We met back up with our worldschooling family in Montenegro after a long, five-month separation. We were last with our friends in Southeast Asia. We met the Sigtons at a worldschool hub in Bankso, Bulgaria, in 2023. We met the Blackbourns in Chiang Mai at the end of 2023 after Michael met Renee through Facebook. We met the Crabtrees at…
Category: Europe
The Cats of Istanbul: Furry Guardians of the City
Everywhere you turn in Istanbul a pair of watchful green eyes might peer at you from beneath a café table, or a fluffy tail might flick lazily as a feline lounges on a centuries-old stone wall. Istanbul belongs to the cats, and the people wouldn’t have it any other way. Unlike many cities where stray animals are seen as a…
Istanbul, Türkiye
The next part of our worldschooling journey started in Türkiye. We flew from Atlanta to Istanbul with frequent flyer miles, so it only cost us $100 for our four flights. Michael and Henry had a direct flight from Atlanta. Lucas and I did have to backtrack with a layover in Houston, but it was worth it. Our visit to Türkiye…
The Netherlands
We made a pit stop in the Netherlands on our way back to the United States to pick up our niece Vivian. She is spending her school break with us in North Carolina. We had a marathon 24-hour trip from Siwa to the Netherlands. It started with a 9-hour drive from Siwa to Cairo. We spent eight hours in the…
Cyprus
We said goodbye to our new friends and Bulgaria and flew to Cyprus. Cyprus is a beautiful island nation located in the Eastern Mediterranean. The history of Cyprus dates back thousands of years, with evidence of human activity on the island dating back to the Neolithic era. We watched some YouTube videos about Cyprus to help us understand its history.…
Bansko, Bulgaria – Week 9
Our last full week in Bulgaria was a busy one. We attended the family dinner this week at Victoria Restaurant. The restaurant is one of our favorites. They have pizza, pasta, and traditional Bulgarian food like most of the restaurants in Bansko, but they also have sushi, which is Lucas’ favorite. Michael organized another roundtable. This one was about education,…
Bansko- Week 8 – Trips to Rila and North Macedonia
We started the week with a day trip to the Rila Monastery. It is a medieval Eastern Orthodox monastery an hour and a half from Bansko. It is one of the most important cultural, historical, and architectural landmarks in Bulgaria and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Rila Monastery was founded in the 10th century by the Bulgarian hermit St.…
Bansko, Bulgaria – Week 7
Week 7 in Bansko started with a road trip to Thessaloniki, Greece for me and a few other moms. We spent two days walking along the water and eating delicious food. It was nice to get away from Bansko and warm up for a few days. Thessaloniki, Greece is just a three-hour drive south of Bansko. It is the second…
Bansko, Bulgaria – Week 6
Week 6 in Bulgaria is a week of goodbyes. The second session of the worldschooling hub is ending, and some families were moving on. Four weeks went by fast. It is sad to see the families go, but we believe we will see many of them again somewhere in the world. We had a week full of activities. Lucas and…
Bansko, Bulgaria – Week 5
A cold snap came to Bansko this week. Temperatures were in the single digits and low 20s. We know it is winter, but it feels especially cold because the temperatures here have been mild. This week we went to the Deska House for traditional Bulgarian food, music, and dancing. The three sisters are famous in Bulgaria. We had fun dressing…