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Huge Announcement

We've been working on something HUGE! Watch our video released Sept. 12, 2025

ICELAND (SOUTHERN)

Spring 2023

IMG_9588.HEIC

CROATIA + AMSTERDAM

Fall 2023

CHICHEN ITZA

Summer 2024

IRELAND

Fall 2024

Day 61

🌥️64°/42°

We started the day grabbing olives from DejaVu, we asked the owner how things were at his Olive tree farm & he showed us some videos of him cultivating the ground. He offered us some farm fresh eggs as well! On the way back we stopped at a new-to-us cafe, grabbed some pastries, & then stopped across the street at Albidea for ‘djathe lope’ (cow’s cheese). I ran out after breakfast for some produce at the stand & some snacks at the Super Market. We took a long walk again, first time we actually saw a bunch of sea urchins in the water! I did another hour or so of the drawing course, & then spent some terrace time with Reese. We are in the midst of a flare, so being outside is nice, since she does a lot of standing so she can air out her hot under carriage. She really likes looking for puppies over the railing. For dinner we went to the Eagle, the waitress asked us if we were going to have the ravioli 🫣, she’s got our number🤣, but we actually came to try something different! Philly got the meatballs, sauce, & rice. I got the grilled shrimp, & we shared a chicken cesar salad. Sooooo good.

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 61

🌥️64°/42°

We started the day grabbing olives from DejaVu, we asked the owner how things were at his Olive tree farm & he showed us some videos of him cultivating the ground. He offered us some farm fresh eggs as well! On the way back we stopped at a new-to-us cafe, grabbed some pastries, & then stopped across the street at Albidea for ‘djathe lope’ (cow’s cheese). I ran out after breakfast for some produce at the stand & some snacks at the Super Market. We took a long walk again, first time we actually saw a bunch of sea urchins in the water! I did another hour or so of the drawing course, & then spent some terrace time with Reese. We are in the midst of a flare, so being outside is nice, since she does a lot of standing so she can air out her hot under carriage. She really likes looking for puppies over the railing. For dinner we went to the Eagle, the waitress asked us if we were going to have the ravioli 🫣, she’s got our number🤣, but we actually came to try something different! Philly got the meatballs, sauce, & rice. I got the grilled shrimp, & we shared a chicken cesar salad. Sooooo good.

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 60

🌥️64°/48°

Reese is having a little allergy flare, so none of us slept real well last night since the peanut crashes in our bedroom. Lots of futzing, licking, & itching. So I tried to keep her awake & entertained today to hopefully tucker her out for good rest tonight. Late morning me & Philly went for a walk, & stopped at Big Scoop to share another club sandwich, with fries, & drinks, it’s under a $10 lunch. I announced the exciting news that my friend Shane & I are doing a podcast @UnchartedTable together! And I put in another hour or so with the online sketching course. We had some terrace time this afternoon, while Philly worked. Saw another ‘land seal’ 🐾 hanging out on the beach! There are not many staffies or bullies here, so I get extra excited when I spot one! I felt a little under the weather, so we opted to order delivery instead of going out, amazing smash burgers, & tried their truffle mini pizza. All really great 🤤

Really excited as the no-fan-ban has been lifted from the local football team, so we are plotting to go to the next home game this Sunday! ⚽️

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 60

🌥️64°/48°

Reese is having a little allergy flare, so none of us slept real well last night since the peanut crashes in our bedroom. Lots of futzing, licking, & itching. So I tried to keep her awake & entertained today to hopefully tucker her out for good rest tonight. Late morning me & Philly went for a walk, & stopped at Big Scoop to share another club sandwich, with fries, & drinks, it’s under a $10 lunch. I announced the exciting news that my friend Shane & I are doing a podcast @UnchartedTable together! And I put in another hour or so with the online sketching course. We had some terrace time this afternoon, while Philly worked. Saw another ‘land seal’ 🐾 hanging out on the beach! There are not many staffies or bullies here, so I get extra excited when I spot one! I felt a little under the weather, so we opted to order delivery instead of going out, amazing smash burgers, & tried their truffle mini pizza. All really great 🤤

Really excited as the no-fan-ban has been lifted from the local football team, so we are plotting to go to the next home game this Sunday! ⚽️

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 59

🌥️64°/42°

We started the day at Arjoli with coffees & croissants. Then I took off to downtown for some errands. I walked on the opposite side of the street on the way to Jumbo, I saw an art sculpture I hadn’t seen before & went into a larger market. Even tho I’m getting comfortable with the lay of the land, there’s still so much to discover! I’m a couple sessions into an online course for urban drawing, as if my brain isn’t full up on learning right now haha but Philly reminded me this is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time. It’s been fun to flex my creative muscles! I ran over to the super market before a late afternoon meeting for some lemon sodas, something about carrying a bag of my favorite Italian sodas back to our European apartment felt pretty ‘soak up the cool ordinary moment’. For dinner we thought about ordering some sushi delivery, but instead we went in-person to the Japanese gastrobar since we assumed we’d have the place to ourselves & the food wouldn’t be soggy from the moped ride! It was awesome as anticipated 👌

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 59

🌥️64°/42°

We started the day at Arjoli with coffees & croissants. Then I took off to downtown for some errands. I walked on the opposite side of the street on the way to Jumbo, I saw an art sculpture I hadn’t seen before & went into a larger market. Even tho I’m getting comfortable with the lay of the land, there’s still so much to discover! I’m a couple sessions into an online course for urban drawing, as if my brain isn’t full up on learning right now haha but Philly reminded me this is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time. It’s been fun to flex my creative muscles! I ran over to the super market before a late afternoon meeting for some lemon sodas, something about carrying a bag of my favorite Italian sodas back to our European apartment felt pretty ‘soak up the cool ordinary moment’. For dinner we thought about ordering some sushi delivery, but instead we went in-person to the Japanese gastrobar since we assumed we’d have the place to ourselves & the food wouldn’t be soggy from the moped ride! It was awesome as anticipated 👌

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 58

🌤️62°/45°

I cleaned the apartment today, sorry I’m not into making #cleantok videos 🤣 Another long walk this morning, & then we stopped at Big Scoop for lunch. We shared a club sandwich & got some smoothies! Got the little pumpkin out on the terrace & then started an art course online… Panda was not impressed the focus was not on her. Philly grabbed us pizza for dinner at a place that reopened just across the street from us, really good! Also the verdict is: Cool Ranch Doritos are very similar, “but not as bold”.

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 58

🌤️62°/45°

I cleaned the apartment today, sorry I’m not into making #cleantok videos 🤣 Another long walk this morning, & then we stopped at Big Scoop for lunch. We shared a club sandwich & got some smoothies! Got the little pumpkin out on the terrace & then started an art course online… Panda was not impressed the focus was not on her. Philly grabbed us pizza for dinner at a place that reopened just across the street from us, really good! Also the verdict is: Cool Ranch Doritos are very similar, “but not as bold”.

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

🇺🇸 Household Differences 🇦🇱

Part 2

🪟 Rolling shutters replace blinds here. We have two styles, manual retractable ones for all of our windows including the back terrace patio door, & an electronic one on a switch for the big terrace in front. They help with insulating from temperate, wind, light, & sound.

🧱 Similar to southern or coastal states, there’s no carpeted rooms in homes. Keeps things cool & ease of cleaning sand!

🧊 Our fridge is much smaller, more comparable to a camper sized fridge/freezer. I haven’t run into a situation yet where the size has been an issue! Food expires quicker here, so we make smaller amounts of leftovers (or freeze some), and eat leftovers quickly.

🪣 We store water for flushing & drinking in case of an outage. We’ve only had one so far, last week there was a notice we would be out all day, so we showered the night before & ate out the day of. It was from about 10am-7pm. They are doing a mountain of work to increase infrastructure capacity as Vlorë grows at such a fast rate. The work means pauses in water & power periodically.

🚰 We use charcoal filters on the kitchen & bathroom faucets. For various reasons drinking the water may not be safe: outages means sometimes pulling water from rooftop storage tanks or tankers (risk of bacteria), & older infrastructure (pipes) could mean unhealthy deposits, so we drink filtered or bottled water.

🚪 While we don’t have any closets in our apartment, we have *plenty* of storage with floor to ceiling cabinets in both bedrooms, the kitchen, & living room!

———
While many of these correspond with Albania specifically, maybe even more with European/apartment living in general, I thought it would still be fun to share!

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

🇺🇸 Household Differences 🇦🇱

Part 2

🪟 Rolling shutters replace blinds here. We have two styles, manual retractable ones for all of our windows including the back terrace patio door, & an electronic one on a switch for the big terrace in front. They help with insulating from temperate, wind, light, & sound.

🧱 Similar to southern or coastal states, there’s no carpeted rooms in homes. Keeps things cool & ease of cleaning sand!

🧊 Our fridge is much smaller, more comparable to a camper sized fridge/freezer. I haven’t run into a situation yet where the size has been an issue! Food expires quicker here, so we make smaller amounts of leftovers (or freeze some), and eat leftovers quickly.

🪣 We store water for flushing & drinking in case of an outage. We’ve only had one so far, last week there was a notice we would be out all day, so we showered the night before & ate out the day of. It was from about 10am-7pm. They are doing a mountain of work to increase infrastructure capacity as Vlorë grows at such a fast rate. The work means pauses in water & power periodically.

🚰 We use charcoal filters on the kitchen & bathroom faucets. For various reasons drinking the water may not be safe: outages means sometimes pulling water from rooftop storage tanks or tankers (risk of bacteria), & older infrastructure (pipes) could mean unhealthy deposits, so we drink filtered or bottled water.

🚪 While we don’t have any closets in our apartment, we have *plenty* of storage with floor to ceiling cabinets in both bedrooms, the kitchen, & living room!

———
While many of these correspond with Albania specifically, maybe even more with European/apartment living in general, I thought it would still be fun to share!

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 57

🌤️63°/42°

Had a very relaxing day, mostly at home. It’s been fun people watching on the terrace. Sunday is a big “out” day here, families on the beach, folks walking the Lungomarë, & lots of hanging out at the coffee shops. Reese was really busy trying to keep track of all the action, after about a half hour I tucked her back into bed, I could tell it was a bit of an overload for her, she was napping in less then 5 min. It’s so relieving for her to already have a space she feels comfortable & safe in.

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 57

🌤️63°/42°

Had a very relaxing day, mostly at home. It’s been fun people watching on the terrace. Sunday is a big “out” day here, families on the beach, folks walking the Lungomarë, & lots of hanging out at the coffee shops. Reese was really busy trying to keep track of all the action, after about a half hour I tucked her back into bed, I could tell it was a bit of an overload for her, she was napping in less then 5 min. It’s so relieving for her to already have a space she feels comfortable & safe in.

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 56

🌤️63°/43°

We went for croissants, coffees, & a long walk to downtown. We grabbed me a fountain pen at the art store, & then caught the bus south for lunch at Chick’n Fork! It’s so fun to see how many people are out & about as the weather warms up, especially on the weekends! There were even quite a bit of kids in the sea! I gave little miss stink butt a bath, & we all soaked up some terrace time. We were going to grab just a shareable salad at the Eagle, but the shrimp ravioli called to us…& we caved. No regrets!

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 56

🌤️63°/43°

We went for croissants, coffees, & a long walk to downtown. We grabbed me a fountain pen at the art store, & then caught the bus south for lunch at Chick’n Fork! It’s so fun to see how many people are out & about as the weather warms up, especially on the weekends! There were even quite a bit of kids in the sea! I gave little miss stink butt a bath, & we all soaked up some terrace time. We were going to grab just a shareable salad at the Eagle, but the shrimp ravioli called to us…& we caved. No regrets!

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

‼️🪿 New Video Alert! ‼️🪿

Head over to our 🎥 YouTube channel to watch the full length journey of getting our Reesa over to Vlorë from MN!

➡️ https://youtu.be/M8zz4autcCk

#sillygoosesonly #Vlorë #albania #petrelocation K9 JETS

‼️🪿 New Video Alert! ‼️🪿

Head over to our 🎥 YouTube channel to watch the full length journey of getting our Reesa over to Vlorë from MN!

➡️ https://youtu.be/M8zz4autcCk

#sillygoosesonly #Vlorë #albania #petrelocation K9 JETS

Day 54

63°/41°

This morning we ran downtown to grab a Temu package from one of the couriers. It’s a pretty straight forward process once you understand the concept that nothing is being delivered to your door in Albania 😂 I stopped at one of the large produce stands, as I’ve been eyeing this beautiful dark purple ‘mystery’ fruit since I had seen it pop up earlier in the week Downtown. I hunted for it here by us, so I could stumble thru translating what it was with a familiar person, but none of my people had them. They are fresh dates! I had no idea! Also news to me, not Philly, dates grow on palm trees 🌴?!? Is that news to you? 🤓 We left home without breky or coffee, so we stopped at Arjoli on our way back. I then took an hour nap, so obviously my body is still playing catch up. I did a trial run with salt dough for my sea treasure crafting… will see tomorrow how they’ve dried. I’ve found a gazillion recipes, some with cornstarch, sand, & paint. So if anyone has any personal experience, please share! I made white-people-tacos for dindin, & we watched the sun hide behind the peninsula. The warm orange glow that comes after is my absolute favorite 😍

Join us Saturday for a Facebook Live Q&A, 9am MN/IA time!

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 54

63°/41°

This morning we ran downtown to grab a Temu package from one of the couriers. It’s a pretty straight forward process once you understand the concept that nothing is being delivered to your door in Albania 😂 I stopped at one of the large produce stands, as I’ve been eyeing this beautiful dark purple ‘mystery’ fruit since I had seen it pop up earlier in the week Downtown. I hunted for it here by us, so I could stumble thru translating what it was with a familiar person, but none of my people had them. They are fresh dates! I had no idea! Also news to me, not Philly, dates grow on palm trees 🌴?!? Is that news to you? 🤓 We left home without breky or coffee, so we stopped at Arjoli on our way back. I then took an hour nap, so obviously my body is still playing catch up. I did a trial run with salt dough for my sea treasure crafting… will see tomorrow how they’ve dried. I’ve found a gazillion recipes, some with cornstarch, sand, & paint. So if anyone has any personal experience, please share! I made white-people-tacos for dindin, & we watched the sun hide behind the peninsula. The warm orange glow that comes after is my absolute favorite 😍

Join us Saturday for a Facebook Live Q&A, 9am MN/IA time!

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 53

☀️ 62°/41°

We are trying more new-to-us sausage options for breakfast, this one is most like kielbasa, it’s pretty good! I also got a better grip of their yogurt section, so I felt adventurous enough to grab some so I could have overnight chia seeds with! Also snagged some strawberries as they’ve been showing up at the produce stands…soooo good. After breky I took the bus South to the Lion Fountain (last stop) & walked down to what I deem as “treasure cove”. I found soooo many pieces of sea pottery! And a bit of other goodies too. I’m thinking tomorrow I’ll attempt my first little craft with them now that I have enough inventory collected. For dinner we planned on eating in, but last minute we decided to walk to Happy Pizza, they do the yummy sesame seed crust. We ordered cheeseburger & bbq chicken, both awesome! And stopped at Arjoli for a couple little scoops of ice cream, he had the caramel, & I got hazelnut 😋

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 53

☀️ 62°/41°

We are trying more new-to-us sausage options for breakfast, this one is most like kielbasa, it’s pretty good! I also got a better grip of their yogurt section, so I felt adventurous enough to grab some so I could have overnight chia seeds with! Also snagged some strawberries as they’ve been showing up at the produce stands…soooo good. After breky I took the bus South to the Lion Fountain (last stop) & walked down to what I deem as “treasure cove”. I found soooo many pieces of sea pottery! And a bit of other goodies too. I’m thinking tomorrow I’ll attempt my first little craft with them now that I have enough inventory collected. For dinner we planned on eating in, but last minute we decided to walk to Happy Pizza, they do the yummy sesame seed crust. We ordered cheeseburger & bbq chicken, both awesome! And stopped at Arjoli for a couple little scoops of ice cream, he had the caramel, & I got hazelnut 😋

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 52

I worked on figuring out a plan for digital storage, my phone has been stuffed for a while, so I needed to come up with a better plan then just urgently deleting a hundred photos/videos when I needed more space. It’s certainly not a completed process, but I’ve got a start to a plan! It was another gorgeous day, I closed my eyes on the terrace after lunch in one of our new big inflatable beach beds, the sun was warrrmmm & felt like a big hug. We had a dinner date at our favorite, the Eagle. We of course had the shrimp ravioli, but also tried the caesar salad…so damn good.

Join us Saturday for our Facebook Live Q&A @ 9am MN/IA time!

🪿 💜 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 52

I worked on figuring out a plan for digital storage, my phone has been stuffed for a while, so I needed to come up with a better plan then just urgently deleting a hundred photos/videos when I needed more space. It’s certainly not a completed process, but I’ve got a start to a plan! It was another gorgeous day, I closed my eyes on the terrace after lunch in one of our new big inflatable beach beds, the sun was warrrmmm & felt like a big hug. We had a dinner date at our favorite, the Eagle. We of course had the shrimp ravioli, but also tried the caesar salad…so damn good.

Join us Saturday for our Facebook Live Q&A @ 9am MN/IA time!

🪿 💜 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 51

I ran downtown this morning to hunt for a menagerie of household treasures, I hit pretty good: baking soda, long ethernet cord, extra blanket for Reese, chia seeds, thinning shears, & a few other things. I’m getting much better at knowing where to find things, so the journey downtown is more relaxed, & not as exhausting mentally/physically. I had second breakfast & made us lunch! I did the inaugural washing of Reese’s potty system, I’m so happy with the results…nothing is stinky!! 🙊 She’s more comfortable with it too today, so another sigh of relief expelled from me. I grabbed some goodies from the stores so I could make salsa & cucumber salad. Did I end up eating both? Yes. That doesn’t sound as wild until stating I consumed 2 tomatoes, 1 onion, & 2 cucumbers within about a 3 hr period. #justbragging I washed the front terrace windows, & hung up some patio lights. So very glad we are all getting our energy back bit by bit 🤩

🪿 💜 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 51

I ran downtown this morning to hunt for a menagerie of household treasures, I hit pretty good: baking soda, long ethernet cord, extra blanket for Reese, chia seeds, thinning shears, & a few other things. I’m getting much better at knowing where to find things, so the journey downtown is more relaxed, & not as exhausting mentally/physically. I had second breakfast & made us lunch! I did the inaugural washing of Reese’s potty system, I’m so happy with the results…nothing is stinky!! 🙊 She’s more comfortable with it too today, so another sigh of relief expelled from me. I grabbed some goodies from the stores so I could make salsa & cucumber salad. Did I end up eating both? Yes. That doesn’t sound as wild until stating I consumed 2 tomatoes, 1 onion, & 2 cucumbers within about a 3 hr period. #justbragging I washed the front terrace windows, & hung up some patio lights. So very glad we are all getting our energy back bit by bit 🤩

🪿 💜 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

🪿 HONK if you’re ready for this! ✨

feathers - > fluffed
wings - > flapping
volume - > honk

We are soaring with excitement!!!!! 🪿

We've got an official SWAG STORE thanks to our awesome partners @10,000 Custom Designs!! Go check it out now....

Head over to our website, scroll down, to find the shop link!!
https://www.thesillygooses.com/

🪿 HONK if you’re ready for this! ✨

feathers - > fluffed
wings - > flapping
volume - > honk

We are soaring with excitement!!!!! 🪿

We've got an official SWAG STORE thanks to our awesome partners @10,000 Custom Designs!! Go check it out now....

Head over to our website, scroll down, to find the shop link!!
https://www.thesillygooses.com/

Day 50

Sunshine!!!!! ☀️

We were awakened with our alarm this morning, so we had a good nights rest! We went for hair cuts early, & then grabbed pastries & coffees next door. The sun has been shining since we got back, & will be 60 or above the next 10 days with all sunny skies! I worked around the house on some little projects & cleaning, & then went out for groceries. The couple across the street that own the market were excited to see me, & me them (it’s been 20 days since I’ve been in), the lady even hugged me! Many of you ask if we are making connections, & I think the official answer is yes ♥️ I made us breakfast at home for lunch, after finding a new sausage to try. I miss breakfast sausage links, & this is something probably closer to chorizo, but it will do!! We sunned on the terrace for a while this afternoon, I got us those blow up beach sacs, I wasn’t sure if they’d be comfortable, but they will work awesome this summer!! Sunset was absolutely gorgeous tonight, Philly grabbed us some pasta, wedges, & shrimp tacos from a new-to-us restaurant just a few doors down. Now I’m getting some couch cuddles in with the puppers. She’s doing great with the potty training…with Philly, still hasn’t gone for me! 🤣🤣🤣

I’m going to probably adventure downtown tomorrow to grab a few things! Are there any things you’d like to see more clips of? Questions that you have? Maybe we should do another Live FAQ?

🪿 ♥️ 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 50

Sunshine!!!!! ☀️

We were awakened with our alarm this morning, so we had a good nights rest! We went for hair cuts early, & then grabbed pastries & coffees next door. The sun has been shining since we got back, & will be 60 or above the next 10 days with all sunny skies! I worked around the house on some little projects & cleaning, & then went out for groceries. The couple across the street that own the market were excited to see me, & me them (it’s been 20 days since I’ve been in), the lady even hugged me! Many of you ask if we are making connections, & I think the official answer is yes ♥️ I made us breakfast at home for lunch, after finding a new sausage to try. I miss breakfast sausage links, & this is something probably closer to chorizo, but it will do!! We sunned on the terrace for a while this afternoon, I got us those blow up beach sacs, I wasn’t sure if they’d be comfortable, but they will work awesome this summer!! Sunset was absolutely gorgeous tonight, Philly grabbed us some pasta, wedges, & shrimp tacos from a new-to-us restaurant just a few doors down. Now I’m getting some couch cuddles in with the puppers. She’s doing great with the potty training…with Philly, still hasn’t gone for me! 🤣🤣🤣

I’m going to probably adventure downtown tomorrow to grab a few things! Are there any things you’d like to see more clips of? Questions that you have? Maybe we should do another Live FAQ?

🪿 ♥️ 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 49

The gangs all back together! We got back to the house around 8am, hanging on by a thread. We immediately took a nap, in an attempt to bring up our life meters. SEPR, the rescue I adopted Reese from, set an awesome process for when there’s big life changes like moving, where you do a period of “shut down”. So the pup can learn about the new environment, without feeling overwhelmed, & hopefully gain some safety & confidence. So it works pretty perfectly that Reese is wildly tired, so she’s doing great hanging out in her quiet bedroom digs. I mustered up my gumption to run downtown to get dog food & a new vacuum. And then went thru our Temu deliveries: new coffee table, rugs, & a few other fun household goodies! I’ve been trying to get Reese potty mat trained, with no luck. She’d sit on the mat & wag her tail at me 🫣 So I was ready to break tonight, & bring her down to the courtyard, when Philly said “Can I try?”… she went immediately on the mat! He’s officially in charge of potty training 🤓 We are hoping for a good nights sleep, tomorrow we get haircuts!

I’ll do a longer video with some commentary on our whole journey to get her over here! Coming soon! 🎥

🪿♥️🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 49

The gangs all back together! We got back to the house around 8am, hanging on by a thread. We immediately took a nap, in an attempt to bring up our life meters. SEPR, the rescue I adopted Reese from, set an awesome process for when there’s big life changes like moving, where you do a period of “shut down”. So the pup can learn about the new environment, without feeling overwhelmed, & hopefully gain some safety & confidence. So it works pretty perfectly that Reese is wildly tired, so she’s doing great hanging out in her quiet bedroom digs. I mustered up my gumption to run downtown to get dog food & a new vacuum. And then went thru our Temu deliveries: new coffee table, rugs, & a few other fun household goodies! I’ve been trying to get Reese potty mat trained, with no luck. She’d sit on the mat & wag her tail at me 🫣 So I was ready to break tonight, & bring her down to the courtyard, when Philly said “Can I try?”… she went immediately on the mat! He’s officially in charge of potty training 🤓 We are hoping for a good nights sleep, tomorrow we get haircuts!

I’ll do a longer video with some commentary on our whole journey to get her over here! Coming soon! 🎥

🪿♥️🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Home sweet home ♥️

I think we all will need to sleep for a week, & probably do some trauma therapy to work thru what we’ve endured to get here. But the whole silly goose club is finally under one roof again!

🪿🇦🇱🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Home sweet home ♥️

I think we all will need to sleep for a week, & probably do some trauma therapy to work thru what we’ve endured to get here. But the whole silly goose club is finally under one roof again!

🪿🇦🇱🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Overnight ferry + taxi ride between us & home!

🪿 🐾 🚢 🪿

Overnight ferry + taxi ride between us & home!

🪿 🐾 🚢 🪿

We are weathered, but we made it to Milan…most importantly to our Philly ♥️

🪿🥹🪿

#sillygoosesonly #petrelocation K9 JETS

We are weathered, but we made it to Milan…most importantly to our Philly ♥️

🪿🥹🪿

#sillygoosesonly #petrelocation K9 JETS

Day 45

Our US drive has been completed ✔️ She did immensely well today, as I tried to push her into harder situations in preparation for the coming days. Traffic was much busier today than the others, I’m glad it was the shortest day. Could you imagine laying on a blanket with your face on it, the day before your mom takes you on a shared private jet, to fly over the ocean, to drive thru Italy, to take a ferry overnight, to your new home in Albania??? Ya, she can’t imagine it either, thankfully 😅

🪿💤🪿

K9 JETS 🐾
#sillygoosesonly #petrelocation

Day 45

Our US drive has been completed ✔️ She did immensely well today, as I tried to push her into harder situations in preparation for the coming days. Traffic was much busier today than the others, I’m glad it was the shortest day. Could you imagine laying on a blanket with your face on it, the day before your mom takes you on a shared private jet, to fly over the ocean, to drive thru Italy, to take a ferry overnight, to your new home in Albania??? Ya, she can’t imagine it either, thankfully 😅

🪿💤🪿

K9 JETS 🐾
#sillygoosesonly #petrelocation

Day 44

I remembered my phone this morning so I could capture peanut working thru “hard things” like getting on the noisy elevator. We’ve went from full brakes when it comes to new spaces or things, to moving forward at turtle speed while assessing everything 👍 Since I only have the travel bowls with us, I have to be a bit creative to keep her from mowing down her kibble in one bite! Last night I wiped her paws really good because of all the “public” spaces & salt, & didn’t realize she had a very soft scab between her toes, so we had ourselves a little scene on the towels, instead of the comforter 🫣 We got going around 6, but Starbucks & the gas station were priority before jumping back on the road. It was. FOGGGY most of the day, I really enjoy being on the road with just the semis early in the morning, before the other folks start causing a ruckus. I started nervously tracking her health certificate, as initially it was to be delivered Saturday & wasn’t. I stressed myself into a pretty sick state over what options were left if it didn’t arrive by departure…since the next available flight is months out 🤢 Luckily it was indeed delivered, & I called our hotel to confirm 🙌 Reese was much more relaxed today, lots of laying! We pulled into our hotel for the day early this afternoon, we will veg until later tomorrow morning, as we’ve only got shy of 5 hours to go to our final landing spot in NJ. Trying to take this one leg at a time, as Philly reminds me…so I’ll worry about the flight when I’m done driving 😬😂

🪿📄🪿

#sillygoosesonly #petrelocation

Day 44

I remembered my phone this morning so I could capture peanut working thru “hard things” like getting on the noisy elevator. We’ve went from full brakes when it comes to new spaces or things, to moving forward at turtle speed while assessing everything 👍 Since I only have the travel bowls with us, I have to be a bit creative to keep her from mowing down her kibble in one bite! Last night I wiped her paws really good because of all the “public” spaces & salt, & didn’t realize she had a very soft scab between her toes, so we had ourselves a little scene on the towels, instead of the comforter 🫣 We got going around 6, but Starbucks & the gas station were priority before jumping back on the road. It was. FOGGGY most of the day, I really enjoy being on the road with just the semis early in the morning, before the other folks start causing a ruckus. I started nervously tracking her health certificate, as initially it was to be delivered Saturday & wasn’t. I stressed myself into a pretty sick state over what options were left if it didn’t arrive by departure…since the next available flight is months out 🤢 Luckily it was indeed delivered, & I called our hotel to confirm 🙌 Reese was much more relaxed today, lots of laying! We pulled into our hotel for the day early this afternoon, we will veg until later tomorrow morning, as we’ve only got shy of 5 hours to go to our final landing spot in NJ. Trying to take this one leg at a time, as Philly reminds me…so I’ll worry about the flight when I’m done driving 😬😂

🪿📄🪿

#sillygoosesonly #petrelocation

Day 43

We started THE journey. Since my body’s time clock is syncing itself to somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic, we left pretty early, made good time, so we also hunkered down for the day pretty early. Reese had a number of firsts: longest time in the car, & an elevator ride, are the two top newbie mentionables. She was her usual uneasy self, so she’s doing pretty good for not knowing what in the hell is happening. Which is great since that’s going to just continue haha! We are snuggled up relaxing, hoping we get some good rest before another leg of the journey continues tomorrow!

🪿 🚙 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #petrelocation

Day 43

We started THE journey. Since my body’s time clock is syncing itself to somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic, we left pretty early, made good time, so we also hunkered down for the day pretty early. Reese had a number of firsts: longest time in the car, & an elevator ride, are the two top newbie mentionables. She was her usual uneasy self, so she’s doing pretty good for not knowing what in the hell is happening. Which is great since that’s going to just continue haha! We are snuggled up relaxing, hoping we get some good rest before another leg of the journey continues tomorrow!

🪿 🚙 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #petrelocation

Day 42

It was a rest day, before the big journey begins. Mom put together a smattering of snacks for family that came over! I stressed over my damn luggage, & purged a few things…disappointed but glad it’s done. We got our seat assignments for the plane. I’m nervous (period. but specifically) to be in the middle. I’m hoping this little peanut surprises me & is chill about all the new friends. I’m going to push for a pack walk before we do any introductions…I assume it could come off a certain way (bossy), but I really don’t care if it means all our dogs have more of a chance at a relaxed & calm journey together. At this point, I should probably just get put in a box in the belly of the plane. 🤣☠️

I take off tomorrow morning. Knowing this is the “real” departure from MN, but also that I get to be home with my Philly, PanPan, & the life we’ve already started to build… I’m ready. ♥️

🪿 🧳🪿

#sillygoosesonly #minnesota #albertlea

Day 42

It was a rest day, before the big journey begins. Mom put together a smattering of snacks for family that came over! I stressed over my damn luggage, & purged a few things…disappointed but glad it’s done. We got our seat assignments for the plane. I’m nervous (period. but specifically) to be in the middle. I’m hoping this little peanut surprises me & is chill about all the new friends. I’m going to push for a pack walk before we do any introductions…I assume it could come off a certain way (bossy), but I really don’t care if it means all our dogs have more of a chance at a relaxed & calm journey together. At this point, I should probably just get put in a box in the belly of the plane. 🤣☠️

I take off tomorrow morning. Knowing this is the “real” departure from MN, but also that I get to be home with my Philly, PanPan, & the life we’ve already started to build… I’m ready. ♥️

🪿 🧳🪿

#sillygoosesonly #minnesota #albertlea

Day 41

It was a busy day, little more errands with Mom in the morning, & then got to spend some time with my lovely old office mates 💙💚 I had to run point on a mishap with Reese’s health certificate delivery in NJ (where we will stay before flying out next week). And thankfully got it handled with the help of the local & NJ UPS centers! Phew!😅 As if that wasn’t more then enough for the day, I took one last cruise around Fountain Lake, soaking it up. Before heading to dinner with the bestest people in our circle. ♥️ Pretty grateful for all the lovely moments I was able to have over the week, soaking up the last bit of MN…

🪿♥️🪿

#sillygoosesonly #albertlea #minnesota

Day 41

It was a busy day, little more errands with Mom in the morning, & then got to spend some time with my lovely old office mates 💙💚 I had to run point on a mishap with Reese’s health certificate delivery in NJ (where we will stay before flying out next week). And thankfully got it handled with the help of the local & NJ UPS centers! Phew!😅 As if that wasn’t more then enough for the day, I took one last cruise around Fountain Lake, soaking it up. Before heading to dinner with the bestest people in our circle. ♥️ Pretty grateful for all the lovely moments I was able to have over the week, soaking up the last bit of MN…

🪿♥️🪿

#sillygoosesonly #albertlea #minnesota

Day 40

(Deers + ReesaRoni)

I was able to have our awesome vet help us stock up with a few key medications in her allergy care that we can’t source in Vlorë, as well as an official ‘script for her food, so that we🤞will be able to enter Italy with a bag of food! Had a fantastic coffee session with a friend, & ran a couple more errands, with a stop at the chiropractor. My neck has been a-n-g-r-y since arrival, carrying around my backpack in London & on the next travel day, aggravated the sleeping dragon. Hoping a little relief will come after another good nights rest! Instead of the sea view, you get the puppy, & the deer hanging around the house at various times today. Next Monday, tune into Power 96 for an exclusive chat about life in Albania, with Ron!

🪿🦌🪿

#sillygoosesonly #albertlea #minnesota

Day 40

(Deers + ReesaRoni)

I was able to have our awesome vet help us stock up with a few key medications in her allergy care that we can’t source in Vlorë, as well as an official ‘script for her food, so that we🤞will be able to enter Italy with a bag of food! Had a fantastic coffee session with a friend, & ran a couple more errands, with a stop at the chiropractor. My neck has been a-n-g-r-y since arrival, carrying around my backpack in London & on the next travel day, aggravated the sleeping dragon. Hoping a little relief will come after another good nights rest! Instead of the sea view, you get the puppy, & the deer hanging around the house at various times today. Next Monday, tune into Power 96 for an exclusive chat about life in Albania, with Ron!

🪿🦌🪿

#sillygoosesonly #albertlea #minnesota

Ron & I will talk thru all the differences & adjustments the goose’s have gone thru on our big move to Albania over the past month! Tune in next Monday, at 7:30am!

🪿📻🪿

#sillygoosesonly #minnesota #albertlea

Ron & I will talk thru all the differences & adjustments the goose’s have gone thru on our big move to Albania over the past month! Tune in next Monday, at 7:30am!

🪿📻🪿

#sillygoosesonly #minnesota #albertlea

Day 39

Well the hope for feeling more rested today was cute, but not a reality 😵‍💫 I did color my hair today, into something I hope will fade a little more gentler. Had a great lunch with a friend & saw so many friendly faces while in town. Grabbed some Smartwools to replace my old favorite disintegrating ones (thanks Linda 🙌). I got in some good cuddles with Reese, & Mom made a delicious dinner for us.

🪿💤🪿

#sillygoosesonly #Minnesota

Day 39

Well the hope for feeling more rested today was cute, but not a reality 😵‍💫 I did color my hair today, into something I hope will fade a little more gentler. Had a great lunch with a friend & saw so many friendly faces while in town. Grabbed some Smartwools to replace my old favorite disintegrating ones (thanks Linda 🙌). I got in some good cuddles with Reese, & Mom made a delicious dinner for us.

🪿💤🪿

#sillygoosesonly #Minnesota

Day 38

Time travel is hard.

I am trying to aggressively assimilate to the time change, & my body is working thru it 🫣 I woke up a bit before 4, & decided it wasn’t worth the fight. I felt pretty rough all morning but rallied for a few hours this afternoon. I assessed the packing situation, as I’m allotted 30kg (66lbs) of luggage on the K9 flight. I’ve had a few necessities shipped to my Mom’s place, along with what we already left behind for the final transport…it’s going to be close. Me & Mom had some seafood chowder for lunch, that I had made & froze before initial departure! Reese had big day: a bath this morning, her final pedicure (thanks Miss Hailey ♥️), & her final vet check for the USDA certificate paperwork. Philly & I video called & naturally Panda took over to say “hi” to Reese, it went as well as expected. We did a bit of cuddling & resting in between. I got to have dinner at Plaza with my most favorite Miss Amy 💃🏼 and then got straight on the couch for cuddles with Reese for a bit before bed. Tomorrow will be less busy, hopefully a bigger rest to effort ratio than today!

🪿🫶🪿

#sillygoosesonly #minnesota

Day 38

Time travel is hard.

I am trying to aggressively assimilate to the time change, & my body is working thru it 🫣 I woke up a bit before 4, & decided it wasn’t worth the fight. I felt pretty rough all morning but rallied for a few hours this afternoon. I assessed the packing situation, as I’m allotted 30kg (66lbs) of luggage on the K9 flight. I’ve had a few necessities shipped to my Mom’s place, along with what we already left behind for the final transport…it’s going to be close. Me & Mom had some seafood chowder for lunch, that I had made & froze before initial departure! Reese had big day: a bath this morning, her final pedicure (thanks Miss Hailey ♥️), & her final vet check for the USDA certificate paperwork. Philly & I video called & naturally Panda took over to say “hi” to Reese, it went as well as expected. We did a bit of cuddling & resting in between. I got to have dinner at Plaza with my most favorite Miss Amy 💃🏼 and then got straight on the couch for cuddles with Reese for a bit before bed. Tomorrow will be less busy, hopefully a bigger rest to effort ratio than today!

🪿🫶🪿

#sillygoosesonly #minnesota

Day 37

Bare bones details…

•We flew out of London, me Heathrow & Philly Luton

•We made it through our separate journeys, me to MN & Philly to Vlorë

•The girls were pleased to see us 🐾

Rest is in order.
🪿💤🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania #minnesota

Day 37

Bare bones details…

•We flew out of London, me Heathrow & Philly Luton

•We made it through our separate journeys, me to MN & Philly to Vlorë

•The girls were pleased to see us 🐾

Rest is in order.
🪿💤🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania #minnesota

Day 36

We said goodbye to Manchester & headed to London. The scenery on the tram & train thru Manchester is pretty great, I kept that clip long so you could enjoy a bit of our morning ride! The train was smooth like butter again, scooting along at over 125mph at some points! If I could’ve gotten out & pet the sheep 🐑, I sure would’ve. We headed straight to The London Eye, & hopped on for our half hour ride on the 442 foot tall ferris wheel (that’s more than a football field is tall) 😵‍💫. We walked across the River Thames & took some more of Big Ben & Westminster in, before heading to our hotel near Heathrow airport. We hopped on the underground again, then a tram, & then a bus! This trip has certainly put us into a different level of competency with public transit, well mostly Philly, I’m just moral support when it seems helpful 🤣🤣 I am looking forward to getting the big solo flight done tomorrow, & getting to see some of my most favorite faces whilst back in the states. Especially to love on my little peanut before we start our journey together. This will be the longest time the gooses are apart too. All will be worthwhile in a couple weeks when we are all settled back home together ♥️

🪿 🎡🪿

#sillygoosesonly #london #england #publictransit

Day 36

We said goodbye to Manchester & headed to London. The scenery on the tram & train thru Manchester is pretty great, I kept that clip long so you could enjoy a bit of our morning ride! The train was smooth like butter again, scooting along at over 125mph at some points! If I could’ve gotten out & pet the sheep 🐑, I sure would’ve. We headed straight to The London Eye, & hopped on for our half hour ride on the 442 foot tall ferris wheel (that’s more than a football field is tall) 😵‍💫. We walked across the River Thames & took some more of Big Ben & Westminster in, before heading to our hotel near Heathrow airport. We hopped on the underground again, then a tram, & then a bus! This trip has certainly put us into a different level of competency with public transit, well mostly Philly, I’m just moral support when it seems helpful 🤣🤣 I am looking forward to getting the big solo flight done tomorrow, & getting to see some of my most favorite faces whilst back in the states. Especially to love on my little peanut before we start our journey together. This will be the longest time the gooses are apart too. All will be worthwhile in a couple weeks when we are all settled back home together ♥️

🪿 🎡🪿

#sillygoosesonly #london #england #publictransit

Day 35

Now we can say we experienced Manchester United’s live splendor! When we bought seats online months ago, it was for a section…so we didn’t know our exact spots until an email yesterday, & even then, we had no idea how close it would be until we walked down to our seats this morning! Holy smokes, we could’ve high five’d the players. It was an incredible experience, & it sure didn’t hurt the boys had 2 goals…Tottenham had none! It sprinkled on & off, temp was right around 50°, but it didn’t dampen the magic! Tomorrow we train back to London 🚆 🎡

🪿⚽️🪿

#sillygoosesonly #manchester #oldtrafford

Day 35

Now we can say we experienced Manchester United’s live splendor! When we bought seats online months ago, it was for a section…so we didn’t know our exact spots until an email yesterday, & even then, we had no idea how close it would be until we walked down to our seats this morning! Holy smokes, we could’ve high five’d the players. It was an incredible experience, & it sure didn’t hurt the boys had 2 goals…Tottenham had none! It sprinkled on & off, temp was right around 50°, but it didn’t dampen the magic! Tomorrow we train back to London 🚆 🎡

🪿⚽️🪿

#sillygoosesonly #manchester #oldtrafford

Day 34

Shared joy, is my favorite joy. And today I got to participate in the immense joy of Philly experiencing a place he’s explored, studied, & loved from afar for many years. His face & energy shifted the moment we could see the roofline walking over the bridge towards the stadium ♥️ and his joy just kept growing as the morning’s adventure continued. We got to go all the places you’d want to, excluding maybe doing cartwheels on the pitch (we knew our tour ticket did NOT include this 🤣) It was a big fun day, hard to beat, but I think attending the game tomorrow will somehow surpass even the magic of today! ⚽️

🪿 💜 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #sharedjoy #oldtrafford #manchester

Day 34

Shared joy, is my favorite joy. And today I got to participate in the immense joy of Philly experiencing a place he’s explored, studied, & loved from afar for many years. His face & energy shifted the moment we could see the roofline walking over the bridge towards the stadium ♥️ and his joy just kept growing as the morning’s adventure continued. We got to go all the places you’d want to, excluding maybe doing cartwheels on the pitch (we knew our tour ticket did NOT include this 🤣) It was a big fun day, hard to beat, but I think attending the game tomorrow will somehow surpass even the magic of today! ⚽️

🪿 💜 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #sharedjoy #oldtrafford #manchester

Day 33

Travel day.

We took everything but a boat today 🤣 Started our journey from Tiranë via bus shuttle from downtown to the airport. The bus was slick, & the airport was very nice. We saw none of it when we came in the first time a month ago, exhaustion mixed with just exiting quickly! We had a very nice flight, first time on Wizz…we will be using them a lot! My nerves bubbled up a few times, but it feels really relieving to have a nice flight under my belt before my big solo ride alone on Monday. Once landed in rainy London, we hopped in a cab to get to the train station. Took the train shy of 2hrs to pull into Manchester, gawd the ride was so nice & smooth! Then shuffled to a tram for the last 20min to get to our hotel. Philly ordered us burgers, delivery, I was starvin’ Marvin. All the travel & shuffling around didn’t really accommodate for any satisfactory meals. I like snacks, but I need MORE. So ya, that burger didn’t stand a chance. Our hotel is comfy & has all the requirements we will need for the next 3 days. Tomorrow we tour Old Trafford Stadium, & a few other sights!

🪿 ⚽️ 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #manchester #london

Day 33

Travel day.

We took everything but a boat today 🤣 Started our journey from Tiranë via bus shuttle from downtown to the airport. The bus was slick, & the airport was very nice. We saw none of it when we came in the first time a month ago, exhaustion mixed with just exiting quickly! We had a very nice flight, first time on Wizz…we will be using them a lot! My nerves bubbled up a few times, but it feels really relieving to have a nice flight under my belt before my big solo ride alone on Monday. Once landed in rainy London, we hopped in a cab to get to the train station. Took the train shy of 2hrs to pull into Manchester, gawd the ride was so nice & smooth! Then shuffled to a tram for the last 20min to get to our hotel. Philly ordered us burgers, delivery, I was starvin’ Marvin. All the travel & shuffling around didn’t really accommodate for any satisfactory meals. I like snacks, but I need MORE. So ya, that burger didn’t stand a chance. Our hotel is comfy & has all the requirements we will need for the next 3 days. Tomorrow we tour Old Trafford Stadium, & a few other sights!

🪿 ⚽️ 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #manchester #london

Day 32

🌦️ 66°/49°

This will be short & sweet! We made it to Tiranë tonight, the taxi ride was quicker than anticipated. It was raining pretty good when we checked into our hotel, but we pushed on & hustled the 6 min walk to late dinner at Bao Wow 🤩 Great food & mix of things, we tried a little sushi, gyoza, & bao buns! Hoping to see a little more of the city in the day light, we are excited with how metro & bustling it feels. Our flight to London departs at 11:30 tomorrow morning, the bus station is actually just right by our hotel, so I think we are going to try that & just get a taxi if the bus doesn’t pan out like we think it will! Once we arrive in London, we will take the train to Manchester, we are both excited for that leg. New public transit is a highlight for both of us! (ps send me positive vibes for a smooth flight tomorrow, I need one under my belt after the bumps & jumps of my last experience🥵)

Thanks for being a great gaggle!

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #albania #tiranë

Day 32

🌦️ 66°/49°

This will be short & sweet! We made it to Tiranë tonight, the taxi ride was quicker than anticipated. It was raining pretty good when we checked into our hotel, but we pushed on & hustled the 6 min walk to late dinner at Bao Wow 🤩 Great food & mix of things, we tried a little sushi, gyoza, & bao buns! Hoping to see a little more of the city in the day light, we are excited with how metro & bustling it feels. Our flight to London departs at 11:30 tomorrow morning, the bus station is actually just right by our hotel, so I think we are going to try that & just get a taxi if the bus doesn’t pan out like we think it will! Once we arrive in London, we will take the train to Manchester, we are both excited for that leg. New public transit is a highlight for both of us! (ps send me positive vibes for a smooth flight tomorrow, I need one under my belt after the bumps & jumps of my last experience🥵)

Thanks for being a great gaggle!

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #albania #tiranë

Day 31

🌤️64°/52°

Mostly sunny today, & a bit warmer! I had the windows & terrace doors open nearly all day! Just awesome. I cleaned the whole house in preparation for the sensitive princess’s arrival 🐾! I was able to wash bedding, blankets, towels, & rugs & everything dried with how awesome it was outside! I am eager to get that little potato home with us ♥️ We got a couple walks in after breky & lunch, I got to see all my favorite doggos out soaking up the sun today too! Philly caught the first sailboat we’ve seen in the bay ⛵️! We headed to the Eagle for dinner since it’s our last time here together for a while, & over indulged, but it was so dang good 🤩

I’m going to try to keep up with the daily vlogs over the next 2 weeks while we/I am away, but it may be short, just photos, or posted at random times to accommodate the likely struggle with the temporary time change. TBD. Thank you for following our first month in our new chapter! It’s been an incredible journey so far ♥️

🪿 💜 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 31

🌤️64°/52°

Mostly sunny today, & a bit warmer! I had the windows & terrace doors open nearly all day! Just awesome. I cleaned the whole house in preparation for the sensitive princess’s arrival 🐾! I was able to wash bedding, blankets, towels, & rugs & everything dried with how awesome it was outside! I am eager to get that little potato home with us ♥️ We got a couple walks in after breky & lunch, I got to see all my favorite doggos out soaking up the sun today too! Philly caught the first sailboat we’ve seen in the bay ⛵️! We headed to the Eagle for dinner since it’s our last time here together for a while, & over indulged, but it was so dang good 🤩

I’m going to try to keep up with the daily vlogs over the next 2 weeks while we/I am away, but it may be short, just photos, or posted at random times to accommodate the likely struggle with the temporary time change. TBD. Thank you for following our first month in our new chapter! It’s been an incredible journey so far ♥️

🪿 💜 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 30

🌦️56°/41°

I headed downtown right away this morning to seek out some new bath towels. The furnished ones are very nice…too nice, in fact too white for my always bleeding hair color 😆. I grabbed some new ones (green & blue) at Haso, then perused the main floor grocery. It was less busy than usual, just close to 9am, so I didn’t feel as bad about gawking! It’s a big store, with bulk items & tons of fresh baked goods, & a very large meat & cheese counter. I then trekked to Jumbo, mainly just looking for suction cups to mount our outdoor thermometer on the side glass panel of the patio door. Not only did I find them, but also a ton of drawing/painting supplies. It’s wild how quickly the stores, especially Jumbo, completely reset their inventory. You can go there 3 days later, & it feels like a different store. Pro tip: if you see something you want, buy it immediately, or you may never see it again! It was raining pretty good when I wrapped up, so I jumped on the bus that was actually headed East towards Old Town, & just road around the whole loop, since we haven’t done that before. I’m mapping out all the bus stops on my Google map since it doesn’t seem to live anywhere on the internet or real life. So this was a perfect opportunity to just ride the route. As I sat on the crowded bus, listening & observing…which is mostly all we do here, I had a recurring thought about how perseverant the people are. It’s not that there isn’t law & order, but not like we’re accustomed to. Or at least there’s a lot more left to personal discretion here. The way they handle pedestrians & traffic is probably the most glaring example. But it works, & honestly I don’t hate it. It’s kind of a trust one another system, instead of just trust the system. I made us quesadillas for lunch, & while Philly worked, I had a brainstorming session on a forthcoming project with a friend! So pumped to release the info soon! We were both pretty tuckered, so we walked next door & grabbed Nama for takeaway. I tried the pork, & will go back to having the honorary chicken gyro going forward 🤓

🪿 💜 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 30

🌦️56°/41°

I headed downtown right away this morning to seek out some new bath towels. The furnished ones are very nice…too nice, in fact too white for my always bleeding hair color 😆. I grabbed some new ones (green & blue) at Haso, then perused the main floor grocery. It was less busy than usual, just close to 9am, so I didn’t feel as bad about gawking! It’s a big store, with bulk items & tons of fresh baked goods, & a very large meat & cheese counter. I then trekked to Jumbo, mainly just looking for suction cups to mount our outdoor thermometer on the side glass panel of the patio door. Not only did I find them, but also a ton of drawing/painting supplies. It’s wild how quickly the stores, especially Jumbo, completely reset their inventory. You can go there 3 days later, & it feels like a different store. Pro tip: if you see something you want, buy it immediately, or you may never see it again! It was raining pretty good when I wrapped up, so I jumped on the bus that was actually headed East towards Old Town, & just road around the whole loop, since we haven’t done that before. I’m mapping out all the bus stops on my Google map since it doesn’t seem to live anywhere on the internet or real life. So this was a perfect opportunity to just ride the route. As I sat on the crowded bus, listening & observing…which is mostly all we do here, I had a recurring thought about how perseverant the people are. It’s not that there isn’t law & order, but not like we’re accustomed to. Or at least there’s a lot more left to personal discretion here. The way they handle pedestrians & traffic is probably the most glaring example. But it works, & honestly I don’t hate it. It’s kind of a trust one another system, instead of just trust the system. I made us quesadillas for lunch, & while Philly worked, I had a brainstorming session on a forthcoming project with a friend! So pumped to release the info soon! We were both pretty tuckered, so we walked next door & grabbed Nama for takeaway. I tried the pork, & will go back to having the honorary chicken gyro going forward 🤓

🪿 💜 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Thought it might be useful to give you a map of Vlorë! I mention locations a lot in our daily vlogs, so this will put a pin on paper where I'm talking! We are located near the middle of the Lungomare.

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Thought it might be useful to give you a map of Vlorë! I mention locations a lot in our daily vlogs, so this will put a pin on paper where I'm talking! We are located near the middle of the Lungomare.

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 29

🌧️ 57°/43°

It’s the silliest goose’s birthday! We started the day at 💓Big Scoop 💓 with enough sugar to power us for a week! Birthday boy had the Nutella crepe with bananas & blueberries, & I had their mini pancakes with raspberry sauce, blueberries, raspberries, & a scoop of raspberry chocolate icecream. It was delicious, also intense! It was a pretty overcast, cooler day, we stayed in & lounged around, hence the lack of outings footage! We are working on new silly goose swag, keep a look out for the online store info coming soon!! For dinner we hit up the Japanese gastro bar again for sushi, crunchy shrimp, & gyoza. Amazing! I teased Philly that I rented the place out for our own private birthday dining experience…even tho it was just happenstance (again), we had the place to our selves. We grabbed treats at the big bakery, Philly got the snickers, & I got Lotus…because in my eyes, there’s no other treat. He let me serenade him as he blew out his candles 🎂 It’s a privilege to get to spend another year with my best friend, no matter where, or doing what, I am wildly grateful to have this silly goosing life together ♥️🥳

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 29

🌧️ 57°/43°

It’s the silliest goose’s birthday! We started the day at 💓Big Scoop 💓 with enough sugar to power us for a week! Birthday boy had the Nutella crepe with bananas & blueberries, & I had their mini pancakes with raspberry sauce, blueberries, raspberries, & a scoop of raspberry chocolate icecream. It was delicious, also intense! It was a pretty overcast, cooler day, we stayed in & lounged around, hence the lack of outings footage! We are working on new silly goose swag, keep a look out for the online store info coming soon!! For dinner we hit up the Japanese gastro bar again for sushi, crunchy shrimp, & gyoza. Amazing! I teased Philly that I rented the place out for our own private birthday dining experience…even tho it was just happenstance (again), we had the place to our selves. We grabbed treats at the big bakery, Philly got the snickers, & I got Lotus…because in my eyes, there’s no other treat. He let me serenade him as he blew out his candles 🎂 It’s a privilege to get to spend another year with my best friend, no matter where, or doing what, I am wildly grateful to have this silly goosing life together ♥️🥳

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 28

☀️ 60°/46°

We could not have had more beautifully perfect weather for our first Albanian adventure!! We packed a bag & rented a car for the day! Just one block over from our apartment, full day rental was $30. We headed north first, to St. Mary's Monastery in Zvërnec, just 25 min away. Then looped around Nartë Lagoon, to see if we could get a better view of the flamingos🦩!! Loooooove them! We then headed up into the mountains, about 35 min south & east, to Kaninë Castle (ruins)! The views were 🤌 #chefskiss. We drove back home down by the sea, going thru Orikum & everything south of the Lion Fountain we had yet to see. For our first outing, I don’t know how much easier it could’ve been. We were home before 2pm! Plenty of time left for fun stuff like laundry & dishes…& gyros from a new-to-us restaurant 🤣

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 28

☀️ 60°/46°

We could not have had more beautifully perfect weather for our first Albanian adventure!! We packed a bag & rented a car for the day! Just one block over from our apartment, full day rental was $30. We headed north first, to St. Mary's Monastery in Zvërnec, just 25 min away. Then looped around Nartë Lagoon, to see if we could get a better view of the flamingos🦩!! Loooooove them! We then headed up into the mountains, about 35 min south & east, to Kaninë Castle (ruins)! The views were 🤌 #chefskiss. We drove back home down by the sea, going thru Orikum & everything south of the Lion Fountain we had yet to see. For our first outing, I don’t know how much easier it could’ve been. We were home before 2pm! Plenty of time left for fun stuff like laundry & dishes…& gyros from a new-to-us restaurant 🤣

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 27

☀️59°/43°

‼️Breaking News 🗞️
We booked our trip to Naples in April!!! ✈️ 🍕 🇮🇹 🌋 🏛️ We are PUMPED!!! 🤩

After coffees & pastries on the terrace, we headed downtown for a quick shopping escapade. We went back to the new natural grocery store, & also an arts supply store I saw the other day when I was down there, but had no energy or space in my bag to shop! I snagged some felt tip markers & clay. The specialty paper, like for watercolor, is quite expensive, assuming the import fees are high to get them in. Even tho Italy is so close, we are not part of the EU, so a bit of import pain is a part of the story. When we got home, I made a Mexican leftover remix for us for lunch. Then I set off for a treasure hunt, south of the Lion Fountain. I had such a fun time. The sun was shining, the waves were close, & I was finding all sorts of goodies! Sea glass, sea pottery, & rocks were of plenty! When I got home, I washed everything up, & I think sorting everything was just as fun as the hunt! We went to a new place for dinner, I had the risotto with mushroom, truffle, & shrimp, & Philly had pasta with tomatoes, shrimp, & scyllaridae. Both were delicious! Quick note: We can’t wait for mussels to be in season! Our ‘night cap’ was a little scoop of ice cream from next door, enjoyed while booking our trip to Naples!!

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 27

☀️59°/43°

‼️Breaking News 🗞️
We booked our trip to Naples in April!!! ✈️ 🍕 🇮🇹 🌋 🏛️ We are PUMPED!!! 🤩

After coffees & pastries on the terrace, we headed downtown for a quick shopping escapade. We went back to the new natural grocery store, & also an arts supply store I saw the other day when I was down there, but had no energy or space in my bag to shop! I snagged some felt tip markers & clay. The specialty paper, like for watercolor, is quite expensive, assuming the import fees are high to get them in. Even tho Italy is so close, we are not part of the EU, so a bit of import pain is a part of the story. When we got home, I made a Mexican leftover remix for us for lunch. Then I set off for a treasure hunt, south of the Lion Fountain. I had such a fun time. The sun was shining, the waves were close, & I was finding all sorts of goodies! Sea glass, sea pottery, & rocks were of plenty! When I got home, I washed everything up, & I think sorting everything was just as fun as the hunt! We went to a new place for dinner, I had the risotto with mushroom, truffle, & shrimp, & Philly had pasta with tomatoes, shrimp, & scyllaridae. Both were delicious! Quick note: We can’t wait for mussels to be in season! Our ‘night cap’ was a little scoop of ice cream from next door, enjoyed while booking our trip to Naples!!

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

🇺🇸 Household Differences 🇦🇱

Part 1

🧺 Most apartments that have a washer, have it located in the bathroom. Some have them on their terrace, others are located in the kitchen! Ours is a decently sized capacity!

🌵 Dryers are few & far between. Everyone hangs their stuff out on their terrace: on a laundry rack, or lines. I’ve found it’s actually dry enough in our place on rainy days, that I can get a load to dry inside. So we really aren’t weather dependent on the process!

🚽 Bidets in homes are likely. We aren’t totally adventurous, or maybe coordinated 🤣🤣 enough, to tackle this particular set up. We’ve only had the style that is a fixture on your existing toilet. To be continued? Too much information? Ha!

🍽️ The dish strainer cabinet above the sink, might be my favorite functional difference! It cuts down on water running every where it doesn’t belong, & keeps the counter clear!

💡 Some light switches are located outside the rooms. Lots of outlets are on switches, for ease of operation for lamps etc.

———
While many of these correspond less with Albania specifically, & maybe more with European/apartment living in general, I thought it would still be fun to share. I’ll post a part 2 soon, showcasing our rolling shutters! 🪟

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

🇺🇸 Household Differences 🇦🇱

Part 1

🧺 Most apartments that have a washer, have it located in the bathroom. Some have them on their terrace, others are located in the kitchen! Ours is a decently sized capacity!

🌵 Dryers are few & far between. Everyone hangs their stuff out on their terrace: on a laundry rack, or lines. I’ve found it’s actually dry enough in our place on rainy days, that I can get a load to dry inside. So we really aren’t weather dependent on the process!

🚽 Bidets in homes are likely. We aren’t totally adventurous, or maybe coordinated 🤣🤣 enough, to tackle this particular set up. We’ve only had the style that is a fixture on your existing toilet. To be continued? Too much information? Ha!

🍽️ The dish strainer cabinet above the sink, might be my favorite functional difference! It cuts down on water running every where it doesn’t belong, & keeps the counter clear!

💡 Some light switches are located outside the rooms. Lots of outlets are on switches, for ease of operation for lamps etc.

———
While many of these correspond less with Albania specifically, & maybe more with European/apartment living in general, I thought it would still be fun to share. I’ll post a part 2 soon, showcasing our rolling shutters! 🪟

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 26

🌧️ 54°/47°

With rain in the forecast for basically all day, we made the trek for groceries right away, to get it out of the way. Even tho I think I’ve got somewhat of a grocery routine, I am still discovering SO much every time we go out. For instance, my go-to produce vendor has refrigerators in the back of her small storefront & I found iceberg lettuce & celery inside! Since everything is priced lek per kg, it might as well not be priced, because I haven’t honed those conversion skills yet. I kind of assumed because they were wrapped (not just in the produce crates) that they’d be a higher cost, thinking they’ve been imported… so a large head of lettuce & head of large celery, 2 yellow onions, a bunch of (absolutely divine) white grapes, & 3 potatoes… for under $5. I was elated! Even when it’s raining & foggy, we are still just smitten with the view of the sea. We decided to get out of the house despite the wetness, to scour the beach for treasure. When the water is like it’s been, it brings up a lot of new shells, pottery, & glass. I hope to head back South by the Lion Fountain soon, with a bag, since there was a mountain of pottery & glass! We were on a different mission when we were down there the other day, so I only filled one coat pocket 🤓. Packing my deck boots came full circle worth it, with their maiden voyage with the sea today 🥾! I made us nachos for lunch, & then while I was doing a little work later tonight, Philly ordered us Mexican that he found on Wolt (their version of Door Dash)! They also have a ton of Asian on their menu!? Very exciting discovery!! 👏 👏

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 26

🌧️ 54°/47°

With rain in the forecast for basically all day, we made the trek for groceries right away, to get it out of the way. Even tho I think I’ve got somewhat of a grocery routine, I am still discovering SO much every time we go out. For instance, my go-to produce vendor has refrigerators in the back of her small storefront & I found iceberg lettuce & celery inside! Since everything is priced lek per kg, it might as well not be priced, because I haven’t honed those conversion skills yet. I kind of assumed because they were wrapped (not just in the produce crates) that they’d be a higher cost, thinking they’ve been imported… so a large head of lettuce & head of large celery, 2 yellow onions, a bunch of (absolutely divine) white grapes, & 3 potatoes… for under $5. I was elated! Even when it’s raining & foggy, we are still just smitten with the view of the sea. We decided to get out of the house despite the wetness, to scour the beach for treasure. When the water is like it’s been, it brings up a lot of new shells, pottery, & glass. I hope to head back South by the Lion Fountain soon, with a bag, since there was a mountain of pottery & glass! We were on a different mission when we were down there the other day, so I only filled one coat pocket 🤓. Packing my deck boots came full circle worth it, with their maiden voyage with the sea today 🥾! I made us nachos for lunch, & then while I was doing a little work later tonight, Philly ordered us Mexican that he found on Wolt (their version of Door Dash)! They also have a ton of Asian on their menu!? Very exciting discovery!! 👏 👏

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 25

☁️ 60°/49°

Well if I would’ve had a camera crew there could’ve been more fun shopping footage, but I had a big solo day downtown & my hands were FULL. I walked my asssss off, hit an uncharted store & struck gold with a bread knife & a few other kitchen tools.

I’ve mentioned the no-smiling-from-strangers before, but there’s also a good amount of staring that happens. Usually older folks, but it’s really all across the board. Like locked in staring, even when you meet eyes they don’t break. It’s a little bit of a psychological minefield, knowing the culture of “it’s not polite to stare” is only on our home-turf, well also in my mental fabric. But not here. It’s different rules, different culture. I spent quite a bit of time bouncing between feeling quite alienated (not having Philly there as a joint distraction made it much more prominent), but also reminding myself I literally look (in every way possible) nothing like everyone here…I’m basically a real life trolls doll. Sticking out like a sore purple haired thumb 🤣 Luckily, the more I walked & shopped, the more my gaf waned, so by the time I got on the packed bus to head home with arms full, I felt like just another Albanian schlepping their shit home ♥️

🪿 💜 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 25

☁️ 60°/49°

Well if I would’ve had a camera crew there could’ve been more fun shopping footage, but I had a big solo day downtown & my hands were FULL. I walked my asssss off, hit an uncharted store & struck gold with a bread knife & a few other kitchen tools.

I’ve mentioned the no-smiling-from-strangers before, but there’s also a good amount of staring that happens. Usually older folks, but it’s really all across the board. Like locked in staring, even when you meet eyes they don’t break. It’s a little bit of a psychological minefield, knowing the culture of “it’s not polite to stare” is only on our home-turf, well also in my mental fabric. But not here. It’s different rules, different culture. I spent quite a bit of time bouncing between feeling quite alienated (not having Philly there as a joint distraction made it much more prominent), but also reminding myself I literally look (in every way possible) nothing like everyone here…I’m basically a real life trolls doll. Sticking out like a sore purple haired thumb 🤣 Luckily, the more I walked & shopped, the more my gaf waned, so by the time I got on the packed bus to head home with arms full, I felt like just another Albanian schlepping their shit home ♥️

🪿 💜 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 24

🌤️ 59°/41°

Today we charted new territory, heading south beyond the lion fountain…and it was just magical!! We took lots of video trying to capture the power of the waves crashing up against the seawall. I hope you can take a moment to get pulled into the wonder of the sea 🌊

It was about 1.4 miles down to the Marina Casino where we decided to head back. We were hunnngry by the time we got back home, so we just snagged some quick lunch from the King. Pause to check out their fun & interesting menu! I made cucumber salad yesterday, & it was a perfect Midwest snack this afternoon! We debated entirely too long on where to head for dinner, before calling it, & going to our favorite spot, the Eagle. We did try new things, even tho the ravioli was calling my name like a siren. Peel & eat grilled shrimps, lasagna ragu, with grilled veggies (eggplant, zucchini, & peppers) drizzled in balsamic glaze. And ofcourse a big basket of their pizza bread 🤤🤤🤤 We just love the place, food is absolutely delicious, staff is great, it’s a 2 minute walk from our place, & the vibes are perfect. They’ve had on a mix of covers the last couple times we’ve been there, in a reggae style, more chill than a lot of the places!

Language learning has been going well, I’ve got: thank you good morning, good afternoon, goodnight, yes, no, goodbye, hello…locked in. Working on my meat & cheese orders with the market across the street! My goal is to not overwhelm myself. Because I know I can succeed, if I just don’t do that 😬😂

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 24

🌤️ 59°/41°

Today we charted new territory, heading south beyond the lion fountain…and it was just magical!! We took lots of video trying to capture the power of the waves crashing up against the seawall. I hope you can take a moment to get pulled into the wonder of the sea 🌊

It was about 1.4 miles down to the Marina Casino where we decided to head back. We were hunnngry by the time we got back home, so we just snagged some quick lunch from the King. Pause to check out their fun & interesting menu! I made cucumber salad yesterday, & it was a perfect Midwest snack this afternoon! We debated entirely too long on where to head for dinner, before calling it, & going to our favorite spot, the Eagle. We did try new things, even tho the ravioli was calling my name like a siren. Peel & eat grilled shrimps, lasagna ragu, with grilled veggies (eggplant, zucchini, & peppers) drizzled in balsamic glaze. And ofcourse a big basket of their pizza bread 🤤🤤🤤 We just love the place, food is absolutely delicious, staff is great, it’s a 2 minute walk from our place, & the vibes are perfect. They’ve had on a mix of covers the last couple times we’ve been there, in a reggae style, more chill than a lot of the places!

Language learning has been going well, I’ve got: thank you good morning, good afternoon, goodnight, yes, no, goodbye, hello…locked in. Working on my meat & cheese orders with the market across the street! My goal is to not overwhelm myself. Because I know I can succeed, if I just don’t do that 😬😂

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 23

🌤️58°/45°

Let’s talk dogs 🐕

So I was very worried from things I had read on Facebook during the research phase, about the stray dogs here (mean packs, very mistreated, etc). While I understand that I’m only seeing a small portion of the whole Vlorë area, certainly not all of the country, & I assume weather/crowds could change activity here in our neck of the woods, etc… I can report I haven’t had my heart totally ripped out of my chest like I fully anticipated. Watching these 3 first thing this morning, playing with each other on the beach, made my day immediately. We’ve watched people put out scraps, restaurant & grocery store owners literally make food for them (& the cats). They cross the Lungomare at cross-walks, I’ve seen it multiple times, I thought at first it was just a coincidence. They have shops or areas that they frequent, or sleep by. My brain is trying to rewire itself to understand that a dog can actually be a semi independent animal. Coming from my history of pets, I’ve been a daily lifeline in multiple ways to each of them. But even the locals that have dogs, don’t generally leash them, they walk behind or ahead, could be 30 feet! When we hear barking break out, I look at Phillip & say, “white people.” Because almost always it’s either a foreigner with no control of their dog, or they are handling a situation with a stray in a poor & aggressive manner. I see how the Albanians carry their stress differently, & it’s evident in the animals too. Hopefully that will start seeping into our bones ♥️

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 23

🌤️58°/45°

Let’s talk dogs 🐕

So I was very worried from things I had read on Facebook during the research phase, about the stray dogs here (mean packs, very mistreated, etc). While I understand that I’m only seeing a small portion of the whole Vlorë area, certainly not all of the country, & I assume weather/crowds could change activity here in our neck of the woods, etc… I can report I haven’t had my heart totally ripped out of my chest like I fully anticipated. Watching these 3 first thing this morning, playing with each other on the beach, made my day immediately. We’ve watched people put out scraps, restaurant & grocery store owners literally make food for them (& the cats). They cross the Lungomare at cross-walks, I’ve seen it multiple times, I thought at first it was just a coincidence. They have shops or areas that they frequent, or sleep by. My brain is trying to rewire itself to understand that a dog can actually be a semi independent animal. Coming from my history of pets, I’ve been a daily lifeline in multiple ways to each of them. But even the locals that have dogs, don’t generally leash them, they walk behind or ahead, could be 30 feet! When we hear barking break out, I look at Phillip & say, “white people.” Because almost always it’s either a foreigner with no control of their dog, or they are handling a situation with a stray in a poor & aggressive manner. I see how the Albanians carry their stress differently, & it’s evident in the animals too. Hopefully that will start seeping into our bones ♥️

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 22

💨🌤️58°/43°

Today’s Highlights:

•Breky in, continues to be our favorite. We eat & watch our favorite “screensaver”, the sea.
•We scoped out a new organic store that just opened downtown yesterday, think Whole Foods but smaller. I found some seaweed wrappers & sushi grade rice for a future meal at home!
•Southern Italy had a cyclone cause a whole lot of destruction a few days ago, so we are seeing some hefty winds come thru since this afternoon, & are forecasted to continue thru the night. My eyes feel like they’ve been rubbed with sandpaper 🫩
•We got to have some face time with friends over a virtual chat, sooo good to “see” them! It’s for sure different catching up with our people thru video calls, but I’m just so glad it’s a tool that’s easily available to us. Makes the distance not seem so far!
•Ended the day with my flight briefing meeting with K9 Jets for me & Reesa’s big adventure in February. I’m excited (& anxious) for all the moving parts of the journey, but especially (for me) flying alone on a small plane + (for Reese) being in a very dog/human social environment for a quick 8hrs. I’m running with the hope that we are both going to surprise me with how great we do ♥️🐾

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 22

💨🌤️58°/43°

Today’s Highlights:

•Breky in, continues to be our favorite. We eat & watch our favorite “screensaver”, the sea.
•We scoped out a new organic store that just opened downtown yesterday, think Whole Foods but smaller. I found some seaweed wrappers & sushi grade rice for a future meal at home!
•Southern Italy had a cyclone cause a whole lot of destruction a few days ago, so we are seeing some hefty winds come thru since this afternoon, & are forecasted to continue thru the night. My eyes feel like they’ve been rubbed with sandpaper 🫩
•We got to have some face time with friends over a virtual chat, sooo good to “see” them! It’s for sure different catching up with our people thru video calls, but I’m just so glad it’s a tool that’s easily available to us. Makes the distance not seem so far!
•Ended the day with my flight briefing meeting with K9 Jets for me & Reesa’s big adventure in February. I’m excited (& anxious) for all the moving parts of the journey, but especially (for me) flying alone on a small plane + (for Reese) being in a very dog/human social environment for a quick 8hrs. I’m running with the hope that we are both going to surprise me with how great we do ♥️🐾

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 21

I’m sorry. I don’t have writing a recap in me.

I’m sorry. Our home is a scary, chaotic place.

I’m sorry. Grave change for better, seems to always fan the flames of the dying parts, & right now you are utterly engulfed.

I’m sorry. It’s immensely heavy, but know you are not alone no matter how isolating this all feels.

I’m sorry. Find your peace. Find your way to help your neighbor. Be safe. Be the Good ♥️

Day 21

I’m sorry. I don’t have writing a recap in me.

I’m sorry. Our home is a scary, chaotic place.

I’m sorry. Grave change for better, seems to always fan the flames of the dying parts, & right now you are utterly engulfed.

I’m sorry. It’s immensely heavy, but know you are not alone no matter how isolating this all feels.

I’m sorry. Find your peace. Find your way to help your neighbor. Be safe. Be the Good ♥️

New YouTube video just dropped! Get an inside scoop into the 3 days of travel it took to move from the U.S. to Albania!

🎥 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwjuXItWLn4

Special shout out to @10000customdesigns for helping make my matching-travel-day-hoodie dreams come true! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

New YouTube video just dropped! Get an inside scoop into the 3 days of travel it took to move from the U.S. to Albania!

🎥 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwjuXItWLn4

Special shout out to @10000customdesigns for helping make my matching-travel-day-hoodie dreams come true! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

❓FAQ🪿

“So where is everyone??”

The restaurant traffic is low right now, especially in our area, because we are considered the tourist area. We also are on an early-bird US eating schedule, not the typical late European schedule. Their capacity is designed for Summer, by means the sheer of amount of restaurants & volume of seating. Many/most stay open in the Winter, which we are VERY grateful for, because we get these private/semi-private dining experiences, but it also leaves a big question mark over our heads of ‘how they make it work’. There are some very popular spots that fill up with locals, but also a lot of indoor smoking, so we steer clear of those spots. We are assuming the Summer months are quite wild with population influx with tourists, so it must shake out. We are enjoying the quiet for as long as we get it!

🪿 💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

❓FAQ🪿

“So where is everyone??”

The restaurant traffic is low right now, especially in our area, because we are considered the tourist area. We also are on an early-bird US eating schedule, not the typical late European schedule. Their capacity is designed for Summer, by means the sheer of amount of restaurants & volume of seating. Many/most stay open in the Winter, which we are VERY grateful for, because we get these private/semi-private dining experiences, but it also leaves a big question mark over our heads of ‘how they make it work’. There are some very popular spots that fill up with locals, but also a lot of indoor smoking, so we steer clear of those spots. We are assuming the Summer months are quite wild with population influx with tourists, so it must shake out. We are enjoying the quiet for as long as we get it!

🪿 💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 20

🌤️ 61°/42°

We had a pretty chill day, it was lovely. After breky we went for a walk on the beach, it was already over 50° by the time we hit the sand, so my light jacket was already overkill in the sun. We had a small lunch, mine being the remaining leftover nachos (yum!), & Philly had a chocolate pastry (cheers to adult free-will). We sat on the terrace for a while, soaking up the sunshine. I even caught a gender reveal on the beach, I kinda thought that was just an American thing 😆 #itsaboy💙 We were going to hit up a traditional Albanian restaurant, but Philly’s heart was more interested in somethin’ easy & “finger-licking-good”…so he ordered us KFC (the only other American fast food joint in town). In his defense, the menu was wildly different than in the states, no fun sides, but things called twister & boxmaster 🤓 While we waited for the delivery fella to arrive, we scoured our market across the street for fun things, instead of necessities, & found lots! Finally even got some footage of all the double parking, it seems to be controlled chaos for everyone here. Tomorrow we plan to head down past the lion fountain, to see the beaches past the tunnel, weather permitting!

🪿 💜 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 20

🌤️ 61°/42°

We had a pretty chill day, it was lovely. After breky we went for a walk on the beach, it was already over 50° by the time we hit the sand, so my light jacket was already overkill in the sun. We had a small lunch, mine being the remaining leftover nachos (yum!), & Philly had a chocolate pastry (cheers to adult free-will). We sat on the terrace for a while, soaking up the sunshine. I even caught a gender reveal on the beach, I kinda thought that was just an American thing 😆 #itsaboy💙 We were going to hit up a traditional Albanian restaurant, but Philly’s heart was more interested in somethin’ easy & “finger-licking-good”…so he ordered us KFC (the only other American fast food joint in town). In his defense, the menu was wildly different than in the states, no fun sides, but things called twister & boxmaster 🤓 While we waited for the delivery fella to arrive, we scoured our market across the street for fun things, instead of necessities, & found lots! Finally even got some footage of all the double parking, it seems to be controlled chaos for everyone here. Tomorrow we plan to head down past the lion fountain, to see the beaches past the tunnel, weather permitting!

🪿 💜 🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 19

🌦️58°/43°

We headed to our hair appointment at 10, it was just at the end of the next block south, by our first Airbnb apartment! There’s probably 5 barbers/salons within a one block radius of our place. When I said the Albanian people always look well-put-together, all the time, it’s no joke! Alessandro was as fabulous as his Google reviews raved, quick but not rushed, listened & had suggestions, gave us both relaxing washes, & he even gave Philly a beard trim! We came out with fresh cuts, feeling fancy, & will for sure be return customers. I made pasta for lunch, with the wild boar sausage I picked up yesterday, & a little appetizer with the fresh moz & new balsamic I found! It was tasty, the sausage was much leaner than anticipated, so I overcooked it a bit thinking it was going to be more greasy. Still great flavor & would eat again! We went for a walk south, all the way to the lion fountain (last bus stop on the Lungomare). It sprinkled the whole time, but was pretty light & we still had a nice time seeing the lay of the land. In the warmer months, we will likely take the bus down to the fountain & then walk another 20min south to the beaches in that area for swimming! The sun peeked out of the clouds just before it went behind the peninsula, we tried to soak it up! For dinner we went to a Japanese gastro-pub, that we had been eyeing. We had the place to ourselves, private dining experience 🤌. Since not having any Asian food since arriving, it exceeded our long-awaited expectations!

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

Day 19

🌦️58°/43°

We headed to our hair appointment at 10, it was just at the end of the next block south, by our first Airbnb apartment! There’s probably 5 barbers/salons within a one block radius of our place. When I said the Albanian people always look well-put-together, all the time, it’s no joke! Alessandro was as fabulous as his Google reviews raved, quick but not rushed, listened & had suggestions, gave us both relaxing washes, & he even gave Philly a beard trim! We came out with fresh cuts, feeling fancy, & will for sure be return customers. I made pasta for lunch, with the wild boar sausage I picked up yesterday, & a little appetizer with the fresh moz & new balsamic I found! It was tasty, the sausage was much leaner than anticipated, so I overcooked it a bit thinking it was going to be more greasy. Still great flavor & would eat again! We went for a walk south, all the way to the lion fountain (last bus stop on the Lungomare). It sprinkled the whole time, but was pretty light & we still had a nice time seeing the lay of the land. In the warmer months, we will likely take the bus down to the fountain & then walk another 20min south to the beaches in that area for swimming! The sun peeked out of the clouds just before it went behind the peninsula, we tried to soak it up! For dinner we went to a Japanese gastro-pub, that we had been eyeing. We had the place to ourselves, private dining experience 🤌. Since not having any Asian food since arriving, it exceeded our long-awaited expectations!

🪿💜🪿

#sillygoosesonly #vlorë #albania

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Explore Our Destinations

Check out all the destinations we've explored below,
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Check out all the destinations we've explore below,
thru our Youtube videos, & blog posts with full itineraries included!

Silly Gooses

WELCOME, fellow silly gooses!
Join us, Phillip & Holly,
as we adventure the world!

ARIZONA, USA

Spring 2025

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VLORE, ALBANIA

Winter 2026

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NAPLES, ITALY

Spring 2026

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