We're feeling festive over here! With an early December snow in Vancouver (it hardly ever snows here on the West Coast) and the excitement of a baby's first Christmas, things are getting merry and bright! One particularly transient holiday season brought us to Christmas markets in four different countries. By the end of our tours we were brimming with Christmas spirit. In hopes of topping up your Christmas cup with cheer, here are a smattering of sparkly and cheerful pictures. So put on that digital fireplace, grab a hot chocolate and have a little scroll!
London, England- We went to the Fatherland (literally, my father's homeland) in late November, and along with having the most wonderful time visiting with family, hitting up some touristy spots in London (Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, Borough Market, Piccadilly Circus, etc. and even caught a performance of The Lion King), we delighted in the fact that everything was getting super Christmas-y and sparkly all over the city. As we tromped through London, we would come across pockets of Christmas joy and could never resist stopping for a mug of Christmas cheer or a tasty little nibble of some sort (special mention to the Yorkshire pudding wraps for bringing Christmas dinner to the streets). Enjoying the Christmas vibes so much, we dedicated one of our entire days to the Christmas market in our Uncle's town, shopping, eating, drinking and generally being 'Mary' with a gaggle of Harwoods.
HappyChristmas!
Tirana, Albania- Definitely not a Christmas market that is making waves on any of the 'top ten' lists...but we were so lucky to have such a fantastic market on our doorstep! (Generally speaking though, Albania should be on everyone's top ten European travel list.) For the two years we lived in Albania, we whole-heartedly enjoyed the Christmas market hosted at the huge Skanderbeg Square. It was delightful to see that in the second year, the market only grew to be bigger, brighter and more festive! In fact, the whole downtown core of Tirana does a great job to deck the halls and light up the dark winter nights. Having an insatiable appetite for Christmas, the market was basically our restaurant and entertainment of choice for the month of December. We spent our fair share of evenings gathered around a fire, mulling wine, and filling up on zgare (grilled meats, veggies, bread & cheese...If you have the opportunity to eat at an Albanian grill restaurant, don't pass it up!).
GëzuarKrishtlindjet!
Vienna, Austria- Finally we were on Christmas vacation and off to spend two weeks in Spain and Morocco. But first we took advantage of a 12 hour layover in Vienna, and spent the night on a Christmas market crawl through the city. And holy Christmas crackers! If Albania was a zero on the notable Christmas Market list, Vienna's markets must be topping the charts--With Christmas markets being a tradition since the 1300's, Vienna is very merry and bright. Just as we'd finish one glühwein, the next market's lights were already twinkling in the distance. What a delight! Ice skating, carolling, manger scenes, market treasures, sweets, treats and sugar plum fairies galore! We finished our abridged tour of Vienna at the city's main and biggest market outside of City Hall. Aptly named The Viennese Dream Christmas Market, is was pure magic! With the impressive City Hall serving as the backdrop, spirits were high. A fun tidbit about City Hall (which I cannot verify because I was told this afterwards by an Austrian friend) is that the windows are used as a living advent calendar, lit up one-by-one as Christmas Eve draws near. Love the idea and I hope it's true, but again I did not notice this wonderful detail when we were there. Perhaps this hearsay is as whimsical as the whole Viennese Christmas splendour!
FroheWeihnachten!
Barcelona, Spain- Admittedly, we felt a bit spoiled for Christmas festivities at this point and weren't actively seeking any markets. As we arrived in Spain on the 24th, things were generally winding down and getting quiet. Even though we've spent our share of Christmas days away from our family, (many by choice, wanting to spend the holidays travelling), Christmas Eve is always a mixed bag of emotions. Without fail, there comes a moment on Christmas Eve of heavy sadness and homesickness, missing settling down in the cozy company of family and soaking in the magic of the holiday. Along with inevitable tears, we usually occupy ourselves by drinking, eating and generally over indulging in anything to distract ourselves. Our Christmas in Spain was no different... up until a point. Having just popped into a bodega to grab more libations, we stepped out into the square to a large crowd quietly singing Christmas carols. And oh my, oh my! My heart was aglow with warm Christmas feelings. That Christmas I got the gift of one of my most treasured travel memories 💕
FelizNavidad!
Now...Go slip into your best/worst Christmas sweater, get those shortbread in the oven, belt out Oh Holy Night, and from us to you, have the most wonderful holiday season!
Mary Tyler & More was always a way people remembered our names... the "more" being the certain je ne sais quoi we'd bring to the proverbial table. Well the figurative "more" has grown into literally more Mary and Tyler...yup, we had a baby!
If you're slightly taken aback by this revelation, don't worry, you're not alone. We ourselves were also surprised by the initial news. And then surprised again by his 6-week early arrival, and then again with how much we absolutely love this little babe. Although parenthood was not something Tyler nor I had seen for ourselves, here we are loving, learning, laughing ....and sometimes crying through it.
The beginning, middle and culmination!
Despite having made very little waves on social media (this kid has got his whole life to be an internet sensation), little babe has made big tsunami swells in our once D.I.N.K lifestyle. (If you do want some seriously adorable baby content, send us a message and we will gladly spam your inbox).
Being born early, babe spent some extra time in the hospital. Everyday we'd have lunch on a nearby patio that faced this mural 💕
Yes, we are up all times of the night, squeezing little babe into the cutest outfits, flashing titties, constantly wiping up vomit and currently struggling to hold our heads up without flopping over---to be honest, sounds like a pretty good pub crawl, doesn't it? And boy, we party in this house!
From the word go, we have loved sharing our lives and adventures with our little beanie baby. Watching a shadowy fleck on an ultrasound screen grow into a real-life tiny human who is experiencing everything for the first time is pretty awesome! From feeling the ocean wind on his little face, being annoyed with the snowy, cold weather (you may have been born during the hottest Vancouver summer on record...but sorry babe, you are Canadian) to being shy with his own reflection--- the first smiles and giggles, first hugs and kisses, first babbles and cries; everyday is a new adventure!
You all know that we love a good recreational vehicle. From motorcycle tours in Korea, roadtripping in Australia and vanlife in the Balkans, it's our favourite way to travel. After moving back to Canada, where the national fondness for camping and outdoor living is profound, naturally we wanted to get back in the scene. We've dipped our toes, been burned and are now ready to love again. Truly, it's been a bit of a bumpy road, but the soap opera (albeit melodramatic) saga continues!
So back in March 2020 we, along with with rest of the world, found ourselves unexpectedly grounded. Super bummed that our Spring Break in Mexico was canceled, it was the motivation we needed to start the hunt for our next rolling home. Turns out, that's what everyone else thought they'd do as well, and it was rough out there. We saw some really lived in RVs, vans and motorhomes. The characters you meet in the RV world are the real deal (ranging from Pinterest crafty bloggers all the way to modern-day draft dodgers...and to be honest, we dig all folks on the RV spectrum) The kicker was, no matter what we were looking at, the prices were absurd--toilet paper and RVs were at a premium as the world grappled with the globals crisis.
Sometimes you gotta kiss a lot a frogs, am I right?
We had some feelers out there and got a lead on a 27 ft Class C Corsair. Admittedly a lot more real-estate than we have piloted in the past, it looked sweet, the previous owner had taken great care of it, and the price was right. So we bought it sight unseen (so to speak) as we really had no idea what we were getting ourselves into with an actual motor home. As evident when we were about to pull away, and the seller hesitantly asked "You ever driven something this big?" Uhhh, nope!--Our plan was to drive slow and take the corners wide!
Settling right into that RV life!
I know some of you had seen our Corsair excitement hit Instagram...and then never heard tell of it again. Well, here's a brief story of our very brief foyer into the motorhome world.
So our plan was to update the RV (falling into the Pinterest-ish camp of RVers) and fully move into it after a month when we would continue to teach online and enjoy some of the freedoms of remote teaching. Everyday we'd finish our day of Zoom classes, head on over to the Walmart parking lot (in North America, Walmart parking lots are free and clear for overnight camping...just to add to the overall ambiance), and start renovating. I'm sure when Walmart opened their parking lots up to overnight camping they exactly envisioned people parking for 3+ weeks and gutting their RVs. We basically slapped white paint on everything, tiled the kitchen and replaced the shag. We had a blast doing it, and were pretty happy with the way it was all shaping up. As the pandemic continued to unfold, the snowbirds whom we were housesitting for were unable to get back to Canada, so we had some unexpected bonus time before moving into the RV. We thought we'd use the gift of time to update the bedroom too. First thing Tyler did was unscrew the headboard from the wall...which was apparently integral to the entire structure of the back of the RV, because Whoa! Two words-- water damage. Two more words--- broken hearts. And just like that our RV dream was drown. The more we tore away at the soddened walls, floor and ceiling, the more dampened our spirits got. Recognizing this was a job that was definitely beyond our construction capabilities, let alone possible to be done in the Walmart parking lot with our most basic of tools, we decided to let it go. In the end, we sold it for what we bought it for, occupied our time during covid lockdown and learned a couple things, so really no harm, no foul. The only legacy the Corsair leaves behind is a new family catch phrase "They've got water damage"every time we see a RV cruise on by.
Before, during and after!
My fave part of the whole reno was the tiled kitchen!
Annnddd this is as far as we got with the bedroom 😳
Ok, so fast forward a year and a half later. Our recreational vehicle dream has never and will never die. Although the past year has thrown us some curveballs (pandemic, broken foot, an unplanned pregnancy resulting in the sweetest little toddle-baby) we have always kept our eyes, ears and hearts open for the right little gem to pop up. We knew we did not want to get into a RV again (the rot was just too much for our hearts to handle), and now that we have a babe who requires a carseat, we need something with at least one seat in the back. So we've waited for something right, and we've found her! ---Well actually, we can take none of the credit. Tyler's brother Micah found the van, did all the wheelings and dealings and deserves huge kudos---And a big bottle of whiskey for his troubles-- So we're back in the business of a van build!! So so excited to start planning and converting the new rig, as well as share the van lifestyle with our baby and explore on four wheels once again!
Photo cred goes out to the shop in Edmonton!...That's as specific as I can be.
** Update: Van life has been stalled once more, as the mountain highways that connect Vancouver to the rest of the country have been washed out by devastating floods and mudslides. Why does this affect our van viability? Well, as mentioned Tyler's brother found us the van. Micah and the van live in Edmonton, which is 13 hours and a couple mountain ranges away from Vancouver. So that's where the van will remain until...well, who knows!
