Paris, Olympic Fever, Cruising & Going Underground in the Mediterranean. Huh?

Never thought I’d put those four together.  Stick with me here…

I’m a sucker for watching the Olympics. It amazes me what some athletes and teams overcome to compete. It is beautiful what the human body (and mind) can accomplish.  I recognize that sometimes the (American?) media can over-hype the background stories, but I am watching the UK version, and so far the stories seem proportionate to event coverage.   

In honor of the Olympics, on Thursday I presented for the UMBC community “Journey to Olympia,” a modified version of the conversation I created for Seabourn, highlighting the ancient Olympics.  A recording should be available soon if you want to catch it.

I think that those who attended the ancient Olympics would appreciate the spectacle of the Paris opening ceremony.  And while I would not have expected an artistically implied ménage à trois as part of the ceremony, this probably would not have shocked those at the ancient games. Also, as the concept of the Olympic truce originated at the ancient games, the beautifully rendered rendition of “Imagine” was apropos.

On Friday (while watching the games), I finished my cross stitch of a vintage Paris travel poster. I have sewn a series of vintage travel posters; it was just a coincidence that I happened to be working on this one.  This has not yet been washed, pressed and stretched.

I started reminiscing about a trip we took to Paris in 2018. One of H’s requests was to visit the catacombs, a creepy but interesting experience.

If you are looking for some light summer reading, try Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn. Four retired women contract killers go on a luxury cruise, only to find they are now the targets.  Their adventures take them to a few locales, including the catacombs of Paris.

And funny enough, over the last couple of weeks, I have been going underground in the Mediterranean, visiting sites in Naples. Italy and Valletta, Malta. These series of tunnels were not built for burying the dead, but for a possible royal and military escape (Naples) and for a possible general population escape from the Ottomans (Valletta).  Over the years both have also acted as cisterns and as shelters during World War II.

What was most visually striking about the Bourbon tunnels of Naples were the many vehicles left behind from then the tunnels were used as a police impound lot.

One of striking elements of the Malta tunnels were the beautiful tiles that were used in these very small rooms that would house families of 10-12.  Even in the face of heavy bombing and spending great amounts of time in these rooms - or maybe because of this - it was important to still have beauty and art.

Tours are generally about an hour - a perfect respite from the sun and heat.  If you go:

• Most likely you will need to navigate stairs.

• Ceilings can be low and passages tight. If you get claustrophobic, the tunnels might not be that place for you.

• Wear appropriate footwear.

• Reservations for Malta tour are essential, for Naples it depends on the tour.  

Wellness Round Up

In terms of nutrition, I have been working on eating when I am hungry. Most people associate cruise ships with non-stop food, which isn’t really true (unless you count 24-hr room service). So, for me at least, there can be a scarcity mentality: I missed breakfast, I’m hungry now, I have to wait until lunch is served and I am worried that I will then overeat.  So with eating when I am hungry, I am definitely consuming less calories which is good. These calories could be more nutrient dense - that  is the next step.

Some new keeper recipes:

• Homemade Boursin Cheese.  There are several recipes online for this. I liked this one because it called for all dried herbs (easily in the pantry).  I halved the recipe - which still makes PLENTY.  Halving should make 8 servings, but I think that it is more than that (as a serving size is estimated as 1.5 tablespoons.

• Healthy Oatmeal Pancakes.  If you let the oatmeal/milk mixture sit for more than 10 minutes (darn it, the women’s gymnastics were on), after adding the egg, you might want to add a little more milk.

Hydration and stress still could use some work.

Sleep and movement are still great.  

Thank you, everyone, for your feedback and for filling out the poll!  I’ll be working on adding back some previous posts, and will keep you posted (no pun intended).

 That's it for now. See you in two weeks. Bon Voyage & Bon Appétit!