So international

So, the lady that babysat Palmer a lot back in Berkeley, she is from the Czech Republic. This summer, she is there with her daughter, who is a really good friend of Palmer´s.  When I was in Cal over Christmas, she said we should come visit, and repeated that every once and a while to Palmer over the last few months. So Palmer got it in his head that he would like to go to the Czech Republic. 

I am totally game for this, having never been to Prague but always keen on the idea. 

But it was a total crack up working on the scheduling of this trip. When would Palmer be in Iceland, and I would not be on my way to Sweden? When would she not have visitors from South Africa or Italy? Should we meet instead in England, where we both have friends we would also like to visit? 

Finally we found a window wherein she would not have visitors and we would not be going anywhere else. So June 30th, look out Prague! An adorable little boy is on his way. 

Comments

Anonymous said…
Only he, or you too?

I loooove the Czech Republic, aside from Italy it's my favourite "útlönd" :D Especially when you go there not just as a tourist, but actually meeting Czech people (which you'll be doing, of course), they're the most inviting and hospitable people I've ever known - maybe with the exception of the Faroese.
June 24, 2009 at 9:58 AM
Lissy said…
Well, I can't exactly send my 4 year old by himself! So, yes, a good excuse for me to get a mini vacation too. And my friend Kendra (who is visiting enroute to the airport) gave me the address of another Czech who is an Icelandophile.
June 24, 2009 at 2:58 PM
Anonymous said…
haha, no, 4 year old's just a bit too small to travel alone...

Have a nice trip, envy you!
June 24, 2009 at 11:14 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Dett í, ofan á, úr, út

I´m not sure if someone had dett í (gotten drunk), or if það bara dett ofan á (it just sort of happened), or if some dett úr (forgot), but at any rate, my household goods dett út (have disappeared). Let's review the chronology here. Early August packers from the shipping company arrive at the apartment in Moraga. They load my 4 large plastic containers and 8 cardboard boxes, plus one baby crib, into their truck. I watch my things depart. In September, I ask the friendly girl (Magie is her name) if she happens to know when I might expect my stuff. Late September she tells me. I am most impressed. Extremely so. Mid October rolls around, and I have not gotten a call. And it occurs to me that I am going to be traveling through November. Hmm. So I call again. Well, yes, she tells me, looks like your shipment should arrive on the 31st of October. Now here I admit that maybe I was a little lacks. I had a lot to do before my trip, and so when they did not call me, I did not follow ...
Read more

Cultural tourism in Iceland

I just finished writing a chapter of my dissertation, which resulted in a much larger discussion of cultural tourism in Iceland than I had intended. But the fact is, this is an issue I have been extremely interested and concerned about for at least 15 years, if not 20. I have never, ever liked the way Iceland is marketed to tourists in the U.S. Everything from the unspoiled nature to the crazy city life in Reykavik. It has always left the part of Iceland I loved--the simple joy of being in a relaxing and lovely place with my family--completely out of the picture. In 2001, I went to Hvollsvöllur to examine the Saga Centre as part of a study commissioned by the National Park's service to look into cultural landscapes as heritage tourism. I thought that endeavor might represent a change in how Iceland was presented to tourists. But in the last 10 years, and especially while working at Vikingaheimar, and at meetings with the Saga Trails Association, I came to see just how completel...
Read more

On Icelandic doctors

My friends and family here in Iceland were very enthusiastic about me going to the krabbameinsfélag for an exam. I was really impressed how easy it was to get an appointment--booked online even! And when I got there this afternoon, the efficiency continued: they have a well oiled operation in place there, all very organized with computers asking questions and keyed lockers to keep one's personal belongings in. Then when it came time to see the doctor, well, that lasted all of 2 minutes. And I paid 3420 kroner. So I was overall a little disappointed. When I mentioned to the front desk clerks that I was wondering if it was possible to actually get an appointment where I could speak to a doctor, I was given a variety of phone numbers. None of the ones I called had appointments within the next 6 weeks. In the United States, when I want a doctor's appointment, I can usually get it within a week of calling, though sometimes I have had to wait 10 days or so. The highest co-pay I hav...
Read more