We’re in İzmir

Thursday, 13 June 2019
Alsancak — Izmir, Turkey

An uneventful 11½-hour Turkish Airlines flight from Houston to İstanbul was followed by a quick hop to İzmir.  By 9:30p local time (12:30p MDT) on the 12th, we were at mom’s condo.  Tired … but pleased to have the travel day(s) in the rearview mirror.

Our comfort on the long-haul from Houston to Istanbul was
greatly enhanced by the exit row seats we scored on the B777 that
was our winged-chariot.  To our delight, We were even assigned
the same exit row seats for the short hop to IzmIr.

A good night’s rest and we were up at our usual early hour this morning … no jet lag … yay!  Breakfast with the family … Aylin & Murat, who live in the same condo building, joined us for the morning repast.  Then it was time to take care of errands.

I doubt that we’ll do much that is blog-worthy during this short stay in Turkey.  It’s too hot to be out and about much.  Besides, with a rather active two+ months planned around Europe starting on 19 June, best to use this time with the family for R&R.

© 2004-2019 Two to Travel.  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED by ERIN ERKUN.

The 2019 Overseas Jaunt Begins

Tuesday, 11 June 2019
United Airlines Lounge @ IAH — Houston, Texas

We’re off to add more stories in our passports.  Turkey first … then a driving trip through parts of Ireland … followed by a cruise to a lot of cool places (literally and figuratively) … and finally back in Turkey again where we will celebrate my nephew’s wedding.

Today is our travel day.  We’ve completed the first leg from Colorado Springs to Houston.  In a couple of hours we will begin the long haul over The Pond.  Due to the 9-hour time difference with Colorado, our trip will end tomorrow … in Izmir, Turkey.

© 2004-2019 Two to Travel.  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED by ERIN ERKUN.

Iris4U … A Symphony of Color

Monday, 3 June 2019
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Temps: 77F (25C) /49F (9C)

Great day … great outing.  It was actually on the hot side in the sun quite early this morning, but a cold wave brought the temps down as the day progressed.  Luckily, the afternoon thunderstorms that come through on a regular basis this time of the year held off until after we got home, so we had a really lovely day.

Friends and Family

Saturday, 2 June 2019
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Temps: Hi 73F (23C) / Lo 45F (7C)

We have just over a week to go before we head off on our jaunt across The Pond.  The basics of settling into our home are completed … decorating to be finished when we return.  The arrangements for keeping our home safe in our absence … well, let’s just say that they are taken care of as well.  The accoutrements for my nephew’s wedding are checked off the shopping list … except perhaps for shoes.  The trip planning is done … mostly.  We know what we want to see and do but how much we accomplish in that regard will depend on whether we can speed up our “quality over quantity pace.”  Somehow, I think the former is going to win out … again.  But that’s OK … it’s the memories we make that count.

Plog: Spring Storm in B&W

Tuesday, 21 May 2019
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Temps: 45F (7C) / 30F (-1C)

[What’s a plog?  It’s a photo log … few words … lots of photos … in this case in B&W.]

Yeah … I know.  It was me who wrote just two days ago that we weren’t expecting any major accumulation from the storm that was forecasted to come through yesterday into this morning.  Hah!

Carmen & Petrushka

Sunday, 19 May 2019
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Temps: 54F (12C) / 33F (.5C)

Brrrr … after summer-like weather earlier this week, we have a front moving through the state that has brought us temps reminiscent of winter.  We even have snow in the forecast for early next week … though we expect little more than a mix of rain and fluffy white stuff at our elevation … with very little accumulation on the ground.  That’s spring in the Rockies … finicky weather.  But I’ll take it over heat and humidity any time.

Cherokee Ranch & Castle … Tweet’s Home West of the Mississippi

Friday, 10 May 2019
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Temps: 40F (4C) / 29F (-2C)

It snowed yesterday … quite a bit, but no accumulation to speak of.  It was supposed to snow overnight into this morning, too.  If it did, there was no sign of the white stuff by the time we woke up.

But there was pea-soup-thick fog to contend with when we left the house at 7:15a for the first in the series of castle pop-up tours being organized by USAFA ITT/ORC.  Gaining a bit of elevation at USAFA, the fog was considerably better when we joined our group.  The better news … by the time we reached Sedalia, some 40 miles (64 km) away, we actually had sunshine and blue skies … and clear views.

Last Day of April in COS

Tuesday, 30 April 2019
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Temp Forecast: Hi 58F (14C) / Lo 40F (4C)

Two days ago, we were playing around with the exercise equipment along a walking path in a neighboring community — with views of Pike’s Peak no less …

Then, a cold front from the north merged over Colorado with a warm, humid front from the south and we woke up to this today …

No matter … the snow will clear up soon enough.  In the meantime, we’ll enjoy the company of guests for breakfast … it’s always fun to have them come by our place.

© 2004-2019 Two to Travel.  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED by ERIN ERKUN.

Deconstructing … Reconstructing

Monday, 22 April 2019
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Temps: 44F (7C) / 38F (3C)

Fickle spring weather continues.  Our daytime temps this past week have ranged between a high of 74F (23C) and today’s low of 44F (7C).  Nighttime temps have teetered between 24F to 43F (-5C to 6C) … cold to be sure, but we’ve stayed cozy in our home, so no complaints.  A sprinkle here and there … but no snow (except in the mountains … where it is quite welcome).  Plenty of sunshine … which makes all the difference to our mood.

Denver: Bugs & Sweets Tour

Friday, 12 April 2019
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Temps: 43F (6C) / 19F (-7C)

How to describe spring in the Colorado Rockies?  Several days of spring-like weather — warm enough for al fresco dining; a blizzard — high winds, but little snow accumulation this time … definitely nothing even close to the bombogenesis we endured in March; winter-like temps for a few days — but with sunshine and mostly blue skies.  Oh, and a bit of fog — not a regular occurrence, but it does happen.  And let’s not forget the sprinkles and thunder.  All this in the span of a week.  Yup, sounds like spring in the Rockies.

A Drive, A Meal, and A Ballet

Sunday, 7 April 2019
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Temps: 66F (19C) / 41F (5C)

On the calendar for today was a performance by the Bolshoi Ballet … streamed live from Russia … courtesy of Bolshoi Ballet in Cinema.  The website showed the time as 10:55a.  So did the website for the local movie theater.  Except that when we arrived at the box office, we learned that the time was now 12:55p!  No one could say when or why the time was changed.

We bid the Phaeton Adieu

Saturday, 6 April 2019
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Temps: 64F (18C) / 39F (4C)

We weren’t expecting that it would happen so soon, but it did.  We sold the Phaeton yesterday … to a lovely young couple.  The story rightfully belongs in the Phaeton Journeys blog … as a “period” at the end of an exciting phase of our lives post-retirement.  If interested, you can read the brief story at this link.

Our Phaeton’s plate … just before Mui packages it for shipment back to Florida.

Wil we buy another motorhome?  Yes.  When?  Well, that’s still TBD.

© 2004-2019 Two to Travel's Phaeton Journeys.  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED by ERIN ERKUN.

Boulder: Tea Tour

Thursday, 28 March 2019
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Temps: 71F (22C) / 41F (5C)

Since all work — getting settled into the stix & brix — and no play indeed makes Erin and Mui very dull, we set today aside for some fun.  And what great fun it turned out to be.  As a bonus, we had a gorgeous day to add to our pleasure … sunshine, blue skies, and very comfy temps that were perhaps just a tad bit cooler in Boulder than the temps forecasted for Colorado Springs.

The MoHo Gals Come for a Visit

Saturday, 23 March 2019
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Temps: 52F (11C) / 32F (0C)

We just bid Sue & Mo adieu after having another delightful meal together.  On the homebound leg of their roundtrip cross-country motorhome trip — which Sue is recounting on her blog, The MoHo and Other Traveling Tales — they detoured to Colorado to see us and also Mo’s sister in Denver.  We were, of course, delighted to have them visit and be our first guests at the stix & brix home.

In the Aftermath of a Bombogenesis

Thursday, 14 March 2019
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Temps: 25F (-4C) / 13F (-11C)

We’ve experienced many-a blizzard over the years.  I’ve also dug myself out of quite a few … Mui seemed to always be overseas when these storms hit … especially when we were living in Virginia.

The last blizzard that I can recall hit the MidAtlantic of the US in 2010 … before we began full-timing in the motorhome.  It was so bad that the media dubbed it “Snomageddon” … blog post at this link.

Here I am making myself comfortable on our back deck in Virginia after the Snomageddon of 2010.

Whirlwind Trip for Household Goods

Monday, 11 March 2019
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Temps: 51F (11C) / 23F (-5C)

Four very busy days unpacking the household goods we moved from the Phaeton to the house.  Four sleeps in our brand new bed … in our brand new home.  Then it was time to hop on a plane — two … if you want to be precise — and head east to Virginia to bring the household goods we had in storage in Winchester back to Colorado. We're back now and it's time to tell the story of our mad-dash.

Two to Travel Begins a New Chapter

Friday, 1 March 2019
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Temps: 51F (11C) / 23F (-5C)

Some might say that this new chapter in our lives began on 16 July 2018 … when we decided to settle in Colorado and went to contract on a new build in Colorado Springs.  That’s one way of looking at it.

The day we went to contract ... a happy day!

I’m not going to go back that far.  Instead, I’m going to use the date we moved into our stix & brix home — 1 March 2019 — as the beginning of this new chapter in our lives … one that will be semi-nomadic from this point forward.