10 FOR 10: Trip #7 Whistler, BC, Canada

"It is not the mountain that we conquer

but ourselves."

-Edmund Hillary

TRIP #7: WHISTLER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA

Trip number seven on the 10 FOR 10 came about amid the drama and devastation of this past spring.  As much as SC loves spending time with her grandparents, she felt left out from not getting to travel overseas with us on the past two trips.  AC also needed a break, because as much as I was gone, he traveled to the UK for work at other times as well.  We needed time to engage as a family, and to recover from the losses we had been dealing with.  

It was decided that we would travel to Whistler, where SC would get to have her first ski lessons, because we were able to get some great deals on post-spring-break late-season skiing.  Whistler is actually where AC and I took our honeymoon, so it was fitting that one of our 10 FOR 10 trips was to travel back there.  We loved it that time, and were very impressed by how global the community there was.  That was the first time I had ever been out of the USA!  We went back when SC was an infant, though all she was able to do was sit in the snow and eat Zog's fries.

After attempts to learn both skiing and snowboarding, I am not into snow sports (though my friend L suggested I would be great on a snowmobile).  So for me, this trip was low-key, relaxing and full of books, making tea, and taking walks in the woods.  We signed SC up for two individual days of ski lessons, and after that allowed her to decide if she wanted a third day, which she did.  AC skied in the way he likes best, out in the morning late after a leisurely breakfast and coffee, and then back early for a late lunch and a beer at the foot of the mountain, watching everyone come in for the day.  It was nice for us to be together, but each have time apart.

She was a little nervous on day one, but was very happy when we picked her up, and told us she had a great time.  She moved up from level one to two after just the first day, and after the third day of lessons was ready to start on level three, which takes the kids on blue runs.  We got lucky and the third day of lessons was a Saturday, so they had professional photographers take pictures of all the kids and their classes.  We have never bought these type of photos before, because they have never been better than something we could reproduce on our own, but these really showed just how much she enjoyed skiing.

On the last day SC and AC went out together, and he was impressed with how much she was able to do, though she made it clear that he was not her teacher, so she was not going to listen to any advice he had for her.  Being so late in the ski season, the snow was very thin and wet, which made things a bit more difficult, but all in all, they had a great time.  In fact, the only down of the trip was when we were driving back to the airport, a two hour winding trip down from the mountains into Vancouver, and SC got car sick.  Luckily nothing happened in the car, but we now have in our memories what will forever be know as "The Vancouver Airport Incident."

The next ski trip we take will hopefully also be to Whistler, because we were so impressed with their kids' ski lessons.  SC had three different teachers, and we could tell every single one of them understood the age group they were teaching, and genuinely enjoyed getting to pass on their knowledge of skiing.  Next time we want her to be able to take a five day class, with the same kids and teacher the whole time, but that will require more planning than this quick trip did.  Also, AC gets altitude sickness, and the peak of Whistler Mountain is only about 7,000 feet, which is lower than the bases of almost every mountain in Colorado.  Whistler is just the place for us!

In case you missed the first post ...

WHAT IS THE 10 FOR 10?

In July 2015, AC and I will celebrate our tenth wedding anniversary, and as such have been discussing what sort of big trip to take.  However, it occurred to me that we typically take some pretty big trips every year, sometimes as a tag-along when AC works, and sometimes just using all the points and miles he has amassed from his work travels.  I couldn't help but wonder if another trip would really be that special and different.  So, I came up with the idea that instead of just one more trip, we should take ten trips to celebrate our years together.  I told AC, and told him that it didn't have to be just him and me (because SC is also part of our lives, obviously), but that I wanted to take ten purposeful trips, that are focused on celebrating us (and our family) as much as we can.  I told him that they didn't all have to be long or complicated trips, though we had already talked about a few places that will be, and we can start now (in our tenth year) and run through the end of 2015 so that we didn't take too much time away from work.  So, hopefully, these ten trips will make this a celebratory year, one that will stand out for us as we look back (in another ten years).

TRIP #1: Universal Studios Florida & Walt Disney World

TRIP #2: New York City

TRIP #3: Panama City, Panama

TRIP #4: Grand Cayman

TRIP #5: London & Paris

TRIP #6: London & Oslo

10 FOR 10: Trip #6 London & Oslo

"I've the most extraordinary longing to say 'Bloody Hell'!"

Henrik Ibsen, A Doll's House, Act I (Nora)

TRIP #6: LONDON & OSLO

This sixth 10 FOR 10 trip was a tag-along for me while AC had work to do in London, and then went to a conference that started in Oslo, Norway, and then traveled to Kiel, Germany on a cruise ship via the north/south waterway between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea.  

To start the trip off, we were upgraded into first class, the real one with the beds that lay down completely flat.  It was incredible and so much more comfortable than spending hours cramped up in  a seat that barely reclines a few inches.  Once there, we spent the weekend in London wandering around.  We discovered Brick Lane Market on the East side, which is open on Sundays and full of delicious food vendors.  AC had to work the first days of the week, so I played the tourist and went to Kensington Palace for the fashion exhibit, and the V&A for the wedding dress exhibit.  

We took a quick flight to Oslo on Tuesday night, and Wednesday AC had meetings to go to, so I spent the day wandering the main street area, Karl Johans Gate.  I bought a scarf from a local shop, and wandered out of the way to find a local potter to purchase a beautiful coffee mug.  I spent most of the day, however, at the National Gallery, which I was very pleased with.  It had the most logical flow pattern, and related every national artist to what was going on with the rest of the world.  I learned so much about not just Norwegian artists, but how they fit in relation to the worldwide art movements as they were happening.  Of course I saw Munch's famous Scream, but enjoyed the rest of the museum's works just as much.

Wednesday night we went to dinner with all the other conference speakers, and then Thursday morning we embarked for the two-day conference.  For me it was intellectually exhilarating, which is probably not what most spouses would say if dragged along on a technical conference.  However, I am very interested in certain aspects of data technology, so I even sat in on some of the sessions.  I also enjoyed getting to know so many of the other people that AC has the opportunity to work with, and had some pretty intense conversations.

The other thing I did on this trip was take the opportunity to read seven books from my "to read" list.  Of those I read, my favorite was Elizabeth is Missing, by Emma Healey (and I hope to review it soon).  The Carnival at Bray by Jessie Ann Foley and The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins were both very good as well. 

We only were able to spend a few hours in Kiel before turning around to head back to Oslo, and we met up with some local(ish) friends of friends who had set up an outdoor picnic, complete with sandwiches and drinks.  AC and I stayed for a bit and then wandered some, but not too far into the city, since we had to make it back to the boat at a specific time.  

Saturday morning we arrived back in Oslo, and then promptly flew back to London, where we spent the weekend before I headed home on my own.  AC still had some work to get done and would be coming home at the end of the week.  Even though it was a tag-along trip and AC had to work some, we both had a great time, and I would jump at the chance to tag along to this particular conference again.

In case you missed the first post ...

WHAT IS THE 10 FOR 10?

Next July, AC and I will celebrate our tenth wedding anniversary, and as such have been discussing what sort of big trip to take.  However, it occurred to me that we typically take some pretty big trips every year, sometimes as a tag-along when AC works, and sometimes just using all the points and miles he has amassed from his work travels.  I couldn't help but wonder if another trip would really be that special and different.  So, I came up with the idea that instead of just one more trip, we should take ten trips to celebrate our years together.  I told AC, and told him that it didn't have to be just him and me (because SC is also part of our lives, obviously), but that I wanted to take ten purposeful trips, that are focused on celebrating us (and our family) as much as we can.  I told him that they didn't all have to be long or complicated trips, though we had already talked about a few places that will be, and we can start now (in our tenth year) and run through the end of 2015 so that we didn't take too much time away from work.  So, hopefully, these ten trips will make this a celebratory year, one that will stand out for us as we look back (in another ten years).

TRIP #1: Universal Studios Florida & Walt Disney World

TRIP #2: New York City

TRIP #3: Panama City, Panama

TRIP #4: Grand Cayman

TRIP #5: London & Paris

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10 FOR 10: Trip #5 London & Paris

"Paris was a universe whole and entire unto herself,

hollowed and fashioned by history..."

Anne Rice, Interview with a Vampire

TRIP #5: LONDON & PARIS

Our fifth 10 FOR 10 trip was one for only AC and I, and one that required plenty of advance planning.  We were to spend a few days in London, with the highlight seeing our favorite football team, Arsenal, play, and then head to Paris for a few days, including Valentine's Day.  We ended up traveling back to London at the end of the trip so that AC could do some work, but that meant we were able to see Arsenal play again, which was just fine with me.  

I will be honest, other than that we went to the games and spent some much-needed time with local friends, I don't remember much of what we did in London.  I barely remember exactly what we did in Paris, because much of my memory of this trip is clouded by the dog's problems back home.  I do know that we enjoyed walking around various parts of the city and having some much-needed time to really focus on each other.

In Paris we purposely did not do every tourist activity, because we hope to go back with SC in the future.  We walked around the gardens at the Rodin museum, and made jokes about the number of sculptures that seem to have been done by someone other than Rodin, laughing at how we have no knowledge of how such large, elaborate works of art are actually made.  We climbed the stairs to the top of the Arc de Triomphe and in a very touristy fashion marveled at the traffic patterns. We leisurely shopped on the Champs-Élysées.  We spent a day walking in Montmatre, and stopped to have coffee in the square when the rain started, and laughed at the other tourists with their cheap umbrellas that didn't begin to hold up to the wind and rain.  

We made it up all three hundred stairs at Sacré-Cœur, and marveled at the view.  We watched the line of people standing in the rain, waiting to go up Notre Dame, and just listened to the bells ring as we chatted and had more coffee.  We walked through the Jardin des Tuileries, though nothing was in bloom.  We thoroughly enjoyed the Musée de l'Orangerie, and spent a significant amount of time viewing Monet's Water Lilies.  The vastness of these paintings is overwhelming and extraordinary.

We did not go up the Eiffel Tower, as that is one of the things I want to experience with SC, but the location of our hotel meant that we walked past it every day, at different times of day.  We also did not go to any of the other museums (even though we had initially planned to), instead opting to spend our days outside, walking around, and stopping more than once for coffee.  We also ate so much delicious food, and enjoyed the ability to have a long meal with no one rushing us in and out.  All in all, it was mostly a relaxing, romantic trip.

In case you missed the first post ...

WHAT IS THE 10 FOR 10?

Next July, AC and I will celebrate our tenth wedding anniversary, and as such have been discussing what sort of big trip to take.  However, it occurred to me that we typically take some pretty big trips every year, sometimes as a tag-along when AC works, and sometimes just using all the points and miles he has amassed from his work travels.  I couldn't help but wonder if another trip would really be that special and different.  So, I came up with the idea that instead of just one more trip, we should take ten trips to celebrate our years together.  I told AC, and told him that it didn't have to be just him and me (because SC is also part of our lives, obviously), but that I wanted to take ten purposeful trips, that are focused on celebrating us (and our family) as much as we can.  I told him that they didn't all have to be long or complicated trips, though we had already talked about a few places that will be, and we can start now (in our tenth year) and run through the end of 2015 so that we didn't take too much time away from work.  So, hopefully, these ten trips will make this a celebratory year, one that will stand out for us as we look back (in another ten years).

TRIP #1: Universal Studios Florida & Walt Disney World

TRIP #2: New York City

TRIP #3: Panama City, Panama

TRIP #4: Grand Cayman