Reflections on a Year

It is hard to believe that Monday marked a year since we moved to England.  It has been the most fun, challenging, and interesting year of my life.  When I was back in the States at a work dinner a few weeks ago and someone asked "what have you learned?" - I sat there in dumb silence, trying to figure out how to articulate it...until someone else jumped in and moved the conversation on (thank goodness!)  So I have spent the last month reflecting on what I've learned in 12 months.  Below is what I can offer...from the mundane to the reflective:

(1) Staying Connected Is Hard...Technology Makes It Easier: Staying connected to work, friends, and family is tough when you can't see body language and participate in activities you care about (weddings, baby showers, work happy hours!).  I have been lucky that everyone around me has gone the extra mile to stay in touch... through instant messages, texts, What'sApp, and teleconferences - I feel like I am in DC.  I especially like pictures of things going on at work (so thank you to my colleagues who send photos of meetings, potlucks, and crazy #dressedformyday outfits!)

(2) You Really Can Survive for a Week on a Backpack: We have done some great, amazing trips ...and with RyanAir luggage restrictions have been limited to small back pack.  Having mix and match outfits and plenty of clean underwear makes it possible. Really.


(3) We're More Resilient Than We Think: Starting over in England has not been easy... new house, new job (kind of), new car, new friends, new routines.  A year later, it's easier and is the new norm.  Personal resiliency is amazing.

(4) Comfort Over Fashion: I can't tell you how many pairs of walking shoes I have been through in the past five years. Making sure your feet are comfortable when you're traveling or even walking around town makes all the difference.  I may feel like a middle aged woman from Iowa, but let me tell you...Sketchers Go Walks have changed my life.  They are comfortable, light, and go through the washing machine like a dream.

(5) The Light, The Dark, And Everything Between: Northern England is really far north.  At winter solstice, the sun rises around 9 am and sets around 3:30 pm with some rainy, cloud, cold weather in between.  This is tough...though having sunlight from 4 am - 10 pm is also tough.  The "happy light" and black out curtains have been key to our sanity.

(6) Alfie Really Does Make Everything Better: Before we moved, a colleague who spent decades
moving around the world for the government, offered advice that transitions are tough on a marriage, but having a dog helps you always have something to agree on.  This is some of the best advice.  Alfie is always in a great mood and both P and I always agree that Alfie is absolutely the best thing that ever happened to us.

(7) Planning Ahead is Critical: For travel and for moving, planning ahead has paid crazy dividends.  Before we moved, getting our bank accounts set up, plotting out storage plans, and researching housing made the move so much easier.  With all of our travel, planning ahead to buy flights early makes them cheaper and planning our itineraries means we buy tickets online and avoid lines.

(8) Working has Kept Me Sane: Many "trailing spouses" here leave their jobs to accompany their loved ones to England.  For a variety of reasons, they can't work here...whether they can't find comparable work on the local economy, need flexibility to travel, whatever.  For me, the routine and intellectual engagement of work has kept me sane and grounded.  I am lucky to have a job I love, colleagues I adore, and a constantly changing, high-paced workload...these things help me feel good every day.

(9) English Tea = Best Meal Ever: OMG. Seriously. Who doesn't want to eat scones, cakes, and finger sandwiches!?!??!  See also: clotted cream. Why does this not exist in the United States. Holy Cow.

(10) Europe is a Big Place: We had great aspirations to hit everything on our to-do list...and re-visit some of our favorite spots in Europe. Boy were we wrong, not only does our list of places to go get longer, we realize we have a finite amount of time and won't be able to get everywhere we want to visit despite lots of travel.  We have covered a lot of ground, but we have so much more to go (next up: Belfast, Dublin, Montpellier France, Warsaw, Paris, Budapest, Vienna, Prague)

(11) Rain Gear Is Essential: Before we moved here, we didn't think much about rain jackets, hoods, or wellies.  We have invested heavily in umbrellas, hooded rain jackets, and rain boots.  Having the right gear makes all the difference...it really truly does rain here constantly (especially in the winter!)

(12) DC is Home: I am forever impressed by people who can spend their life abroad... being away from family, jobs, and comforts of American food.  We feel blessed and grateful for this opportunity - for the experiences, travel, and personal growth it has offered - but DC will always be home for us.  July 2018 will be here before we know it and we are eager to cram as much in before we go back home.

Here's to two more years of beautiful castles, abbeys, teas, and adventures!

Summer in Yorkshire: Rievaulx Abbey + Helmsley

Last weekend we took a fantastic day trip through the beautiful Yorkshire Moors National Park to the beautiful medieval town of Helmsley.  Filled with stunning castle ruins and beautiful stone homes, it was a real treat on a sunny day.  After spending a few hours there, we headed out to Rievaulx Abbey and a terrace above it.  This might be my most favorite abbey we have visited - beneath a stunning limestone cliff, it was incredibly well preserved and picturesque.  Enjoy some photos of a beautiful blue sky day in Yorkshire:

This is Helmsley Castle.  I like this photo because it shows the tower ruins to scale with Alfie and I...as well as the spires of the stunning cathedral in town!

I love the wild flowers that magically appear in ruins.  They are my most favorite...such survivors!

This is the adorable bridge in Helmsley.  How can you not love a town that is this picturesque and filled with adorable cafes + shops:

We then continued on to a beautiful terrace over Rievaulx Abbey.  This provided some stunning photos over the Yorkshire Moors and of the Abbey from above.  Just a beautiful day.

We are teaching Alfie to walk without a leash.  Given that he naturally will run away, we have to try this exercise after he has walked at least an hour and is easy to catch.  He is getting MUCH better.

Such a stunning Abbey... huge and well-preserved

Inside the Abbey:

Alf shows off the Abbey:

A happy little traveler in his car seat so he can look out the window:

Everyday Adventure: Yorkshire Sculpture Garden

Last weekend we headed to the Yorkshire Sculpture Garden - it's about an hour north of our house and had more than 100 sculptures over 200 acres of lakes, gardens, and fields.  It was a great day out and Alfie loved romping around the grounds.  Most amazingly, it's a non-profit organization - so there is no fee except a small fee for parking.  A few snaps from our day:

Alfie is learning to walk without a leash

...and gets lots of love for his progress

Loved this sculpture...it reminded me of the American Visionary Art museum in Baltimore and the Magic Garden in Philadelphia!

This one too!

Family portrait in a ginormous sphere:

Scotland: It Always Rains

I really think Scotland hates us - we have been twice and both times had pretty miserable weather!  We went to Edinburgh in November in cold rain and now in July we had warm, pouring rain for Loch Lomond.  Everyone we know loves Scotland, but honestly, it has been hard to fall in love with its charm when drenched.  That said...we got a few fun photos of our trip in between pouring rain!

We drove up via Hadrian's Wall.  This was the northern-most part of the Roman empire and the wall and its various forts were intended to keep the Scots out of the empire.  As always, the soundness of the Roman's architecture is always incredible:

Alf and I walk along the wall

Life's a beach in some crazy rain on the shores of Loch Lomond:

At sunset, it cleared a bit..a desolate Loch on the North Atlantic...

The lawn of our country house hotel...

We wrapped up our trip with a visit to Inveraray Castle where they filmed a Downton Abbey Christmas Special

We tried to smile despite the rain!

Aspen Eye Candy

Aspen remains one of my most favorite places in the world.  It is overwhelmingly beautiful and reminds you of something bigger than yourself.  The air is fresh, the flowers are perfect, and the experience is a one-of-a-kind.  It's impossible to take a bad photo - so that's always helpful for the blog! Here are a few of my favorites from this year:

Maroon Bells on a clear Sunday morning:

White River:

Aspen Institute Campus

Love the mountains

Top of Aspen Mountain...

If You Go: Aspen

I have spent a total of about 5 weeks in Aspen over the past two years...Booz Allen is a sponsor for the Aspen Ideas Festival and I have the pleasure of managing the program for the company.  While my time there has been filled with a crazy amount of hard work, it's impossible not to have an amazing time in Aspen because it is SO incredibly beautiful.  The mountains are majestic, the houses are crazy amazing, and the atmosphere is like Disneyworld for the rich.  My recommendations are skewed based on the fact I  have only been there for work...so take them with a grain of salt!

Hotels

• The Gant: I have stayed both times at The Gant - it's a set of condos that are rented and managed like a hotel.  They have an incredible amount of space with a large dining room table and living area --- as well as beautiful luxury bedrooms.  Recommend. 
• Jerome: This is where our senior folks stay - it is a beautiful hotel in the center of Aspen with a Western-style theme.  While I have not stayed there myself, I recommend! 

Restaurants 

• Jimmy's: This is a fantastic (though expensive!) steakhouse.  They have a beautiful patio and the filet was perfectly cooked.  We also shared some amazing mac n' cheese for the table. 
• Jimmy's Bodega: This is associated with Jimmy's - but is all seafood.  I have come here several times and have never been disappointed.  Highly recommend the crabcakes 
• Wild Fig: This year we had our private event at the Wild Fig - it is a beautiful restaurant, very cozy with great fish and meat.  While our event wasn't romantic... I imagine without a corporate event it could be quite a great spot for a date
• Hickory House: Casual BBQ to die for... YUM!  This is a spot on Oprah's Favorite things list...the ribs are amazing and you must go and order their onion rings right now! 
• Casa Tua: A fantastic Italian restaurant in the middle of town.  Again, expensive - but amazing food.  I had their lobster pasta... amazing. 

Things to Do

So...I mean...Aspen Ideas Festival was amazing.  Here are my other two recommendations:

• Maroon Bells: This is about 20 minutes outside of town and includes a scenic lake loop (about 90 minute casual walk) and the crater lake hike (hard core 3 hour hike).  I have done both - and they are fun in their own ways.  This is the best spot to take photos in town.  Note: To avoid taking a shuttle, you have to arrive before 8 am
• Gondola Ride: This year I took the Gondola ride to the top of Aspen Mountain.  This was a fun hour to see some great scenery.  Don't go if you're afraid of heights! 

If You Go: Cirali

Cirali is tucked away in a national park reserve about 90 minutes south of the large resort town of Antalya.  You can get a direct flight from Manchester (and Leeds) to Antalya.  If you are looking for big resorts and fun parties...Cirali is not the place for you! If you are looking for empty beaches, fresh seafood, and a chill, family vibe...that's what you will find in Cirali.  There are no high-rises, so most of the hotels are very casual complexes with low buildings.  Here's what you'll find in Cirali

Hotel

• Aida Hotel: This was a lovely spot - not the boutique hotels we are accustomed to, but very comfortable.  The entire hotel is built in a beautiful garden with lush flowers and trees everywhere you looked. Each morning, they cooked made-to-order eggs and also were available to book excursions (we booked our boat tour and chimera hike through the hotel).  Recommended ($90/night)

Restaurants 

• Lemon Restaurant: This is a lovely restaurant right on the main street of the town with great Turkish food.  They offered many delicious appetizers...and gave us several for free.  P had a casserole dish that was delicious! 
• Aida Restaurant: Our hotel also had a beach-front restaurant.  We ate lunch here every day - everything we tried was delicious including their chicken kebab, hummus, shrimp, etc.  The staff was incredibly friendly and the food was always good! 
• Aubergine Restaurant: This is another restaurant on the main street of town.  Full disclosure: this may or may not have given me a 5 day stomach bug.  That said - the food we tried was delicious!  We had the most incredible mezze platter that had tons of delicious dips and veggies.  I also had the shrimp.  I really hope that this wasn't what caused my issues because the food was SO good!

Sites 

• Boat Trip: We took a full day boat trip that was really amazing.  They stopped about about 6 different small bays in the area to swim and check out the scenery.  Despite the fact no one else on the boat spoke English, we had a great time!   Bring your underwater camera!
• Chimera: This was a serious hike - about an hour up hill to get to these natural flames coming out of the Earth.  Once you were there, it was a really interesting experience.  I think I had built it up in my head to be cooler than what we found 
• Olympos: If you walk down the beach for about a half hour, you'll find the Greek Ruins of Olympos.  These were really neat and definitely worth a walk!

Cirali - Lives Up to Turquoise Coast Name

After our time in Istanbul, we took a short flight to the Southern Coast - this is known as the "Turquoise Coast" for its perfect turquoise water.  Let me tell you - it fully lived up to its name!  We spent about four days in a tiny beach town called Cirali - about 90 minutes south of the main city of Antalya.  During our time, we relaxed on the beach, ate fresh seafood, and read a lot of books. Here are a few photos of our time!

You can see the emptiness of the beach and the dramatic mountains around the town.  Absolutely stunning.

Boat would dock to bring incredibly fresh seafood - octopus, squid, lobster, and fresh fish.  These were amazing for dinner and lunch:

One day we took a boat tour to the bays around Cirali - each was abandoned and you'll see the stunning color of the water.  In some ways, it reminded me of Thailand:

We always appreciate our underwater camera on trips to the beach...because you can get cool photos like this:

The land around us is ancient.  One evening we hiked to Chimera - naturally formed flames coming from the ground.  This apparently inspired Homer's Chimera (monster breathing dragon) in the Iliad.

The beauty and the emptiness was truly amazing (and of course, my husband captured many, many photos!)

Turkish Food - Preview - Amazing!

We have always enjoyed Turkish foods...kebabs and pita are our go-to fast casual in the DC area.  When we planned our trip to Turkey, we knew we'd like the food, but I had under estimated just how incredible Turkish food was!!!   We started our trip with a full-day Turkish food tour where we went to 12 restaurants and tried nearly 50 foods.  Each was unique and flavorful.  It was also perfect because we knew what to order at all of the other restaurants we visited.  Turkey = food heaven.

The Istanbul spice market was amazing

Over the past year, I have acquired a taste for olives...and Turkey is really an amazing place to try them.  Delish!

A photo of the most unusual food we tried...sheep intestines grilled over a spit.  Fatty and surprisingly delicious:

We went to the most amazing Cretian tapas restaurant - where they brought us like...20 dishes to try before our main.  OMG. This place was heaven:

Apparently Turks eat more bread than nearly any country in the world (I am still stunned they are all so thin and beautiful!).  The puffy, air-filled pitas were the best... see below one we had at the beach:

One night, we tried an Ottoman-restaurant with the historical foods of the area...including a casserole cooked in a flaming clay pot (for real!)

P also enjoyed some delicious Turkish coffee...though we did not get a reading from the coffee grounds.  Check out the beautiful ceramics.

and I enjoyed many cups of Turkish tea in beautiful tulip-shaped cups!