We were on a knife edge ridge, 2000 m high, east of Luzern in the Swiss Alps. “I can’t even see them!” Scott complained. “How can they be so LOUD?” But they were. The cows were like insects in the pastures far below us, yet the clanging of their bells was omnipresent and impossible to … Continue reading The Hills are Alive, with the Sound of …Cowbells? Hiking in Switzerland
We head north from Courtenay, on the way to meet Kymn, an old friend I haven’t seen for 4 years, what with life changes and Covid. We drive by the gas station another friend used to own. It’s the old fashioned type with a two bay garage. The paint is peeling, although the gas pumps … Continue reading Old, Old Friends
Scott swam to the beach and went for a run. I lounge on the catamaran with my book, dipping beskuit in my coffee. Our host Christine had baked the delicious, traditional South African rusks. She makes our breakfast while her husband Roux does boat chores. Early morning run Our sailing trip in the Grenadines at … Continue reading Sailing in the Grenadines
I finally made it back to Paris. I was here 14 years ago, with two (sometimes cranky) teenagers. Their joke is that their main sight of Paris was my back, as they tried to keep up with me. We had a schedule. Every day, pretty much every hour, was planned. We were staying in a … Continue reading Paris, again
“Did you spit in it?” Christine asked, the first time she saw me after our trip to St Vincent. It had been my standing joke before we went. Anyone who had been here two years before understood. When La Soufrière erupted and the jet stream brought clouds of ash eastward to Barbados, we were trapped … Continue reading On the Edge of the Volcano: La Soufrière in St. Vincent
How do you evoke a Caribbean paradise, without sounding like a thousand other descriptions of a hundred different islands? Your table is waiting. ✔️ Warm tropical breezes?✔️ Sandy beaches lapped by turquoise water? ✔️ Hot tropical sun, then a sudden shower of rain, soon over?✔️ Palm trees and lush flowering shrubs?✔️ Quaint fishing villages?✔️ Beach … Continue reading Grenada: Another Caribbean Paradise
Sunny bluebird day with fresh, fluffy snow. Rain and “mashed potatoes.” Fog and icy hard-pack. Clouds and gently falling new snow. All this and more on my January trip to Whistler! Whistler- Blackcomb is the largest ski resort in North America, and so was on the bucket list for my husband Scott and our friends … Continue reading Whistler-Blackcomb— Skiing West Coast Style
I stand at the top of the Saddle, looking at the black diamond on the post by the drop off. I take a deep breath. “Ok. Let’s do this.” And over the edge I go. So that makes it sound like I’m a good skier. I used to be. On this trip to Whistler, however, … Continue reading Do You Still Ski?
“Scott! Look at this! It was made in Barbados!” I’m holding up a leotard/unitard/one piece shorty exercise outfit. Exuberant tropical flowers, red, orange, pink, are splashed large across a white background. What’s surprising is not so much that it was made in the country we now live in, but that I’d bought it 25 years … Continue reading Beautiful Barbados Broad
I find myself being still. At first I was jittery. When I was not in the lounges on the ship, being social, when I was in my room, I would shuffle through the papers on my desk. Should I write in my trip journal? No, that was all caught up. Could I play a game … Continue reading The Silence of the North
Brave Travels 