I'm just trying to walk myself home.
We spent one lovely day in Lucerne while Peter and Whitney were still with us in Switzerland. It is truly one of the most beautiful cities I have ever seen in my life. I mean come on! If it’s not enough that it has mountain views and is situated on a gorgeous lake, but hello …
While we were traveling this summer, almost every time I posted a picture of Switzerland, someone would tell us that we HAD to ride a certain cable car or take a certain train. All the guidebooks and blog posts say the same thing. But here’s the thing. They are really expensive. A lot of them …
Our first walk in Switzerland was to a waterfall. All the signs said “Wasservall” so we kept saying we were walking to a “Wasservall.” Which reminded us of The Willoughbys. The Willoughbys is a favorite book of ours that we’ve listened to over and over again, and a little boy in the book pretends he …
As I have been recapping my summer travels, you might have noticed that I skipped something when I went from Paris to our trip home through the Lake District. I skipped about four weeks that we spent in Switzerland. I have been saving it, holding it in my hands and heart like a precious gem, …
Walking in the Lake District: Windermere There’s a reason the Lake District has inspired poets and wanderers for so many years. We fell in love on our first visit last October, and I have been watching for an opportunity to return. When we mapped our route home from Switzerland and decided that I would be …
[pe2-image src=”http://lh3.ggpht.com/-pXGm5rWm_so/U_SDjPiuCoI/AAAAAAAAbng/d4Ks0Fv6j9g/s144-c-o/CousinsTakeEurope%252520Paris%252520%25252891%252529.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/100212479652479288017/ChinosGowithOhToParisInJuly#6049604840956234370″ caption=”Processed with VSCOcam with c1 preset” type=”image” alt=”CousinsTakeEurope Paris (91).JPG” ] I’m off tomorrow for Arkansas. I could not be more excited y’all. There will be all kinds of ridiculous-ness and I’m sure I will cry at least once every day. When I get back I am setting off on the Coast …
[pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-icSby_CQBzY/U_SDjAvraJI/AAAAAAAAbng/YRg6MJYPf_4/s144-c-o/CousinsTakeEurope%252520Paris%252520%25252841%252529.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/100212479652479288017/ChinosGowithOhToParisInJuly#6049604836984055954″ caption=”CousinsTakeEurope Paris (41).JPG” type=”image” alt=”CousinsTakeEurope Paris (41).JPG” ] I’m picking right up where I left off in last week’s post. Leaving London. We landed in Paris, went through customs and took the train into town, arriving at our apartment to meet our host at 11pm. [pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-cD3_2ftexh0/U_SEqmfN2KI/AAAAAAAAbns/4MfC-joXJJU/s144-c-o/CousinsTakeEurope%252520Paris%252520%252528385%252529.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/100212479652479288017/ChinosGowithOhToParisInJuly#6049606066886269090″ caption=”Processed with VSCOcam with …
[pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/-dr3gneNVUf0/U_opFkhxpLI/AAAAAAAAcJY/F6ckr56RZNo/s144-c-o/14%252520-%25252013.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/100212479652479288017/8241402#6051194225007109298″ caption=”14 – 13″ type=”image” alt=”14 – 13″ ] On our way home this summer, three of the kids and I were camping at Aldenham Country Park for Blogstock, a blogging festival. The kids discovered that Winnie the Pooh’s home was just behind the field where we were staying, and they could not …
[pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-u2v1dKc-opI/U_SDjJobJ2I/AAAAAAAAbng/qT6pzFE2484/s144-c-o/CousinsTakeEurope%252520Paris%252520%252528260%252529.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/100212479652479288017/ChinosGowithOhToParisInJuly#6049604839369549666″ caption=”Processed with VSCOcam with f1 preset” type=”image” alt=”CousinsTakeEurope Paris (260).JPG” ] I have a secret to tell you about the Louvre Museum in Paris. I know what you’re thinking. How can anyone possibly discover anything new about the Louvre that has not already been covered ad nauseum on the internet? And maybe …
My SIL Whitney blogged about this walk last week, so I’m counting it as one of my #48walks. It’s a walk I’ve already done this year, but it was fun to do it in a new season and with our cousins, and it’s been such a delight to see Scotland through Whitney’s lens as she …
I have to say, even with the rain, it’s been lovely to be back in Aberdeen, especially now that we have a week of school under our belts. Catching up with friends, being back at our church and returning to the rhythm of daily writing without constant interruption has been wonderful. Also every time I …
[pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-pieC8gDc3P4/U-SNJ78I9nI/AAAAAAAAZUo/avslENdfx_U/s144-c-o/IMG_0710.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/100212479652479288017/201407CousinsTakeEuropeII#6045111801686324850″ caption=”Processed with VSCOcam with hb2 preset” type=”image” alt=”IMG_0710.JPG” ] When Simon, Ben and I left Aberdeen at the beginning of July with Peter and Whitney and our cousins, we stopped first in London. It was the boys’ first trip to London, and so we had a list full of what we hoped …
In celebration of the fact that we have now been in Scotland for one year, here’ s a quick look back at the last twelve months of life at the Chino House.
Summer 2013 Summer 2014 When we told people that we were moving to Scotland, for the most part the responses fell into two general categories. 1. That sounds crazy! 2. That sounds dreamy! And you know what, both of these descriptions are spot on. Moving abroad is crazy AND it’s a dream come true. At …
Y’all this week we mark a year of being in Scotland. I have some fun “retrospective” posts coming up next week because I think it’s important to remember the good and the bad from our first year here. I was just reading my first post from our new home town and it seems like yesterday …
[pe2-image src=”http://lh5.ggpht.com/-2uIALBgqbQU/U-s9DE7lDmI/AAAAAAAAbWA/Kdp7rPfKTfc/s144-c-o/DSCF2776.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/100212479652479288017/MauritiusPhotosIStillWantToUse#6046994047747559010″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”DSCF2776.JPG” ] Snapshots of Mauritius Back in June, I shared some of my favorite images from our trip to Mauritius, but here are a few more of my favourite shots + animated GIFS from this exceptional getaway that Simon and I took in May to the tropical paradise of Long …
A Story about Making New Friends “Hi, I’m Flea.” she said as she sat down next to me in the airport. “Hi! I’ve been so excited to meet you! I’m Alison.” “And this is Simon.” “Simon, can you say hello?” “Hi.” (small quiet voice) I’ve mentioned before that Simon and I are introverts. In fact …
Snapshots of London from the Thames On a recent visit to London, we booked a river cruise with City Cruises. I love walking along the Thames in London, so I thought it would be fun to get out on the river and enjoy the sights from a different perspective. Also, I knew we would have …
A Story about the Man in Seat 68 If Kings Cross is the heaven of train stations, clean even when it is not serving as the setting for Harry Potter’s interlude between death and life, then Gare de Lyon is hell. Deceptively gorgeous from the outside, the inside is filthy and chaotic, more keenly felt …
A Story about Trying Something New Or alternately titled, Stepping into the Arena Once upon a time I stood up in front of people and made a fool out of myself. I’m not sure how else to put it. I acted (badly) in plays, I sang some especially mediocre ‘specials’ with my sister in church. …