Granada impressions

As we begin our second week in Granada, there are some images that come to mind and that I hope will give you a sense of our experience here. We live in the Albaycin, the old, old Moorish area of Granada. It is on, and down, the hill facing the Alhambra. We live about half way down. The streets are like a maze, none going in a straight line, all widening and then narrowing. Sometimes I can almost touch both sides at once, so they are occasionally only 6 feet wide. There are steps, none very great but seemingly infinite in number, that take you up and down the streets. Sometimes the alleys open into small squares, like the one near us with a fountain and huge bougainvillea in partial bloom that maybe 2 dozen people a day see and enjoy. The streets curve and change names frequently. All are made of rocks; some are like river rocks that have been set 2/3 of the way in cement. Others are narrow rectangles that make a pattern or design. Sometimes the two are mixed in the same street.

If we go down toward Plaza Nueva, the Moroccan shops start about half way down, with their open displays of clothing, jewelry, odds and ends and the scent of incense. Mixed with them are the food places, serving tea, coffee, Moroccan meals or maybe crepes, or they are places to buy food, like pastry shops with baklava etc. This is beginning to feel like home now and we sometimes smile and greet the shop keepers. There is one place where twice now we have stopped and had lasagne for lunch, sitting at a table outside, enjoying the sun with the other, much younger folks who populate that area. Rick Steves claims that the area is populates with hippies who have come from well-to-do families in the north and are rebelling in groups here. They have what I think of as "rasta" hair, lots of piercing and tatoos, and lots of dogs. Dog poop is everywhere and we are used now to watching where we step. It's just part of this place.

Where we are is not particularly dangerous and it is well lit at night. We make it a point not to be out late (after midnight) because we do look very much like tourists. Violent crime is very rare here.

The house we live in is 400 years old and is itself a kind of twisted structure. When you come in the entry door, there is a rented apartment on each side. As you walk toward the back, you realize that the space above you is open to the sky. When you reach the opposite wall, you are facing a third apartment. To get to ours, you need to go left and up a spiral staircase that has big, solid steps and is painted a bright blue. About 3/4 of the way up is our door. If you continue up, you reach Rafa and Maya's apartment. They are the landlords. Their door is off a small patio. You can continue up wrought iron stairs to a deck with a table and chairs and a beautiful view of the Alhambra and a partial view of greater Granada. The houses are joined together at the outside walls on each side and it looks like a jumble when you look out over the rooftops from the deck. For living so close together, it is very quiet here. There is an occasional motorcycle that goes by or voices that seep in, but those are the exception.

Living here is being in a different world. It is old, exotic, curious and beautiful. I would like to return when it is summer; I think it would be even more wonderful when everything is in full bloom!

Photos: starting from the top: the view from our terrace of the Alhambra, the narrow streets and bougainvillea, walking down to the Moroccan shops on the rock streets, and our little fountain near the apartment.

Barcelona, Madrid and Granada - oh my!

Hola from Granada! We have been here now for 5 days and have been in Spain for 2 weeks. My Spanish has improved a "poco" and today we finally bought a Spanish/English dictionary, pocket size. We first went from Cairo to Barcelona and were there for 4 nights. Then we took the high speed AVE train to Madrid (the train trip was wonderful - comfortable and very scenic) and were there for 6 nights. On Monday we picked up our leased car outside Madrid and started south to Granada. The car has a GPS system which, of course, we needed right away! It really does help in and around the cities! Even the GPS couldn't help with the SNOW we encountered! We watched flakes flutter down as we had breakfast in Madrid and began to worry a bit but we weren't really prepared for the 6 inches we found! Madrid is fairly high and so cold weather isn't unusual but, like Seattle, folks here don't do well in the snow. At one point, we were stopped on the freeway for 45 minutes. People got out of their cars and walked around a bit and smoked and tried to figure out what was going on. When I asked "que pasa?" the man from the car in front of ours just shrugged. When we finally moved, about a mile down the road we saw a snowman that someone had made as they waited! Currently, we have rain. On Tuesday it was sunny, Wednesday it rained, yesterday it was nice in the afternoon, and today it has rained off and on all day. BUT - we're from Seattle and the rain didn't stop us! Actually, we waited until it stopped and then went out with our Gore Tex on!

Barcelona (pronounced bar-the-low-na) was glorious! If it weren't for all the warnings about pickpockets and car jackings, we would be eager to go back. Gaudi is amazing and although I had seen pictures ( his stuff looked "weird") and thought "this guy can't be that impressive", I was wrong! His "Sagrada Familia" is pretty indescribable. I'll include one photo of one part of the exterior. He believed in using the shapes found in nature, particularly vegetation, in architecture and his cathedral has tree trunks, flowers etc all over. Besides seeing Gaudi, we ate great tapas, walked La Rambla, saw some great markets, did a bit of shopping and rested.

When we got to Madrid, we got a taxi and headed to our hotel which was right on the Puerto del Sol - a perfect spot! We had an excellent room. It was on the third floor and on the corner so we looked directly out onto the square and also onto Calle del Carmen which is filled with shops. We arrived on a national holiday and people were everywhere! There is a metro station on the square as well as buses and more and more people kept finding their way there. We spent our first full day there at the Prado and the Reina Sophia museum which has Picasso's "Guernica" (his forceful black and white anti war painting which was done after the civil war in Spain). The Prado was every bit as good as we were told it would be. Spanish artists such as Goya, El Greco and Velaquez are featured but many others are there as well. We spent hours and then hurried over to see "Guernica" before we were totally exhausted. The next two days we had a "hop on, hop off" bus ticket and we used it to see both the historical and the newer parts of Madrid. We also took it back to the Prado area to see the Naval Museum. That was very interesting because of Spain's great navy in the past - remember the Spanish Armada? Also, Christopher Columbus is part of that history and much was made of his "discovery" of the new world. Part of our time was spent with housekeeping chores; we did laundry, got a cable for the laptop etc. We ate great paella. Another night we met a cute young couple who were seated at the table next to us. She had spent time in England and so her English was very good. At the end of the meal, we found out that it was her birthday! Her boyfriend had taken her out for a special dinner and we had talked to them all the way through it! We took two tours out of town with an agency recommended by Rick Steves called Julia Tours. One was a full day tour to Toledo and the other was a half day to El Escorial and the Valley of the Fallen. Toledo was the capital of early Spain and has a wonderful cathedral. We could have spent more time than the tour allowed but we were pleased to have a well done tour at all. The day that we were there it was very foggy which spoiled the views, but we still enjoyed seeing the ancient city that at one time was the peaceful home of Muslims, Jews and Christians. The half day tour was the next day, which was bright and sunny. We were up early to go to El Escorial, a palace/cathedral/burial place built by Philip II to house the Spanish kings and queens. It has an ancient library which includes a book written by St. Augustine in the 6th. century, among others! The palace rooms were impressive as was the mausoleum. The Valley of the Fallen is a monument Frano built to honor those who died in the Civil War. There is a church, which is closed for renovations, and a very impressive exterior which includes a gigantic cross - 150 meters tall I believe. Happily the weather allowed us good views from both sites that day. That was last Sunday and Monday we drove down here.

Andalucia is the name of the southern region of Spain. It includes Granada, Sevilla, and Cordoba as well as the Costa del Sol. Granada is probably best known for the Alhambra, the great Moorish castle that was the last stronghold of the Moors in Spain. We visited it on Wednesday, one of the sunny days. It is absolutely beautiful, even though the paint has faded, the walls need repair and there is constant work and scaffolding in the way. We were actually in the room where Queen Isabel gave Columbus her support to explore in 1492! I love the intricate designs, both in tile and plasterwork. Granada is all about the Reyes Catolica - Ferdinand and Isabel. The streets, fountains, shops are all named after them. Because they drove out the Moors, they united Spain for the first time and established the Catholic church as the national religion. They are also responsible for the Spanish Inquisition. (That is not mentioned much here.) Our apartment, which we have until the 28th., is in the old Moorish quarter with very narrow (about 6 feet wide!) and winding streets. It is very easy to get lost here! We try to be home by 9 or so but the streets mostly are well lit. Our building is about 500 years old and has 5 apartments. One is the landlord's and he rents the other 4. We have the largest, with a living room, bedroom, L shaped kitchen and dining area, and bathroom. There is a terrace on the roof which would be wonderful in the summer heat and which even now gives us beautiful night views of the Alhambra which is just across the gorge.

We are taking the train to Cordoba on Monday for two nights and then will be back here for Christmas Eve and Christmas. We'll leave on the 28th for the seaside town of Nerja for two nights and then on to Tarifa, again on the coast. Maybe we'll see some sun there! Thank you to all of you who have sent suggestions and recommendations on places to stay, sites etc. We are rereading them and they are guiding our path. Special thanks to all who recommended Ronda; we will spend two nights there. And Marcy, we are staying at the Hurricane Hotel in Tarifa! Merry Christmas to you all and Happy New Year!

The photos are: Gaudi's cathedral, Madrid prepares for Christmas in the Puerto del Sol, Leticia and her young man - the couple we met at dinner in Madrid, the huge cross at the Valley of the Fallen, and the archways leading into a room at the Alhambra.

Christmas letter 2009

Merry Christmas everyone! Or rather Feliz Navidad! We are in Spain for Christmas this year, living our dream trip. Since you are reading this blog, we know that you are aware of this trip of ours and have probably been following our progress through Finland, Norway, Paris, Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, Austria, Israel, Egypt, Jordan and now Spain. We have met so many wonderful people, had our prospectives broadened and our senses sharpened. The small bits that we are able to share with you via the blog can only begin to let you know what this experience has been like. We have learned a lot about ourselves and each other too which will help us to become better people.

Our family news is a blend of happy and sad times, as it is every year. In July, our new grandson Antonio came into the world. He is Jessica and Albert's first baby and was a whopping 9 pounds, 15 oz! He is now 5 months old and continues to be in the 90+ percentiles for both weight and height. He is a happy, curious little boy who delights all of us. In August we lost my mother to cancer. She was 90 years old and was "herself" to the end; bright, good humored and kind. We were able to say goodbye to her before we left on the trip and that was a blessing. A week after we left, she passed. We went home for 6 days in September for her memorial service and then returned to Paris. In October our newest grandson was born, Jonathan Hosea, to Peter and Tammy! He joins big sister Claire to make them a family of four. He is a doll; we have been able to skype with them a couple of times and will continue to do so. What a great invention skype is! We can see the babies and talk to the parents in real time as if we were in the same room, and all of it for free! Just today, Kris and Randy and their boys left for their first assignment in Tonga through YWAM! They will be ministering to the people there as much as possible and will be having some adventures themselves. Jo and Rich and their family have had a big change; their oldest, Caleb, is now a college student in California! Hannah, the second oldest, is taking Running Start classes as she finishes high school, so they feel as if they have two college students! Andrew and Michele and their two boys have added a beautiful little girl to their family. She is part of the fostering to adopt program and although the adoption process is not over, they are optimistic that she will legally be part of their family in the next few months.

We miss all of you. Being away is hardest during the holidays. We hope that you will have a wonderful Christmas season and a very happy New Year! May the God of all of us bless you in 2010.

Jon and Beth

PS We love getting emails!

Jordan

Our post trip in Jordan was a tale of two cities - of Amman and Petra. Amman is a big city with a mix of people. There are Jordanians, Palestinians and Saudis, just to name a few. It seemed to be more conservative than Cairo, or maybe that was just our guide. Eyad is a Bedouin man who speaks English very well and knows a lot about his country and it's history. Almost all of the women we saw wore scarves and we saw a lot of burqas.

We went to several Roman ruins, a Crusades era castle, several museums, the Dead Sea, an olive press factory, several restaurants and to a Jordanian family's home for lunch. All this in 3 days! On our way to Petra we stopped at a town named Madaba where there is a Greek Orthodox church with wonderful mosiacs. We also went to Mount Nebo where Moses looked across to the Promised Land. We visited a Grand Circle Foundation site, a mosaic training facility that helps handicapped people learn skills to support themselves. We didn't buy anything but they had beautiful things for sale!

Petra was at the end of the day long journey and our room in the hotel was a welcome sight. We stayed right outside the gates into the ruins which was very convenient. We got up early the next day and began our tour. Eyad led us from the gate to the restaurant at the end of the ruins, about 4 hours, and then we had the rest of the day to explore on our own. For those who don't know, the ruins of Petra are number 2 on the list of the new seven wonders of the world. Ancient people from the time before Christ lived in this canyon/wadi. They carved out caves to live in and wonderful structures, such as the famous treasury that was featured in "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade". This is another place where you truly walk around with your mouth hanging open and wonder how this ever came to be! The day after we were there, the King of Jordan came with Turkey's head of state to visit the ruins!

On our last day in Jordan, most of us took an optional morning tour into the desert of south Jordan to a place called Wadi Rum. There were magnificent rock formations, sand in all colors, stops at Bedouin camps, Bedouin tea, and finally I rode a camel! We picked up the rest of the group back at the hotel and headed to a restaurant for a lunch stop. All was well until our plane was delayed in Amman. We finally took off at 11 pm and reached our hotel in Cairo at about 12:45 am. It was a very short night (some just stayed up) and then it was back to the airport in Cairo for morning flights. Ours to Barcelona left at 10:35, a bit late; most of the others had flights to JFK at 10:10. It was sad to say goodbye to friends with whom we had spent a month, but everyone was ready to rest and slow down a bit! We are so glad that we spent the time and took the risk that is inherent in travel in the Middle East. We have learned and experienced so much and are so much better for it! I'll include a few pictures. The first is Jon with a lovely Jordanian policewoman, next is the mosaic of Mary and Jesus from the Greek Orthodox church in Madaba, then the Treasury from Petra (note the tiny people), and last but not least, me on a camel!

Egypt

We have just left Egypt and arrived in Jordan after 2 wonderful weeks. We learned so much from our fantastic guide Fawsey (rhymes with lousy) and from observing this country. Some impressions: Cairo - huge, teeming with people and cars, dirty with garbage and smog, a mix of old and new, minarets everywhere, the call to prayer 5 times a day, BMWs and donkey carts on the same freeways, safe (except to drive in), friendly, international; the Nile - lifeblood of Egypt for thousands of years, farmers working their fields as they have for hundreds of years, fishermen, garbage floating by, at the water's edge can be deserts or fields or caves or cities, pump stations, cattle, water buffalo, peaceful.

We were struck by the security measures that the Egyptian government has taken to make tourists feel safe. Our hotel had a gate where every vehicle entering was stopped and inspected by a guard and a dog. Once we disembarked from the bus, to enter the hotel we had to go through a security station with an x ray machine for bags and a walk through for people. Our bus was accompanied everywhere by someone from the "tourist police", always armed. Our cruise ship was guarded by the tourist police also with armed guards stationed at the stairs to the gangplank. You may recall that some tourists were killed in 1997 at the pyramids and since then these measures have been in force. There was also a peacefulness to Egypt that we did not feel in Israel; a kind of harmony that was missing before.

Egypt is about 88% Muslim and 12% Christian. The Coptic Christian church is very interesting; they broke away from Roman and the Eastern Orthodox church early on. St. Mark is honored as their founder. Much is made of Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus' flight to Egypt right after His birth and we visited the church where the Holy family is supposed to have been sheltered (St. Sergus' church in Cairo). As with the Russian Orthodox church and others, the Coptic church has its saints and relics, many of which we saw. We took an interesting tour one morning called Spiritual Cairo. It took us to 2 Coptic churches, a synagogue and a mosque. Fawsey did a great job of presenting each site. At the Mohammed Aly mosque, we went inside and he explained the basics of Islam to us. As a Moslem man, he was able to answer questions clearly and dispel our various misconceptions. The Moslems and Jews have so much in common in their faiths! Too bad that the political situation hasn't been resolved among these people who are so alike in so many ways.

We saw many temples, tombs and museums. Our favorites would have to include Giza (the pyramids and sphinx), the Valley of the Kings and Abu Simbel. Each site seemed to be more impressive than the last; the carving and painting were consistently precise and beautiful and thousands of years old! Thank goodness the sand often buried and thus preserved these amazing structures. Luxor was a great first stop on our cruise portion of the trip. The museum was relatively small but had some great treasures in it, one of which was the original plan for construction of a pyramid! The temple ruins were jaw dropping, especially at sunset when we were there. Karnack was another impressive sight. We went first on an optional tour which included a sound and light show and a walk through the softly lit columns at night as well as a half hour carriage ride back to the boat. We went in two person horse buggies and went through the back streets of Luxor where the townspeople live. It was a lively scene, with markets open and people out and about. A day later, we went through the ruins with our guide and he pointed out the things we could not see at night at this great temple built in honor of Amun Ra. At Sakara, we saw the oldest pyramid, built 4700 years ago by a brilliant man named Imhotep who was an architect, physician and scientist.

I loved Egypt! I still speak little Arabic and so I'm glad we were with a tour. We experienced a culture so different than our own but also very inviting. I would recommend visiting Egypt to anyone willing to step out of their comfort zone a bit. It is a rich and rewarding experience! And lying in the sun next to the pool on the upper deck in 80 + degree temperatures in November isn't bad either!

Photos: Mohammed Aly mosque, Cairo; school kids on a field trip, traditional Nile boat called a felucca, Jon and Fawsey, Ramses II statue outside temple at Abu Simbel.

Photos from Israel

These photos were taken during our five days in Israel! The first is the view from our car as we drove north through the West Bank - the desert has been reclaimed in many areas but the hills remain; the second is Jerusalem from a distance and the golden Dome of the Rock which for Moslems is the third holiest shrine after Mecca and Medina; next is our pita bread and coke lunch in the Old Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem; and the last is of the two symbols of modern day Israel.

Israel

Greetings from the land of the Pharaohs, Egypt! Since I last posted a message, we have spent five days in Israel on the "pre trip" to the Grand Circle Travel tour "Ancient Egypt and the Nile River". We have just started the basic tour, having arrived in Cairo last Monday. It has been interesting to be in the Middle East and to see for ourselves the history and current situations in which these nations find themselves.

Israel is a nation that bustles with energy. Jerusalem in particular is full of building projects, modern shops, and lots of traffic! It also has a mix of cultures with the city divided into four quarters - the Jewish, Armenian, Christian and Muslim. Because we had an Israeli guide, we did not go into the Muslim quarter. The national government has strict rules about where it's citizens can go and not go within it's borders. When we went to Bethlehem, which is in a Palestinian territory, we had to leave our guide on one side of the border, travel with our Muslim driver over the border and then pick up an Arab guide. We also could not visit Jericho which is in a Palestinian territory. Jerusalem has it's historical core also, with winding, narrow streets, closely packed shops and vendors anxious to get one's attention. We saw several museums (Dead Sea Scrolls, models of Jerusalem in Christ's time etc), Israel's holocaust museum, many Biblical sites (Garden of Gethsemane, Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the Palm Sunday route) as well as the Wailing Wall, the Dome of the Rock (only from a distance) and the Tower of David.

Outside Jerusalem, we visited Nazareth, Capernaum, the Dead Sea and the Jordan River, and Bethlehem. We walked in the river and floated in the sea! We also went to Bet Shean, a famous Roman ruin and spent a good half day there. We ate lots of good food, including pitas with falafel and dates and lamb. Our hotel was kosher which was interesting and fun. No milk at dinner and no meat for breakfast, and of course no pork at all!

We discovered that (no surprise!) the whole Israeli/Palestinian situation is more complicated that our media would have us believe. We had a wonderful discussion with a young Israeli man who was our guide to Bet Shean. The six of us who had hired him for the day asked him question after question during the entire drive to and from Jerusalem. He was very articulate and his English was very good because he had come to Israel from England as a teenager. He made the case for his country very well with clear logic and also much passion. Most of the Israelis we met had many Arab/Muslim friends and so feel animosity only for the Arab leaders, fanatics, and political processes involved. All want peace but not at any price. Not if it means Israel doesn't exist.

We felt safe during our time in Israel. Maybe that was because the security at the borders was so tight. There were two check points from the West Bank into Jerusalem and the whole West Bank border is patrolled and has high tech devices monitoring every intrusion. But the fact remains that at any time, violence could break out.

I will post a new message in the next few days as we enjoy our time in Egypt!

Bavaria

Southern Germany is Bavaria. It is a land of Alps, castles, rich history, and beer. We loved the small town of Fussen! Out our hotel window we could see high mountain peaks with snow - more each day! The town thrives on tourism. Most come to see the two castles just outside the town, the newer one being the one that Walt Disney used as a model for his Disneyland castle. Both were very interesting! The nearby town of Oberammergau is famous for it's paintings on the sides of buildings and for woodworking. It was a nice day trip for us. I also had my second hair cut and color in Europe, which turned out fine! Much easier to arrange in Fussen than in our last stop, Munich. I just had to walk across the square! Before we came to Munich, we stopped overnight in Dachau. First we visited the site of the concentration camp which has been preserved much differently that Auschwitz. It was interesting to see how the Germans portrayed it. Few of the actual facilities remain but their museum was filled with more photos, propaganda and news stories of the time. We found it to be honest and very interesting. Munich is a big city and we were glad (me especially!) that we turned in our car out near the airport and came to our hotel by taxi. At more than a million people, there's lots of traffic and one needs to know the way around! We've enjoyed the Marienplatz, or central square, and the outdoor market on Saturday. We also went to the Munich city museum but were disappointed in their treatment of events surrounding World War II. The Nazi party considered Munich it's birthplace and perhaps there is more to be dealt with here, even today. Tomorrow we leave for Israel and the pre trip portion of our Grand Circle Egypt trip! We are very excited to see the Holy Land and then to see the Nile and all the wonderful sites of Egypt. More from there as I find internet connections! Photos: the view from the window in the older castle near Fussen, building exterior in Oberammergau, the "new" castle which Ludwig dedicated to Richard Wagner.

Three Countries in One Day!

I write this entry on our last night in Salzburg, Austria. We left Prague last Friday and drove across the western part of the Czech Republic, into Germany and then turned south, ending up in Salzburg by about 4:30 pm. Happily, leaving Prague was MUCH easier than entering it due in large part to excellent directions given by the hotel staff. Driving through central Europe is beautiful at this time of year and we had a delightful drive. Salzburg is a much smaller city and we had good directions to our hotel so we only had a tiny bit of trouble finding the correct street for this hotel. We've enjoyed our stay here. The first morning we decided to take the S.O.M. tour that Rick Steves' describes as "cheezy but fun". The mini van and it's driver/guide took 7 of us tourists to many of the locations used to film "The Sound of Music" in 1964. At one point, we had a lengthy drive between stops and she put on the sound track for us to sing along. We also saw the lakes district just outside the city and stopped for coffee and apple strudel, which was delicious! Jon and I went to a concert inside the Salzburg cathedral that afternoon. It featured the immense organ and a wonderful soprano. We've had three delicious dinners here, one Austrian, one Indian (east), and tonight Japanese. We just couldn't handle more schnitzel and sauerkraut! Today we went to the Mozart residence which was quite interesting. He is the city's favorite son and is featured in all the concerts, souvenirs and public areas, via names and statues. His story is tragic in some ways - he died young and poor and was buried in a mass grave. But what an incredible talent!

Tomorrow we leave for Fussen, a small town in Germany on the German/Swiss border. It is a good base for exploring the southern end of Bavaria. We plan to drive on scenic roads to get there and it should be lovely! I am including some photos that I hope you all will enjoy! They are: one of the many churches on the Old Town square in Krakow with the flower stalls in front, the train tracks that brought people to Birkenau death camp, the beautiful Czech countryside, and Jon and I at the lake at the Von Trapp family mansion in Salzburg.

Krakow and the Czech Republic

Well, Krakow was wonderful! A delightful city, full of life, good food, history and tradition. We stayed in the Old Town which was fine once we found our hotel amid one way and blocked streets; a kind policeman who spoke no English even lowered a blockade so that we could drive the rest of the way up the street to reach our hotel. I think he wanted to get us off the road! Thank goodness we had written down the name of the hotel so he could read that and figure out what we were trying to do. The next day we decided to drive a short distance out of Old Town to Oskar Schindler's factory. It is the same building that he actually worked in and where the movie ("Schindler's List") was partially filmed. It is being renovated a bit and made into a museum honoring him and others like him in one part and also a modern art museum in a second building. There is an interesting and informative display about the ceramics plant itself and how he came to be working there and then about how he saved the lives of so many Jews. It finishes by describing how he's been honored. The feeling that we had there was the same that we have been experiencing lately on our journey. To actually be standing where people lived and died, were murdered or managed to survive is humbling and awesome, in the true sense of the word. From the factory, we went to the Jewish Quarter of Krakow. We wandered the streets a bit and visited a synagogue that is being renovated. We had a delicious lunch too but all the time were surrounded by that sense of history. Most of the Jews in Poland were sent to Auschwitz and very few survived. The next day, Monday, we went to the death camp itself. We went with a tour, which in hindsight we regretted. We got transportation there and back and the service of a museum guide (Auschwitz and Birkenau are both called museums now) but we wished we could have stayed longer and seen the film. The museum guides are very knowledgeable and calmly tell the story of the camp as they take you in and out of buildings. There is no need to exaggerate what happened there. Again, we knew the history, had been to other Holocaust museums (like in D.C.) and we'd seen films about the Holocaust but to be there and walk into the buildings, hear the numbers, see the faces (the first to be sent there were Poles and many were photographed - later that stopped), and see the other artifacts

is very different and indescribable. Thankfully, the Polish government took over the area covered by the camps (there were 3 in the vicinity) in 1947 and preserved everything that the Nazis had left standing. Some paperwork survived the attempt to destroy the evidence and the brick buildings at Auschwitz I and some of the wooden ones at Birkenau also survived. As the groups of tourists moved about, there was very little talking and no one was smiling. It is a somber place. There is a 17 minute film made the Ukrainian forces that liberated the camp and it is shown in English several times a day. We did not get to see it with the tour so we decided that on our drive out of Krakow the next day we would stop to see it. We did and are thankful that it was made although it was not easy to watch. Much of the film shows those who were found alive and how the doctors who came with the liberators tried to save as many people as possible. In that way, it was a good final memory to take with us.

We would recommend Krakow as a place to visit on a vacation! We would definitely like to go back ourselves. It is the first place, other than Paris, about which we have that feeling. The Old Town is a great place to stay; fly in and take a taxi from the airport! They are very proud of the Polish Pope and have named the airport after him! We left feeling that there was a lot more to do and see in the city!

We are now in Prague, which is a BIG city with over 1 million people. We followed our usual pattern of getting lost trying to find our hotel and this time in the midst of rush hour traffic in the dark. Imagine yourself on I-5, missing your exit and getting off as soon as you can but having no idea where you are or where the place you are trying to reach is. Thank goodness for cell phones! We eventually made it and today we spent the day in the areas known as the Castle Quarter and the Little Quarter. We also walked over the Charles Bridge. After the Communists left in 1989, Prague was the first city in what was called Eastern Europe to really westernize and "get on the map". We enjoyed the gorgeous, amazing churches of all architectural styles, the picturesque buildings, the 800 hundred year old statues, and in the Old Town Square, the Astronomical Clock which we watched strike 5 o'clock. Last night we went to a restaurant that was just 2 blocks away and prepares excellent food! There was an American expat who is co-owner and executive chef! Since it was kind of a slow night, he came out and talked with us for a bit. He's from Philadelphia and soon baseball and the World Series came up. We had no trouble being on the same side there! Tomorrow we'll see more of Old Town and the Jewish Quarter and then visit Wenceslas Square and some of New Town. The day after, we're off to Salzburg, Austria! I'm happy because it has only 150,000 people - no more driving in big cities!

Reflections

There are some general conclusions that we have come to over the last two months while we have been in Europe. In that time we have been in 5 countries, Norway, Finland, France, Germany and Poland. We have met many people, stayed in many hotels and guesthouses, eaten in many restaurants, and driven on many roads. So far, we can say that the Europeans have better: toilets, showers, windows in their homes/hotels, and highways systems (signs, road surfaces). They LOVE 60s and 70s rock and roll. We have had dinner every night to The Beatles, The Stones, Neil Young, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, etc. etc.!!! (sometimes we quietly sing along or just laugh). They also are more relaxed and considerate in their actions. Many times total strangers have stopped what they were doing to help us, sometimes for extended periods of time. We have heard little horn honking, yelling and have not seen rude gestures or expressions of anger as they make way for each other on the streets and without fail they have treated lost Americans with patience. We have seen virtually no litter. We have seen graffiti but almost no vandalism. In France we saw a very multicultural population, although they are struggling with discrimination as we do in America, according to our friend, Laurence. Each country has had more people of color than we expected and many more ethnic restaurants from around the world (Japanese food is the latest thing in Paris, for example). We have been able to find English speakers of various ability everywhere, although we've noticed that the younger folks are more willing to attempt our language much like our younger folks are better with the language of the internet. Kids are kids too. Low slung pants, tatoos, piercings, wild dyed hair, Ipods and cell phones are all universal, as is an ice cream face on a 5 year old, an 8 year old with a soccer ball and the ability of a newborn to stop shoppers in the stores. It is, indeed, a small world after all.

We have met some new friends along the way. Among them, in no particular order, are Laurence and her girls Anouk and Clara (our Parisian apartment neighbors), Edo (our Introduction to Berlin tour guide from the Nederlands), Inga (a college student from Warsaw who has already spent time in NYC at Columbia and who told us how to cope with the central train station), Dieter and his family (our newly found relatives in Gernsheim, Germany), Jim (our expat Minnesotan who was our Third Reich tour guide in Berlin), Isabella (our fantastic, friendly waitress in Warsaw), the two Martas at the Victor hotel in Warsaw (who worked so hard to translate our driving directions for us), the young American female student who helped us with the train to Versailles, the French man/Korean woman couple we enjoyed talking to on our way to Chartres, and Roy (the young Israeli college student on the Berlin tour with us).

We have felt safe, welcome and appreciated by everyone we have met (except for one or two surly hotel front desk folks). We have learned SO much about history, art, culture and people, and about ourselves and each other. Although we have had tense moments (mostly while driving), we have had many more moments of awe and inspiration. It is what we expected of this trip and yet it is so much richer and deeper. We anticipate these emotions continuing as we visit other countries and meet other people. What a wonderful beginning we've had!

We hope you've enjoyed reading our blog so far and thanks for your patience when I get a bit long winded! Happy Halloween and All Saints Day to you all!

Germany continued...

It has been a while since we reported in and it's time to give you all an update. We were on our way to Bacharach when we finished the last entry and we had a lovely stay there. We visited Rheinfels castle, which Rick Steves calls Rhineland's greatest castle. It is high above the river and only a bit of renovation has been done, so the ground, stones and walkways that you tread have been there for hundreds of years (built in 1245). It was huge but the perimeter has been reduced over the years. The core is still there and that's what we climbed around on. In the town of Bacharach we stayed with Ursula Orth who has a 5 room gasthof (guest house). We got her biggest room with private bath, and breakfast, for 38 EU a night - about $57! It was up 3 flights of stairs without an elevator, but that was part of the adventure! We enjoyed the nearby town of Bingen and took a touristy little train ride, with English written explanations, all around it. Then on to Rothenburg, pronounced RO-ten-burg.

Rothenburg is an ancient city that is at the north end of the Bavarian part of Germany. It was a thriving city in the Middle Ages and had its most power and influence from 1150 to 1400. It is the quaint village that one thinks of when Bavaria comes to mind. Hopefully I'll upload one of the pictures I took there. We spent 2 nights in another 600 year old building and had plenty to do just wandering it's streets. The weather has been very cold. I bought a hat and gloves in Bingen and have really needed them ever since. Rothenburg was no exception! The first night after dinner we took the Nightwatchman's tour. It was about an hour of walking the streets with an appropriately costumed man who told us interesting information in a very entertaining way. There was a crowd of about 40 of us. One of the most fascinating stories was how an American general kept the city from being destroyed after Nazi soldiers had retreated to it at the end of WWII. He stepped in and changed bombing orders because his mother had visited the city as a young woman and loved it. She had pictures of the town on the wall as he was growing up. Thank goodness he did because it is a treasure!

After Rothenburg we went to Dresden. While we are sure that Dresden is a wonderful city, our feelings about it will be forever colored by the terrible time we had finding our hotel! We had directions written down but they were different than the actual roads. We tried to call the hotel but the person who answered had minimal English. It took 4 stops and several helpful Germans before a young man finally just led us to it on his motorcycle! The next day we did see beautiful Frauenkirche and the square in the old town. Then we left and headed north to Berlin.

Beginning in Dresden and continuing since, our activities as tourists have centered around World War II. Germany and Poland were enormously impacted by the war; huge areas of major cities were utterly destroyed, millions of people (most of 2 generations) were killed, and emotional scars have damaged national psyches. It is one thing to read about the war and even see movies about it, but it is quite another to visit the places themselves. We are now only two generations away from the war and only one since communism. Germans coming to terms with what their leaders (and soldiers) did during the war; Poles and East Germans trying to overcome their domination by the Soviet Union and communism after the war - these are the continuing themes and the reality of everyday life here today.

We took two walking tours, one each day, while we were in Berlin. The first one was "Infamous Third Reich Sites". It last 3 hours and took us to various Nazi buildings, Hitler's bunker, and a display called "Topography of Terror" which is an outside photographic exhibit about Nazi Germany, among other sites. The second day we visited a broader scope of Berlin's features, such as museums, churches, bridges etc, as well as some Nazi sites. In our group for this tour was a young college student from Israel. It was very interesting to hear his thoughts as we walked along.

Yesterday we drove out of Berlin and into Poland. We were surprised to see that Berlin is only 35 miles from the border. We knew that Poland would be poorer and less developed and so we were not surprised to see evidence of hard lives both in the countryside and here in Warsaw. Lots of new construction, especially in downtown Warsaw, but lots still to be done. Today we went to the old town area of Warsaw. It has been rebuilt to be like the way it was before the war but with many plaques and reminders of acts of bravery and self sacrifice by the people. We did not get to the site of the Jewish Ghetto; it was just too cold and damp to go there also. The Ghetto Uprising has been well documented by many books and films - to me, that is hallowed ground.

Tomorrow we drive to Krakow to stay for 3 nights. We'll have two whole days there and will visit Auschwitz/Birkenau one of the days. But I'll tell you about that next time.

Photos are: the Memorial to the Murdered Jews in Europe in Berlin, Rheinfels castle, and Rothenburg.

Some photos to go with the last blog entry

Photos are:

Clock tower in Worms, Dieter Schneidler and family, the village of Beilstein, a vineyard on a hill, and looking across the Mosel from our hotel in Beilstein.

Out of France and into Germany!

We left Paris a week ago tomorrow, and I cannot believe we've only been in Germany that long! Every day has really been an adventure since we've been driving and have been lost at least once every day but today! The first day, picking up our car from the leasing office at Charles De Gaulle airport outside Paris and driving to Strasbourg (about a five hour drive) was the worst. We actually thought we would never leave the CDG airport area! It was like a Chevy Chase vacation movie! We could not find our way to the highway that we wanted and drove in large circles trying to go in the right direction! Not reading French road signs well was a major part of the problem. Finally we just pulled onto a side road that led to an area that we later discovered was for freight. There was a map of that area at an information stop (we're not the only ones who get lost there, it seems). The map did not help much, but another driver pulled over, noticed our wide-eyed, frantic look and asked if we needed help. He told us to follow the signs to Paris (!), which we'd been avoiding, knowing that that couldn't be the right way. He said that would lead us to the road we wanted. We offered to pay him to lead us there, but he said we couldn't afford him! We followed his directions and, low and behold, it worked. Well, sort of. He told us we couldn't miss the gas station on our way to the interchange which we needed to find because we had almost nothing in the tank. WRONG! We never saw it and once we got onto the highway, we began an immediate search for a gas pump. We have a diesel engine and had been assured that the yellow handled pumps, labelled "diesel oil", were what we wanted. We did find a gas station, right next to a Burger King (!), but then couldn't get the machine to take our credit card. Finally we talked to the lady in the little booth, who spoke almost no English but motioned us to another pump. At that one, we just pumped the gas and then she scanned our card. Ahhh - the correct highway and a full tank of gas, 2 hours after we'd picked up the car, and we were ready to start our drive to Strasbourg.

It was a gorgeous drive, rich in fall colors and beautiful farm land. Our thoughts turned to World War I and Verdun, the Argonne and Ardennes areas. The Alsace area has been drenched in so much blood, not only then but also in the late 1800s under Bismarck and of course in WWII. It is very tranquil now. We stopped for a bit in Reims. Another ancient cathedral; this is where the kings of France were crowned for hundreds of years. We also had lunch there in a little cafe and walked around the small town. Then we continued on. As we drove, the weather grew more stormy and for the last hour or so rain came and went. By the time we actually arrived in Strasbourg, we had just come out of a downpour. It was dark but we managed to find our hotel right in the middle of town by the incredible cathedral. We were drained. Many hotels, including this one, do not have elevators to all floors. Our room was on the third floor but we only had to haul our bags up one flight of stairs. Happily the room was nice and we found a good place for dinner. Our window looked directly at the cathedral which was just across a small brick square. And what a cathedral! My favorite so far, I think. If you are interested in it, just google and I'm sure there will be pictures. Unfortunately, there were lots of tourists besides us and many of them enjoyed staying up late at the cafes in the square, drinking, singing, and looking at the well-lit building. We finally got to sleep at about 2.

The next day, we got on the road into Germany, with lots of instructions which actually worked!

The Rhine river is the boundary between the two countries and it is not far beyond the Strasbourg city limits. We drove into the the northern area of the Black Forest and immediately relaxed. We had lunch in a small town called Oppenau and then took the scenic road to Baden Baden. The views were breathtaking. At one point we stopped and hiked to a waterfall. It was a lot like the Olympic forest at home. So much vegetation, a small stream gurgling by, a nice trail to walk on. We got into Baden Baden at about 3:30 and tried to find the hotel we wanted from the Rick Steves' book. No luck, much frustration. Finally we stopped at another hotel and asked how to find our choice. They told us that it was hard to find (!), in a pedestrian area, and that if it had no vacancies, they had room for us. That sounded good to me, but we persevered. After a few more wrong turns, including driving up a hiking trail (!), we asked a nice man and he told us that although he personally had only walked there, he felt sure that we could drive down to the street, go down a block or two, turn right and we'd get there. And so we did. And they did have a room for us, their last one. The hotel was in the old market area, which is now a pedestrian zone and very up scale. We walked around for a while and found some great shops to browse. We each made a couple of purchases (Jon now has a German sim card in his Iphone) and I picked up some birthday gifts for some loved ones back home. We had a very nice dinner at a restaurant around the corner, which included some good German dishes and wine. We did not go to the baths, nude or otherwise. We got a better night's sleep that night.

The next day it was off to Worms, home to the Schneidler clan before Jon's great grandfather left for the United States. Jon wanted to see if he could locate any family or family history there. We planned to stay 2 or 3 nights, depending on what we found. Since RS doesn't mention Worms in his book, we went to the TI in town upon our arrival and found a room in a small hotel/B&B. No internet but good restaurant, reasonable rates, large room, and in the center of the town, again right next to the cathedral. Worms is an interesting town. Until WWII, it had a 700 year old Jewish community; there is a current Jewish population which looks after the ancient cemetary. The cathedral dates back hundreds of years. Martin Luther addressed the famous council there in 1521. It is the largest city for miles around. It has a modern mall plus a good sized pedestrian area with individual shops. Since we arrived on a Saturday, we spent time exploring the town on foot and then looking in the phone book for Schneidlers. No luck. We had talked to the young woman, Jasmine, who checked us into the hotel about what we were trying to do. While we were walking around, she went online and found some Schneidlers in a nearby town. She printed out their names, addresses and phone numbers for us. So...we had a lead. The next day, Sunday, we decided to drive out there and pay them a surprise visit. We waited until afternoon and then headed north. We had directions and a map, but...after asking an older gentleman who spoke NO English but could read the name of where we were trying to go, we found the ferry (just like home!) to go across the Rhine to the town we wanted. The first address produced no results - no "Schneidler" on the mailbox and nobody home. The second address was located eventually. We opened the gate and a middle aged man greeted us. Seems they were expecting guests for his wife's birthday party, but not expecting us! This was Dieter Schneidler, whose great-great-great grandfather was Jon's great-great-great-grandfather's brother! (or so we've since found out) We met Karin, Dieter's wife, and their 3 sons. This was very fortunate timing because the oldest son, Tim, was home from college and the middle son, George, was leaving at 2 am to go to Spain with his high school class! Lars, the youngest, is 11 and was the perfect host, offering us something to drink etc. They were all so gracious! We stayed long enough to meet Dieter's mother and two sisters, as well as some other friends, and then we made plans to meet Monday evening for dinner. As you can imagine, we were very excited by all this! And we took an immediate liking to them; they felt right away like family. We drove back to Worms, only to get totally lost trying to find our hotel. There were several construction projects which closed roads where we expected to turn. Anyway, we eventually made it without any physical damage to the car or each other. Monday we spent doing some errands. My mission was to brave the German postal system and mail the purchases I had mail in Baden Baden. I made the happy discovery that if one uses a mailing envelope instead of a box, it counts as a letter, not a package and there is MUCH less red tape/forms. It took a mere 15 minutes to complete the task. It was also a contrast in cultural style from the French. In Paris there were 3 lines and you got in the one that did what you needed. There was a constant din of conversation and 3 people roamed the room as helpers (thank goodness!). In Worms, there was one long line and a long bureau with 5 postal employees behind it. No one talked while they waited in line. You got in line, hoped you had what you needed, and waited your turn. Happily, "my" postal clerk was a very pleasant young woman who spoke enough English to get us through the process. She told me what I needed to fill out and told me to come directly back to her when I had done it. I did, she slapped the addressed forms onto the envelopes, weighed them, attached postage, told me the charge, I paid and we were finished! Monday afternoon we walked into the cathedral, around a couple of parks and memorials and into the old Jewish cemetery. Then it was time to meet the others for dinner! We actually drove straight to the ferry this time and got to their house a few minutes early. We had a great time talking and sharing photos (I took my laptop) and then had a delicious meal at a nearby restaurant. All was well until we went to take the ferry back across the river and it had quit for the night! No problem, Dieter said. He would lead us through the back roads and get us back to our hotel that way! That was very nice of him, we thought, but we were concerned that it would be a late night for him on a weeknight. He said it was just 20 minutes each way. Unfortunately, it turned out to be more like 40 minutes one way, due to roadwork that he wasn't aware of blocking our way. We just laughed - it was all SO familiar!!! Happily we know that he did make it back to his home eventually!

This morning, Jon got up early to get to the Archives office when it opened. He was able to trace his family back to the early 1700s, with the help of the clerk there. He was so pleased! That's how he discovered the direct connection between Dieter and himself. By 11:30 we were on the road to Bielstein, a small town on the Mosel river. What a beautiful drive it was! We did the first part on the autoban but then continued on much smaller, slower roads. We wound through vineyard after vineyard, on steep slopes with the vines running vertically down them. Many fields were being harvested and I wondered why the pickers didn't fall down the hillsides because they were so steep. This beautiful little village is so picturesque! We are staying in a 600 year old building that is our hotel! It is right on the Mosel river and we could sit on the terrace and watch barges and other boats go by. Tomorrow we are driving back to the Rhine to the town of Bacharach and we'll see our first German castles. Rick Steves loves that area and we'll go see why. Then we are off to Rothenburg for the same reason. It is the north end of Bavaria which is the region that is the favorite of many tourists. Then on to Dresden and Berlin and into Poland. At least that's the plan! Auf Wiedersein, for now! (I doubt that I spelled that correctly - sorry!)

Goodbye Paris!

Here we are on our last night in Paris, listening to the rain pour down outside and occasionally hearing thunder and seeing lightening! We have spent the last several days doing those things that were on our list, such as walks in various areas of the city, and just enjoying this city that is so easy to love! It has rained for at least a little while during each of the last 3 days, which reminds us how lucky we have been to have had such gorgeous weather. It was actually 25 degrees C today - very warm for October! Last Friday we went to Chartres. We waited until Friday because then the labyrinth in the cathedral is uncovered and can be walked. For those who have never done it, it is a meditative, spiritual, slow walk on a complex, circular pattern that leads one to the center and then out again. The one at Chartres is about 40 feet across. The cathedral itself dates to the 1100's and is amazing. Many pilgrims have come there in the last 900 years because there is a garment (relic) said to have been worn by Mary, mother of Jesus, when she gave birth to Him. One can see it in a side chapel. Getting to Chartres was an adventure. We had read and been told about the train station procedure but we still managed to not "compost" our tickets correctly. ("Composting" is having them stamped by a machine before you get on the train.) Happily the attendant in Chartres when we headed back helped us and we made it back all right. When we arrived at the train station in Paris, we decided to go up to the top of the Tour Montparnasse. That is a tall building near the train station and one can go up on the roof and look out 360 degrees over Paris. It was beautiful to see the city from there! On Saturday we went shopping! We went to a pedestrian-only area about 6 blocks from our apartment and had a great time! We had lunch at a sidewalk cafe and watched the people go by. We also bought a few things! Sunday we went to the Pere Lachaise cemetery with our trusty Rick Steves' book in hand. That is where many famous people are buried and the guided walk in RS's book is well done. We saw the graves of Moliere, Oscar Wilde, Colette, Edith Piaf, Gertrude Stein, Chopin, Rossini and Jim Morrison. There were many others there with us, guidebooks in hand. The most moving part was the area of the cemetery that contains monuments/sculptures commemorating those killed at the Nazi concentration camps or while on route there. Huge, beautifully done memorials. The next day, we waited for the rain to stop and then did a walking tour, with paper guide, of the St. Germain area. We had dinner there at the same cafe where Jean-Paul Sartre used to eat! On Tuesday, we again waited for the rain to end and then walked our "home" arrondissement, le Marais. We began at the site of the Bastille and then walked toward the apartment. There is a great museum about French history called the Carnavalet Museum with the best part being about the French Revolution. Earlier that morning, Jon did something he had been wanting to do - go to a French Rotary club meeting!

(Jon) I attended a meeting of a relatively new club, the Champs Elysee club just 9 years old. In addition to myself there were 17 men and 9 women in attendance - ages 50-70, all in suits and extremely formal. They make Seattle 4 look like a slapstick session.... no laughter and few smiles. They were very nice to me and asked about our club and the banner I presented to them. The meeting was held in a lovely room looking out onto the famous boulevard. We all sat around a single long table and enjoyed juice, coffee and a pastry as we .... or, I should say, they.... listened to a single speaker to whom they gave rapt attention. He spoke quietly without notes, in French unfortunately for me who understands little, for about 40 minutes and then took questions which added about 30 more. While I had no idea what was being discussed, I couldn't help but notice that everyone looked extremely serious. Later I learned that he was discussing the current state of the middle east. The meeting started by going around the table with everyone introducing themselves and later placing their names on a paper being circulated. I was told that it would be a breakfast meeting (it started at 8), but the juice and coffee were all that were served....perhaps that was fortunate. The tab we each paid was 30 euros ($45.00). Don't anyone tell the Sons. Still it was an interesting experience, and I had a chance to meet some nice people. I'll be interested to see what the next club is like.

(Beth again) Tuesday evening we had a wonderful dinner at Le Trumilou restaurant across the street from the Seine. They are known for their canard aux pruneaux (duck in prune sauce), which I can testify is delicious! Everything was great however! After dinner we walked across the street and watched the boats go by, all beautifully lit. A group of college age folks were singing with a guitar below us and lights shown on Notre Dame. The air was warm and pleasant. How much more perfect does it get? Today was spent packing, doing laundry, doing light cleaning and, the big thing, getting some packages mailed home! This was the source of much agitation as we read RS on the subject, the US government website on mailing packages home, and tried to figure out the forms from the French post office! We spent an hour or two working on it in our apartment and at least an hour in the post office - thank goodness for the two English speaking postal helpers! Afterwards we collapsed into our neighborhood cafe and ate a bagette and cheese and drank wine to soothe our souls! Our dinner tonight started out to be at an excellent (by all accounts) restaurant, which it turns out has closed. So we had Japanese food instead - it is all the rage here!

And so our time comes to an end. It is hard to say goodbye to this city and we have already talked about leaving Provence early next August to spend a night or two here before we fly out of Charles de Gaulle! My next entry will be from Germany!

Photos: top left bread, cheese and wine today! top right: Auschwitz memorial bottom left: eating ice cream by the Seine and bottom right: the toys boats on the pond at the Luxembourg Gardens.

One week left in Paris

Today is October 1 and we have realized that we only have one week left in this beautiful city. Everyday has been an adventure and I'm sure the remaining ones will be as well. Last Saturday, September 26, we spent the day at Versailles, Louis XIV's fantastic chateau and gardens. It was a bit unbelievable and one can see why the French Revolution happened. Everything is opulent. There are gold objects and mirrors everywhere. It is said that he could host 5000 nobles and their entourages at once. He is called the Sun King and the entire estate is created to reflect that. We were lucky to go on a weekend because the fountains "perform" from 4:15 until 5 on those days and the effect is quite beautiful. Also, period music is played over speakers in the huge gardens which adds to the sensory experience. As you can tell, this was a full day. One needs to take a RER train out of Paris and then back, which for us means that we take the Metro (1 transfer) to the RER and then back again. On Sunday we were lazy until the afternoon when we went to the islands in the Seine where Paris began (Ile de la Cite and Ile St. Louis). First we went to Sainte Chapelle, the otherworldly stained glass church that I fell in love with the last time we were here. I could not be in Paris and not visit. Then we strolled down Ile de la Cite, through the flower market, and over the bridge to Ile St.Louis. The first thing we saw was the ice cream shop that we hoped to find! I immediately got in line, determined to wait it out. It was a lovely, warm afternoon and there were at least 20 people ahead of me. Jon walked further and came back to report that the other shop that carried the same brand had MORE people in line! So we waited and after 30 minutes, we had our ice cream - Jon had praline and I had dark chocolate - yum! We walked down to the bank of the river and watched people and boats go by as we ate our cones. We asked a nice lady to take our picture, which she did and I will post later! Monday was an organizing day, with laundry, bill paying etc to do. Tuesday we met our friends the Cozines and went to the Jacquemart-Andre museum. This house belonged to one man and his wife who were art collectors. They were very wealthy and had no children so often had more money to spend on artwork than the French museum officials (including the Louvre!). Their home is now open to the public and still houses much of their collection. Amazing that they could amass such treasures. Do visit it if you are ever here in Paris! Wednesday we went to an area in southeast Paris called La Butte aux Cailles. It is a collection of shops and eateries along one street. To get there, we had to transfer on the metro twice and we saw areas that we had not been to before, which was great. We bought some honey and had a lovely lunch and Jon got his hair cut! Afterwards, we visited the Luxembourg Gardens. School was out by that time and kids and their parents were everywhere, having a blast! There are large play areas with climbing toys etc. set aside for kids, a boules area for adults, and a large pond with small sailboats for rent for the kids to use and the adults to enjoy watching. We sat for quite a while in the shade, just watching Parisians at play. We headed home after a bit because we had invited our neighbor Lawrence (male name, female person) and her two daughters to come over for wine and sodas before dinner. We had a wonderful time getting to know her better. She has helped us out with small bits of information and is a delight! Her girls, 12 and 16, came too and it was fun to have them practice their English on us! Lawrence speaks English quite well. Today is Thursday and our big adventure was Montmartre, home of Sacre Coeur, the Moulin Rouge and all those bohemians of old (Picasso, Renoir, Edith Piaf etc) We went straight to the cathedral and then modified Rick Steves' walking tour to meet our bodies' needs (=took mostly downhill routes). We came home and rested and then walked a block or so to the Arts and Metiers museum that our friend Marcy Lagerloef had suggested. It was a bit too mechanical for me, although I enjoyed it, but it was right up Jon's alley. After two floors, we decided to come back and finish it later - easy to do since it's close by and free. Tomorrow we're off to Chartres! That truly is an all day adventure! more later...

We are becoming Parisians!

Even though we have just been back for 4 days, we have done a lot of things. After arriving on Tuesday morning, we had a day of adjusting. We unpacked and napped and about 4 in the afternoon, I walked about a block to the salon Jon and I had spotted before we went to Seattle. I went in and had a pedicure! It was not much more than I paid in Poulsbo and had roughly the same things included ( feet soaked, nails manicured, scrub, moisturizer and polish) but it was done on the lower floor of the salon - not very glamorous! I did try to read the August edition of Elle in French! On Wednesday we slept late - jet lag caught up with us - and about 1 we headed out to Rue Cler, a wonderful village-like pedestrian only street with lots of shops. We are getting pretty good at taking the Metro to wherever we want to go and so we transferred a couple of times and got there. We enjoyed looking around and I took some photos of the flower stalls etc. Then we walked over to the Eiffel Tower. What an incredible structure! Currently it has been painted brown and looks wonderful! We just enjoyed the scene there for a while. The weather was gorgeous and we decided that it was the perfect time to take a Batobus (hop on, hop off boat) that goes from the Eiffel Tower down the Seine and back. So we did! We left the dock at about 6 and were back at about 7. A lovely day! On Thursday we got going a bit earlier and headed for the Louvre. We planned to visit 3 museums on each of two consecutive days with a museum pass. The Louvre is very imposing - one would need a week to see it all and that is if you had a guide to help you. So we settled for the Mona Lisa (doesn't everyone?) and then the Napoleon III rooms. We decided that since we would be in Italy, we could pass on the work of the Italians - same with the Greeks and Spaniards. Then we walked through the Tuilleries to Musee L'Orangerie, a smaller Impressionist museum. It's best known feature is Monet's original Water Lilies paintings. We saw those but also many other Impressionist works. Lastly we headed to Musee D'Orsay, the best known of the Impressionist museums. We went straight to the 5th floor where the bulk of our favorite painters' works are housed. We spent a couple of hours there, including some time in the gift shop. Then we straggled home - we were foot sore and ready to sit for a while! We ended up with a good dinner out at a close by restaurant and then headed for bed. Today was the second day of the museum pass - "use it or lose it" applies here. So we walked to the Picasso Museum which is about 1/4 miles from our apartment, only to find it closed until 2012 for renovation! After a few choice words, we found the nearby Metro and went to the Musee Armee, or Invalides Hotel. This is the national military training center for French cadets and houses the world's largest military museum. It is phenomenal! Most of you know that military stuff is not my favorite subject but we only saw half of the displays in 3 hours! Suits of armor dating back to the 1100s, weapons of all kinds, a fascinating exhibit on the two World Wars - extremely well done and beginning in 1871! - and finally Napoleon Bonaparte's tomb. Just a half block away is the Rodin Museum. We thoroughly, but relatively quickly, enjoyed that including the beautiful gardens. Then we walked back to Rue Cler, just a few blocks, to do some shopping this time. We were sitting at an outdoor table at a cafe Rick Steves recommends and Jon spotted Ted Cozine, a friend from Grace Church, walking by! We knew the Cozines were in Paris and had emailed with them about getting together so this was a great way to plan! They joined us and we're planning to get together next Tuesday. They showed us their darling apartment just above Rue Cler - a great location - and then we were off to the Metro again. Tomorrow we're planning to get an early start and finally get to Versailles! More later!