Long Time Coming

It's been almost two years since I updated this. I went into this adventure thinking this would be the perfect time to document all my travels and maybe even be a resource for other travelers out there. What I have found is I have much more enjoyed living in the moment and that time flies by! We are now looking at the last three months of our time in Europe and reflecting on the past three years. We are looking forward to returning to the US and our families and friends but sad to be leaving behind all the amazing people and places that we have experienced here. It's time to reflect on changes that have happened internally as well. A different way of thinking about how small the world is, how people of different cultures are tied together, of how we thinking about our own country (as seen from the outside). It's been a tremendous time of person growth and I hope I have come out of it stronger, braver, smarter and wiser. 

Back to travel, we have about 9 weeks before we leave Germany. In this time we are going to Berlin, hiking around Mont Blanc, Rome / Corsica, more German festivals, canyoning in Austria, and finally finishing up with Portugal and Spain. Till try to do a better job of documenting some of these adventures! 

Differences make us better

One of the things I love about living and traveling abroad are all the things that are different from the US. I know people who have lived abroad and all they focused on are things that missed about the US. I'd rather focus on all the things that I love about Europe:

1) the food! The food is amazing. Fresh and healthy for the most part. Focused on seasonal production and locally produced food goods. Utilisation of everything (which is always interesting when it comes to meat products).

2) the wine and beer. Yummy yummy all around. So many options, so open about open container, so much younger drinking age and acceptability in family life. So many things about drinking are handled in a personal choice manner. And it seems to me that there are less issues with alcohol abuse and drunk driving, which leads to my next love...

3) public transportation! Trains, buses, affordable flights. It's so easy to connect and travel locally or between countries. 

4) markets... Everything from food to street to clothes to jewelry. I think I've been to amazing markets in every country that I've visited. They have all been different and wonderful in their own way. 

5) little things that you notice every day, windows in Germany, innovative kitchen tools, tea in England and coffee in Rome, they way you pay for a meal at the table and you don't worry about your credit card being stolen, built in gratuity

6) People. Everywhere I have traveled you meet amazing people. People who are kind, who help, who want to talk to you. People who mention Michael Jordan at the first word about Chicago. People that offer you to taste their wine or their meal. People who offer to carry your bag down the stairs in the tube or open the door for you. Beautiful, wonderful humanity

The most amazing thing about travel is being open to differences. Accepting them and realising that you might miss your US washer and dryer but the amazing benefits of new experiences far outweighs anything else....

Sunday, Market Day

I live in Tower Hamlets Borough in London in an area known as Wapping. Wapping use to be the warehouse district in London. It's just east of the Tower of London and sits along the Thames River. Most of the buildings, including mine, are warehouse conversions. The neighborhood is definitely in transition. There is a small square with a few shops and restaurants and pubs lining the river. In the past month, the have introduced the Wapping Sunday Market. This has been a welcome addition to the area. The vendors include food, fruit and vegetables, coffee, meats, cheeses, bread, plants and WINE! I'm loving the wine vendor with their refillable bottles. Today I went to the market and went through my regular routine, first off the vegetable stand for two bags of  organic kale. I then returned the cardboard basket from last weeks cherry purchase to the cherry stand. The woman looked at me like I had three heads. I told her I didn't want to just throw it away. I'm not sure the recycling intention translated properly. I then popped over to the egg guy and returned his egg carton and bought another six pack. He also seemed surprised that I returned it but did tell me that I was the second return of the day. He seemed pleased. I did however feel bad when I had to pay him the 1.30 in .10 coins. I was able to finish the day with fresh made pasta and my refilled wine bottle. I'm starting to feel like a local and it's really wonderful when people start recognizing me.

Introduction

I'm starting this blog to document my adventures for the next two year. Seven months ago I moved from Chicago, IL to London. My husband serves in the Air Force and is station at Ramstein AFB in Germany. We plan a lot of european travel in the two years that we are here. We would like to share them with you.