2004
We made it back to St. John for our fourth trip, just as Mikey and Monica returned to their family. Then Kyla came to live with us...and we have been too busy for travel.
2002-2003
This was a tough time for us. In January we went back to the island of St. John for our third trip...see our UPDATED St. John page.
Mom's accident was in December, so I spent most of December 2002 through February of 2003 in Florida with Mom. She returned to Kansas with me in March, then returned home to Florida in April. After that Mikey and Monica came into our lives, so we didn't travel much...although I did make it to Ohio for a wedding and Florida to visit Mom. Mark made his annual pilgrimage to Columbus for football during the 2003 season.
2001
November
My mother and I took a trip to Europe this fall. When I first
suggested this trip, her initial reaction was, "Do you think
we could do this and not kill each other?" : )
The good news: we survived to tell the tale. Our plans took us to Paris the first week, then from there to Rome for a week. My original hope was to take a Rick Steves ETBD tour (check out his web site) but there were no vacancies for our intended dates. Rick's books are still terrific, and they are one of the resources we used to plan our trip.
Below read our planned itinerary; here is a link to my travelogue and pictures: Paris and Rome: 2001
Paris
It is my experience in traveling to Europe, it's best to try to
get outdoors and do some walking on Day One; that way you body
adjusts to the time. If we can get by with a small nap or
no nap at all on that first day, we should be in good shape by
the morning of Day Two.
Other thoughts: we arrive VERY early on Monday. We
will be able to drop off our luggage and freshen up at the hotel
when we first arrive, but my guess is that our room won't be
ready until closer to our check in time at 3PM.
Monday 11/19
Morning to early
afternoon: Historic Paris Walk--includes Île de la Cité, Notre
Dame, Sainte Chapelle, et cetera. I'd like to check
out the schedule at Sainte Chapelle as they are supposed to have
wonderful concerts at the church. Depending on our energy level,
we can eat, nap, or both. Evening: Again, depending on our energy
level and the weather, we can take a little cruise on the Seine
or do an Illuminated Paris night bus tour for orientation.
Tuesday 11/20
Morning: Rue Cler walk around our little neighborhood. If
we are really feeling ambitious, we can hit the Eiffel Tower as
we are not far...or we can save it for another time. Midday:
Orsay Museum--The Orsay is 19th century, including the best
Impressionist collection in Europe. Evening:
Rodin Museum: sculpture. (Mom used to have a copy of
at least one of his works in the house when I was a kid. How
embarassing...). Napoleon's tomb/Les Invalides would be a
good stop on the way back to the hotel.
Wednesday 11/21
Morning to Afternoon: Champs Élysée Walk--beautiful main drag
of Paris. Promise me we won't eat at Burger King! Evening:
The Lourve--it's open late
Thursday 11/22
Depending on the weather and our mood...there are at least two
worthwhile day trips--Versailles or Chartres Cathedral. I
studied both in Art History class at college, along with Sainte
Chapelle and Notre Dame. .
Friday 11/23
Could be anything: the
Pompidou Museum, the Cluny, Eiffel Tower, a walk in the Marais
neighborhood...we could re-visit something else...or just bop
around and gawk at people.
Saturday 11/24
We leave Paris for Rome. Depending on scheduling and
such, we can have a relaxing dinner or we can take a little
orientation bus around the city...or walk around the Campo
di Fiori/Piazza Navona/Trevi Fountain/Spanish Steps...in general,
there are plenty of interesting places to walk around at night
any day of the week.
Sunday 11/25
Depending on the Pope's schedule, it might be fun to be Catholic
for a day...? Morning: could be church, could be a very
cool Roman flea market at Porta Portese
Afternoon-Evening:
National Museum of Rome.
Monday 11/26
Depending on what we did Sunday, this would be a Vatican
day--the Vatican Museum, St. Peter's Basilica,
the Dome, Sistine Chapel. Oh--I bought some
very small (and very nice) binoculars... There's also a cool market near
the Vatican called Mercato Andrea Doria.
Tuesday 11/27
Ancient Rome: Colosseum, Forum, Pantheon, Baths of Diocletian,
etc.
Wednesday 11/28
The Borghese Gallery, various churches (Santa Maria Maggiore, San
Giovanni in Laterno, and San Clemente.
Thursday 11/29
Depending on our energy level, perhaps a day trip to
Naples/Pompeii? Aunt Laury has always raved about Pompeii...
Friday 11/30
Whatever we would like do...shopping, or sites we might have
missed
Saturday 12/1
Back home
January
We had a terrific trip to St. John. I hope that we can make
it a yearly trip, sort of a post-Christmas, post-Epiphany,
pre-Lenten retreat. It was difficult to leave, as we knew
we would be coming back to some rough weather.
11/12/2001 UPDATE: I've about given up trying to post any of these pictures, because they don't do the island justice. Plus we've now booked our 2002 trip! Since we have a digital camera now, we may actually get our 2002 pictures posted...but don't hold your breath. There is no way I can take pictures as well as a professional, so I've decided to stick to other's pictures. I will go ahead and post our travelogue...click on our our St. John page
2000
In March of 2000 I traveled to
Spain and France. As a part of our MBA program, UD offered
a class entitled "European Business Culture", which
sounded pretty interesting to me. My friend Lissa, also a UD
student, suggested that we go to Toulouse, France for the five
day class. We decided to leave early for a side-trip, so Lissa
and I booked a flight for four days in Barcelona (Spain); we then
caught a train across the mountains for the Toulouse class. Very
exciting! We had the chance to brush up on our foreign
language skills, play tourist, and learn about some of the
pitfalls and rewards for Americans choosing to live and work in
Europe.
Click here for pictures of Barcelona and
Toulouse
1999
A year and a half later after our wedding we finally were able to take a more extravagant trip: our February 1999 trip to the island of St. John in the US Virgin Islands. There's a reason people call the Virgins "America's Paradise".
I'll be posting some St. John pix here soon...from our 2001 trip...not much changed between '99 and '01.
1998
Not much of a year for travel. Mark was pretty busy with his second year of seminary, and work was keeping me pretty busy as well.
1997
Since Mark and I were married in September of 1997 (just before the start of a new school year) we had little time for a proper honeymoon. We did get away for a few days to Ohio's Amish country, staying at The Inn at Honey Run. Many people are surprised to learn that there are Amish communities in Ohio. Here's an excerpt from the Ohio Division of Travel and Tourism's web page:
Amish Country
"The Amish" actually encompass several different sects that first emerged during the Reformation in 1525. Believing strongly in the separation of church and state, these "simple folk" were often persecuted for their beliefs. Hundreds of Amish left Switzerland, Germany and France to move to North America.Today, Ohio is home to the largest Amish population in the world -- more than 35,000 "plain people" call Ohio home. The lush rolling hills of northeast Ohio provide a haven for these hard working people known for their fresh farm produce, cheese houses, hand-crafted quilts and furniture. Visiting an Amish area takes you back in time as you drive past neatly kept farms planted, cultivated and harvested by hand with the assistance of a few good draft horses. Drive carefully as the primary forms of transportation are the distinctive horse-drawn buggies and bicycles. While the Amish shun electricity, cameras and motor vehicles, if you look closer you will see a way of life set apart from the clichés. You will find a community of people based on the enduring foundations of faith and family, living peacefully amid the chaos of populated cities, cell phones, computers and pagers.
The Inn is quiet and romantic, with beautiful scenery. A visit to Amish country is not for everyone; if you like antiques, crafts, and good food, you will enjoy the trip. I'm glad we went.
During the summer of 1997, just before our wedding, I was fortunate to have combined some business travel with visits to family. I added a flight to San Diego (to visit my aunt and cousins) as a return leg during a business trip to Portland. A business trip to Orlando gave me an opportunity to go home and visit with my mom and my dear friend (and pastor) Jack.