That's probably a really good question, but I am really conflicted about the answer. I started Blog simply to keep a record so that my memories would not all run together and to keep in touch with friends and family. As time went on, it became less a a travelogue about Lithuania and more a ramble through my thoughts and feelings. It was not something I intended to happen, and I really don't know how it ended up that way. Some days it almost turned into a diary. I never kept a diary for more than a day or two at a time as a girl, but I do know that they came with a tiny key and were kept hidden.
Perhaps because I really didn't/still don't exactly understand how people find blogs, it didn't occur to me that people who didn't know I even existed in the world would find their way to Blog, much less read it. So, I yaked away, trying to be sure I didn't say anything that might offend anyone, but not really mindful that anyone other than my nearest and dearest would ever read what I wrote. If a 64 year old woman can occasionally find herself being more open than she originally intended, no wonder younger people end up letting things hang out that they will come to regret. When we were kids and were indiscrete or cruel or foolish it was wrong and hurtful and did real damage, but it could only spread so far. Today... And that doesn't even begin to consider those who are intentionally hurtful rather than just thoughtless. Jeffrey Deaver's ROADSIDE CROSSES, as mentioned in an earlier post, can describe that all too well.
Maybe I'll figure it all out one of these days. In the meantime, thank you to all you kind folks who kept up with our adventures and sent encouraging words.
Here are the last pictures of Lithuania and of our trip to Rhodes.
https://picasaweb.google.com/Williams.BMR/LastLithuaniaPixandRhodesPix
https://picasaweb.google.com/Williams.BMR/LastLithuaniaPixandRhodesPix
If you ever are in the neighborhood, stop off in Klaipeda and tell them Betty sent you.
Monday, August 1, 2011
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Reentry Post 7 Attended Orientation for Next Crop of Fulbrighters
Because the orientation for Fulbrighters had been such a help to us, we decided to pass on what we had learned. The government paid for Del's ticket to Washington and expenses, but because in our family I am more in charge of many activities of daily living than Del is, I thought I could offer some useful information that he might not think of. So we paid for my ticket. Del and a student were the only returning Fulbrighters there, and I was the only spouse. It was made clear by one Fulbright professional that it was presumptuous of me to participate, so I would recommend that future returning spouses not attend. If you have suggestions, make a list and give it to your spouse so that he/she can refer to it during the group sessions. Why spend your own money to get your feelings hurt in public? Since I did intrude, I hope Del as the Fulbrighter and I as the trailing spouse were as helpful to the new group as the returnees were to us last year. They were certainly an interesting and gracious group, and if they are received even half as generously at their universities as we were at Klaipeda University, they will be truly blessed.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Reentry Post 6 - Lessons Learned - Travel
Twenty years or more ago, we attended the retirement party of a man who was known all over as a leader in his profession. He and his wife, who was a writer and editor, were brilliant and had traveled the world. I happened to be in an elevator with one of their adult children, and commented that the retirement trip her parents were planning sounded wonderful. She responded that she was a little worried about them. This was while they were still "young" by my present standards,and healthy of mind and body, so I said "But they have been all over the world. She replied that that was true, but because most of their travel had been work related,this was the first time they had ever been abroad when there were no hosts waiting for them.
Looking back at our travel to other countries, I realize that because each of our trips to Thailand and to Taiwan were related to Del's work,we also had people who were there to make sure there were no bumps in the road, and to be sure we saw everything and more. We were a bit more independent in Taiwan, and in Hong Kong. When David and Anita and Del and I went to Europe, we spent lots of wonderful times planning for the land part of the trip, and we did a great job, sez I as shouldn't, but Rick Steves held our hands all the way, even though he, of course, was unaware of it. We treated his guidebooks as though they were the be all and end all. We chose hotels, planned tours and transportation between Florence and Rome, rode the Rome subway at night, despite the fears of our hotel receptionist, and had a wonderful time We also learned a lot, but I was still a tentative traveler.
When we found out that Del had been given the Fulbright, I was happy for him because he had dreamed of living abroad for as long as I've known him. I was not so excited for myself, because of my less than adventurous nature, and because we had just moved less than an hour from David, Tracy and Rosa, especially Rosa. Five months seemed like the rest of my life, and when I found out I would be teaching English as a second language to faculty and staff in Del's department, I was in a panic.
But the day came, and off we went. Strange as it still seems to me, I immediately felt at home in Klaipeda. People were so kind, and were so supportive of this very frightened pretend English teacher. Turns out, five months went in a flash, but in that five months, I learned more than I could have imagined.
Of course our hosts were generous with their time and planned many interesting opportunities for us, but as we became familiar with our surroundings, we began to search out places we wanted to go and figure out how to get to them. We figured out how to get where we wanted to go on buses and trains in Lithuania and traveled to Latvia by bus. When we went to Rhodes, we felt felt comfortable taking public buses to places of interest instead of going on tours, and we went out to a festival in a small town just because we wanted to. It was great!
I don't think I will be signing up to go on the Greyhound bus anytime soon/ever, and I will probably still want to take ship tours to places far from port rather than just taking a taxi because my fear of being left behind by planes and ships is still alive and well. I think I came home a less tentative traveler, however. I don't think traveling abroad alone would ever be my choice, but I feel confident that I could do it. It's a pretty good feeling. Thanks Del for bringing/dragging me along all these years, and thanks to our friends in Lithuania for teaching me so much.
Looking back at our travel to other countries, I realize that because each of our trips to Thailand and to Taiwan were related to Del's work,we also had people who were there to make sure there were no bumps in the road, and to be sure we saw everything and more. We were a bit more independent in Taiwan, and in Hong Kong. When David and Anita and Del and I went to Europe, we spent lots of wonderful times planning for the land part of the trip, and we did a great job, sez I as shouldn't, but Rick Steves held our hands all the way, even though he, of course, was unaware of it. We treated his guidebooks as though they were the be all and end all. We chose hotels, planned tours and transportation between Florence and Rome, rode the Rome subway at night, despite the fears of our hotel receptionist, and had a wonderful time We also learned a lot, but I was still a tentative traveler.
When we found out that Del had been given the Fulbright, I was happy for him because he had dreamed of living abroad for as long as I've known him. I was not so excited for myself, because of my less than adventurous nature, and because we had just moved less than an hour from David, Tracy and Rosa, especially Rosa. Five months seemed like the rest of my life, and when I found out I would be teaching English as a second language to faculty and staff in Del's department, I was in a panic.
But the day came, and off we went. Strange as it still seems to me, I immediately felt at home in Klaipeda. People were so kind, and were so supportive of this very frightened pretend English teacher. Turns out, five months went in a flash, but in that five months, I learned more than I could have imagined.
Of course our hosts were generous with their time and planned many interesting opportunities for us, but as we became familiar with our surroundings, we began to search out places we wanted to go and figure out how to get to them. We figured out how to get where we wanted to go on buses and trains in Lithuania and traveled to Latvia by bus. When we went to Rhodes, we felt felt comfortable taking public buses to places of interest instead of going on tours, and we went out to a festival in a small town just because we wanted to. It was great!
I don't think I will be signing up to go on the Greyhound bus anytime soon/ever, and I will probably still want to take ship tours to places far from port rather than just taking a taxi because my fear of being left behind by planes and ships is still alive and well. I think I came home a less tentative traveler, however. I don't think traveling abroad alone would ever be my choice, but I feel confident that I could do it. It's a pretty good feeling. Thanks Del for bringing/dragging me along all these years, and thanks to our friends in Lithuania for teaching me so much.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Reentry Post 5 Poor Miss Pinky
Friend Mark christened my iphone Miss Pinky after hearing that she has a shocking pink cover, and I think it was a good choice, so Miss Pinky she is. Just so you know, if I had had to go through any sort of adequacy test before being allowed to bring her home, she would still be in theAT&T store. Of course, I didn't have to pass an adequacy test to bring home the baby David, either, which is probably a good thing, since I hardly knew which end to diaper.
Since apps were what I craved, I sat down last night to order some free ones. I don't know how it happened, I swear I don't, but somehow I downloaded an app that would have made Miss Pinky blush if she had been able. It certainly horrified me. Suppose I got hit by a truck before I found out how to get that thing off my phone. What would people think of Mema Williams? Who knew such things could be downloaded to a phone on purpose, much less by accident? Who would want such things on their phones, anyway? Who tends to over react? That would be me.
I sent off an SOS to David and woke this morning to find the answer to my problem. I had to hold down the nasty icon until it began to wobble and an X appeared. Then I touched the X and agreed that I did indeed want to delete the app. What a relief! I had thought I might have to wash Miss Pinky in clorox water or something. Next time I let my fingers do the walking, I will try to be sure I know where they stop.
Since apps were what I craved, I sat down last night to order some free ones. I don't know how it happened, I swear I don't, but somehow I downloaded an app that would have made Miss Pinky blush if she had been able. It certainly horrified me. Suppose I got hit by a truck before I found out how to get that thing off my phone. What would people think of Mema Williams? Who knew such things could be downloaded to a phone on purpose, much less by accident? Who would want such things on their phones, anyway? Who tends to over react? That would be me.
I sent off an SOS to David and woke this morning to find the answer to my problem. I had to hold down the nasty icon until it began to wobble and an X appeared. Then I touched the X and agreed that I did indeed want to delete the app. What a relief! I had thought I might have to wash Miss Pinky in clorox water or something. Next time I let my fingers do the walking, I will try to be sure I know where they stop.
Monday, July 4, 2011
Reentry Post 4 A Long Overdue Thank You
As I thought about the people who are serving our country today, I thought back to the time in 1970 when I was a 23 year old Army wife with a 4 month old baby and a husband beginning his tour in Vietnam. We were blessed that he came home safe and sound, and we went on with our lives. From time to time, during the years since, I have thought about the joy and comfort brought to me by people I never met, and whom I have never thanked.
Once a month, when Del's unit came in from the field for a few days, he was able to go to a special tent and wait in line to make a call home compliments of MARS. Volunteer radio operators picked up the radio signal from Vietnam and worked their magic to turn it into a collect call from whereever in the US the signal had been picked up. All I had to do was accept the charges, though some times the call was not made collect. I assume the radio operator paid, but I don't know. (Wikipedia has an informative article about this civilian auxiliary and the good work it continues to do.)
I never knew when the call would come, but since the unit usually came in once a month, I expected it would be around the same week every month, and you could not pry me out of my apartment with a crow bar during that time. In the day when there were no cell phones, internet, Facebook, Skype or other forms of communication so commonplace today, this was the only time a frightened young wife knew for sure her husband was alive and well. People knew not to call me during the day, because that was when the calls came, and I did not want to tie up the phone in the day of no Call Waiting. The apartment got pretty clean that week, but the laundry piled up because I did not want go out to the next building to the laundry room.
Finally, the phone would ring and I would get to talk to Del for three minutes, trying so hard to remember to say "over" so the radio volunteer would know to turn the switch or whatever had to be done to let Del talk. After the call was over, and I had my cry, I called Del's folks and my folks to let them know all was well, and then usually packed up David, the dirty diapers and my quarters for the trek across the parking lot to the laundry room.
There were probably 10 calls in all, and those calls meant all the world to me, but after Del got home, I got caught up in the day to day care of a child with health issues, the realization that "home" did not mean what I thought it would mean when the assignment is a training unit and then reentry to the real world of graduate school and work and all that. I always meant to figure out how to thank the MARS people for their kindness, but I never did. It may be too late to thank some of those who helped me, but perhaps those who followed them will be encouraged to know that they were not forgotten, even though it may have seemed as though they were. And so, a long overdue thank you MARS radio operators, past and present! And a happy Independence Day to you all.
Once a month, when Del's unit came in from the field for a few days, he was able to go to a special tent and wait in line to make a call home compliments of MARS. Volunteer radio operators picked up the radio signal from Vietnam and worked their magic to turn it into a collect call from whereever in the US the signal had been picked up. All I had to do was accept the charges, though some times the call was not made collect. I assume the radio operator paid, but I don't know. (Wikipedia has an informative article about this civilian auxiliary and the good work it continues to do.)
I never knew when the call would come, but since the unit usually came in once a month, I expected it would be around the same week every month, and you could not pry me out of my apartment with a crow bar during that time. In the day when there were no cell phones, internet, Facebook, Skype or other forms of communication so commonplace today, this was the only time a frightened young wife knew for sure her husband was alive and well. People knew not to call me during the day, because that was when the calls came, and I did not want to tie up the phone in the day of no Call Waiting. The apartment got pretty clean that week, but the laundry piled up because I did not want go out to the next building to the laundry room.
Finally, the phone would ring and I would get to talk to Del for three minutes, trying so hard to remember to say "over" so the radio volunteer would know to turn the switch or whatever had to be done to let Del talk. After the call was over, and I had my cry, I called Del's folks and my folks to let them know all was well, and then usually packed up David, the dirty diapers and my quarters for the trek across the parking lot to the laundry room.
There were probably 10 calls in all, and those calls meant all the world to me, but after Del got home, I got caught up in the day to day care of a child with health issues, the realization that "home" did not mean what I thought it would mean when the assignment is a training unit and then reentry to the real world of graduate school and work and all that. I always meant to figure out how to thank the MARS people for their kindness, but I never did. It may be too late to thank some of those who helped me, but perhaps those who followed them will be encouraged to know that they were not forgotten, even though it may have seemed as though they were. And so, a long overdue thank you MARS radio operators, past and present! And a happy Independence Day to you all.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Reentry Post 3 Can I Scrape Up the Courage?
We lived in Lithuania for five months from three sort of big suit cases, one medium duffle, two carry-ons and two backpacks for computers, etc. We did each buy a few things at the Humana (Goodwill), light jackets, a sweater or two, and a couple of shirts at the mall to replace things that had just been washed to death. Finding those replacements in the land of the tall and slim was tricky. Thank goodness for the pudgy expats who donated things when they returned to the US.
I wouldn't say we were fashion plates, but we were acceptable. I wasted some of my suitcase space by straying from my black, navy and white scheme to include a couple of patterned tops. I thought they would add interest, and they did until I got so sick of them that I could not put them on my body. That happened in early March, I think. If only I had followed the late Elizabeth Edward's advice that one never regrets choosing solids, I would have been better off.
Now we are home, in a house where all the closets look like Fibber McGee and Molly's hall closet. They wouldn't be so stuffed if I didn't have three sizes of clothes for each of us in them - South Beach size, It Wouldn't Hurt to Stray from South Beach Just a Little size, and If It Looks Good Eat It size.
I came home full of good intentions, both to drag us back into the world of South Beach, which really is a pretty good place, and to get rid of the sizes that don't fit. So, I started pulling things our of the closets for us to try on. We discovered that Del, who had been relying on his suspenders to keep him from mooning Klaipeda rather than as a fashion statement, now fits into the next size down pants, and I can wear some pants that didn't quite fit before we left home. So, to quote our friend, "What to do, what to do?"
I think I will do as that famous fictional Georgian did and think about it tomorrow.
I wouldn't say we were fashion plates, but we were acceptable. I wasted some of my suitcase space by straying from my black, navy and white scheme to include a couple of patterned tops. I thought they would add interest, and they did until I got so sick of them that I could not put them on my body. That happened in early March, I think. If only I had followed the late Elizabeth Edward's advice that one never regrets choosing solids, I would have been better off.
Now we are home, in a house where all the closets look like Fibber McGee and Molly's hall closet. They wouldn't be so stuffed if I didn't have three sizes of clothes for each of us in them - South Beach size, It Wouldn't Hurt to Stray from South Beach Just a Little size, and If It Looks Good Eat It size.
I came home full of good intentions, both to drag us back into the world of South Beach, which really is a pretty good place, and to get rid of the sizes that don't fit. So, I started pulling things our of the closets for us to try on. We discovered that Del, who had been relying on his suspenders to keep him from mooning Klaipeda rather than as a fashion statement, now fits into the next size down pants, and I can wear some pants that didn't quite fit before we left home. So, to quote our friend, "What to do, what to do?"
I think I will do as that famous fictional Georgian did and think about it tomorrow.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Reentry Post 2 IPhone Envy Is Not a Pretty Thing
It is well known among my nearest and dearest that I have always looked at cell phones as emergetncy equipment, not quite in the category of fire extenguishers, but close. And I obviously was only concerned with my own emergencies because while I kept it charged and with me most of the time, I rarely turned it on, and if I did and happened to get a call, I was usually unaware of it because sound doesn't carry well from the bowels of an overstuffed purse. As for checking messages, not high on my list. Only my nearest and dearest had the number, and they knew that calling it was pretty much fruitless. David once said quite seriously that people in third world countries had more up to date phones than his dad and I. He also thinks it amusing that we do not own a tv that was born in this century, but that is beside the point.
While in Lithuania, I became accustomed to having my phone on and using it for day to day to day communication, but it wasn't like it was a Kindle or a computer or anything. I didn't have any emotional attachment to it. Then friends Mark and Sandy arrived to visit, bringing with them one of their IPhones, and I was struck by a severe case of IPhone envy which only got worse when David and Tracy arrived with theirs. I actually wasn't much interested in the phone. I wanted aps and internet and gps and other stuff I felt sure IPhones might have, even if I never learned to use them.
So, we went to the AT&T store this afternoon and bought IPhones, the newer one for my envious self and the cheaper one for Del. Anita, a sweet young woman, spent lots of time explaining and encouraging us and downloading free aps. I have been a little worried since she mentioned that there are free games, but I am not afraid to pry the phone from Del's hot little hands if he gets too carried away. He might have to do the same for me and my information souces. I forgot to ask if it can Google. I hope it can Google.
Now that we have these phones, I hope we don't have to hire Rosa to tutor us in their use, but we just might. She doesn't have a phone, but seems quite competent in using her parents' applications. I've never actually seen her make a call.
My phone is all decked out in a hot pink ensemble by Otter so I can find her in the bottom of my black purse and so she won't go the way of Earl Hamner, Jr. should I have a clumsy moment, and we know that sooner or later, I will. I say "she" because she looks quite girly, and will certainly require a girly name if I decide to name her.
While in Lithuania, I became accustomed to having my phone on and using it for day to day to day communication, but it wasn't like it was a Kindle or a computer or anything. I didn't have any emotional attachment to it. Then friends Mark and Sandy arrived to visit, bringing with them one of their IPhones, and I was struck by a severe case of IPhone envy which only got worse when David and Tracy arrived with theirs. I actually wasn't much interested in the phone. I wanted aps and internet and gps and other stuff I felt sure IPhones might have, even if I never learned to use them.
So, we went to the AT&T store this afternoon and bought IPhones, the newer one for my envious self and the cheaper one for Del. Anita, a sweet young woman, spent lots of time explaining and encouraging us and downloading free aps. I have been a little worried since she mentioned that there are free games, but I am not afraid to pry the phone from Del's hot little hands if he gets too carried away. He might have to do the same for me and my information souces. I forgot to ask if it can Google. I hope it can Google.
Now that we have these phones, I hope we don't have to hire Rosa to tutor us in their use, but we just might. She doesn't have a phone, but seems quite competent in using her parents' applications. I've never actually seen her make a call.
My phone is all decked out in a hot pink ensemble by Otter so I can find her in the bottom of my black purse and so she won't go the way of Earl Hamner, Jr. should I have a clumsy moment, and we know that sooner or later, I will. I say "she" because she looks quite girly, and will certainly require a girly name if I decide to name her.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Thoughts Upon Reentry Post 1 - The Trees, The Trees
During our five months in Lithuania, we lived a pretty much paperless life. Oh, we used at least our share of toilet paper, paper towels and tissues, but we recieved not one piece of snail mail, real or junk, paid our bills on line, and had no printer for our computers. David and Tracy, back in Georgia, on the other hand, had more junk mail than usual because our mail was forwarded to them so they could take care of business matters. Bless them. We each had a few books we needed for our work, and Del had a couple of nonfictions to read for pleasure, but I relied entirely upon my beloved Kindle. That is, of course, until I killed it and had to search for a couple of mysteries to tide me over until our family brought a replacement. We had so little paper that when a pesky fly got into the flat, we could not find anything to use as a swatter.
At first it just felt strange. There were two faces visible at the breakfast table instead of hidden behind newspapers. I had to learn to carry cash for the many places that did not accept credit cards because even with a bank account, there are no checks. No lovely catalogs appeared in the mailbox we didn't have. I could not swat that pesky fly.
Gradually, our paperless state began to feel normal, freeing, even. There was nothing to file, or to stack up in a pile on the desk we didn't have. We began to eat our breakfast while reading the news on our computers, not a good habit, but surely no worse than reading real newspapers, and I continued my habit of reading things I found interesting to Del whether he wanted to hear them or not. He continued his habit of saying "hm" when he read anything interesting which I took as an invitation to inquire about what he was reading, whether it was or not. Who says reading at the table limits communication in the morning? And best of all, there was no wading through a sea of newspapers to get another cup of cofee, or to pick up and dispose of.
Now we have been home for one day, and the paper already has the upper hand, and trees are falling. There is a pile of newspaper beside Del's chair. We arranged for the mail to be restarted a couple of days early, and it was waiting for us, along with the last pieces David and Tracy got before they left on vacation and the things they had received that now need to be filed, piled or shredded. Right now they are just spread. On the other hand, there were a couple of magazines, some professional journals and several lovely catalogs that reminded me that their companies value me and have missed me and in some cases will give me a discount if only I will contact them with my order. There was also a beautiful welcome home card from doggy Linkin's humans. Thankfully, there was not one credit card offer. We already have all the credit we can afford.
So, my conclusion is that I kind of like finding things in my mail box, snail or e, and I like some junk mail, but only the junk mail I like, which takes it out of the true junk category, I guess. I like the smell and crackle of newspapers, but hate the mess of them, and I absolutely hate to file. At one of my jobs, we finally got someone who helped us with filing. She looked at my large stack of papers and asked if I had any special system she should use. I looked at her seriously and said that I usually filed by date of receipt, newest on top. but it was okay if she preferred to do it some other way. She stood there a second before she realized she was dealing with a filing avoidance issue or perhaps a crazy woman.
At first it just felt strange. There were two faces visible at the breakfast table instead of hidden behind newspapers. I had to learn to carry cash for the many places that did not accept credit cards because even with a bank account, there are no checks. No lovely catalogs appeared in the mailbox we didn't have. I could not swat that pesky fly.
Gradually, our paperless state began to feel normal, freeing, even. There was nothing to file, or to stack up in a pile on the desk we didn't have. We began to eat our breakfast while reading the news on our computers, not a good habit, but surely no worse than reading real newspapers, and I continued my habit of reading things I found interesting to Del whether he wanted to hear them or not. He continued his habit of saying "hm" when he read anything interesting which I took as an invitation to inquire about what he was reading, whether it was or not. Who says reading at the table limits communication in the morning? And best of all, there was no wading through a sea of newspapers to get another cup of cofee, or to pick up and dispose of.
Now we have been home for one day, and the paper already has the upper hand, and trees are falling. There is a pile of newspaper beside Del's chair. We arranged for the mail to be restarted a couple of days early, and it was waiting for us, along with the last pieces David and Tracy got before they left on vacation and the things they had received that now need to be filed, piled or shredded. Right now they are just spread. On the other hand, there were a couple of magazines, some professional journals and several lovely catalogs that reminded me that their companies value me and have missed me and in some cases will give me a discount if only I will contact them with my order. There was also a beautiful welcome home card from doggy Linkin's humans. Thankfully, there was not one credit card offer. We already have all the credit we can afford.
So, my conclusion is that I kind of like finding things in my mail box, snail or e, and I like some junk mail, but only the junk mail I like, which takes it out of the true junk category, I guess. I like the smell and crackle of newspapers, but hate the mess of them, and I absolutely hate to file. At one of my jobs, we finally got someone who helped us with filing. She looked at my large stack of papers and asked if I had any special system she should use. I looked at her seriously and said that I usually filed by date of receipt, newest on top. but it was okay if she preferred to do it some other way. She stood there a second before she realized she was dealing with a filing avoidance issue or perhaps a crazy woman.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Day 152 and Day 152 The Sequel
After our lovely evening with Joris and Co., we came home and continued with the packing saga . More about that later. And we still had some last minute odds and ends like cleaning the fridge, etc. By the time I was finished, I was tired, but wired and in no way able to lie down to wait the couple of hours for the alarm to go off at 3. Del did get a couple of hours sleep. We have different nap patterns. He can fall asleep the moment his body makes contact with a bed but can barely manage a cat nap while sitting upon any form of transportation. I, on the other hand, have to be exhausted to nap lying down, but can fall sleep immediately upon hearing the click of a seat belt, or curled on the sofa.
Three o'clock came and we got dressed and were ready to roll when the taxi Audrone had reserved for us arrived right on time at 4:30. It was shortly after that that we began to realize that getting home from Lithuania was not the snap that getting there had been. Our driver seemed to be a nice young man, but it was soon apparent that this was not going to be your typical taxi ride. Whether it related at all to the fact that the night before is supposed to be more rowdy than New Year's Eve would be purely speculation on my part, so I'll just stick to the facts as I saw them. Things seemed okay at first, though his recognition of the YIELD sign seemed less consistent than I would have preferred. Of course, it was early on the morning after a big night, so it wasn't as though there was anybody much to yield to, but still. Then he began to open his window, first an inch or two which seemed reasonable, and then more and more until it was wide open. Apparently that did not do the job, because in a short while he pulled over, said, "One minute" and got out of the taxi with his water bottle and walked around for several minutes . He got back into the car, mumbled something about working for two days and off we went. I kept waiting for the projectile vomiting, which was of particular concern since Del was in the front seat beside him. In a few minutes it was crystal clear that he got his sense of direction from the same place I got mine, except he didn't have a GPS to guide him. Two wrong turns later, he stopped the car half way through the turn around and called for directions. It was then that I started to really sweat. But we got there.
Upon arriving at the airport, we discovered that even though we were traveling on a Continental ticket, for which we had to pay extra, we had to follow the SAS rules. That meant we were unable to bring home the same number and weight of bags we had brought with us. After all that packing and repacking. We persuaded them to let us pay for the two larger carry on bags, and off we went to Copenhagen.
Copenhagen airport has a somewhat unorganized way of checking passports. A young man was standing by the door to the gate, so we went to the end of the line and patiently worked our way up to the front. Sometime during the 20 minutes or so it took to get to the front a second line formed beside us. Neither line had any sign to indicate that they were different, but when we got to the front, we were told that we were in the wrong line. We went to the back of the other line and worked our way back to the front. The guy at the front of that line has to have been there as a result of nepotism, but he took each passport, walked about 20 feet to his computer, punched some keys and eventually brought the documents back and allowed the person through. Until he got to us. He was gone for at least 15 minutes, talking on the phone, walking into various offices and talking to three other people who seemed to have no responsibilities. Eventually, when the original line was empty, I asked the young an if he should see what the problem was. He was able to find out that it had something to do with the checked bags. I asked if someone could come over and talk to us about it, and a woman came. By accident, I figured out that the people at the original airpost had charged us for the extra bags and given us claim tickets but had not entered it into the system. We dug out the receipt and in a few minutes were given our passports and allowed to board. I know the people who were backed up behind us had been hoping we would get arrested just to see the line move. Let us say that I don't care what they say about ladies glowing instead of sweating, the sweat rings were down to my waist. Flop sweat might have been the more appropriate term.
Our reentry to the US was uneventful, unless you count my dropping a passport. Fortunately, someone picked it up and gave it to an attendent, and I walked back down the line and got it. I was just fuzzy headed. I can't think of any other word to describe it, except perhaps careless.
We got to Atlanta, gathered our belongings around me, and Del went to get the car from the parking lot off the grounds. Tracy had even left a coupon on the seat for us. We stuffed everything in, made a quick trip to Publix for coffee, milk, cereal (not cornflakes), and sandwich fixings. I smelled fried chicken as got to the door, and some jumped into the cart. Tomorrow, we will begin our careful grocery list making for our big grocery trek.
We got home, put away the groceries, brought in the bags and the mail. I decided to lie down for a minute before supper, and Del sat down to look at the mail. When I awoke at 10, he was in bed, so I got up, emailed people that we were safe and went back to sleep until 3:30. I decided to blog and then go back to bed. It was interesting that when I awoke at 10 it was black outside and still is now at 4:40.
So, despite my whining, the trip home was good, and pretty uneventful. Now to get my head around what all we have experienced and the things I have learned. I'll want to write down what I figure out, so stay tuned if you like.
Day 152 and the sequel are done. Now for a nap on my very own sofa.
Three o'clock came and we got dressed and were ready to roll when the taxi Audrone had reserved for us arrived right on time at 4:30. It was shortly after that that we began to realize that getting home from Lithuania was not the snap that getting there had been. Our driver seemed to be a nice young man, but it was soon apparent that this was not going to be your typical taxi ride. Whether it related at all to the fact that the night before is supposed to be more rowdy than New Year's Eve would be purely speculation on my part, so I'll just stick to the facts as I saw them. Things seemed okay at first, though his recognition of the YIELD sign seemed less consistent than I would have preferred. Of course, it was early on the morning after a big night, so it wasn't as though there was anybody much to yield to, but still. Then he began to open his window, first an inch or two which seemed reasonable, and then more and more until it was wide open. Apparently that did not do the job, because in a short while he pulled over, said, "One minute" and got out of the taxi with his water bottle and walked around for several minutes . He got back into the car, mumbled something about working for two days and off we went. I kept waiting for the projectile vomiting, which was of particular concern since Del was in the front seat beside him. In a few minutes it was crystal clear that he got his sense of direction from the same place I got mine, except he didn't have a GPS to guide him. Two wrong turns later, he stopped the car half way through the turn around and called for directions. It was then that I started to really sweat. But we got there.
Upon arriving at the airport, we discovered that even though we were traveling on a Continental ticket, for which we had to pay extra, we had to follow the SAS rules. That meant we were unable to bring home the same number and weight of bags we had brought with us. After all that packing and repacking. We persuaded them to let us pay for the two larger carry on bags, and off we went to Copenhagen.
Copenhagen airport has a somewhat unorganized way of checking passports. A young man was standing by the door to the gate, so we went to the end of the line and patiently worked our way up to the front. Sometime during the 20 minutes or so it took to get to the front a second line formed beside us. Neither line had any sign to indicate that they were different, but when we got to the front, we were told that we were in the wrong line. We went to the back of the other line and worked our way back to the front. The guy at the front of that line has to have been there as a result of nepotism, but he took each passport, walked about 20 feet to his computer, punched some keys and eventually brought the documents back and allowed the person through. Until he got to us. He was gone for at least 15 minutes, talking on the phone, walking into various offices and talking to three other people who seemed to have no responsibilities. Eventually, when the original line was empty, I asked the young an if he should see what the problem was. He was able to find out that it had something to do with the checked bags. I asked if someone could come over and talk to us about it, and a woman came. By accident, I figured out that the people at the original airpost had charged us for the extra bags and given us claim tickets but had not entered it into the system. We dug out the receipt and in a few minutes were given our passports and allowed to board. I know the people who were backed up behind us had been hoping we would get arrested just to see the line move. Let us say that I don't care what they say about ladies glowing instead of sweating, the sweat rings were down to my waist. Flop sweat might have been the more appropriate term.
Our reentry to the US was uneventful, unless you count my dropping a passport. Fortunately, someone picked it up and gave it to an attendent, and I walked back down the line and got it. I was just fuzzy headed. I can't think of any other word to describe it, except perhaps careless.
We got to Atlanta, gathered our belongings around me, and Del went to get the car from the parking lot off the grounds. Tracy had even left a coupon on the seat for us. We stuffed everything in, made a quick trip to Publix for coffee, milk, cereal (not cornflakes), and sandwich fixings. I smelled fried chicken as got to the door, and some jumped into the cart. Tomorrow, we will begin our careful grocery list making for our big grocery trek.
We got home, put away the groceries, brought in the bags and the mail. I decided to lie down for a minute before supper, and Del sat down to look at the mail. When I awoke at 10, he was in bed, so I got up, emailed people that we were safe and went back to sleep until 3:30. I decided to blog and then go back to bed. It was interesting that when I awoke at 10 it was black outside and still is now at 4:40.
So, despite my whining, the trip home was good, and pretty uneventful. Now to get my head around what all we have experienced and the things I have learned. I'll want to write down what I figure out, so stay tuned if you like.
Day 152 and the sequel are done. Now for a nap on my very own sofa.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Day 151 Longest Day/Last Day, Shortest Night In More Ways Than One
I woke up at 5:30 for some reason this morning and did yesterday's blog, took a little nap and then we started in on the cleaning and the packing and weighing and repacking and weighing and on and on. We may come in okay with the weight. One of our bags is not as big as it could be, unfortunately, and that makes it harder. Third floor nieghbor Christine stopped by for a visit, which was nice, and then Mr. Rimas came down and shortly Mrs. Rimas came down to invite us up for tea or coffee. She had set a lovely table with cookies, a special Lithuanian candy, fresh strawberries and coffee and sparkling wine from Italy. What a sweet surprise.
After a bit more work, I set out to the market to say my goodbyes and buy Mrs. Rimas a thank you plant. I stopped by the meat market and my bacon man said in Lithuanian, "Six, no bacon today." I told him I had come to say goodbye because we were leaving, shook his hand and went to the plant vendors. I decided that I would also get small plants for my two favorite market vendors and stopped by to deliver them and tell them I was leaving. They seemed a little confused by the gesture, but once I got them to agree to accept them for being so nice to me, they seemed pleased. The lady who used to teach English hugged my neck and kissed my cheek. She is the lady who left her stall one day in the rain to show me a store where I might find what I needed. My last errand was to get a reusable Iki bag and a few little things to take Joris when we meet them at the restaurant.
While taking pictures of the statue in front of our house we met a really nice Swiss physician who had walked from Switzerland and was going to walk to St. Petersburg before taking the train home. He had walked between 30 and 36 miles per day since May 9 and planned to get to St. Petersburg on July 20. Three years ago he walked across the USA, ending in Boston where he had trained at Harvard. It took 7 months and he said he never had a single negative experience in all that time. Del suggested he might enjoy eating at Stora Antis, and when we got there, he was seated at the next table. Fortunately, he was able to find vegetarian items on the menu.
Adrone, Vladas and Joris met us at Stora Antis, and we were delighted to see that our table had been set with special napkins deorated with a flower. I thought that was sweet of them, since they knew it was our last night in Klaipeda. Joris was a perfect gentleman, all dressed up. He and Del shared kepta duona and then he had a small plate with things from everyone else. At one point,he told his mother that I had given him some of my food and she should give me some of hers. Dinner takes a while there, so I had brought a book and a color book and colored pencils and a matchbook motorcycle. We pulled out the motorcycle toward the end of the evening. As we were leaving, I pulled out a pad of sticky notes I had no use for, assuming his mother might use them, but when he saw them, he thought they were for him, said thank you and put them in his shirt pocket with his motorcycle. Apparently they have to hide sticky notes because he likes to decorate the house with them. Then, after hugs all around, we came home and now have to finish up the last odds and ends.
We will be glad to be home, but Klaipeda has in many ways become like home to us, so we will miss the city and especially the wonderful friends we have made. We truly are fortunate people. Now we need to set about building the kind of community in Villa Rica that we have built here. We were making progress in that direction, but knowing we had to leave so soon after getting there, made it a little difficult to really put my heart into it, to tell the truth. So, home again, home again, to wholeheartedly start the adventure of living in Villa Rica. Who knows what good friends and experiences await us there. Note to self: When you get that sappy, it is time to log off.
10:30 and bright as day, by the way.
After a bit more work, I set out to the market to say my goodbyes and buy Mrs. Rimas a thank you plant. I stopped by the meat market and my bacon man said in Lithuanian, "Six, no bacon today." I told him I had come to say goodbye because we were leaving, shook his hand and went to the plant vendors. I decided that I would also get small plants for my two favorite market vendors and stopped by to deliver them and tell them I was leaving. They seemed a little confused by the gesture, but once I got them to agree to accept them for being so nice to me, they seemed pleased. The lady who used to teach English hugged my neck and kissed my cheek. She is the lady who left her stall one day in the rain to show me a store where I might find what I needed. My last errand was to get a reusable Iki bag and a few little things to take Joris when we meet them at the restaurant.
While taking pictures of the statue in front of our house we met a really nice Swiss physician who had walked from Switzerland and was going to walk to St. Petersburg before taking the train home. He had walked between 30 and 36 miles per day since May 9 and planned to get to St. Petersburg on July 20. Three years ago he walked across the USA, ending in Boston where he had trained at Harvard. It took 7 months and he said he never had a single negative experience in all that time. Del suggested he might enjoy eating at Stora Antis, and when we got there, he was seated at the next table. Fortunately, he was able to find vegetarian items on the menu.
Adrone, Vladas and Joris met us at Stora Antis, and we were delighted to see that our table had been set with special napkins deorated with a flower. I thought that was sweet of them, since they knew it was our last night in Klaipeda. Joris was a perfect gentleman, all dressed up. He and Del shared kepta duona and then he had a small plate with things from everyone else. At one point,he told his mother that I had given him some of my food and she should give me some of hers. Dinner takes a while there, so I had brought a book and a color book and colored pencils and a matchbook motorcycle. We pulled out the motorcycle toward the end of the evening. As we were leaving, I pulled out a pad of sticky notes I had no use for, assuming his mother might use them, but when he saw them, he thought they were for him, said thank you and put them in his shirt pocket with his motorcycle. Apparently they have to hide sticky notes because he likes to decorate the house with them. Then, after hugs all around, we came home and now have to finish up the last odds and ends.
We will be glad to be home, but Klaipeda has in many ways become like home to us, so we will miss the city and especially the wonderful friends we have made. We truly are fortunate people. Now we need to set about building the kind of community in Villa Rica that we have built here. We were making progress in that direction, but knowing we had to leave so soon after getting there, made it a little difficult to really put my heart into it, to tell the truth. So, home again, home again, to wholeheartedly start the adventure of living in Villa Rica. Who knows what good friends and experiences await us there. Note to self: When you get that sappy, it is time to log off.
10:30 and bright as day, by the way.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Day 150 To the Sea
I started off the day at 8 with a trip to the hair master to get myself cut and dyed. The young woman who did my hair is the most careful person I ever saw. How she could spend an hour cutting my hair is a mystery to me. I felt bald compared to the women on either side of me. One was a young woman with waist length hair who had the most amazing French braid I ever saw. It took two hours to do it The woman on the other side had a head full of black ringlets. It took longer to dry it with one of those huge diffusors than it did to cut mine.
My next stop was at my favorite library to give a little gift to my two librarian ladies. I had decorated a spoon for each of them and wanted to see them. One was on holiday, but it was nice to see the other.
As I "just happened" to walk past my felted wool shop, I saw that they had a sale sign in the window. I'm sure it was just for me. I was able to get a felted pod bowl, as they call it, for 20% off. It is beautiful, and I will show it to you as soon as I get part of my act together. Blog will fade away in a few weeks from lack of information, I am sure, unless I have become addicted to my own words, but I do intend to get the last pictures posted and report on our first few days of reentry, so I won't forget that part of our trip. I'm sort of curious about how that will go, to tell the truth. How do you keep the girl down in the country after she has lived five minutes from the IKI?
Then cleaning.
Later in the afternoon, Joris and family arrived to drive us to the sea. It was only a short drive, and we walked through the forest, listening to the sound of the surf down to the sea. It was beautiful. It was windy and the waves were rolling in, but we rolled up our pants legs and got our feet, and our pants legs wet in what I was told was the quite typically warm water. Bless their hearts, I was hoping it was a cold day because of the morning rain, but not so. I just have to say that the delicate flower was able to wade, mostly to be polite and because it made Joris happy, but I would not have been able to submerge mysef, and I am not sure even Del would have been able to bob. Joris had on his little suit under his clothes and ran and jumped and threw rocks and had the best time. So did we. After a while, we went back to the beach and had Adrone's cake, a new recipe, still warm from the oven and sherry or tea. Then we walked a bit and headed home. It was such fun.
Adrone had suggested we get dry clothes and then go to the John's day celebration, but Joris was starting to doze in the car, so I suggested we call it a day and they meet us for dinner the next night.
We cleaned up and went to Stora Antis, had a wonderful dinner and made a reservation for our dinner with them . One more chance to eat at my favorite restaurant. Special turkey, I think.
John's day, by the way, refers to John the Baptist, who was born 6 months before Christ. It coincides with Midsummer Eve and the celebration can get quite rowdy late in the evening, we are told. We heard music, but the square outside our flat was empty because everyone was at the celebration. We decided to do what we usually do on New Year's Eve, too much to do on Friday for any late night doings.
My next stop was at my favorite library to give a little gift to my two librarian ladies. I had decorated a spoon for each of them and wanted to see them. One was on holiday, but it was nice to see the other.
As I "just happened" to walk past my felted wool shop, I saw that they had a sale sign in the window. I'm sure it was just for me. I was able to get a felted pod bowl, as they call it, for 20% off. It is beautiful, and I will show it to you as soon as I get part of my act together. Blog will fade away in a few weeks from lack of information, I am sure, unless I have become addicted to my own words, but I do intend to get the last pictures posted and report on our first few days of reentry, so I won't forget that part of our trip. I'm sort of curious about how that will go, to tell the truth. How do you keep the girl down in the country after she has lived five minutes from the IKI?
Then cleaning.
Later in the afternoon, Joris and family arrived to drive us to the sea. It was only a short drive, and we walked through the forest, listening to the sound of the surf down to the sea. It was beautiful. It was windy and the waves were rolling in, but we rolled up our pants legs and got our feet, and our pants legs wet in what I was told was the quite typically warm water. Bless their hearts, I was hoping it was a cold day because of the morning rain, but not so. I just have to say that the delicate flower was able to wade, mostly to be polite and because it made Joris happy, but I would not have been able to submerge mysef, and I am not sure even Del would have been able to bob. Joris had on his little suit under his clothes and ran and jumped and threw rocks and had the best time. So did we. After a while, we went back to the beach and had Adrone's cake, a new recipe, still warm from the oven and sherry or tea. Then we walked a bit and headed home. It was such fun.
Adrone had suggested we get dry clothes and then go to the John's day celebration, but Joris was starting to doze in the car, so I suggested we call it a day and they meet us for dinner the next night.
We cleaned up and went to Stora Antis, had a wonderful dinner and made a reservation for our dinner with them . One more chance to eat at my favorite restaurant. Special turkey, I think.
John's day, by the way, refers to John the Baptist, who was born 6 months before Christ. It coincides with Midsummer Eve and the celebration can get quite rowdy late in the evening, we are told. We heard music, but the square outside our flat was empty because everyone was at the celebration. We decided to do what we usually do on New Year's Eve, too much to do on Friday for any late night doings.
Day 149 Out for the Evening With Joris and Co.
Today was another day of trying to get ready to leave on Sat. I stuffed stuff in suitcases and continued to put things from the cupboards into bags to give to Audrone or Christine upstairs. Del helped a poor postal worker earn her salary for the day as they negotiated the purchase of a box to send home some books. He had had no trouble at all at the main post office, but I had noticed a small one a couple of streets over, and since it was raining, he decided to try it. The lack of verbal communication was a problem, but he managed to use gestures to get the box, packed it full of books and took it back where the same poor woman had to help him through the customs forms in his choice of French or Lithuanian. Bet it was the high point of her day. Anyhow, they managed and the package is on its way. I can only hope that the international postal service treats that small box with tender care. Anything that costs that much deserves first class with free drinks and a good steak.
I did go out to see my felting teacher and give her the beaded spoon I had decorated for her. I found supplies here and made them for my nearest and dearest. She seemed pleased that I had come by to see her.
We went out for an early dinner and then went to the library to meet Joris and family. We listened to p;art of an outdoor concert and then walked to a neat little pub owned by a friend ofVladas. It is an art gallery upstairs, but there is no exhibit right now, and a cozy little pub downstairs. The pub is decorated with some of owner's art. I was particularly taken with a piece made from old clear plastic disposable lighters. It was mounted in a rectangular frame and had a thin streak of light mounted behind it to shine through. The pub was quite quuiet until Joris and his crowd started to play table soccor, or football, in the outer room It was so funny to hear that boy shouting all the English phrases he had picked up from us, and in the appropriate places. "Oh man, oh my gosh, come on, way to go, oh no, yes, yes, alright, okay, okay , way to go." Del and his dad were not exactly quiet either.
After a few games, who knows who actually won, especially since I had no notion of which direction I was supposed to go, we went outside with our drinks. Audrone was so cute. She said they had been wondering if professors in the United States were more formal on the street than in Lithuania. Vladis, in particuar, because he has not been around Del so much, was surprised that he enjoyed going to the bubble blowing nights and all that. I said that Del was perhaps more casual that some, but that generally, professors went to whatever activities they enjoyed. I wonder if we have laid the ground work for Dr. Adrone to be less formal. Hope it doesn't get her into trouble with the powers whoever they be. Joris had a good time eating kepta duona with garlic and cheese with Del and playing with two little girls.
We got home about 9:30 and worked some more and then Del headed for bed. I stayed up to blog, but he came out to check on me about 2:30 and found me lying on the sofa with my fingers on the keyboard, fast asleep. That would expain why there was no posting last night.
I did go out to see my felting teacher and give her the beaded spoon I had decorated for her. I found supplies here and made them for my nearest and dearest. She seemed pleased that I had come by to see her.
We went out for an early dinner and then went to the library to meet Joris and family. We listened to p;art of an outdoor concert and then walked to a neat little pub owned by a friend ofVladas. It is an art gallery upstairs, but there is no exhibit right now, and a cozy little pub downstairs. The pub is decorated with some of owner's art. I was particularly taken with a piece made from old clear plastic disposable lighters. It was mounted in a rectangular frame and had a thin streak of light mounted behind it to shine through. The pub was quite quuiet until Joris and his crowd started to play table soccor, or football, in the outer room It was so funny to hear that boy shouting all the English phrases he had picked up from us, and in the appropriate places. "Oh man, oh my gosh, come on, way to go, oh no, yes, yes, alright, okay, okay , way to go." Del and his dad were not exactly quiet either.
After a few games, who knows who actually won, especially since I had no notion of which direction I was supposed to go, we went outside with our drinks. Audrone was so cute. She said they had been wondering if professors in the United States were more formal on the street than in Lithuania. Vladis, in particuar, because he has not been around Del so much, was surprised that he enjoyed going to the bubble blowing nights and all that. I said that Del was perhaps more casual that some, but that generally, professors went to whatever activities they enjoyed. I wonder if we have laid the ground work for Dr. Adrone to be less formal. Hope it doesn't get her into trouble with the powers whoever they be. Joris had a good time eating kepta duona with garlic and cheese with Del and playing with two little girls.
We got home about 9:30 and worked some more and then Del headed for bed. I stayed up to blog, but he came out to check on me about 2:30 and found me lying on the sofa with my fingers on the keyboard, fast asleep. That would expain why there was no posting last night.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
DaY 148 Goodbye to Daiva and Arvydas
Del had a last meeting with the unversity librarian, and I did some more weeding, sorting and packing. It just may all work out, if we mail home the books we need to take home. Both our working materials and the lovely gift books we have received.
This afternoon, Daiva picked us up and drove us to Palanga where we met her husband Arvydas and went to dinner. He is such an interesting man. His first career was in business, but when his son was quite ill and medicine was not able to help, he sought the help of a famous healer who showed him that he has that gift. He is well known all over as a healer and also is a talented musician, song writer, singer and poet. He has also written books and plays. His most recent book has just been published in English. I did not realize until today that he was one of the organizers of the Hill of Witches project. It has been so interesting to talk with him. He said one time that from talking with me he sensed that after retirement I was having trouble finding my way because I have so many interests that it is difficult for me to choose something to focus on. He was channeling the original Miss Rosa, I think, and I have the half finished projects and tubs of craft materials of every sort to prove it. I don't know if Lithuanians understand the concept of jumping another rabbit, but it is certainly one of my strengths. My next rabbit is wet wool felting. Who knows, maybe it will be my craft of choice. Rosa is eager to work on it with me.
If you are on FB you are enjoying the pictures from London. That Harry Potter tour must have been amazing, and today was the Globe Theater. What fun that she and her friend Thomas can enjoy it all together.
If you are going to spend an extended time in a country not your own, you need a Daiva. She has done everything she could possibly do to make things easy for us here and to see that we had every opportunity to know what was going on in the community. You also need an Audrone who has done more than her share of looking after us and being sure we have had a wonderful time. She has also been generous in sharing her family with us. What would we have done without Joris? Vladas has been such a good sport about it all, and we have enjoyed him and his sister Erika. Other members of the department have been extrordinarily kind to us as well.
Back to our special evening. Arvydas drove us to a lovely country spa and small resort which was designed in the old style. There were thatched roofs and small animals. The bunnies were nibbling grass on the earth covered sotrage areas, but the birds were in large enclosures, thank goodness. There were wonderful places for children to play, and you could eat inside or outside in those lawn tents with the mesh sides. The food was delicious. Daiva and Arvydas like to share their meals as Del and I do, although they have a system. Each eats half and then switch plates. Del and I are more apt to share at the beginning or pick at each other plates. Tonight we didn't get to do that because we ordered what Daiva recommended, so we had the same meal. It was a lovely pork dish. Daiva said it wasn't Lithuanian, but it was getting to be. I told her that Rosa had said she didn't really know what American food was because we eat so many things from other countries so often that it seems American. She has a point. I'm thinking fried chicken and barbecue, and I want some.
It was hard to say "goodbye." We will miss our friends here. I hope we will be able to come back some time, and we will centainly be waiting for visits to Villa Rica.
This afternoon, Daiva picked us up and drove us to Palanga where we met her husband Arvydas and went to dinner. He is such an interesting man. His first career was in business, but when his son was quite ill and medicine was not able to help, he sought the help of a famous healer who showed him that he has that gift. He is well known all over as a healer and also is a talented musician, song writer, singer and poet. He has also written books and plays. His most recent book has just been published in English. I did not realize until today that he was one of the organizers of the Hill of Witches project. It has been so interesting to talk with him. He said one time that from talking with me he sensed that after retirement I was having trouble finding my way because I have so many interests that it is difficult for me to choose something to focus on. He was channeling the original Miss Rosa, I think, and I have the half finished projects and tubs of craft materials of every sort to prove it. I don't know if Lithuanians understand the concept of jumping another rabbit, but it is certainly one of my strengths. My next rabbit is wet wool felting. Who knows, maybe it will be my craft of choice. Rosa is eager to work on it with me.
If you are on FB you are enjoying the pictures from London. That Harry Potter tour must have been amazing, and today was the Globe Theater. What fun that she and her friend Thomas can enjoy it all together.
If you are going to spend an extended time in a country not your own, you need a Daiva. She has done everything she could possibly do to make things easy for us here and to see that we had every opportunity to know what was going on in the community. You also need an Audrone who has done more than her share of looking after us and being sure we have had a wonderful time. She has also been generous in sharing her family with us. What would we have done without Joris? Vladas has been such a good sport about it all, and we have enjoyed him and his sister Erika. Other members of the department have been extrordinarily kind to us as well.
Back to our special evening. Arvydas drove us to a lovely country spa and small resort which was designed in the old style. There were thatched roofs and small animals. The bunnies were nibbling grass on the earth covered sotrage areas, but the birds were in large enclosures, thank goodness. There were wonderful places for children to play, and you could eat inside or outside in those lawn tents with the mesh sides. The food was delicious. Daiva and Arvydas like to share their meals as Del and I do, although they have a system. Each eats half and then switch plates. Del and I are more apt to share at the beginning or pick at each other plates. Tonight we didn't get to do that because we ordered what Daiva recommended, so we had the same meal. It was a lovely pork dish. Daiva said it wasn't Lithuanian, but it was getting to be. I told her that Rosa had said she didn't really know what American food was because we eat so many things from other countries so often that it seems American. She has a point. I'm thinking fried chicken and barbecue, and I want some.
It was hard to say "goodbye." We will miss our friends here. I hope we will be able to come back some time, and we will centainly be waiting for visits to Villa Rica.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Day 147 We Are On the Home Stretch
Del finished his report to the Fulbright people today, and I went to the market to pick up veggies and fruit for lunches until we leave. It is interesting to see how many new things are turning up each week. Today I was able to get some green peas, which I plan to eat raw, cherries and little pickling cucumbers. There were also little bunches of some sorts of salad greens that I didn't recognize. We decided we would have dinners out so I didn't need much.. I also did a bit of Christmas shopping, which was fun.
I packed the two largest suitcases today and made another pile of things to take to Humana. I also have a pile that can go if there is enough room or can go in the Humana pile. I don't feel as though we bought that much stuff, but I have no doubt we will be suitcase shopping come Thursday. The packing will include robbing Peter to pay Paul to make the weight come out right, but that always happens and is the reason we carry a little luggage scale if we plan to buy so much as a handkerchief and a box of Altoids. We may ditch some unmentionables rather than take them home dirty. Not having a dryer means no last minute washing, and frankly, they have more than done their duty.
We talked to our little friend Joris tonight. He was quite excited to talk to us. He and his daddy had spent the week end with grandparents. His mom had to teach so she couldn't go. The doctor has decided that the rash was allergy instead of chicken pox, so he is going strong, and we will see them Wed. night. He has been asking his mother when he would see Rosa and Betty.
We are enjoying the music at the jazz club tonight. We are not there, of course, but it sounds great through the open window.
If you are FB friends, be sure to check out the pictures Tracy and David are taking in London. They are all on a 12 hour Harry Potter tour today, so the pictures should be something else.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Day 146 happy Fathers' Day and Odds and Ends
As I was thinking of Fathers' Day, I recalled thinking some years ago that I didn't really know my daddy as well as I did my mother. He worked shift work at the "plant"- Johns Manville of asbestos fame for most of my childhood - a week of each. I can't think of trying to live as though you had severe jet lag at all times. I remember him saying that 3-11 was the hardest shift because it didn't overlap with anyone else's schedule. Home after the family was in bed, sleeping when the children got on the school bus at 6:30. Eventually he got on days. Other than that, I never heard him complain about his job. He really didn't have the luxury of thinking much about whether he enjoyed his work. He was just glad to be able to provide for his family. Both he and mother were determined that Bubba and I would go to college, and they worked hard to see that we got to go. He was so proud that we both graduated and that Bubba became a lawyer.
Daddy didn't talk much, but he loved us and never left the house without kissing Mother. He read his Sunday School lesson, daily devotional and the newspaper, worked a large garden and hunted and fished and went to Grants Store. That's where the biggest fish were caught. I think he liked to hunt, and it put meat on the table, but the man loved to fish. I didn't, mostly because talking was discouraged. After Del started hanging around, I started sending him. He was a deacon in High Hills Baptist Church, and occasionally was called on to pray, but I never thought he felt comfortable doing that in front of others.
Daddy died at age 64, my age now, while Del ws in Vietnam and David was having his heart problems. I was 23 and had been away most of the time since I married at 21, so I really never got to relate to him much as an adult, but I did finally get him to stop calling me the baby.
Del's dad, another good man, was also devoted to his family, and that included me after I married into it. I don't know how I would have gotten through the year when Daddy and David were so sick without him and Mrs. Williams. He stopped by the apartment on the way to work every morning, usually bringing milk or bread or something I might need.
And if I do say so, both those good men would be proud of the way the next generations have and are turning out.
Moving on - I forgot to note that the museum in Vilnius had a humongus bellows, about as long as Rosa is tall that was last used in the 1800's that still smelled of smoke. It was hard to believe, but I asked the rest of the crew if they smelled anything, and they all said the same thing.
We walked down to Aneka's square today to see what was going on - not much, and Del went to Iki, but other than that we had a quiet day. He caught up a little on his part time gig, and I mostly read. They have been offering books I read as a girl on the free list - Eight Cousins, Five Little Peppers, Railway Children, Bobsey Twins, etc. I loved those, and I loved rereading Eight Cousins today. I know the attitudes and so forth were out of date even when I was a kid, but that doesn't seem to keep me from enjoying them still.
A bit of housekeeping. It seems the comments are not, and have not been working for a long time, and I can't fix it. So, if you want to tell me anything at all, email me at Williams.BMR@gmail.com.
Daddy didn't talk much, but he loved us and never left the house without kissing Mother. He read his Sunday School lesson, daily devotional and the newspaper, worked a large garden and hunted and fished and went to Grants Store. That's where the biggest fish were caught. I think he liked to hunt, and it put meat on the table, but the man loved to fish. I didn't, mostly because talking was discouraged. After Del started hanging around, I started sending him. He was a deacon in High Hills Baptist Church, and occasionally was called on to pray, but I never thought he felt comfortable doing that in front of others.
Daddy died at age 64, my age now, while Del ws in Vietnam and David was having his heart problems. I was 23 and had been away most of the time since I married at 21, so I really never got to relate to him much as an adult, but I did finally get him to stop calling me the baby.
Del's dad, another good man, was also devoted to his family, and that included me after I married into it. I don't know how I would have gotten through the year when Daddy and David were so sick without him and Mrs. Williams. He stopped by the apartment on the way to work every morning, usually bringing milk or bread or something I might need.
And if I do say so, both those good men would be proud of the way the next generations have and are turning out.
Moving on - I forgot to note that the museum in Vilnius had a humongus bellows, about as long as Rosa is tall that was last used in the 1800's that still smelled of smoke. It was hard to believe, but I asked the rest of the crew if they smelled anything, and they all said the same thing.
We walked down to Aneka's square today to see what was going on - not much, and Del went to Iki, but other than that we had a quiet day. He caught up a little on his part time gig, and I mostly read. They have been offering books I read as a girl on the free list - Eight Cousins, Five Little Peppers, Railway Children, Bobsey Twins, etc. I loved those, and I loved rereading Eight Cousins today. I know the attitudes and so forth were out of date even when I was a kid, but that doesn't seem to keep me from enjoying them still.
A bit of housekeeping. It seems the comments are not, and have not been working for a long time, and I can't fix it. So, if you want to tell me anything at all, email me at Williams.BMR@gmail.com.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Day 145 Back Home to Klaipeda
We got up early to get breakfast, check out and walk to the train station to come home. When we got down to the restaurant, a grandmother and grandson were there, and when she heard us speaking English, asked where we were from. We had a nice visit. They live in San Francisco, but she was born in Lithuania and comes for a visit every year. The grandson was having his first visit. Her story is quite sad. Her father was shot and she and her mother left for Germany, thinking they would be gone only a short while. Her brother was so little they left him with his grandmother until they could get settled and come back for him. That was impossible and they later escaped to Australia and then New Zealand where she grew up. She eventually moved to San Francisco and married, but her mother had remarried and spent her later years in Australia. They did not see her brother again for many years. She was very interested in what we liked about Lithuania, what all we had seen, what Rosa liked best and what we thought of the people, etc.
We had a nice train ride to Klaipeda and came home to do laundry. The next time we pack our bags it will be to go home to Villa Rica. Probably should get started on that, huh?
We had a nice train ride to Klaipeda and came home to do laundry. The next time we pack our bags it will be to go home to Villa Rica. Probably should get started on that, huh?
Day 144 Seneliai See the Seima Off to London
Grandparents see the family off to London
This is late because the dog ate my homework. I finished the entry, hit publish and everything went caflooey. A paragraph was all that was left. I was too sleepy to start over, so decided to sleep on it.
David, Tracy and Rosa tiptoed out of the Mano Lisa Guesthouse at 3am Friday morning. We whispered goodbyes and gave hugs and waved them away in the taxi before heading back up to bed. Everyone except me slept a few hours before they left, but I take my responsibility to stay awake and will the alarms to go off and the taxi to arrive on time quite seriously. I personally set a clock and two phones, and I know the kids set at least one phone, but had I gone to sleep, who knows if any of them would have gone off. The taxi arrived right on time. It took me a while to get to sleep, because of the leftover fear that the taxi would not arrive. My paranoia regarding transportation to public transportation is boundless. I found a store in Rhodes called Paranoia, by the way. Didn't go in, but assume they sell what I manufacture in my own little head for free. Don't know if they sell online in case I ever come up short before a big trip.
Del had to get up early to review his notes for his lecture, but I slept in until nearly 8 and went to breakfast with him. I had a quiet day, window shopping all around and then came back to the hotel for a little nap. We had a thunder storm, so I didn't want to get back out.
Del called a bit before 8 to suggest we meet at the Belgain restaurant for dinner. I had mussels served with Belgian fries and he had wonderful salmon with truffle sauce. We had never tasted truffles before, and I had always wondered what the fuss was about. From last night's dinner experience, I say keep those little piggies sniffing. Truffles taste wonderful. The fries were served in a ceramic cone that stood in a metal base. It looked like a parchment paper cone. I had assumed the fries would be served with mayonnaise, but it was really a mayonnaise sauce with mustard seeds. I don't know that I get the idea of fries with mussels, but apparently it is standard. You could get the mussels cooked in about 10 different types of broth, but we chose wine, garlic and parsley. Quite yummy. They were served in what looked like one of those pasta pots that were popular when Tracy and David got married with a bowl shaped lid that came off and served as the shell saver. The poor servers were overwhelmed and service was terribly slow, so we decided we would pass on dessert. Poor service is not something we have seen here before this.
Besides, we still had some of Audrone's wonderful cake. I had emailed to compliment it and ask for the recipe after Joris felt better, and she sent it. I thought I would put it in Blog so I wouldn't lose it. She calls it lazy cake,
Cake - "Lazy"
You will need:
You will need:
- Three and a half packet cookies - 630 g
- 200 g. butter (82% fat)
- 2-3 with a tablespoon cocoa (baker's cocoa) - for me, the best is this “brand” - http://www.prieskoniai.lt/produkcija/riesutai.htm
- 1 sweetened Condensed milk - about 200 g
First break the biscuits to the large bowl. Then melt butter in another bowl, in it add mixtures 2-3 tablespoons of cocoa and all sweetened condensed milk. Everything is poured onto the biscuits, stir with a tablespoon. Mass placed in a nutrient film and compress. Put cake in to refrigerate at least 3 hours or preferably overnight. Keep in refrigerator.
I think I will use Lorna Doones or vanilla wafers. I think from looking at a slice of the cake, some of the cookies are broken in small pieces, almost crumbs, and some in chunks so that the slice looks quite pretty white against chocolate=almosst like macademia nut slices, but some bigger. It is ideal, I think, because it requires no flour, no oven and is not too sweet. It will be a good memory of our friends.
Joris did not have the chicken pox. The syptoms have disappeared, but they took him back to the doctors for some tests to see what he did have. We will look forward to seeing him when we get back.
From the title of this post, you can see that the word for grandparents is seneilai. I don't know that I feel all together comfortable with the words it brings to mind - senile, senility.....
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Day 143 and 1/2 A Favor, Please!
I don't know much about the blogging world, but now that I know that I can look and see where the people who read mine live, it is driving me absolutely nuts! Frankly as I have said before, it never occurred to me that anyone other than my nearest and dearest would even find out about it, much less read it. How could people from India, Taiwan, Kenya, Indonesia and Switzerland have found Blog today? I think the comments are turned on, so if it isn't too nosy of me or too much trouble for you, would you drop me a line to let me know how you found out about Blog? It would make me a happy woman.
Day 143 Museum and Shopping Day
Del got up early to get some work done, and called me at 8:45. I got showered and we headed down to breakfast alone, because coffee was calling. We had agreed the night before that we would sleep until we woke up. We had just sat down when the youngers came in. This guesthouse has lovely breakfasts. The staff is quite accomodating, and has even learned to burn eggs for me. It is kind of interesting that the receptionist is also the server, so she runs up and down stairs to do both her jobs.
After breakfast we headed out for the National Museum, the Museum of Applied Arts and a bit of shopping on the way there and back We enjoyed the National Museum, but were particularly taken with the Museum of Applied Arts. It had a wonderful exhibit of Art Deco fashions and accessories. The dresses were breath takiing, and since Rosa loves to draw designs, she particularly enjoyed it. There was also a large collection of traditional dresses and some from the Gone With the Wind era.
The National Museum had a touching exhibit commemorating the deportation of Lithuanians to Siberia. It showed documents and also many photos taken by people in recent years who have gone to try to find the graves of their family members. The docent of that gallery noticed Rosa and came over to tell her about the history behind the exhibit. It was very interesting to listen to her and to talk with her after she finished.
Having just been to the Hill of Crosses, it was interesting to see a not quite short enough film about Cross Art or Cross Craft at the National Museum. It was extremely interesting, but the mind can only absorb what the behind can bear, and those seats were not designed for improving the mind. It was interesting and scary to see young boys being taught to use the dangerous looking sharp tools so that the art will not die.
We also walked into the beautiful cathederal and went into shops that interested Rosa. She loves the linen shops and the felt shops.
By this time it was nearly 4, and we had not had lunch so we walked over to the Mexican restuarant for a passable meal We sat outside and noticed that all the tables were filled with Americans. Their accents were clearly not from anywhere else. By the time we got home, we were ready to call it a day. We had some trail mix, crackers, nutella and fruit for anyone who wanted any for a bedtime snack.
The family has to leave for the airport at 3 am, so they went up early in hopes that Rosa would sleep a little before the taxi arrives. We are going to miss them, but are eager to hear all about their adventures in England and Scotland. Having them here has been so special. I am so glad that Rosa is able to have these opportunities as such an early age and so glad she is the kind of child who enjoys doing just about anything. That may change with the coming of teen age, but fingers crossed!
Tomorrow Del gives his last lecture and on Saturday we head home for our last days in Lithuania. Getting the apartment clean won't take long and we have to pack. I also need to make a trip to Humana to turn in some things so we won't have to find space for them. I am also going to throw away some items that we have just plain worn out. Some items of clothing are just not meant to be washed several times a week.
After breakfast we headed out for the National Museum, the Museum of Applied Arts and a bit of shopping on the way there and back We enjoyed the National Museum, but were particularly taken with the Museum of Applied Arts. It had a wonderful exhibit of Art Deco fashions and accessories. The dresses were breath takiing, and since Rosa loves to draw designs, she particularly enjoyed it. There was also a large collection of traditional dresses and some from the Gone With the Wind era.
The National Museum had a touching exhibit commemorating the deportation of Lithuanians to Siberia. It showed documents and also many photos taken by people in recent years who have gone to try to find the graves of their family members. The docent of that gallery noticed Rosa and came over to tell her about the history behind the exhibit. It was very interesting to listen to her and to talk with her after she finished.
Having just been to the Hill of Crosses, it was interesting to see a not quite short enough film about Cross Art or Cross Craft at the National Museum. It was extremely interesting, but the mind can only absorb what the behind can bear, and those seats were not designed for improving the mind. It was interesting and scary to see young boys being taught to use the dangerous looking sharp tools so that the art will not die.
We also walked into the beautiful cathederal and went into shops that interested Rosa. She loves the linen shops and the felt shops.
By this time it was nearly 4, and we had not had lunch so we walked over to the Mexican restuarant for a passable meal We sat outside and noticed that all the tables were filled with Americans. Their accents were clearly not from anywhere else. By the time we got home, we were ready to call it a day. We had some trail mix, crackers, nutella and fruit for anyone who wanted any for a bedtime snack.
The family has to leave for the airport at 3 am, so they went up early in hopes that Rosa would sleep a little before the taxi arrives. We are going to miss them, but are eager to hear all about their adventures in England and Scotland. Having them here has been so special. I am so glad that Rosa is able to have these opportunities as such an early age and so glad she is the kind of child who enjoys doing just about anything. That may change with the coming of teen age, but fingers crossed!
Tomorrow Del gives his last lecture and on Saturday we head home for our last days in Lithuania. Getting the apartment clean won't take long and we have to pack. I also need to make a trip to Humana to turn in some things so we won't have to find space for them. I am also going to throw away some items that we have just plain worn out. Some items of clothing are just not meant to be washed several times a week.
Day 142 To Trakai
We found that in our tired state, the oldsters had read the train schedule incorrectly last night, so we took the bus to Trakai, a huge castle about 45 minutes from Vilnius. It was a pleasant ride,and we were able to catch a taxi to the castle. The nice taxi man gave me his number and said that if we would call, he would be glad to take us back to the bus station. Sounded like a plan.
The castle is amazing. It was built in stages, beginning in 1337, but fell into disrepair and was not reconstructed until modern times. Vilnius in your pocket describes the stairs you climb to reach the upper floors as "an array of higgldy piggldy wooden steps and dark, plunging spiral staircases." The oldsters passed on the spirals. David thought it was a wise decision. Tracy and David posted beautiful pictures on FB.
After our tour of the castle we stopped at the little stalls to check out the goods and to buy some bells that had been made by the lady selling them. We think they will be good ornaments for the tree. After that we went to an outdoor cafe to try the traditiona Trakai kibinail. These are baked pastries filled either lamb, pork, beef, chicken or cheese and more strongly flavored than pastries we have eaten in Klaipeda and we enjoyed them. I was interested that each type of pastry is closed in a particular way so that the server can determine what kind it is. For instance, the pork is sealed across the top, while the chicken and cheese are sealed along the side but with a different decorative edge. We read that these particular pastries are only served in Trakai. David was intrigued by gira, a fermented bread drink. I don't think he will feel the need to try it again. That's certainly how I felt about it when I tried it with Mark and Sandy. We wandered a bit and then called the taxi. Seems the driver would only agree to take us all the way to Vilnius for the sum of 70 litas, in a cabthat was really too small. So we made use of Pat and Mike tp get us to the station. It was a bit of a long walk for the old guys, but we made it, and rode home in style in a very fancy bus. We decided to have a snack supper in our hotel room and one grandparent was asleep shortly after 8. I don't know what time the other came to bed. These young people can wear you plumb out.
what a wonderful day.
The castle is amazing. It was built in stages, beginning in 1337, but fell into disrepair and was not reconstructed until modern times. Vilnius in your pocket describes the stairs you climb to reach the upper floors as "an array of higgldy piggldy wooden steps and dark, plunging spiral staircases." The oldsters passed on the spirals. David thought it was a wise decision. Tracy and David posted beautiful pictures on FB.
After our tour of the castle we stopped at the little stalls to check out the goods and to buy some bells that had been made by the lady selling them. We think they will be good ornaments for the tree. After that we went to an outdoor cafe to try the traditiona Trakai kibinail. These are baked pastries filled either lamb, pork, beef, chicken or cheese and more strongly flavored than pastries we have eaten in Klaipeda and we enjoyed them. I was interested that each type of pastry is closed in a particular way so that the server can determine what kind it is. For instance, the pork is sealed across the top, while the chicken and cheese are sealed along the side but with a different decorative edge. We read that these particular pastries are only served in Trakai. David was intrigued by gira, a fermented bread drink. I don't think he will feel the need to try it again. That's certainly how I felt about it when I tried it with Mark and Sandy. We wandered a bit and then called the taxi. Seems the driver would only agree to take us all the way to Vilnius for the sum of 70 litas, in a cabthat was really too small. So we made use of Pat and Mike tp get us to the station. It was a bit of a long walk for the old guys, but we made it, and rode home in style in a very fancy bus. We decided to have a snack supper in our hotel room and one grandparent was asleep shortly after 8. I don't know what time the other came to bed. These young people can wear you plumb out.
what a wonderful day.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Day 141 Show off the Granddaughter Day
We had an appointment to take the family out to the University to meet Daiva, Audrone and Sagita, so we took the bus out. We also stopped at the coffee shop so that I could introduce my favorite coffee lady. We enjoyed the brief visit and then took the bus to McDonalds. Chicken nuggets for Rosa and hamburgers for the rest of us. None of us are Mcdonalds folks at home. Why would you be when there is Chick Fil A? That is a fine fast food sandwich. We only got the restaurant in Akron a couple of years before we mmoved, and some of the teachers at Tallmadge had not ever eaten at one. They said my description put them in mind of the famous scene from WHEN HARRY MET SALLY. I don't remember it esactly that way, but I do recall that drooling was involved.
We headed home and the old people went down for a nap while the young ones went out for a walk. They went to the felt store, which Rosa loves as much as I do and bought me a table piece that will be beautiful in our living room.
We headed out for pizza and calzones and then to the parkfor bubbles night. We were planning to meet Joris and family, but Audrone came rushing up to tell us that he had broken out with chicken pox. They don't immunize for that here, and she was worried because we had been exposed. She had brought Rosa some gifts and a special cake that Joris likes for his birthday. We tried it when we got home, and it was delicious. It was chocolate and had pieces of cookie throughout. We emailed to ask for the recipe.
She had also figured out our schedule to the Hill of Crosses and offered to call the taxi to take us to the train station since we would have all the luggage. Bless her heart, she is so good to us. Shortly after we got home, she called to say that her sister in law. Erika, would be glad to meet us at the train station and go with us to the Hill. I felt bad to have her take time off work, but we were delighted to have her company.
Rosa and I sent Joris several time delayed get well cards from the Jacquie Lawson collection. They are beautifully animated e cards designed in England and set to lovely music. You pay less than $20 per year and can send as many cards as you like. One of the neat things is that time delay feature. I like being able to tell them when I want it sent. You also get a message that the card has been sent and when the recipient opens it.
Our train from Klaipeda to the stop for the crosses was a class 3 train which meant it stopped at every little town. We kind of enjoyed that, and the seats were really comfortable. For some reason, the tickets for the trip on to Vilnius were first class, so we ended up riding in a glass container for 6. In caase you didn't already figure it out, I was not a great fan of the first class option. Being closed up in a box with 5 others, even when most are your nearest and dearest is just a bit claustrophobic for me. The young woman who was also in the box was quite charming. She is a student, off for the summer, but was going to Vilnius to practice with her folk music group. There are about 100 members in her group.
We checked back into the Mano Lisa, had dinner just down the way in a tapas place and then settled in for the evening.
We headed home and the old people went down for a nap while the young ones went out for a walk. They went to the felt store, which Rosa loves as much as I do and bought me a table piece that will be beautiful in our living room.
We headed out for pizza and calzones and then to the parkfor bubbles night. We were planning to meet Joris and family, but Audrone came rushing up to tell us that he had broken out with chicken pox. They don't immunize for that here, and she was worried because we had been exposed. She had brought Rosa some gifts and a special cake that Joris likes for his birthday. We tried it when we got home, and it was delicious. It was chocolate and had pieces of cookie throughout. We emailed to ask for the recipe.
She had also figured out our schedule to the Hill of Crosses and offered to call the taxi to take us to the train station since we would have all the luggage. Bless her heart, she is so good to us. Shortly after we got home, she called to say that her sister in law. Erika, would be glad to meet us at the train station and go with us to the Hill. I felt bad to have her take time off work, but we were delighted to have her company.
Rosa and I sent Joris several time delayed get well cards from the Jacquie Lawson collection. They are beautifully animated e cards designed in England and set to lovely music. You pay less than $20 per year and can send as many cards as you like. One of the neat things is that time delay feature. I like being able to tell them when I want it sent. You also get a message that the card has been sent and when the recipient opens it.
Our train from Klaipeda to the stop for the crosses was a class 3 train which meant it stopped at every little town. We kind of enjoyed that, and the seats were really comfortable. For some reason, the tickets for the trip on to Vilnius were first class, so we ended up riding in a glass container for 6. In caase you didn't already figure it out, I was not a great fan of the first class option. Being closed up in a box with 5 others, even when most are your nearest and dearest is just a bit claustrophobic for me. The young woman who was also in the box was quite charming. She is a student, off for the summer, but was going to Vilnius to practice with her folk music group. There are about 100 members in her group.
We checked back into the Mano Lisa, had dinner just down the way in a tapas place and then settled in for the evening.
Day 140 To The Spit
We got up early and headed out to the Curonian Spit to see the Hill of Witches and then to go down to Nida to the Amber Museum. We took the foot ferry and planned to take a taxi, having called one from the ferry, but it was not at the dock so off we went on the bus. We are getting quite flexible in terms of just winging it, sometimes it works better than others, of course, but I sort of like it. We had sort of a drippy day, but it never rained hard enough that we minded, really. I had the much traveled black wool jersey shawl in my bag so that we could get Rosa wrapped up when needed. She tends to dress for style rather than practicality, but she does look pretty darned cute.
The Hill of Witches was just as interesting to the on the third visit as it was on the first, and we saw several sculptures that looked new and that we didn't remember seeing before. I loved riding the teeter totter with Rosa, and no, I didn't fling her off into the great beyond, thank you very much. It did take a couple of helpers to hold down her end so she could get off. Tracy took neat pictures that she posted on FB.
We walked around a bit, had brunch and then caught the bus to Nida. When we reached the Amber Museum, the young woman who guided us the last time remembered Del and me and said we would not have to pay since it was a return visit for us. I loved the fact that she was wearing jewelry from the sales room. Her dangly amber earrings dangled not only the amber, but also the price tags. Rosa and I enjoyed telling her about following her advice to see if amber is real.
We caught a taxi back to the ferry because timing was not right. It was efficient, but not as much fun as the bus. We needed to get back for our reservation at Stora Antis, so we needed to hustle.
We got all cleaned up and headed out for the short walk to the restaurant. It is my very favorite. Del and David had calimari, Tracy had salmon, Rosa had cheese dumplings and I had the famous stuffed turkey. Rosa ended up eating at least half of mine, which was wonderful to see. Our trip to the meat market was not a good choice. The city kid was more than a little grossed out by her close encounter with food of the meat persuasian, and vowed only to eat meat at Moes because she loves their chicken burrito. The aroma of the turkey won her over, and she really enjoyed it. I was afraid we had ruined her eating life forever. We both enjoyed her dumplings, as well. I plan to eat there a couple more times before we leave Lithuania.
The Hill of Witches was just as interesting to the on the third visit as it was on the first, and we saw several sculptures that looked new and that we didn't remember seeing before. I loved riding the teeter totter with Rosa, and no, I didn't fling her off into the great beyond, thank you very much. It did take a couple of helpers to hold down her end so she could get off. Tracy took neat pictures that she posted on FB.
We walked around a bit, had brunch and then caught the bus to Nida. When we reached the Amber Museum, the young woman who guided us the last time remembered Del and me and said we would not have to pay since it was a return visit for us. I loved the fact that she was wearing jewelry from the sales room. Her dangly amber earrings dangled not only the amber, but also the price tags. Rosa and I enjoyed telling her about following her advice to see if amber is real.
We caught a taxi back to the ferry because timing was not right. It was efficient, but not as much fun as the bus. We needed to get back for our reservation at Stora Antis, so we needed to hustle.
We got all cleaned up and headed out for the short walk to the restaurant. It is my very favorite. Del and David had calimari, Tracy had salmon, Rosa had cheese dumplings and I had the famous stuffed turkey. Rosa ended up eating at least half of mine, which was wonderful to see. Our trip to the meat market was not a good choice. The city kid was more than a little grossed out by her close encounter with food of the meat persuasian, and vowed only to eat meat at Moes because she loves their chicken burrito. The aroma of the turkey won her over, and she really enjoyed it. I was afraid we had ruined her eating life forever. We both enjoyed her dumplings, as well. I plan to eat there a couple more times before we leave Lithuania.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Tired Blogger Message
Just a note to say that I will catch up as soon as I can. Having too much fun to have energy left for talking about the fun. It is wonderful having the family here. I'll get it all recorded soon.
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Day 139 The Harleys Are Out In Full Force
A couple of weeks ago we saw 600 or more motorcycles, mostly Harleys, riding out of town to the old airport. They had come from Berlin through Poland to here and then down or up the Spit to Moscow and are now back here on their way to Berlin again. There were riders of various ages, many Hell's Angels, though not as scary as I seem to remember in the olden days, and older, too. They had a bike judging this afternoon and then took off to all the restaurants around town for dinner. We saw one white bike painted like a Delft dinner plate. It was beautiful.
We met Audrone, Vladas and Joris to look at bikes and then we went to the Acropolis so Rosa could see the largest mall in the Baltics. They aren't really mall people, but I had already taken them to the Humana. Rosa liked riding on the bus and kept her ticket to put in the family memory jar. They do a neat thing. Every New Year they start a jar to put things they want to remember.
We found a cute little dress for Rosa. It will be perfect for traveling because it has instructions for wrinkling it properly, and it will probably dry in a flash if they need to resort to washing in a hotel room.
We walked down to the docks to see Vladas and his friends; sculpture of the ghost coming up out of the sea and got to see three men hand crank the bridge closed. It was pretty cool. We also saw the chimney sweek sculpture, and Rosa did something fun for Sarah and Miles. The custom here is for a bride and groom to put a lock on the bridge on their wedding day, lock it and throw the key in the river so the marriage will last forever. Rosa threw in two of the three keys and saved the third in case Sarah wants to throw it into the Bay.
Then home for sandwiches and fruit. It is an early night tonight. We start our early for our trip to the Spit.
We met Audrone, Vladas and Joris to look at bikes and then we went to the Acropolis so Rosa could see the largest mall in the Baltics. They aren't really mall people, but I had already taken them to the Humana. Rosa liked riding on the bus and kept her ticket to put in the family memory jar. They do a neat thing. Every New Year they start a jar to put things they want to remember.
We found a cute little dress for Rosa. It will be perfect for traveling because it has instructions for wrinkling it properly, and it will probably dry in a flash if they need to resort to washing in a hotel room.
We walked down to the docks to see Vladas and his friends; sculpture of the ghost coming up out of the sea and got to see three men hand crank the bridge closed. It was pretty cool. We also saw the chimney sweek sculpture, and Rosa did something fun for Sarah and Miles. The custom here is for a bride and groom to put a lock on the bridge on their wedding day, lock it and throw the key in the river so the marriage will last forever. Rosa threw in two of the three keys and saved the third in case Sarah wants to throw it into the Bay.
Then home for sandwiches and fruit. It is an early night tonight. We start our early for our trip to the Spit.
Friday, June 10, 2011
Day 138 Around Town
We started the day with a visit to the pop up carts in Aneka's Square Rosa bought a couple of amber pieces for her friends and then we went to the Old Market, the vegetable vendors and the meat market. I'm not sure the meat market was the very best idea, Rosa being a bit concerned about the idea of eating animals anyway, and she certainly has never been as closely involved with meat on the hoof as she was at the market. I bought chicken breasts and bacon. The bacon man was amused that I did not order 6 slices, as usual. He called over to his next door neighbor vendor "Not six." when I ordered ten slices.
By the time I had done everything I wanted to do at the market, it was lunch time, so we stopped at the bakery for cheese or chicken pastries, so we would not have to make lunch. Del carried home the groceries and put them away and the rest of us visited the felt store. Rosa loved it as much as I do and was eager to give felting a try. We were to meet Del at the information center, but he was not there when we got there. David, Tracy and Rosa bought post cards, stamps and a couple of gifts for friends, and he still had not arrived. I said that he had probably stopped to give a tour. When we rounded the corner, he was on the square across from our house giving directions to a couple who spoke English.
Rosa and I did a science experiment to see if the amber we bought today was real. It has to float in a 10% salt water solution. Ours did, so we are good. Then we did a bit of felting. We did not have success making balls, but our long ropes to make necklaces or belts turned out quite nicely. We have them hung to dry.
After felting, Rosa and I made dinner. She scrubbed the potatoes, washed the salad fixings, cut up the cucumbers, strawberries and bananas and got the table all ready with salad on individual plates. I made chicken and potatoes. II also made a sauce with broth, wine, and capers. We both were a little heavy handed with the pepper, so it is good no Lithuanians were coming to dinner. She werved and cleared and all that. It was such fun spending the afternoon with her.
After dinner we walked to the sculpture park to meet Audrone, Vladas and Joris. Joris fell in love with Tracy and Rosa, who he gave a new name, Lina. He let Tracy take his picture without complaining. He always tells me no pictures. I guess he knew he was in the presence of a professional. And Rosa was so sweet with him. He just talked to her a mile a minute in Lithuanian with a few English words sprinkled in from time to time. They took turns blowing bubbles and popping them and climbed on the sculptures. It is the expected thing in that park. At one point, Rosa threw up her arms and said "Oh, my gosh!" when a bubble flew way up in the air. Frequently after that Joris would fling up his arms and say, :Oh my gosh!" and it was always in the appropriate context.
We went to get hot chocolate after, because it ws chilly and drizzly, but the reataurant had stopped making it for the summer, so we had dessert. What a disappointment. It was after 9:30 when we left the restaurant, and Joris cried when we left them. He was so tired.
We came straight home and said goodnight.
Mark emailed that he thought Earl Hamner 3 would be a good name choise for Kindle 2, because it really is the same as jr, jr. I think Earl Hamner, Jr., Jr. will be perfect. Jr., Jr. for short.
By the time I had done everything I wanted to do at the market, it was lunch time, so we stopped at the bakery for cheese or chicken pastries, so we would not have to make lunch. Del carried home the groceries and put them away and the rest of us visited the felt store. Rosa loved it as much as I do and was eager to give felting a try. We were to meet Del at the information center, but he was not there when we got there. David, Tracy and Rosa bought post cards, stamps and a couple of gifts for friends, and he still had not arrived. I said that he had probably stopped to give a tour. When we rounded the corner, he was on the square across from our house giving directions to a couple who spoke English.
Rosa and I did a science experiment to see if the amber we bought today was real. It has to float in a 10% salt water solution. Ours did, so we are good. Then we did a bit of felting. We did not have success making balls, but our long ropes to make necklaces or belts turned out quite nicely. We have them hung to dry.
After felting, Rosa and I made dinner. She scrubbed the potatoes, washed the salad fixings, cut up the cucumbers, strawberries and bananas and got the table all ready with salad on individual plates. I made chicken and potatoes. II also made a sauce with broth, wine, and capers. We both were a little heavy handed with the pepper, so it is good no Lithuanians were coming to dinner. She werved and cleared and all that. It was such fun spending the afternoon with her.
After dinner we walked to the sculpture park to meet Audrone, Vladas and Joris. Joris fell in love with Tracy and Rosa, who he gave a new name, Lina. He let Tracy take his picture without complaining. He always tells me no pictures. I guess he knew he was in the presence of a professional. And Rosa was so sweet with him. He just talked to her a mile a minute in Lithuanian with a few English words sprinkled in from time to time. They took turns blowing bubbles and popping them and climbed on the sculptures. It is the expected thing in that park. At one point, Rosa threw up her arms and said "Oh, my gosh!" when a bubble flew way up in the air. Frequently after that Joris would fling up his arms and say, :Oh my gosh!" and it was always in the appropriate context.
We went to get hot chocolate after, because it ws chilly and drizzly, but the reataurant had stopped making it for the summer, so we had dessert. What a disappointment. It was after 9:30 when we left the restaurant, and Joris cried when we left them. He was so tired.
We came straight home and said goodnight.
Mark emailed that he thought Earl Hamner 3 would be a good name choise for Kindle 2, because it really is the same as jr, jr. I think Earl Hamner, Jr., Jr. will be perfect. Jr., Jr. for short.
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Day 137 On the Road/Tracks to Klaipeda
We got up early, had breakfast at the hotel and drug our belongings to the train station. It was only a short walk, but hot. Lithuanian heat wave. Took the 9:45 train for the @5 hour run to Klaipeda. It was pretty comfortable on the train until we stopped at one of the stations along the way. Fortunately most of the stops were only a minute or two. They almost pitched the people off. Our stop was the last, so we were able to take our time getting our stuff off. We got a cab and were at the flat in a few minutes.
We got to see one of the few panhandlers we have encountered at the Vilnius station. A guy insisted on helping Tracy and Rosa and despite rather assertive rejections, he grbbed the suitcases out of their hands and ran up the stairs with them He put those down and grabbed Del's. When we got up the stairs he asked for his tips. We only had a few coins, and he did not take it well. We told him that was all the change we had, buthe kept complaining that it was only a couple of Litas. Later we heard him talking on his phone to someone saying he only got a couple of Euros. I guess he had friends who were also "helping" others. Frankly, if he hadn't complained to Del, who had given him all his change, and to David, who pulled out
After a few minutes ot catch our breath, we went for a late lunch early dinner and brief stop at the IKI. We will do old market shopping tomorrow.
In the excitement of seeing the family, I forgot to mention that Del and they had arranged to go to Target to get the unworthy one a new Kindle. It was supposed to be a surprise, but they had to find out my registration info so it could be registered before they left. What a wonderful thing for them to arrange. I wonder if the new Kindle will mean as much to me as Earl Hamner, Jr. Davide said it probably will after I name it. I'll have to give the name some thought.
We just had a storm that seems to have cooled us off a bit. thank goodness. I hope it holds until after we leave for the land of overdone airconditioning.
We got to see one of the few panhandlers we have encountered at the Vilnius station. A guy insisted on helping Tracy and Rosa and despite rather assertive rejections, he grbbed the suitcases out of their hands and ran up the stairs with them He put those down and grabbed Del's. When we got up the stairs he asked for his tips. We only had a few coins, and he did not take it well. We told him that was all the change we had, buthe kept complaining that it was only a couple of Litas. Later we heard him talking on his phone to someone saying he only got a couple of Euros. I guess he had friends who were also "helping" others. Frankly, if he hadn't complained to Del, who had given him all his change, and to David, who pulled out
After a few minutes ot catch our breath, we went for a late lunch early dinner and brief stop at the IKI. We will do old market shopping tomorrow.
In the excitement of seeing the family, I forgot to mention that Del and they had arranged to go to Target to get the unworthy one a new Kindle. It was supposed to be a surprise, but they had to find out my registration info so it could be registered before they left. What a wonderful thing for them to arrange. I wonder if the new Kindle will mean as much to me as Earl Hamner, Jr. Davide said it probably will after I name it. I'll have to give the name some thought.
We just had a storm that seems to have cooled us off a bit. thank goodness. I hope it holds until after we leave for the land of overdone airconditioning.
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Day 136 They're In the Air!
David. Tracy and Rosa are in the air and should arrive here about 4:30. What a blessing to be able to have them with us for a week before they head out to England and Scotland.
Computer people, why does Del's computer have a sticky /b/ key? I have to really bang on it to get it to work -ay, and should have read baby and band. All other keys seem all to ready to show up, often in pairs.
Del is still sleeping, so I thought I would get a start on today's thoughts. I'll finish off later with a report that all have arrived safely.
Today is my brother's birthday. Unfortunately, he died in October after a difficult fight to find a way to live with his cancer. He was a good man who was devoted to his family and who was dedicated to the people he served as Commonwealth's Attorney in Newport News and after retirement there, to the clients in his private practice. He finished his last case just weeks before his death.
Bubba had been an only child for nearly 12 years when I showed up, but he was a good big brother. The story is that they dressed him up and put a man's hat on him so he would look old enough to get into the hospital in Richmond to see me and that he went home and told his teacher that I looked kind of like a little monkey. I probably did. He got the looks, such as they are, in the family. I remember overhearing a distant cousin of Daddy's saying "He was the prettiest child, but she is a good little thing, isn't she." Actually I must not have been, or I wouldn't have been hiding under a drop leaf table listening to adult conversation.
Bubba said he cried every morning when Mother put him on the school us for a very long time, and Mother said she cried all the way back down the long path to the house. He had not been away from her much in the first place, and living 5 miles from Emporia and 5 miles from Jarratt, we had a bi-townal life. Daddy worked in Jarratt, and we went to church there, but our address was Emporia and we went to school there. As a result, the children Bubba knew went to school in Jarratt. I was always afraid that the Jarratt kids thought I didn't go to school and the Emporia kids thought I didn't go to church. We had a difficult time when Daylight Savings Time was on a local option basis. Emporia had it, Jarratt didn't and our household was a confused place until they got a second clock and had one set for Jarratt and one for Emporia. But, again, I digress.
The bus situation was made even worse because the high school girls thought he was the cutest little thing and kissed him when he got on the bus crying so he showed up at school with lipstick on him every day, which made him cry more.
I only know this story from hearing it told, but apparently Bubba's first date had a misstep. Daddy drove him and his date, one of the Matthews girls, I think, to the dance. When they got to her house to pick her up, Bubba went to the door, escorted her down to the two door car, helped her carefully into the back seat and then climbed into the front seat with Daddy. I'm sure his technique improved greatly by the time he got to high school.
I do remember one occasion when the "good little thing" took a notion to follow Bubba out to the tobacco barn. He didn't notice when I climbed the fence and headed out across the pasture behind him. The resident cow or bull, I don't know its gender, took offense and started charging toward me. I started screaming and Bubba ran back, tackled me and slid us under the fence. In my preschool mind, I had been surely about to die, and after being saved, I was not sure he or Mother and Daddy might not kill me. I don't remember what did happen in that regard, but I know it didn't stop me following him.
We are happy grandparents, and parents tonight. David, Tracy andRrosa got here safely, after a frantic rush to make their connection in Brussels. If not for fast running and a kind security guard who took them through the handicapped lane and had the plane held for them, they would not have made it. I have to say, the Brussels airport is now top of my list of fine places. Rosa said she was breathing so hard she could not hear herself think
We went to the Italian place in the hair salon and to the grocery to get snacks for our train ride to Klaipeda and then home for an early bedtime. Our train leaves at 9:45. We aren't airconditioned here, so the windows are open and you can hear everything on the street. Rosa said she heard clopping and looked out to see if it was a horse or a woman in high heels. It was a woman on the cobblestones. How they make it on those tall, tall heels is beyond me. I can manage just fine in my Tevas, but am a little wobbly when I have had to wear my sensible heeled Easy Spirit big girl shoes.
The adventure just gets better and better. What a joy to be able to share a place we have come to think of as a second home with our family. I hope they come to understand why we like it so much.
Computer people, why does Del's computer have a sticky /b/ key? I have to really bang on it to get it to work -ay, and should have read baby and band. All other keys seem all to ready to show up, often in pairs.
Del is still sleeping, so I thought I would get a start on today's thoughts. I'll finish off later with a report that all have arrived safely.
Today is my brother's birthday. Unfortunately, he died in October after a difficult fight to find a way to live with his cancer. He was a good man who was devoted to his family and who was dedicated to the people he served as Commonwealth's Attorney in Newport News and after retirement there, to the clients in his private practice. He finished his last case just weeks before his death.
Bubba had been an only child for nearly 12 years when I showed up, but he was a good big brother. The story is that they dressed him up and put a man's hat on him so he would look old enough to get into the hospital in Richmond to see me and that he went home and told his teacher that I looked kind of like a little monkey. I probably did. He got the looks, such as they are, in the family. I remember overhearing a distant cousin of Daddy's saying "He was the prettiest child, but she is a good little thing, isn't she." Actually I must not have been, or I wouldn't have been hiding under a drop leaf table listening to adult conversation.
Bubba said he cried every morning when Mother put him on the school us for a very long time, and Mother said she cried all the way back down the long path to the house. He had not been away from her much in the first place, and living 5 miles from Emporia and 5 miles from Jarratt, we had a bi-townal life. Daddy worked in Jarratt, and we went to church there, but our address was Emporia and we went to school there. As a result, the children Bubba knew went to school in Jarratt. I was always afraid that the Jarratt kids thought I didn't go to school and the Emporia kids thought I didn't go to church. We had a difficult time when Daylight Savings Time was on a local option basis. Emporia had it, Jarratt didn't and our household was a confused place until they got a second clock and had one set for Jarratt and one for Emporia. But, again, I digress.
The bus situation was made even worse because the high school girls thought he was the cutest little thing and kissed him when he got on the bus crying so he showed up at school with lipstick on him every day, which made him cry more.
I only know this story from hearing it told, but apparently Bubba's first date had a misstep. Daddy drove him and his date, one of the Matthews girls, I think, to the dance. When they got to her house to pick her up, Bubba went to the door, escorted her down to the two door car, helped her carefully into the back seat and then climbed into the front seat with Daddy. I'm sure his technique improved greatly by the time he got to high school.
I do remember one occasion when the "good little thing" took a notion to follow Bubba out to the tobacco barn. He didn't notice when I climbed the fence and headed out across the pasture behind him. The resident cow or bull, I don't know its gender, took offense and started charging toward me. I started screaming and Bubba ran back, tackled me and slid us under the fence. In my preschool mind, I had been surely about to die, and after being saved, I was not sure he or Mother and Daddy might not kill me. I don't remember what did happen in that regard, but I know it didn't stop me following him.
We are happy grandparents, and parents tonight. David, Tracy andRrosa got here safely, after a frantic rush to make their connection in Brussels. If not for fast running and a kind security guard who took them through the handicapped lane and had the plane held for them, they would not have made it. I have to say, the Brussels airport is now top of my list of fine places. Rosa said she was breathing so hard she could not hear herself think
We went to the Italian place in the hair salon and to the grocery to get snacks for our train ride to Klaipeda and then home for an early bedtime. Our train leaves at 9:45. We aren't airconditioned here, so the windows are open and you can hear everything on the street. Rosa said she heard clopping and looked out to see if it was a horse or a woman in high heels. It was a woman on the cobblestones. How they make it on those tall, tall heels is beyond me. I can manage just fine in my Tevas, but am a little wobbly when I have had to wear my sensible heeled Easy Spirit big girl shoes.
The adventure just gets better and better. What a joy to be able to share a place we have come to think of as a second home with our family. I hope they come to understand why we like it so much.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Day 135 What a Difference a Week Makes! Hot, Hot, Hot!
When we left for Rhodes last Tuesday I was wrapped up in my oversized black wool jersey shawl and Del had on a windbreaker. Here we are back in Lithuania a week later hot and tired in an unairconditioned hotel room. We arrived in Vilnius by bus from Kaunus at 4:30 this afternoon, checked in and sat for a bit before going to the Italian restaurant in the beauty salon. We each had salad and mussels Italian style. They were yummy, especially since we had not had lunch. There was not much in the way of food in the Kaunus airport, so we got a candy bar and some peanuts. Sorry, Mark and Sandy, with mussels, we could not order different dishes. They just sounded too good.
I read a headline on CNN that the government has sacked the food pyramid and embraced the food plate. I didn't read the article, so I don't quite understand it, but ours would be wierd looking today.
Question for you travelers out there. Do Europeans like stewed bacon or have we just been staying in places in Riga, Prague, Lithuania and Rhodes that serve it that way. Today I found a tiny curl of crisp bacon, less that an inch and a half long, the only crispy piece on the buffet, by the way. Feeling guilty, I broke it in half and offered half of it to Del. I would have liked this story better if he had refused the offer. Moral: Never offer to do things you really don't want to do. Of course, we all do things we don't want to do, but if you offer, you have no one to blame but yourself. So, friends, if I ever offered to do anything for any of you, I really wanted to do it. Unless I offered you the only crispy bacon or the last potato chip. Then I was hoping you would just say "no".
The ladies who prepare breakfast at our hotel in Rhodes will go back to being mostly invisible again after today. I notice that we are the only ones who thank them when we leave, or speak to them at all except to ask for something, and we certainly were the only ones who left a tip. Of course, I also was served my special hard eggs, without asking for them, before the regular eggs were put on the buffet this morning. We got there just as they were opening up, so they were still cooking.
Still reading away on the blog mystery. I kind of like it so far, even though the author clearly has a strong opinion about the dangers of gaming, blogging, invovement in synthetic communities by those who already are isolated in the real world and become more so, etc. I also relearned the origin of the word blog. Friend Mark used the term years ago and had to explain that it comes from web log. I think he got the info from son Ben, if I remember correctly.
The family is on the plane by now, headed toward Vilnius. We can't wait to see them.
The hotel is having internet issues so I am doing this on word. For some reason, Del’s computer puts a dot between each word, and it is driving me crazy. Not that it is a long drive. Some of you all probably know how to remove that, but not us. It does not show up when printed or cut and pasted. A mystery.
Monday, June 6, 2011
Day 134 Ride Through the City With Pooh
We took a ride on an open trolly sort of vehicle that took us around the city and up to the Acropolis. It was made to look like a train. The people behind us were from England and had a 7 year old daughter who never left home without her Pooh. Rosa usually carries "Traveling Puma." Pooh was well behaved and quite attentive during the ride. Mom said he has to write an essay when he gets home. Perhaps he should get himself a blog. Maybe "Traveling Puma" can do a guest blog for me when he is here.
Speaking of Blogs, I am reading a Jeffery Deaver mystery centered around the blogging world. Del happened to see a school supply store that had a few books in the window and suggested we go in to see if they had anything in English. I guess he noticed that my hands were beginning to shake from Kindle withdrawal. Anyhow, there was a lovely little bookstore downstairs which had a whole shelf of books in English, mostly mysteries. I got a couple for the trip home and started the Deaver tonight. It has quite a bit of information about the blogging world. One term interested me and made me wonder about myself a bit. It is "escribitionist" which is someone who blogs about him/herself. I have an unfortunate vision of myself dancing on a table wearing what my aunt Ruby called one of those short, flippy tailed skirts with a lamp shade on my head and my laptop hung around my neck like those trays cigarette girls in the old black and white movies wore. I'm guessing you might be wishing you could burn that image right out of your brains, but you know how we excribitioniists are. I am learning quite a bit about the folly of sharing TMI with the world at large The book is ROADSIDE CROSSES, by the way. It seems funny to turn pages after so many months, but if I fall on the book it won't destroy it, and it won't have to be turned off for take off and landing.
Off to Vilnius to meet the family. They get in on Wed. We are so excited to see them. I hope they will enjoy their visit in Lithuania before taking off for England and Scotland.
Speaking of Blogs, I am reading a Jeffery Deaver mystery centered around the blogging world. Del happened to see a school supply store that had a few books in the window and suggested we go in to see if they had anything in English. I guess he noticed that my hands were beginning to shake from Kindle withdrawal. Anyhow, there was a lovely little bookstore downstairs which had a whole shelf of books in English, mostly mysteries. I got a couple for the trip home and started the Deaver tonight. It has quite a bit of information about the blogging world. One term interested me and made me wonder about myself a bit. It is "escribitionist" which is someone who blogs about him/herself. I have an unfortunate vision of myself dancing on a table wearing what my aunt Ruby called one of those short, flippy tailed skirts with a lamp shade on my head and my laptop hung around my neck like those trays cigarette girls in the old black and white movies wore. I'm guessing you might be wishing you could burn that image right out of your brains, but you know how we excribitioniists are. I am learning quite a bit about the folly of sharing TMI with the world at large The book is ROADSIDE CROSSES, by the way. It seems funny to turn pages after so many months, but if I fall on the book it won't destroy it, and it won't have to be turned off for take off and landing.
Off to Vilnius to meet the family. They get in on Wed. We are so excited to see them. I hope they will enjoy their visit in Lithuania before taking off for England and Scotland.
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Day 133 Spring Festival at Kremasti Village
Lazy morning for me, breakfast in the hotel and a brief visit with the Australian lady from Rome while she waited for her travel mates. The 3 work for the UN in the Welfare division and were on a girls adventure - no husbands. She has been in Rome for 17 years and I assumed that she had seen all of Europe in that time, but she said she had spent most of her vaction days and dollars going back to Australia to visit her family. That makes perfect sense. We did the same to get back to Va. Del's library conferences did allow us to see some of the country because most of the trip was mostly paid for, and he didn't have to take much vacation.
Del went roaming while I lazed around and after a late lunch, we caught the bus to Kremasti Village for the annual Spring Festival. It was such fun. We stood along the very short parade route and watched groups of children from preschool through high school, school clubs, athletic teams, scouting organizations and dance schools, plus a couple of bands march by. The funniest thing was a basketball goal being towed by a four wheeler with the basketball team walking behind. They stopped in front of the reviewing stand to shoot baskets and some of the pols came down to show their lack of ability. Ballet dancers from about 3 on up marched in groups with the most beautiful wreaths of green leaves and various flowers in their hair. One group had an ingenious way of keeping the little people in order. Two big girls had s ribbon tied around their waists and long pastel ribbons were tied to that ribbon. Each tiny girl held onto one of the long ribbons.. It was like seeing a human May Pole. The little ones were happy as little pigs in mud, completely unaware that they were being herded. A couple of other groups used the big kid hold the little kid's hand method, but it was not quite as peaceful an exercise. Various children in the parade had baskets of rose petals to throw when they remembered. Some of the adult minders threw candy. A little boy standing beside me with his family was quite good at seeing candy that landed on the street. I said to his mom that he had quite an eye. She agreed, and I said perhaps not so much if it had been zucchini. She agreed that he would not have been running out for vegetables or most fruits.
We just had the best time. There were food stands selling popcorn, cotton candy, ice cream, roasted ears of corn, crepes with nutella and various other things. We passed on all of that, but did have wonderful ice cream while waiting for the bus home. Yes, I passed on pop corn. Del was worried.
Del and I agreed that the whole thing reminded us of the firemen's festivals we used to go to when we lived in Lexington, Virginia. Every Friday night for about 6 weeks each summer, the fire department in one of the little towns in Rockbbridge County would hold a fund raiser. Each community would send at least one fire truck and ambulance and there were bands, some of them quite rag tag, and majorettes from about 18 months to way too old. You haven't lived until you have seen baby majorettes, looking confused, wandering along a parade route in their costumes made baggy by saggy pampers, herded by proud mamas One little band with an aged drum major who still sort of had it seemed to appear every week. He certainly had plenty of energy as he led his bunch of old guys along. There were also the required convertibles with local dignitaries and beauty queens.
The other highlight of the evening was the chicken barbecue dinner. Yum! They all used the Va Tech won't burn the chicken clear sauce. I have the recipe at home if anyone wants it later. One town went renegade and served pot roast and all the trimmings. Maybe not the best choice for a sweltery summer night in Va., in my opinion.
We can say that we went because David loved fire trucks, and that is why we started going, but after the first one we were hooked. It was much more fun than when we lived over a dead hardware store in Brandenburg, Kentucky and the Friday night entertainment was watching the town firetruck rush down the street the the river and spew water into it. The bar across the street also had "Do not spit on the floor." signs. Join the army and see the world, don't they say?
When we got back to the hotel, Del sort of taught the desk clerk, pressed into service as bar keep how to make a passable lime and rum drink. She certainly understood the add rum part, but was a little shaky on the lime.
Off to Vilnius tomorrow to meet the family! I cannot wait to see them and show them a little bit of Lithuania.
Del went roaming while I lazed around and after a late lunch, we caught the bus to Kremasti Village for the annual Spring Festival. It was such fun. We stood along the very short parade route and watched groups of children from preschool through high school, school clubs, athletic teams, scouting organizations and dance schools, plus a couple of bands march by. The funniest thing was a basketball goal being towed by a four wheeler with the basketball team walking behind. They stopped in front of the reviewing stand to shoot baskets and some of the pols came down to show their lack of ability. Ballet dancers from about 3 on up marched in groups with the most beautiful wreaths of green leaves and various flowers in their hair. One group had an ingenious way of keeping the little people in order. Two big girls had s ribbon tied around their waists and long pastel ribbons were tied to that ribbon. Each tiny girl held onto one of the long ribbons.. It was like seeing a human May Pole. The little ones were happy as little pigs in mud, completely unaware that they were being herded. A couple of other groups used the big kid hold the little kid's hand method, but it was not quite as peaceful an exercise. Various children in the parade had baskets of rose petals to throw when they remembered. Some of the adult minders threw candy. A little boy standing beside me with his family was quite good at seeing candy that landed on the street. I said to his mom that he had quite an eye. She agreed, and I said perhaps not so much if it had been zucchini. She agreed that he would not have been running out for vegetables or most fruits.
We just had the best time. There were food stands selling popcorn, cotton candy, ice cream, roasted ears of corn, crepes with nutella and various other things. We passed on all of that, but did have wonderful ice cream while waiting for the bus home. Yes, I passed on pop corn. Del was worried.
Del and I agreed that the whole thing reminded us of the firemen's festivals we used to go to when we lived in Lexington, Virginia. Every Friday night for about 6 weeks each summer, the fire department in one of the little towns in Rockbbridge County would hold a fund raiser. Each community would send at least one fire truck and ambulance and there were bands, some of them quite rag tag, and majorettes from about 18 months to way too old. You haven't lived until you have seen baby majorettes, looking confused, wandering along a parade route in their costumes made baggy by saggy pampers, herded by proud mamas One little band with an aged drum major who still sort of had it seemed to appear every week. He certainly had plenty of energy as he led his bunch of old guys along. There were also the required convertibles with local dignitaries and beauty queens.
The other highlight of the evening was the chicken barbecue dinner. Yum! They all used the Va Tech won't burn the chicken clear sauce. I have the recipe at home if anyone wants it later. One town went renegade and served pot roast and all the trimmings. Maybe not the best choice for a sweltery summer night in Va., in my opinion.
We can say that we went because David loved fire trucks, and that is why we started going, but after the first one we were hooked. It was much more fun than when we lived over a dead hardware store in Brandenburg, Kentucky and the Friday night entertainment was watching the town firetruck rush down the street the the river and spew water into it. The bar across the street also had "Do not spit on the floor." signs. Join the army and see the world, don't they say?
When we got back to the hotel, Del sort of taught the desk clerk, pressed into service as bar keep how to make a passable lime and rum drink. She certainly understood the add rum part, but was a little shaky on the lime.
Off to Vilnius tomorrow to meet the family! I cannot wait to see them and show them a little bit of Lithuania.
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