On the phone the other day my sister Kath asked me if I had made any friends in Zug. I laughed. Aside from some work people and our relocation consultant next door, and the building's janitor, who is Czech - no, not really. It's a slow process. It's not that people aren't extremely friendly, they…

On our trip to Italy we took the train through Provence and spent a night in Nice, France. The countryside in this region is everything you would imagine at this time of year - endless fertile hills painted with Spring's green growth. Looking out the train window it resembles a neat patchwork quilt of color.…

This week we are in Italy. Mac has some work to do in the small town of Frosinone, and on the way we spent two nights in Rome just for the heck of it. I love Rome. I don't think of myself as a big city gal, but since the first time we visited many…

Being in a foreign city, surrounded by non-English speakers (I know, don't lecture me), a large chunk of my day is spent alone. This is fine, even preferable most of the time. Especially since I'm a bit of a loner and a stubborn introvert. But this week I've stalled a little - attempting to churn…

The farmland here is literally breaking open with Spring. The earth's crust resembles brownies from the oven - the top is chocolatey-cracked and dry, but moist with deep, dark richness beneath. So different from the red clay tobacco fields back home. These fields are amazingly fertile and robust furrows, patiently waiting for seed. Today I…