Always Sunny

Change the way you look at things… and the things you’re seeing will change.

I’ve been to Philadelphia a few times. I love the food, the culture and especially the history… although I have to say, I’ve never quite understood the value of a Phili cheesesteak.

G.S. and I decided to take a day trip up to Phili in early November and I was excited to show her a city I had loved. We woke up early, packed some snacks and hit the road. As much as I love to drive, traveling can be hard. The process itself can be tiring and is always riddled with expectations, not all of which are achievable. Seeing as I had already experienced Philadelphia, G.S. was pressed to make this trip together stand out. She built this massive (and overly detailed...) itinerary. If I had to guess, it was to make up for the fact that she felt left out.

We started the day rushed to fit everything in and in desperate need of a bathroom (something her multi-page itinerary neglected to track). We traipsed obligingly up the rocky steps, over to the liberty bell and then finally to Reading Terminal Market for some MUCH-needed lunch.

As we opened the door to the Market, dozens of people came teaming out. It was packed. Each stall we passed smelled better and was busier than the last. After over half an hour of trying to wade through the crowd and make up our minds about what we were hungry for, we were both defeated and starving.

I’m not much of a decision maker when it comes to things like this. I enjoy experiencing new food and I prefer accommodating the people I am with to making the decision myself. In this case, G.S. was so excited for lunch in this iconic market, but it was not what she and I had needed. What we needed was nourishment and a chance to take a breath.

I pulled her back out the doors we had come through and down a few streets to a local Indian restaurant. We ate a feast. And when we came back out, we saw a new Philadelphia.

Throughout the day, G.S.’s research and gaze showed me a side of Philadelphia that I hadn’t seen before. But, up to that point she had been so hungry to see everything that she was missing the beauty in any of it. She needed my perspective as much as I needed hers.

After resetting over our Indian feast… we trucked back out in the cold to finally SEE Philadelphia and had the most amazing time. The love sign looks smaller every time, and the free mason buildings look larger, the capitol glistens and there were enchanting pockets of culture and history peppered everywhere. It just came down to perspective.

Travel can be really draining, and hard for a couple to navigate – but from our experience, it’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia…

The Hills are Alive…

I learned that the richness of life is found in adventure. . . . It develops self-reliance and independence. Life then teems with excitement.

- WILLIAM ORVILLE DOUGLAS 

In the early 1940s, the von Trapp family settled in Stowe, Vermont on a gorgeous farm - the sweeping mountain vistas reminiscent of their beloved Austria. In the summer of 1950, they began welcoming guests to a rustic, family home/lodge. The original structure has since been replaced by the new Trapp Family Lodge; a large alpine lodge situated on 2,500 acres. The entire property is still owned and operated by the von Trapp family. This fall G.S. and I visited the grounds during a trip to Vermont.  

Lots of Austria and a little Vermont

One of the most interesting dichotomies I have experienced in my travels is how vastly different some places are… and how strikingly similar others can be. It is so important to leave our comfort zones and to seek to learn something we can’t find within ourselves. Different is good… new is exciting. But, there are things about our heritages and our homes that follow us everywhere we go.

What the von Trap family went through before arriving in America is a type of strain that I can’t imagine feeling. For them, new was needed. In the early 40s they traveled around the U.S. as a singing group before setting in Stowe. As we packed our car for the journey, G.S. couldn’t stop speculating ‘why there?’

Stepping our of our car and on to the foothills surrounding the Trapp Family Lodge… we had our answer. Vermont’s natural beauty was so rich it took our breath away. Those hills were alive in a way that is matched solely by their brethren in Austria. A richness that was mirrored by the aesthetics and offerings of the lodge itself.

The von Trapps relied on their family, they remained faithful to that bond and they built a new home that screams the richness of their love and culture to all who step foot on the property.