Mara's Website

At one of many of King Ludwig II's castles. This one was on an island and we went here before going on a hut trip in the Alps. Here Will poses with Jill and Achim and their son, Nathan. Jill was my college roommate for 2 years.

This is a pic of me in front of a man-made waterfall after our hike up a decent-sized hill just outside the city of Prague. This was one of the only places we didn't hear most people speaking English. Needless to say, it was a welcome thing to get out of the touristy section. :)

After hiking up the hill we went in search of a highly-recommended Czech restaurant. We found this one and it was sooo tasty! We ate duck with two kinds of sauerkrat (way better than any sauerkrat I'd ever eaten!) as well as Czech goulash. Topped off with a $6 (in the restaurant!) bottle of Czech white wine and we had quite a nice evening!

While walking around the Prague Castle we came across a dungeon with various old torture instruments. I told Will if he didn't behave, I'd put him in this one! :)

At Wawel hill in Krakow, Poland. A *really* beautiful even if slightly odd (nothing really matched) cathedral. Pretty incredible place.

After getting back from Europe, we had a whirlwind month. We had decided to move in together and had signed a lease on a Denver square (style of house) two blocks from my apartment, but it meant LOTS of packing needed to get done so we could get moved. Plus Will closed on selling his house on July 30th. Not to mention working full-time jobs at the same time... (luckily work was slow for me in July so I could take care of packing). Our new place is pretty darn cool. We're still unpacking, but hopefully will be close to done very soon! We do have a guest room, so if you'd like to come visit, we have lots of space!)

Our new house!

Other than the craziness of taking a 2 1/2 week vacation, followed by moving two households into one, we've both been attempting to train for triathlons and various other races. As I type, Will should've just finished up his half-ironman (ugh). Next weekend he's got the Mount Washington hill climb in New Hampshire. At the same time as that, I'll be doing my first Olympic-distance triathlon here (in Aurora, just outside of Denver). I'm a little nervous about it, but I just bought a wetsuit and tried it out yesterday and went for a nice long run this morning. So, I think as long as my expectations are just to finish it, all will be well! :)

Been hanging out with various friends in the small amount of spare time outside of this (personally I've mostly seen people while on bike rides! Must combine social time with training these days!). :)

And, a few days after my race, I'll be leaving for a road trip to the Pacific Northwest. I'll be working remotely from various friends' houses, so I'm excited that I hardly need to take any vacation time at all! I'm looking forward to seeing a new part of the country that I've never been to before. And while I've barely started with the planning, I've at least got some ideas as to what I'm doing and when I'm arriving in Oregon, at least. :) Ahh, gotta love last-minute planning!

So, that's about it for now. I better get moving since I have lots of unpacking still to do (and hopefully will find a pair of concert tickets I bought before the move that haven't shown up yet. Ugh. Thank goodness they were cheap!). :) Hope everyone's doing well!

Love,

Mara and Anika (who is surviving the move rather well. And isn't harrassing Will's cats TOO much. Only every time she sees them). ;)