A is for Airport...

Seems like I've spent a lot of time in the airport these last few months.  It was while I was sitting in the Atlanta airport, in a not-so-comfortable-seat with my flight status to Greenville unknown, that I realized I hadn't written in the blog in months. It's amazing what things run through your mind when you are people watching at the airport.  So in between wondering why any woman would wear 4" heels on a day of flying/walking and trying to block out the man next to me who didn't realize he was yelling instead of talking into his cell phone, I had a chance to reflect on the year that had past.  Here's a few of the highlights:

• We had an amazing trip in Feb/March. We went to Romania, Greece, and Paris.  This was truly the trip of a lifetime.  David and I often say we can't wait to get back to this part of the world.  If only Michelin would open a tire facility there, I have my house already picked out!
• We had some work done in our backyard this summer.  Murphy & Oakley have approved the new sod, landscaping, doggy door, and patio furniture.
•  David turned the BIG 3-Oh! 
•  I spent a week in Canada for work and some play.  We were able to take in some of the beautiful sights of Nova Scotia in between meetings.
• We had many friends and family tie the knot this year and we were happy to be part of the festivities. Congratulations to Jeannine & Josh, Jenny & Michael, Kirsten & Eric, and Crystal & Neal.
• We spent a week in South Dakota in July. It was nice to see our home state in the summer months without all the cold weather and snow.  We really enjoyed the time we got to spend with our families in the Black Hills.
• We are so lucky to have Cara & Matt close by in Charlotte.  We've had a few adventures - camping, hiking, checking out the North Carolina Zoo, and letting the "cousins" (Murphy, Oakley, & Maslow) play all together.

 

Camping! It rained all weekend, so we had some quality time in the tent!

• It's been a year since David finished his PhD - so he's had a bit more time on his hands and tried his skills at making 3-4 batches of home brewed beer.  Dr B. & Dorothy were able to attend the Halloween Brew Fest at Thomas Creek Brewery to do some "benchmarking" for the Burnett Brewery.

 

"Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore..."

• We had the chance to get back to Louisville for a University of Louisville football game and we were able to see some friends.  It was bitter-sweet to go back. We love our life in Greenville, but Louisville always has a special place in our hearts. It is where we started our married life and careers at.  It's always nice to be back in the 'Ville.  Not to mention we miss all our favorite eateries, so we prepare our list of "must eats" for when we return. 

Go Cards!

• We spent Thanksgiving in South Dakota and were able to bring our German friends, Maren & Sebastian, home with us.  They'd never seen so much open space.  We enjoyed showing them Mt. Rushmore, the Badlands, Spearfish Canyon, Deadwood, and a few other South Dakota sights.  As always it was great to see friends and family.

                            

A favorite Black Hills spot - Prairie Berry Winery

• In December we spent a little time in Las Vegas.  We were joined by my parents and my sister.  We gambled (no big winners), saw the sights including a Cirque de Soliel show, and spent some time with my dad's two brothers and their family.  

                                            

We are planning a nice quiet Christmas in Greenville - the 10-day forecast even calls for a bit of snow amidst the 50-65 degree weather. So we will see, might have a "white" Christmas after all (but I won't count on it).  We will be heading to New Orleans in January to cheer on the Louisville Cardinals in the Sugar Bowl against Florida, David and I are excited about visiting the Big Easy.  

 

Hope you and yours have a great holiday season filled with love and joy! Cheers to 2013 and all that it has to offer....

Amelia's Amazing Oia

Our little Amelia

As we sit in the airport this morning waiting for our flight to depart the island of Santorini, we have mixed emotions – there’s some yearning to get to back to reality but sadness to leave this indescribably beautiful island. There are so many amazing works of nature and architecture – we saw the effects of volcanic activity with a red beach, a black beach, a white beach. We toured the highest spot on the island and the ruins of the ancient city of Thira. We saw countless blue domed churches, white houses built into the cliffs, gorgeous sunsets, even the full moon rising... and of course we can’t forget our little dog friend, Amelia.

Amelia is one of the “village dogs” of Oia. She is one of many dogs that are cared for by the small village in Santorini. Some of the taxes paid by the local businesses go to feeding and caring for the dogs. They all have names and are loved by everyone. We found Amelia howling on our patio the first night we were here. She slept there every night, following us on walks around the island and waiting patiently for us by lying outside when we went in shops, restaurants, etc. We didn’t see her last night on our patio and assumed she had moved on to some other tourists who would occasionally sneak her some meat or water or give her a small scratch on the head, but as we were leaving our room this morning – there she was to say good bye. She sat there as our bags got loaded into the van and wagged her tail – then as we drove away, she ran off to join her other village dogs for the days’ adventure and to see what tourist she could charm with her soft brown eyes.

One of many blue domed churches in Santorini

Oia (pronounced like E-ah) at Sunset

Red Beach

Sunset in Oia

Full moon rising over Santorini

A Glimpse of Santorini

On the ferry towards Santorini

Our ferry arrived on the Greek island of Santorini late this afternoon. We stopped at 3 other Greek islands (Paros, Naxos, Ios) along the way to drop off other passengers. The entire trip took about 8 hours. From what we can tell so far, the island is absolutely amazing. It's not tourist season right now plus Greece's economy is not exactly that strong right now, so many of the shops & restaurants aren't open. We are looking forward to a hike tomorrow to check out the natural beauties of the island. Here's a few quick pics of what we've seen so far...

Santorini from the Ferry

View from dinner tonight

Athens Adventure

Athens, Greece

We've had a great day & a half so far in Athens, Greece. We got acquainted with the city & the area surrounding the apartment that we are renting for a few days. We are staying 3 blocks away from The Acropolis which is essentially the center of tourism for Athens. Everywhere is easily accessible either by walking or taking the metro (subway/train).

Some of the highlights:

Philopappos Hill - nice shaded walking trails leading to an awesome 360 degree view of the city

National Gardens & Greek Parliament Building - gardens with a "zoo" - ducks, geese, & a few goats. Saw the changing of the guard in front of Parliament.

Syntagma Square - area of Athens where the riots are supposedly taking place. Didn't see a single rioter but found people busily walking around & many shops selling fake Louis Vitton bags, Swatch watches, & Rayban sunglasses.

Monastiraki Flea Market - really no difference between flea markets in Greece & USA. People trying to sell their junk to other people. We saw everything from pretty jewelry to books, coins, a mannequin head, vhs & cassette tapes, & plenty other miscellaneous crap.

Acropolis - saw the Parthenon & other ancient structures/ruins during the sunshine of the day & also illuminated by lights at night. It's impressive & the pictures probably don't do it justice.

Acropolis Museum - museum dedicated to showcasing the history of the Acropolis & Parthenon. Many artifacts & statues along with a video which highlighted the different eras of Athens.

Pireus Port & Mikrolimano - port was filled with cruise ships & ferries ready to take off for the islands or other Mediterranean destinations. We will set sail from here in a few days. Mikrolimano was an area of the city surrounding the fishing harbor. We enjoyed a wonderful meal at this great little restaurant right on the water.

The food has been absolutely wonderful. Fresh salads, feta cheese, grilled meats (lamb, beef, chicken), pita bread, & seafood (best calimari ever!). We also tried the traditional Greek drink called Ouzo - tastes like black jellybeans so Cori (dislike) & I (like) were split on our opinions.

La Revedere (good-bye) Romania

Bună dimineaţa (good morning!) and greetings from Romania.

We have been enjoying our time here although they have kept us quite busy at the plant. The weather has been cold here (30’s) especially compared to the weather in SC which we hear is in the 70’s right now. We woke up yesterday morning to snow and fog.

On Mar 1 (yesterday) the Romanians celebrate Mărţişor - a traditional celebration of the first of spring and means “dear March”. Mărţişor is the symbol of spring and the men offer the women in their life objects of affection. These gifts are usually flowers or small jeweled pins or objects tied to a red and white string. Women are supposed to wear the pins on the holiday and for days later. The red and white colors symbolize many things apparently – we were told it signifies: man and woman, love and luck, peace and war, and/or winter and spring. It is believed that the one who wears the red and white string will be powerful and healthy for the year to come. The decoration is a symbol of the coming spring. My colleague Beth and I got pins, jewels, and flowers from the thoughtful men of the plant. We felt very honored they would think of us. Too bad I got the red/white strings yesterday and not sooner – since I just came down with a cold yesterday and the healthy wishes Mărţişor brings could have come in handy sooner.

Cori & Beth with their Martisor gifts

We’ve really enjoyed the food in Romania. A usual menu for the day has included:

Breakfast – a very nice spread at the hotel. The selections include assorted meats and cheeses, fresh fruits usually arranged in beautiful sculptures or designs, pastries, omelets, and fresh juices.

Lunch – we have only eaten at the plant cafeteria for lunch and it has been surprisingly better than other cafeterias. This is usually the biggest meal for Romanians so we find the portions are HUGE! Meals are served with chiorba (soup) and a main course. There are baskets of bread (paina) on each table along with oil and vinegar for salads. I’ve mainly ate the chiorba (a broth usually served with some kind of meat) and a salad. Today’s chiorba was served with tripe (cow intestines) and David ended up with a few spoon fulls in his bowl without knowing what it was. He said it wasn’t too bad but I refrained from eating any and I am okay with that.

Dinner – All the ingredients are so fresh – from veggies to fresh feta cheese, to delicious meats and the tasty wine – it’s hard to pick a favorite. We’ve had Italian food, steak, pui (chicken) and also some traditional Romanian dishes. Not to mention that we’ve had a shot or two of the local alcohol Tuica (plum liquor).

Sampler platter at the going-away dinner with our new Romanian friends

The local currency in Romania is the Lei. The exchange rate with the US is 1 US$ = 3.3 Lei. David and I ate a meal (appetizers, drinks, main course, salads, etc.) and it was 100 Lei so basically $30.

During our stay we were in the city of Ploiești (where we stayed at the hotel and ate) and the Michelin plant was in a local village named Florești (about 30 mins from Ploiesti). Today was our last day at the plant. It was bittersweet – nice to be done with all our work but sad to leave all the new people we’ve met. We got done early with our presentations so we decided to take in a bit of the Romania country side with our driver Michelle. Michelle only speaks Romanian and some French and our friend & colleague Beth speaks mainly Canadian-English (eh!) and some French, so the conversations were mostly in French and hand gestures. Never the less, we had an enjoyable day with our new Romanian friend and guide. Michelle drove us towards the mountains in a town called Sinaia, there are lots of places to go skiing near this city. While in Sinaiai we went to visit the Peles Castle. The Castle was built in the late 1800’s and was the home of King Carol I of Romania. We were thankful the weather shaped up for today so we could enjoy the sight-seeing.

Peles Castle

Tomorrow, we leave for Athens. We are excited for the next leg of our trip but a bit sad to leave Romania. Everyone was so nice and gracious!

Greetings from Romania

Our European adventure has begun. We arrived into Bucharest, Romania yesterday afternoon and had a chance to check out a few things in the city. We had a great first meal at a well known spot and as their sign says "probably the best place in town" - Caru cu Bere. It has been in operation since 1874. We had a few traditional meals, a few beers, and even tried the local liquor - tuica. Tuica is a plum flavored liqueur and it will warm you up. A few weeks ago Romania got a bunch of snow, so the country is still trying to dig it's way out. There was snow and melting snow everywhere. We saw several cars that were buried in snow. We traveled to the city of Ploiesti where we will start work tomorrow at the Michelin plant. We are looking forward to learning more about the city and Romanian culture.

St. Nicholas Orthodox Church

Caru cu Bere

A December to Remember....

2011 has come and gone and the month of December was no exception. We had many things to celebrate this month...

We started out by celebrating David's graduation. After many years (10 to be exact) of school - David finally completed his PhD in Industrial Engineering. His Hooding Ceremony - graduation ceremony - was held at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Ky on December 16th. We were lucky to be joined at the ceremony by Cori's parents and David's mother, father, and sister Melissa. After the ceremony we had a little get together with many of our Louisvillian friends and our South Dakotan family. Thanks to everyone who came and made this day a very special one! We were able to spend a few days with our family and showed them around Kentucky. We miss many things about Louisville and it was nice to be back and enjoy our old Kentucky home.

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PhD Hooding Ceremony

Some of our friends from Louisville at David's PhD Pharty

Enjoying the day and family at Woodford Reserve Bourbon Distillary

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After saying our good-bye's to David's family, we hit the road with Cori's parents Kelly and Connie back to South Carolina. This was a good trip for the Leis' as they hadn't been able to experience this part of the country before. We drove through the Smoky Mountains en route to SC. Upon returning to SC - Kelly and Connie helped us with a few things around the house. We got a new ceiling fan in our room, some more storage space in the attic, and a couple other odds and ends. Thanks Mom and Dad!

To celebrate the Christmas holiday - we were lucky enough to stay in a great cabin in Helen, GA. We joked that it was a little nicer than our cabin in SD - it had running water and indoor toilets (3 even!) not to mention a hot tub, pool table, and gourmet kitchen. Honestly, it was a great place for us all to be together and enjoy the holiday. We also spent a little time in Helen, GA sightseeing. Helen is a cute little town with a Bavarian theme - we went to a winery, attended Christmas Eve Mass where Santa brought a gift for everyone which was Baby Jesus, we hiked, and we even played a round of mini-golf. It was very relaxing and we were sad to leave.

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Christmas in Helen, GA

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation moment

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We spent a few days in Charlotte, NC with Matt, Cara and their dog Maslow. It was nice to see where Matt and Cara live, work and go to school. We were able to attend the Belk Bowl where U of L played NC State in football. Sadly, U of L lost - but we enjoyed the game none-the-less.

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GO CARDS!

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We spent New Year's Eve at our house with some great friends - playing games, eating, and drinking champagne. If the results of 2011 are any indication on how 2012 will go, then we have a great year ahead.

Wishing everyone best wishes in 2012. Let us know if you want to visit South Carolina - we have a few extra rooms and some cute dogs to pet!