Good Morning!

I was walking along the other day and I said good morning to someone and they responded by saying something that sounded like "Dobre." Afterwards, I was going over in my mind where I thought they were from, as you sometimes do when you are traveling. Do you do that? The "judge the tourist" game, or is that just me? Often you don't ever get the answer but it's fun to guess. For example, two people kissing on two cheeks... They could be French, Italian, Latin American or even African (as well as many others). But what if they kiss on three cheeks? They could be Dutch, or from the southern part of France, the Balkans, or maybe even the Middle East. What if they bump foreheads? They could be Turkish or Maori! In Africa, it's common to see two male friends holding hands and I've seen the same thing in Türkiye. 

But I digress. Going back to the Dobre people, this is a hard one, as there are many languages who say something similar to say good morning or good day. So they could have been Russian or Polish or Czech. My guess was Polish because I have recency bias since I was there a couple of months ago. And I'll never know! 

Some once asked me (Michelle? Kae?) about how I managed languages while traveling. I have a list of phrases and I always check those before I go so I will be ready. I am a firm believer in not just approaching everyone and immediately speaking English to them. If possible , I always ask them in their language, "do you speak English?" and then go from there. If they say no, I either use the point and guesture method, or I whip out Google Translate and type in what I need. Pro tip: download the language so that you can use it offline in case you are not in wifi or your SIM card is not working. 

Unless I have a complicated question, I generally just use baby phrases, like, "bus, Paris?" Instead of trying to ask "where is the bus to Paris and when does it leave and how much is the ticket?" Then we often go back to the point and guesture method. I once was hiking in Slovenia and it was raining and I was coming from the Alps into a very tiny town where I was going to try to catch a bus into a bigger town. A man pulled over asked me sometging in Slovenian and when I said the name of the tiny town he guestured for me to get in. So I did. The car ride was fun because somehow despite neither of us speaking the other language, I learned that the bus to the bigger town was leaving in about an hour and he dropped me off right next to the stop. Luckily the word bus is often similar in other languages, and it is avtobus in Slovenian. 

Some other phrases which are helpful are: yes, no, thank you, bathroom (although often you can say "toilet" and people will know what you mean, or you can make the pee-pee face and cross your legs and they will get the point), bus, and, to bring it back full circle, hello, good morning or good day. 

In many cultures it is rude to just walk up to someone and demand or ask for what you need without first saying hello, good morning or good day. In fact, even in some places in the US this is the case. So, at the very least, I always make sure that this is something I know how to say. Here are some of my favorites! I am going to spell them phonetically so excuse my poor spelling.

In Japanese, you say Ohio! 

In Slovakian, you say Ahoy! 

In Swedish, you say Hey! (Spelled Hej)

Here are a few more casual greetings:

In French instead of Bonjour (formal), you can say Salut!

In German instead of Gluten Tag, you can say Servus! 

I have a list of common words and phrases that I want and usually I just plug it into chatgpt before I go to the country and then I copy and paste the list into my notes app (Google Keep) which will be offline. If I am going to be moving around, I will ask it to do the list for the next five countries all at the same time. 

If I am doing something specific, like hiking, I will have it put together a list with common phrases for that activity like, "Where can I find water/food? Can I camp here? Do you have a room available? How much does it cost?" And of course "bus, bathroom, thank you" still come in handy.

I also like to learn a few numbers, especially if I plan on going to the weekly markets, and then the word for "kilo" or "gram" so that I can buy tomatoes or cheese! So at least "one" or "half" is handy to know. I mean, half a kilo is about a pound and I can eat a pound of most things! 

So that's it, that's what I do as far as languages in other countries. Your turn! 

What do you do regarding language when you are traveling? Do you have a go-to list of phrases? Do you stay in hotels or do tours so that you don't need to worry about it?? 

A Day In The Life

Last year, almost to the day, I did a DITL post, and I read through it recently and was feeling nostalgic for little old tent-dwelling me, who had just started out on a long bike ride and had the whole world in front of me. Due to this, I thought it would be a good idea to do this a little more regularly, so I can look back on them, so I am going to do one for each location where I have a longer term stay. 

April 21, 2024 - Tacoma, WA

I think that when most people think of full time travel, they think of excitement and a vacation every day, but in reality, it is just daily life somewhere else, and can often be repetitive and mundane. However, I am not knocking repetitive or mundane in the least; the reason I am staying in one place for a little longer is so that I can have those "regular" days! So here is a little peek into the real life of a slow traveler. 

Thursday January 16th, 2025

Lyon, France

6:00 am: Yes, I still get up early! I love waking up in the dark and watching the sun rise over the...mountains...or in this case the courtyard of my building! I get out of bed, use the bathroom, brush my teeth, and put in my contacts; this is the same exact routine every day without fail! The next (very important) thing is to make coffee! I drink my coffee and watch the light start to get brighter as I catch up on the news and blogs. When I say "drink my coffee," that is coffee plural, and also it is not the tiny cups that the French drink. I do like espresso, but I also like a big ol' cup, or five, of drip coffee. However, I am actually drinking instant, which will probably gross out the coffee snobs, but there is no coffee maker in my apartment and I actually don't mind instant that much anyway. 

7:00 am: Now that it is light, I go for a quick run along the Saone river, which is just a few hundred feet from my doorstep. I did this on purpose, as one of the things that is important to me when I am traveling is the ability to get out and get some exercise without having to travel or fight crowds. Of course, a nice view is nice too, but I have found that often the place with the nice view is either the popular (crowded) one, you need a car to get to it, or it is prohibitively expensive! It is a little cold still, and a bit foggy, but it is invigorating to get out! 

A bit dreary, but its good to get out

8:00 am: The run is done; I buy a baguette and hit the shower, then eat the baguette with butter and call that breakfast done! Usually I would wait a little longer to have breakfast, and then just have two meals instead of three, but today I have a walking tour at 10:00 am, which is my normal eating time. 

Walking to Vieux Lyon

9:00 am: I start walking down toward the Vieux Lyon, which is about a 2.5 mile walk from where I am staying. I take my time and enjoy the quiet of the river, and the cyclists all doing their thing commuting to work. This is a big cycling town and I love it, and of course I also miss my bike! I could easily take the Metro, as there is a stop about 30 seconds from my house, but I enjoy the exercise, and seeing the people on the street. I get to the area a little early and check out the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, which has a really cool astronomical clock inside. 

St. John the Baptist

10:00 am-12:00 pm: Walking tour of the Vieux Lyon. This is something I generally like to do on one of my first few days in a new city, as I can get a nice lay of the land and a bit of history. Plus I like to pick the brain of the tour guide for a place to eat and anything I should do that the locals do (in case you are wondering, here are his recommendations). 

Inside of a Traboule

This tour is a free walking tour, but that means you have to tip the person, which can be whatever you want but I think that generally $10-$20 is standard. This is still true in non-tipping countries, as this is how they get paid. This is one of the only things I need cash for in most places that I travel (and my baguette; it just feels weird to charge one euro every day on my card!) 

Place Bellecour

12:00 pm: The tour ends near the Place Bellecour, which used to be a military training ground but now is a plaza with a Ferris wheel and a subway stop. From it you can see the Basilica of Notre Dame of Fourvière, which sits up on the hill above the city. Luckily it ended here, because also Republic St. is a known shopping street and is nearby and I need a new phone! I head to FNAC to look. 

Rue de la République

1:00 pm: I spend quite a lot of time looking at phones, inquiring about fixing mine, and talking to a representative via Google Translate. After finally deciding, I end up buying a phone and after I open it, I then realize that it is actually not compatible for what I will need, so I return it. Due to the exchange rate fluctuation, I actually end up having a debit of about $0.10 USD in the end! Ha! 

2:00 pm-4:00 pm: I slowly make my way back home, but not along the river. Instead I go up through the Croix-Rousse neighborhood, which is my favorite neighborhood in the city so far. It has a lot of artwork, murals and weird art installations, and it sits on the top of the hill, so you get a great view of the city below as you go up the hill. I have fun "treasure hunting" as I walk. 

Croix-Rousse

Croix-Rousse

4:00 pm: I get back to my neighborhood and I head to the grocery store. I love looking at things in the stores in different countries. In fact, I can easily spend an hour in the store just staring at meats and breads and bean casseroles. Which is what I do! Who wants some duck confit? 

Duck confit?

5:00 pm: Family video call! We do this every Thursday. It used to be at 5:00 pm PT, but now that I am abroad, the family does it at 8:00 am instead. Otherwise, I would have to get up at 2:00 am to do the call. Thanks fam! 

6:00 pm: The call is over, so I make myself a pate and baguette sandwich for dinner. What do you mean that I can't just eat bread with toppings for every meal? Fine, I will have a side of cheese with it. 

Cheese!! 

7:00 pm: I read my book for a while. I am reading The Briar Club by Kate Quinn, which is a good book. It is not my favorite Quinn book, that would be The Alice Network, but it is still enjoyable. 

9:00 pm: I do my bedtime routine, which is to play one game (okay, maybe two) of Rummikub on my phone before going to bed. I am having issues with my phone though, and the battery doesn't last, and I don't have two adapters, and my computer is plugged in in the living room, so I have to keep my external battery pack nearby to charge my phone. I win one game and lose the other, which is about par for the course. 

I am about to win!

9:15 pm: I put on a podcast, set the sleep timer to 15 minutes and pass out!

Total steps: 13,000

Total miles: 7.5 (12 km)

What is your favorite thing to do when you get to a new place? What is your normal bedtime routine? What is your favorite kind of cheese? 

Money Pie Q1 - Western Europe

Oh hello. You thought that I forgot that I was going to keep track of how much I have been spending, but I didn't! I thought it would be more helpful to do a breakdown after I had been traveling for a little bit, so will likely do it every quarter rather than every month. However, I reserve the right to change my mind. Okay, let's get started! I was in Europe for a total of 87 days, so roughly three months, and here is the breakdown of what I spent. All numbers are quoted in USD.  

Accommodation. $3,789 or $43.56/day or $1,307/month. This is always the first and most expensive item on the list and it did not disappoint. This included 74 nights in Airbnbs, 5 nights with a friend, and 8 nights in hotels, plus another 5 nights in hotels where I kept my monthly Airbnb and booked a second place somewhere else at the same time. The average accommodation per day ranged from $41 in the Andalusia region of Spain to $58 in Krakow. 

Dining Out. $944 or $10.85/day or $119/month. This included meals that I paid for the entire thing in order to pay my friends back for letting me stay with them, as well as shared meals when people were visiting, but usually when I was on my own, my dining out is generally one lunch, one dinner and one coffee out per week. Most of the time, the average dinner was about $25, lunch was $20, coffee was $4 and pastries (of course!) were about $2 each. 

Groceries. $396.33 or $4.56/day or $137/month. This included a lot of groceries believe it or not, but I am not really eating much meat or booze, so that keeps the costs down. However, fresh produce and eggs and things are pretty inexpensive overall. If you add this to the dining out cost, my average spent per day on food is $15.41. 

Transportation. $629 or $7.22/day or $217/month. The bulk of this was two things - first was an 8 day car rental in Spain coupled with a 3 day rental in Germany, the second was the Netherlands/Belgium, where I traveled really fast, so had three different train/buses in one week. Other than that, this is mostly trains from one city to another or public transportation within a city, which are fairly inexpensive. Most train rides of a couple hours were around $35 (this included Germany, France, Belgium) from point to point. 

Entertainment. $346 or $3.98/day or $119/month. The bulk of this was for walking tours (one, sometimes two per city), skiing (ticket, bus and gear for about $100) and various museums or attractions. Most of the time, I entertain myself pretty well by walking around, people watching or going to green spaces. I am fairly easily amused. 

Miscellaneous. $31 or $0.36/day or $11/month. This is mostly post cards and shipping, but also includes tips and toilet fees. 

Flights. $340 or $3.91/day or $117/month. This includes my flight from San Francisco to Germany, which I booked using points ($0), and three flights within Europe: Lyon-Krakow ($94), Krakow-Amsterdam ($102), Brussels-Seville ($144). I travel with a carry on only, but now many airlines are charging for that, and I had to pay 30 euro on the Seville flight just to carry on baggage. 

So if you were on a long vacation, you may be able to stop here, as this is the end of the travel related items. But since I am traveling full time, life still has other things, so I am going to go over those too just for full disclosure. You can omit these when planning your next long vacation. 

Health Insurance. $511 or $5.88/day or $176/month. I just changed carriers so my insurance will now be about $75 a month, but before, since I was still in the US more than a certain amount of days per year, I had to have coverage there, which was $235/month. 

Utilities. $313 or $3.60/day or $108/month. This includes my phone, any yearly subscriptions like Trusted Housesittter, cloud services, apps, VPN service, and any credit card annual fees. I do not have any streaming services, but this would be included here if I did. 

Shopping. $788 or $9.06/day or $271/month. Those of you who know me well will be wondering what the hockey I spent $788 on. Well, life happens and so does shit and my phone went to the great meadow in the sky, and I needed more HD storage, so I had to spend a lot of money on electronics in the first quarter. As you know, I also bought a new computer in November, so I don't even want to talk about how much money I have spent on electronics in the last twelve months. It burns, precious. 

So, what was the total and did I stay within budget? Drumroll please. The grand total was $8,089, which comes out to about $2,789 per month, or $93 per day. My budget is $2,500 a month or roughly $80 per day, so I struck out this quarter big time. However, if you remove the electronics, it would be $84 per day, which is still not within budget but it is a lot closer. 

So what is the verdict? The verdict is that if I have no more electronics mishaps, I may be okay next quarter, or maybe something else will come up. Also, I do plan on being in a less expensive place for the next three months, and I hope to do some hiking, which could mean I spend less due to camping, or a lot more due to ice cream consumption. The bottom line is, and I quote my friend G-money, who always tells it like it is, that my budget number really is arbitrary and if I go over, I go over. C'est la vie. 

What do you normally budget for your travels on a per person or per day basis and do you stay within that budget? Or is it okay to fudge it a little? 

What I Learned & Looking Back & Forward: March 2025

March: in like a lion and out like a lamb? You tell me! Please copy and paste the questions at the end and add your answers to the mix! 

1. What is the name of your last month's chapter or the theme of your last month if you prefer that? 

January: Baguettes and Many Steps
February: In Like Minnesota; Out Like Hawaii
March: Wet and Wild

2. What did you learn last month? 

I learned that I love small towns but they are not as great for finding community when traveling for an extended time period. I learned that I can live with a shitty phone with a mostly dead battery, although it really sucks, especially when you are in a place where you may need maps, or to get into your remotely controlled (by the phone) door. I learned that having a new phone, with a working battery and a new camera is like a rainbow after a storm. 

3. What was the weather like where you are? 

Another spoiler by the title, but...it rained a lot! Here is the news from Malaga, which is near where I was. It was not great for life on the Sunshine coast, let me tell you. 

4. What event last month was your favorite?

Granada with the family. If you ever get to Spain, I liked Seville, but I liked Granada more! What a wonderful town with good food, outdoor activities and nice people. Plus you can't beat the fact that if you order a beer/wine, you get a free tapa with it! Those are my kind of people! 

Seen below left to right, top to bottom: Berenjenas con miel (eggplant with honey). This was my favorite. It sounds weird, but it is so good. Pulpo a la Gallaga (octopus). I love me some octopus, and this is so tender, and is not chewy at all. Anchovies (don't knock them 'til you've tried them pickled). Habas con jamon (beans with ham, aka pork and beans taken to the next level). 

Plus the Alhambra. Well worth a visit and you can see it from many parts of town, so it is also worth trying to get different views of it from different hills. 

5. What was the best thing you listened to or watched last month?  

I am going to tell this in book, movie/show, podcast format. 

Book: The Third Gilmore Girl; it was interesting to hear the perspective of Laureli's Mom, Emily, and also to learn more about Kelly Bishop)

Movie/Show: still watching Jeopardy! That Ken Jennings is really growing on me. Sorry, Alex! 

Podcast: Mostly money related; I am going through Choose FI from the beginning just for fun. 

6. Tell us one funny recent story. 

My Dad, brother and I were having dinner. My brother and I can speak enough Spanish to get by and my Dad can say baño and gracias. My brother and I were asking the server some questions about the menu in Spanish and my Dad says to the server, in English, what are they saying, and the server translates for him, in English, what we had been saying. I don't know why but I found it funny that (a) Dad did not ask broski and I what SHE was saying and (b) that she had to help him translate what his own kids were saying to her and (c) that she spoke perfect English so that we could have been speaking in English if we wanted to. I don't know why, but that made me giggle, like we need to have a translator hang out with us to translate to my Dad what broski and I are saying. 

7. What are you looking forward to this month?

I am starting a long distance hike in April and am looking forward to it but am also kind of dreading it, as (a) it has been raining (!) and (b) it has been a while since I have done a longer hike. However, this is my MO; I often get "nervous" before doing something, even though as soon as I start, the nerves are gone and I just get to work, and I enjoy myself. Sometimes the planning can be fun but I think I am ready now to get the show on the road.

Fun story though: I met up for lunch with a woman who had just finished the same hike, and we had a fun time talking about life, travel and hiking and in the end, she let me borrow her tent! So now that is one less thing to worry about! I still need a sleeping bag and a pot, but those don't have to be good quality, so I can just find a cheap one somewhere, whereas it is really nice to have a good quality (and light!) tent! Thank you DB! As they say in the hiking world, "the trail provides." 

MARCH:
1. What is the name of your last month's chapter or the theme of your last month if you prefer that? 
2. What did you learn last month? 
3. What was the weather like where you are? 
4. What event last month was your favorite?
5. What was the best thing you listened to or watched last month?  
6. Tell us one funny recent story. 

APRIL: 
7. What are you looking forward to this month?

Bonus question! Do you have a "the trail provides" story to tell us? 

Never Have I....Wait, Actually I Have!

Last week Elisabeth did a Never Have I Ever post and I always enjoy them, but when it comes to talking about what else that I haven't done, I never can come up with stuff, because how do I know what I don't know/haven't done? So I thought I would make a list of weird things that I have done and you can chime in to let me know if you have done these things! Also, I want to apologize in advance to my parents or anyone who I may offend or make blush by stating these things. 

1. Shot a gun

It was not this one!

2. Joined the mile high club (it is much more exciting in the movies FYI) 

3. Eaten a rambutan

Rambutan

4. Driven a tractor

5. Been over 5,000 m (16,500 ft) in elevation

6. Eaten a bug (on purpose)

Chapulines

7. Read a book in another language (Harry Potter y la Piedra Filosofal. It took me a while, but I did it during the pandemic, so, you know, I had time!)

8. Driven a car in another country (Spain, Germany, Austria, Italy, Turkey, Scotland and Ireland, all manual)

Ireland

9. Driven a motorcycle. (Did it when I was younger, and then again in Vietnam and Thailand, with a person on the back, which is scary!)

10. Stayed up past dawn (partying! Just kidding. I did stay up all night in Buenos Aires because they don't go for dinner until 10 pm, then you go out afterward, but mostly my all night jaunts are running related) 

Finish line of Bryce 100 after staying up all night
(plus it was over 100 degrees too!)

11. Gone commando (cycling, but then I realized that I don't mind it!)

12. Wet my pants (just a little not fully, but sometimes when you have to go really bad and then you sneeze...well...) 

13. Had an Irish car bomb (not for several years but they used to be fairly de rigueur) 

14. Smoked a hookah (in New Orleans and San Francisco, but never in a different country)

This is not me, but I am drinking that martini!

15. Heard a call to prayer (in Istanbul. 5x per day in most cases, and I think 6x during Ramadan)

2004. What a baby I was (sorry about the quality)

16. Stepped on a snake (Luckily it was not poisonous. I jumped so high after that!) 

It was not this one. This one IS poisonous.

It was not this one. This one was huge, but in a tree. Don't F with the red tailed boa. 

Here is the list so that you can copy and paste (to avoid the copyright note, just highlight and click CTRL-C, then CTRL-V into the comment box). 

1. Shot a gun

2. Joined the mile high club 

3. Eaten a rambutan

4. Driven a tractor

5. Been over 5,000 m (16,500 ft) in elevation

6. Eaten a bug (on purpose)

7. Read a book in another language 

8. Driven a car in another country 

9. Driven a motorcycle. 

10. Stayed up past dawn 

11. Gone commando 

12. Wet my pants 

13. Had an Irish car bomb 

14. Smoked a hookah 

15. Heard a call to prayer 

16. Stepped on a snake 

Have you done any of these things? What other strange things have you done in your life that I can make a NHIE post about later? 

March Madness

March seems to be one of those months that things happen. You may recall that two years ago, I wrote a post about the 23rd of March. I know most people probably equate the pandemic as the 16th, but for me, the 23rd was the day that had the most impact on me. Last year, on this very day (the 24th), I was riding off into the rain for my first day of my bike trip! I was looking back at that time, and realized that this day, and the couple of days to either side of it, are days that for some reason things happen. I am guessing it is because winter is starting to thaw and the urge to get out and about is high. Here is a quick recap! 

On this day in 2010, I was in New Orleans, getting ready for a RTW trip. 

City Park, NOLA

On this day in 2011, I was in Bali. 

Bali

On this day in 2012, I was in Kansas City (the week before that I was in Naples, FL and the week after that I was in DC running the Cherry Blossom 10 miler. I got around!)

Kansas City

On this day in 2013, I was getting ready to fly to Boston for the Boston Marathon. 

We both survived!

On this day in 2014, I ran the Rim to Rim to Rim in the Grand Canyon with my brother. 

Somewhere between the north and south rim

On this day in 2015, I was touring the house that I bought! Less than two months later, I would be a proud homeowner! 

Photo I took at the Open House. 

On this day in 2016, I was in Yosemite. 

Yosemite Falls, beer in a sock. 

On this day in 2017, I ran the Rim to Rim to Rim in the Grand Canyon with some friends. March is a good time to do this, as it is not too hot, and the North rim is still closed (less tourists). 

Headed down from the North rim to the South rim. 

On this day in 2018, I walked over the border into Tijuana and ran a 50k and then went back to San Diego for some beer. 

Oceanside, CA

On this day in 2019, I ran in the Marin Headlands. This is one of my favorite places to run and hike. 

Pirate's Cove

On this day in 2020, we all know what happened! 

Everything is closed? No problem! 

On this day in 2021, I worked from home from Oregon. 

Deschutes River

On this day in 2022, I went to New York for a wedding that was supposed to happen on March 14th, 2020. 

This is not my wedding outfit ;)

On this day in 2023, I am the soccer chauffeur. I drop off the kids and take a hike. The east bay in March is beautiful and green. In summer it is brown and dry. This was right after the collapse of several regional banks.

Sycamore Valley Park

On this EXACT day in 2024, I was setting off for my bike trip! 

Happy anniversary, Bob! 

So what happened this year? I spent some time in Granada and Malaga and am headed off on a new adventure today, which I will talk about more later! 

What were you doing on this day over the last few years? Or if March is not your jam, what month do you usually have a lot of things going on? 

TGIM

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Finally the sun came out! But not for long. The last few weeks has been a lot of rain, and there is supposed to be more today but at least it was not too rainy this weekend, as I had outdoor things planned. Keeping fingers crossed that next week there are a few sunny days too. 

The high of the last week was: Hiking with my Dad and brother. Of course, in the typical fashion of our family, it ended up being more miles and more elevation than expected, but the scenery and the company made it worth it. 

The low of the last week was: Rain. Out of seven days, six had rain, and some of them were torrential downpours with thunder and lightning, which was not super fun. In fact, I think it even hailed a bit. The good part of it was that there were some nice rainbows! 

Five minutes after this photo, it was hailing

Something I marked off my to-do list was: I worked on my taxes but did not get them totally finished. I plan on doing that next week and will be glad when this task is done. I was trying to decide whether itemizing would work this year, as I gave SO MUCH STUFF to charity. It may be a little better, but I have to put in each thing, so it's a bit of an admin nightmare. 

The book I am reading is: The Passion of Dolssa on ebook and listening to Sociopath on audio, but I am not really getting much reading done at the moment. Thanks to Stephany, I did get Woman on The Ledge from the library and thanks to the rain, I read it in one day! It was good! 

The best thing I spent money on was: I haven't really spent too much, and I booked a lot of my accommodation a few months ago, so haven't had to spend big amounts lately either. But if the question is the "most" money, it would be a new phone, but if it was the most FUN money, it would be food, or attractions. We did a great walk yesterday that was very fun!

Caminito del Rey

Plans for this week include: Hiking, eating, spending time with family, looking at stuff. 

My favorite photo from the last week is: This definitely is the worst photo I have taken in a while (I was moving, it was dark, and I don't know how to use my new phone) but this guy walked by when we were having dinner and I had to get a photo with him! May the force be with you. Or should I say "que la fuerza te acompañe!"

What are you reading? What was the high/low of your week last week? What have you crossed off of your to-do list lately? 

Rainy Day People

Remember my story about the Spanish cleaning lady? The day after that, I went for a morning run on the Guadalquivir River in Seville, where there is a dedicated running path. If you ever walk or run a route near your house, you will probably make eye contact with people walking the opposite direction and maybe nod or smile or wave or acknowledge them in some way. Or maybe you don't, and if that is the case, maybe you can explain why barely anyone on the path made eye contact and those who did just gave me a side eye and looked away. No smile, no nod, nothing! I guess I assumed that people living in a warmer country, who can get outside in the winter in much of the country, and who speak the language of romance, would be cheerful! 

Guadalquivir river path ---> glum

On the flip side, when I went running on the Vistula river in Krakow, and it was about 13 degrees F (-8 C) out, everyone I passed smiled and nodded and waved. Now, I am sure that in reality, there is no correlation between weather and friendliness, but I thought that people in the warmer climes would be more engaging; I mean, you are outside, it is a beautiful day and it is not 13 degrees F outside! Rejoice! 

Vistula River path --> very cheerful

After seeing several people with glum faces, I started trying to make eye contact with people and then smiling at them and basically out of the couple dozen people who I tested this on, one person smiled back. What is happening here (besides them probably thinking that I am loco in the cabeza! I mean, they may not be wrong)? 

So then I thought that maybe it was just a city thing. I mean, if you are in San Francisco versus being in a small California town, you will probably get more people just going about their business and not saying hello to every passerby, whereas in a small town, we wave at everyone, whether we know them or not. However, even in San Francisco, if you are running on a path next to the ocean, you may still give a brief nod of solidarity to other runners.

Pacific promenade --> slight nod

Anyway, then I went to the Costa del Sol to a small town on the coast, and ran along the promenade there, and tried to make eye contact (loco!) and still was not getting any response. 

Mediterranean promenade --> still glum

And then it rained. You know me; I never let a bit of wet deter me, and I went out for my daily run along the beach. There were not a lot of people out. It was raining and very windy and the drops were pelting my face and I could not even hear my music. But then it happened! The few people going the other way were smiling! Even a guy on a bike looked straight at me and WAVED! I was so happy! 

Rainy day at the beach --> Happy as!

I mean, look, I have not made any lifelong friends from this experience, but it turns out that braving adversary together seems to be the ticket. Maybe that explains why the Polish people were friendly? Braving the cold = we are in this together! 

What is the vibe like on your normal walking or running route? What is your theory about cold vs hot and friendliness?   

What I Learned & Looking Back & Forward: February 2025

February is over, so you know what that means! Time for another wrap up! Please copy and paste the questions at the end and add your answers to the mix! 

1. What is the name of your last month's chapter or the theme of your last month if you prefer that? 

January: Baguettes and Many Steps
February: In Like Minnesota; Out Like Hawaii*

*It was freezing at the beginning of the month, actually way below freezing and then beautiful at the end.  

2. What did you learn last month? 

I learned so much that I cannot even list the things. I watched Schindler's List and then went to the museum in Krakow and although I knew a lot about the German invasion of Poland, I learned a lot more. I also learned some French, Polish and Dutch words. Bedankt!

3. What was the weather like where you are? 

I guess I had a spoiler alert with my February book title, but it varied! I think the lowest was about 9 F / -12 C and the highest was about 65 F / 18 C. 

When it's cold, I eat bread products!

4. What event last month was your favorite?

Well, I would not say "favorite" but I am glad I went to Auschwitz and saw it with my own eyes. It was very cold that day and I kept having to pause and think about how cold it would have been, and obviously how horrid, for the poor prisoners who were there. 

On the flip side, arriving in Spain to warmth and water has been a mood lifter for sure! 

5. What was the best thing you listened to or watched last month?  

Schindler's List. I don't know why I never watched it when it came out. Also I am still watching Jeopardy and am loving the Tournament of Champions (TOC for those in the know). It also makes me feel smart, as sometimes I know answers that the contestants don't. Of course, I have no pressure as I sit in my pajamas and yell at the screen! 

6. Tell us one funny recent story. 

I got chewed out by a cleaning lady in Seville on my first real day in Spain. She was mopping the outdoor tile patio at the Plaza de España, where there were hundreds if not thousands of people walking around (on the tile) and I walked over the wet part, and she came at me! Obviously I did not know all the words, but she was not happy, so I said, "lo siento (I am sorry)!" and she said, "lo siento, coño!" which is not a nice word. I almost giggled right in front of her, as I do not know a lot of Spanish, but of course I know the bad words. I managed to get far enough away to giggle without her seeing me. 

Plaza de España; see the tile? 

7. What are you looking forward to this month?

I have people coming to visit! My uncle, who has never really traveled out of the US except to go to the Bahamas (?), is coming, and my Dad and brother will be here too. I see many games of cards in our future, and we have already booked some hiking and sightseeing trips. It will be fun. 

FEBRUARY:
1. What is the name of your last month's chapter or the theme of your last month if you prefer that? 
2. What did you learn last month? 
3. What was the weather like where you are? 
4. What event last month was your favorite?
5. What was the best thing you listened to or watched last month?  
6. Tell us one funny recent story. 

MARCH: 
7. What are you looking forward to this month?

Bonus question! Have you ever been cursed out in a different language?