The Move, Amsterdam & Princess Katherine

 We’ve moved!  At the end of September we left our old flat and moved north to a cute little neighborhood called Maida Vale.  Our old flat was just a bit too small and very central (and noisy) so we thought we’d move to a neighborhood.  The area is mostly residential, consisting of many large late Victorian and Edwardian blocks of mansion flats.  We love it here, we have a backyard garden and much more space.  We still only have one bedroom but a very large kitchen and a great bathroom with a jacuzzi tub!

Just before the move, the French Connection invaded groovy London for a weekend full of markets and fish ‘n chips.

We had to say goodbye to the trusty butcher, he is missed!

Gina & Jean Claude finding London's finest fish 'n chips in Chelsea at Portobello Market

Right after our move Dave had a business trip in Amsterdam so Kelly came too.  Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands, the flight was only 45 minutes from London to get there.  We fell in love the minute we landed, the streets are lines with canals and bikes outnumber cars.  The people were so friendly and the pace of life seemed to be a bit more low key than busy London life.  Most of the shop owners would approach Kelly and speak Dutch, thinking she was a native.  Dutch is a crazy language and we loved listening to the people speak, the majority of the city did speak English lucky for us.  We explored a lot and ate the most delicious food!  

 

Once we returned home from Amsterdam we decided it was time to add a new family member to our household, Princess Katherine aka Katy.  Katy is a german shepherd and is the sweetest thing!  She is now 10 weeks old and is adjusting very well, she is a smart little thing and has even mastered a few tricks like sit and come.  She is also now crate-trained and even lets us know when she needs to go outside to relieve herself!  We start puppy kindergarten this coming week and were told that german shepherds learn so fast that she might only need 2 weeks of kindergarten before puppy school.  Most puppies are in kindergarten for 4 weeks, so we will see!  She is definitely a good little love and is helping us become parents!

Most of you know by now that Kelly and I are expecting a baby and we are very excited.  She is 16 weeks along now and is feeling great.  We have a second ultrasound on Wednesday and hopefully with some luck we can see if it’s a girl or a boy, we are anxious to know!  Kelly loves her doctor, Dr Eban, a German woman and the care she receives is wonderful.  A few weeks back we went for her first ultrasound and blood work and we were in and out with results in 30 minutes, crazy! 

Kelly is now working for Cavallino again, this time as a contractor for a few months and works remotely with a team in Denver.  Kelly’s contract is only 4-5 months and will finish near the end of her pregnancy, so it all works out!  

Our next trip is to Poitiers France for Christmas and we can’t wait!  It will be very nice spend our first holiday away from the states with family.  Also looking to celebrate cousin Pablo’s birthday while in France.

A Day at the Tate Modern

A lazy Saturday. Today we walked to the Tate Modern to check out the new Joan Miro exhibit. It was really cool, so we bought the exhibit poster. Here is Kelly from the 4th floor balcony of the Tate:

Hampton Court

Kelly's friends Erin & Jenny were in town visiting family, and Kelly played tour guide to Hampton Court, HenryVIII's pad. http://www.hrp.org.uk/hamptoncourtpalace/

Switzerland

Kelly and I went to Switzerland for the weekend to visit Kate, a childhood mate of Kelly's

Kate, Brian & baby Levi live in Nyon, on the shores of Lake Geneva.

We spent the first day walking around the lake.

We had to stop for a snack. Sandwiches appear to be the most popular meal in Switzerland.

Dave & Brian opted for beer and sausages. Trust us, that mustard was something special!

The Razor scooters are very popular here, even with the retired crowd!

With Levi and Maggie the pup in tow, we set out for a hike at the foot of the Alps                            

  

 

We had a great time in Switzerland with Kate and her family. The wine and the chocolate were also big hits, and we were having so much fun that we forgot to take enough pictures!

Croatia

Hello Everyone!!!

Thanks to all who could make our wedding celebration, we had such a wonderful time!  Once the photographer has posted pictures (she told me it takes @ 4 weeks) I can then share some with you, as it was a fun and wild party!! J

We headed back to London 2 days after the wedding to unpack then repack and we were off again to Croatia for 7 days for our honeymoon!  It was amazing to say the least!  With such inexpensive flights and free rooms thanks to Dave’s Starwood points our trip was fantastic!! 

 

 

Split

Split at night

Our destination was Split, HR . Split is the largest Dalmatian city, the second-largest urban centre in Croatia, and the seat of Split-Dalmatia County.  The city is located on the shores of the Mediterranean,  more specifically on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea, spreading over a central peninsula and its surroundings, with its metropolitan area including the many surrounding seaside towns as well. Split is situated on a peninsula between the eastern part of the Gulf of Kastela  and the Split Channel.   



The view from our room



We rented a boat using Dave’s “California Boating Certificate” as a license and were on our way to cruise the islands that surround Split.  The islands we visited were Brac & Hvar, we sailed past Sulta then back to the harbor in Split. The beauty of the Adriatic cannot be overstated, it is brilliantly blue and clear. There were ample private coves to anchor, take in a swim and snorkel a bit. This adventure took us @ 8 hours and it was well worth the euro J, so we could meander at our own pace and stop where we liked.

Kelly after walking the plank!

We took other adventures of course, as laying by the pool is great along with people watching but we needed to get our and explore some more.  We went rafting near Omis, which is a small village close to our hotel. Its location is where the beautiful emerald green Cetina River meets the Adriatic.   We were picked up at our hotel then raced in a tiny car up a curvy road to the top where we began our rafting trip.  Most of the other rafters were German or Croatian and luckily there were two other English speaking couples.  One of them was Australian and the other couple was from New Zealand, needless to say we were all in the same raft.  The trip was about 3 hours long and so beautiful, the guides categorized the rapids as class 2 & 3 which was a good pace for the fellow rafters in our boat (although we wanted much more rapids!)  I have included some pictures of our rafting trip as well.

Dubrovnik was high on our list to see, thanks to my mom and dad who raved about the city.  We rented a car and drove down the coastal highway and saw the most beautiful views of the Adriatic. 

We had to pass through Bosnia for about 20 minutes which was another country we can now add to our list..ha ha J  

Once in Dubrovnik we were overwhelmed with tour buses and tourists so we decided to see the “famous” city walls on kayaks. We jumped in them with no real explanation from any guide and paddled out and around the city, it was peaceful and well worth the sore arms.  



Old Steps in Dubrovnik



 Once done kayaking, we hopped into a shop for some gelato then on the road again where we stumbled onto the most delightful beach….not very crowded and super refreshing to jump into the ocean to cool off.  A hidden gem of our day J  On our way back to Split that evening we were told by the concierge at our hotel to go to the town of Ston where they are known for their oyster plantations. 

The under-visited Ston and its neighbor Mali Ston on the Peljesac peninsula were a welcome escape from the standard southern Dalmatia tourist route.  Here there are no big resorts or luxury hotels in Ston but there is great eating, breathtaking scenery, old stone houses and the some of the longest fortifications in Europe. 

We ate dinner in Mali Ston, walking distance from Ston.  It was essentially a defensive town with an impressive arrangement of walls and towers. The most outstanding feature is the fortress of Koruna, rising over the village and visible from quite a distance. The port of Mali Ston was completed in 1490 and resembles the port of Dubrovnik with three arsenals, a round tower and a fortified port gate with a Romanesque statue of St Blaise over it.  

The best meal we have ever had was in Mali Ston! It was a monkfish and prawn stew, almost like a bouillabaisse and Dave really wants to learn how to recreate that magic in a bowl.

Croatia was a wonderful place to come down from all of the wedding hype. Overall it was relaxed, beautiful, warm and the people were amazing. We highly recommend the Dalmation coast to anyone looking for sun and seafood and boating bliss.

Much love and cheers!!

Kelly and Dave