Keeping cool...

 Our final full day in Dubrovnik saw us actually staying in and touring the great city itself.  But you know by now that I had something up my sleeve because rarely do we spend a whole day touring without throwing in something for the kids (big or little).  This time I had booked a kayaking tour that would take us around the "cursed" island, allow us to swim and snorkel in a hidden swimming hole and give us a whole new perspective on those walls that surround the city.  It would also give us a much-needed break from the unrelenting sun and the droves of tourists that enter the city in the late morning making it almost impossible to even walk.  (Tip: if you are in the city during high season, which we were not, get outside of the walls between the hours of 9 and 4.  This is when the cruise ships are docked and release all of their passengers.  Do a day trip, kayak on the water, go anywhere but do yourself a favor and get out.  There is no place for those thousands to go but the small city center and you can hardly move).

We had grabbed a quick lunch after our early morning tour (next post) and were sunblocked, swimsuited and raring to go.  Since they were two-person kayak's, we had to pair up, agreeing to switch at the halfway point when we stopped to swim.  It was decided that I would take Stinkerbell to start since I was fresh and strong still and since she wouldn't even have her own paddle, I was going to have to paddle for two. 

We were put in the sea with the others and set off on our 3-hour tour.  And I pretty quickly realized that this was not going to be a leisurely kayak.  A double kayak is heavy.  Stinkerbell is extra weight. The sea was not calm because of all of the boaters and jet skiers.  And I was going to have to paddle without stopping if I were even going to have a chance of keeping up.  Not to say B had it much more comfortable since MadHatter would stop paddling for long stretches just because.  But even though it was hard work, the views were incredible, and the times we stopped to listen to the history of the island, the caves and the coves let me recover enough to keep going.  And going.  And going. 

 Heading out through the bay.

 Ready to go!

 One of the stopping points around the island.  I really enjoyed the rests!

 B and MadHatter just hanging out.

 Inside the cave.  I was too far back to hear the story, but it was pretty...

 On the left is a hotel that was just bought by a Russian millionaire.  He is going to put up the first 7-star hotel in Europe on it.  Which is funny because there is no such thing as more than 5 stars here...The picture on the left is a house they used for episodes of Game of Thrones.  As I am not a watcher, I could only tell you it is in the season 4 finale.

 We finally made our swimming hole and took a half hour break to snorkel, swim and watch the crazy local boys dive off the rocks (see video below).

The water in the cove is much warmer than in the open sea and extremely salty. Hence it's nickname of the Little Dead Sea.  It was a much-needed break for my arms (and strangely, my legs)...

 Back in our boats again!  Why am I still in a boat with Stinkerbell you ask?  Why did we not switch places and give B a chance to experience the fun me a rest?  He offered.  More than once.  But I figured I had made it this far, I was going to do the whole thing.  I could see where we came from and thought it couldn't be that far.  Can anyone see where this is going???  Yep, it was a LOT farther than it looked.  And since we hit the open channel, and our guide told us that we needed to sprint for about 500 m to get through or we would go back or get run over, we needed to work twice as fast.  But I was already paddling twice as fast as the others just to keep up.  How can you sprint when you are already sprinting???  Let's just say I slept well that night and was reminded of our kayak every time I moved for the next few days.  

But in other news, this is how Stinkerbell enjoyed the trip back to land...

We made it back and even though we were the last ones in, we had such a great time.  Our guide helped us pull our boats out of the water, store our paddles and then broke the news that we had each kayaked over 5 miles!!!  It was indeed time for a drink, we earned it. 

An American Thanksgiving. At an Irish Bar. In Prague.

Way back in early October, I had made a solo trip to Prague for work.  I left the girls at school on Friday morning and spent the next few days doing back to back photo shoots for families in search of the yearly holiday/family photo.  The girls were so disappointed that I was going without them that I promised a trip back at our next break (late November), to make it up to them.  

And that is just what we did for 5 days last week!  This time we were there to visit though (I only did one photoshoot!) and so the pictures are limited to what I snapped on my iPhone in between driving the girls to sleepovers, playdates, school (yep, I put them in school on Friday for maximum enjoyment of their friends), Thanksgiving dinner, a birthday party, and a trip to the ballet.  Which means that there are not very many as I spent a lot of time in the car.  At the end of the weekend, we had one sick girl (from exhaustion the dr. said) and one that was close to it.  But it was well worth it!  Prague always shows us a good time, and we can't wait to do it again.  This time maybe with a little less on the schedule.

Stinkerbell, J and O at their bowling date!

Our new friend at the Swan's on the Vltava (my one photo shoot).  This spot is a favorite.

Ready to head out to Thanksgiving dinner.  At an Irish bar.  In Prague.  We are definitely not in Kansas anymore :)

The way the Irish do American Thanksgiving.  It wasn't exact but it was pretty close.

Fast, faster, fastest.

A girls night out.  Sadly, we were talking so much that we didn't get a picture of all of us together.  This is the final 3 at the wine bar at the end of the night.

Another sleepover!

The theatre where we saw O perform (as a boy!) in the Nutcracker.

That's O (6th from the right)

After a quick congratulation and goodbye to O, we hit the road and headed back home.

Until next time Prague.

What'SUP Bled

 Lake Bled!  It has been on my bucket list since I found out that we were moving to Europe over three years ago.  And we were finally here.  And yet, here I was,  a bit apprehensive.  We had gotten a peek at the lake yesterday, and I was really looking forward to spending some time on that ridiculously turquoise water this morning, but I was also dreading it.  You see, I had booked a stand-up paddleboarding trip based on the glowing recommendation of a friend, and I trusted them wholeheartedly but you guys, I trip walking up the stairs.  I also fall over when I am standing too still, and I do not have a single graceful bone in my body.  Yet, here I was, scheduled for a two-hour tour, where I would have to stand upright on a wooden board with nothing but water underneath me for stability.  I was sure that I would end up in the lake, more than once.   Can you understand why I may have had a second thought?  Or two.  But I was there, my girls were counting on me, and so we suited up (literally, we suited up in the parking lot just off the lake) and jumped in knees first.

I sent the ringer in first.  Mostly because I wanted the girls to have no fear when it was their turn and if they watched me flip the board and sputter back to the top I thought they might have second thoughts about jumping on the boards themselves...So B was number one on the board.  And he was a pro from the get-go.  He went from knees...

 to paddling...

to standing in under a minute...

My turn.  And I somehow managed not to flip the board over!!!  I mastered the knees position faster than I thought I would but wasn't steady enough to try standing up quite yet.

But with both parents on boards and not in the water, MadHatter was anxious to get on her own and get started.  Thankfully, she has great balance and a can-do attitude.  Within 5 minutes she was up and paddling forwards, backward and in circles.  This girl was a natural.

Finally, Stinkerbell hopped on the front of our Marina's boat (our guide, I will mention her awesomeness more than once in this post).   And we were all off.

 Stinkerbell catching her balance...

And once she got her bearings Marina let her take control!  Which rocked her world as she has never gotten to pilot the ship before...

 She relaxed as only Stinkerbell could so that we could get to the island in the middle of the lake.

A little blurb about Bled Island.  The island is tear shaped and houses the Church of the Assumption of Mary (now a museum).  To get to the church, you must climb 99 steps up the Južno Stopnišče (southern staircase), and legend has it that if you marry at the church, the bridegroom must carry his bride up the staircase to ensure a long and happy marriage.  We did not try such a thing...but we did dock our boards and walk to the top, counting all 99 steps...

 We saw the church from the outside, but since a wedding had just taken place and we were not dressed appropriately, we declined touring the church.  We had ice cream instead...

We headed back down the stair and to our boards where we took some family pics (thanks, Marina!)

 This is a Pletna boat.  They are only found in Bled and since 1590 the boats have been passed down from generation to generation.  Take one if you get the chance!

 And then it was time to swim in those beautiful waters.  Well, they did.  I do not get in if it isn't spalike temperatures...and this glacial lake was nowhere near spa like.  The kids enjoyed it though.

They would have played all day except for the fact that we still had to make it back to the mainland.  So we put our boards back in the water the same way they came out (this helped keep us on the right board with the right sized paddle).  Me first, then B, next MadHatter and finally Stinkerbell and Marina.   All was going well until Stinkerbell decided that she didn't need Marina's help anymore and took off...All the way out to the rest of us...

Poor Marina had to catch a boat out to catch up to her runaway...

There were no hard feeling (only a lot of laughter) and soon Stinkerbell was navigating the waters like a pro once again...

Well, when she wasn't swimming in them, that is...

 Me, I was relaxing, taking some video/pictures and just enjoying the afternoon sun...

Finally, we had to call it a day.  Marina does have a business to run after all.  For the last part we put Stinkerbell on MadHatter's board and left them to their own devices for getting back to the docks (spoiler - they did it beautifully).

 This was the perfect way to spend a few hours.  Not only did we get to tour the island (with a local) but we learned the basics of SUP, and we did it as a family with a fun, funny and entertaining local to boot.  If you find yourself in the area - please do yourself a favor and spend some time with WhatSUPbled...you will not regret it!