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the shores of bohemia
last month, i was hit by the annual spring homesickness wave and could think of nothing but the ocean. whether in washington or in iceland, i just wanted to walk along a beach, to smell saltwater, to feel waves lapping against my feet. i spoke to a couple of people about this great wanting to be near the sea – something that i feel has been deeply embedded in my soul, if i want to get sappy. one person i talked to (a dane) mentioned they do not share my need for the ocean. somebody else mentioned – well – here in czech republic, we are river people! fortunately my…
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chilled to the bone in třeboň
i have rarely felt as cold in my life as i did today. ohhh, that brutal winter temperature chilled me right to the bone, i’m sure.it seemed like a good idea to go to třeboň for the afternoon to go swimming at one of the famous spas, but when you go back into those freezing temperatures with damp hair and not the proper under(or over) garments, perhaps it wasn’t such a good idea after all. it was nice, at least, to have a wintry walk through trebon before stopping for chlebíčky (open-face sandwiches) at a café. after returning back to budějovice, i pretty much felt like i might die. just the…
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slow pace or rat race?
happy june! we are entering one of the best times of the year and i couldn’t be more pleased with these light evenings and warm sunny days. not only that, we have now had our little dog for six whole months now (!!!) and next month we’ll be headed back to the united states for five weeks! life is so good. lately we’ve just been living the “south bohemia” life – nothing much to put on paper. in fact, i suppose that’s why i haven’t had much to say lately (that i haven’t already micro-blogged on instagram, that is – hah). i certainly have been around and not too busy (although…
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may: friday things
hey friends – hope you are having a beautiful may! i always enjoy this birthday month and finally shaking the winter cobwebs away, preparing for the fun that will come with spring… especially more travel opportunities, heh. we enjoyed a gorgeous weekend in prague (above, on kampa) to celebrate my birthday but honestly, i’ve been finding that most of the action is right here in south bohemia lately. hoping that in june we’ll have some time to steal away for some adventures. so! here are a few memorable moments and some things i’ve been into this past month. 1. boat trip! i’m not exactly a boating novice (i wrote about our kayak…
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a weekend in “czech canada”
slavonice seemed like exactly the sort of place i’d want to spend a winter getaway. small, beautiful, artsy, it’s a borderland town right on the edges of south bohemia, vysočina (moravia), and austria (only 2km away). one of the greatest reasons to visit, its flanked on the west by the beautiful nature of česká kanada (czech canada), called this because of the rich swath of forests, lakes, and other natural sites that sometimes make it almost indistinguishable from canada. the short train journey (under an hour) from telc was pretty magical… to see names of towns and landscapes we didn’t recognize as we crossed from moravia back into the edge…
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the first day
yesterday the three year anniversary of living here in české budějovice, a small city in southwest czech republic. like the country of the czech republic, i realize i have a lot of milestones. i acknowledge each new year in europe, each year in the czech republic, and each year in the city, which are all different dates and in different seasons. but this one resonates with me particularly in terms of expat life and the success of our time living abroad. all of the snow we’ve been having really brings me back to the day we arrived: thursday, january 24th, 2013. i’ve already written about being picked up at the…
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winter, unplugged
temperatures here in southwestern czech republic have hit probably the lowest that i can remember since we moved here. three years ago living in prague, i remember some cooooold temps but it is rare that i am experiencing 2ºF/ -16ºC like it was this morning! i could hardly believe it. i’m from a place where it snows about once a year and that snow is duly celebrated, and then the next day or day after next, it all melts away. so imagine my happiness at a full week of snow– such a strange but welcome phenomenon! starting on the very first moments of the new year, it snowed and has…
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home vibes
the dark days have me wanting to be surrounded by blankets, flannels and slippers. i actually totally forgot i had slippers (you might remember my post about them earlier this year when i gave a pair away!) and a big smile came across my face– “I HAVE SLIPPERS!” sure enough, at the back of my closet shoved away, there they were. when you forget you own things, it’s like second christmas. (further proof that i am settling into life here more and more) loads of tea lights and advent candles a glowin’ nightly… so much darkness has caused me to retreat to bed wayyy too early a couple nights this…
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december/prosinec
hi friends! happy it’s december? you know i am. i’m trying to get a head-start on christmas stuff this year (well, aren’t we all trying to do this every year?) and i decked our halls two days earlier than my usual first of december decoration day. i’m trying out the “after thanksgiving” method, but now that it’s fully december i can play all i want for christmas is you with impunity. oh, don’t try to act like you don’t like that song. christmas trees aren’t available for sale in the czech republic until around halfway through the month, but i’ve been keeping an eye on all the usual places in…
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hello, october + a woodland walk
hi friends, i was just reading an article in the local budejovice rag, milk and honey, about the lazy days of summer (it was an old issue!) that got me seriously jonesin’ for summer’s return already. no! not happening!so i am turning my face away from the hot, everlasting summer of two thousand fifteen that was to the pleasant autumn, recounting all of my favorite autumn things. first thing that comes to mind: pumpkin everything. along with the ubiquitous (or perhaps here, not so much) pumpkin spice lattes, it means pumpkin soup! pumpkin cookies from my absolute favorite recipe. pumpkin coconut curry.lighting a pumpkin-scented candle and a bubble bath. reading…
