tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-68932591655108232302025-12-11T00:21:55.249-08:00SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.comBlogger558125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-87340641175296316162022-08-29T20:50:00.003-07:002022-08-29T20:51:38.293-07:00

By Selena Jones“Mom, look!  Oh, Dad, stop the car!”“Charlotte, it’s getting late,” her mother sighed.“Ugh, not again!  Dad!  I’m hungry.”   Her oldest brother, put his face in his hand with a dramatic pout.  “Daddy, please!  Look at those trees!”  Charlotte leaned up so her dad could see her very best puppy-dog-eyes in the rearview mirror.  

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-84045321540005502582018-12-21T08:15:00.000-08:002018-12-21T08:15:02.410-08:00

I still have so many photos to share from the past few years.  Here are some from a day at Ascot for a beer fest.  If you ever get to ascot, be sure to find this beautiful sculpture call "Uniting Two Societies." TWITTER | FACEBOOK | PINTEREST | SUBSCRIBE | BLOGLOVIN

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-86016238226281597532018-11-21T08:22:00.000-08:002018-11-21T08:22:00.097-08:00

What's one of your favorite road trips?  Mine is the day spent exploring the beautiful island of Cyprus in a rented car.  First stop was the birthplace of Aphrodite, Petro tou Romiou, off the southwest coast in Paphos.  Just look how gorgeous that water is! Up into the hills next to find a winery and a cozy lunch spot. Just looking at these photos makes me want to be someplace warm

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-47679257028886993472018-08-31T08:27:00.001-07:002018-08-31T08:39:06.022-07:00

Yep, still here.  I'm busy with life and work.  I'm still traveling when I can and taking tons of photographs.  Not sure if or when I'll ever get around to posting them.  I miss writing so much!  I really need to find a way to make the time in spite of a full-time job and a busy life.  Any suggestions on how you find the time and motivation to write?  In the

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-7223367064050906072018-06-23T12:03:00.001-07:002018-06-30T13:09:06.820-07:00

First, thank you so much to those of you that reached out after my last post, and every post I've ever posted.  It meant so much!!  So thank you!  Today I'm finally posting some photos from my travels in Texas.  I live in a suburb of San Antonio.  Between San Antonio and Austin is the gorgeous Texas Hill Country.  I've slowly been visiting some of the lovely little

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-38915314926807050812018-05-31T14:05:00.001-07:002018-05-31T17:23:53.223-07:00

Guess what?  I've been editing photos!!!  It's been ages.  I was starting to think the blog had run its course and fallen by the wayside.  But change is in the air.  The lead up to the 1 year anniversary to the day the gauntlet fell on my marriage sucked!  So bad.  It stirred up so much shit for me.  But then, lots of self-love (cliche? yes. necessary?

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-22576086048164210132018-05-27T10:14:00.003-07:002018-05-27T10:14:53.176-07:00

Wasn't the Royal Wedding beautiful?  After watching it last week, I've been aching for London.  I miss that city so much.  It's definitely time to plan a trip back.  I miss the food, the architecture, the history, the pubs, the museums, the Thames... so much to miss.  Today I'm posting some photos from a visit to Highgate Cemetery that Gina (who I miss so much) and I

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-60568269307922947382018-03-13T15:59:00.001-07:002018-03-13T15:59:47.137-07:00

It's a beautiful day today.  I'm home early from work and have the doors open.  It's sunny and in the 70's. Living in Texas in the winter is ideal.  I no longer have that crazy, urgent desire to chase the sun.  No reason to take those late winter trips further south to warm the bones.  Here are some more photos from our week in Cyprus.  Just such a trip... in search

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-34878833660037709802018-01-15T19:44:00.000-08:002018-01-15T19:44:13.510-08:00

It's a new year! In recent years, I've done the usual blogger thing.  A post to recap the prior year.  A post to talk about my "word" for the new year and the intentions I've set for myself.  A post to recap the holidays.  A post to lay out my travel plans for the new year.  I always loved the opportunity to look back and look forward.  This year, I'm not going to do

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-53569412589176333632017-11-26T12:16:00.000-08:002017-11-26T12:16:03.604-08:00

It's time to start blogging about our week in Cyprus.  Honestly, I'm having a difficult time writing currently.  Lots of changes and my free time is limited.  Not to mention all of the "stuff" I'm processing.  But I'm just going to get started with the photos and hope the words eventually catch up.  This seems like the perfect place to start.  Seeing the whirling

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-9423489570466029832017-11-03T12:33:00.001-07:002017-11-03T12:33:12.346-07:00

I'm off today on my first trip since moving back and also my first US city break.  I loved all of our city breaks in London and it's something I hope to continue here.  So in honor of that here are my last bit of photos from our Budapest trip.  The Fisherman's Bastion was a great place to take in the views of Budapest, Hungary.  Up, up, up in the furnicular to stroll around in

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-42502247814955337552017-10-23T17:34:00.004-07:002017-10-23T18:10:08.118-07:00

Well, I guess it's official.  I've lost my words.  I can't, for the life of me, write a blog post.  My mind is constantly going, but I can't seem to organize any thoughts.  Meanwhile, over a year's worth of photos sit on my computer taunting me.  So I'm just going to start posting them without the words to give them context.  It makes me sad, but so much has changed

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-27843460382100345292017-09-17T16:49:00.000-07:002017-09-17T16:50:06.172-07:00

Everyday I want to blog and every day I don't have the words.  I'm sure they will come back to me.  In the mean time, I'll just post photographs.  These are from our visit to Budapest, Hungary.  On our last day before heading to the airport, we took the tube to the City Park to visit the Vajdahunyad Castle.  In 1896, the castle was constructed for the 1,000th birthday of

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-43765687013853562492017-08-06T11:58:00.002-07:002017-08-06T12:15:19.589-07:00

I think most travel bloggers have a folder of photos to use in those random posts when you're not sharing a place but maybe something else.  Something that doesn't lend itself to the perfect photograph.  These gorgeous peonies came from that folder of random photos.  Because how do you photograph the end of a marriage?  That's probably way too blunt, but I just need to write

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-12846242258244489112017-07-11T04:36:00.001-07:002017-07-11T04:38:54.577-07:00

So much has been going on since I last posted in early May.  I don't want to get into the details today, but a lot of changes have been happening. I feel like I'm now on the other side (literally and figuratively) so it's time to start blogging again! First things first, I want to show you my grandbabies.  I was in Texas in May for two giggle-filled weeks.  Of course, I took a

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-70458157620771665602017-05-05T06:52:00.002-07:002017-07-16T14:57:39.396-07:00

Matt and I would probably travel full time if we could.  Alas, we have to work to be able to afford to travel.  If only we could win the lottery.   So city breaks are sometimes our only outlet.  As often possible, we leave on a Friday night and explore a new city for the weekend.  Our general criteria is a direct flight of less than 3 hours and good value for money.&

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-19125743433037883572017-04-23T08:53:00.003-07:002017-07-16T14:58:09.746-07:00

When I first started blogging, I joined such a special little community.  This was before it became such a business.  Most of us were just finding our way and had no idea what SEO, DA or MOZ meant.  Follow links and Google Analytics meant nothing.  Just pick a pretty template, start writing and connecting.  We all had a blog roll in our sidebar featuring our favorite

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-24918869343607998532017-04-19T07:26:00.000-07:002017-07-16T14:58:42.195-07:00

Not all city breaks require a trip to the airport, right?  Sometimes a road trip is in order and England has plenty to see and do.  Gloucester offers a cathedral, a city center and a revitalized Victorian port to explore.  It's only a 2.5 hour drive from London so it's an easy one.  Gloucester is in Gloucestershire, neither of which is pronounced like it looks.  Kind of

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-35676465791895035552017-04-08T02:36:00.002-07:002017-07-16T14:59:13.339-07:00

Look!  It's a Wee Coo!  They are adorable and I must have one.  It will fit in perfectly with my dream menagerie that includes a hippo, giraffe and camel.  Matt continues to tell me NO, but I think I'm wearing him down.  Someday.  This gorgeous Highland Cow was spotted as we explored the area around Oban, Scotland.  Scotland continues to be a top three favorite

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-17153609027607402782017-03-31T05:21:00.001-07:002017-07-16T14:59:57.868-07:00

Here are my last few photos from our time in Dubai.  Unfortunately, I never made it to the beach but I did manage to get a view of the fabulous Burj Al Arab hotel.  I enjoyed my time at the old souks so much, I thought it would be fun to visit one of the modern versions.  The Souk Madinat Jumeirah is a posh version of a middle eastern marketplace offering shopping, restaurants and

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-64928873249996056852017-03-23T06:49:00.002-07:002017-07-16T15:00:32.266-07:00

I still haven't figured out how to keep up with the blog while working.  I apologize for the sporadic postings.  In truth, I don't think many people are even reading blogs these days.  We can get such a quick fix of travel inspiration on Instagram, reading a blog post can feel like picking up an encyclopedia in comparison.  Although having said that, I was one of those kids

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-4713237284805061792017-03-17T04:31:00.001-07:002017-07-16T15:01:04.401-07:00

Can you feel spring in the air?  I can and I'm so thrilled and so ready.  This Texas gal needs some warmth.  A little update on us... we're moving back to London just in time for spring.  Surrey has been lovely, but we miss the city and are eager to get back.  Speaking of warmth and cities (see what I did there?), here are some more photos from our visit to Dubai.  

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-3913745634024568422017-02-24T04:48:00.002-08:002017-07-16T15:01:44.230-07:00

My previous post included photos from the souks I visited with Nada from Wander with Nada.  Not only did we visit several markets, but we also visited two museums and took a little boat ride.  Dubai isn't really known for its museums.  I definitely recommend a stop at The Women's Museum at Bait Al Banat and The Dubai Museum and Al Fahidi Fort.  Both of these are small but

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-77163812609289711792017-02-17T03:23:00.000-08:002017-07-16T15:02:01.415-07:00

I've been eager to visit the Middle East and I finally got my chance.  I tagged along with Matt on a work trip to Dubai.  He was working all day and I was happy to enjoy the hotel pool or walk around the famous Dubai Malls by myself.  But I also wanted to see a bit more of the city.  I was reluctant to set out on my own so I booked a morning tour with Wander with Nada. 

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6893259165510823230.post-36784767897757707512017-01-27T05:49:00.000-08:002017-07-16T15:02:17.167-07:00

Good grief, how the years fly by!  It's no lie that the older you get the faster they go.  Can you believe it's that time again already?  A quick recap of the previous year and making travel plans for the new. This blog of mine is now five years old and when I look back, I just can't believe the wonderful places that we've managed to visit.  I'm so thankful for the beautiful

SelenaThePlaceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05327822798016315005noreply@blogger.com0