I rented a car for the first time in our Grand European Tour. I was a bit hesitant because I was driving into the Old Town and then back out again...but it wasn't so bad. We had a 2.5 hour drive to Brno, with heavy traffic the whole way. I'm not sure if this is something taught in Czech driving schools, or just something that everyone does, but when cars want to pass, they go RIGHT up to your back bumper. This must have happened to me at least 30 times (and I was going 130 km/hr!). Seriously, it's so dangerous. By the end, I could anticipate it and get out of the way quickly. But sometimes i ..read more

I worked most of the day on video and book editing. But I decied that I coudn't stay indoors the whole day! So I booked a "Prague Underground" tour that sounded really fun. In reality, it was underwhelming and overpriced. We saw the basements of 3 buildings, 2 of the 3 decorated with kitschy themes. The torture one was fun if only because I was taking pictures for the kids to see later ? I met up with Kristine and some of the workshop organizers and attendees for dinner. I had a beetroot risotto with goat cheese. So good! When we were walking to get Kristine, the street was com ..read more

I'm totally exhausted and my inbox is terrifying (so many emails since this morning that I can't evne see them all on one page!). I'm not even going to try until tomorrow ..read more

I bundled up to expore Prague today, after getting a few hours of video editing done. It was beautiful but very cold. I couldn't believe the crowds of tourists! In some areas, it was a literal river of people and you couldn't really choose where to walk. In the morning I walked along the river, then across to the Petrin Tower (Petřínská rozhledna) and the Mirror Maze (Zrcadlové bludiště).  The tower is like the Eiffel Tower but on a smaller scale. It has two observation platforms and you climb up on a double spiral outdoor staircase, going up one way and down the other ..read more

Kristine and I arrived in Prague! We left our apartment in Budapest at 6:30 am and I finally got settled into my apartment here by around 4:30 pm. So a long travel day even though the actual flight time wasn't that far. Kristine is in the Old Town and I'm not too far away in the New Town. I have a great setup here with double desks and 3 large monitors. I can feel the streetcars rumbling past; it's a subtle, low vibration. It's very cold here, colder than winters in Nice ever get. Brrrr! The workshop organizer lent me a warmer jacket. That should allow me to have a good wander all over to ..read more

I had the day free today--and I needed it! Yesterday was an intense teaching day that started at 3 am (not on purpose!!) and ended close to 10 pm. I was exhuasted and in pain and so happy to get back home. But I love teaching, too. I just wish it weren't so taxing. We had another fantastic group and I was super excited that Agnes Gereb attended yesterday's training. And the night before yesterday, I got a message from Betty-Anne Daviss, saying, "Hey, I happen to be in Budapest. Could I come to your training?" I said, "yes, please!" So she and Dr. Bisits helped participate and gave short imp ..read more

Day 1 of 3 is done! Kristine flew in late last night from doing a full day of training in Vienna, then was up about 6 hours later to teach all day today with me & Dr. Bisits. Today's participants were from Hungary, Italy, and Georgia (the country, not the state!). I'm continually impressed by how well-prepared and engaged our European students are. Unlike our US, NZ, and Australia trainings, which are majority midwives and minority physicians, it's the other way around here. It leads to a different set of questions and perspectives, which is always very interesting. I'm completely ..read more

I woke up early (not on purpose! what is going on?!). I was dreaming about my alarm not going off on time and I dreamed I woke up and checked the time and I was suuuuper late...and then I woke up from that dream to check what time it was. Only 5 am! My day started early with a ride from a lovely, enthusiastic OB who was the first to bring upright breech to Hungary several years ago. He attends vaginal breech births, water births, etc. Our next stop was to pick up Andrew Bisits, aka the "Breech Whisperer," who is visiting all the way from Australia and who will be co-teaching with us. We drov ..read more

I'm in the airport awaiting my flights to Warsaw and then Budapest! So here's some catching up. Yesterday was an "off" day while Kristine was teaching her Breech & Twins Master Class. I slept in until almost 8 am, which felt amazing. On teaching days we have to be up early, plus I generally wake up even earlier without wanting to. I went for a nice run along the river, circling around the old town. I worked on the book until lunchtime, when I went down to eat with the group. I decided to bring my computer with me for the afternoon and listen in on the last part of the Master Class as we ..read more

We arrived yesterday afternoon in Wroclaw, Poland. By time we unpacked, checked out the conference rooms, got ready for teaching, ate dinner, etc, I didn't have much time for anything else! I also got my US taxes sent off, which was no small feat. However, I did prioritize some time yesterday to take a nice 5 km walk around the Old Town. Yesterday's dinner was mushroom pierogi and then a cutlet of pork with potato dumplings, beets, and creamy pickles. Yum!! Today's dinner was a salad and beets from a local grocery store. I was too exhausted to want to go to a restaurant. I took the f ..read more