Mom, there is not one day that I do not think about you. As I took a walk in the pouring snowy slush in the dusk of the early March, wearing your lilac sweater, deep purple coat and cognac leather gloves, I realized that you are in clothes I wear, songs I listen to, food I cook since the last two months. I’ve recently got into styling, and finally seemed to get a hang of it, because I receive compliments whenever I wear your clothes. My closet now is 50% inherited from you, 25% gifted by the neighbors, and 25% collected by me in the last 20 years. I remember the quality time when you went shopping with me, arms in arms, and you would usually disagree with my choice but you never criticized me harshly, while I never understood your choice. Now it has been proved that you were 20 years ahead of me in fashion taste. I wish you could see me in every outfit styling your clothes. I would continue to wear every piece of the two suitcases that I lugged to Seattle from your closet, proudly and boldly. I realized too that many of the songs I recently added to my list were also your favorites. I remember the way how you sang them as you cooked with an apron on and a spatula in your hand. You had a beautiful voice which I didn’t inherit. And maybe one of the reasons for me to start learning Cantonese is also because of you, so that I could try to sing those songs in Cantonese for you, which you never got the chance to learn. I’ve been much more into cooking Chinese in the last few months, and my skills have finally improved. I’m trying to replicate the dishes you had made for me for over 30 years. You never really taught me how to cook, and I never tried to learn, because I thought you would always be there, even if not in person but just a phone call away. The only dish I cooked for you and that you liked was the steamed fish one month before you left. Or maybe you said you liked it just to make me happy? I do not want to remember your meek eyes that looked at me fleetingly and then down to the floor as you sat on the sofa and I stepped out of the apartment to go back to Seattle. Your eyes stood out of your skeletal face, full of submissiveness and helplessness, knowing that would be the last time for us to see each other in this world, in this life. Photo credit: Simbarashe Cha from NY Times
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It would be more fitting to say that Arizona chose us instead of we chose Arizona. Planning a warm getaway just ten days before Christmas craze leaves you not many options. Hawaii is way too expensive, Mexico the same, California doesn’t interest me, Texas has already been visited. Flight tickets between Seattle and Phoenix were surprisingly affordable for the peak season of Christmas, and oh wait, that famous canyon is just less than four hours drive away. That’s it!
That covered one of the two major factors when we choose a destination for holiday: flight tickets. The second is: home exchange. Since we got our second and last kid, our preferred accommodation has been homes on home exchange platforms. I have written an article before to introduce how it works, if you are interested, CLICK HERE. And if you ever sign up, put my name there for referral, and both you and me get some bonus points. After three years in this game, my preferred platform is homeexchange.com, which has the most options for homes. We got a nice second home in a gated community with an outdoor swimming pool and hot tub just 15 minutes away from the airport. Now the journey starts! A brief summary of our journey: 8 nights in Phoenix, stopped at Sedona red rocks area on the way to Grand Canyon, 3 nights at Grand Canyon, drove straight from Grand Canyon to the airport to fly back to Seattle. With kids we always travel slow, but if you are short of time, you can totally do the same route in a week by cutting a few days in Phoenix and/or a day at Grand Canyon. In Phoenix we enjoyed: 1, Desert Botanical Garden. Make sure you go there in Day 1 or 2, otherwise you won’t be amazed by the plants there because frankly, they are everywhere in Arizona. But it was still a fun educational visit for us. We were impressed by the mesquite trees and the saguaro cactus. 2. Hole in the Rock. Right next to the Desert Botanical Garden. It was a short, easy and fun hike for the kids. 3. South Mountain. There are many trails, most of which are moderate and above in difficulty levels. We did part of the Mormon trail in the late afternoon and was awarded free tacos by a volunteer Santa in the middle of the trail, and gorgeous sunset. Hiking in Arizona desert is quite different from hiking in Washington forests. Without any shade, it can get hot even in winter. Protect yourself from sunburn by wearing hats, sunglasses and long sleeves. Keep in mind that in winter, it gets dark pretty fast from the starting of the sunset. By the time you see those orange and red clouds, it will be dark in about half an hour. 4. Camelback Mountain. To get to Camelback Mountain from the south, you pass through those multimillion houses in Paradise Valley which was quite a sight to see. The trail is rated adequately as extremely difficult because shortly after less than one mile, it got very steep and the steps disappeared. You had to scramble with all fours among the rocks and boulders, with only a single metal rod to hold on to. Kids did half way up one of those steep parts and I backed down with them while my husband continued to the summit. It was still a fun experience for the kids. 5. Children’s Museum. We did this on a rainy day and had lots of fun. 6. Museum of Illusions. That was the only attraction we did at the entertainment complex in Scottsdale, and it was fun. Scottsdale old town was pretty boring. 7. Fountain Park. We had run out of places to go and went to this park in Fountain Hills, and it was very fun with a nice and big playground, a pond with lots of birds, a disc golf course, and a fountain that shoots tall into the sky for 15 minutes every hour. 8. The Farm: a park-feel venue with restaurants featuring farm-to-table eats. I had my only memorable meal there during the whole trip in Arizona. The large portion of cauliflower hash for breakfast was delicious and didn’t come cheap. 9. Lost Dutchman State Park and the Goldfield Ghost Town. This was part of the Apache Trail loop that you could drive around. It was a very nice hike with the kids in Lost Dutchman State Park. We turned around at the Green Boulder. Goldfield was a cute old west town with art/souvenir shops, restaurant/cafe, some original buildings and dress up show. Free entry. We paid for a mine tour which was informative about the harsh life in the pitch dark and piercing dusty underground. The red rocks area south of Sedona was my favorite part of this trip. We stopped on our way to Grand Canyon and hiked part of the Bell Rock Climb trail. This trail is properly named as “Bell Rock Climb” as different from the other trail “Bell Rock Pathway”, because after a short while, you come straight face to face with the rock, and you need to climb up by deciding where to put your feet all by yourself. Kids didn’t climb much of course but they enjoyed making their own clay with water and the red dirt of that area. I love the red rocks area because you can easily be IN it, whether you choose to hike / climb or not, you can go into it and be surrounded by the rocks. Whereas I felt like a passive observer at the Grand Canyon where you cannot easily go into it. Sure there are trails that take you all the way down to Colorado River, but you need a whole day and great strength to do it, definitely not with young kids. There are far more family-friendly trails in red rocks than in Grand Canyon. The Village of Oak Creek right at the foot of the red rocks seems to be ideal to appreciate the sunrise and sunset. You don’t need to drive far or hike long to enjoy the magic that lights play on those majestic rocks. If I ever come back to Arizona again, that’s where I would like to stay. Last but not least: the Grand Canyon. We did the south rim which was open all year round, whereas the north rim is closed in winter and much further to drive. My guide book says that 6 million visitors come to Grand Canyon every year. And maybe it was the Christmas / New Year break, it was very busy there. The hotel we stayed was full. Even the fast food restaurants were sold out on half of their items. The line to enter Grand Canyon park started at 9 am and stretched at least one mile away. The restaurants inside the canyon had a wait time of one hour during lunchtime. But you could always find alternatives so it was not too bad. The well-paved wheelchair and stroller friendly rim trail runs between Hermit’s Rest on the west to the Desert View Watchtower on the east. We walked from the visitor center to Yavapai Point and Geology Museum and got bored. It is impressive, it is grandiose, but it feels inaccessible. For me it would be good just as a once in a life time experience. My favorite spot is the Hermit’s Rest, probably the best spot for sunset, but we left half an hour before it started. We hiked a little bit down the steep Hermit trail which was amazing according to the two hikers we met who made it down to Colorado River and back up. Bright Angel trail was also great, even though only half a mile was open and the rest will be closed for about three years due to the waterline construction. At an elevation of about 7000 feet (2100 meters), the climate is extremely dry and very cold in the mornings and nights of winter. We were lucky that it was sunny and no snow or ice on the roads, but we did get sunburn on the cheeks and dry peeling lips. Bring sunscreen and ointment, wear sunglasses, hats and gloves, and dress in many layers. From late January to early February of 2023, we spent a week in Barcelona, a week in Sardinia Island (Italy) and a week in Rome. Kids were 3 and 6 years old. We (or definitely me) loved Rome the most, Barcelona the second, and Sardinia was almost a mistake (for that time of the year). Here’s a brief summary:
Barcelona was for seeing friends, and there was a direct flight from Copenhagen. You can never go wrong with Barcelona: parks and playground almost every other block (though can be smallish), wide pedestrian only and tree-lined boulevard right in between busy traffic of both ways in city center, charming neighborhoods to stroll for all the family, great and affordable food (especially the cafes and bakeries) and the unbeatable year-round mild weather. There were only two problems (with small kids):
Highlights of Barcelona:
We didn’t do much in Barcelona except for the mentioned above. We spent three days in a little beach town an hour south of Barcelona called Vilanova I la Geltrú, which was very peaceful and picturesque. We stayed at an Airbnb gem: The house of English. Book it if you ever get to Vilanova (I don’t get any commission). It was nice to be able to walk to everywhere, and see kids gather at the end of day after school and play at the central plaza of the town with an ancient fountain, probably just as kids did several centuries ago. There’s something magical and touching in this slight slice of continuity of life. We visited the Railway Museum of Catalonia, twice, with a family ticket, because my kids loved trains. It was cool to see a real round house and many locomotives from different ages, some of which you could get on and see the details. We took the train from Vilanova to Stiges (the weekly public transportation ticket still worked) which was very convenient. Stiges is a pretty beach town, with a beautiful Baroque-style church on an elevated terrace overlooking the Balearic Sea. Wandering through the alleys by the sea was fun and the restaurants at the end of the alleys served delicious food. Sardinia is not for winter. It’s a quiet island floating in the Tyrrhenian Sea, away from the crowds. Its only “neighbor” is another quiet island, the French Corsica. I can imagine it’s beautiful and lively in summer with its beaches, caves and harbors, but in the end of January it was sleepy, and chilly and windy. Still we tried to make the best of the week there. We toured only the southern part of the island. Places we liked:
Rome, the Eternal City, the “cradle of western civilization and Christian culture”! Why did I wait 36 years to come to see you? One week was just enough for the touristy essentials. With 2000 years of history around me, I suddenly remembered the lectures of “European Civilization” that I attended about 18 years ago in university, given by my favorite professor. One thing I know is that I will be back, to feel the history in the city and to feel the youth in me. While in Rome, do two things: EAT and WALK. Every day we got out of our Airbnb around 8 or 9 in the morning, walked, ate, and came back right before or after dinner. Don’t drive in Rome. Walk or take a taxi. Places we loved:
For tour tips about Rome, check the Romewise videos on Youtube. Great tips from a local. Guess where the picture was taken. 1. The Swedish homes are famous for their minimalist style, but I’ve noticed on this trip that against a minimal background of white walls, white tables, white chairs, white curtains is a lavish array of decorations, which includes but by all means not limited to lamps, gnomes, potted flowers, family photos, glasswares, candle holders, textiles, tapestry, paintings, plates, and all sorts of collections that fittingly take up every corner and crack in the whole space. They are usually artistically designed and are pleasant for the eyes, but can be mind-boggling for a true minimalist.
2. The Swedish obsession for light is amply and audaciously demonstrated in the lamps and candles that are literally everywhere in the space. On the windowsills, on the floors, from the ceilings, on the walls, on the tables. But they are never bright, just multiple clusters of light floating in the darkness, accentuating discreetly certain show pieces of the decoration array. The Swedes absolutely hate the blatant light from a dozen downlights controlled by a single switch. 3. And the light from the ceiling in the living room or above the dining table must absolutely be hung very low so that you can be sure to bump your head at least once a day even if you have lived in the space for 45 years. In a popular cafe right next to a city library, the light above each table is encased in a metal frame. I always wonder how its customers dodge that in a limited space filled up with tables, chairs, sofas and armchairs. 4. Chairs, ah, the Swedish or Scandinavian love for chairs is adorable and should be followed by every other country. Having suffered from the lack of good chairs for almost my whole time in the US, my bottom feels so much at ease while in Sweden. I finally understood why there are so many museums in Scandinavian countries dedicated to chairs. One sits a lot during that half year of darkness after all. 5. If you spot someone wearing anything besides black white and grey in winter, you can bet your life they are not Swedes. So what? The Swedes look fabulous in those dull colors with their tall and slim figures, pale and fine complexions and fifty shades of gold hair. |