Thursday, August 13, 2009

Next Trip!


I have finally- after about a week of agonizing over when to go.. where to stay.. oh the cost- finalized our 2nd Anniversary trip! We are going to Dublin, Ireland for 4 days. Hurray!
And, very fittingly as TN is our "homeland", we are staying at the Elvis Presley B&B. Call it.. a little home away from home. Wonder if the owner wears blue suede shoes?
If anyone has any travel tips or places we should see- comment or email- let us know!


Tuesday, August 11, 2009

The Celebrity in the Family



For those of you who didn't know, there is a celebrity in my family. But not exactly your normal, run of the mill celebrity- although she can be a bit of a diva. It's Sadie, our lovable pooch.
Since we are new to France, and as of yet don't have anyone to watch her- Sadie has gone on every trip with us. She has seen the Pont du Gard, Nimes Coliseum, Pont du Avignon, Portofino, the 5 villages of the Cinque Terre, and Venice. This is more "world traveling" than most humans do in a lifetime. She has no idea how good her life is......
The funniest part of taking her with us is the fact that she is her own little tourist attraction. No matter where we go, there are dozens of people- French, Italian, Dutch, Australian, Swiss, American- that come up to us and want to pet her.. or ask what kind of dog she is.. or say that she is the most beautiful dog they have ever seen.. or.. my personal favorite- "Can I take a picture with your dog?" Oh, and let's not forget the lady who gave Sadie her ice cream cone. (Relax- There was no ice cream was left in it.) Pretty soon, Sadie is going to be signing autographed photos of herself. And, of course, being the people-lover that she is, Sadie just soaks it up.
It is hilarious and in many ways Sadie has made traveling even more fun. (In other ways.. it will be nice to leave her in Nice.)

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Venezia



Since John and I have a "limited" amount of time and vacation while we are here, we have made a list of everywhere we want to go. (I used the term "limited" very loosely as John has 5 weeks vacation, 18 overtime days, plus national holidays.) The list is quite lengthy.... and I really hope we get do it all. When else could we have this kind of opportunity?
Last week John and I went on our 3rd trip of the year. (Amazing- I have never been on so many vacations all at once in my life.) My "big brother", Marty, was coming to Venice for a cruise and since Venice is a place I have wanted to visit all my life, it didn't take a lot of convincing for us to decide to meet up with him. John took a couple of those vacation days.. and off we went. (Sadie, our little travel dog, came along, too of course.)

Being as how I have always wanted to go to Venice, I was a little worried that it couldn't live up to our expectations- but it more than did. It is beautiful, quaint, and has a small village feel- but is def. not a village. (Around 60,000 people live on the islands.) One of the reasons I think it feels like a small town is because Italians are very friendly, and will talk to you even if they don't speak English- and you don't speak Italian. It tends to make for some interesting conversations. Also, the buildings and homes were built in the 1600-1700s- and their owners aren't allowed to alter them, which just aids in the quaintness.
The highlight of the trip was..I must say.. Saint Mark's Basilica. While the rest of the city is incredible, with amazing architecture, fantastic food, and singing gondoliers who entertain as you sight-see - Saint Mark's will take your breath away. I have never seen anything like it. The inside (as big as a football field) is all mosaic and where it is not telling a story, it is covered in tiny gold tiles. So it gleems, it glistens, sparkles... Like stepping into a corner of heaven.

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

What's in a name..

When trying to decide what to call my blog.. I really wanted to be "clever". My wonderful husband will be the first to tell you, I am quite a goofball and while I think my jokes are funny.. not everyone else does. So, I thought about something rather generic, but who wants to read a generic blog?
The name I finally ended up with comes from a phrase that I ALWAYS say whenever we see something... uh.. interesting while out and about in France- "Oh My Word". And, since a blog is all about words- taaadaaa! We have our name!
I will leave you today with an "Oh My Word" moment. Our second weekend in Nice, the Hubs and I headed downtown where there is a really fun market right along the coast. After finishing up at the market, we decided to walk around corner and see the port. As we are gazing out at the beautiful sailboats, yachts, and watching a spear-fisher head out to catch a fish- I look to my left. There, to my utter shock, in the middle of March, is a 55 year old topless sunbather. Welcome to the south of France!

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

First Post


So, I am a blogger! I have been thinking about this for a while- everyone we talk to in the states wants to know the "funny stories", interesting people, events that we go to, and details of our trips. Inevitably, We always forget something.
This way, everyone gets the details they want to hear about the traveling, and a few extra details about our daily lives.
Also, I plan posting some of the travel sites that I use when planning our trips, and any helpful hints that we pick up along the way.