Just Posting Some Pictures

We read a smart guideline about keeping an online journal: write regularly. That way people get used to how much time between entries, not waiting a few weeks between posts, but then see several posts in one week.
That is a smart guideline, but we're not that smart. Not that anyone's complained, but we get worried about "how long since...?" So, we'll post whenever...thanks for reading. :)

A few days after last week's crazy windstorm, we got this winter's first snow. Not a lot, just a few inches. We scooped some snow from the windowsill and poured some maple syrup over it for a treat. Well, it didn't turn out as expected, but it was pretty sweet anyway.

What we've been up to lately...

Ella got dressed up in a family heirloom to get her picture taken.


We went to a puppet show put on by international puppeteers who had come to Prague to take a two week course in wooden marionette construction. (The course is put on by an aquaintance of ours. Sandra & Glenn - same guy that made Sappho's balloon!) The puppets used for the show were the ones they made during the course. Here's Ella meeting a puppet after the show.


And here's the grand finale...


Christmas presents from super-chic Auntie Erin arrived! Here's Ella sporting her new "Roots" ensemble...so Canadian! She also stole her mom's "Maple Leafs" cap...even more Canuck!


We got our first big snow! And Ella really experienced snow for the first time. (She didn't do much with it last year.) She liked that she could fall down and not get hurt. She did not like that it was cold and wet. She is looking longingly at kids sledding in this shot...she was calling the sleds "boats"!


Basically just livin'... a sign that we're settling in...
-Us 3

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU...JEFF!

As many of you know, Jeff's birthday was this past week. We celebrated with a birthday weekend. Saturday we went to The Museum of Communism...something Jeff's been wanting to do for awhile. It was well worth it the visit. It is impossible not to be awed by how much our "new home" has changed in the mere 15 years since the fall of communism. Visiting the museum really reminded us of the things those people around of have experienced in their lifetime. And not just older generations, but our own generation as well.

Saturday evening, one of our upstairs neighbours, Roberto, conspired with me to surprise Jeff with a dinner party. I had honestly planned to have "the boys" down to our flat for dinner...but Roberto, who loves to cook and just returned from a trip to Spain, wanted to host a tapas party. So, I got off pretty easy! After Ella was sound asleep, our landlord assisted in luring Jeff upstairs. Apparently, the surprise worked, because her nearly had a heart attack when everyone jumped out from their hiding spots! As usual when we spend time upstairs, it was a truly multi-cultural evening, filled with good drink, interesting conversation, yummy food, and fun! Thanks to all who helped us celebrate!

(Aside: Jeff and I left the party around midnight...the younger folk left to go dancing around 1am and returned about 4:30am...)

Sunday started off wet and gray but turned into a truly beautiful day (we've been very lucky to have avoided a true Prague winter so far...) and so we decided to have Ella nap in her stroller rather than be stuck inside for the afternoon. We took the metro to another Prague spot we've been wanting to visit for awhile...Vyšehrad. Again, well worth the visit and a place to which we will most definitely be returning. It has an amazing cemetary where many of the Czech Republic's most prominent have been buried. Jeff and I agreed that we need to educate ourselves before we return. We were both particularly taken by this door at the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul.


In addition to the history, art, and architecture, there were also walking trails with stunning views of Prague. Here is a view looking towards our neighbourhood, made obvious by the Žižkov TV Tower .


We capped off the celebrations on Monday evening. I hired a sitter for Ella, met Jeff at the metro after work, and took him to explore our street. Actually, just the little portion of the street that we live on...we were never more than a two-minute stroll from our apartment. All the places we visited are spots we see every day but are not really convenient for us to visit with Ella. We started with martinis in the Russian Café located in the basement of our building. Then we spoiled ourselves with a scrumptous meal at Aromi. And we topped off the evening with Czech's own drink, Fernet Stock, at Mu Cafe .


Spoiling ourselves at Aromi!

Thanks to everyone for the well-wishes!

Maylia (and Jeff and Ella)

OUR CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY ON AN EGYPTIAN BEACH

When we think about our holiday, we generally think of:

1) playing in the sand, going for walks, swimming, and taking it easy at the beach or pool



and

2) interacting with the animals at the mini-zoo and elsewhere.

Another big portion of our time was spent eating at the various restaurants available to us. We tended to frequent those at Alladin where we had our favorite waiters....Big Mahmoud, Little Mahmoud, Tarek, Ice Cream Guy, and Kahlid (pictured on the left side of the third photo above.) Ella had admirers wherever we went. Egyptians are absolutely bonkers about kids! And this little Russian boy (Kai) thought she was pretty great, too. There were even kisses exchanged!

As said in our "tickler" we were in Hurghada, Egypt at the Jasmine Village Resort. It is in the middle of a desert...true desert...it made Nevada look green! But, inside the resorts was lovely. Here is where we stayed - Room 512.

And here is an example of the gorgeous landscaping.

Along with the "mini-zoo", there was also a playground. Ella was CRAZY about these horses.

Unfortunately, we also had the opportunity to see this:

Poor Ella slipped and had a nasty fall at the pool which resulted in us visiting the on-site medical center. (Thank goodness for traveler's insurance!) Nothing broken but she spent the remainder of the holiday on her bum. Now that we're home, she's determined to walk and is getting better every day.

Another "experience" was visiting the city of Hurghada itself. We were able to take a shuttle from the hotel...three hours total in the city including travel time. About two hours too many for us! It was interesting and Jeff got really good at haggling, but we've never felt so much pressure to enter someone's shop and buy something. It was VERY intense...a bit too much when you add a crying baby to it! If we never hear "Where you from?" or "I give you best price, Boss." or "You promise you come back?" again, it will be much too soon. But, we're glad we did it. We had a good laugh. Here's a photo that pretty much sums it up. (Jeff haggled a "Rolex" from 750 LE [130 USD] to 60 LE [10 USD]! But he didn't buy it.)

So how did we celebrate Christmas? You may think that a Muslim country would not appreciate Christmas decorations (or Lionel Richie), but you're wrong. Here's a video of our resort reception area as proof.

Christmas Eve we got up super-early (Ella is a fabulous alarm clock) and decided to see the sun rise over the Red Sea. (Incidentally, sunsets over the mountains were also stunning.)

The rest of the day was spent at the beach. I had a camel ride. We tried to have Ella join me, but she was very unhappy and ended up on the ground with her dad where she could watch from a safe distance. Christmas Eve dinner was extravagant. The food was delicious, the displays awesome, the service fantastic, and the champagne surprising.

Christmas Day we took a glass boat ride and I got to go snorkeling in the Red Sea. Ella and Jeff stayed on-board. We don't have any photos to show the fish and coral, but it was breath-taking! We opened our presents in the afternoon...outside, because we could!

In the end, we would gladly swap ice and snow for sun, sea, and sand...but there's no replacement for family and friends. You were missed.

All the best for 2007!

Maylia (& Jeff & Ella)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

Pictures speak louder than words. A video can be a lot louder than a picture. So, we'll just post a quick video of us watching/experiencing the fireworks last night.
We watched the city's many firework shows from outside the castle entrance, a high point in the city - note the horizon looks like one continuous fireworks display. Plenty more big fireworks were going off near us. Absolute craziness. Ella stayed safely home with friends' parents and children.



p.s. We haven't forgot...still will write about Egypt vacation (or at least post a load of pics)