I’m fortunate; this wasn’t my first trip to France. In fact, it was my third. Each trip was very different: the first in 1993 when I was visiting a friend in Germany and I took a 2-day bus tour from Germany to France. The second in 1999 with two friends when we did the “if this is Paris, it must be Tuesday” type of tour. … Continue reading The Gardens and the Gold
We checked into the Hotel Johannes Vermeer, which is right in the middle of Delft on the Molslaan Canal, and the perfect location for us. We didn’t get into the car again until Sunday, which was also a nice break! Had dinner at Le Mariage, which, as is usual in Europe, was an unrushed, leisurely (and delicious) affair. The next day, Saturday,our first stop was … Continue reading A Perfect Day in Delft
Traveled up to Delft, the Netherlands, today. On the way, we stopped at the Kinderdijk windmills, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which is also the largest grouping of working mills in the world. It is incredibly picturesque! The Netherlands is, in general, about 20 feet below sea level; the windmills are an ingenious — and intricate — method of controlling water levels. It’s important to … Continue reading Kinderdijk
A somber day to be sure. We set out early to meet up with Henri, our Belgian guide, of Far West Tours, for a full day of touring World War I battlefields around Ieper (“ee-pra”; called Ypres during WWI, but now known by its Flemish name; commonly called Wipers by the British troops in WWI), Belgium. For me, it was a day of learning; I … Continue reading Cross of Sacrifice, Stone of Remembrance
Many of you may know that my brother Tim and I have worked for many years on our family’s genealogy. We started with our Mum’s side, the Atyeos, because it’s such an unusual name and we felt we might have more success tracking an unusual name. Keep in mind that we started all this before the Internet (gasp) and sites such as ancestry.com existed. We … Continue reading Royal Welsh Fusiliers, World War I
After spending such a wonderful and moving day tracing our grandfather’s steps, we had the great joy of staying at Le Chateau des Ormes, just outside of Lille. Our hostess, Isabelle, was welcoming and full of life. We had the great good fortune of sitting out on the “front porch” — that is, a lovely stone terrace that overlooks the park — with Isabelle, who … Continue reading Le Chateau des Ormes
My flight to Rejkjavik was smooth, but As with the beginning of most vacations, that first day is a little rough around the edges. Add in a couple siblings and the fun really begins. Met up with Andrew and Mindi in the Keflavik airport, had some breakfast. The weather was raw and windy and raining sideways, which I’m guessing is a pretty typical day in … Continue reading Day One: Comedy of Errors
Rhodio 