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There’s something to be said for returning to a routine in the wake of an epic vacation. For those of you who might be first-time visitors to the blog, Nick and I took a European vacation and have been gone for much of July.

I feel like I lived another year of my life in those 17 days. We saw sights I’d dreamed about seeing since I was a kid. We ate food so sinfully good I think I’m going to have to do P90X TWICE a day to make up for all the calories I consumed. We endured travel snafus of the sort that I thought we’d never actually GET to Europe and that have now left me telling everyone I know, “Hey, yeah, if you want to make your flight NEVER FLY DELTA AIRLINES.”

But all in all, it was amazing. Yet, when you’re away from your home long enough, you start to crave the normalcy of your daily life. You miss your own bed. You realize how much you take stuff for granted, even if it’s as simple as having a stocked fridge and a faucet with a never-ending supply of water. And friends who speak English.

So here’s to beating my vacation hangover (I didn’t think jetlag would still leave me this tired) and getting back into the swing of things with gusto.

It feels SO good to be home and I can’t wait to share photos of our travels with you all. Oh, and by the way, I realized that the only shots I got of Nick and I on the trip? Yeah, taken with the fish eye or the iPhone. So excuse the Go-Go Gadget Arms, ‘kay?

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Become a fan of Gail’s work on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.

It’s the one game I can always get him to play, regardless his mood.
Never cribbage. Or Yahtzee. Rarely, if ever, Scrabble.
Yes, Nick is a chess man.
A game I happen to be horrible at. And when I’m horrible at something … well, I’m not always a fun person to be around.
But it’s different with chess.
Different despite the fact that, half the time, I can’t remember my rook from my bishop. “Is this the rook?” I’ll ask him, holding up one of my pieces. “No, that’s your pawn,” he’ll say with a sigh. “It moves straight ahead. But only two squares at a time, okay?”
Have I mentioned I never win at this game? Ever? And that, often enough, more time gets spent with Nick explaining to me what I should have done rather than what I did?
Yet it’s in those moments I realize none of the who wins-who loses stuff matters.
All that matters is that it’s me. And it’s him. And it’s a time for us to be together.
And it’s moments like this, I truly believe, that make a marriage.

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Become a fan of Gail’s work on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.

I can’t remember how my friendship with her evolved, but some time over the past year, Erin and I have transitioned from acquaintances who exchange niceties on one another’s blogs (see her awesome blog, “ModaEagleman” here) to friends who e-mail each other quite a bit about travel and music and books and photography (and Europe trips – thanks girl! ).

She and her husband grew up with Nick and when they moved to Europe two years ago, I hung on every word of Erin’s adventures as she blogged along the way. A few months ago we had the brilliant idea to interview one another — she’d ask lots of photo questions in her Q&A with me, I’d ask about living the kind of dream that involves packing up what you own, moving to a foreign land, and then seeing as much of it as you can. Carpe diem, I say!

From this Q and A below and Erin’s BEAUTIFUL imagery, I think you can see why her friendship is so special (and why I love living vicariously through these two…when I emailed her these questions her response back was something along the lines of, “I promise I’ll get to them …we just have to get back from Machu Picchu first!”) Erin and Erik, your zest for life and passion to see the world is inspiring … thank you so much for being guest bloggers!

Q: Explain for me a little bit about how the opportunity arose for you and Erik to move to Europe?

A: Living and working abroad has been a dream of mine for years and I’ve been enchanted with far-off places for longer than I can remember. Thankfully my best travel buddy, my sweet husband Erik, has a very adventurous spirit and a love for travel that closely matches mine. We schemed for a long time about making it happen; I had the language skill set that could take us to South America or select countries in Europe, Erik had the relevant work experience that could land us almost anywhere. However, when new jobs weren’t an option we decided to ‘work the inside’. Erik had been with his company for about 4 years and we proposed the idea that he work from the European office located in Basel, Switzerland for a while. After some convincing they finally accepted our offer – and here we are; more than one year in and loving every second. [Gail's note: Erik works for Cannondale Bikes; he's a designer -- cool right?!]

Switzerland, Wintertime

Montalcino, Italy

Q: Were you both big travelers before you left? Was it hard to make a move like that?

A: According to my mom, I was practically born on a plane. She was a flight attendant for the first few years of my life which allowed my dad and I to tag along at leisure and there began my love of all things travel. I caught the international bug when I first visited Europe on a school trip; I completely fell in love with Paris, London, Madrid and knew someday I wanted to not just visit the continent again, but to live there and be immersed in its everyday life. My first experience living abroad came when I spent a semester attending university in Santiago, Chile. It was one of the best experiences of my life! Mine and Erik’s travel adventures began early in our relationship which, I believe, has helped make our transition into Swiss life together so seamless. He visited me in Chile where we spent two weeks exploring its southern tail. A year later we spent the summer living with Erik’s college roommate in Krakow, Poland, which remains one of my all-time favorite cities in the world. Our honeymoon and first years married included trips to various international and domestic locations. Traveling is so important to both of us that in our nine years together we’ve chosen to live frugally so we can make travel a priority.

Village in FranceSpiez, Switzerland

Q: What’s been the biggest adjustment to life in Europe?

A: The biggest one has to be the language; or, rather, the lack there of. I majored in Spanish at university which gave me a basic introduction to other romance languages. But High German (what we learn in class and the language in which all German speaking Swiss schools are taught) and Swiss German (what is spoken on the streets and in homes here in Switzerland)? Oh man, talk about two doozies of a language – they are completely different and we’re doing our best to learn both. I’ve come a long way from my first weeks here when I couldn’t read street signs or ask for help in the grocery store, but I’ve still got a long road ahead of me! The second biggest adjustment was transitioning from 4 wheel transportation to 2 wheel. We sold our car before moving to Switzerland and each invested in a good city bike – I LOVE my bike! The third biggest adjustment has been finding my way in what we’ve nicknamed the sSk – small Swiss kitchen. A refrigerator fit for a college dorm room, a tiny one-sided sink, and a single 1’ x 1’ square of counter space – that, ironically, I’m using much more than I ever did in the States. I shudder at the times that I complained my US kitchen was small!

Italy

Q: What kind of advice could you give someone going to Europe? (hint: me!) hehe

A: My advice would be to take your time – don’t try to fit too much in! I used to be a go, go, go traveler—MUST.SEE.EVERYTHING—planning my outings to a T and then finding a way to work in every monument in each of the 7 -odd cities I’d visit on any given trip. However, the more I travel (or maybe the older I get?) the better I’m understanding that visiting a new destination isn’t just about hitting up as many locales as possible or checking off every guidebook recommendation – though I do love a good Lonely Planet! Looking back, I think Erik and I have had our best travels when we’ve spent at least a few days in one place. We enjoy walking off the beaten path, talking to locals to find their idea of the best restaurant or café, making time to sit on a park bench and appreciate the differences we see in scenery, clothing and language unique to each destination.

Swiss town in the AlpsBasel, Switzerland (YES, THIS IS WHERE THEY LIVE!!!?!!)Thanks again, SO MUCH Erin, for opening your world to both myself and my blog followers!!!

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Become a fan of Gail’s work on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.