We arrived in Strasbourg, France on Monday and it was love at first sight! I
used to live/work in Paris and traveled all around France but I had never made
it to Strasbourg…I have no idea why. This city is beautiful, charming and so
unique. On the Rhine river and right near the border with Germany, this city is
such a blend of the best of France and Germany. With border lines repeatedly
changing this city has actually been a part of Germany at various times in our
history and its style, food and language is all a reflection of that.

When I was planning this trip I strived to find a variety of different types
of places…small towns, countryside, beach, city, etc. First I had hoped to
make Amsterdam the “city home”. Once I started my airbnb search
though I had total sticker shock. Long story short I fell upon this article
“5 alternatives to overcrowded and overpriced Amsterdam” and
Strasbourg was #1 on the list. Having been to both cities I would rate
Strasbourg far and above!

Strasbourg is a small city, the historic area is actually an island surround
by water (Ill River) on all sides with 27 bridges connecting it to the broader
area. From one side to the other is probably no more than a mile. We easily
navigated to our apartment, which is in the heart of the old city.

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We made it to our apartment and quickly unpacked. Then headed out; first
stop was the carousel OBVIOUSLY. Next was a short walk to the tourist office, a
hunt for the perfect first crepe and a trip to the grocery store. Stressed from
the long day and anxious to see more of the city I escaped for a long run
before dinner where I discovered an incredible park with multiple playgrounds,
a free zoo, a lake and trees full of storks flying about…so cool!

I couldn’t wait to share the park with the kids so on Tuesday we did a quick
school lesson on the French Revolution and then we headed to the park where we
spent the majority of the day relaxing and playing. The kids had a great time
and made some new friends. We enjoyed a late afternoon boat tour through the
canals, a dinner of traditional meat pie and then the kids and I hit up another
park in the Petit France district for an after dinner treat. I didn’t take a
single photo the entire day. I think we all needed a break from the camera and
a chance to just be a part of the city. Knowing we will be settled here for a
few weeks alleviates a lot of the pressure to do it (and document it) all but I
am also worried at how fast the time will go and how much I don’t want to leave
this city. I would move here in a heartbeat if only I knew French, could find a
job and could convince a few of my family and friends to move too. Anyone??

My mom asked me today what I have enjoyed most about the trip. My answer was
“having a singular focus”. While we are certainly busy with travel
planning, daily adventures and keeping these kids fed and alive it is so nice
to feel like I can fully immerse in the moment…in whatever the day’s activity
is. There is no foreboding work assignment, no school project that needs to be
prepped for, no soccer game or dance commitment looming, no field trip form to
sign, no birthday party to shop for or house issue to address. It feels like a
break from life. Hanging at the park until 9:00PM doesn’t have me stressed out
about what that means for tomorrow. Leila staying in bed and reading for hours
in the morning doesn’t matter as there is no urgent task. I think we all needed
this chance to chill out and just be. I enjoy how full and busy my life is back
home but I think I really needed this break and am truly appreciating this
time.

Lauterbrunnen, and a good percentage of Europe, has been hit by a strange cold spell so we didn’t really have the best of weather during our time here. Luckily we knew what we were in for and Sean was able to bring us some cold weather gear. The worst part of the weather is that there was a lot of cloud coverage and we missed out on seeing some of the beautiful mountain ranges. I guess we’ll just have to come back!

On Friday we took a series of cable cars up from nearby Stechelberg through Gimmelwald, Murren, Birg and finally Schilthorn. The clouds increased greatly as we made our way up and by the time we reached the top it was nothing but a very bright white blanket of clouds…not exactly the view we had hoped for.

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Luckily we enjoyed a few nice views on our stops along the way up and everyone really enjoyed the James Bond museum at the top.

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The highlight of the day was our hike back down the mountain from Gimmelwald. Some of these views should look very familiar to my coworkers from years ago. I sat on the patio of the same hostel I had stayed in 20 years earlier!

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Saturday included another great hike (just Leila, mom and I) from our town up to Wengen. It was a strenuous hike straight up but we rocked it and by some miracle the rain held off! Leila had been dreading another hike but she quickly changed her tune and had a great time; she is the best hiking buddy!

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We spent the afternoon playing at our favorite new park and exploring the nearby Jungfrau camping village. And then cheese fondue for dinner…my first attempt.

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On Sunday we woke up to an amazing treat. I had been really bummed about it getting so cold here and was worried about the bad weather, but this was actually perfect! What a treat to enjoy a winter wonderland in the Swiss Alps.

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We had to say goodbye again to Sean today but the kids did better with that than I expected and are so excited that he will soon be back to travel with us for 6 weeks straight! We spent the cold afternoon indoors taking a crash course in french in preparation for our next destination, the kids made a “5 reasons we should get a dog” video presentation and I got us all packed up…I am now a master packer.

So many stories and even more pictures I didn’t get to include in this entry…its hard to squeeze the Alps into one little post; but two funny anecdotes from these few days I really don’t want to forget:

(1) After our hike on Saturday I had told Josh that I was going to go to the grocery store, take a shower and then I really needed some time to relax. So he turned to Sean and said “we should make a nice cozy spot for mommy and let her watch the LAUNDRY SHOW”. I think he was referring to Marie Kondo. While that never actually happened and I actually don’t love that show…it was certainly a sweet gesture. Now if there was a MASTER PACKING show I think I could totally get onboard with that, or host it!

(2) After two days of being here Leila said “I actually really like hiking, some day we should hike the Alps”….ummm, that’s where we are kiddo?!?!

Tomorrow we are off to our next long home base; three weeks in Strasbourg, France. I’m excited to get there, settle in and explore our next country. Here we go!

It was quite a journey from Tuscany, Italy to Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland. We left the house at 6:00AM, returned the rental car in Florence, walked to the train station and caught the train to Milan. In Milan we met up with Sean, enjoyed a happy reunion and then hopped on three more trains (1) Milan to Spiez (2) Spiez to Interlaken (3) Interlaken to Lauterbrunnen. We then walked over a mile (false advertising by our airbnb hosts) to our apartment.

The travel actually went smoother than I had anticipated. The car return was quick and we easily navigated our way to the Florence train station. The excitement of seeing Daddy in a few hours outweighed any angst or boredom and I think I actually did a little reading on the train. I had been dreading the presumed craziness of Milan but the train station was beautiful, not at all crowded and we found a great cafe to relax at and wait for Sean.

Once we met up with Sean, the kids glued themselves to him and we continued on our journey.

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Our journey into Switzerland brought back so many wonderful memories for me. When I was 23 I had a work assignment for six months in Zurich. I absolutely loved living in Zurich and I took full advantage to do as much travel as possible at that time. While Lauterbrunnen is a new town for me the Swiss Alps is not. It was one of my favorite destinations and none of the awe or wonder has lessened for me.

The long journey was absolutely worth it…

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We have had a busy few days touring the Tuscany country side. We have visited Volterra, San Gimignano and Anghiari. These are all different hilltop walled towns that have a ton of character and are filled with cobblestone streets, lots of stores and restaurants.

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There has been a lot of freedom having a car for the week, but its also added some stress. The roads and the signs are relatively good and we haven’t had any issues, but figuring out directions, driving, speed traps, gas and parking in a foreign county is a bit much. It doesn’t help that the rental car has about 20 different warning alarms if you are too close to the line, too close to a car, passing a traffic update location, etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. It’s a symphony of stress! During a long drive home today I told the kids I needed them to be quiet for a bit so I could figure out the upcoming toll. When Josh asked “why do we need to be quiet” I told him it was a bit stressful for me driving in a foreign country. His response was “but you can handle it mom, you’re as tough and brave as a gladiator”. His vote of confidence was the boost I needed!

The most memorable experience for me during our time here was a cooking class that Leila and I took together. The class was organized by Elisabeth. She and her husband own a beautiful organic farm about 20 minutes from where we are staying. We spent more than 5 hours at her home getting a tour of her farm, home and art studio (she even makes her own paint from the fresh hen eggs). We tasted olive oil made from her olive trees, learned how to make fresh pasta and enjoyed an enormous feast. We felt more like family than paying customers and I don’t think we will ever forget this unique experience. It was so special for me to experience it with Leila. While we were gone, Noni and Josh kept very busy on a long walk, 1-2-3 scoops of gelato and a yummy pizza dinner. Thanks Noni!

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Another special treat was that the kids and I met up with my Dad today. He has a home about two hours from where we are and he met up with us to spend a fun day together in Anghiari. Seeing more family when you are SO far away from everyone who is familiar is a real treat.

After that it was home to pack for me while the kids were treated to an authentic Italian birthday party courtesy of our downstairs neighbors. Apparently Leila and Josh got to teach all the kids how to hula hoop so we are really leaving our mark on Tuscany.

Tomorrow is going to be a very long day as we make our way by train (four of them) to the Swiss Alps. Hoping Sean’s flights are all on time and that we can easily find each other in Milan so we are all together for this big journey. Ready for our next stop and hopefully a little bit of downtime for this tired momma!

I’m off to sleep…going to miss this comfy bed and beautiful sunset.

We had a whirlwind six hours in Florence today – and it was awesome. This is my fourth time visiting Florence (last time was 18 years ago) and I have always loved it. The size and pace of this city is “just right” for me. Totally walkable from end to end, limited traffic, just enough history and delicious food…perfecto!

We drove in and parked just inside the city wall. We walked past Pitti Palace and the Boboli gardens, crossed over the infamous Ponte Vecchio, toured through the Church of Orsanmichele, took a carousel ride in the Piazza della Repubblica and marveled at Il Duomo (I had forgotten how impressive this site is). Our final destination was the Leonardo da Vinci museum. I had booked tickets here because the kids really loved learning about da Vinci last week and ALL of his many interests. The museum exceeded expectations. A hands-on museum dedicated to his inventions, we were all impressed and entertained.

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We rounded out our day in Florence with a delicious meal at a beautiful restaurant…and of course the biggest gelato ever! After arriving back to our house the kids went downstairs to play with their friends and mom and I enjoyed a peaceful glass of wine. Thank goodness for the wonderful travel agents that planned our day; worth every penny!

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It felt great to get out and run around the fields after a month of really not seeing much in the way of flat space or even grass. Josh and I started out the day with an early walk from our house. Winding our way through olive trees and past lakes, he made a sweet bouquet of wild flowers.

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Our short walk left me anxious to see more so I took some time to go for a long run through the trails. My goal was to make it to Castello del Nero..but with signs like this I was doomed. I have no idea if I ever actually saw the castle but the run wasn’t short on beauty and it felt great to get out and stretch my legs without having to jump out of the way of cars or tackle hundreds of steps.

By the time I got home, Noni had helped the kids organize their own travel agency and they had planned a day of hiking and a pizza lunch in town. For some reason they think they can charge us for this travel planning service and for some reason we are actually conceding to this plan and paying them!

After lunch and a hike, the kids met and spent hours playing with the downstairs neighbors. Thanks to sign language and a little help from google translate they had a great time playing ball, chasing the cat and fishing toys out of the pool. It was really relaxing and fun to watch them all have such a great time. This is the most they have been able to play with other kids in a month and they loved it so much.

Thanks to the Sudduth Sibling Tourist Office we have plans to visit Florence tomorrow and explore the city. I hope I have enough money for gelato after paying their steep consultation fees!

Today was not the most relaxing of days. Starting with a 5:30 alarm clock it was a busy morning to finish up packing, cleaning up our Praiano house, hauling our luggage up the stairs and meeting our taxi at 7:00. Fortunately our taxi was on time and we didn’t hit any traffic on our way to Naples. Unfortunately we spent the 2nd half of our 1.5 hour taxi ride dealing with Josh’s too tiny bladder. We arrived at the crowded train station and ran through the station and down the stairs to hit the restrooms (thank goodness we had been there before and knew where we were going). Digging through our pockets for exact change for the bathrooms, we made it just in time to avoid full on meltdown.

Then we raced back upstairs to buy tickets for our 9:15 train. To our surprise, the train was sold out…but we were able to make it on the 9:00. Tickets in hand by 8:55 we ran to the platform, hopped on the train and made fools of ourselves standing on chairs to get suitcases placed in the overheads (at 5’3″ I tower above the rest of my travel companions) before some highly-entertained travelers took mercy and showed us the easily accessible luggage compartment conveniently placed under our seats.

Things settled down a bit after that. We arrived in Florence around noon and had a 1/2 mile walk through the city to find the Hertz rental car location. The kids were total troopers hustling through the city streets with heavy bags in tow.

With a map, a ridiculously priced insurance plan and keys to the car we were off. With only one wrong turn, we made it through Florence without issue and were on our way to Tavernelle Val di Pesa. After a month of not driving it felt pretty good to be behind the wheel again!

We arrived in Tavernelle to a thunderstorm, a maze of super confusing one-way streets and a severe lack of the quaint Tuscan village I had envisioned. Luckily all that was made up for on the other side of town where we found our home for the next 6 nights.

We have the top floor apartment of this beautiful old villa. The owners, and downstairs neighbors, are a lovely family with two young girls (5 and 7) that the kids are excited to meet. In the meantime, Josh (and Leila – although she instantly regretted her decision) wasted no time jumping into our pool…don’t be fooled…it was FREEZING.

It was a long day and I was ready for a glass of wine and an early bedtime. Excited to explore more tomorrow.

Today was our last day in Praiano. We have had a wonderful four weeks (I can’t believe it’s been that long)! The generous people, stunning views and the ridiculously amazing food have made our first stop a big success.

We spent our final morning doing laundry, errands and packing. We spent the afternoon at the beach and took a fun boat ride to the emerald grotto. We spent the evening eating gelato in the piazza and saying goodbye to friends.

We leave Praiano with a new travel-confidence, sun-kissed noses, strong stair-climbing legs, Josh’s enormous collection of rocks and wonderful memories.

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Our next “home” is Strasbourg, France but we have 10 days before arriving there. We have decided to spend the next six days in Tuscany in a town called Tavernelle Val di Pesa. It is about 30km south of Florence. After that, we will be traveling north to Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland for a few days of exploring the Swiss Alps. The highlight will be that Sean is flying back for a long weekend in the Alps with us! We are all very excited to see him and break up this long time apart. I also plan to send him home with all of Josh’s rocks!!!

As we wrap up our last few days in Praiano, there are a few unique facts about this town, Italy and Europe that I don’t want to forget. Some of these things were exactly the same when I traveled here 20 years ago and when I saw them again I was like “WHAT…oh yeah, now I remember this.” This time I won’t forget!

Fact 1: Dual-flow are the norm. These are toilets with two buttons depending on how much water you need. Great for conservation (which in general is a much bigger focus here…don’t even get me started on the complex trash/recycling process).

Fact 2: Seat-less toilets. Nearly every public bathroom has toilets without a seat. I have heard different theories on this. It’s more hygenic (seems like a stretch to me). People steal them (why???). They break from people standing on them and are never replaced due to expense (why is everyone standing on toilets in Italy?). I do not like this fact. I do not like it at all.

Fact 3: Pay for Toilets. When out and about you can expect that you will be paying for any public toilet use. This requires exact change. If you don’t have exact change and attempt to sneak 4 people into the bathroom on one Euro there will be cameras, you will get caught and nobody will get to pee. This will not bode well for your upcoming bus ride.

Okay – enough bathroom facts

Fact 4: There are a LOT of car accidents. This is not at all surprising considering the road situation here. We have probably witnessed at least a dozen accidents in our 4 weeks. They pretty much go something like this: Truck accidentally hits door of parked car. Truck driver gets out, and with nothing but brute force, attempts to help car owner push his door back in place so it can close. This incident is completed with a hand shake, hug and shouts of “thanks – have a nice day”. If there is a car in Praiano that isn’t covered in scrapes and dents than it is for sure a tourist’s rental car and they aren’t doing it right.

Fact 5: There is laundry everywhere. No matter how fancy the home you will see a clothesline and the city streets basically look like one big consignment sale. Not a dryer to be found (this probably has something to do with the conservation efforts too).

Fact 6: Roaming dogs. It’s possible this isn’t a fact and just relevant to the few 100 meters surrounding our house. But there are lots of dogs and not a fenced yard or leash in sight to restrain them. The dogs (all collared, clearly someone’s pet, and super sweet) have free roam of the streets, stores, restaurants and even the buses.

Fact 7: There is no peanut butter…but Nutella is a wonderful replacement and a new staple of our diet.

Fact 8: Everything is closed for 3 hours in the afternoon. This includes pretty much all stores, businesses and schools. The occasional cafe may be open but that will be limited. I had forgotten about this Italian version of a siesta (the Riposo) and we have certainly had to make our plans around it.

Fact 9: Motorcycles and scooters are a primary mode of transportation here and seeing an un-helmeted five year old on the back of a motorcycle is not uncommon. We saw a woman on her scooter yesterday with one kid sitting in front of her and one behind. Pretty sure that would be cause for an arrest back home.

Fact 10: There are about 100 other facts that are unique and interesting about this place that are quickly becoming our new norm. I love being exposed to all these differences. There are things that are better (heated towels racks are hands-down the best) and things that are worse (playgrounds, as we know them, don’t really seem to exist).

It’s been fun being reminded of a lot of these things and I think it is bringing great perspective, awareness and appreciation to the kids. I will always be grateful and appreciative for toilet seats!

Leila wrote her own 10 facts on her blog. Check it out: https://atravelinggirl.home.blog/

Without Easter baskets in tow, and apparently no equivalent in Italy, the kids made do decorating paper bags that we buy our fruit in at the grocery store. It worked! The Easter Bunny spoiled the kids with chocolates and some local Praiano goodies.

For Easter this year we had all worked hard making cards for our neighbor and new friends here and Leila did an amazing job translating to Italian for us. We also adopted a few of the Italian traditions: (1) the kids created an egg (lemon candy) hunt for the adults…that was a fun twist, (2) the kids prepared Easter poems; I did one too since my mom is here so technically I’m a kid too, and (3) I received breakfast in bed and was gifted Italian chocolate bars…that is technically not an Italian tradition but it certainly should be!

Thanks to our amazing upstairs neighbor/fantastic cook, we also got to enjoy so many of the local Easter delicacies. She spoiled us all with breads, cheeses, salami, eggs, chocolates and tasty treats.

With a bit of a sugar overload the kids and I were in serious need of some exercise so we headed down to the square to play for the afternoon. A couple hours of that seemed to improve our moods and worked up quite an appetite so we stopped to share a pizza for an afternoon snack before heading home and spending the evening cooking and making up games. It was a fun “blended” Easter and a great experience for all.