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Dialogue without quotation marks. Why?
I recently read 1 yet another book in which the author decided not to use quotation marks to indicate dialogue. This is normally a signal to me that I am not going to like the book. I’m not sure why –...
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Busy Body
There is a constant buzz of activity beneath our skin. We are perpetually flowing, pumping, sucking, squeezing, bursting, repairing, and rebuilding. A whole crew of ingenious organs works so perfectly...
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Goodreads Shelves
I track my books on Goodreads and often read other people’s reviews after finishing a book to see how my opinions compare to others, particularly when I diverge from the majority. I came across this...
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The Anne Frank House in Amsterdam
While I was in Amsterdam a couple of weeks ago, I had an opportunity to visit the Anne Frank House and Museum, something I didn’t have a chance to do when I was there last year. I made the mistake of...
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Amsterdam Photos
Here are a few photos from my trip to Amsterdam a couple of weeks ago. Hope you enjoy! Nothing says “we’re really excited to see you” like a giant inflatable tulip…or something…just outside the...
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Keukenhof Gardens – Amsterdam
Spent a lovely day at Keukenhof Gardens in Amsterdam but sadly missed prime tulip season. They did have a really nice flower show there and although flower shows aren’t really my thing, the displays...
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Soccer Fans and Rembrandtplein (Rembrandt Square) in Amsterdam
Rembrandtplein (Rembrandt Square) is a small square in central Amsterdam featuring a statue of Rembrandt (der, who else?) surrounded by the Night Watch from one of his most well-known paintings. One of...
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A room (in Bayeux, France) with a view
After pretty close to 24 hours of travel, we finally made it to our Airbnb in Bayeux in Normandy, France. We are pretty exhausted but not too tired to oooh and aahhh at the view from our front window....
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Normandy D-Day Tour: Utah and Omaha Beaches
A couple of days ago, we went on a tour of the Normandy countryside to see various sites related to the D-Day invasion. Norman weather is apparently fairly moody and can change quickly, so I’ve been...
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Normandy D-Day Tour: churches and monuments marking acts of heroism
This post is the second in a series on my D-Day tour of Normandy, France. See the rest of the posts here. Angoville-au-Plain We next headed to Angoville-au-Plain, a tiny Norman village home to a small...
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Normandy D-Day Tour: Point du Hoc
This post is the third in a series on my D-Day tour of Normandy, France. See the rest of the posts here. Point du Hoc: A hard-won and costly battle Point du Hoc was a strategically important location...
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Normandy D-Day Tour: German and American Cemeteries
This post is the fourth in a series on my D-Day tour of Normandy, France. See the rest of the posts here. German Cemetery We started our tour at the German cemetery. The French government has allotted...
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Cafe Dog in Bayeux
After so many D-Day posts, I thought I would lighten up the mood a bit by sharing this. I took this photo a few days ago, impressed by this shaggy little dog’s patience and discipline while waiting for...
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Mont St. Michel in Normandy, France
The day after our D-Day tour in Normandy, we took a guided tour of Mont St. Michel. If you have a chance to visit Normandy, I would put this as a must-see on your travel itinerary. If you look closely,...
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Magnets from Normandy, Paris, and Bruges
For several years, we’ve been collecting magnets during our travels. They make great souvenirs since they are inexpensive, small, and easy to bring back home even while traveling carry-on only. Plus,...
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Bayeux, Normandy
This is part of a series of posts about the city of Bayeux in Normandy, France. See the other posts here. I’ve written about our tours to various D-Day spots and Mont St. Michel, but here, I’ll write a...
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Caen, Normandy
On our last day in Normandy, we took the train to Caen. It’s a quick and easy trip from Bayeux, about 20 minutes. Caen is much bigger than Bayeux but unlike Bayeux, it was almost completely destroyed...
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Bayeux Cathedral
This is part of a series of posts about the city of Bayeux in Normandy, France. See the other posts here. The Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Bayeux is a stunning example of Gothic architecture – I wrote a...
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William the Conqueror and the Bayeux Tapestry
This is part of a series of posts about the city of Bayeux in Normandy, France. See the other posts here. If you have a chance to visit Bayeux, you should definitely go to the Tapestry Museum in town....
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Paris Catacombs
As I mentioned in my previous post on Sacré-Coeur, one of the other places I didn’t get a chance to see when I was in Paris last summer was the catacombs so I wanted to be sure to fit in a visit this...
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Sacré-Coeur, Paris
We said goodbye to Bayeux and the Normandy region to head to Paris, where I volunteered to work at WordCamp Europe (an event well worth a completely separate post). I had some free time on the first...
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Ernest Hemingway: a brief rant-quote about people
I came across this quote in A Moveable Feast and smiled at the curmudgeonness of it. I can’t say that I don’t feel the same way at times though. When spring came, even the false spring, there were no...
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Parasailing in Key West
Had a fantastic time parasailing with my family in beautiful Key West. We started the day with snorkeling and wrapped it up with jet skis. The weather was perfect and our Sebago crew was great! Take...
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Ernest Hemingway house and museum
I’ve been to Key West several times, but for some inexplicable reason 1, I never visited the Hemingway House (or the Truman Little White House 2 for that matter but that’s a topic for a different...
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My new favorite browser extension (perfect for readers)
I can’t remember now where I came across a mention of this super-handy browser extension but I suspect it was one of my co-workers. I wish I could give you credit here, Unknown Helpful Person, but...
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