We arrived on a very snowy early morning, so snowy in fact that our plane was rerouted to the opposite end of the island. According to the map it seemed as if we flew up over the arctic circle before touching down safely. While some on the plane seemed annoyed by the delay, I thought it made the adventure even more exciting!
Read moreChapter 1: Tennis Anyone?
Magdalena's hands were trembling, she was down on the antique brick floor in her parent's garden room picking up pieces of terra cotta. She was careful not to get small broken sharp bits into her knees. Magdalena was jet-lagged and nervous that she dropped a gorgeous Terra cotta pot filled with her favorite Apple Blossom scented geraniums. The garden room was perfumed with a variety of cherry blossoms that her mother brought in from their orchard to force into huge flowering branches. They reached up to the ceiling surrounded by glass windows that allowed the sun to shine in on the plants for hours each day. There was also an abundance of scented orange blossoms, small fruit trees, boxwoods, roses, a collection of scented geraniums, and a variety of fern and flowers that her mother wintered over. The room was filled with antiques from the Paris flea market, her mother adored the Marché aux Puces St-Ouen de Clignancourt and she decorated this room with the treasures she found in Paris and all over the world. Magdalena could spend hours in this enchanted Garden Room listening to the bird sing, enjoying a cup of tea in the morning, a glass of champagne in the evening and she often did, that is when she was home.
Read more