Category Archives: Side-Trips

What’s in Luxembourg?

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Okay, my husband Mike is crazy. I believe I mean that he is crazy in the casual way people say, “He’s crazy!” But sometimes, I’m not so sure.

We live in Germany, and every other city, or district, or country near us, seems to be within throwing distance from where we are.  Because of this, my husband wants to go there.

We were in Trier, Germany, last month, just for the day.  And because we spent most of the day in that town (looking for the Karl Marx house), I figured we’d just go back to our hotel, and call it a night.  My husband had other plans. He said what all crazy people say, “Let’s do it!” Continue reading →

Trier…An Old Town

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A few weeks ago, Mike and I took off for a day trip to Trier, Germany. Trier is the oldest city in Germany.  It’s so old, there is an inscription on a red house in town that reads, “Thirteen- hundred years before Rome, Trier stood.”  I didn’t actually see that house, but I know it’s there.  I just missed it.  But what I couldn’t miss, is the Porta Nigra (the black gate). The Porta (as the locals call it) is the largest Roman city gate North of the Alps and it is the main portal into the city of Trier.

 

The Porta Nigra

The Porta Nigra

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Flashback Friday-Konya

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When you visit Turkey, a few things become apparent; they have great carpets (oh yes, I bought a few), they drive and move very quickly (see Flashback Friday-Istanbul), and this is the country of the Whirling Dervishes. You’ll see glimpses of them here and there; on TV, maybe at a show in Istanbul. But if you want to see them at home, visit Konya. Konya is a city in Central Turkey and it was the home of Mevlana Rumi. Rumi started the Mevlevi Order. The Mevlevi (followers of Rumi) are known as Whirling Dervishes. Supposedly, Rumi had a habit of “whirling from joy” in the streets of Konya. Continue reading →

Old School

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Another side-trip Mike and I took while visiting London, was a trip to Cambridge, England. Cambridge is about an hour and 20 minutes north of London, and it’s a college town. It’s so collegiate, I bought a college sweatshirt as soon as I got into town (and I love it, by the way). It’s also so collegiate that driving into town isn’t really permitted. There are several “car parks” so you can park and ride, or you can drive a bit further into the city and park and walk. Mike and I chose option number 2.

Church of Our Lady and the English Martyrs

While we were walking we came upon this church: The Church of Our Lady and the English Martyrs

Our second stop (remember, I bought the sweatshirt first) was to visit the University of Cambridge (the second oldest university in the English speaking world). Continue reading →

Woolly for Lavenham

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During our recent trip to London, we stopped in a few of the nearby towns. One of the villages we decided to visit was a place called Lavenham.  Lavenham is a quaint town, about an hour and a half outside of London. It has lots of quaint shops, and quaint houses and quaint people (have I used the word “quaint” enough?).  But the town really was sweet.

Our first stop was the Tourist Information Centre (I think every town in England has one, because there’s so much history…everywhere).  The lady at the Centre pointed us in the direction of the “crooked house,” and told us that the woman who wrote Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star lived in Lavenham when she wrote the poem (that would later become the song). The woman at the Tourist Centre also suggested we stop at a Tea Room around the corner…for a spot of tea (I Love England).  So, that’s exactly what we did.

Here's the Tea Room

Here’s the Tea Room

It was cool outside and we were hungry, and it was tea time (I Love England). So this was the perfect time to get some tea. Continue reading →