The Grand Tour, part 1

After having a nasty flu that hit me New Year's Eve day, I'm finally back to feeling normal and back in my studio. Baby Owen (due in March) has a complete crib bedding set, baby Michaela has a fancy and colorful new dress, and I've got some serious wardrobe sewing to do.

I work for a company here in Austin, TX called HomeAway. HomeAway provides websites and services to match owners of vacation homes with travelers. It is a great company with offices all over the world.

This April I am taking advantage of 2 of the benefits offered to US employees:

1. DeskAway: we can work up to 2 weeks in any office in the world, without taking vacation time. I pay for all travel expenses*, but when it is time for lunch or dinner or a short coffee break, I'm in Paris or London! Oh, and there are the weekends!

2. BearStay(*): US employees can arrange with an owner to stay in a rental in exchange for a review from the perspective of the VRBO mascot (a teddy bear). We pay for cleaning fees and deposit.

I work regularly with folks in both offices that I am visiting, so I am really looking forward to meeting them in person!

Here's my itinerary:

5 Apr--depart Austin, TX
6 Apr--arrive London Heathrow
8 - 12 Apr --meet with my colleagues in London office, staying in Chelsea
13 Apr--explore London, V&A museum
14 Apr--head to Paris via EuroStar
15 - 19 Apr -- meet with my colleagues in Paris office, staying in Montmartre
20 - 23 Apr -- Vacation! roam around Paris, shop for fabric, hit all the museums I can, meet up with some EU friends
24 Apr -- head to Cologne, Germany via Thalys
24 - 28 Apr -- Hang with the Schwalfenbergs (good friends we met here in Texas who now live there)
29 Apr--Depart Cologne, Germany to head back home

I plan to blog while on my trips, so check back in early April if you're interested. I'll be posting photos of food (mostly to torture my husband), people, places, who knows? I may even need help choosing fabric!

Juliette

here's a peek at the 2 places I'm staying while in Europe:
http://www.vrbo.com/463403ha
http://www.vrbo.com/353774