From time to time on this Journey I have mentioned Eat, Pray,
Love. This book has been my bible throughout my divorce, my weight loss journey, and my life journey. Every morning after I drop off Spicer I drive over to Tommy's house and we have our little morning routine of cuddle time and then we
ride to get coffee and start our respective work days. It is one of my favorite times of the day. It's a time where I can shut out the entire world around me and for just a few short moments have peace and stillness. Then the reality of the day crashes in but for that moment I have peace. I am not sure I can put it into words but I can't tell you how much my heart swells that I have reached
this contentment in my life. That I have found this peace. I look back at this journey in my life and although I know I have many more roads to travel and many more journeys to end and begin. I love this feeling, this peace. I leave you with the physics of the quest.

“…I’ve come to believe that there exists in the universe something I call “The Physics of The Quest” – a force of nature
governed by laws as real as the laws gravity or momentum. And the rule of Quest Physics maybe goes like this: “If you are brave enough to leave behind everything familiar and comforting (which can be anything from your house to your bitter old resentments) and set out on a truth-seeking journey (either externally or internally), and if you are truly willing to regard everything that happens to you on that journey as a clue, and if you accept everyone you meet along the way as a teacher, and if you are prepared – most of all – to face (and forgive) some very difficult realities about yourself….then truth will not
be withheld from you.”

Having traveled all over Europe twice I have come to realize I love looking at large landmarks and historic points of interest at night. At night there is a different perspective. Everything is quiet and there are few people out. Your focus is able to be only on IT.   For example I was able to see the Doma in Florence and the Coliseum in Rome at night. There were no people there taking lots of pictures, no loud talking to distract you, just the beauty and glory of these amazing landmarks. If you ever have the honor and privilege of traveling overseas to see any of these greats, I suggest you try seeing them at night. Look at them, see them, and touch them. Appreciate the age of these massive structures, that they have been preserved and sometimes even destroyed to ruin and then built back up again. Realize the beauty in their ruin and restoration. Look at yourself and see the beauty in your own ruin and restoration. What do you do to find Peace?

 
Ok so I don't have the plague but I have been under the weather.  I have been sick with the flu since I have been back from Europe.   I still don't feel 100% and am still taking meds and eating cough drops like candy but I do feel like I am on the raod to wellness.  Tommy has been so swweet and taking care of me the whole time.  I was off work for three days last week.   This week I am trying to take it easy.   I exercised fior the first time since vacation.  It felt good to lift weights today.   I am just ready to feel better and feel ok.  
 
It has been a long time since I have blogged. My first trip to
Europe was the trip of a lifetime. I never would have thought that I would be
returning six months later. For our second trip to Europe we traveled to the UK,
Italy, Germany, and the Netherlands. This time we traveled with Tommy's partner
and his wife. Although a little chilly, Europe was breathtaking in the
springtime. It is amazing to see everything bud out and growing. Here is a
summary of our trip.

Travel to Europe: This time we flew from Paducah to
Chicago to DC then to London. Having an extra flight helped break up the travel.
The long flight to London was a bit eventful including a medical emergency and
projectile vomit. But lucky for us we were nowhere near either incident. We also
had a bit of turbulence but nothing too bad.

London: We had an easy
landing at Heathrow and took a cab straight to our hotel with a ride through
Hyde Park and right at the changing of the guard. We took a little break to
freshen up at our hotel, the Bloomsbury. We stayed there last time and it did
not disappoint. We took a quick bus ride to the theatre district to see a
production of A Clockwork Orange. The play was very interesting and I loved the
intimacy of the small theatre. We headed back to the hotel and had a little rest
then traveled on the Tube to Camden Town. We visited several bars and pubs. One
of the bars had a great bartender who made amazing drinks including one with
burnt sugar. AMAZING! We walked back to our hotel and enjoyed the night air and
the hustle and bustle of the city. Our second day in London we enjoyed some
traditional pub food and visited the British Museum and the St. Giles Cathedral.
We popped in a little bar in SOHO to catch a great little drag queen performance
where the entire bar sang! We also found a metal bar and enjoyed the music. We
finished out the night with dinner at a great little restaurant with great food
and drinks and Carla was able to get her fish and chips. We barley slept a wink
and it was time to wake up at 3am to take our cab to the airport for Italy.


Italy: We arrived in Naples early in the morning. The airport is tiny but we
  were able to find a rental car (the last one they had) and headed to Pompeii.
  We had quite the time with traffic but it was a fun experience from Naples to
Pompeii. We parked at a free parking area in Pompeii and walked to the site.
Pompeii is inspiring with the whole city trapped in time from the volcano. It is
both eerie and breathtaking. We finished our day in Pompeii with some pizza in a
little coffee. The square was full of hustle and bustle in this interesting
little town. The view of the mountains is amazing. We drove to Rome and made it
to the Hotel Una Roma. The hotel is just a few blocks from the Coliseum; I loved
seeing it at night. We ate at a little restaurant where they treated us to a
Roman feast including Lamb, Chicken, Pork, roasted veggies and potatoes. We also
had an amazing bottle of wine! Our waiter was Russian and his girlfriend lives
in Lexington. The owners are going to be opening a castle in Pisa and we plan to
  stay with them the next time we visit Pisa. We finished off the night with some
  yummy Gelato, You can't be in Italy and not eat Gelato, We awoke the next
  morning to a great view of Rome from our balcony. We enjoyed a yummy Italian
  breakfast in the hotel restaurant. We jumped in the car and headed to Tuscany
  via the coast. We visited a little island and had a wonderful meal at a
restaurant right on the water. I have never seen water so blue. I could retire
on this little island! We traveled through Tuscany and arrived in Florence at
our hotel. We were in for a surprise when we were offered the Tower room. The
Tower room is the highest views that are not a church in Florence. The Tower
room offered us a panoramic view of the city. We walked around the city and
night a saw the Doma and the Cathedral, We woke up the next morning and enjoyed
  breakfast and went to see David. We checked out of the hotel and took the train
  to Pisa. We walked to the Leaning Tower and enjoyed some yummy pizza. From
  Pizza we flew to Frankfort-Han Airport.

Germany: We arrived very late
in Germany. We found our rental car and BURGER KING!! Then we drove to our hotel
Bellevue through the twists and turns of the wine country. We awake to the
beauty of the mountains and had a wonderful breakfast with breathtaking
views.  We traveled from the hotel
to our appointment at Dr. Loosens. We learned about the wine and the grapes. We
sampled and purchased some amazing wine. We had dinner at a hotel restaurant and
enjoyed some very yummy dishes. We drove through the wine country to Dusseldorf.
We stayed at the hotel Melia and enjoyed the views of Europe's oldest park. We
had fun in downtown Dusseldorf and ate at a Hungarian restaurant where we were
entertained by a duo violinist and pianist. I had the best stew I have ever had
in my life! We took a bullet train in the morning from Germany to the
Netherlands.

Netherlands: We arrived in the afternoon at the Central
Station in Amsterdam. We stayed at the Mint/Double Tree hotel just across from
the station. We took a little rest and then headed out to our favorite little
bar inside the Renaissance Hotel. We enjoyed the sights and sounds of the city
and had dinner at a yummy steak house. We awoke the next morning and had a
wonderful breakfast at the upstairs pancake house. I have never had such a
wonderful breakfast! We visited the Vangough Museum and enjoyed the park. It was
amazing to see all the greats in the Museum. All these great works moved me to
tears. We finished off our night at a little restaurant recommended by a couple
from Boston. We enjoyed a feast on Nes street where the waiter says, "I am the
menu, try to remember the things you like!" I had a fillet with a cream and
strawberry sauce. It was so yummy and tender.

Travel back home: By the
last day of our trip I was starting to feel bad. We flew from the Netherlands to
the UK and then caught a cab to Heathrow and flew from Heathrow to Chicago to
Paducah. The flight home wasn't too bad. We had a bit of turbulence on the
flight back to Paducah. The fasten seatbelt sign was on the whole time. But our
pilot landed us safely and we were able to beat the weather and make it back to
Murray. I was so glad to be home. Even though I was sick it felt good to be
back,

I loved this trip to Europe just as much as the first one. I loved
all the time we spent in Italy, I loved Germany! I loved the British Museum and
seeing the Rosetta Stone! I loved the Vangough Museum. I loved all the food we
ate! The pancakes, the Roman Feast, the wine at Loosen, the fresh seafood on the
water. It was yet again the trip of a lifetime. I am so honored to have traveled
with such a great group and most of all my partner in crime. I love you
Tommy!


 
My to do list is very big this week.  I look at it and it scares me.  I fear the list.  One thing I have not skipped out on is my exercise.  Even with a busy week I have found time to make room for working out.  I have already lifted weights this week and did a bike ride.  I plan to lift another time before we leave to Europe.  Is it Friday yet?   Here is a little travel music for ya. 
 
Tommy and I burned a lot of calories this week.  One of the biggest calorie burns we had this week was the 21 mile bike ride.  We added to our 16 mile bike ride by ridding down a few more country roads.  It was a lot of work but a very pretty day.  The wheat feilds were so pretty.  We took a little break and had a half of a wrap and split an ice tea.   I loved the ride; I can't wait to do it again.  I didn't loose any weight this week but I didn't gain any either.  I am proud of my workouts this week and my impressive calorie burns.   Sometime you just don't loose weight.