Weekend Writing Prompt #166 – Hinterland

A word prompt to get your creativity flowing this weekend. How you use the prompt is up to you. Write a piece of flash fiction, a poem, a chapter for your novel…anything you like. Or take the challenge below – there are no prizes – it’s not a competition but rather a fun writing exercise. If you want to share what you come up with, please leave a link to it in the comments. Thank you, Sammi for hosting this prompt.

I’m booked for my next adventure.

Again? Don’t you ever stay home?

Course I do. While I’m at school!

Hah! You do seem to leave at every chance you get.

What can I say? Now is the time to do this. Who knows what life will bring me once I’m a working stiff.

That’s true. Take advantage of your youth and freedom. I sure wish I had when I was your age. To go deep into a country’s hinterland. Sigh.

Yanno, nothing’s holding you back now.

Weekend Writing Prompt #162 – Gallivant

A word prompt to get your creativity flowing this weekend. How you use the prompt is up to you. Write a piece of flash fiction, a poem, a chapter for your novel…anything you like. Or take the challenge below – there are no prizes – it’s not a competition but rather a fun writing exercise. If you want to share what you come up with, please leave a link to it in the comments. Thanks for hosting, Sammi!

From the youngest age

Two, if rumours are true

When Mommy was busy

Out the door I flew

 

Mommy had no idea

I’d gone gallivanting

Till the phone rang

Guess who came visiting?

 

An exasperated sigh

Please send her home

What to do?

I still roam!

 

 

A Day in Zug, Switzerland – My Tuscan Trip

Hello my friends!  Day two of my trip and I’ve yet to sleep… I tried. Lord knows I tried on the flight to Zurich.  Sleep or no sleep, I can tell you that I shall be choosing Swiss International for all future European trips (and there will be more)!

I paid a premium for extra leg room and boy did I get it! (I shall be working on getting upgraded to Biz Class in the future… Wow!  What a setup they had!)  Anyhoo… I had Seat 40D, which is an aisle seat in the middle section next to the Emergency Exit. A gentleman was sitting in my spot so I had him scoot over.  The lady in the aisle seat next to the Emergency Exit (with waaaaayyyyy more leg room) did not want to sit there as there was no pouch in front of her to put her paraphernalia.  I gladly took her spot and the gentleman managed to convince her to sit in his seat so he got mine!  Musical seats and all were happy and that’s what mattered.

So, once settled and in the air, we were given some rosemary-flavoured crunchy things and a drink.  An hour or so later, supper was delivered.  In hard, reusable plastic dishes with real cutlery.  Salad, chicken curry with rice and string beans, bread, cheese, chocolate cake… deelish!

Everyone has their own screen to watch whatever movie or show or listen to music or play games.  I chose to watch “The Boss” with Melissa McCarthy (what a hoot).  This is when dinner was served.  I started to watch “A Bigger Splash” with Ralph Fiennes, and Tilda Swinton then told myself to smarten up and get some sleep.  Yeah… No.  I “may” have dozed but frankly, don’t think so. By 5-ish a.m. local time, breakfast was served! Mini croissant with butter and jam, orange juice, yogurt and a coffee.  Did I mention how impressed I was with Swiss?

Getting off was a breeze.  Once you collect your bag – and in my case, I had none as it was making its way to Firenze – you can choose between the entrance that says: nothing to declare or the one that says:  something to declare. Trust and no paperwork.  I like that.  I stopped off to get some Euros from the ATM (as was suggested to me by a few people) and found Urs waiting for me.  Who is Urs?  A guy I met in Montreal back in April… serendipity and all that…

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Big smiles, hugs and kisses and we were off.  He showed me where he lives (very nice) and then we made our way to Zug (pronounced Zoog) the city just past Zurich.  I don’t know if it has a more modern side to it, but we went to the older section with the classic “Swiss” look.  There was also an organic market complete with two llamas making the rounds!

There were dancers and musicians and I so loved hearing the quintet of men playing a lovely song.  The attached video is the same tune they played!

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We had lunch in a lovely little outside terrasse – a tapas meal with a glass of white wine and resumed our walk.

*** ran out of juice – both me and the computer! It was 1:00 a.m.! ***

Walking along, we came upon the fountain of Gret Schell (I Googled it, seems there is missing an ‘h’); a woman who had to carry her drunken husband home as he is wearing a jester’s hat and bearing a rod – apparently this was statue-worthy and is celebrated yearly.

I love the cobblestone streets and various buildings

Urs wanted to introduce me to the local renowned dessert called the Treicher Zuger Kirschtorte.  A cherry schnapps loaded sponge cake… yum!

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My feet were pretty much done and we had an hour to kill before I had to be back at the airport so we sat by the Zug Lake and watched the ducks and swans and enjoyed the shade.

My visit with Urs was over and it was back to the Airport to wait for my next plane. Sitting on the floor as there were no more seats!

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Part 2

Friday Fictioneers – Vision Board

Genre:  Fiction

Word count:  100

Vision Board

©Sandra Crook

Every December, it was the same thing.  During her Christmas shopping, Dana would find herself at the calendar kiosk in the mall, looking for a calendar of Burgundy, France, depicting beautiful images of the area she so longed to visit.  It had become a ritual.  This was, after all, the fifth year that she had such a calendar hanging in her kitchen where she could look at the images daily.

When asked about it, she explained that this was a vision board of sorts. Once she finally made it to Burgundy, a new destination would be chosen.

Next up, Tuscany!

 100-Word Stories:  Friday Fictioneers

Photo Prompt:  Copyright © Sandra Crook