Kangaroos & Kimonos

Stay free like me!

A Little Bit of the United Nations

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hospitality-guests-Kristine-and-the-girlsSome people might call me crazy.  I say life is never boring with Laurie.  5 young ladies asked to come the same night Barbara and Rubens arrive – but only for 2 nights.  I am very intrigued – they are doing an internship with Autism.  My stepson is on the autistic spectrum.  Most of all I am intrigued by the fact that they are from Czech Rep, Latvia, Armenia, Spain and Turkey.  My daughter ends up liking one so much that she doesn’t want me to read her bedtime story, but rather insists that one of the “girls” does instead.

We all had a lovely breakfast one morning (all 10 of us).  I was very happy to have them, but also sorry to see them go so quickly.

Is There a Doctor in the House?

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As I have said previously, there are many sources in which I “find” my hospitality guests.  One of them is the World Trade Center Institute in Baltimore.  I have volunteered to host with them a couple of times, much to my delight.  One of my guests hailed from Kyrgyzstan and his name is Saidali.  The organization brings groups of professionals from many of the former Soviet Republics to show them first hand American Democracy.  He was part of a group of doctors, which came in quite handy as I happen to have donated a kidney the week he arrived.  I was on bed rest and he was very attentive in always checking on me.

There was a bit of a communication as we do not speak Russian or Kyrgyz, the two languages he speaks.  You know, you figure it out.  It was a LITTLE frustrating but he was such a nice man that we just ended up laughing our tails off.  We had him for a couple of weeks but most every day was spent with his group on professional visits in Baltimore and DC. In our free time together we took him to our favorite hangouts and invited others to our house as well.

We had a lovely farewell reception for the entire group.  We became quite attached, despite the language barrier.

Again and again he invited us to come visit his homeland.  Someday….

Joyeux Noel

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Adrien & Audrey

Audrey, Laurie, Ellie and Adrien Christmas Eve 2013

That year my husband was in Afghanistan and Ellie and I were alone for the holidays.  I was very excited when a lovely person was emailing and asking if she and her boyfriend could spend Christmas with us.  YES!  We really had a wonderful time.  We got invited to TWO parties on Christmas Eve.  They were both hosted by big Italian families and they were so welcoming to all of us (they were the families of friends).  Needless to say, we ate like kings and had a VERY memorable Christmas.  I don’t have a big Christmas family event so it was very special to be included in someone else’s.

Audrey and Adrien really took to my daughter and vice versa.  I prepared them both Christmas stockings and a few inexpensive gifts to make them really feel welcome Christmas morning.  What would have been a lonely and unexciting holiday turned into one of my most memorable ever!!

Chapel 2013

Audrey & Adrien at USNA Chapel Christmas Eve Service

 

Bella Italia

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I first met Cristina here in Annapolis.  She found me when her friend recommended that she find locals through Couchsurfing.  Cristina was spending a lot of time here in Annapolis because her husband was working on the Naval Academy track.  She was sitting in a hotel all day alone, unable to work and not knowing a soul in town.

I agreed to meet her for coffee. It was a great friendship from the very first encounter.  She was a world traveler and fortunate enough to travel with her husband on his business trips.  She was a wine writer and was able to work from anywhere.

I took her to Philadelphia, Washington DC, to my father’s house in beautiful Bucks County PA, and of course all around the Annapolis area.  We hung out together several days a week.  I taught her how to make apple pie and some of my favorite dishes.  I showed her our family holiday traditions like making chocolate covered pretzels for gifts.  We dined together and shared so much as friends often do.  She said the best Italian she has tasted outside of her home country was Bella Italia in Annapolis.  Everyday the restaurant prepared them a family style meal and we were often included in this special treatment.  We became quite inseparable.

She of course, invited us to visit her in Alba, Italy.  As I often say – “don’t say that unless you mean it”.  That next spring we were off to visit my friend and her husband.  They lived in a 300 year old wine making house in the wine country of Piemonte, Italy.

We learned how to make gnocchi and tiramisu.  We went to a very special vineyard event as her guests.  We borrowed her car and toured all the beautiful villages in the area.  We ate fresh jamon from her father-in-laws salumeria every day.  We dined with the parents, the brothers and met several of their friends.  She took us around to the vineyards of Barolo, Barbaresco, Nebbiolo etc. and told us which wines to take home.

Every morning I opened the shutters to overlook the beautiful vineyard covered village. It was a movie and I playing a lead role.  It will be one of those classics that you never forget!

Cristina’s brother-in-law came to visit us.  We need to get back for another visit.  I really miss my friends.

 

Triumph Across America

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Andrew Smith

Andrew and Laurie at the Gettysburg battlefields

Andrew is one of those people to which I can truly relate.  NEVER boring with Andrew (or Laurie).  He asked to stay with us on his Arctic Ride for Dreams Trip.  We really had a lot of great stories to share about hospitality stays and just the world in general.  He is a Brit but moved to States a couple of years back.  His big passion in life was riding his Triumph motorcycle.  This time he was driving from Florida to the Arctic Circle on HIS MOTORCYCLE for charity.  Truly an amazing feat and an incredible person!

I really thought he was such a great person so I asked if he wanted to visit Gettysburg, where my mother lives.  She happens to have two guest rooms so I had Andrew follow us up there on his bike.  We had great visits with my family and his company was a pleasure for the whole family.  I took him around the sites of Gettysburg and he greatly enjoyed his second historic city in our company.

You should check out his site and see for yourself what an interesting guest I had in my home.

 

Jet Setting with the Deppas

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Jet ski family

Our guests arrive in Annapolis by JET SKI ;-O

I have to say I thought after so many guests that I had seen it all!  This handsome family contacted me and asked if they could stay with us during their stop in Annapolis.  They were traveling by jet skis around the mid-Atlantic coast.  I picked them up and right away was so excited to have them as our guests.

Their family, with three kids, just integrated beautifully with ours.  My step kids were teenagers and living with us then.  The boys had fun playing video games – which was really great since my stepson has Asperger’s and has difficulty in social situations.  The girls had a ball together and the loved playing with little baby Ellie.

sep 17 2012 076

One big happy family 😉

They wanted to go to the beach but OC was too far for our time schedule so I took them to Sandy Point State Park, just about 15 minutes away.  It was perfect for a summer day in the beautiful sun!  This time everyone in the family was really sorry to see our guests leave.

Really hope to see them again someday!

 

Croatia with Mondo the American Football lover

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Motovun

Motovun

Mondo the American football lover – that’s what I call him.  He was one of my favorite hosts in one of my FAVORITE countries in the world – Croatia.  If you’ve never been, put it on your list!  I planned a great 2 -week trip to several countries in Europe with my husband and then 14-year old stepdaughter Katie.  She had never been to Europe (and Brian hadn’t been to most places on our trip) so I was really excited to show them both some of my favorites.

I found Mondo through Couchsurfing.  He was an amazing guy and reminds me a lot of myself.  He really went the extra mile for his guests.  He picked us up at the Trieste train station in Italy and drove us to his house in Porec, Croatia. I had been to Croatia a couple of times, but never to Istria.  Porec is located on the western side of the Istrian peninsula.  We stopped at the grocery and stocked up on easy to fix meals and snacks for our adventure.  He had a nice room with a twin and queen, perfect for the 3 of us!

Arena of Pula 1AD

Arena of Pula 1AD

Every morning Mondo came home from work and took us to the beach 10 min from his house.  There are beautiful beaches in Porec with lots of activites to keep you busy.  We packed a simple picnic and spent every day relaxing on the beach and exploring the resort town.  He would come by after work, pick us up and take us sightseeing through other towns like Motovun (where Mario Andretti hails from), Pula to see the Arena of Pula built in 1AD (same as Coliseum in Rome), to the crystal clear Limski Fjord for swimming and to local watering holes to watch the world cup.

Beautiful Croatian fjord

Beautiful Croatian Limski Fjord

I know that none of us will ever forget that trip.  I hope to take my daughter Ellie there someday to show her mommy’s favorite country to visit.

 

Laurie in front of Limski Fjord, Croatia

Laurie in front of Limski Fjord, Croatia

Enjoying Croatian beaches with our host

Enjoying Croatian beaches with our host

Katie with our host Mondo

Katie with our host Mondo

Making new friends in Porec

Making new friends in Porec

Spectacular Croatian lagoon

Spectacular Croatian lagoon

Savoring fresh, delicious Croatian seafood

Savoring fresh, delicious Croatian seafood

Turkish Delight

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Union Jacks Event

Showing our Turkish friends a good time at a Union Jack’s event

 

One of our greatest guests was a couple from Turkey and their son, a student at St. John’s College. They found us through Couchsurfing because they needed a play to stay for a week or two while visiting their son in Annapolis. Asuman and Salahittin (and son Cinar) are really just wonderful people.  They were so kind and brought us gifts for my baby (in uterto at the time), Turkish delight, beautiful lace and local beverages.

We had a party while they were here and they prepared some Turkish fare for our guests, who were very pleased.  We took them sightseeing in Baltimore, to the Metro for a day in DC and really just tried to show them what life is like in nan American family.  We took them out to a concert and fundraiser at a local hangout – Union Jack’s of Annapolis.  They got to see first hand some of the issues that matter to us.

We kept in touch and occasionally saw Cinar their son going to school in Annapolis.  When he graduated they came back to stay a couple of days and my husband even attended his graduation ceremony at St. Johns.  You know, I’ve lived here 20 years and never been to their graduation.  So as hosts we got to experience something new in our town and we got to share another part of the world in our home.

I tried to go visit them last year but I just couldn’t squeeze it in the schedule.  You can bet that I will take Ellie to Turkey and we will get the royal treatment.  They said to come visit as they have places in the city and down on the southern coast.  For now, we keep in touch through Facebook.  Oh I can’t wait!

LOVELY LUCY

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Lucy and Soony were two lovely girls from Korea.  They were touring the US and decided to visit Annapolis.  We had a wonderful time playing tour guide and taking them to our favorite local spots.  My daughter Katie really loved hanging out with them as well!

We had a wonderful New Year’s celebration – downtown Annapolis has a fantastic fireworks display!