September 13 Monday From Russia, we flew to Paris for the last leg of our adventure. Taking the Air France shuttle bus to Etoile then taking a taxi to #24 Avenue Gabriel, we were so warmly welcomed by Cynthia. It was good to be “home” again. We told Cynthia that we will spend the night there but need to leave early the following morning for Orly airport for our separate flights to Lourdes and to Marseilles. Emy and I are splitting up so I can visit Lourdes again while she visits Avignon and Arles, which I have visited back in 2003. We promised to meet up in Marseilles from where we can go to Aix en Provence before flying back to Paris. The 'plan' didn't meet with Cynthia's approval, insisting that we two should travel together. ... read more

August 27 Emy and I feel almost sad to leave our Frauenfeld home, a home that is never locked at night, where neighbors’ voices are hardly heard, where the only noises you’d hear would be the washing machine spinning or the coffee beans grinding. Or our loud Filipino voices and laughter! Moonlight, as we now call Lylah, and Papa, as we call Fredy , plus the 2 boys alternately called “sunshine” and “baby” by dear Lylah, have become our family in Switzerland. But we paid good money to join this Trafalgar tour, so Lylah helped us get our bags in her car trunk once more, and dropped us off at our Zurich hotel (Hotel Renaissance). On the way to Zurich, Lylah showed us the sights in Wintherthur…..where Fredy was born and raised , where his father ... read more

I am restless. It's summer vacation here and I mulled over the idea of spending all of 2 months in Australia. My nephew, the one who left in 1999 to migrate to Australia, just bought a house with his sister. Between him and his sister, they have lined up a number of odd jobs and repair work needing to be done on this 10 year old house. That meant a number of appointments with the carpenter, mason, plumber, etc. So, I towed my 6yr old grandniece and my sister to spend the next 2 months with me somewhere in the suburbs of Sydney, Australia. Suburbs meant somewhere in MacQuarie Fields, some 45 minutes by train from the city center. From the house, it meant a 7 minute walk to the corner, a 10 minute bus ride ... read more

Who wants to go through all the trouble of securing a UK visa for a day trip to the Rock of Gibraltar? In my home country, a UK visa is as rare as a visa for the US, and costs quite a lot. A day in the Rock of Gibraltar does not do justice to the nearly US$100 we paid for the visa to enter this UK colony. The Rock The Rock is a crown property of United Kingdom in the southern coast of Spain. This limestone promontory juts out into the Strait of Gibraltar and on a clear day, one can enjoy a glimpse of Northern Africa across the Strait . History claims that the area was named after a former slave Tariq who led an army guarding the Rock. Natives thus called the rock ... read more

Just a short, comfortable one hour drive from Madrid to reach this impressive city of 3 cultures. I have to admit that I had my expectations of Toledo, having seen too many paintings of the Spanish city. Yet, I was still awed by its sheer beauty. This place shouldn't be missed, and should be in everybody's list to visit after Madrid. Through many narrow alleyways, we passed many houses with Moorish balconies. These 'extensions' served as 'peek out' places for Muslim women staying indoors and preferring not to be seen. I can just imagine them sneaking a look into the vibrant street scene in Toledo's narrow alleyways while fiddling with their worry beads. City of 3 Cultures The mixture of artistic styles speaks volumes on how Arabs, Christians and Jews once lived together in this former ... read more