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Saturday, April 28, 2018
Hello from Croatia
And already day 3 here in Croatia. Time is flying as usual. Left JFK on Wednesday night and
the flight to Munich was pretty uneventful. I got lucky and the seat next to me was empty so I was able to stretch out a bit more and was able to doze off for some of the flight. Had a long connection in Munich which was ok because last year after my initial flight being delayed I barely made my connection so it was ok to have a long connection and not need to stress about that. I bought myself a smoked salmon panini and a tea and just hung out until my next flight to Trieste, Italy. My parents picked me up at the airport and we drove to Croatia. Stopped on the way in Slovenia for lunch. The hotel/resort we are staying at in Croatia is right across the bay from Piran, Slovenia and you can see the old city in the distance from our balcony. Lovely ocean views. The resort itself is not very full due to it being off season still but that's ok. Less crowded that way.
Yesterday, Friday, we went to lunch in the port of Savudrija. Hung out there for quite a while, ordering appetizers (scallops & pasta stuffed with shrimp and truffle oil), a huge shellfish platter & a fried fish platter as well as cappuccino and wine. When we got back to the hotel my parents decided to take an afternoon nap and I ventured back out to another restaurant close by (about 15 min walking distance) for some gelato and a white wine spritzer. Had the most gorgeous views from their terrace. Unfortunately their credit card machine wasn't working and I only had my credit card on me, no local currency. But they were fine with that and just gave me the bill, telling me to come back and pay later. So we will end up having lunch there today. :)
Today I slept in a bit (still trying to shake this jetlag) and am now sitting outside on the balcony catching up on a few things, like my blog, Instagram, etc. Also have a couple emails to write so maybe I will try and do that. In the morning the sun doesn't shine on the balcony yet so it's a bit cool but really not bad. It's already close to 70F now, going to get up to 76F later. The weather has been most gorgeous. Supposed to be really nice tomorrow as well, then cool down a tiny bit but still very nice. Especially considering the weather that I came from. Just about perfect here. Palm trees, the ocean, wine, what more can you want?
Letter/Mail Update: Received letters from/owe replies to: Nina/WA, Kimber/Canada and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 04:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, April 22, 2018
Is spring finally getting here? Almost time to leave for Europe ...
Another week gone by and the weather is still being kind of weird. Today the high is supposed to be 60F (15C) and that's actually really nice compared to some of the temps we have been having. Plus it's sunny which is nice. But tonight overnight it will go back down to 35 (barely above freezing) Such weird weather. I think after mid week it is supposed to get a little better but it won't really matter to me anymore then as I will be on a plane heading to Europe on Wednesday. :) I am leaving Wednesday night, getting to Munich Thursday morning and connecting to Trieste, Italy. From there it's a little over an hour to get to the town in Croatia where our hotel is. I started pre-packing some of my things yesterday, just to get ahead of the game. Mainly to try to make sure that I have all the things I am bringing with me for other people. Just as I wrote that I thought of one other thing I needed to make sure to bring. Yup, pretty much how it goes with me. I collect things throughout the year to bring with me for various people when I go to Austria. And then it becomes a game of remembering all the stuff stored all over the apartment when it's actually time to go.
So anyway I started pre-packing last night and been adding small things here and there since then. Our cat Mindy was "helping" me last night when I was trying to pack. What is it with cats and suitcases? Well I guess a suitcase is really just a slightly different shaped box and we all know that cats love boxes. So hey, it makes sense. So yeah Mindy was helping me while I gathered things. And then after I was done I rewarded myself with an episode of "Outlander" while Sadie curled up on my lap purring. It's going to be weird going to Austria and not seeing my parent's cat Jumbo. Did I write about him on here? I am not even sure if I did. Jumbo was my parent's cat, a super gentle sweet Maine Coon cat, and passed away suddenly about a month ago. He wasn't even that old, I think maybe 8 or 9, but Maine Coon's can be prone to heart disease so we are thinking it may have been something to do with that as he went from "fine" to "not fine at all" within 24 hours more or less. Poor kitty. I will miss seeing him during my visits.
So yeah, pretty much set to go on Wednesday. I tried to put my work stuff in order but that's all a "work in progress" until I actually leave as things could still change, new files be added, etc. But everything seems to be in as decent of an order as it can be for right now. Yesterday, Saturday, we slept in and then had lunch at 121 in Oxford. Today I took care of some stuff around the apartment this morning, put on the spring bedset and finally switched out my winter deco for the spring deco. When I come back from Europe it will be May and I really don't want winter stuff around in May. :)
Letter/Mail Update: Received letters from/owe replies to: Nina/WA and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 11:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, April 15, 2018
Warm, cold ... crazy weather
This weather is absolutely crazy. Spring, where are you? Come on, you can do it!! We had nice weather on Friday and Saturday with temps up to 70F (21C) but today it's back down to 40F (4-5C). What the hell! And the weather doesn't look too promising for this upcoming week either. Looks like mostly temps in the 50ies (10 C) with lows in the 30s (around freezing C) for some nights. Brrrr. I am really over it.
At least we were able to enjoy the nice weather yesterday and went for the first walk of the season. Between my ankle injury back in November and the colder weather, ice/snow, we haven't really been out and about much since last fall. I am definitely out of shape. But it was nice to be outside walking. We walked for about 4 miles on a paved trail in Cheshire/Meriden we go to a lot. It runs alongside a river and lake and has some pretty scenery. Plus it's flat and paved. So just the right thing to get back into walking. We had a nice walk and then lunch in Oxford at 121. You could feel the temperature dropping, getting windier etc. Today it's really windy, gloomy and cold. Total opposite from yesterday.
Well, one more full work week plus a half a week and then I will be on the plane to Europe. I don't know if I am ready. Well I know I am not. Haha. Between work (I still need to cover for a co-worker for 3 days while she is on a mini vacation) and just getting ready on a personal level, no nowhere near ready. I do have a bunch of things accumulated and set aside that I need to bring with me when I go. Just need to try and make sure not to forget anything. I have contacted a good amount of friends already to try and set up gettogethers. Won't really be in Austria for very long (just 3 days) Most of the trip will be in Croatia. Originally it was going to be Piran, Slovenia but my dad now switched to a different hotel across the bay in Croatia. Either way, the food and wine will be delicious. I am flying into Trieste, Italy (about 1 hr 15 min from the hotel) Leaving on April 25 and returning on May 7. I am sure it will fly by super fast.
Not too much else going on right now. Just taking it easy today. Going to drop off some clothes I want to donate and then heading for lunch. Going to catch up on some TV shows when we get back. And well then it will already be Monday again. Time just flies by too fast, especially on the weekends.
Letter/Mail Update: A letter went out on Monday to: Celia/MA. Received letters from/owe replies to: Nina/WA and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 11:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Tuesday, April 10, 2018
Busy Week
And somehow it's already April 10. I am not even sure how that happened. And what is it doing outside? Snowing! Well to be fair it's just snow showers and not really sticking much. I don't think it's supposed to accumulate too much but it's just the point. Where's spring? But then on Friday and Saturday it's supposed to get up to 70F (21C) but then on Sunday back down to 50F (10C) Such crazy weather. I do hope that we actually get the nice weather even if it's just for two days. We will need to figure out something to do outside on Saturday, maybe go for a walk even if it's just something short.
Let's see, what else? The rest of our Maine weekend was nice last weekend. Saturday night we went to the Thirsty Pig and that was a lot of fun. Sunday we slept in and then stopped in Portsmouth at the Portsmouth Brewery. Always a fun place and a good meal. So all in all a very nice weekend. Then last week was ok, nothing too crazy really. Just regular work stuff.
This past weekend on Saturday we went to see "The Isle of Dogs" (Wes Anderson's newest movie) I liked it, really your typical Wes Anderson movie. Had lunch after and in the evening I relaxed, finished my book and had some tea. Sunday we had brunch at the Red Rooster and later caught up on some recorded shows. I feel like we are getting behind again with our shows but oh well. A bunch of them are going to be ending some time in May so we can catch up after that as needed.
This week has been very busy so far. Been covering for a colleague who's been out sick. I hope she feels better soon. Miss her when she's not there. Obviously because I have to cover for her but also because it's less fun not having her around. Well hopefully she will feel better by tomorrow. Fingers crossed. Oh, also set up my Galaxy S9 and sent back my old Galaxy S7 Edge. So it's official. All new phone, no more old phone. It felt weird wiping the old phone and sending it back.
Letter/Mail Update: A letter went out on Monday to: Celia/MA. Received letters from/owe replies to: Nina/WA and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 07:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)