bright eyes + blue eyes

Best-Ever Mugs

One of the up-slash-down-sides of moving all the time is that we really don’t have much stuff. On the one hand this makes me feel free and spontaneous. On the other hand it makes me feel immature and annoyed. It depends on my mood, as to whether I feel more glad or more irritated that we’re living light at the moment.

Most of the items that we do have are tucked away at my parents-in-laws’ house, ready for the day when we make a move that’s substantial enough for it to make sense to bring those things with us. Until that time comes, I’ve gotten accustomed to not getting too attached to having my things with me, especially if the things are heavy or breakable. But there are certain key items that usually get to come along on our adventures. And these mugs are among the selected chosen few:

When we were preparing to go to Tanzania, we had six weeks of training in Bad Honnef, a little town on the Rhine river. The facility was actually a mile or two outside of the little town of Bad Honnef, and there wasn’t really much around it. There was a beer garden a few minutes’ walk away, directly on the Rhine. I have very fond memories of long summer nights spent visiting, drinking Hefeweitzen, and watching the barges on the river. One time we were standing in line to order beer at the Bad Honnef beer garden, and one of the waiters told the owner that someone had complained about their potato salad. The owner’s immediate response was: ‘Gleich Bombe!’ Which was his poetically succinct way of saying (facetiously): ‘I’ll blow them up in a minute.’ Since we heard that, that has been a favorite phrase of ours. Someone is exasperating to you, and you say: Gleich Bombe!

Anyway, back to the mugs. Pretty much the only other thing in the immediate vicinity of the retreat center was an outdoors shop. I think they selected their location very cleverly, because they had a constant supply of new development workers, on their way to far-flung parts of the world. And as we all know, every expat aid worker likes ample outdoors gear. I don’t think we actually got much at that shop, but we did get these mugs there. And we’ve enjoyed many a warm beverage out of them since then.

Several years ago, shortly after getting married, I was reading an interview in the lifestyle section of the weekend Financial Times. I can’t remember who the interview was with, but it was someone British and female. The newspaper asked her what her best marriage advice was. Her phrasing of it was better, but essentially the advice was: never get yourself a cup of tea without asking if you can also get a cup of tea for your partner. Basically, a very British way of saying be kind to one another, even in the midst of daily life. I love that advice, and I love that our lightweight, durable, perfectly-sized mugs have played a role in our daily kindnesses.

Giant’s Causeway

Given the fact that I pretty much took up residence in the library for the past few months, I really don’t have many photogenic moments to catch you up on. And I don’t even know if this one even counts because most of the pictures are smudged.

I needed to go to Northern Ireland for work in mid June. H had just finished a hectic term, and he was ready for a change of scenery. We decided we would check out the Giant’s Causeway before I did my work. I had heard about the Giant’s Causeway a few years ago and seen pretty pictures of it. It’s this naturally occurring unique rock formation at the northern tip of NI. It’s basically a lot of octagonal columns of rock. It is named The Giant’s Causeway because of legends about its provenance.

We really do love to walk, especially in scenic locations. It’s one of our things. So we set off from our hostel and were following the signs.

It’s really a strikingly beautiful coastline.

One of the main things that makes is so beautiful is the contrast of the green against all the other, muted colors. But you know why it’s so green? Because it rains – a lot.

 

 

Can you see how soaked I am in this picture – and how fake my “smile” is. Overall my impressions of the Giant’s Causeway were: 1) It’s really just a patch of these rock formations, not all along the coastline, as I had imagined. 2) I was really dripping wet. 3) It was windy and cold.

So overall, the rocks were not interesting enough to trump the wind, rain, and cold. We caught a bus back to the village we were staying in. I would say that the foray to the Giant’s Causeway was not everything I wanted it to be. Oh well. Win some, lose some.

Lancrigg Vegetarian Country House Hotel

Lancrigg Vegetarian Country House Hotel has a long name and a lot of spunk to live up to it. Mom and I stayed at when we went to the Lake District, and it was so memorable. First of all, the setting is incredibly, amazingly, strikingly beautiful. Here’s the view from the entry.

From the hotel, you can strike out in any direction and find some great walks. There’s a forest that feels enchanted on the grounds. And once you walk away from the hotel, you’ll get a glimpse of the cheery little yellow house hotel.

 

The room we stayed in was really large and comfortable. It’s not fancy, per se, but unique and cozy.

Doesn’t my mom look cute peeping out of our window?

 

Lancrigg is totally vegetarian, so no bacon with your Full English. BUT – the food was really, really good. Everything was thoughtfully sourced and very flavorfully prepared.

I took this picture to remember the brand of this perfectly tangy/sweet Luscombe Sicilian lemonade that Lancrigg stocks. But it also shows what a killer view we had.

(By the way, Mom, it looks like you can get Luscombe drinks in the US.)

The best part of staying at Lancrigg, though, was that I got to spend time with this lovely lady!

 

Wordsworth & Poetry

When Mom was here, we also spent a lovely couple of days in the Lake District. There is a lot of Wordsworth stuff in Grasmere, the village where we stayed. There’s a lot I could say about our time there, but I’ll start with poetry. I have two points to make about poetry.

1. Reading a few Wordsworth poems in gift shops made me think that I don’t have nearly enough poetry in my life. If you read poetry with any regularity, how do you select the anthologies/books? Do you read a volume all the way through, like a novel? Or do you just dip in from time to time?

2. Just read the poem below, even if you usually skim over copied texts in blog posts. I love the sentiment expressed in this famous Wordsworth poem, about having a beautiful experience, then loving the memory of the experience every bit as much as having had the experience itself.

I WANDERED lonely as a cloud

That floats on high o'er vales and hills,

When all at once I saw a crowd,

A host, of golden daffodils;

 

Beside the lake, beneath the trees,

Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine

And twinkle on the milky way,

 

They stretched in never-ending line

Along the margin of a bay:     

Ten thousand saw I at a glance,

Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

 

The waves beside them danced; but they

Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:

A poet could not but be gay,

In such a jocund company:

 

I gazed--and gazed--but little thought

What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie

In vacant or in pensive mood, 

 

They flash upon that inward eye

Which is the bliss of solitude;

And then my heart with pleasure fills,

And dances with the daffodils.

 

-- William Wordsworth 1804.

Royal Escort

My mom was over to visit last week. One of the things that we did was go to the wedding of a family friend in Ireland. In fact, this time last week, we were taking up the very kind invitation of the parents of the groom to celebrate the happy couple on the eve of their marriage. We dined in a 13th century castle tower. It was every bit as amazing as it sounds.

Because Ireland is the mama and papa of low-cost airlines, we could have just flown to Dublin and back for approximately 2p each. But we wanted to take the scenic route on at least one leg of the journey. We took the train to Wales, then spent the night in Holyhead on Anglesey, where we saw a sunset that was too beautiful to even attempt to capture on a photograph. We crossed the Irish Channel by ferry the next morning.

In my opinion, being on a ferry is fun. (Note: I do, though, have strong caveats about the kind of ferry that is enjoyable.) The ferry we were on was enormous and made me wonder what being on a cruise boat is like. For the two hour crossing, you could entertain yourself by watching a movie, eating at the restaurant, sitting in the sports bar, or watching the boat’s contrails from the back deck. We chose to do the latter as we left Wales.

And then, wait! What’s that zooming over from the Welsh horizon!?

Oh my goodness! It’s Prince William’s helicopter! He is stationed on Anglesey, after all.

Doesn’t this look like the Duke of Cambridge to you?

The helicopter tracked with the boat for about ten minutes.

Then they pulled over directly on top of the ferry and maintained that position for a few minutes before peeling away to return to Anglesey. We asked at the information desk if they knew what was going on. They said that they do this about once a week as a training exercise. Whether it actually was PW or not, we – and the other passengers on that side of the boat – had a lot of fun convincing ourselves that we were being escorted by royalty.

 

chicago: lincoln park zoo

 

We had a great time at the Lincoln Park Zoo. This zoo is one of the oldest in the country (1868...to give a little context, remember that 1868 is only a few years after the Civil War ended...!) 

Also noteworthy: Lincoln Park Zoo is completely free!

 

The zoo is smack dab in the middle of downtown Chicago. You can see beautiful Lake Michigan from the East Entrance. If I was a mom living in the city, I'd definitely come here often. What a beautiful place to enjoy a picnic.

 

I particularly loved the Lion House. It was the most elegant Lion House I've ever visited. (By a long shot.)

 

 

 

Berlin / Brandenburg

I took a 24 hour trip Berlin in June. We were staying near Hamburg at the time, so it’s not as jet-set as it sounds.

I went because I needed to apply in person for a work visa for the UK. [A side note: On the visa application I answered the question, “Have you engaged in any other activities that might indicate that you may not be considered a person of good character?" I know they’re looking to root out terrorists and crooks, but I found that to be a very theologically loaded question!] So the visa was the reason for the quick trip to Berlin, but I had a great time while I was there.

I had such a good time visiting with a dear friend, walking around in our old neighborhood, and treating myself to some of my favorite things in Berlin. In fact, I was having so much fun that I lost track of time and had to run full-out in order to catch the last bus back to Hamburg.

Berlin has so much to offer, especially for a cheapskate, adventurous eater, like me. There’s a surprisingly wide selection of Vienamese restaurants [One of which I love but can’t remember the name]. Coledampf’s, one of the best kitchen stores, I’ve ever visited. A fresh, modern take on German food at Lebensmittel in Mitte. Do I need to mention again the superb ice cream to be had in Germany?

Then there are the sights, like the compelling Holocaust Memorial, the Reichstag and the Fehrnsehturm at Alexanderplatz.

I love how you can see the Fehrnsehturm from all sorts of vantage points, depending on where you are in the city.

Walking past the Brandenburger Tor reminded me of a good book that I read a few months ago. The Brandenburg Gate is structure in the above picture, and it’s also the name of a book by Henry Porter. The novel is an engrossing story about the last days of East Germany, before the Berlin Wall fell. The book dramatizes a series of events that is so important in modern history. Berlin is a dynamic and exciting city, and you should definitely visit if you have the chance. But if distant travel isn’t in your budget, try picking up Brandenburg Gate for a wonderful read and an effortless way to learn a little bit about what made Berlin the city it is today.

Big Moves

Guess what!?

We’re moving. (Big surprise, huh?)

Today we’re on a plane to England. We arrive at 8 A.M., so if you’re reading this in America, we’re probably already well into our first day as English residents. Hip-hip-hooray for living in the UK!

This is my seventh move since I graduated from college in 2000. The last five of those moves have been international. That means I’ve gotten pretty good at packing. Well, actually, that’s a lie. I’m not good at it at all. I’ve learned to tolerate it quite well, though. H is good at it. He has an aptitude for packing and gets this efficient, concentrated, in-the-zone look to him when he’s got a suitcase in front of him. Used to be, when I had a suitcase in front of me, it was a sure bet that I’d start crying within the hour. I have made dramatic improvements to my approach to packing. My husband bears full responsibility for these developments. Reference Exhibit 1, below. We packed all these bags in the span of about 3 hours. Not a single tear was shed.

This is all we’re taking with us. We’ll be searching for a furnished flat, of course. Two bags go with us on the plane today, and then the rest will be sent by air freight once we get into an apartment. Air freight is a great new discovery for me. We used it to move to Tanzania and back. You pay by the kilo, but there are no weight restrictions, so you can let your budget be your guide. Prior to that, I had just moved my stuff in stages, using only the free baggage allowance whenever I or a family member flew on a commercial flight. After all that flying within the weight limit and careful maximization of every trip by taking up every ounce allotted to me, I seriously am really good at making ballpark estimates of the weight of my belongings…probably not a normal skill to have.

I have to say that I’m kind of impressed that most of our worldly possessions fit into these suitcases. Those suitcases carry all manner of goods, including winter & summer clothes (not that we’ll need summer clothing in England, I’m sure), a selection of books, bathroom and kitchen items, linens, electronic gear, and other sundry personal effects. I like living light – if you call 350 pounds light.

At the same time, I’m hoping that in this decade, I can pick out something big and solid that doesn’t fit into a suitcase or blue barrel and I can get attached to keeping -- like a kitchen table or a comfy reading chair. You’ll know I’m settling down if I ever mention meaningful, heavy furniture purchases. Until then I’ll just keep setting up house on the fly.

Patel Brotherhood

The Patel Brotherhood is a private club in Dar es Salaam, and it is one of my favorite places in the city. First of all, the food there is super – terrific garlic & butter naan and rich, delicious curries. On top of the cuisine, I really enjoy the atmosphere at the Patel Brotherhood.

Food is grilled at a station in the corner of the courtyard. Badminton and tennis courts are off to the other side. Most of the members and guests are local Indian families, of all types, sizes, and ages. Kids are always running around, weaving in and out of the tables. On some nights, a projector is set up to beam broadcasts from India onto the big screen - cricket, football or shows like Indian Superstar.

Above are big starry skies with the occasional contrail from a flight arriving from Europe. Calls to prayer sound from nearby mosques. An underlying hum comes from table conversations being spoken in half a dozen different languages. Fragrant cooking smells hang in the air. I always feel a pleasant, peppery buzz after feasting on prawns masala and jeera chicken. Dinner at the Patel Brotherhood seems like an ideal multi-cultural experience.

P.S. There are a lot of people with Indian backgrounds in TZ. Many have Tanzanian citizenship but maintain strong cultural ties to their Indian heritage. A portion of Tanzania’s Indian community belongs to the Dawoodi Bohra sect of the Muslim faith. The men wear Western-style clothes, but the women’s attire is very noticeable. The two piece outfits are made are made of bright, candy- or pastel-colored fabric. The top is a hooded poncho and has the same design as the skirt, which usually features a doily border and appliqué flowers. I searched for a picture of the unique dress worn by the Bohra women, and I found just what looking for on a website called WorldGlobeTrotters.

Apparently, the couple behind the website has been travelling around the world for 7 years. They sound like interesting people, and they were in our area a few months ago. Too bad our paths didn’t cross. Check out a full version of this picture and more good pictures on their Dar trip report page.

Zanzibar Coffee House

I have one more thing to say about our little excursion to Stone Town. We loved the place we stayed, the Zanzibar Coffee House. They have a cafe on the ground floor and upstairs are several rooms, each named after a coffee drink. We stayed in the Moccachino room.

The beds are carved in the traditional Zanzibari canopy style, with custom mosquito nets and comfortable mattresses.

When we returned to the hotel after a day of walking around, we found that the housekeeping staff had turned down the sheets, closed the bed net, and scattered night-blooming jasmine blossoms on the pillows.

At first, I didn’t realize that the flowers were jasmine, because they were tight little buds. As night fell, the blossoms began to open and release their incredible, delicate fragrance.

The rooms at the Zanzibar Coffee House were charming, but the breezy rooftop lounge was our favorite part. They serve a lovely breakfast on the rooftop, including cooked-to-order eggs, fresh croissants, and homemade granola.

From up on the rooftop, you could see all of Stone Town, it seemed.

 

To top it all off, the coffee there was fantastic. That is perhaps no surprise, given their name. But enjoying a good coffee together is one of our favorite indulgences -- and there’s not a lot of good coffee in Masasi…

The Zanzibar Coffee House has a sister property in the Rift Valley, where the coffee is grown. The Zanzibar Coffee House does their own roasting and blending. We brought home a tin of Zanzibar coffee to remember our very pleasant trip to Stone Town.