November 16, 2016

6 Things to Do in Bergen, Norway

November 16, 2016/ Meghan Oaks

As the second largest city in Norway, there is a ton to do in and around Bergen. Back in May, Aaron and I spent 3 days there before we sailed off to a dive resort for a few days, and then my sister and I spent a couple more days there before heading off to Oslo. Since I had so much time in Bergen, I made sure to find a ton of stuff to do. Thankfully, this was really easy. One of the best resources I found was to stop in at the Visitor's Center, right across from the world-famous Bryggen. They had tons and tons of brochures - from horse back riding to hiking to fjord cruises to museums and tours. There really is something for everyone, whether your idea of a vacation is shopping or hiking or somewhere in between. Read on to learn about things to do in Bergen!

October 31, 2016

Nature Diving in Fjord Norway

October 31, 2016/ Meghan Oaks

When one thinks of ocean diving, places like the Caribbean or the South Pacific, popular warm water dive locations, come to mind. Here, there are beautiful coral reefs, full of colorful fish, big creatures, and small delights. While warm water diving is always nice, there is still so much of the ocean that can be dived, if only you're willing to deal with the cold. Norway was one such place.

July 03, 2015

Barefooted Adventures

July 03, 2015/ Meghan Oaks

June was a pretty low key month for us. After our crazy busy schedule in April and May, a few quiet weekends at home were definitely in order. On one of these quiet weekends at home, we had a pretty interesting experience at one of the most unique parks I think I have ever been to. But let's back up for a bit, give a little bit of background. One of the ways we have tried to make friends here has been by going to different Meet Up events. There are quite a few expat groups between Heidelberg and Frankfurt, so finding them isn't the problem, but finding the time to go is! There is a hiking group in Frankfurt and they were headed to a park about 20 minutes west of there called Barfusspfad, a reflexology park in which people are barefoot and walk over things. Interested yet? We were too and decided to check it out!

March 18, 2015

Bucket List: Dog Sledding in the Arctic Circle

March 18, 2015/ Meghan Oaks

Ok, I can't even begin to describe how awesome this whole experience was. Ever since I was a little girl, I have wanted to go dog sledding (just ask my Mom), and on this trip, I finally got the chance! We booked a 3 day tour with White Trail Adventures located in Kiruna, a small mining town in Swedish Lapland, 200 km north of the Arctic Circle. From the minute Aaron and I stepped off of the plane at the small airport, we knew we were going to love this place.

May 14, 2014

The Land of Country Music and True Barbecue

May 14, 2014/ Meghan Oaks

One of the best benefits of working for a large corporation has to be the fact that there is a manufacturing facility in almost every state in America, and Tennessee is one of those states. This week I had the great fortune of travelling to our compounding facility to assist with their electrical safety training program. My last trip to Tennessee involved visiting another large waterfall which was Burgess Falls. This trip involved a short trip to Fall Creek Falls, one of the many state parks that has a waterfall as the crown jewel of the park.

March 17, 2014

Wishing and Waiting and Hoping for Spring

March 17, 2014/ Meghan Oaks

The winter of 2013 - 2014 was the second worst winter on record for Detroit - ever. To date, over 84 inches of snow has fallen. To give you some perspective, the snowiest winter had a total of 93.6 inches. While the total snowfall for this year is just another winter storm for those in Houghton (where Michigan Tech, our alma mater), for those of us downstate, it's downright brutal. Not to mention it's also been the winter of the "Polar Vortex" where it wasn't uncommon for HIGHS to be only a few degrees above zero, Fahrenheit.

Now it's the middle of March, a time when it SHOULD be warming up. At this point, I would gladly take anything over 40. Over 50 would be a bonus and just might call for me to break out the bikini and open the pool. Two years ago, on St. Patty's Day weekend, we were sitting outside, at a local Irish pub, enjoying some beverages with friends while wearing shorts and t-shirts. This year, the high for March 15 was 25. But sunny. Oh was it sunny. It was one of those days where sitting inside, warm, with the sun pouring in, one could look outside and think that it was 50 degrees outside. It was a beautiful day for a stroll in the park. So, that's what we did. We set off with the dog in tow and went to take some pictures in the Van Buren Township park. Only one problem...it was still frigid outside. But, we persevered in the name of photography on a beautiful (albeit, cold) afternoon.

We were able to grab some really good pictures at the park. The birds are starting to return, the squirrels are coming out of their hibernation (wait, do squirrels even hibernate?) and the bunnys are starting to hop again (something Scout is excited about...now only if he could actually catch one once in a while). But I digress, back to our nature walk. We also discovered the location of the University of Michigan Rowing Team's boathouse - quite impressive. They were trying to break open the ice on Belleville Lake so they could start practicing. I think it's going to be a couple more weeks before they have enough open water to row.

Beautiful Front door of Ford Hydro plant

After leaving the Van Buren Park, we headed over to a smaller one we discovered while looking at the map. There were two right next to each other called "North Hydro Park" and "South Hydro Park." Apparently, there is a hydro electric dam built by Henry Ford sitting on the river. The building appeared to have been built at least 60 years ago, probably more, and had some great architectural details. Scout was very interested in the rushing water below. Unfortunately, we couldn't get a good picture of his curiosity. Our model wouldn't cooperate.

All in all though, it was a beautiful day. If only it had been a little warmer. Some further information and pictures can be found at Sherlock Photography.