Anticipation is a mixture between expectation and prediction. Expectation leans more to wishes, predictions more to the known. Maybe it is a right side vs left side of the brain thing? Who knows???
I know anticipation really well, I’m in the middle of an overdose right now: the next trip awaits me and it’s packed with predictions (high school reunion in the heart of Bavaria! Cruise through the Caribbean! Broadway shows in New York City! etc) and expectations (will I recognize those people I went to school with? Will the hurricane season be in full swing? Will my non-profit loose momentum during those 6 weeks while I’m gone?, etc) All those hard facts, the predictions have a „!“, whereas the expectations end up with a „?“. What’s more exciting?
We shall see and I’ll make sure to keep you posted. Let the journey begin…
Along the usual travel essentials that you need anywhere in the world, this list is about specifics to Morocco.
1. Don’t let geography and travel postcards fool you: Morocco can be very cold! For example in Chefchaouen we got rain and cold weather. Our tour guide told us that it even snows in the winter! Despite that, the houses don’t have a furnace or an air condition. Hotels may vary of course. So bring a warm jacket and a rain coat!
2. Have toilet paper with you every time you need to go. Public bathrooms don’t even have a toilet roll holder; the whole concept is unknown.
3. Closed toe shoes are a must especially in the Souks! Lots of stray dogs and cats, many donkeys, puddles of unknown fluids and dirt. You get it, right?
4. Your smelling will be challenged. Not only body odor in crowded areas are overwhelming, visiting the tanneries will make you gag! A trick would be to have a piece of cloth (or cotton ball or tissue paper) wrapped around your index finger and secured with a rubber band. Then spray it with a scent (aesthetic oil or perfume) and hold it under your nose when needed. A perfect way to use those perfume samples from the pharmacies or drugstores.
5. For women: Bring clothes that at least cover your knees and your elbows; no need the cover your hair! For men: long pants
6. Be prepared for steps and stairs everywhere. A few steps up followed by a few steps down without reason, steps in unexpected areas, be prepared! Riads usually don’t have elevators! Bring shoes that are easy to walk with, but also think about your luggage! A big suitcase with bad wheels is a nightmare to roll / lift / schlepp through the medians and up to the third floor of your charming Riad! Better to have a small suitcase with good wheels + a backpack
… and 5 days left until we leave: those will be filled with a few college related, end-of-the-semester meetings, final grades and all that stuff. And it will also be filled with lunches and dinners with our besties, our friends who we will not see for a while. Some of them have to wait until we are back in town, some of them can’t wait and they will come and visit us in Spain and Italy, join us for a cruise in Iceland or other places in the good old world. And we are so looking forward to this!!!
So if you are traveling in Europe these next 6+ months, please get in contact and we’ll figure it out: There is always something to celebrate: my birthday (during the cruise from New York to London), our anniversary (Hamburg), Ted’s birthday (Iceland), etc. Never a dull moment! And if there is nothing to celebrate, we will celebrate our friendship, our adventures together!
But we are still here and getting ready to pack our suitcases – between lunches, haircuts, doctor’s appointments and more lunches and dinners…..
Yesterday was a big day: we left Salinas. Meaning, we moved out and away and that was a lot of work! Sorting through memories, collections, paperwork, (Ted) and books and clothing and more books and way more clothing (Edith). This has been difficult. Downsizing to a house that is 1/4 the size of the Salinas house didn’t help.
And then there is the emotional wake-up-moment when you change your address and you don’t go there any more. This is difficult, especially for Ted, who was born and raised in Salinas, who plays/played dominos with his brother every day they both are/were in town (and they both are/were in town almost always), who never left Salinas except for college and a 4-year stay in Arizona. For me, Edith, leaving Salinas was not that difficult, except the moving part itself. Sorting, schlepping, donating, combining, reducing, blending and merging; that sort of thing. And then there is this glimpse of a heartbreak to leave that picture perfect resort like house with a pool and my spacious studio! But hey, let’s go on a trip! How about we start in Europe?
Eight days until we will launch our combined weight of 357.7 lbs into an airplane, that then will fly us to New York. Upon arrival we will have lost 20 lbs, our combined Covid-add-ons and we can lightweightedly sail over to the old world, “where they lived happily ever after”.
End of the dream. It is true though, we do have a combined 357.7 lbs and – to be realistic – we’ll keep them for a while. But we do have many walks and hikes planned: for example up a volcano in Iceland (Ted’s birthday hike), a funky history walk in Reykjavik or an 8 day hike in Sicily (Aeolian Islands & Taormina). But that follows a whole week of eating and cooking, wine and olive tasting in Naples. Hmmm, I guess we will just see how many pounds we will bring back home…..
The definition of moving is “transferring furnishings from one residence to another”. That sounds easy, almost like grocery shopping or getting a pedicure. But it’s not like that. And it’s not only like transferring furnishings from one place to another, it means packing up your life, your children, your habits. It means stepping out of your comfort zone and find / create a new comfort zone. Moving involves changing, finding, discovering. It’s like traveling, except your luggage is bigger.
The average American person moves 11.4 times during their life. The average German woman moves 4.6 times (men 4.4 times). I just did the math: I moved 27 times in the last 37 years. 5 moves were moving my store & studio, 22 moves were moving my house. One move was from one continent to another, 5 different cities in Germany, 8 different cities in the US. If I continue this moving habit, I’d be moving 50 times by the time I’m 90 years old! In many ways I’m not the typical German, 27 moves mean I moved every 1.68 years (1 year and 8 months). Does that make me a nomad? For German standards: definitely. So is my real name Edith Nomad Schneider then?
And does the fact that I moved so many times mean that I like to move? I can tell you this: I am pretty good at moving. I don’t like spring cleaning, I just move! But that does not – I repeat DOES NOT mean that I like it. And every time I move I hope it is the last one EVER!!! Well, and then there are those conversations like Ted and I had yesterday:
Me: What has to happen that you move again?
Ted: I think if you would die, I’d move because everything in our house would remind me of you.
Me: You know that one house around the corner, the Spanish architecture, all black and white; if that’s for sale…..
So much for that, I think I’m not done yet. But I hope I’m extending my average of 1.68 years / move.
And yes, Ted is a very sweet guy!
So here we are, pretty much all packed up. The movers will arrive in 5 hours, they will load up our belongings and bring them to our storage. And the rest we’ll move to our newly built home in Paso Robles. Our house here in Salinas will be rented to a nice family and in 16 days we will be packed up again – this time just for traveling: 6 months overseas. I mean 6 months, not 1.68 years. 6 months is a mini-move. And I’m so used to moving, a mini-move is just like that: a move. Again. But mini makes it sound more fun. And that’s what we are planning to have: fun, fun, fun!
How many shoes do you need when you go on a trip? Of course it depends on your destination. And the weather. And the activities you’re planning. And the season.
So what if you travel everywhere from Iceland to Morocco, you travel from June until December, you plan city walks, museum visits, dinners from fancy to street food simple, go dancing, walking, swimming, rainy weather and sunshine, etc. etc. etc.
And what if you are a fashion forward fun and fancy outfit fan, who packs everything in blue, white and pink?
Part of all those nights we have before we take off will be spend sleepless, filled with thoughts of the shoe collection…..
The initial plan to visit Eastern Europe to follow the footsteps of my mother’s family in Ukraine came to an abrupt halt when Russia decided to start a war and invade Ukraine. Travel plans were changed, instead of Eastern Europe we decided to visit Northern, Western and Southern Europe instead. Details will follow as we go, photos, lots of photos will be published and – of course – we’d like to stay in contact with everybody. So please feel free to send us a little “hello” or “hallo”, to comment on our posts, and to just let us know that you haven’t forgotten about us…..
When my sons were little and we were about to go on a trip, I always told them how many nights they have to sleep before we’d go visit Oma & Opa. This way they were able to get a perspective on much longer it takes before we’d go.
So here we are, fast forward 30 years later, and I remind myself that we have to sleep 26 nights before the big trip starts…..
