Life's a Stitch

Yesterday, it was time to put on our ruby slippers and return to our respective Kansases. Is that how you say Kansas in plural? How about Kansai, that’s the name of a local sushi place here in North Vancouver. Cousin Lene is back in Denmark, SIL Ellen in Minnesota, and after three flights and 15 hours of flying I’m back home.

We’ve left our Slovakian Oz of three white tableclothed meals per day, a minimum of four daily spa services, and a fancy shmancy newly renovated palace of a hotel with helpful and friendly staff. You could never hope to do this in North America without winning the lottery. In Piestany, Slovakia, it’s $81 Euro per night for everything, based on a double during the winter season. You can stay in other decent hotels/inns with the same services for under 60. A private room is not that much more. I haven’t been home for a day and I’m figuring out how to save for the next time.

We met many people who had been there on a repetitive basis over many years. One man from Italy  had visited 120 times in 20 years. We each had our reason for wanting this trip, the aches and pains of aging, relief from injuries or chronic illness and escape from years of career challenges. We met two beautiful ladies in their early 80’s pictured on the right – Lola and Sally, from New York – who had been there at least yearly for 35 years. They had by far the most compelling reason for seeking comfort from reality, being concentration camp survivors, having lost siblings and parents. They were so positive, of course not dwelling on that horrible part of their history, crediting their trips for making them better women and wives. I told them I’d be sure to let my husband know that.

It’s catch up time, that’s the price you pay for two weeks of high quality rest. I’ll  be writing lots more about the experience, but wanted to let you know I’m back in blogland, still high on luxury and the opportunity to spend time with two special in-laws. I realized that those two represent the best parts of my husband in the form of a woman. What a wonderful combination. Here we are, Ellen, Lene and me.

In case you were wondering, there was knitting content on this trip. Maybe we visited a country with a profound  lack of yarn shops, but I was prepared for serious knitting work, packing along my blocking pins. Here is my Lead or Follow scarf blocking in Slovakia!