Celebrating Seven Years with a Seven Hour Travel Day

We tried to post this last night, but had major issues with the computer. A partial draft was saved, so I'm trying to upload this from my phone. I can only see weird characters, so if the rest of the blog doesn't make sense, that's why. Hi Everyone!  Sorry that we can-t post more pictures, it took forever just to upload these two.  We are in the land of magical vistas, aka Plitvice National Park, and it is gorgeous here!  We-ve had a great day, and our seven hours of travel went by quickly and smoothly.  We took two buses, a train, and two 15/minute walks with luggage to get here, and we were able to laugh and enjoy ourselves along the way.  We got here around 2pm, were able to check in, and then headed down to the lake.  Oh wow!  The beauty is indescribable.  We just hiked for a little while today, and will spend the day there tomorrow. While we were relaxing in the lobby, I made a comment about the temperature being 109 degrees in Houston, and it turns out that the couple sitting near us were also from Houston! What a small world, and they were here with a Rick Steves' tour, go figure! Well, I'm going to keep this short, we have an anniversary to celebrate and this keyboard is giving me trouble. I'm so grateful for the decision I made nine years ago to eat lunch at the Yakatori bar in Nikko, Japan, because that's where Eric walked into my life. I am so grateful to have married my best friend, fellow traveler and adventurer.

Vintgar Gorge-ous!

It's hard to believe that our time in Slovenia is drawing to an end.  We head out very early tomorrow morning to return to Croatia to spend our anniversary in Plitvice National Park.  (It was while watching a Rick Steves' show on Croatia and seeing Plitvice that we knew we wanted to visit this part of the world one day!)  We have absolutely loved Slovenia, especially Lake Bled.  Today was another great day.  We took a short bus ride to Vintgar Gorge, and the area was magical.  I felt like I was in another world, like something out of Lord of the Rings.  It was breathtaking!  The majority of the walk is along a boardwalk that's built into the walls of the gorge, above the most beautiful, clear blue water I have ever seen.  We could even see fish, hovering in the current, waiting for food.  Our pictures do not do this place justice.  Once we made it through the gorge, we walked about 5 miles back to Bled and it was beautiful country.  After a delicious pizza lunch, we decided to spend the rest of the day at the lake.  Eric wanted to see how chilly the water was, and decided to go for a swim.  He said it was, "Refreshing."  After his swim, he wanted to dry off along the lake, so we decided to feed the ducks and swans.  Little did we know that we would be feeding the mice too!  It was very relaxing and fun. We're off to pack and turn in now.  Hope everyone is doing well!

Water Adventures: Dubrovnik and Bled

Hi Everyone!  We're taking advantage of a rainy evening to upload some pictures.  The computer we're using is very slow, and these took about 30 minutes.  The first four pictures are from our kayaking adventure in Dubrovnik.  It was a three hour tour (ring any bells??) from Dubrovnik, around the island of Lokrum (great legend about how the monks used to live on the island until some rich aristocratic took it, and the monks cursed it by burning candles upside down and walking around the island a specific number of times.  The aristocrat ended up dying mysteriously, his wife went insane, and several of his decendants met their ends in bad ways.)  From the island of Lokrum, we paddled to a really cool cave, which you can see in the picture with Eric. There was a beach in the cave, and we had lunch, then snorkeled for awhile. On the way back to Dubrovnik, we were treated with incredible views of the walls surrounding Old Town.  We loved this experience.  Today, we had an equally delightful time.  Taking advantageof a break in the heat, we hiked up to Bled Castle.  That's right, we hiked to the top of that very steep cliff way above the lake.  It actually wasn't a bad hike, there was a sign saying that it was a 15 minute hike, which was accurate, and there were about 300 stairs to get to the bottom of the castle.  Then we had another steep walk to get into the castle.  But we were rewarded with breathtaking views of the region and had a fun time exploring the castle.(Those pictures are on the other camera and we'll have to upload them some other time).  Eric spent seven and a half years of his childhood in Germany and England, and fondly remembers exploring old castles.  He still loves this, so we visit the castles we come upon.  I've grown to enjoy this as well.  After our castle explorations, we enjoyed a leisurely lunch and Eric decided it would be romantic to rent a row boat and row out to the church in the middle of the lake.  Unfortunately, storm clouds had blown in, and we weren't sure whether to go or not.  Of course the man renting the boats saw this as an opportunity to make some money, when probably no one else would rent a boat, so he encouraged us to go.  We decided, "Eh, what the heck? Let's go," and off we went.  And as Eric rowed us out, the rain began to fall.  Thankfully, the real downpour didn't happen until we were at the island, so we were able to take refuge in the little church.  There is a legend about this church.  The aristocrat who lived in Bled Castle died, and his wife was very sad.  So she took all of her money and used it to buy a bell for the church.  As the bell was being rowed out to the church, a terrible storm arose, causing the boat and bell (and sailor) to sink.  (I did not learn about this legend until we were actually at the church!) She ended up dying from grief, but the Pope was touched by her devotion and had another bell sent to the church.  Today, anyone visiting the church can ring the bell, which we did.  When the rain slowed down, Eric rowed us back, and we were treated to a very beautiful rainbow.  We walked back to our hotel and made it just before the really heavy rain started to fall.  I forgot to mention that after we left the castle, we stopped to try a very famous local dessert, know as Bled cake, or cream cake.  We thought it was OK, were glad that we tried it, but probably wouldn't get it again.  Still, it was fun to try.  That's about it for now.  Hope everyone is doing well!

Ljubljana (Eric)

I thought Zagreb was amazing, but this city is like Zagreb with a zen-like make-over. It is a peaceful collection of fascinating food places, restaurants, and interesting stores -- I know, I know... there really is no such thing in my mind most of the time, but they sell stuff that is not the normal tourist crap that is sold in many of the places we have visited over the years.

We spent the morning walking around the city and taking pictures (we will try to post some later) of the interesting architecture, beautiful river, and mountains that surround Ljubljana. We also got a bird's eye view of the city as we ventured up to Castle Ljubljana -- quite an interesting mix of old and new world. They have taken a medieval castle and turned it into a combination museum and cultural center, but it is also used for an events location, including weddings and concerts. The views from the highest spire are simply breathtaking, and even Jenny despite her fear of heights was able to enjoy herself. We ate lunch in the castle courtyard, and I was expecting the terrible food you would normally find in a tourist site like this, but this food was actually good by any standards. Jenny and I decided to walk down instead of taking the tram ride we took up because the weather has been delightful here. I am happy to report no one broke any bones.

Well, I am typing this in a youth hostel while doing laundry, and several other people are chomping at the bit to get this computer so that is all for now. Take care everyone.

sLOVEnia!

Wow - as much as we loved Zagreb, and were in awe of Dubrovnik, we really, really, love Slovenia!  Currently, we are in the capital city, Ljubljana, and it is just amazing.  The town center is a bit more concentrated than Zagreb, so the pedestrain zone is lined with interesting architecture and tons of cafes.  The cafes along this area serve a variety of cuisines, so we were able to enjoy an ice tea at a Japanese tea house.  There is even a sushi bar, which we think we will try for dinner.  In Croatia, it was challenging, although possible, to find a restaurant that didn't have the same menu of pizza, spaghetti, or fried fish.  Here, as in Croatia, most people speak English, so we haven't had much trouble communicating.  Rigth now, we are doing laundry, so we have some time to blog.
Yesterday was what I affectionately (sarcasm) refer to as an "Amazing Race" day.  We traveled 11 hours to get from Dubrovnik (flight to Zagreb, then train) to Ljubljana, schlepping luggage up and down stairs in the hot, hot sun.  There were some adventures with various buses, and always up hill walks to get to where we needed to get in the heatwave ("It's NEVER this hot in June!")  We pack as light as possible, fitting everything into large backpacks, but I still curse every ounce when we're in the middle of one of these days.  (Did I really need that extra pair of socks?) :)
At the train station, we met a lovely Croatian lady, 27 years old, who spoke perfect English.  We had a great conversation with her, and it reminded me of what I love most about traveling, meeting other people and hearing their stories.  On the train, we met a yound man from Russia and enjoyed talking with him as well.
When we arrived last night, it was after 9pm and we were exhausted, so we checked into our hotel, walked to a corner stand that sells kebop (similar to a gyro but made with a bread that resembles thin panini-type bread and different sauces) and then crashed out.  We enjoyed a leisurely morning, and then set off to explore Ljubljana.  We spent the majority of the day at the castle, which I think Eric is writing about right now.  We loved it - the views were amazing.  I forgot to mention the Ljub is surrounded by very large mountains, some still covered with snow.  Some of these are part of the Julian Alps.   We also had lunch at the castle, and tried local Slovinian cuisine.  I had an interesting vegetable soup, which was made with lots of different types of mushrooms and had a very earthy, yet sweet flavor.  Eric had some chicken and potatoes which were delicious.  We walked down from the castle through a pretty forest and ended up at the tea house.  And that's been our day!  Hope you are all doing great!

Croatia Pictures

The Magic of Friendship

One of our greatest joys in life is the relationships we have with family and friends. When we had the opportunity to meet up with two dear friends, Melissa and Alex, in England, we jumped at the chance.  Alex is from England, and to be able to see the area he grew up in through his eyes was simply amazing.  We had the best time with them!  As Eric says, we got to meet old friends in a new place.  What we didn't expect was to make new friends on this adventure.  Chris and Rebecca, Alex's friends, graciously invited us to stay in their home in London.  They are a lot of fun and we enjoyed relaxing in their beautiful garden.  Eric took the picture of the foxes while peering into their neighbor's backyard.  To put it nicely, the neighbor's yard is overgrown, and a family of foxes has moved in.  These are two of the cubs that are romping around that yard.  We want to give a great big thank you to Melissa and Alex for our incredible time in Quernmore, and to Chris and Rebecca for opening up their home to us and befriending us along the way.  We will hold onto memories of watching YouTube videos of fell racing and cheese chasing with fondness.  Looking forward to another time in the future when the six of us can hang out together again.. perhaps in New Zealand??? :)

Losing Track of Time in Dubrovnik

This is Jenny, trying to blog from my phone on a spotty wi-fi connection. We actually spent some time uploading pictures on a computer, but then couldn't connect to the Internet! Sorry, no pictures for now. :( Dubrovnik is breath-taking, fun, relaxing. We are staying on a little bay called Lapad and it is beautiful! The water is crystal clear. There are fish that swim up to us, but dart away when we try to touch them. We spend our days on the beach, using the calm sea to keep cool in the heat. Dubrovnik is very hot right now, but it's pleasant in the shade. In the evenings, we go for walks along the coast and then take a bus into Old Town. I cannot put into words how awe-struck I am by Old Town. In some ways it reminds me of El Morro in San Juan, Puerto Rico, except the entire town is inside walls. These walls were actually indestructible during the war in the 90's. The town itself sustained a lot of damage, but not the walls. Last night, we joined the locals in cheering Croatia on in the Eurocup. Sadly, Croatia lost, but it was fun to share this experience with the locals. Our experience has been that the Croatians are very friendly, they are proud if their heritage and their history, and they stand by their football team. A few if the locals that we've spoken with have been surprised that we are Americans, because they don't get a lot of American tourists. In fact, in Zagreb, we were asked if we were in Croatia for work. But so far, we've loved it here and would come again! This morning, we took a kayak tour around the walls of Old Town, around an island and to a large cave, where we swam in the beautiful water. It was a lot of fun and a different way to view the area. We hope to post those pictures one of these days. Hope everyone is doing well!

Dubrovnik (Eric)

This is from my phone, so it is going to be brief. There are places in this world that Jenny and I have been where we talk about being able to bottle the feeling of serenity we get from spending time there and save it for those stressful moments during the school year. If I could bottle the feeling from this amazing place, it would be more addictive than any drug. Words do not do this coastal town justice. We will try to post pictures at some point, but I invite you to do a google search of the name Dubrovnik and see before then. I am going to post this for now. Take care everyone.

Greetings from Zagreb (Eric)

We are sitting in an internet cafe called Cyber Funk Cafe. It is a combination smoothie bar internet cafe with really tasty smoothies. We are enjoying ourselves immensely in this charming city. It has many of the attractions of other European cities, the Gothic architecture, the street cafes, the ability to walk from location to location, minus the larger crowds. I have been hearing and reading that Croatia is an undiscovered tourist destination, and I am happy to report that this is true. I find this city to be a fascinating combination of old world charm and modern conveniences. We have been leisurely exploring the city all day, and we have stumbled across some wonderful sites, including a street concert, a farmer´s market (where we bought a .5 kilo of cherries), a few beautiful  cathedrals and churches, and wandered into a museum that had some fascinating sculptures. We are walking back to our apartment from a botanical garden - peaceful and quiet - to get ready for dinner at what looks to be an interesting place called Mano. We will try to post pictures later - I forgot to bring the cable with me.

I Heart Zagreb (by Jenny)

I have been trying to think of different adjectives to try to describe how great and fun Zagreb is, and the only thing I can come up with is that I simply love this city! I am so grateful for all of the incredible travel experiences I've had in my life, and this is another amazing adventure.

What I love most about Zagreb is that it seems to be the prefect combination of everything I love about other cities I've visited; it has the cafe culture and promenades of Athens, the old architecture of Paris, it's compact, easy to get around, and it's surrounded by mountains.  (English is fluently spoken, which is an added bonus).  There are lots of people milling about, so it feels safe, but not so many people that it feels crowded.  There are lots of trees and parks, so even though it's hot, the temperature in the shade is quite nice.

We've enjoyed a great day of exploring the city.   There are many beautiful cathedrals and churches.  We visited the home and art studio of sculptor Mestrovic, which was really interesting.  He was a contemporary of Rodin's, and had even sculpted a few pieces of Rodin.  We enjoyed relaxing under a cafe umbrella when the sun was a bit too intense, and we strolled through the botanical gardens.  We're at an internet cafe now, and Eric is trying to figure out how to get to a restaurant that he read about for dinner.  Unfortunately, we cannot upload pictures at the moment, but hope to be able to do that soon. 

I would highly recommend a visit to Zagreb to anyone who is thinking of visiting Croatia.  It's not expensive.  We've rented an apartment in the center of the city and are finding prices for food and drinks to be very reasonable (although soda is still more expensive than wine!)

Zagreb (Eric)

Blogging from my phone seems to be all but impossible for some reason here in Zagreb, Croatia, so this is just going to be a hello from this wonderful city. We enjoyed our first night here. The city was very lively because the Croatian soccer team tied Italy, and the locals were out celebrating. We are going to explore the city more today and try to find a way to post some pictures. Take care everyone.

An Encounter with a Local (Eric)

While we were out exploring the English countryside, I had a brief encounter with a local that I found amusing and worth sharing.

Those of you who know me well are aware of the phenomenon that random people have this tendency to strike up a conversation with me. While I was photographing some sheep and engaging in conversation with Jenny about the sheep (we did this quite often - we found them to be fun subjects), this gentleman (who by the way had teeth that were really bad even by English standards and an accent so thick that I could barely understand anything he was saying) proceeds to start talking to me. Initially, I cannot make out anything he is trying to say, but then I realize he is asking about a beacon (a signal fire that would have been used back in the day to warn people of invaders) - if you have seen Lord of the Rings, you may be familiar with the concept. Anyway, he is asking if the beacon had been moved from the top of a nearby watchtower to the hillside. As I have said, I had already been engaged in conversation, so I thought that he would be able to tell that I am not exactly familiar with the area based on my accent, but that did not seem to deter him, and I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt that he had not actually been listening to me, so I politely inform him that I am not from around here.

He finally seems to actually listen to what I am saying and realize that my accent is not English. He then seems to think he is witty for figuring out that my accent is not British and asks me where I am from. I tell him Houston, Texas, and he claims that this is the one place in America that he has always wanted to visit. I have no idea if he was just being polite, and if I had said I was from Dryden, Texas (town of about four buildings in west Texas), he would have said the same thing, but people in Houston be on the lookout for an Englishman with really bad teeth and an almost unintelligible accent. Once he learned my origins, it seemed I became an instant friend because he knew someone from Galveston, and he proceeded to talk to me about the local political situation and why England was going down the tubes. I was smiling politely, but if it had not been for Alex and Melissa coming back and giving me an excuse to extricate myself from the conversation, I think this gentleman would still be talking to me.

These kinds of experiences are part of the fun of traveling, and the interaction with locals and learning about their viewpoints give you more insights into what life is truly like for people who live here.

Ingleton Falls Hike

These pictures are from our hike in Ingleton yesterday.  We loved the variety of terrain.  Our hike begin in a forest and took us past several waterfalls.  Eventually, we left the forest and entered the hill country with rocks and sheep, then descended into a valley with a gorge.  It was all very beautiful.  The hike was supposedly 4.5 miles, but the four of us agreed that it felt more like 6 miles, and for some reason, it was uphill in both directions!  We've had a great time in Northern England.  Tomorrow, we fly to Croatia!  Hope everyone is doing well.

Eric's Thoughts from Lancaster England

Greetings to anyone who may be reading this. I finally got a chance to blog, but this first one may have to be brief as we are heading to our next adventure (a short hike to a waterfall and visit to a cave) in a little while. Jenny and I are staying with friends (Alex and Melissa) in a renovated barn (it is much more charming than it sounds) near Lancaster, England. Lancaster is the town where Alex was born. The barn is on the out-skirts of Lancaster surrounded by rolling green hills and farm animals. It is peaceful and the stress of the school year and the travel to get here has already melted away. As a child, I was always fascinated with this part of England. The moors are picturesque, and we had a wonderful, but slightly damp (it had rained most of the day before we got here), walk on our first day. We have been lucky with the weather so far and have managed to see some of the local sites (a castle, a cathedral, a coastal town) that we probably would never have seen if it was not for our friends being in this part of the country. I am going to sign off for now, but Jenny and I will try to post more details and/or pictures later. We hope everyone is doing well.