Ides of March...

We donned makeshift togas for Amsterdam H3’s Ides of March Hash in honor of the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44BC. Five Pack really got into the mood of the day while presenting soliloquies from Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar at several stops along trail.

Yes, we made the sheep at the kinderboederij (children’s farm) nervous.

The drama concluded at Museumplein with a re-enactment of the assassination itself.

A Weekend in Munich...

We spent the final two nights of our holiday in Munich. Due to a special deal on a hotel, we stayed outside the city center. That gave us an excuse to explore another part of the city, where we found an excellent roto-sushi restaurant. We also found a geocache.

We spent Saturday roaming around the historic center, mostly shopping, but we did pop into this church. We attempted to grab a beer at the Hofbrauhaus, but the service was atrocious so we left. Instead, we had dinner at an organic café, which made Ashlynn very happy as she’s very into healthy eating. 

Before heading to the airport on Sunday, we went to Therme Erding, home to a natural mineral springs and a huge indoor waterslide park. We especially loved the Magic Eye, the world’s longest tunnel slide in the world at 360 meters (1,180 feet).

Cool Snow Pics...

The next day, Veronica took this photo when she visited the barn near the hotel to meet the cows.

While the family skied, I took another walk. The sun was out, giving me some interesting photo ops.

When I arrived back at the waterfall, I was impressed to find an ice climber near the top.

While I was there, he climbed down.

I’ve always loved photographing reflections, so I was thrilled when I saw reflections of the Alps in the puddles on the road.

Geocaching in the Snow...

Ashlynn was excited when she found a meditation seat straight across from the falls. Of course, the conditions weren’t ideal for doing some yoga poses while contemplating the majestic beauty of nature.

Ironically, it was under that seat that Veronica found the geocache, the only one we managed to find that day.

A Frozen Waterfall...

The best thing about Ashlynn’s determination to find a geocache is that she led us to a waterfall. Of course, this time of the year it was frozen.

Apparently the Verpeilbach Waterfall is the largest remaining waterfall in the lower Kaunertal Valley after the construction of the large dam upstream.

Hking in the Snow...

I was happy that the girls decided to skip one day of skiing and were willing to go hiking with me. It was a little snowy.

We found a much nicer trail along the river than the one along the road that I took earlier in the week.

My little snow angels

Ashlynn lead us astray in an effort to find a geocache and then stopped to appreciate the beauty of the woods.

No surprise that Veronica stopped to take photos.

To the Top...

I joined the girls for a gondola ride to the top of the glacier, from which we could look into Italy and Switzerland. I was impressed that the girls later skied down from this point, but this time they took the gondola back down for a family lunch.

The glacier looks like blue ice.

Ashlynn enjoyed a few minutes in the sun.

Ski Bunnies?

The next day, Jimmy took the girls skiing at the glacier and I went on a walk with the wife of one of his colleagues. The following day, I took the ski bus to visit the glacier and check up on my ski bunnies.

Or rather, my ski ninjas.

Check out how much shorter Jimmy’s snowblades are compared to the girls’ skis. The snow conditions were much better than Garmisch was in previous years. It snowed one day and it was foggy another. 

The Austrian Alps...

We usually go to Garmisch, Germany for the company ski trip. Unfortunately, no one remembered to book the block of rooms this year, so a small group went to the Tyrol region of Austria instead. We flew into Munich, rented a car and took the back roads through Austria into the Kaunertal Valley to Hotel Weisseespitze.

The view from our hotel was beautiful as this photo shows.

After going into the very small village to rent skis, we took a walk around. There wasn’t much other than two ski shops, a small grocery store and a few restaurants. We did spot this ornate cemetery... 

...and this fresh milk dispenser. We were initially apprehensive that our hotel package included breakfast and dinner, but the food turned out to be really good.

February with the AWC...

I went a little crazy at this year’s charity handbag auction buying myself three bags in the live auction and several more in the bargain sale.

We bundled up for an afternoon in Amsterdam to visit the old Jewish District. We started with a tour of the Portuguese Synagogue. Built in 1675, this amazing building somehow made it through World War II unscathed.

The orthodox congregation is now quite small, so they often use this lovely winter synagogue throughout the year.

Our group was really lucky because our guide brought us into the library, which is the oldest functioning Jewish library in the world.

We walked by the Auschwitz Memorial on our way to the Jewish Historical Museum. It wasn’t until after our tour of the permanent exhibit and we were eating a special Jewish lunch that we found out that our tour guide was actually in her early 80s and had survived WWII by hiding in the Dutch countryside.

Back to Lancaster...

Veronica and I spent Valentine’s Day in England at an Offer Day at Lancaster University. Ironically, when I booked our plane tickets to Manchester it appeared that the trip was going to be a waste of money because Veronica was 90% sure she was going to Northwestern. Shortly before our trip, however, she surprised us by turning down Northwestern’s offer after deciding that she wanted to study in the UK. Although we had a very nice day, Veronica ultimately chose East Anglia as her top choice and Lancaster as her back-up.

We would have spent both nights in Lancaster, but due to scheduled train maintenance we’d have a tough time getting to the airport. Instead, we spent one night in Lancaster and the one in Manchester. For the first time ever, when we arrived at our hotel we were informed it was overbooked and despite pre-paying for our room, we were moved to another hotel. The location wasn’t nearly as convenient, but we made the best of it.

We went to a movie, ate in a pub, did some shopping and visited the John Rylands Library, built in 1900 and housing 180,000 books. When asked to leave a note with some poetry, Veronica was happy to write down a poem she wrote four years earlier...

You’re the one I think about,

Before I close my eyes.

I keep telling myself that

My heart can tell no lies.

But still I can’t help wondering

Whether you are right for me.

I just keep on wondering

If we were meant to be.

The building was very impressive, but what we especially enjoyed seeing was the special exhibit: Later-day Saints by Alan Birch. Bringing the medieval world of saints into the modern world, this series of prints included Saint Selfie, Saint Sat Nav and Saint Tweetus.

Kati at the Table...

As bizarre as it sounds, Jimmy likes to have Kati sit with us at the dinner table. While Veronica and I were away, Kati apparently moved up from sitting next to him to sitting in my seat at the head of the table. A few weeks later, Veronica and Jimmy made a video of how much fun Kati has when she sits with us.

Veronica Meets Her Mentor...

In January 2014, I signed up Veronica for Sea Change Mentoring, a mentoring program for third culture kids. I thought it would be good for Veronica to have an unbiased adult to discuss her big decision of which country to go to university. Despite Sea Change being a new company, the director managed to find the perfect match for Veronica: Beatriz.

Bea was born in Mexico to French and Spanish parents, but grew up in London. She then studied in Canada and ended up living near Cancun where she worked as a scientist. When she and her boyfriend were coming to Europe, she asked me if she could meet Veronica. Of course, I wanted them to meet and was happy to go along as well.

Veronica was really touched when Bea gave her the student cookbook that she used while at university, a book about scientific report writing and a basket for tortillas.

It was so great that Veronica and Bea got to finally meet in person. They will continue their official mentor/student relationship through Veronica’s first term at uni, but hopefully their friendship will continue much longer.