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When I started my retirement travels in 2009, I wanted a way to share it with family and friends as it was happening. Hence, "My Travel Journal". However I realized I wouldn't always be on a trip and wondered what to do with the blog in between times. My daughter pointed out, wisely, that travels can also include trips to the kitchen to try a new recipe, trips to visit family, trips to my neighborhood Starbucks, or a fun day trip with a friend. You're welcome to join me on any of these journeys! I've set up individual pages for each of my major trips (see tabs above).

Also, I have an Etsy shop where my current needlework resides. The last pieces I posted here were in 2013! So if you'd like to see what I have accomplished recently, go to (and I apologize for having to copy and paste):

www.etsy.com/shop/thedollhouseneedle

I recently added an "Italian Word a Day" thingie which shows up at the bottom of every page. You see the word and can click to hear it pronounced. I've been enjoying it and I think my accent is improving as time goes by.

March 01, 2012

A Quick Update

Well, Heather has now made her plane reservation and has also (we hope) booked a hotel.  Poor thing apparently spent two hours on the phone last night being shuffled back and forth between Amex and Marriott where she was trying to reserve a room using her points.  Marriott saying "you can't use vouchers until you have the voucher numbers"; Amex saying "we don't have the voucher numbers"; Marriott saying "neither do we"; Heather saying "but I won't get the vouchers for 10 days at which point the room might not be available"; both Amex and Marriott saying "well, yeah, that's basically right..."  So she booked the room on a points and cash basis, and when the vouchers come through will try and switch the room over to just vouchers.  That's why everyone should just use Capital 1 - you get your points and you use them whenever and wherever you please.

Meanwhile, I haven't reserved anything more.  But...I have e-mailed RailEurope to find out how I would get to the town in Germany where the miniature show is because when I type it into their "book a trip" form, they don't recognize the name.  But there's a train station there, so one way or another, there would be a way to get there from Paris.

And I've also e-mailed a woman in Nice, France who has a very nice looking apartment where she rents out a room.  It has tremendous reviews about her and the area and such.  So I'm asking her if it would be relatively to stay there for a week (her minimum stay) and use trains to get to various other places in southern France.  If she says yes (and I imagine she will - France's rail system seems to be pretty great), then I will probably book that, checking out on 5/17 and taking a morning train to Paris to meet up with Heather who will be getting into Paris at 6:00 a.m. that morning.

So if and when I get good answers from RailEurope and the apartment owner, my plan (I think) is to fly into Nice on 5/9, train to Paris on 5/17; get to Germany for the miniature show on June 3; then fly home from Amsterdam on June 4.  Kind of wears me out thinking about it, but I think once the thinking is done, it could be quite a nice trip because I would essentially only be staying in two places - Nice and Paris - so I wouldn't constantly be packing and unpacking.

We shall see...  Meanwhile, here's a picture to whet your appetite. :)

The apartment owner labeled this photo as "countryside behind Nice".  So apparently, I'd have mountains and beaches!

8 comments:

Elga said...

Hi Mary Lynne, I really hope things work out for you to get to Rheda, it will be great to meet you. What time will your flight leave Amsterdam on the 4th??? Mine leaves just before 6pm, it is a KLM flight. OK I am holding thumbs big time!!!!!!

Christopher said...

Wowsa... what a scene that is! And what a trip you're piecing to together; very exciting!

jamie said...

I am so proud of you! You are quite the accomplished traveler! And I know you love Italy, but it will be nice to see something else. Wow - the views look incredible!

Mary Lynne said...

Shaking like a leaf right now - just reserved the room in Nice AND made my flight reservation and will just have to have faith in the travel gods that it will all work. Good grief, it's nerve-wracking!! Oh, and just remembered one more thing I need to do - see if I can keep the apartment in Paris until time to leave for Germany. Cause yes, I made my flight into Nice and out of Amsterdam so I'll get to visit my first (and I'm pretty sure my ONLY) international dollhouse miniature show on this trip.

Christopher said...

Woohoo!!!

elly in amsterdam said...

YEEAAAHHHH !!!

Cheers,
Elly

Elga said...

Great!!!!! Can't wait to see you at the fair, it is my first international fair too, so we can OOH and AAH together!!!!!!

Christopher said...

PS---Happy Birthday, Mom! :)

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