratching across the tear stained parchment. Staring at the silver tears painted on the walls years later by King Louis XVIII to honor her, I felt a tear form in my eye and a chill run up my spine.  Two hundred and twenty four years later...here I stood...bridging time...connected in some small way.

This is now the window in her cell.
Today it is a chapel to pay homage to Marie Antoinette

More Information on Marie Antoinette:

Marie Antoinette: The Journey  by Antonia Fraser
http://www.authorama.com/memoirs-of-marie-antoinette-1.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGl61UPX-KU

http://www.archives-nationales.culture.gouv.fr/web/guest/parcours-permanent

https://francearchives.fr/fr/facomponent/c970071822c3d45e0d77f780b18a6b3f59680115

http://19thc-artworldwide.org/autumn11/remembering-the-past-in-restoration-france-an-expiatory-chapel-for-marie-antoinette

Kathy

Wanderings

Plans are great but sometimes wandering is even better.

Don't get me wrong, thinking ahead and planning out life is a super important skill as I've desperately been trying to teach my teenaged daughters... often in vain, but there are times when it's refreshing to let go of all planning and allow the moment sweep you along.

I've always loved serendipity but when it comes to traveling, my husband and I have well planned routes and itineraries to make the most of our time away from home (my husband is always the mastermind behind the planning! :).

Enjoying Central Park

But this last week we did things a bit differently.  First of all, we left the kids at home with grandma and grandpa which we never do. I can't thank them enough for this!! Then we flew off to New York City for a week with basically no plan. We've been there before so we didn't feel the pressure to see all the touristy spots but I still kind of wondered if we could pull off a fun, relaxing trip in the Big Apple without advance reservations and plans for everyday.

So what did we do?

Well, we wandered.  And it was lovely.  We took a day and strolled through Central Park, sat on a rock near Gapstow Bridge and watched turtles sunning themselves and ducks swimming aimlessly.

We found a quiet spot elsewhere in the Park, stretched out, and looked up at the clouds and talked.

We walked 5th Avenue and wandered into Bergdorf Goodman.  It was fun to see what they had though I'm not really a $3000 pair-of-shoes-kinda-girl!

New York Library

We meandered through Bryant Park on 42nd Street, drank coffee at a little table in the sun, and decided to check out the New York Public Library's ornately beautiful Stephen A. Schwarzman Building built in 1911.  How I would love to sit at a table in there and write all day!

Breakfast at Jack's Wife Freda

On Thursday, we traipsed all the way from our hotel on 42nd street down to West Village finding adorable breakfast spots like Jack's Wife Freda, (one of my favorites) and little coffee shops.  All along the way we just talked and took in the
moments together.

Believe it or not even after 22 years of marriage there is still plenty to talk about!  Our kids, future retirement plans, future travel, where to eat dinner, and more heavy topics like:  why we can't seem to take better care of the mentally ill, as we passed an old man who slowly rose from his "home", a ratty old blanket in the corner, with urine and likely feces soaked pants, who even we'll forget about once we're back home in our cushy lives; and the sad state of our nation that seems to only care about hating everyone who is different and "my team/group against yours".

After wandering most of the morning, we found ourselves in the Chelsea Market area and we decided to go check out the ice rink at Chelsea Pier.  As pure luck would have it, one of my best friends from college, that I haven't seen in twenty years happened to be on the ice teaching a lesson. (I did know she taught there, but I had no idea what her schedule was.)  It was great to spend an hour with her catching up and it probably wouldn't have happened if we'd tried to plan it!

We made our way back uptown, with Stumptown Coffee in hand and decided we would hang out by Rockefeller Center, where the ice rink had just opened.  We sat and watched skaters go by, then the ice was cleared and a couple came out alone. We watched the guy very carefully and not too gracefully get down on one knee and propose.  Everyone around cheered for them as she seemingly said "yes", I held my breath as he attempted to get back up.  I envisioned him slipping as he rose pulling her down with him, not a good start to an engagement! But luckily he wobbled and then stood and they skated carefully off.

We sat and watched the city go from daylight to brilliant city lights.  Then we went up to the Top of the Rock, (a tour that takes you to the top of Rockefeller Center.  We decided to do this a couple hours earlier and purchased tickets online.)  There is nothing quite like New York City at night.  The weather was beautiful. Just a slight autumn breeze and crystal clear skies.

By the end of the week it was time to head back to Cleveland, the kids whom we missed dearly, and fine tuned schedules, but we'd had a wonderful time on our wanderings.  I loved not knowing exactly what was coming next and allowing the tide of time to move us along, relishing in each serendipitous moment.  

Kathy

Awesome News and On the Road part III

Yesterday was a rainy day at our newest destination of Elkhart Lake, Wi.  So the kids and I spent the day reading and writing... and I finished my WIP!!!!! YIPEEE!  

When Jess, my daughter, convinced me to start this project I wasn't sure I could complete an entire fantasy novel.  But I stuck with it and I can't believe that I'm finished.  Currently called The Hidden Truth, it weighs in at 73,165 words. (I'm in WRiTE CLUB mode!)  I'm sure it will grow a bit during revisions because when I started, I hadn't figured out many of the nuances that my characters have now revealed to me.

So now the editing work begins but I'm excited to reread the world I created and continue to breathe life into my characters.

Thanks to all of you out there who have offered advice and encouragement!  You guys are awesome! :)


******
On the Road p. III

Today, after a week and a half exploring Wisconsin, we are hitting the road again to head home.  We've had a wonderful time here.

I've been pleasantly surprised by the food choices.  Of course there is plenty of the standard cheesy filled dishes like fried cheese curds, beer cheese soup, and cheeseburgers, but we were also able to find some great little places serving light pastas, exotic vegetarian dishes, and entrees using all locally grown ingredients.

We've had the opportunity to watch a Green Bay Packers practice, roam the capital city of Madison, and enjoy Wisconsin's natural beauty at the Green Bay Botanical Gardens.  We've explored the town of Lake Geneva and relaxed in the tiny town of Elkhart Lake (pop. 967).

All in all we've had a great trip and the best part is that instead of my husband coming out here all alone for business, we got to all be together.          


     

Alyssa's flower picture

Jess's picture of the capital building, Madison

Ryan's picture of Packers practice

Have a great weekend!

Kathy :)

On the Road part II Green Bay

My beauties in front of a bank of Rudebeckia

                  We are here in Green Bay, Wisconsin, home of the Green Bay Packers.  This town is crazy about football. But I wondered, what else there was to do other than tour their sacred Lambeau Field.

 The kids and I searched around and found the Green Bay Botanical Gardens.  It is 47 acres of lush gardens and wild pond and prairie environments.  I knew I would thoroughly enjoy the gardens but I wasn't too sure how long the kids would want to explore.  I didn't want them to wander aimlessly without purpose through the horticultural heaven so I told them we were going to have a contest, a photography contest.  They each had their cameras and they could take as many pictures as they wanted but they would be judged on the artistic quality and composition of their photos.

I was amazed at what I had unleashed.  All three of them, even Ryan, carefully selected shots.  They studied the plants and chose not just the gaudy flowers as subjects but also the delicate white flowers of the hostas and the luxurious greens of the ferns and bleeding hearts.

Ryan focused on getting the perfect shot

After almost 2 hours and over 300 pictures we were ready to leave and have lunch.  I'm not yet sure who won the contest, but I was blown away by some of the shots they took.  (I'll post the winning photos another day.)  

My attempt at an artsy shot of Rudebeckia

Ryan with a giant Agave plant

Hope you're all having a great week!

Kathy :)

      

On the Road

In Lake Geneva, Wi 

We're on a road trip for a few days.  Not to some exotic location, we're just following my husband along on his business trip to Wisconsin.  While he's in meetings and conferences we explore our surroundings.  Even though I have a knack for getting lost, I plug in my GPS, grab a map from the hotel, and search for new people and places.

Yesterday we explored the little town of Lake Geneva.  Back in the late 1800s the town grew as a vacation spot for wealthy Chicagoans, where they could get away from the city to hunt and fish  Today it is a cute little lake front town with shops, restaurants, and a public beach.  We found two lovely little restaurants:  "Simple" which served delicious fresh sandwiches with local ingredients and "Sopra" a bistro serving a yummy assortment of pastas and seafood.

The crystal clear lake  is 7 miles long and 2 miles across and is dotted with mansions dating back to the early 1800s.  The Wrigleys and many other wealthy families still own properties there.  We took an hour boat tour of the lake which highlights some of the most spectacular homes.

One of the mansions on the lake, it is now used as 5 condominiums

If you ever find yourself in Wisconsin it is definitely a worthy place to stop.

On the boat tour.  (Luckily my husband got to join us.)

For the weekend we are exploring Madison, Wi.

Kathy :)

Journey of a Lifetime... and Insecure Writer's Group

Our route to Seattle

Well October was an interesting month for us.

September 29th- said a tearful "goodbye" to our friends and family in Ohio.


September 30th- packed up the minivan and began our 2600 mile drive West to Seattle, our new hometown.

Along the way enjoyed the sights of Mt. Rushmore, Yellowstone National Park, gorgeous mountains, and lots of corn.


October 8th- arrived in our Seattle apartment.  Great view of Puget Sound and Mt. Rainier.


Oct 9th- celebrated daughter Alyssa's 13th birthday by going out to breakfast and dinner at some cool restaurants in the city.


Oct 15th- husband realized that job in Seattle was not working out and house hunting was not going well.


Oct 21st 6:00 am Pacific Time- husband got job back in Ohio, resigned from new job.


Oct 21st 8:00 am Pacific Time- packed up minivan and began our 2600 mile journey back East to Ohio, to stay.


Oct 24th- explored Grand Teton National Park in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.


Oct 25th- blizzard in Wyoming dropping 12-20 inches of snow on our route forced us to explore Park another day.


Oct 26th- saw a beautiful black bear cross the road right in front of us.  AWESOME!


Oct 27th- visited my 97 year old grandma in Cheyenne, Wyoming who I hadn't seen in 25 years.


Oct 29th- we arrived back at our old house in Ohio, which luckily hadn't sold.

Our route back to Ohio

I know this seems like a crazy journey, but in this case it truly was not the destination that was important.  It was all the life lessons we learned along the way.  We realized that although Ohio is not perfect, what we had there was very special and difficult to find elsewhere.  We realized we can drive 5000 miles together and still enjoy each other! And we saw a bear!

OMG there's a bear!

I hope you had a great October!  I 'd love to hear what you were up to.





Kathy

p.s. I decided to do Nano this year and yesterday I made it to 1725 words!  Yeah!  My username is kjmckendry.  If you want to be my buddy you can click here.

Ohh with all this going on I almost forgot today was the first Wednesday of the month which means Alex J Cavanaugh's Insecure Writer's Group post.

Over the last few months, with everyone's encouraging words from the Insecure Writer's Group and the Campaign over at Rachael Harrie's blog I feel like I grown as a writer.  I have tried lots of new ideas, not all of them have worked but at least I was writing.  I even got some new inspirations for stories.  Last year I didn't think I had what it took to participate in NaNoWriMo, but yesterday I took the plunge.  So today I just want to say, "Thank you" to all my followers and fellow bloggers who spend time to support their fellow writers.  You're awesome!  Now stop reading my extra long post and get back to writing your novels! :)

Almost There

We have made it 2100 miles across the country, through endless fields of corn, golden prairies, desolate mountain passes, and stately pine forests. In Yellowstone National Park I was in awe of the most foreign landscape I had ever scene.  It was like we stepped back into the Jurassic Period with pots of boiling mud, spewing geysers, and gasses leaking from every fissure in the Earth.

    

I swear a T-Rex was lurking in there somewhere, but all we saw were bison.

But now our cross-country adventure is almost done.  We only have 310 miles left on the journey to our new home.  We've had 8 great days together exploring and it's a little sad to be approaching the last day.  
It's the end of a great chapter of our lives, but the next chapter, with its plethora of blank pages, lies within reach.  I can't wait to see what will be written on those pages.

Kathy

How are things going with you? I'd love to hear what new chapters have begun in your lives.

I want to thank all the people who left great comments on my Insecure Writer's post.  They helped me quite a bit and I'm excited again to be working on my novel.

And ooohh yeah, I finally hit 100 followers!  Thanks to Sarah Perry over at the The Restless Writer for becoming #100. Check out her great site and give her some love.

Have a great weekend!