31. Jul, 2010

Fossil Hunting on Gotland – Carter

Fossil Hunting on Gotland – Carter

Four days ago, my family left the Viking village and headed to a beach for FOSSIL HUNTING! We pulled up to the nice sandy beach…and walked in the opposite direction. After 5 minutes and some not-very-nice views, and smells, of small rivers we came to a stretch of rocks. The rocks were small and about […]

31. Jul, 2010

Sometimes It’s Good to Be American…

We had decided to skip lunch and go to an early supper at one of the island’s best restaurants. We arrived shortly after 6:00 pm when dinner service began. As we approached the entrance, I straightened the collar of Carter’s shirt; it was Friday night in high season and we had no reservation. We entered. […]

29. Jul, 2010

Savoring Scandinavia

Savoring Scandinavia

The weather in Scandinavia was cool and damp but the cuisine proved to be an entirely unexpected bright spot. Against a backdrop of grey skies and goosebumps, we sat down in a classic Copenhagen café to experience our first official smørrebrød, the famous open-faced sandwich.  We were served thick slices of dense, dark bread studded […]

28. Jul, 2010

Viking Village

Viking Village

Today my family went to a re-created Viking village! My parents gave each child two silver coins that we could use to do paid-for activities. We entered the village and looked around. There was a big fire on a low altar of sorts, a dozen or so shacks, a long house, and a training ground. […]

26. Jul, 2010

Where is Piggy in Scandinavia?

Where is Piggy in Scandinavia?

Send me your guess by email! P.S. Our friend Jerry Rubin told us to go here. Thanks it was great!

25. Jul, 2010

Mini-Tour for Denmark: Copenhagen and Roskilde

Mini-Tour for Denmark: Copenhagen and Roskilde

We came through Copenhagen for a few days of transition from Turkey to Sweden. The first day was all about sleeping late after a post-midnight arrival. When we found out the hotel ran a great breakfast until 11am, we found ourselves liking Denmark pretty well. The streets were clean, the trains ran on time, most […]

24. Jul, 2010

Tivoli

Tivoli

We were walking towards Tivoli; the oldest and possibly greatest amusement park. The main reason we came to Denmark was to go to Tivoli. Carter and I were franticly looking around for it. The huge sign saying “TIVOLI” and the golden gate really gave it away. It was Friday in the early afternoon; everyone who […]

23. Jul, 2010

Made it to Copenhagen

Made it to Copenhagen

After a 90 minute tarmac flight delay in Munich and an endless wait for baggage handling, we finally made it out of the Copenhagen airport late in the night (so late it was dark even in summer when they get 19 hours of sunlight!). Our bleary eyes could not miss this sign though. It seems […]

22. Jul, 2010

Mini-Tour of Turkey: Ephesus

Mini-Tour of Turkey: Ephesus

We had a whirlwind 24-hour stop in this southwest coastal part of Turkey.  We arrived in time for a gourmet dinner at a tiny inn up in the mountains.  After the meal we slept in an authentic hillside dwelling while listening to the village goat’s bell as he ambled past our door.  We woke, packed and indulged […]

22. Jul, 2010

Horse-Back Riding in Cappadocia

Horse-Back Riding in Cappadocia

“Ouch!” I yelled. The cowboy/horse guide had pricked me with the buckle of the leather chaps he was putting on my legs. We were at a ranch, ready to go horse-back riding for 2 hours. We all got chaps and helmets. We walked to where the horses were and something hit me. No it was […]

22. Jul, 2010

An Underground City

An Underground City

A few days ago my family went to a 2,000 year old underground city that could supposedly hold 15,000 people. This city, though not used as a permanent residence, was able to hold early Christians who were being persecuted for their beliefs and were hiding from the Romans. The city was comprised of small chambers […]

22. Jul, 2010

Up, Up and Away

Up, Up and Away

I love accomplishing something before breakfast, but this morning was early even for me. We woke at 4:00 am in order to be on time for the 4:45 pick-up. We were going ballooning and the best flight time was just after sunrise when the air was cool and calm. We weren’t alone: more than 30 […]

20. Jul, 2010

Observing a Muslim Prayer Service

Observing a Muslim Prayer Service

One of the topics in Road School is comparative religion. We wanted to study this because religion has such a great influence on history and culture.  Although the book we are using starts with Judaism and Christianity before getting to Islam (and then five more religions), we started with Islam so the kids could have […]

20. Jul, 2010

Mini-Tour of Turkey: Istanbul

Mini-Tour of Turkey: Istanbul

We spent seven days in Istanbul, a city both modern and ancient. Our hotel, the Empress Zoe, was a converted 15th century bathhouse in the heart of old Istanbul which is called Sultanahmet. The hotel was filled with period style objects and the rooms open into a central courtyard where breakfast and WiFi are served, […]

19. Jul, 2010

A Turkish Bath

A Turkish Bath

We left at 7:00 pm. We walked the long way, and got to the bath. We were in the great city of Istanbul. As you know Istanbul is in Turkey, and you also probably know if you are going to bother to fly 5000 miles to Turkey, you might as well get a Turkish bath. […]

19. Jul, 2010

What a Greek Soldier Needs for Battle

What a Greek Soldier Needs for Battle

Here is a presentation I made on PowerPoint about what a Greek soldier needs for battle.  Most of the pictures come from Delfi.  Thanks to Antony for helping me find some of these artifacts. Right-click here and download it!

18. Jul, 2010

Greek Myths

Greek Myths

Here is my Powerpoint presentation on Greek myths, my sources are books, Mrs. Altcheck and Mrs. McEnany, and Antony Sofianos. We learned many stories from Antony and here are the three I remember the most. There are also cool pictures of all the gods from the Internet by searching their names. Click here and save.

18. Jul, 2010

Where is Piggy in Turkey?

Where is Piggy in Turkey?

Last week Piggy was at the Olympic Stadium.  Congratulations to Sam and Rachel they guessed right! Where is Piggy this week?  Send your guess to me by email.

16. Jul, 2010

Eating in Istanbul

Eating in Istanbul

Turkey is a feast for all the senses but my taste buds were on overdrive as we sampled street fare, sweets, and dishes fit for a Sultan.  In lieu of chips or packaged snacks we found lots of little stands selling all sorts of nuts, dried fruits, and—of course—Turkish delight.  The latter is a sort […]

13. Jul, 2010

The Grand Bazaar

The Grand Bazaar

They say that there are more than 4,000 stores within the maze of covered streets that comprise Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar.  They also say that the stores are now filled with nothing but “authentic imitations” and pickpockets.  We weren’t sure what to expect but we knew that we would be in capable hands with Marilyn, a […]

12. Jul, 2010

The Great Hunt

The Great Hunt

Today was our first true day in Istanbul.  Upon waking up, we had breakfast and returned to our room to get ready for a scavenger hunt!  Dad went to the front desk and came back with two envelopes.  The first envelope had a strange puzzle, a map and a cell phone. In the second envelope […]

10. Jul, 2010

Mini-Tour of Greece: Nafplio

Mini-Tour of Greece: Nafplio

Limited in their expansion by dry climates and mountainous terrain, the Greeks left their homelands to colonize other regions and originated many of today’s port cities in the Mediterranean.   However their population was soon dwarfed by larger nations and they have been under foreign rule for much of their history.  After resisting the Persians in […]

10. Jul, 2010

Where is Piggy in Greece?

Where is Piggy in Greece?

The picture is a hint and the video below is the clue. You can hear a lot of cicadas – they brush their wings when it gets hot outside to fan off their backs. If you have a guess, don’t post it because other people might want to guess too, so email it to me!

08. Jul, 2010

Mini-Tour of Greece: Olympia

Mini-Tour of Greece: Olympia

Olympia is on the west coast of Greece favored by plentiful water and flat land.  The rocky east side was so inhospitable that the major cities there such as Athens, Sparta, Corinth, and Argos quickly developed seamanship and trade and exchange of knowledge with the advanced Eastern civilizations.  The green western part was quiet farming […]

07. Jul, 2010

Piggy

So sorry it’s taking so long to post another picture but we recently found the right place and took a pretty good picture, so be keeping an eye out for piggy.

06. Jul, 2010

Mini-Tour of Greece: Delfi

Mini-Tour of Greece: Delfi

Driving three hours west into mountain terrain (see pictures at the bottom of post), we arrived at Delfi – the Mecca of Ancient Greece.  Here, crouched under limestone cliffs and built over springs and fissures that release psychotropic gases, the Greeks found a land that hissed and quaked.  This was significant because going back even […]

04. Jul, 2010

Eating in Athens

Farmer’s Market in Athens

  Food is one of the very best ways to discover a new place and we had the finest introduction imaginable on our first day in Athens as guests of our guide Antony and his wife Sam.  The morning began with a trip to the local produce market where we saw fruits and vegetables of […]

04. Jul, 2010

Mini-Tour of Greece: Athens

Mini-Tour of Greece: Athens

Focusing on the sites of Greek antiquity, we visited four locations while in Greece: Athens, Delfi, Olympia, and Nafplio. In Athens we kicked off with a hands-on cooking lesson in the home of our guide Antony and his wife Sam as described in Gina’s post. We then drove down the coast until we reached the […]

01. Jul, 2010

Off to Athens

Off to Athens

Off we went to the airport. Air Italia helpfully provided us the weights of all the baggage.  The biggest bag weighs 23kg, just a hair below the limit where they start to charge a fee.  This is the bag the contains electronics and tour books!  The other three roller bags weigh 19kg.  Carry-ons weigh 7kg for […]

01. Jul, 2010

Turns Out I Loved That Car

The enormity of our plans sunk in on Friday when we dropped Russ’s car at the dealership.  We had sold both cars once we realized that the cost of storing and insuring them for the year didn’t make much sense.  As we left the lot I looked at Russ and said “Wow, we’re really cutting […]

01. Jul, 2010

First Day of School

First Day of School

What?  July 1 is the first day of school?  Well, yes, if you attend Road School.  Road School is designed to replace 4th and 7th grade for the kids.  It is based on the Massachusetts standards, although we don’t have any MCAS.  And then it goes a bit beyond. Since getting out and seeing the […]

30. Jun, 2010

The First Night Away From Home: Newton, Massachusetts

Wild Willys

At 2:51pm on Wednesday June 30, we left our home in Natick in a borrowed car and journeyed all the way to… Newton.  Surely the first day out of the house must be reserved for grandparents!  Having seen Gina’s parents during June, we made it a trifecta.  The kids played games the rest of the day with a happy […]

30. Jun, 2010

Packed Up, Sold Off and Headed Out

Packed Up, Sold Off and Headed Out

Yes that is Gina, standing in an empty driveway in front of a clean house and cheering. Getting out the door for this journey was a lot of work! Although we had agreed to rent our home furnished to cut out the labor of moving, we realized eventually this simply meant the furniture would stay. […]

28. Jun, 2010

Last Week’s Winner

The answer was the dining room which no one got but don’t worry this was a practice round. Also please don’t post your answer or it will not count. You have to e-mail me. Remember once you get the answer right 4 times (I will keep track) be looking for an e-mail from me.

14. Jun, 2010

Where in Natick is Little Piggy?

Where in Natick is Little Piggy?

This is an easy one! Email Katherine if you know where (which room of the Wilcox house?!) this is.

13. Jun, 2010

Getting Ready

Getting Ready

Good grief!  It is just about time to go.  Over the past few months we worked as a family to sort out all the details of a year’s travel abroad.  We started with the outline of the itinerary.  The trip spans six continents and roughly 30 countries and is the journey of a lifetime.  The […]

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