Prisoner of Hopes

Tag: Nature

  • Not According to Plan: Travel Goals

    I am an early riser. I love the morning hours when the light is diffuse and the first notes of birdsong fill the air with promise. When we travel, I putter around the house with my coffee. I read, I write, and I explore options for the day. This means that I check the weather…

  • Cavorting in Cavan: Travel Goals

    “As I walk the road from KillashandraWeary I sit down For its twelve long miles around the lakeTo get to Cavan townThough Ougher and the road I goIs a scene beyond compare”- Cavan Girl On the words of a song and an attempt to avoid the rain, we head to Cavan. The lake country is beautiful.…

  • Rural Road Trip: Out for a Walk

    When the mind races, I take a walk. If I am overwhelmed, I walk. If I have time to kill, I walk. Walking is good for my body and mind. I don’t really need an excuse to take a walk. Today I found myself with an extra hour between appointments and decided to take advantage…

  • Peonies Make Me Think Of You

    In the Spring the peonies pop up from the ground in vibrant greens. As their big leafy stalks appear, I think of you. Memories come unbidden of sitting on your front porch in the Spring rain. I would rock slowly in the old iron chair that used to sit in your Dad’s lawn. Generational history…

  • Final Impressions: Travel Goals

    Last days in a place are always a little bitter sweet. I spend a little time either trying to figure out if there are places we need to see before we go or places we need to revisit. Today feels random. I want to return to Frogner park to get a picture of the “angry…

  • Viking Venture: Travel Goals

    Sometimes I just wake up feeling like a kid. On these days I forget the scholarly pursuits and the to do lists and just look for pure fun. We decide to check out Viking World. This small attraction behind Oslo City Hall is a series of video and vr experiences. Interactive computer simulations explain the…

  • Ekenberg Park: Travel Goals

    I love the great outdoors. Find me a forest and l am one happy girl. So when I read that Eckenberg Park has sculptures in a forest, I am intrigued. It is a beautiful sunny day in Oslo and it is unusually warm for the season ……so it seems like a great way to spend…

  • Books, Crockery, and Sunshine: Travel Goals

    I love libraries. Maybe because I am a woman of a certain age who devoured every book I could get my hands on over the last half century. Libraries are places of mystery and opportunity. The national library of Norway is a bibliophile’s dream. It has a coffee shop and restaurant. There are reading rooms…

  • Forest Bathing: Travel Goals

    Nothing seems as good for my soul as a long walk in the woods. The sun is shining on the frozen lake. The water is warming and thawing slowly. But the forest calls me to its shadows. Buds are appearing on the branches. Crocus and bluebells make their colorful entry to the forest floor. The…

  • We were In The Neighborhood: Travel Goals

    When the day’s agenda only involves walking across the street, you can afford to sleep in. This is why retired individuals should consider a long stay in a destination. We can linger over coffee and pastry. We can sleep in if we want or spend an hour talking to strangers. Today, we move slowly after…