Europe - Lili on the Loose

19 03, 2016

History of the Steiff Teddy Bear

By Lili|March 19th, 2016|Categories: History, Souvenirs, Travel|Tags: Europe, Germany, plush, Steiff, stuffed animal, Teddy Bear, toy|0 Comments

The first Teddy Bear started in Germany with an Elephant. Actually it was an Elephant pin cushion. By 1879 Margarete Steiff had a successful clothing business and had made an Elephant pin cushion but found that children liked to play with it. In just 6 years 5000 little Elephants had been sold, and Margarete started to make different animals. As the variety grew, the phrase "For children, only the best is good enough!" became the hallmark of the Steiff brand. In 1902 Margarete’s nephew created the design for the first stuffed bear with movable arms and legs. But it wasn't until 1906

17 03, 2016

Ireland: Land of Sheep, Pubs, & Churches

By Lili|March 17th, 2016|Categories: Photography, Travel|Tags: 2009, at the heart of it Ireland 2009, Celtic Cross, Clonmacnoise, County Offaly, Dublin, Europe, graveyard, High Cross, Ireland, pubs, sheep, Temple Bar, Travel Thursday|0 Comments

When I went to Ireland a few years ago on a bus tour, I liked to joke that the only things we saw were Sheep, Pubs, and Churches...in that order. So in honor of St. Patty's Day, here they are: Ireland is truly as green (and wet) as they say it is. Which brings views like this one where fields contain slow moving sheep grazing and lazying. In Dublin, tourists flock to Temple Bar which is lined with numerous pubs. The most famous is this one, Temple Bar, which also gives this area its nickname. And then there are the

5 03, 2016

Souvenir Saturday: Fuzzy Sheep Magnet

By Lili|March 5th, 2016|Categories: Souvenirs, Travel|Tags: 2009, at the heart of it Ireland 2009, Dublin, Europe, from me to ewe, fuzzy, Ireland, magnet, sheep|0 Comments

The first magnet I ever collected was from Dublin, Ireland, and it was a fuzzy, wool & wooden, sheep. I had never planned on collecting magnets, as I thought they looked cheesy on a fridge. But when I moved into a new place and the fridge was a hideous off-beige, and so the magnet collecting began. Souvenir Saturday is an every-other week series on the items that represent travel memories.

29 02, 2016

Travel Missteps: “It’s a Gift” Scam at Pompeii

By Lili|February 29th, 2016|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: 2006, All in the family Italy 2005/2006, Europe, Italy, Pompeii, scam, UNESCO, UNESCO World Heritage Site|0 Comments

The view of Vesuvius. Pompeii is an incredible site. Covered over by Vesuvius' explosion in 79 AD, it wasn't rediscovered until 1748 and has had ongoing digs since then. I had spent a semester studying ancient Roman architecture and this frozen city is a perfect place to relive the past. But like most amazing tourist sights, the entry/exit is swarmed with souvenir and chotskies sellers. After heading out of the bathroom an old local woman slipped a shell bracelet onto my wrist. She said it was a gift. Immediately I knew this was not the case, and tried to hand it back

22 02, 2016

Museum Monday: Woman of Fayum

By Lili|February 22nd, 2016|Categories: Museums, Travel|Tags: 2011, ancient egypt, Christmas in Germany 2011, Egypt, Europe, Fayum, Fayum portrait, Frankfurt, Germany, Liebieghaus, Mummy, Städtische Galerie Liebieghaus|0 Comments

While in Egypt I didn't make it to Fayum to see their pyramids and mummies, however I did see this beautiful Fayum Portrait in Frankfurt, Germany at the Städtische Galerie Liebieghaus. These portraits were often painted during life on wood, and were placed over the mummy upon death. Read more about Fayum Portraits here. Museum Monday is an every other week series about museum news, objects, and reviews.

20 02, 2016

Souvenir Saturday: Scottie Dog Plush

By Lili|February 20th, 2016|Categories: Souvenirs, Travel|Tags: 2002, Backpacking it in England and Scotland, dog, Edinburgh, Europe, plush, Scotland, Scotland the Brave, stuffed animal, UK, United Kingdom|0 Comments

This little scottie dog is directly from Edinburgh, Scotland and plays "Scotland the Brave". I've had it for so long I don't even remember where I bought it. Souvenir Saturday is an every-other week series on the items that represent travel memories.

19 02, 2016

Frost on the Wall

By Lili|February 19th, 2016|Categories: Photography, Travel|Tags: 2011, Bavaria, Christmas in Germany 2011, Ettal, Ettal Abbey, Europe, frost, Germany, hedge, King Ludwig II, Linderhof Palace, Photo Friday|0 Comments

Traveling in winter can be tough. The gardens of the summer Linderhof Palace were especially frozen in December. This hedge wall was covered in frost, and looked glistened in the light. Every Friday Lili shares her favorite photography & the stories behind the photos.

17 02, 2016

30 at 30: Best Experiences So Far

By Lili|February 17th, 2016|Categories: Travel, Travel Memories|Tags: Abu Simbel, Africa, Anaheim, Antigua, Asia, Aswan, Bath, Belize, Belize Barrier Reef, Bent Pyramid, birthday, Bostan, California, camping, Canyon Ranch Spa, castle, Caye Caulker, Cenote, Central America, Champ de Elysee, Chino, chocolate, Christmas Market, CIE, Concert, concert photography, Costa Rica, Dahshur, Dashur, DC, Disneyland, Egypt, England, Epiphany Night, Europe, Ewok, fireworks, Florida, France, G Adventures, Gadventures, GAP, Germany, golf carts, Great Britan, Guatemala, Harry Potter, haunted, Ik Kil, Ik Kill cenote, Ireland, Island of Adventure, Italy, Japan, Karnak, Lake Placid, Las Vegas, Latin America, lightsaber, Luxor, Massachusetts, memories, Mexico, Middle East, Munich, museum, Nagano Prefecture, Nevada, New York, North America, Orlando, Paris, photography, Playa Del Carmen, Pyramids, racing, Red Pyramid, reef, Rome, San Francisco, sharks, sheep, Sister Cities, snorkeling, Spa, St. John, Star Wars, Suwa, swimming, temples, The Vatican, Tokyo, tombs, tour, Trafalgar, Trajan's Column, travel experiences, trolly, Tucson, UK, UNESCO, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Universal Studios, USA, USVI, Vatican, Vatican City, Washington DC, white water rafting, Wizarding World of Harry Potter, yukata|1 Comment

Today is my birthday, and I've hit the "Big 3-0". I wanted to look back at 30 of my favorite travel memories in my life, in no particular order: Fulfilling my dream of going to Egypt, seeing so many amazing tombs and temples Sitting alone in the temples of Abu Simbel and Karnak Climbing into and on top of a pyramid Wandering the Christmas Markets of Munich Seeing the castles of Germany Taking a haunted trolly/walking tour of Boston graveyards. Seeing as many museums as I could in Washington, DC Swimming with sharks in Belize Racing golf-carts on Caye Caulker Making

8 02, 2016

Museum Monday: Laocoön and His Sons

By Lili|February 8th, 2016|Categories: Museums, Travel|Tags: 2005, All in the family 2005/2006, All in the family Italy 2005/2006, Europe, Greek, Hadrian, Hellenistic, Italy, Laocoön, Laocoön and His Sons, Laocoön Group, Pliny the Elder, roman, Rome, statue, The Vatican, Trojan, Troy, UNESCO, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Vatican City, Vatican Museum|0 Comments

I was lucky to have taken an entire class on Ancient Italian Art & Architecture the semester before I went to Italy. So when I turned a corner in the Vatican Museum and saw this statue I was very excited. This statue was re-discovered in 1506 but is thousands of years older. It is unknown if this was an original Hellenistic Greek Statue, or if it still dates from that period but is a copy based on a lost bronze version of the statue. It is so old that the famous ancient historian, Pliny the Elder, even referenced the statue on the

5 02, 2016

Winter Berries at Rothenburg ob der Tauber

By Lili|February 5th, 2016|Categories: Nature & Outdoors, Photography, Travel, Travel Memories|Tags: 2011, Berries, Christmas in Germany 2011, Europe, Germany, Photo Friday, rothenburg ob der tauber, winter|0 Comments

Walking the old Medieval Walls of Rothenburg right after Christmas was cold, but beautiful. Looking down I saw this beautiful tree with winter berries. Every Friday Lili shares her favorite photography & the stories behind the photos.