Friday, July 31, 2009

Back in Scotland

We've made it back to West Linton and slept in this morning. My camera is filled with pictures of Paris, but I'm not sure when I will have time to upload, so please bear with me. The short version is that Paris is amazing. Le Louvre about killed me, L'Arc de Triomphe is better than I ever thought possible, Parisians are surprisingly kind, and le Metro is not all that exciting but very functional (except for the double-decker underground trains, which were very exciting to Gywnneth).

We spent our last day walking in Le Bois de Bolongne, a huge park in the Northwest part of the city. "Bois" means woods, and it was precisely that, with long interconnecting footpaths, a lake, horse-riding trails and more. The highlight was renting a rowboat for Gwynneth, the kids, Andrew and me. :)

So, apologies for such a short entry, but we're off to Peebles to buy scotch in a few minutes. Much love to you, especially mummies who are struggling with renovations.

xoxoxoxox
Erika

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

A day in Paris

It has been approximately 50 years since Andrew's mom, Barbara, has been to Paris. She says much of it is the same; there are just more people now. To my American mind, this is difficult to comprehend, as is much of this city of huge old stone buildings, enormous monuments and museums, fast moving traffic, and countless sidewalk cafes.


Barbara on the airplane to Paris


We are having a nice time, but I'm honestly overwhelmed. I initially didn't want to play tourist, but once you see some of the offerings in person, it's impossible to turn your back on them. They are simply amazing, in terms of size, scope, and history. My french is coming back a little, too. One waitress even told me I spoke well, although I think she was just being kind. :)

Here are some pics at the cafes, to tide you over as I prepare the next blog of monuments and architecture, including a boat ride down the Seine river.





Taken by the waiter on his iPhone and emailed to me. So kind!


I think this means Paris never sleeps? ;)

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Just a quick note

If you're not a formal "follower" (subscriber) to the blog, be sure to page through some of the older posts. I'm updating some things, but putting older dates on them to keep them roughly in order.

We're have a great time in Paris. Today was a tourist whirlwind, including L'arc de Triomphe, Le Tour Eiffel, and a boat ride on the Seine. We're resting a little before dinner. I will post photos soon!

French breakfast

Monday, July 27, 2009

Hôtel Ampere

We are here!

Packing for Paris

It's 3 pm on Monday, and I'm sitting at the kitchen table at Andrew's parents watching Gregory eat pancakes. We're all taking a bit of a pause before leaving for Edinburgh airport in a couple of hours to catch our flight to Paris. It's a sunny day, and the green landscape is lush and vibrant. The weather in Paris is supposed to be comparably nice, with only partial clouds on the first day and sun thereafter.

I was able to sleep in this morning, a much needed relief after being on the road for three days. I was awakened by the appearance of Dizzy, the ancient long-haired Burmese cat who is Beverley's nearly constant companion. It's great to just slow down and hang out with family, especially the kids. The children have been enjoying our iPhones quite a bit. Gregory is chatting away as I write this, telling me all about how Jelly Car (a game on my phone) works--definitely worth the dollar I paid for it. Woo-hoo! He's just won a level! :)

I'm thinking alot about my mama. It's her birthday tomorrow, and I so wish she could be here with me, along with Sandypants. I'm trying to collect little goodies so that I can bring the trip home.

Gregory, by Beverley

Our own private beach

On our way back to West Linton from Durham, we decided to cut across the narrow part of Southern Scotland to the West coast, right at Carlisle, just to get a glimpse of the coast before returning to the village. We missed the first turnoff and continued on to Gretna. Once there, on a whim we decided to look for water on the GPS and just reckon our way to it, as the GPS doesn't indicate many small roads and there weren't clear directions either on sign in the town or the map. Here's a photo diary of our journey.

Driving through a landscape much like most of Southern and Central Scotland: fields and sheep.


A narrow road...

Becomes narrower...


Andrew is trying to figure out why he's still driving. I think it's because he loves me!

There's the estuary! Can we find our way?

Wow. The road is looking sketchy. Want to stop?


No really, want to stop?


Seriously. This is for tractors, not rental cars. Oh wait. We hate Avis!


OK, we go ahead on foot from here.


And look what we find...our own private beach!








I fell in love with these boats.




And, of course, in the water I saw our very own
Loch Gretna Monster!



Topiary for Mama!

Happy Birthday Mamamama! I send you lots of topiary!





Funny signs






Andrew and Beverly

Sunday, July 26, 2009

Durham, town of the large beds and tarty dresses

We stayed at Durham twice, on our way to and coming back from York. We liked the bed and breakfast so well that we came back, to no small extent because the bed was large enough for our large frames. European beds are apparently made for slender midgets, which I don't understand in the least because I have now seen some very large Europeans. I think perhaps it's a scam, similar to the one that happens in dressing rooms; you know, the one that involves a bikini and a solemn vow never to eat again? Anyway, I can't really chop off Andrew's feet without causing problems, so it's good to find a large bed.

On our second visit, we ventured into the town center, which, because it was on a Saturday night, turned out to be a bit of a mistake. Up until that point, I had been marveling at how little flesh even the young women were showing. I had been especially grateful to go several days without seeing another woman's thong. But apparently, once the work week is over, the clothes come off. In Durham, there's a Saturday-night uniform involving, for the ladies, an excessively short dress with excessively high heels (nasty on cobblestone streets, let me tell you) and a thick layer of blue eye shadow. The all wear T-shirts or short sleeves with the tails out, as if to say, "my testosterone levels are too high for me to be concerned with fashion." Imagine Andrew and me in the midst of this, hungry, looking for a restaurant, and being told that the wait was at least an hour. Ick.

So, we took a few pretty pictures, drove back to the B&B and got take-away. We had pizza and fish and chips on a bench in the park. It doesn't get much better than that! :)


A door and my shadow


Football beneath the cathedral



Fly fishing, in camouflage!

Andrew prepares for the trip to Notre Dame

Gregory (by Beverly)

The Black Swans and the Ugly Ducking


While wandering on the York university campus, we were accosted by some black swans, who apparently knew that Andrew had pocketed some Wheatabix (like Shredded Wheat, but much much better) in the cafeteria for me. Ok, Ok, I admit it. I lured them shamelessly. Andrew dared me by saying they would never come out of the water. What ensued was a slow sort of dance between us. (Not me and Andrew, me and the swans! Andrew won't dance, even when he's had a bunch of cider.) They ate directly from my palm and let me touch their necks, as long as I moved slowly. Andrew took a great movie of it, but yet again, he turned the camera sideways, so the moment will be perpetually askew. Sigh. You would think a rocket scientist would be able to figure this out. We'll see how it goes with the next one...





Yes, it is the quintessential Ugly Duckling!