It has been almost two months since my return from 24 wonderful days in Europe. It has taken me way too much time to get my feet back on the ground for many reasons. After not having any responsibilities except to be at "meet up" spots on time, responsibilities of home can be overwhelming. But I digress.
While in Amsterdam and Paris, I was traveling with a wonderful group of like minded artists along with our mixed-media art teacher, Mary Beth Shaw. We had a class everyday, then explored, ate very well, laughed a lot, did some shopping, went on river cruises, visited incredible art supply stores, visited museums and beautiful tulip fields in full bloom, all under the guidance of our tour leaders, Jeannette and Suzy of TheBlueWalk.
After 8 days, my friend Norina and I, boarded a first class train with Jeannette and Suzy, whisking our way to Milan, Italy, where we meet another friend, Holly. There we toured the remarkable rooftop of Milan's Duomo. Words cannot even describe the experience! We then joined another BlueWalk group and went on to Rapallo for several days for pesto making and hiking the Cinque Terre. My hiking legs are not at their best so I did skip the difficult hikes, but certainly found wonderful ways to entertain myself, such as sitting by the water drinking Aperol Spritzes with lovely friends. Then off we went to Lago di Como for a bit over a week. This was my second trip there, the first being in 1999. It was much more crowded this time, but still an extraordinary spot in our world.
I was so inspired by all the beauty and art making on the trip, that since being home, a day has not gone by when I have not painted, stitched or collaged something. Arting keeps me gong.
