Day 9 - 9th janHere we go! 3 weeks off-line to enjoy some travel with my family! Grateful for the chance to show a small part of the world to my girls; blessed to share this journey with my mama too; blessed by a hard-working husband who financed this trip. Switzerland and Dubai - here we come!!!
Day 10 - 10th jan
A visit to the Souk. Blessed by the excitement of foreign sights and smells; blessed by shared memory making; blessed with time with my brother and his family in Dubai.
Day 11 - 11th jan
Blessed with family dinner in my brothers home; blessed with the most wonderful sister-in-law anyone could ever have; blessed by love and laughter.
Day 12 - 12th jan
A day wandering the shops - blessed with the finding of winter boots for Bon; grateful for movie theatres at shopping malls and a sister - in law happy to take 4 girls there whilst Mama and I shopped! Blessed by the ability to enjoy window shopping and not feel the need to buy.
Day 13 - 13th jan
Oh MY! Are we seriously doing this holiday? Blessed by the first glimpse of the alps for my girls; grateful to witness their excitement; blessed by an amazing flight to Europe in the A380! Love this plane!!
Day 14 - 14th jan
First day in Interlaken, Switzerland. Blessed with wandering such a beautiful town; blessed for sites never seen before; blessed for cold, refreshing mountain air.
Day 15 - 15th jan
A trip up the mountain to Grinelwald. Blessed, so blessed for white, powdery, magical snow and the squeals of delight from my girls as they played in it. Grateful for an emotional heart and the tears that formed seeing the enjoyment of my Aussie kids and their response to snow.
Day 16 - 16th jan
Took the bus to a small, quaint village called Harbkern. Blessed by the beauty and strength of mountains in every direction; grateful for warm, thick, wholesome soup after a long walk in thick fog; grateful for the crackle of crisp snow, formed into snowmen by happy children.
Day 17 - 17th jan
Dude arrived to be with us last night - blessed by the girls love of their daddy who they have missed over the last week; blessed by sledding adventures for the kids; blessed with time alone with my mama in the medieval city of Thun.
day 18 - 18th jan
A trip up the mountain to Schilthorn - 2790m above sea level. Two trains, a chairlift, a vernicular train, another chairlift to get us up that far! OH MY! Grateful for the conquering of fear of steep chairlift rides induced! Blessed by the invigorating feel of -6 wind and temperature; blessed by the feeling of accomplishment of seeing the iconic 'James Bond' restaurant on top of one of the highest mountains in Europe. WOWSERS.
Day 19 - 19th jan
Another trip up a mountain, this time to the town of Wengen to watch some of the World Ski Championships. Grateful for sportsmen and woman happy to share their prowess with the world - incredible achievements. Grateful for the joy of people watching and blessed by happy sights and sounds at a huge sporting event in the snow.
Day 20 - 20th jan
Goodbye Interlaken. You ended too soon. Grateful for 7 days in one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited. Blessed to have shown this little, magical part of the world to the girls and to have done so with their grandmother sharing her favourite city with them.
Day 21 - 21st jan
Bel's 17th birthday!! Blessed to spent Bel's birthday with the family back in Dubai; blessed by an incredible hotel luncheon in the desert. Blessed by a daughter who has grown into a wonderful woman and a great joy to her family.
Day 22 - 22nd jan
Blessed to be a tourist in such a crazy place as Dubai! Blessed to still feel in awe at what man can create in a desert oasis! Blessed to know that home in Perth is so much quieter and less crazy as Dubai!
Day 23 - 23rd jan
Blessed with an overnight stay in a 5 star hotel - minus kids! Blessed with a quiet dinner for two and knowing my children were happy and safe staying with their cousins.
Day 24 - 24th jan
It was all about Dude today - he competed in and completed the Dubai marathon!! Blessed by a husband who is fit and motivated enough to run 42 kms in just 4 hours and 20 minutes! blessed by the fun of cheering him on with 4 very excited kids and the rest of the family. Blessed by a day around the swimming pool helping him recover!! he did an amazing job and I am in awe.
day 25 - 25th janCelebrated Australia day today - one day early as the weekend in the Emirates is Friday/Saturday. Blessed by a love of a sunburnt country; grateful for my big bro organising a picnic with a bunch of other homesick Aussies to celebrate this special day; blessed by fun in the sun eating BBQ sausages, anzac biscuits and Minties in a foreign land.
day 26 - 26th jan
Blessed by one last day at the shops, getting a few special finds for the girls. blessed by wandering my most favourite shop in the whole wide world - Pottery Barn!!! Blessed by the thought of not needing to visit another shopping mall for a very long time!!
Day 27 - 27th jan
Quiet, last day in Dubai. So, so grateful for my gorgeous sister in law with her wise words and gentle heart; blessed by a close, strong bond with my brother who I miss so much when we live in two separate countries; blessed by the ties of blood and cousins, who love even with the tyranny of distance in-between.
day 28 - 28th jan
Blessed with seating in Business class!! yes, I am very spoilt by a brother in the airline business. Grateful to soon be home with wonderful memories of mountains and family. Grateful for safe journeys.
