Split, Croatia – Day 2 of this adventure was definitely better than Day 1. The 14 hours of catch-up sleep helped a LOT (10 for the parents), as did ending the day in this spectacular place. (Photo taken from the…
Have sketchbook, will travel
Boston, Mass – We used to be regulars at the Museum of Fine Arts. You know, back when the twins didn’t go to school and I was always looking for things to do with them. (Read about some of our…
World Landmarks Project
Somerville, Mass – V’s class is doing a world landmarks project. Each kid chose a landmark building or geographical feature to learn about and create a model of. For some reason, V decided he might choose Machu Picchu for his…
Takashi Murakami at the MFA
Boston, Mass – We don’t get to the Museum of Fine Arts as much as we used to. But as soon as I learned we could see the whimsical flowers created by Takashi Murakami at the MFA, I knew I…
Heidelberg Project
Detroit, Michigan – Sometimes, out of poverty and desperation comes creativity and inspiration. This idea is at the foundation of the revitalization of Detroit. And no place embodies it more than Heidelberg, a devastated street on the city’s east side.…
Sammallahdenmäki
Rauma, Finland – Did you get the title of this post? Sammallahdenmäki. Easy, right? It is a Bronze Age burial site in the midst of the Finnish forest. And if you’re not sure when the Bronze Age is… oh, it’s…
Villa Mairea
Pori, Finland – Alvar and Aino Aalto designed the spectacular Villa Mairea for Harry and Marie Gullichsen, of the industrialist philanthropist Ahlström family. (This should definitely be part of the Alvar Aalto Tour of Finland, if one had unlimited time.)…
Vanha Rauma
Rauma, Finland – Vanha Rauma, or Rauma Old Town, is a sweet collection of wooden houses clustered around an old town square. There are actually more than 600 wooden structures here, dating from the 18th and 19th centuries, earning this…
Aboa Vetus & Ars Nova
Turku, Finland – Old artefacts & new art at the exceptional Aboa Vetus & Ars Nova museum in Turku. Aboa Vetus (Old Turku) draws you underground to Turku’s medieval streets, showcasing some of the 37,000 artefacts unearthed from the site.…
Lumparby Ollas
Åland, Finland – Here in Åland, we are staying in a farmhouse in the tiny village of Lumparland. There is not much here, save a church, a food market and the delightful and dangerous Lumparby Ollas Cafe. Several things to…