What I love about travel is that you do not have to go far to see the world. You can visit the local sites in your area as a traveler with a new set of eyes. However, if you are going to be traveling to another country you will need to have your passport and possibly a visa. The matter furthers if you are planning on staying in another country for longer than the intended vacation stay. Every country is different and the rules are always changing. Continue reading
I take you today to London to easily my top favourite place to eat, Tiroler Hut Restaurant. It is an Austrian restaurant that we found randomly while taking a walk from where we were staying in Notting Hill. Continue reading
We have nine more weeks of Winter and that has not stopped us from going on country walks around our area of Bath, England. However the shorts, sleeveless shirts, and trainers of our summer attire have had to be replaced by our winter wardrobe. When you are in England I always recommend double checking the weather right before you head out. Check the temperature, the wind, and if rain or snow might be a factor. Next, it is always good to plan your route before hand to give yourself a good time reference for how long you will be out. With your information gathered you can than gauge how to dress appropriately for your country walk. Remember just because you are going for a country walk, does not mean you have to dress frumpy. There are so many fashionable looks from Peter Hahn you can put together for your country walks from practical footwear to appropriate coats.
On a country walk recently it began to rain for a bit on our way back home. With our rain jackets and wellies we did not let a little rain spoil what had already been a wonderful afternoon in the English countryside. Upon entering our town we were greeted with an amazing site of a double rainbow. I have not seen rainbows like this, so vibrant and beautiful, since we were living on the island of Oahu in Hawaii. I loved photographing rainbows when we were living the island life. Since my father’s death in 2008, seeing a rainbow has always reminded me of him and his Aloha spirit. He had been on my mind so much during our walk and in my family’s conversation that day. As a Third Culture Kid (TCK) in our expat life, feeling so connected to my dad in the country where my life all began feels like the closest thing to ‘home’ that I can describe. The previous rainbows that we have seen in England in the past year have been on our 10th Anniversary Vow Renewal in Wales and when we returned to Bath with my mum after our summer travels in August. In a way I feel like he is watching over us.
From my Ohana to yours,
may this week be filled with wonderful reminders
of just how wonderful and beautiful life is around you.
Q: Have you ever seen a double rainbow? Do you connect on a personal level with them too?
A year ago today we moved up from the area of Brighton to Bath in Somerset, England. Two days before Christmas and we were already to start celebrating the holidays properly. It had been a long end of the year as our family had been separated by distance of continents and seas since July.
My husband and I had been job searching for months. In the beginning of December 2012 my husband with his new masters degree got job offers in London and Bath. A two day trip to Bath and my husband knew London had been pushed out of the equation. He had fallen in love with the beautiful historic city with is close proximity to picturesque countrysides and storybook canals. We could now finally live in a much bigger place (a two story with stairs!) than the normal tiny UK flats. We basically had two weeks between the acceptance of the job to find a place to live, get moved out of our current location, and organize my family in the US to get their plane tickets.
On the 22nd of December my mum flew with my sons to London, who had been staying with family stateside since July. Although we were schedule to move out that day, we ran into a snag with our less than organized moving company. With plans to now move out the next day we camped out in our boxed up flat in Brighton while my husband (already in Bath, having signed the new lease) camped out in our new place with out us and our stuff.
On the 23rd of December we finally managed to get moved out of our flat. Long story short not all of our belongings made it due to the worst moving company experience I have had in my 30 years of life that includes not living in one place for longer than three years at a time. While some of it was able to be acquired day later with an additional car trip, we had to part with many belongings and furniture that just did not make the cut (RIP my beloved US sewing machine). That evening after traveling by train and taxi my mum, sons, and I arrived at our new place in Batheaston just as the last of our stuff was being uploaded by the moving company. While we had unopened boxes in just about every room, we searched for the ones I had labeled with christmas trees. These contained all our holiday decorations and gifts needed for Christmas. These were the first boxes we opened in our new place as we were excited to celebrate Christmas together.
The next day on the 24th of December my sister arrived from D.C. just in time for Christmas Eve. My dad, up in heaven, was with us in spirit. It was time to officially start our family Chrismukkah! We celebrated our reunion with our kids, my husband’s new job, and our new place with a Christmas ‘at home’ with our visiting family. Our first Christmas in Brighton had been very special with our sons as it was our first English Christmas together. This year in 2012 it was a holiday filled with thankfulness and blessings for all we had in our lives, including the people we cherished most.
My favourite memories from last year were with my entire family playing bananagrams in the dining room, eating my family’s traditional christmas cookie ‘carmelitas’ that my mum had made, drinking wine my sister (a level II sommelier) had chosen, and with the view from our window of Solsbury Hill (in reference to the Peter Gabriel song) with the many white sheep that dotted the green quilt work fields around us. This was pure bliss.
I am so thankful for the past year and for spending a full year with my family all together these last 356 days. After being a military family, I am thankful for this amazing lifestyle of being able to be constantly around each other through out the months of the year. It has been a really wonderful first year in Bath, England. With Christmas just two days away it is hard to think of anything I could want from Father Christmas. Aside from more time with my father or having my sister and mum here of course. Life is about family for me and so from my family to yours, have a happy Holidays!
*photography to Bonnie Rose Photography © 2007 – 2013 All Rights Reserved
Welcome to Travel Tuesday with Bonnie here at A Compass Rose. As we have just under two weeks left of Autumn I wanted to take you on a trip to England with me to view some of the picturesque views outside of the city of Bath. While it may be getting much colder, we donned our coats, hats, and scarves and wellies too. What could be more perfect than stopping halfway on top of the hillside to enjoy a warm mug of tea while looking down on the towns below? It was a beautiful weekend and I have prepared a lovely picture journey, so that you can join us vicariously through this post. Do not forget to link up with your travel, expat, and wanderlust posts below!
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One of the things I have been anxiously awaiting to visit this holiday season is a Christmas market. We went to the German Christmas market in London two years ago and came home with the fondest Christmas memories. I do not think we will get to London this year but it was our first time to check out the Christmas market in Bath, England. We moved to Bath on the evening of the 23rd of December last year and had just missed the opportunity to visit it before closed for the holidays. Days before the market was ready to be opened we were seeing all the signs of it being set up around the Bath Abbey. From what I had seen online I did not think it would be as big as it was and the stalls seemed to fit every little alley, nook, and cranny around the Roman Baths area in town. We even found glühwein to keep us warm as we enjoyed the evening of holiday cheer. I will say there were quite a lot of people also enjoying the holiday cheer as the crowds were thick. It did not stop us from having an amazing time and even meeting some great people.
We met up with a couple of Ryan’s work colleagues which made the night even more joyous as we could share it with family and friends. Our christmas gift to ourselves was buying in on the 3 bottle deal at the hot sauce stand. Since we love things spicy two of our three bottles was The End, the hottest one available and very tasty. My kids fell in love with a stand that boasted tons of tiny figurines each with their own personality and character. ‘Uncle’ Hugo bought each of my sons one for Christmas: Ronan chose a blue dragon and Maddox chose a black bat. I got a chance to talk to the couple who were selling them who are originally from Australia but have been traveling over here. While he drives she makes these creative figurines on a tray on her lap. I really loved all the Christmas ones she had available including the figgy pudding ornaments for the tree.
It was a lovely evening and I hope to keep checking back around the markets each time we are in town. There is something about being around the sights, smells, and sounds of Christmas that really put me in a great mood.
Q: Have you been to a Christmas market this year?
