TurnofPhraseBlog

Month: August 2012

  • Back to School, Stockholm Style

    All over the world, children are engaged in back-to-school activities.  Often with a parent leading the charge, usually their mother.  They are having teeth checked, getting hair cut, and being sized up for what shoes, pants and shirts fit after a summer of growing.  We engaged in an intense day of this in Stockholm. I…

  • After two months Abroad, any Canadian is my Friend. Even Dead Ones.

    Zevenaar.  Our second home exchange.  To use a western North American euphemism…it’s a bit of a one horse town.  Which is apt since this past weekend one of its big summer attractions was its annual country and western music festival!  Oh boy.  Just what I came to the Netherlands for!!  My husband is from Montreal…

  • Budapest v. Prague

    I fully realize a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.  And when it comes to these cities that’s all I have.  We spent one night and two days in Budapest and two days and two nights in Prague.  Enough to do the eastern European version of “hop on/hop off” bus tour and to only skim…

  • The OTHER end of my foodie spectrum!

    “It’s in the Palais Coburg…it’s supposed to be right here,” says my husband, looking around with map in hand.  We’re in a quiet, non-commercial part of Vienna, with few people on the street in the early evening.  The only place seems to be a high rise residence of some kind and I can see through…

  • Two Sacher Tortes, A Coca-cola light and a Decaf…

    “Two sacher tortes, a coca-cola light, and a decaf coffee,” the waitress parrots back with a heavy accent.  I am distracted by her burgundy polyester uniform with gold lettering, “Hotel Sacher” in fancy script.  Around us are sneaker-clad tourists with Vienna maps perched on the corner of their small round café tables.  My husband and…

  • So we got on bikes and saw things from a different perspective…

    The Netherlands is famous the world over for its cycling citizens.  It is very cycling oriented.  Slim, fit-looking 60 and 70 year olds on bikes is a common sight that my husband is not always graciously yielding to.   Don’t get me wrong, he DOES yield…just not graciously.  Infrastructure for bikes is better than for cars…separate…