Next stop: Florence. . .

“Visiting Florence was like attending a surprise party every day.”

                        -- Jennifer Coburn, We’ll Always Have Paris

I’d like to tell you that we hopped off that train from Rome that we were on when I last wrote and walked straight to our hotel in Florence, our first stop on our week-long Tuscan getaway.

But I can’t. Because sometimes even seasoned travelers like us can get themselves turned around. Or  in other words, lost.

Sina Vill Medici Florence Italy

The Scout, had searched and selected the hotel, in part, because of it being easy walking distance from the train station. The other reason was that the Sina Villa Medici was housed in a magnificent once-upon-a-time family home in Florence; it one of those hotels that virtually ooze history as you walk their hallways.

Santa Maria Novella, Florence, Italy

It IS an easy walking distance if you don’t arrive after dark and take a wrong turn exiting the station as we did. Our rather long, circuitous route added a good 20 minutes to our walk but it also took us through some interesting areas like Santa Maria Novella and its expansive piazza, pictured above.

So with suitcases rattling on the uneven cobblestones we took turns asking for directions at two other hotels along our way. We finally arrived at our hotel with a much needed paper map in hand (given to us by a kind hotel desk clerk of whom we'd asked directions). I should note our cell phones don't work in Italy making Google Maps useless.

Bags in room, glasses of Italian wine in the lobby bar and it was time for the vacation to begin:

First stop:  David

Michelangelo's David at the Accademia, Florence, Italy

We visited Florence once – long ago – and didn’t waste precious sight-seeing time standing in the blocks-long line of people waiting to see David, Michelangelo’s marble creation carved between 1501 and 1504. By the time we made this trip we’d smartened up: from home we'd made reservations and purchased on-line tickets. We simply walked up to the door at the appointed time and entered. In fact, we arrived two hours early to pick up the tickets with a plan to return at the appointed time and instead they allowed us in early.

Another piece that caught our eyes - Accademia, Florence, Itay

It was as amazing as everyone over the centuries has said it would be.  But then we found much of the artwork to be amazing and always ponder why one particular item like David or Mona Lisa get all the press while other amazing pieces don’t.

Aimless Ambles

Street art near our hotel - Florence, Italy

With the one thing on our ‘to do’ list done, we ambled aimlessly through this city sometimes called the ‘Athens of the Middle Ages’, home to Dante Alighieri and the birthplace of gelato. 

Florence street scene

We walked past the city’s popular tourist destinations, the Duomo and Ponte Vecchio among them, but found just everyday street scenes to be more interesting than those tourist attractions which had already drawn thousands of visitors and were overrun with tour groups.

Street art Florence, Italy

Florence, while immensely interesting, isn’t what we’d call charming. We find its streets and architecture rather severe – and that isn’t a bad thing. It lacks the romance of Venice and the allure of Rome.  Serving as the capital of Tuscany, its metropolitan population back in 2013 was nearly 400,000 inhabitants. While rather stark, its many rather drab and mundane streets lead to piazzas, palazzos, and basilicas; many of which can take your breath away. Or as Jennifer Coburn says in the opening quote, a surprise party every day.

The Way to a Tourist’s Heart is via the Stomach

Cheese stuffed ravioli with zucchini blossom sauce, left,  and wild boar ragu on the right.

So much food and so little time, we told ourselves time and time again as we walked past tempting establishments offering some of the 120 varieties of pasta that exist in this world. We found them to be reasonably priced at less than 10 euros a serving. (Of course pasta here is meant to be just one part of the culinary feast, usually eaten between the starters and the main meat or fish course. Dessert follows - oink!). We had plenty with the pasta alone.

Free tidbits with purchase of a drink - an Italian tradition

What we’d forgotten about Italy was that bars often set out a mini-buffet of appetizers in the early evening that are served for free with the price of a drink (in our case an Aperol Spritz for 5 euro and a glass of wine for 4 euro).  This spread pictured included bruschettas, small sandwiches, pasta salad and pizza.

A Trip to the Market

Mercato Centrale, Florence, Italy

No trip for us is complete without a trip to a municipal market; those sprawling marketplaces that sell a bit of everything from food and drink to clothing and household items.  Florence’s Mercato Centrale has gotten a bit on the upscale side since our last visit with far more wine bars and restaurants than farmers and fish mongers hawking their food items. It still can send you to sensor overload within minutes of entering it.

Cooking school Mercato Centrale, Florence

What we hadn’t expected to find was a large, modern cooking school right in the midst of the market. Although when you think about it, it is a perfect fit.  And this school isn’t to train professional chefs, it is run by them to teach people like us how to cook Italian foods!  You can choose to take a class or watch a demonstration and then dine with the chef.  To learn more about this place check it out on their website, http://www.cucinaldm.com

Artwork above doorways was as interesting as in galleries, Florence, Italy

Had we  more time in Florence, I just might have signed up for a class but it will have to wait until ‘next time’ as we were heading to Cortona the next day. Made famous by Frances Mayes in her “Under The Tuscan Sun”  two decades ago, it is continuing to draw visitors like us to it. We hoped it wouldn't be over-run by book or movie fans. And we were hoping to see some of that 'Tuscan Sun' as it had been rather rainy in Florence. . .

But that's a tale for next week!  Thanks for being with us on this stop on our week-long Italian getaway.  As always your time and interest is most appreciated.  Safe and happy travels to you and yours~

Linking this week with:

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Best of Weekend

Riding the Rails ~ On the 6:20 to Tuscany. . .

To travel by train is to see nature, human beings, towns. . .and rivers, in fact to see life.

-- Agatha Christie

We love European train travel. Nothing can get our travel juices flowing like a train station over here. And our week-long getaway to Italy’s Tuscany last week gave us more than ample opportunity to pursue our passion for ‘riding the rails’.

Roma Termini

We’ve spent most of our lives in the train-starved Washington State where a single train departs for  Canada’s Vancouver, British Columbia or south to Eugene, Oregon, (sometimes as far as California) or east towards Montana and Chicago. These are all one or two departures a day from Seattle.

Then we moved to Greece – there are no trains running here, aside from a small metro commuter in the Athens area. (There is talk of a high speed train between Thessoloniki and Athens one day. . .)

So many tracks, so many destinations

So for this pair of vagabonds, being in a train station bordered by multiple tracks with a reader board listing dozens of destinations, we simply felt like  kids in a candy store.

On the Leonardo Express to Rome

Arriving in Rome

We flew from Athens to Rome. Once there we did as so many travelers do: hopped aboard the Leonardo Express, for the 32-minute ride between the airport and Roma Termini, the downtown Rome train station.

 

The cost* was 11 euros per person each direction

(* if booked in advance on-line). It is a quick and easy means of travel into town.

There’s also some great sightseeing as it travels through agricultural land that surrounds the city and then you pass some great historic sites once you enter the city.

Plenty of seats and luggage racks make it a great choice for getting to the airport and there’s usually a train departing every 20 minutes, at most every half hour.

And according to its website, should there be a strike that stops trains from running (we’ve had that happen to us twice during previous visits to Rome) they claim they will provide alternate transport to the airport.

The 6:20 to Tuscany

We bought our tickets for the train bound for Florence at the same time we’d purchased the Leonardo Express tickets - after we arrived at Rome's airport. We paid dearly for having ‘walked up’ so from that point on, we purchased tickets in advance using the internet.

No printer, no problem. They’ve gone electronic. 

(It was the first time we’d done electronic tickets and I was a wreck turning the phone off and on to make sure the ticket would show up when the conductor came past – but it worked, I am hooked!)

We had no metal detectors, no stripping of coats and shoes, no pulling computers out of the bag. We simply walked from the track on which we arrived, to the track where our train bound for Florence was sitting. 

We were reminded that the reader board displaying train departures lists the train’s final destination, in our case, Milan, and a running list in smaller print tells where stops are made along the way. 

Let the Adventure Begin. . .

I never travel without my diary.

One should always have something sensational to read on the train.”

                                             --Oscar Wilde

Old Oscar must have taken a night train to have written such a thing. One of the wonderments of train travel to our way of thinking is the world passing by the windows. I can’t imagine reading anything with a bit of daylight to illuminate the country through which we traveled. We’d have missed scenes like this. . .

Italian Countryside

And this. . .

Tuscan blues and greens

And those far distant towns. . .we wonder what the names might be as we’ve come without our usual travel companions, a map and a guide book. This was a rather spur-of-the-moment trip for us.

Another town to explore one day

With scenes like these to keep us entertained. The hour and a half trip went rapidly. Well, so did the train, come to think about it!

Readerboard on the train told us the next destination and train's speed

As the sun set, we pulled into Florence. . .home of Michelangelo’s David, shops, galleries, eateries. . .oh my! Coming from our small village in the Greek Peloponnese, it was a shock to the system! I’ll tell you more about that stop in our next post.

However, I have just a bit of housekeeping to do today because the European Union and Facebook are complicating the world of blogging through two separate acts. . .  

Arriving in Florence

First, Facebook. Many of you read the blog after I would post it on FB.  I am learning that FB isn’t always feeding those posts to everyone so if you want to be assured of getting posts, you may need to 'subscribe' (its free – but it is a two step process that involves signing up with the link provided in the right hand column on our home page, http://www.travelnwrite.com and then when Feedburner sends you an email asking if you signed up, you must say yes or verify you did).  I have a number of you who are still unverified on my subscriber list. If you do get it on FB, please hit the like button so it will continue feeding through (assuming you want it to!)

Then comes the EU. On May 25, the General Data Protection Act comes into force across the EU (General Regulation 2016/679 of the European Parliament). This means that companies (and bloggers apparently) will no longer be able to use personal data, (Now keep in mind, I don’t have any personal data for you other than your email address – and I don’t even have that, it is Feedburner that sends the emails). But apparently we must have your consent to send such messages. Now I am not going to contact you individually as I don't know who you are. 

So tell you what. If you don’t want to receive the messages, all you have to do is unsubscribe.

There, I’ve satisfied giving you notice – I hope! (And I hope you don't unsubscribe!!)

Bottom Line:  I am going to be writing a post at least once a week to tell you about navigating the world of the ex pat in Greece and our explorations on this side ‘of the pond’. We are grateful for your comments, shares, and emails and the time you spend with us. . .and look forward to having you with us!

Until next week, safe travels to you and yours and hope you’ll be back for a taste of Florence next week!

Linking up this week with:

Through My Lens
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Wordless Wednesday
Communal Global
Travel Photo Thursday – 
Best of Weekend

Sunlight Serendipity ~ Frances Mayes did it again. . .

“Life offers you a thousand chances. . .

all you have to do is take one.”

--Frances Mayes

Our village, Agios Nikolaos at sunset

Well she did it again. That ne’r-met friend of mine, Frances Mayes, showed up last week in the village and in a subsequent rather wild and crazy turn of events and emails we are off to the place she made famous, Cortona, Italy next week. . .

A Bit of Backstory:

Under the Grecian Sun

Long time readers of TravelnWrite  know I am enamored with Frances Mayes’ books. I credit her “Under the Tuscan Sun” (that tale written more than two decades ago about having the courage to buy a home, Bramasole, in Italy and making it her own) for planting one of the seeds that has led us to our full-time Greek residency.

Her later, “A Year in the World” has become a rag-tag travel bible of sorts, that has a permanent spot within easy reach on my nightstand (first in the States now next to the Greek bed)  In this one she’s set loose the travel bug through her tales of long-term stays in far-away destinations. She’s sung the praises of spending enough time somewhere to really get a feel for a ‘sense of place’.

Mediterrenean doorways fascinate - Kythira, Greece

Six years ago her “Every Day in Tuscany: Seasons of Italian Life”, a retrospective look at her Italian experiences, offered some poignant observations about the passing of time and life itself. It came along at a time I had just lost a couple of dear colleagues to illness and I too was pondering the fleeting passage of years and relationships.

You long-timers here know I refer to her as a ‘friend’ and do feel that she is a friend  – despite the fact we’ve never met and likely never will. Her ‘friendship’ is much like that I have with many of you whose written words have provided both encouragement and understanding; like that of any friend, near or far.

Sometimes among the most encouraging and understanding friends, I am learning, are those I’ve never met face-to-face.

Friendships:

Staying in touch with long-time friends

So my comment that Frances 'appeared in the village' really means her latest novel that I had ordered arrived at our mail table in the local taverna.

“Women in Sunlight” is a novel that caught me up in the storyline just as has her non-fiction.  Perhaps it is because it involves three women in their 60’s who decided to chuck the safe and sane approach to aging and set off for Italy for a year-long adventure (I can relate.)

The narrative, with its thread of friendships made along life’s way, has an Italian village for its backdrop and is punctuated with her signature references to food, wine, and la buona vita, the good life.

“Women in Sunlight comes from one of the major joys of my life – my friends. On every page, my love goes out to them,” she writes at the book’s end.

Sunlight Serendipity

Exploring the world - a 'sense of place' 

The Scout and I have been contemplating a week-long getaway (remember, we moved here so we could explore more of this side of the Atlantic). We could fly to Budapest, or Vienna, or Rome, we said. Or we could go somewhere within Greece. All are rather easy getaways with flights only two or three hours long.

We simply couldn’t decide where to go and were about to give up the idea.

In between pondering travel and reading, I’ve been catching up on long over-due correspondence. One long chatty email was to a friend in Seattle. I’ve been missing my friends ‘back there’ – the lunches and coffees, giggles and conversations.  Frances had reminded me again in her book of the importance of those relationships.

Among the topics I told my friend, Sharon, about was the book I was reading.

A secret spring on a spring day

Sharon wrote back saying that she and a friend were traveling next Tuesday as part of a group tour to  Tuscany and would, in fact, be based for a week in Cortona (the town made famous in “Under the Tuscan Sun”).

And yes, she said, they are both fans of Frances Mayes fans; their decision to join this group was sparked in part by their love of her books.

Setting off for serendipity

“Wouldn’t it be fun to write Sharon and suggest if she had a free evening that we go to dinner with her and her friend in Cortona,” I off-handedly suggested two days ago to The Scout. I wrote her and asked for her schedule – luckily there was some free evenings built in to their activities.

“Hmmm. . .said The Scout, “We could catch the train to Florence, spend a few nights there and then head to Cortona for a few nights, a final night in Rome. . .” And hour or so later we were booked!

So that Frances did it again.  She appeared at just the time I needed a reminder about friendships and she was again a spark for getting us out to explore a place we've never been before. Just like any good friend, she gave me the nudge when I needed it!

That’s it for this week at The Stone House on the Hill. I’ll be back next week with a report from Cortona and maybe I’ll be a few days late checking in with you all.  I might just be busy next week raising a glass with Sharon in toast to Frances and to friendships far and wide ~

Linking up this week with:

Through My Lens
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Wordless Wednesday
Communal Global
Travel Photo Thursday – 
Best of Weekend

Aphrodite’s birthplace and other Greek ‘ferry’ tales. . .

Aphrodite is the Greek goddess of love, sex, and beauty.

According to those on the island of Kythera, she was born there.

Their claim is based on the myth by Hesiod, a poet who lived about the same time as Homer. (Actually I checked and Hesiod claimed she was born of the sea (think of that image of her on that big clam shell) and she floated past Cytherea (Kythera) and emerged at Cyprus. 

Myth and reality. You get a dose of both when you travel in Greece.

We were reminded of that fact when we took a road trip last week to Kythera, a seasonally popular destination – and  possibly Aphrodite’s birthplace. Some travel writer’s have labeled it the perfect Greek island with just enough tourism to keep it prosperous and hopping 'in season' but not yet over-run.

Ferry to Kythera leaves from Neopoli

Road trips to Greek islands involve the ubiquitous Greek ferry experience; one that merges both myth and reality. The Greek ferry is a great mode of transport if you have a flexible schedule and itinerary. (We love the romance and adventure of Greek ferry travel and have tried every size and shape of ship. Remember when I debunked that myth of how dangerous they are in this post?)

The reality of ferry travel is: Schedules vary and can change at the slightest bit of inclement weather. Sometimes they operate and sometimes they don’t – with or without reason.  And they are not necessarily a cheap way to travel these days.

Kythira - a stone's throw from the Peloponnese

Take our trip, for example:   There’s a ferry to Kythera from Gythio, (right side middle finger on the map above) a town about an hour and a half from us. Or one from Neopoli (left side of right finger) a town three hours drive away. We’d preferred the Gythio departure but no one – including the travel agents who sell the ferry tickets – could tell us whether it would be running on the date we planned to travel. That's reality.

Upper car deck was empty on the ferry the week after Easter

We drove to Neopoli, where the ferry journey of an hour and a half, takes place every day, sometimes twice a day. The ticket from there was the same cost as for the longer Gythio sailing: 45-euro for our car and another 26-euro for two passengers ($87US) each way.

We were off. . .to an island similar in size to Malta and boasting a population of 4,500 residents living in or near some 64 small villages.  Its shores are washed by three seas: the Ionian, the Aegean and the Libyan. Mountains and valleys rise and fall in the island's center. Its coastline offers a host of beaches that attract sun and sea worshippers, many who take the 45-minute flight from Athens.

Kythera/Kythira island

Between travel writers singing its praises and various friends who’ve remarked about its wonders, we were eager to explore Kythera, (also Kythira), which seems a little orphan from the Ionian island group  to which it belongs – all the rest are to the northwest of the Peloponnese.  This little guy decked out with sugar-cube shaped buildings painted the famous white with blue trim looks a lot like he belongs in the Cyclades island group, further to the east of us.

But as the ferry approached this reputedly gorgeous destination, I started wondering if we were at the right place: two shipwrecks greeted us as did a scattering of buildings that constituted the harbor ‘town’ on the island.  Hmmm. . .an interesting introduction.

Introduction to Kythera

The island’s history, like so many places in Greece, dates back to the Minoans, through the Myceneans and Phoenicians. In more ‘recent’ history the Venetians dominated from the 13th to the 18th century and the British laid claim from 1815 until 1864.

The British built bridge dates back to the early 1800's

User reviews on Tripadvisor led us to a hotel located on the northeastern side of the island. Our drive from the ferry dock was through high plains type country that looked a lot like Arizona.

When we stopped for afternoon cappucinos in the town of Potamos the island’s enchantments began to emerge. It was quiet as we were there the week after Greek Easter and before the sun-seeking tourists arrived. But the warmth of welcome and the architectural charms were already winning us over.

Potamos town

The hotel we’d chosen – thanks to reviews by previous guests – couldn’t have been better. The Easter weekend tourist crush was over and we nearly had the family-owned Pelagia Aphrodite in the village of Agios Pelagia to ourselves.  From our room and its two balconies we had a view of the sea and the Peloponnese 'finger' from where we had sailed. The price was 85-euros a night which included a full breakfast, with eggs-made-to-order each morning. Honey and homemade jam from the family farm was our favorite!

Hotel Pelagia Aphrodite

One evening I was admiring the bouquets of fragrant cut roses that decorated the lobby – they were from the family's farm as well.

When we checked out, there was a rose bush from the farm - a gift -- so that I could  grow my own fragrant rose bouquets (and that was even better than hotel loyalty points!) For you flower buffs out there these roses have 100 petals per bloom, smell heavenly and are used in cooking.

We spent our island time exploring the villages; spending a full day driving from the north end to the south, stopping at uniquely charming places along the way.  We didn’t even start to explore the many beaches that border the island – that  adventure will be for a future trip.

One of our favorite spots was the village of Avlemonas where the rental suites and hotels were still shuttered and only a handful of visitors sipped and supped on the taverna’s terrace overlooking the sea.  It was the type of place that stirs the imagination and I could envision writing a book cloistered away in this place.

Picture-perfect Avlemonas

Speaking of cloistered, there are some 300 churches scattered about the island dating back to the Byzantine era.  Some of them are such architectural wonders that you can’t quite wrap your mind around them, such as the one built into the cliffside overlooking the beach village of Kapsali.

How does one get here?

If you are wondering – no, we didn’t go explore this one!

Kapsali village

This photo of Kapsali illustrates another myth/reality about travel in Greek islands.  While the tourist brochures always feature blue sky days and wine dark seas, the reality is that clouds and blowing sand from Africa can turn a seascape into a dull gray tone that isn’t as inviting as those postcard perfect scenes. We had one of 'those day's during our visit.

Hikers take note - this trail leads to water mills

If churches, beaches and exploring Greek villages isn’t your thing, you could always do some hiking on its many trails.  The island has some of the best signed and mapped trails we’ve found on our travels and the island’s tourist map also offers descriptions of them as well.

Agia Pelagia

Then again, it is a perfect place to sit and do absolutely nothing. . . but stare at the sea.

That’s it for this week from The Stone House on the Hill.  As always, we appreciate the time you’ve spent reading our latest ‘ferry’ tale. Hope to see you back here again next week for another dose of something Greek and until then, safe and happy travels to you and yours! 

Linking this week with these writers from around the world.  And most happy that we’ve been featured this week on Best of Weekend – a great collection of travel news, do-it-yourself-projects, home decorator ideas and some great recipes. Do check it and the others out by following the links below:

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Life in Greece ~ Running Away from Home

Sometimes these short changes of scenery are called ‘getaways’. Other times ‘road trips’.

Sometimes it is simply an act of ‘running away from home’ adult-style.

Gerolimenas, Peloponnese Greece

Such was the 30-hour escape we had two weeks ago.

There was a break in the schedule of projects and chores at our Stone House on the Hill.  The weather continued to tease with spring then slap us back into winter with another storm. Seeds had been planted but not yet sprouted. We had a window of opportunity. . .

The Stone House on the Hill, The Mani, Greece

And we had been remarking – well, truthfully, I may have snarling --  that we’d moved here as a base for travel and the furthest we’d gotten it seemed in recent weeks was to the hardware store in the neighboring village.

So on a Sunday morning when the fickle weather offered brilliant blue sky to the left and storm clouds to the right, we gathered a change of clothes, our hiking shoes (‘just in case’) put out extra cat food, locked our doors and headed out.

"Our point" in the Peloponnese

The nice thing about the Peloponnese is that something of interest is never very far away. So an escape of 30 hours – as ours was – took us on a very satisfying getaway without much muss or fuss.

We first went south to Gerolimenas for an overnight stay (less than two hours drive time) then across the point and up the east coast next morning (leisurely drive took all morning). Lunch in Githio and back across the point and the trip was done by 3 p.m.

Our Destination: The Hotel Owned by the ‘People from Seattle’

Kyrimi Bed and Breakfast, Gerolimenas, Greece

Yes, while many ‘back there’ think we’ve moved to the ends of the earth, there are a remarkable number of us “Puget Sound folks” in this area of the world.  Among them are Kostas and Linda Kyrimis of West Seattle, owners of the Kyrimi Bed and Breakfast, a small hotel overlooking the harbor in Geroliminas.

We could have lived in this spacious room at Kyrimi

Our Kirkland, Washington friends who moved to Greece and live down the road from us, tipped us off to the hotel as they have have friends back in Kirkland, who are also friends of Kostas and Linda.

The old phrase ‘timing is everything’ came into play as we arrived as they were packing up and heading out for a flight to Seattle. We had a brief ‘small-world-isn’t-it visit’ and promised to reconnect either here or there later in the year.

We didn’t unpack the hiking shoes – instead, we settled in to storm-watch.

Our deck at Kyrimi Bed and Breakfast, Gerolimenas

It was far too cold and blustery to enjoy our spacious deck so we huddled up inside, venturing out to have dinner next door at the Kyrimai Hotel, that is owned by a relative Alexandros Kyrimis. Both places offer spectacular views of the harbor and the sea.

Kyrimai Hotel, Gerolimenas, Greece

The weather reminded us of winter storm watching on the Pacific Northwest coasts in Washington and Canada’s British Columbia.

Across the Point

The storm had heralded in a blanket of African sand that dimmed the horizon the next morning and our sightseeing was through a hazy sepia colored atmospheric lens.

Off from Gerolimenas, heading south

Along the west coast a bit further south then over the southern end of the Taygetos Mountains to the east coast of ‘our’ point.

Wild flowers brighten a wild-fire sticken area on the east coast 

Through small villages and past an area that had recently been ravaged by a wild fire. . .our blue sky obliterated by the sand.

Gythio, on the east coast of our point

By the time we reached Gythio and our favorite restaurant, 90 Moires, the sand was beginning to drift so the day brightened considerable.  Following a quick stroll on the waterfront, we headed home – we had some chores to do, but by then were ready to do them!

But first we went to the car wash – Hi Ho Silver had gotten a bit dusted!

African dust

We are off again this week on an island getaway. Our chores and projects again in hiatus.  We've never been to the island that seems a stone’s throw from the Peloponnese coast. We’ve been saying we needed to go – now it is time. Next week I’ll tell you about it. Our thanks for being with us and wishes for safe and happy travels!

For those who might be heading this way and want to know more about the hotel run by ‘those people from Seattle’, I am adding this photo: You can reach them in the U.S. by calling 206 938 3348.

Contact information 

Linking up this week with:
Through My Lens
Our World Tuesday
Wordless Wednesday
Communal Global
Travel Photo Thursday –  
Best of Weekend