2009: The Recap, Part I

Yes, it's been beyond ages. But much has happened. And I haven't completely forgotten that I have a blog. It's just... well, so much has happened. So I'll start with this: a blog post I started way back in 2009 (actually, about a year ago), and then never posted. Check, check it out:

Did you miss me?

Oh, come on. Don't hate. It's not like I haven't been thinking of you. Two weeks ago in Brussels I violently and profusely cursed the Accor/IBIS hotel chain for their overpriced internet package. You see, I was going to post... really, I was. Really. Plus, I have fantastic/depressing news. Are you ready? Really? Really, really?

We're coming home.

YAY! I know, fabulous, right? Chik fil'A. IPhones. Gas-guzzling SUV's. Burgers that don't cost $25. Shoes that don't cost $300. Decided improvement in daily latitudinal sunlight allowances. A decided lack of leggings and herring and... well, you get the picture.

So this brings me to several points (yes, I know. stay with me). (A) Much to say on the issue of repatriation. (B) Much to say on issues of things I will and will not miss about living here. (C) Much to say about the trips that we have been on that I haven't written about - Brussels! Istanbul! Our fabulous Med vacation last summer! So my goal this week - just after cleaning my refrigerator, stove and shower and watching reruns of CSI: Miami on Danish television (oh, c'mon. you can't resist Horatio Caine either. "This tie is... blue. That's what I call... ironic." I mean, really) - is to post as much as possible about points A-C. So stay tuned. It's coming. No, really, I mean it this time.

And, indeed, we did. Repatriate, that is. We moved back to North Carolina last December (that would be 2009), and since then, several important things have happened:

(1) I went shopping. And bought a gas-guzzling SUV. And bought an I-Phone 3GS. And ate a LOT of Chik Fil'A. And went shopping again. (2) We found out I was pregnant. (3) We bought a house. (4) We then terminated that contract and bought a different house. (5) We moved into the house, settled down, watched the series finale of Lost and almost two whole seasons of Project Runway on real t.v. instead of over the slingbox/internet, and went through forty weeks of pregnancy (as of this coming Monday).

That pretty much catches you up.

So now, my plan is to do a little bit of talking about the last few trips (or, really, many trips) we took over the last six months we spent in Denmark, a few thoughts on repatriation, and what it's like to be back in the states after living in the cold, dark north for so long. So, to begin:

May, 2009: Istanbul, A Swedish Ferry Boat and Mom and Dad Show Up

Not bad for a month's work.

In May, we went to Istanbul for Jon's 25th birthday (ha!), and it was one of my favorite experiences of all of our travelling. I heart Istanbul - I'm not even ashamed to say it. In fact, if I were eight, I would write "I heart Istanbul" all over my Trapper-Keeper in magic marker, right next to my declarations of love for Michael Jackson and various Houston radio stations. What happened to Trapper-Keepers, anyway? I miss those. And yet, I digress.

Anyway, Istanbul was everything that we wanted Cairo to be: exotic, cosmopolitan, delicious (the food, I mean). We did a ton of sight-seeing, but mostly we just enjoyed being there together, which is really the best way to travel. The coolest parts of the sightseeing? Other than the super tasty food? The Basilica Cistern, a Roman cistern that was one part spooky, one part crazy stonework (including an upside down Medusa head) and one part unbelievable and fascinating feat of engineering, and the Hagia Sophia, which was also beyond belief in terms of size, engineering and history, despite the scaffolding and the crowds. The ceiling of the Hagia Sophia was once gold and Christian mosaic, but when Istanbul (then Constantinople) was taken by the Muslims, the ceiling was painted over (sigh). And now it's being restored... hence the scaffolding. Anyway, let's do pictures, shall we?

The Basilica Cistern... creepy and somehow shiny all the same.

Dinner in Istanbul.

Me and Sophia from the Sultan's Pub.

And the Hagia Sophia... really. Really, really.

And then... back to Copenhagen and we had two sets of visitors: J's sister, and my parents. Fabulous! Having visitors was such an important part of the expat experience for me. Despite the fact that I spent a lot of time in the U.S., what really made a difference was when my people came to visit us. One of the highlights of Jon's sister's visit was the two-night ferry we took from Stockholm to Helsinki. Apparently, for the Scandinavians, these boats are party boats, but we were mostly just bums. We did eat a super-tasty buffet with such gourmet scandinavian treats as ball-game-quality tacos and nachos and Swedish meatballs. We also spent a pretty awesome day in Helsinki where (a) it's very cold, even in May, (b) it's very Russian and (c) it really is a city built on a rock. The base rock actually sticks out of the ground in places.

During our day in Finland, we visited the Uspenski Cathedral, the largest Russian Orthodox church in western Europe, and were privileged to see a memorial ceremony (memorial services are held 40 days after a death), in which the priest and the three participants all sang a capella. It was beautiful; the church is all gold leaf and green marble and the singing echoed off the ceiling and around the walls. Shiny. And fabulous.

The Temppeliaukio Kirkko, a church built (literally) of rock.

The Sibelius Monument, a sculpture (literally) built on rock

The Uspenski Cathedral. Note the rock.

The 'rents visit was also fabulous, in part because it was so great to see them and in part because it's incredibly satisfying to get to show your not-very-ordinary life to the people that you care about. In retrospect, even with all the travelling J and I were able to do, the times we had visitors - J's parents, his sister, my parents, our friends - were some of my favorite moments from living in Denmark. It doesn't matter how many times I described our apartment, or the weather, or the Danes, or anything else about our lives, to an American. If a picture is worth a thousand words, imagine how many a visit is worth.

Oh, and then at the end of the month, J and I saw hippos. The Copenhagen zoo is pretty awesome. I wouldn't say the hippos made my month... but they were definitely the cherry on top.

Can you pick out the hippo? Be nice, yo.

July/August, 2009: One Long Vacation

Here's one of the major perks of living in Europe: it's not only possible, but sort of required to take the month of July off. So, not wanting to offend anyone, that's what we did. Hey, when in Denmark... We started out with a cruise through the Baltic over the fourth of July weekend (ironically, we were in Russia on the fourth of July. Bruce Springsteen would be insulted.). Anyway, we embarked in Stockholm, and then cruised to Tallinn, Estonia, which the Danes used to own (along with a large portion of northern Europe) and which is where the legend of the Dannebrog was formed. We ended up in St. Petersburg, where we saw possibly the shiniest palace I have ever been in: the Winter Palace, which is attached to the Hermitage. The Hermitage, without question, was the best museum we saw in all of our travels, which is saying something. The Russians were master... ahem, appropriate-ers. Check it out, yo.

J at Gammel Strand (Old Town), in Stockholm. I promise, he does NOT have a beer just below the frame. Really.

The Patkuli Overlook on Toompea (Dome Hill), overlooking ex-Danish, ex-Russian Tallinn.

The Golden Drawing Room: A room LITERALLY MADE OF GOLD at the Winter Palace, St. Petersburg, Russia.

The Crouching Boy, by Michelangelo, "acquired" by Catherine the Great.

From there, we came home for all of 48 hours (-ish), and then left for my favorite country (that I am not a citizen of): Spain. We spent eight - EIGHT! - fabulous days travelling from Malaga (the birthplace of Picasso, FYI), through Andalusia all the way up through Pamplona to Barcelona. Let me sum up what I love about Spain: the sunny, sunny weather. That the Spaniards have made bar food a national (gourmet) pasttime. The beach. That you can take a day trip to Tangier, Morocco from Tarifa, one of my favorite beach towns of all time. That running around with giant, violent, horned animals is cause for a festival... and then they're barbecued in Bevo fashion. Anyway, let's take a pictorial tour, shall we?

Malaga, from J's college friend's apartment.

View of the Cathedral of the Incarnation from the Alhambra in Granada.

J and I on the roof of the Alcazaba at the Alhambra, with the Sierra Nevada moutains behind us. Fabulous.

The Courtyard of the Myrtles at the Moorish castle, the Alcazar of Seville.

Whale watching in Tarifa in the Strait of Gibralter... sort of.

The Caves of Hercules near Tangier, Morocco... also known as Tangier's biggest tourist trap.

J and I in Pamplona, after he ran with the bulls... No bull.

Fabulous Playa de la Concho in San Sebastian. You can't see it, but there's a giant statue of Jesus overlooking all the topless sunbathers. Hmmmm.

La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona.

And not to be left out, the best food in the world:

Yummy.

And then, as if that wasn't enough (do you think I'm bragging? okay, well, maybe I am. a little.), we took a ten day cruise through the Mediterranean to Italy, Greece and Turkey. In Sicily, we visited Savoca, the village in which Michael Corleone married Appollonia, and walked up and down the pathway to Chiesa di Santa Lucia with my husband humming The Godfather theme song. We saw two of the seven wonders of the ancient world (or where they once were, anyway): the Colossus of Rhodes in, yes, Rhodes (where we decided to retire, depending on the economic climate of Spain), and the location of the Temple of Artemis near Kusadasi, Turkey, where we also saw the ancient city of Ephesus, where Paul preached, the gospel of St. John was written and the Virgin Mary (possibly) spent her last days. We hung out on a very beautiful blue beach in Mykonos, ate an incredible seafood lunch on a catamaran in the Santorini caldera and stood at the Parthenon on top of the Acropolis in Athens. It was... yeah. Like this:

Wisdom from the men's bathroom of the Celebrity Solstice. Don't ask.

J and I in Taormina, Sicily, with Mt. Etna behind us.

The Parthenon atop the Acropolis, in Athens.

Psarou Beach, in Mykonos. It's really that blue. Maybe more so.

The Celsus Library at Ephesus. Cleopatra was here once. Crazy.

Me, at the House of the Virgin Mary outside of Ephesus.

The harbor of Rhodes, where the Colossus of Rhodes once (probably) stood.

J and I enjoying a day of tasty food and drink with Captain Ted and Santorini Sailing.

The forum at Pompeii, outside of Naples, Italy.

Well, I was hoping to finish up with this post, but it's going to have to Part I and Part II, because this guy:

is currently requesting that I go to bed... possibly after eating some tasty ice cream. So tomorrow (hopefully), I'll cover the fall, repatriation and a few other subjects, and then move you on over to my new blog, on writing, motherhood and, yes, fabulous deals on shoes. What else would you expect of me?

Smooches -S