chosenfugue

It was just so French

We like to be useful. We like to experience what it would be like to live in different places, to step into a different life. So pet sitting works out well for us. We use Trusted Housesitters to find pet sits, but almost 4 years into pet sitting, family and friends are keeping us prettyContinue reading “It was just so French”

Malta Pans Out

January in Northern Europe, we needed some semblance of warmth. So, Malta! We got a malt a deal on Jet2, so off we flew! 12-15 degrees celsius (54-59 F) which is kind a funny that we now consider that warm, but after chilly, freezing Liverpool, it was. Except almost everyday in Malta we were caughtContinue reading “Malta Pans Out”

It was a Tad bloody

We arrived in Dublin for a week of political detox and to see a childhood friend of Nick’s. This was our fourth stop at the Dublin airport as we prefer to fly here to/from the US. It is actually a pretty small airport, and you do US customs here rather than in the US. They alsoContinue reading “It was a Tad bloody”

Sitting Out the Summer

Another California summer watching dogs, cats and llamas, oh my! We seem to have unintentially settled in to a lifestyle of petsitting for family, friends and fellow TrustedHousesitters (see links at the end)*. Big dogs, little dogs, furry cats and wooly llamas: French Bulldogs (3), Pug, miniature Australian Shepard, Vizsla, King Charles Spaniel, English Spaniel,Continue reading “Sitting Out the Summer”

Cheers

Back to the UK to warm up, where cold is better understood than Greece. We always start with a visit to Liverpool. To prevent overstaying our welcome and limit school week distraction, we did 2 quick dog sits in the Liverpool suburbs Formby was our first sit. Highlights: Next up was on the Wirral peninsula,Continue reading “Cheers”

Greece, ευχαριστώ (Efcharistó)

Nafplio was a 6 night finale to our month in Greece. We took a very scenic, twisty bus ride, from Pyrgos to Nafplio with a stop at every village, no matter how narrow the road. The ride ended with a very dramatic approach as we reached the Argolic gulf. Nafplio is a star on theContinue reading “Greece, ευχαριστώ (Efcharistó)”

Our Ancient Olympic Trials

We don’t really like to bounce between towns with one night stays, it feels pretty superficial and it’s difficult to cook when you are leaving the next day (our packing is pretty tight, we try not to carry a pantry). In order to approximate what we wanted to do with the KTEL schedule, that isContinue reading “Our Ancient Olympic Trials”

KTEL Presents Greece’s Greatest Rocks and Ruins

Having successfully mastered Albania’s no bus system-no bus station minibus-sedan-tag-team transportation we felt ready to tackle the Greek bus system. Greece had big buses and actual bus stations with staffed information counters, tickets, gift shops and cafeterias. However, efficient travel off season was mythical. Greece’s Achilles heel was its bus schedule. Buses usually ran twiceContinue reading “KTEL Presents Greece’s Greatest Rocks and Ruins”

Los Athens

The spiritual high of walking through the majestic monasteries perched on the Meteora lingered as our bus traveled southeast towards Athens. The landscape changed to familiar, looking like the drive south from Northern California through the Grapevine on the 5. But then the snowy caps of Mt Olympus, home of the Gods, came into view.Continue reading “Los Athens”

Meteora is a hit

A scenic bus ride out of Albania; snowy and mountainous, entertained at the Greek border bus stop with stray dogs and puppies (nice watching the border patrol guys get bags of dog food from their cars and feed the dogs). Dropped off in the parking lot of a cafe on the edge of town, whichContinue reading “Meteora is a hit”