le pissoir de Barnes

Frenchglen is as close to France as I got this summer

2011-08-01T21:01:00.000-07:00

Every year, on a Sunday late in July, I turn off the TV, finish the coffee in my cup and look out at a beautiful Oregon morning. No matter the beauty and no matter my plans for the day, I am depressed. The Tour d' France has ended on the Champs Elysees and I am not there. I will not see Paris this year.

Some years I am actually in Paris. Or in France. On those occasions, it is Sunday afternoon and without exception, I am looking forward to being home in Oregon. But most years, I am here wishing I was there. I do not know what the draw is. I don't speak French, nor am I French. But I love Paris. Granted, I associate Paris with travel, with freedom. But remembering that does not help. It just reminds me that I will not get to experience those feelings for at least another year.

Maybe next year.

Now, all that makes me sound like an unbearable ass. So to prove that I am neither unbearable, nor an ass, I will tell you about the vacation that I did take this summer.

Paige and I have been married now ten years. I am more in love with each passing year. We tend to plan vacations with no dead space and fit as many activities into each day as humanly possible. Sometimes more. The idea for our anniversary trip was to go somewhere with nothing to do but relax. We could not afford a trip to a warm beach, so we decided on the next, or closest, best thing: Eastern Oregon hot springs.

Paige and I handed the boys off to my parents in Burns, Oregon on a ninety-five degree day, bought what supplies we needed and headed to Crystal Crane Hot Springs in nearby Crane, Oregon. For fifteen bucks a night, we had full access to the soaking pond, showers and common room, as well as a sweet spot to pitch our tent . The pond was worth the price alone. There are hot spots in the pond so you can control your soaking temp, as well as hot spring fountains that acted a bit like massaging hot tub jets. And when it was too hot to soak at midday, we spent time in the common room checking email with the free wi-fi and watching stages of le Tour on a big, flat screen TV.

I came to think that I discovered something about my wife during this week, but really I have always known it. The reason all of our vacations are mad dashes to accomplish everything that we can and see everything there is to be seen is because Paige cannot enjoy herself if she is sitting still. The idea for this week was to relax as much as possible, pretend we were on a beach somewhere soaking in the sun. That was not to be. Paige had us on a rigorous workout routine to fill the time. At Crane, this meant long runs through the desert everyday before lunch. It was hard to get motivated by an eight mile run where you can see your destination as soon as you begin. Pancake flat only begins to describe the landscape. I spied power poles in the distance. Forty minutes later, running in a straight, flat line, we finally reached the power poles. Running back to the campground, my view was filled with the snow capped peaks of Steens Mountain, rippling through the heat, about 60 miles distant. I could not help but compare it to the Snows of Kilimanjaro.

After a couple of days of resort living, kinda, we ventured forth into the wilderness part of our journey. On the drive from Crane to the Alvord Desert we met three cars. Two of them were on highway 78 before we turned off onto the gravel (mostly) Fields-Denio Road. Once off the pavement we hardly saw a soul. We spent the afternoon looking out at the desert and skinny-dipping in the cool waters of Pike Creek which flows down from Steens Mountain to the desert.

Steens Mountain is spectacular and I hadn't been on the Alvord Desert side in years. The peaks were still mostly covered in snow and I was amazed at how majestic a mountain range it really is. But no one was there to enjoy it but us. Eighty some odd miles of driving and we felt all alone.

When we reached the Alvord Hot Springs we were a bit reluctant. It is not more than a couple concrete pools with a small deck and some aluminum siding. In the middle of nowhere. We were intimidated by the solitude. However, we decided that we didn't drive all this way just to wave at the desert. We set up camp across the road from the hot springs and went to soak about dusk.

Then the strangest thing happened. Pickup trucks and cars started pulling up just as the sun went behind Steens Mountain and the air began to cool. The soaking pools were all ours at first but within a half-hour ten people had shown up. We talked to people from Missouri, Maine, Colorado and California. We left for dinner and our tent sometime after the purple twilight started to fade to darkness, but we could hear the cars and motorcycles continue to pull up to that hot springs well into the evening. Sounds of excited conversation floated over the desert until midnight.

Then at four A.M., a tanker truck driver, obviously enjoying the road he had all to himself, crested the hill at five miles distance and let up on the throttle long enough for the exhaust to burp. My eyes didn't open, but my mind stirred. I was in a state somewhere between dream and reality. I listened, half imagining, as the trucker redoubled his efforts and gained speed down the incline towards our campsite. I could hear the gravel flying. When he hit the cattle guard about forty yards from our tent, he had to be doing seventy. The sound woke both of us up into full consciousness. And then his compatriots continued to pass by every hour. Each one tried to out pace the other. We sat drinking coffee and swatting mosquitoes at seven A.M. It was eighty degrees already in the desert. Time to get out before we started to melt.

We continued south through more picture perfect scenery to Andrews, Oregon. It was near there that we found the purpose of the tanker trucks, as a large Harney County crew was out paving the road further north towards the Alvord. The tankers start early to haul the tar mix used by the paving operation. According to the flagger, with whom we had a nice, ten minute uninterrupted conversation, they pave another five miles of the road every summer. In another ten years, the Alvord Desert will be on the highway grid so-to-speak. See it now before the rush.

Fields, Oregon is one of those places that you use as a ruler. 'You've been to Fields? Oh, well then you DO go out of your way, don't you?' No earthly reason to be there. But the conversation at the cafe was enough to make it memorable. This place was home to the cook. She'd been there for thirty years. Ontario? Yeah, she'd lived there a long time ago. Too many people. She told us all this as a mountain of hash browns and a half-pound of ground beef spattered on the grill. Fields felt very much like an oasis must have felt to desert travelers.

We wandered north through the massive Catlow Valley. This place holds special meaning to me, just because of William Kitteridge, one of my favorite writers, used to call this place home. The sense of distance and isolation is staggering. Looking across that massive, grassy valley and not seeing any evidence of human existence. We met one car in one hundred miles, both of us dwarfed at the foot of the rim rock.

Frenchglen is exactly as I remembered it. And it has been thirty years since I last sat at the General Mercantile. It took adulthood to appreciate the history of this place, of the P Ranch and Pete French. To my mind, the first of many Californians who came to Oregon to exploit her riches. But I digress.

Paige and I camped at Page Springs Campground. It was just upstream from Barnes Spring. I am not kidding. Also Page is my mother's last name. It get confusing, but just follow me here. Page and Barnes Springs are in close proximity to the Blitzen River and exactly ten miles south of Jackass Mountain. I could not make that up if I tried.

The mosquito's at Page Springs were open for business. Paige and I could only escape them with yet another run, followed by dinner in the tent. Packing up the camp in the morning, I had to use my mosquito net headgear to keep from slapping myself silly.

The plan for the following day was to start our travel north and to end up at Ritter Hot Springs on the Middle Fork of the John Day River. Apparently stagecoach travelers used to take respite at these same hot springs. We arrived to find that the tour book was not exaggerating, as the same buildings were in use that stagecoach travelers had utilized one hundred and fifty years ago. And not a soul in site. There was a chalkboard to self-register for a campsite or cabin, the ancient hotel and a swinging footbridge crossing the river to primitive concrete buildings that served as 'private' soaking baths. We had driven ten miles on a narrow road from the highway, again not seeing another soul to arrive in a scene from every zombie movie ever made. I was tempted to run around yelling, "Hey, is anybody here?" but I was sure someone with a scythe or butcher knife was watching from the shadows just waiting for my attention to be diverted. We snapped a few quick pictures to prove that we had been there and decided, without discussion, that neither one of us could imagine spending the night in this place. What I meant was I didn't think we would survive to see the dawn. We drove back down the private stretch of the Middle Fork to fish and swim on our own, without the fear of brain-eating zombies hoovering over us.

We drove on, past two hot springs that are no longer open to the public and ended up at Hot Lake RV park just outside of LaGrande. We had fifteen minutes to soak in the pool before closing so we rushed into our suits. We ended up sharing the pool with three hippies from Salt Lake, two girls and a guy who had to have just come off a string of bank robberies. I could just tell. Or maybe the zombies had gained some sort of mind control. Either way, the threat that they posed paled in comparison to the zombie menace. They even borrowed a corkscrew for dinner. Very civilized.

Paige was determined to get a good workout in the next day, but the woman in the tourism office looked at us funny when we asked where to run on the trails. She finally sent us to Mt. Emily where we ran about a mile down the road before the local cattle herd seemed to take note of us. I think they assumed that we were there to feed them. But either way, it didn't look good when they tried to surround us. We slowly backed away and found some back road to run from LaGrande. Foothill Drive. A fox ran out in front of us and watched us pass absent of concern.

We soaked in the hot spring-fed pool that evening and took stock of our trip. A week without the kids sounds great, but we were both anxious to see them. It's a funny thing, not easily understood. But we agreed that all the chaos and confusion of a family is much preferred to quiet.

Before we could see the kids again, we had to check off a couple of tasks. The first was a long run, of course. The tourists guide to Grande Ronde country listed the Summerville run as a favorite of local runners. Apparently local runners are masochist without the ability to judge distance. Now, I am liking the trail running as much as I ever have, but when you set off for a eight mile run, and you reach eight miles knowing that you are nowhere near closing the loop and it is ninety degrees outside, well, you get discouraged. At least I did. Paige finished the run. I watched her for the last mile from a safe distance, through the heat waves walking down a county road.

The second task, and the final celebration of our trip was to spend the night in Enterprise, Oregon. The idea was to stay within walking distance of Terminal Gravity Brewing in order to properly toast our ten years of wedded bliss. And I must say, the brewery did not disappoint. It is almost enough to make Paige think of moving to Enterprise. Almost. We clinked glasses, ate some delicious food and drank some excellent beer under the trees as the sun set throwing an orange light over the Wallowa Mountains. I sat on this very spot two weeks after my first date with Paige, wishing I could share it with her. I am glad to say that she liked it when I did share that spot, one year later. One wedding and ten years later, we still both like to share that spot. That's as good a thing as I could ever ask for.

I won't bore you with details of our reunion with our kids, or with details of our relaxing week at Wallowa Lake. Standard family vacation details. Paige and I traveled into Joseph every day to catch up on video of le Tour. It seemed to fit, watching the riders glide through the tiny French villages while sitting outside at Mutiny Brewing in tiny Joseph, Oregon. There I go with the details.

So here's to ten years with my best friend. I love her more than ever. I still want to share all my special, secret spots with her. Here's to finding another secret spot, maybe one or two more in France, before the next ten years go by.

Happy Fathers Day'

2011-06-19T01:13:00.000-07:00

Moab MTB

2011-05-10T16:36:00.000-07:00

Wow. It's been awhile. Not sure who is listening or watching. But I am in Moab, UT. So I thought I would post a few pics. Anything I can do to avoid facebook.

I have been beaten up by the trails here. Humiliated. And also laugh-out-load happy. So maybe I am getting the hang of it.

New Year, Goodbye 2009

2009-12-31T12:03:00.000-08:00

I know I've lost you all, whoever you all are. I told myself that I would keep blogging when our lives returned to normal. That has not happened. Well, a new year and my first resolution. Write more. Blog more. Two resolutions.

I sat at my desk today tying up a year's worth of loose ends. On June 17 of 2009, I placed some expensive, scientific equipment in the Deschutes River. I did not take the instruments out of the river until October. For one hundred and nineteen days, they kept logging data, recording the pH, temperature and oxygen levels every fifteen minutes. During that time, I gazed into my wife's eyes from 5000 miles away, traveled across the globe, drank wine, ate lamb brochettes, ascended the Eiffel Tower and Swiss Alps with my kids, became a godfather, traveled back across the globe, hiked around Todd Lake with Fletch and DJ and looped Lower Whoops trail on my bike at least twenty times.

On July 29, in my absence, my co-workers went out to check on the instruments. Nothing went right. You can feel the frustration on the sample log book. The handheld probe would not work, the batteries on the instruments were dying. The page has numerous strike-throughs and asterisks and it's hard to make sense of it. Half a world away, I was in Aix-les-Bains celebrating Drexell Jacob's seventh birthday. We went to McDonald's, the kid's first time. At the hostel, we ate Magnum ice cream bars and played soccer and ping pong in the back yard. I had a couple Kronenburg's and maybe a glass of wine. When we went to bed that night, in the sweltering heat of the third floor, the instruments were still submerged in the river, logging data for me to come home and wade through.

2009 was a great year. We can't wait to tackle 2010.

Merry Christmas

2009-12-23T23:06:00.000-08:00

I will let the pics tell the story. Merry Christmas everyone. It's been a great year, looking forward to the next.
-Drex

Swim Lessons

2009-10-05T21:07:00.000-07:00

Fletcher,

You are the youngest person in this house not counting the dog. But even he doesn't give you your due. I know what that's like. It's not all bad. You will find there are advantages to being last. But right now, I know you get the shaft.

No one pays you enough attention. You try and get it, but everyone is so busy you have to break something or scream at the top of your lungs to get a head to turn. Then all the attention goes south. 'Why do you have to yell?' and 'Fletcher, don't hit your brother (the dog, the table, yourself...).'

We owe you an apology. I owe you an apology. I'm sorry I don't tell you how proud you make me, every day. You were the youngest one here to learn to use the potty. You are so independent, some call it stubborn, that you hate it when someone has to help you. You understand things that took all of us years longer to grasp. You may be the quickest to anger, but you are also the quickest to laugh. And I've never seen you take more than a few seconds to shake off a bruise, a scrape, a bloody nose. Which is saying something since you are a walking band-aid. You would rather play on than sit and sulk.

You want so much to be like your brothers. You want to be older. When you asked each of us, Greysun, Drexell Jacob and I, if we could come to your very first swim lesson, you weren't just being polite. You wanted to show us how grown up you are. You wanted us to share. We all had to say 'No,' the boys would be in school and I would be at work. But your mother said to me, 'Sure. Don't worry about it. He's just your youngest child."

I told you, "I'll try."

You sat on the counter, looked me in the eye and said, "You'll try?"

"Yes."

"Drexell," you said to your brother. "Daddy's going to try."

And you might not know how close I came to not trying. I haven't driven to work in the last two months. The snow on Sunday changed that. I wasn't ready to ride in the weather this morning and I had to drive my car. 'Oh well,' I thought. 'It's a good excuse to drive to Fletch's swim lessons.'

When you got to the pool, your mother parked a row away from me. I walked toward the car and you came running around the corner, across the slushy parking lot yelling, "You tried Daddy! You tried!" smiling the whole time, arms pumping and mouth wide. And you ran straight into my arms and gave me a good, genuine hug. You held tightly for a good ten seconds. You, the little kid who hates hugs. I could feel you smiling. I will remember it forever.

I love you Fletcher. I will always, always try.

Daddy

Winter Storm Warning

2009-10-04T13:12:00.000-07:00

About two months ago the entire family was in Provence in southern France. It's kind of hard to remember the sweltering heat and palm trees since it's started snowing here in Bend.

I had to clean the snow off of the car to go get coffee. Here is a picture of what DJ and I did just one week ago today:

I really don't mind it, but my wife woke up swearing like a sailor. Even worse than normal. Could be a long winter.

The forcast calls for sunny weather, returning to the mid 60's by this Tuesday. If this is the only snow we see this winter, Paige will be very happy. Otherwise, pray for me.

Anyone There?

2009-08-25T20:45:00.000-07:00

Have I lost all of you? Do you care what this family does in the boring old US? Well, if you are still there, welcome to life in Bend, Oregon.

Not much to talk about. And everything to say. We have mostly adjusted to life back home. I see Mike noted today that one month ago we were atop Mont Ventoux. Seems like yesterday. And it seems a light year away. I found two seminars that would be interesting and useful for me to attend. One in Dublin, IE in September and one in Munich in October. I printed off the brochures and slapped them down on my bosses desk. He had a good laugh. I wasn't joking

Paige is adjusting by keeping busy. She's signed up for a half marathon and also for a race from Bend to Mt. Bachelor on a bike and then running to the summit. Thank God we were only gone five weeks.

Drexell Jacob is watching every KISS video on youtube. I hear 'Rock and Roll Every Day' in my head when I go to sleep. Fletch is terrorizing the dog and anyone else who gets in his way. I hear that Greysun actually wishes school would start. We're all dealing with being home.

I went on a bike ride with Scott and Jerry tonight. Scott is heading to Switzerland in a couple days. He and Heather will be there for two weeks. What I would give for two weeks in Switzerland. Well, I guess I wouldn't after all. It's just money.

These past few weeks we have tried to cram in a summer's worth of Bend. Hiking, biking, fishing. We're spending as much time together as we did on vacation. It's just that damn work that keeps intruding on my schedule. I have promised myself to write more. Even writing this little blurb feels good. Maybe I can commit to writing something longer than a postcard. That would be quite and accomplishment.

School will start in a two weeks. The Ducks play in Boise in eight days. I'm trying to get the kids to dress up like KISS for Halloween. And I have so much vacation accumulated that I will have to take a week of around Christmas. I guess I'll find something to write about even in the US.

Back Too Soon

2009-08-11T21:46:00.000-07:00

At a town hall meeting about heath care in Pennsylvania tonight, a woman stood up and told Senator Arlen Spector that she was afraid of this country turning into Russia. Yes, I must be back in the United States.

We’re home. More correctly, I’m home. Paige and the boys are in Eugene retrieving our dog. So, I’m sitting here trying to figure out how I can put a bow on this vacation. I’m too close to this to make any measurements yet. After a season or two, maybe a year or two, I can look back at this time and evaluate. Right now, I just feel tired.

We did pull into Canby, Oregon about eleven PM, an hour ahead of schedule. Our August 6 lasted thirty-three hours. I fell into a deep sleep that ended at six AM promptly. Paige was similarly afflicted and we both went for a run to work off some energy. It felt great. I haven’t felt that good since.

Friday on the drive back to Bend, I think I started to hallucinate but my short term memory is shot, so I can’t be sure. Picking up our held mail in Bend, I know that the post office door expanded outward and the building took a deep breath. I steadied myself, looked out the window and smiled when the door opened and the mail lady handed me my stack.

Saturday was spent cleaning and resting. We went over to Mike and Wendy’s house for a barbeque, or B-B-Q as DJ took to calling it, that night and tried not to fall asleep at the table. Jet lag has hung onto us all for a god-awful long time. We rode our bikes home in the dark and luckily didn’t run into any parked cars. And Sunday I thought a hike was in order to welcome us back to God’s Country. Great, except the kids, and the adults were all working with short fuses and our assault on Tumalo Mountain came up half-way short. No matter, I thought. I’ll get in a short mountain bike ride. Short is right. I can still ride a bike, but apparently I left a lung in France. Have you seen it?

Preparing to not hike Tumalo Mt.

Monday I returned to work. Before I could answer the one-hundred or so emails, I had to have IT repair my notebook. It didn’t matter. I deleted seventy of them without reading. Only two required my attention. I spent the rest of the day trying to figure out what the hell it is I do for a living, no really, what do I do, you know that whole inner-conversation? Fun. Luckily, I found the Rugenbrau website and downloaded the logo for my kick-ass background photo. I think we came back too soon.

Today was better. I hiked Bridge Creek to take water quality samples. Beautiful and more therapeutic than usual. Tonight I had dinner with Scott and Heather and bored them to death with my stories, which they are undoubtedly familiar with because of this damn blog. I handed them a road map of Switzerland. They are going soon. And I heard myself say, “When we go back…”

Already making plans.

White Chocolate Magnum Bar, An Ode To Thee

2009-08-06T19:55:00.000-07:00

Something I did to pass the time and use the free bandwidth in the Vancouver BC airport.

In Transit

2009-08-06T18:41:00.001-07:00

We’re somewhere over Canada. I’m listening to Blitzen Trapper on my iPod, an Oregon band. The Blitzen River, along with the Donner River run through southeastern Oregon, a country with many more sheep than people. My grandfather used to shear those sheep, traveling from ranch to ranch in the spring, setting up shop for a couple days and fishing out of his camper on the days in between. I’m returning from France where I actively searched for and ate as much lamb as possible for the past four weeks. A circle is closing.

We had a wonderful time in Paris. I was dreading the visit, I know that most of the family was anxious about returning to a bustling city. But I forgot how beautiful Paris is.

We arrived on the TGV from Strasbourg and took the Metro, line 4, seven stops to Odeon, where we had booked a hotel close to Molly and Paul’s. They may not agree with me after spending an entire summer there, but I loved my two days hanging out on Rue de Buci. Their apartment is on the 1st floor up from street level and you enter and exit the street to a quiet, cool courtyard that they share with the rest of the building. Once you open that courtyard door, you exit the peace inside to the crowded café and street market world of the St. Germane. I followed Paul and Sarai riding a long board down the narrow alley, dodging cars, bikes and scooters to pick up some wraps at the best Lebanese bistro that you will find on this planet. We went back again the next day. Greysun went back a third time for diner. It’s that good.

We got the kids out to a museum, the Cluny and it’s medieval collection on Wednesday. We are all over it. The guards tried to keep our kids quiet and by my indifference I practically dared them. Good luck with that, pal. I’ve been trying for a month. But the kids had fun.

Then Wednesday afternoon we went to Plage de Paris. The city ships in sand, boardwalks and potable water and tries to recreate the Cote de Azur right there in Paris. And since everyone who lives in Paris is actually visiting the Cote de Azur for the month, all the tourists eat up the beach culture. Again, the kids had fun playing in the sand. We saw a giant catfish that had been caught in the Seine and wondered just how carcinogenic the flesh of that fish could be. But all in all, it didn’t impress me that much. Paris is one big walking festival, this just seemed too much like a Bend Summer Festival.

But through all this, I was looking at Paris through eyes that were sad for leaving. I wanted to record it all. These days were our best. Having ice cream with the kids at St. Michele, wandering through St. Germane, catching glimpses of the Eifel Tower, drinking a great espresso double from a Tabac, it was just, well, Parisian. Our last night there Grey watched the kids while the adults, Paige, Molly, Paul and I went out for dinner. We ate slowly, I had lamb once again, the daylight faded and the café lights came out and we got home late. Fletch was asleep already and I had to carry him out of the quiet courtyard, onto Rue de Buci and down about 60 meters to our hotel. He slept on my shoulder as we passed all the revelers in the noisy cafes, the lights and the cigarette smoke. He never moved a muscle. I think we’re all that tired.
And that was just over 24 hours ago. As I write this, we are an hour out of Vancouver BC and with luck and some help from Air Canada we will drive our 4Runner into Canby at about midnight tonight. That will be almost 24 hours exactly from the time that our travel day began.

Back in the States. I’m going to buy some ice and drive out past Millican somewhere were I won’t see a soul for days. I’ll just sit there eating ice and listening to pine needles drying. Then I’ll be home.

Etienne Bapteme

2009-08-03T12:31:00.000-07:00

Sunday was the day we'd been looking forward to. And I'd been secretly dreading. It was Etienne's baptism, and as his godfather, I'd have to get up and say a few words. In front of 20 or so people that don't speak English. But it turned out I was worried for nothing.

Jeff and Benedicte are the oldest of friends. I met Jeff on our first day of third grade. I was honored when they asked me to be Etienne's godfather and it precipitated all the cross-Atlantic motion that afflicted my family. I don't think I can thank them enough for the chance to come here and be a part of something so special.

A couple day ago, Jeff asked me to write something to say at the baptism, how I see my role as Etienne’s godfather. That was no problem. But being without a printer, I had to copy the few paragraphs in my own hand. That’s when I started to get nervous.

We showed up at the church in Bischem about a half-hour before the ceremony and, bless her heart, Ben had handed me three full pages of hand-written notes that she had taken for me, to help guide me through the ceremony and let me know what was happening and why. I met her family and the godmother and her family. They all could not have been more welcoming or gracious. The priest performing the ceremony did not speak a lick of English, but was sure that most of the proceedings were interpreted for my family’s benefit. When it came time to read our parts, the godmother Marie, made sure to read hers in English for us as well. She also interpreted my speech into Francias on the fly, impressing all of us. And she managed to whisper details to me in English when we had to hold the candle for Etienne, symbolizing the light that we were holding for him to see.

Etienne was so well behaved during the ceremony. I was able to pick up quite a bit from the ceremony, the lesson about Etienne joining the family vine, the sacrament of wine and the light that was being shown to him. DJ even got into the act, as the priest recruited him to hold the vessel of water during the blessing. What a trooper. He picked up a pitcher of water and handed back a vessel of holy water.

DJ holding the holy water

In the end, Etienne was baptized with just little fuss and the water seemed to tame his hair for the rest of the day. The unction that was used by the priest to make the sign of the cross on his forehead was based, by my nose, on lavender oil, Paige’s favorite. And I entered my name in the book and signed, now pledged to oversee Etienne’s spiritual training. I said it in my speech and I still believe it: I feel insufficient.

Of course, as in any culture, anywhere, the ceremony was just the beginning. When families get together, no matter where they are, I think similarities between cultures shine through. It seemed to me like so many family get-togethers that I have attended, albeit with much better food, wine and cheese. Benedicte’s family opened their arms to us and we spent the afternoon talking, as best we could, listening and playing in between courses of pates, cheeses, Alsatian cakes, sausages, meats, breads, tarts, mousses and of course great Alsatian wine. The kids in particular had fun. It’s amazing how the language barrier slips away when kids are at play. By the end of the afternoon, they were playing with the other children as if they’d been friends for years.

We said goodbye to Jeff, Ben, Emmanual and Etienne today. They will not return to the US until September. I feel like we did not spend enough time with them. But I feel that way every time we say goodbye. I cannot thank them enough for this experience.

We went one last time to Petite France, to say goodbye and to take in one more great meal. Strasbourg did not disappoint. Tomorrow we say goodbye to the Mercedes and hop a TGV to Paris. One more jump and we’ll be back.

Back in the Alsace

2009-08-01T23:35:00.000-07:00

Friday we finally left Aix-les-Bains. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a beautiful place. Maybe it was the concrete-blocked hostel we were staying in, or the fact that we had to spend DJ’s birthday in a strange place, but it just felt like we were doing time.

Doing time in Aix-les-Bains

We are back in Strasbourg after a long day of driving. Paige and I are still married after navigating the Mercedes bus through yet another urban jungle. I have even less faith in directions I receive from the internet. I’m looking at you, Google Maps. But after getting lost yet again, and asking directions from strangers, yet again, we parked the van for possibly the last time. We will turn it in Monday after a thorough cleaning and then try to fit all of our souvenirs into our luggage. Our TGV leaves Tuesday morning for Paris and we can only take what we can carry. No problem for me. But the rest of the family has accumulated a stockpile of pamphlets, post cards, Tour memorabilia and just plain junk. I am the sole member of this tribe who does not care to bring back half of France to Bend. They have recycling bins here too, you know.

Strasbourg at night

Friday night we returned to a restaurant that I favor here in Strasbourg. I don’t know if the locals like it, but it’s casual enough that no one cares when our kids start to raise a fuss, and the lamb brochettes are the best thing that I have eaten here in France. Twice. We might go back to Au Pont Saint Martin on Monday, just because we can.

Au Pont Saint Martin, we love thee

Yesterday, we spent with Jeff and Emmanuel taking in the sites of Ile Petite France. Today is Etienne’s baptism and party. That’s the whole reason we came to the continent, so that a priest here in Strasbourg can appoint me his godfather. I have to say a few words, in English in front of the French crowd gathered there. I was tempted to try some French in front of the audience, but thought better of it. No one would be able to hear me whisper.

DJ following Jeff and Em through the streets
Em and DJ trying to get a wave

So we are down to our last few days here in France. It feels mostly like a chore list now, turn in the van, catch train to Paris, reserve airport shuttle, etc. But hopefully, we can fit in a few more fun moments. Our kids get to rendezvous with Oliver and Sarai one last time this summer. And we’re already trying to fit in one last museum for DJ.

Funny as it sounds, I’m looking forward to the heat in central Oregon. But, you know, if the weather decides to take it down a notch, to say 85 degrees, I won’t mind a bit.

Lac Livin'

2009-07-30T08:57:00.001-07:00

We have moved our little traveling circus to Aix-les-Bains. I wish I could tell you that we did so for some exciting or exotic reason. I cannot. After Mike left and le Tour was over, we needed to catch up a bit. On sleep, on laundry and on travel plans. So we found a hostel here in Aix-les-Bains where we could rest, clean and plan to our hearts content. Then we found out that there is no wi-fi here. Damn.

Hostel livin’

But everything works out in the end. The town is actually a tourist spot for the lake that borders it, Lac du Borget and the surrounding Rhone Alps. The kids have been swimming every day. If you squint your eyes a little, the swimming area looks a lot like Wallowa Lake in eastern Oregon where my family is staying right now, and where we would be staying also if we were in the Pacific Time Zone. Well, you'd have to squint a lot and ignore the old ladies with skin like boot leather sunbathing topless directly to your right.

Lac du Borget
DJ diving in

Alas, we have to suffer through the last week of our European Tour. But now we are prepared and ready to splurge for the final week after saving some money here in Aix-les-Bains. I am more familiar with the Geant Supermarche here than with the Safeway on Century Drive after visiting at least two times a day. The hostel’s kitchen is not what we had hoped, mostly just a hotplate and a microwave. So we have had to get creative. We have found the best sandwich place, a boucher with great meats and fresh bread, all organic. And I have enjoyed the nightly Magnum ice cream bars that we’ve stocked the fridge with. I will have to write a book sometime about my love affair with Magnum white chocolate ice cream bars. But I digress.

When we arrive and found the hostel without wi-fi, which incidentally is pronounced ‘wee-fee’ here, we were forced to do something no one expected. Go to McDonalds. They have the best, free wee-fee in town, and in France apparently. But anyone who knows my kids can tell you that McDonalds is forbidden fruit. It was with a little sigh and two cameras in his face that Drexell Jacob tasted his first McDonalds cheeseburger on the day before he turned seven years old. Fletcher and Greysun joined him, so Fletch will not have to wait so long. But DJ liked it so much, he decided that we would eat at McDonalds for his seventh birthday. Yesterday, on July 29, we celebrated his birthday with another round of cheeseburgers and fries and made a deal that whenever we are visiting Aix-les-Bains, the kids can have McDonalds. But if we are anywhere else, no dice.

7 years old and his 1st McDonalds cheeseburger

We did take advantage of the good wi-fi and chatted, video style with my family in eastern Oregon. Quite a world we live in, me sitting outside McDonalds in Aix-les-Bains next to a bustling kiddy play area, shouting at my family who had gathered in the small café at Wallowa Lake, both of us looking at a 1.8 mega pixel image of each other. But for the cost of a few cheeseburgers, DJ got to see his Mimi and Dadad, his aunts, uncle and cousins on his seventh birthday. Thank you, internet.

Pont de Gard

2009-07-26T14:42:00.000-07:00

Our last day in Provence was spent recovering. A little vacation from our vacation. Jeff had recommenced that we visit Pont du Gard, the site of a third-century Roman aqueduct for the sights and for the swimming. After the hike up Ventoux, swimming sounded good.

We paid for parking, but visiting the river Gard is free. We even walked across the bridge, soaking in the history and the sun.

Swimming Pont du Gard
Fun with history
Paige soaking in the sun

It’s strange to me, but even though this is a historically significant site most people come here for the swimming. There just happens to be good parking and a Roman aqueduct here.

We bid Adieu to Mike this morning and there were tears all around. We cannot thank him enough for all that he has done on this trip. The boys are going to miss him so much. Paige and I will miss showing him the sights, he was the perfect subject for our no-plans tour of Europe.

Bon Voyage Papa.

Mt. Ventoux

2009-07-26T02:19:00.000-07:00

So, I think Mike will be smiling for a while now.

Video Mt. Ventoux July 25, 2009

We managed to put ourselves on Mt. Ventoux for the last climb of this years Tour de France. I had hoped to get closer to the top but so did about one million other people. That’s not an exaggeration. But we ended up at the foot of the mountain, about 22 km from the summit. Paige, DJ, Fletch and I made it up about 5 km but Greysun and Mike trudged all the way to within 5 km of the summit. We all got to share in the madness that is Mt. Ventoux. Throngs of fans, riders so close you could touch them and an atmosphere that cannot be equaled. It is a story I’ll let everyone relate to each of you , because I’m sure that we all took away something different.

Mike and his backpack, packed for Mt. Ventoux
The kids watching the caravan pass
Close up of Mr. Armstrong
Contador (race leader) with Lance over his right shoulder
Cooling off, summit Mt. Ventoux in the distance

After the riders passed us, they still had 40 minutes or so before they reached Mike and Grey. So when we had been waiting at the bottom of the mountain for three hours, we started to be concerned. Much to our relief, Grey and Mike came limping up to the van with about half an hour of sunlight left in the day. After a French fast-food stop we all fell into a deep sleep that we are just now recovering from.

Today is Mike’s last day with us. He will get on a TGV train tomorrow to catch a flight out of Paris on Tuesday. It will be very strange to travel without him. The kids are going to have to adjust to life without their Papa.

Le Tour en Annecy

2009-07-22T21:28:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was not really remarkable. We drove from Switzerland to Annecy, France. Everyone was quiet almost the entire drive. I think we all miss Switzerland, more specifically, we miss Lauterbrunnen. But the drive was uneventful. Finding our hotel and parking our van was adventurous. After it was done, Paige sat alone in the dark for a few minutes to decompress. We explored Annecy a bit, finding each place we visit just a little different from them all.
But today, that’s the day it all came together.

We woke early, ate a big breakfast and headed down to see le Tour. Crowds were incredible. I’ve compared it before to American college football tailgating. But it’s also like a traveling music festival. A moveable Woodstock. Every day.

We walked around the team area, where riders were warming up for the time trial. For those not familiar with cycling, a time trial stage is where each rider rides a closed course individually against the clock. A single rider goes off by himself every two or three minutes. Each team has their busses and cars parked in the team area and if you are lucky, and very tall you can see your favorite rider warming up before his turn. I am neither, I guess. I think I saw young American, Tyler Farrar warming up, but I can’t be sure. The more popular teams had people 10 deep trying to look in at the riders.

So we moved on to the start ramp. I was pushing Fletch in his stroller most of the time and almost got run over by a car, a policeman and a mob on separate occasions. But we survived and found a place to watch the riders go off about 300 meters after the start. All the adults were happy, but we had to make sure the kids had drinks, food and everything else to pass the time. Fletch took a two hour nap in his stroller, by far the best sleep he’s gotten in days.

We snagged a start schedule and with my watch I could tell who was about to come around our corner and fly by. In all, each rider spent about 7 seconds in front of us as they raced by. But it was a thrill to see them all.

It took about 5 hours for all the riders to go. They go in ascending order, so the race leaders are last. Yes, we saw Lance race by and we got to look right in his eye. Alberto Contador went by last, wearing an all yellow kit, about 2 feet in front of me.

With nothing left to see, we went back to the finish area which was filled with about 50,000 people all trying to catch a glimpse of the finish line. Luckily, le Tour de France is experienced in crowd control and provided a huge TV screen at the finish so everyone could see. You could also see who was leading the race and when Contador crossed the line with the best time, a tremendous cheer went up. But I must say, the crowd cheered longer when Lance approached the line.

It was a great day and Mike keeps raving about it, so I think it made him as happy as it made me. The kids actually got a big kick out of the day and can now brag that they have seen the world’s best cyclists up close and personal.

There is one more thing to tell, but it’s a little embarrassing. When we tried to see the jersey presentation, I was still pushing Fletch in his stroller but the crowds had grown considerably denser. Dense as in people per square meter and also dense as in amount of alcohol consumed. I had parked the stroller and decided to wait for Paige and the others who were only 20 feet or so away from me. But it had become impossible to move with the stroller. So, here I am people squeezing by and Fletch happy and safe in his little cocoon. About two people to my left I heard some shouting. Apparently a young, French hipster had stepped on the foot of an old, pudgy German wearing a ‘Schlecks’ t-shirt. They exchanged some heated words, I could tell they were having trouble communicating in French, but the anger was reflected. Great, I thought. Now the police will come and I’ll never get out of this crowd. People were still trying to move on each side of these two but everyone was silent waiting for the other shoe to drop. I noticed a little girl, about six, at my hip on a razor scooter, trying to scoot by the conflict.

I owe the reader a word here about how I act in a foreign country. I am shy. I tend to whisper my words, scared that they will come out wrong. I don’t turn away from eye contact and the European regard is fascinating to me. I try to tip my head to everyone and say ‘Hi’ just like I was passing them in the beer line at the Vale rodeo, because they deserve it even if they don’t think I do. But mostly, I do not like to bring attention to myself. My kids and wife do not have this attitude and I am glad for it, but I still cringe when DJ yells something at me across a crowded square in English. I don’t know why.

So back to the face off. The words ceased for a second as the two looked deep into each others eyes. I don’t know what they saw, but the German did not like it so he tried to swing on the French hipster. He couldn’t move enough in the crowd to cock his arm, so he leaned into the French dude and the two tumbled into two other people who tumbled into me and Fletch and also the little girl on a scooter.

I did not plan what happened next and I don’t know where it came from. But I have mentioned to you that I do not handle my children’s risk as well as my own. I leaned forward, to make sure the girl would not fall and I yelled. I yelled loud. And when I yell loud, I sound very angry. Maybe I was.

Hey! There’s kids here! KNOCK THIS SH*T OFF!

I pointed very forcefully to the exits as I said it. The German, the Frenchman and everyone within one-hundred yards stopped what they were doing and looked at me. Within two seconds the German turned and waded back through the crowd. The French hipster slunk out to my left. And people started moving again. And everyone looked at their feet when they passed by. I saw Paige, still 20 feet away mouth “Are you OK?” at me. Fine, I smiled.

The little girl stood on her scooter the whole time and her mother, directly behind her, passed by and said in very broken English, “They have no regard for the children.” You got it, sister. Maybe now they do.

But the rest of the night as we had dinner and relaxed after a long day, I had this feeling that different people would pass by in the street looking at their feet.

Swiss Love

2009-07-21T07:00:00.000-07:00

Another day in paradise. Is it any coincidence that we have met so many people from Oregon and the Northwest here in Lauterbrunnen? I guess you tend to vacation and live in places that you like. We like this place. Mike has turned a corner. He is no longer referring to this as ‘the trip of a lifetime.’ He’s already transitioned to ‘When I come back here, I‘ll….’ It’s a big step.

Fletch has gone two consecutive days without a nap and the stress is showing. Right now he’s sleeping off a one kilometer fit thrown after disembarking the train and walking up the hill to our hostel. I am still sans-internet, but I’m adjusting. When Mike went to use the internet café for the last hour it is open, I said no, I don’t think it’s worth it. I almost couldn’t believe my own mouth. But I was drinking a Rugen Brau Lager, looking up the hill towards Wenger and very much enjoying the view. To hell with the internet.

We visited Klein Schliteing today via the Wengeralpen Bahn, a narrow-gauge railway that transports people from the valley floor to over seven thousand feet elevation. It is a trip I have taken before and I enjoyed showing my family. We could look down the valley, at the village to Grindelwald where Paige and I spent part of our honeymoon. We also went for a short hike to get a close look at a glacier. I find myself oddly concerned that Fletch or DJ is going to fall over a cliff, and the hike above Klein Schliteing was stressful for me. I can handle my own risk, but don’t handle theirs well.

Tomorrow we must leave the Interlaken region, but it will not be our last time here. Today I ran with my wife on a beautiful pre-dawn jog up the valley along the river and through time. I hope to squeeze one more run in here tomorrow. If I don’t have too many Rugen Brau’s.

The View From Here

2009-07-20T23:51:00.000-07:00

Today was my favorite day. DJ wanted to go for a run, so we wandered out along the river, watching the base jumpers fly off the cliffs. The whole family took four trams to the Schlithorn, a ski station at almost 10,000 feet. The tram rides were incredible as long as I didn’t look down. At the top, the views were spectacular. We walked over fresh (day old) snow on the terrace. On the tram ride down, we stopped and had lunch in Murren, a village on the edge of a cliff. And the last stop down was Gimmelwald, where the kids had fun playing on a very fast slide. After a home cooked dinner at the hostel, with amazing views and the kids playing on a trampoline, we walked in the dark to Staubach Falls. The village lights up the falls at night, all nine-hundred, majestic feet of them. After a stroll home we all fell into bed and slept listening to the river rush below us.

So, yeah, I could get used to life here in Lauterbrunnen.

Speedbump

2009-07-20T00:01:00.000-07:00

It wasn’t exactly how I wanted to spend my first evening in Switzerland, but if you have to spend an hour on the phone with your bank, begging to get a replacement Visa card and listening to elevator music, I highly recommend Lauterbruennen. The views from my Swiss phone booth were million-dollar, jaw-dropping, and a little soothing, I must admit. If we have to be stranded somewhere, I kept thinking, this ain’t bad.

It seems that someone has been hacking into our Visa account while we were away. I was annoyed when my Visa didn’t work once in Lauterbruennen, concerned when Paige’s would not work also and then dismayed when the sales clerk told us that we were being asked to call our bank. Visa and US Bank were paying attention it seems when I let them know that we were traveling abroad and when a charge came across for ninety-five dollars worth of Domino’s Pizza in California, among a few others in the US, they decided to suspend the account. Not to worry, I told the person on the other end of the overseas collect call, just get me a new one. Oh no, they said, we don’t deal with any overseas transactions. It’s too late to make this a short story, but after three disconnects, four bank representatives and a few pleas, I should receive a replacement card in two days in Switzerland. The view of four thousand-foot waterfalls from the phone booth probably kept me from passing out.

Again, I find my vocabulary ineffective when trying to describe the beauty here in Switzerland. Yesterday when we arrived it was rainy and a bit gloomy, but today as I was running up the valley in the morning, the sun came out for good. There is not another site on earth as impressive. I was running on a trail that I hadn’t traveled for 14 years and I found myself anticipating the features around each bend in the road. This place makes an impression.

We hiked up to the base of Staubauch Falls, it’s a bit treacherous with the water, rocks and steep steps, but we all made it. Fletcher was a real trooper. Then we wandered down the valley on the same trail that I had run. We were at ground zero for about 15 base jumpers as they launched off the cliffs above we could hear the ruffling of their suits and parachutes. I have some incredible video to share if I ever find a good internet connection. Seems even the pay-for-internet connection has it’s limits. So I will try and post some pics to tide everyone over.

Paige and Fletch goofing in Switzerland
Our hostel room view
Running to natures warm embrace
Looking for falling objects
Mike on the trail

Paige feels like everything that she tries to say in German sounds like swearing. I think that is the best description of how German falls on my ear. So I will tell you that tomorrow we will possibly take a tram to the Schlithorn for the spectacular views of Jungfrau, Monk and Eiger.

Lauterbruennen

2009-07-18T14:11:00.000-07:00

I’m sitting here looking out over the most amazing view in the world and thinking how my outlook hasn’t changed a bit. I’ll explain.

We drove today from Mulhouse to Lauterbruennen Switzerland. In Mulhouse, we cleaned up the cabin, packed away all the food and wine that will keep and headed mostly south to Switzerland. Odd to me, but that is how the alps change the continent. North of here, in Mulhouse, it is muggy, hot and oppressive and that’s without the sunshine. Now to the south in Switzwerland, at a much higher altitude, I am sitting with all of my warm clothes on, squeezed on the narrow balcony trying to keep the mist and rain off of my laptop. But the view. Oh my.

It has been fourteen years since I have been here. Paige and I went up the other valley from Interlaken to Grindelwald on our honeymoon eight years ago. But this place, Lauterbruennen, is just like I remember it from so long ago, and I trust just like so many people remember it. I’m looking at the clouds drift by exposing thousand -meter peaks with sun shining on glaciers. Another moment, I can only see about a mile. But right across from me is a waterfall, not unique in this valley, tumbling a few hundred feet over a sheer timber-rimmed, granite-faced cliff. The valley floor is green, vegitation can’t help but spring up everywhere between the hillside chalets and houses dotting the slope. Below me is a rushing river, brown with the rain and sudden melt I suppose, crashing down the valley and carrying away all the water from those falls. At my feet, literally is a funicular railway, a train leaves every thirty minutes or so, climbing up the green slope, out of sight through a tunnel in the cliff. My words don’t do it justice. My view is spectaculare’.

My outlook, however has not changed, since I am still unable to find a reliable internet connection. Our hostel promised one, but so far, has not come through for me. And the front desk doesn’t seem that concerned with fixing the problem. Maybe the bus load of Japanese teens that checked in behind us, with their overflowing bags of electronic gear will help me convince the management to fix the problem. Either that or I have to wait for Fletch to wake up from his nap and take him up the street to the internet café. I am there, Europe. It has taken two weeks and more failed connections than one can count, but I am there, ready to pay by-the-hour for my stinking internet connection. See what you’ve done to me?

Stage 13, le Tour

2009-07-17T22:08:00.000-07:00

Today was one of those days that I’d like to forget. But, as Paige kept telling the kids, we’ll remember this day as a family and all have a good laugh. No one is laughing yet.

We tried to drive to the Col. Du Platzerwassel to see the Tour de France but could only make it as far as Le Markstem. Instead of seeing the bikes and riders climbing slowly, we got to see them buzzing downhill at about 50 mph. The village of Le Markstem is a ski station high in the mountains above the Alsace valley and we drove over the high point of those mountains, Le Grand Ballon, on our way there. But the weather did not let us see anything but small glimpses of the view.

When we arrived at the village, the gendarmerie had already closed the route to the col, so we had to park and find a spot. The village reminded me of Government Camp, Oregon. Lots of ski shops and cafes. There were many families and groups tailgating and you can’t help but think of American college football. It’s the exact same scene. I was further reminded of the Civil War football game when it started to pour down buckets of cold, cold rain. Mike kept saying that it would let up soon, and at first the kids believed him. The adults knew better, though.

We saw that most people were not squatting and saving spots yet, so we went back to the van and did some tailgating of our own. After enough food and liquid courage, we ventured out into the storm. We were not prepared. The kids, and adults had worn shorts. All week we had been sweating in the muggy heat of Mulhouse. Well, at altitude, and with a little rain and fog mixed in, the Alsace is a whole different climate. So we stood there, at the intersection of the D430 and D17, watching the caravan go by and avoiding the puddle splashes that the cars made. Every few minutes another car or motorcycle would drive by. Every vehicle brought the realization that the riders were still miles away. Every two or three minutes, one of us would threaten to leave and go back to the car and the rest of the group would encourage them to stay. Fletcher was the warmest, in his stroller covered, for the most part and kept warm with his damp blanket. He wasn’t about to go anywhere. Every time one of us stepped in front of him, he would yell that he couldn’t see the road. Some fans are more hardcore than others.

At last I heard a familiar sound and realized that even in poor weather, the best indicator of approaching bike races is the hum of a television helicopter. The copter hovered and took some video of the large contingent to our left who had cowbells the size of large dogs and had started ringing them for the racers. A few motorcycles came by beeping then a few cars, then about 10 cars followed by two rider, Sylvan Chavenel and Hienrich Hausler. It was over in about 5 seconds. We cheered and tried to decide who we had seen. After about 30 seconds, more cars and motorcycles and two chasing cyclists. Then about a minute later, most of the race leaders rode by, a blur of carbon and spandex barely distinguishable and trying hard to keep up speed and not crash on the wet pavement.

The largest group of riders came through as we had given up, like most people there and started walking back to our car. We actually ran to the car, quickly to stop the uncontrollable shivering that was surely a symptom of hypothermia. Everyone stripped down to whatever their personal level of modesty allowed. We were all wet to the bone. Paige, bless her heart, turned the massive Mercedes van around on the tiny mountain road and we were on our way down. Luckily, we headed down a quick route and made it to the main highway without any major traffic stops. We were back at our campground in Mulhouse, changing into dry clothes in a little over an hour.

It wasn’t until later that I got a note left by Jeff at our campground. Apparently he had tried to email the night before and had planned to meet up with us to experience the tour. Of course, our campground internet connection failed us, once again and
Jeff arrived in Mulhouse to find us long gone. I have only managed to email him, I still don’t have a good internet connection (thus the lack of pictures) and so I don’t know if he was able to get back to Colmar and see the finish of the stage. As is was, he probably saw more racing than we did, we didn’t know who the riders were that were leading or that Hausler had won until we huddled around the television at our campsite.

In all, we prepared for numerous hours and not correctly, we waited more hours and we saw maybe one minute of bike racing, although I was delusional by that time, so I could be wrong. But Mike got to see his beloved Tour de France in person and most of the leading riders, even if they were just a blur.

I will post more when time and internet allow, but I have to tell you that the lack of reliable, wireless internet is a major obstacle. I hope that the Swiss have the internet figured our. Yes, I’m looking at you, France.

Le Route de Vins

2009-07-16T10:00:00.000-07:00

Now, I like Jeff. Don’t get me wrong. But we finally got to spend some time with Benedicte today. I’m not sure why she settled for Jeff, but I know that I’m happy for them and every time that we see the McAlpines’ we wish that we could spend more time with them.

Ben and Etienne joined us today in the village of Riquewihr. Etienne was feeling a bit better after a doctor’s visit and Ben was, as always, a joy to be around. And the village was outstanding. An old Alsacian fortress surrounds the main town, complete with a gate and tower that date from the 13th century. DJ could picture the residents pouring hot oil on attacking marauders. The day was spectacular, just right with the sun out and a cool breeze. Driving through the vineyards, one has to fight the urge to stop the vehicle and run through the rows and rows of old vines. That and the traffic keep me in the van.

Every time that Mike gets me alone, he tells me how nice Ben and Jeff are and what a great little family they make. He thinks very highly of them and even gave little Etienne an early baptism gift. And every email that Jeff send to me mentions again how much they think of Mike and what a great guy he is and what a nice little traveling family that I have. I agree with all of this of course, but it makes me wonder. With all these great people around, who’s the asshole in the group? You know, there’s one in every group. Yep, have to come the conclusion that the asshole is the one writing this blog.

It looks like we will not see Jeff, Ben and the boys until we are back in the Alsace for the baptism, about two weeks from now. I hope that we get to come back to Requewhir. We left the village with at least a few full bottles of wine. Can’t let that happen again.

In the Mulhouse...

2009-07-15T13:17:00.000-07:00

I don’t want to get on a rant. And maybe I’ve gotten a ‘touriste’ view of things here in France. But I don’t know how people live without easy access to high-speed, wireless internet.

We’re staying at a campground in Mulhouse France and they charge for using the wireless internet. Not a whole lot, but it’s the principle of the thing that bothers me. The signal is spotty, it comes and goes and yet they charge me for every second. They have all the same stuff here in Europe, it’s just a little different.
Fletch in Colmar
Mike in Kayserbourg
Fletch and a winepress, after explaining it’s function to his Mom

After lucking into all the linen and food that we needed for our stay, we spent a lazy Sunday here at the campground. There really is no other way to spend a Sunday in France, since nothing is open. Paige and I went for a run, we did laundry and the kids went swimming. Not a bad place to spend a day. Then on Monday, we ventured out to the Route de Vins, a string of villages here in Alsace tied together with vineyard after vineyard. Colmar was beautiful, but very busy, the tourist busses were unloading masses of people. And the Tour de France stops there on Friday, adding to the crowds. But it is a lovely village. From Colmar, we ventured out to Kayserbourg, a much smaller, very scenic village in the hills. Outstanding. Anyone who has ever dreamt of wandering through lush hill and vale of French wine country, has a picture of this village in mind. Mike even found a Riesling that he was fond of at one of the many wine tasting caves. And after a sleepy drive back to the campground, the kids went swimming and we enjoyed a late supper. Kind of slipping into a pattern here.

DJ out of control at the Auto Musee
DJ loves autos and museums

Tuesday was Bastille Day or Fete Nationale here in France and again, stores and supermarkets are closed. The campground started the celebration the night before and we enjoyed watching some fireworks from afar and soaking in the campgrounds version of skit night. Really, the couples gathered at the outdoor café’ had a grand time acting out skit after skit and we had a grand time watching. It all reminded me of summer camp. Tuesday morning, we watched the parade from the Champs Elyeses, with all the dignataries sitting on bleachers we had watched workers construct just a few days ago. And luckily museums stay open on holidays, so we ventured out to the Auto Museum here in Mulhouse. Fascinating and more than a person can see in one day. More Bugattis than I have or ever will see again. A few were priceless, which made me wonder how much my insurance would pay if Fletcher accidentally engaged the clutch. He never did. Once again, DJ loved the museum, we had to herd him along and keep him from listening to every audible display available. Fletch was ready to go home in five minutes. But we all managed to stay and have a very enjoyable time.

Emmanuel and Fletch at Ht. Koenigsbourg
Fog lifting at Ht. Koenigsbourg
Fletch firing cannon at Ht. Koenigsbourg
DJ has left the castle…

Today we finally linked up with Jeff McAlpine and family although one half of his family had to stay home sick. Etteiene was not feeling well, so Benedicte stayed home with him, but Jeff and Emmanuel met us at Haute Koenigsbourg, an imposing Alsacian Chateau that has been lovingly restored and is now the most visited site in the area. Basically, it is the classic castle on the hill, visible for miles around and reachable only by hiking trail or paved hiking trail that the French call a country highway. Paige maneuvered our Massive Mercedes up the hill and managed to find a accommodating parking space and we were in business. Jeff and Em met us at the gate and we climbed the steps and drawbridges to the top of one tower. This isone of my favorite places so far. Built in the 16th century and restored in the 20th, the place is a window into the middle ages. The armory and antler room were impressive. The kids loved it as much as the adults and didn’t really complain about scaling the many stairs. Although I had to carry Fletch over most of them.

We all retuned to the valley and met for lunch in the village of St. Hipolyte, named for a saint of some kind for something that happened in the village, a story related to me in those very words from Jeff. Fascinating. Well, at least the wine and tarte flambeau were tasty.

Sorry for the delay, I hope that my wordy post makes up for the many days that have gone by since my last one. Once again, Bon Voyage!

Dear Diary 12/07/2009

2009-07-12T12:20:00.001-07:00

(Straight from DJ’s diary)

So I bin camping I having a very fun time with my Brother’s and my mom and DaD and my Pappa the camp grounD has foosBoLL anD Pool and Pingpong table and a Pool! that you can swim in! it is awesome! and it has a nice caf’e and ice cream
Bye!

Radio silence

2009-07-12T00:26:00.000-07:00

We are in the middle of a internet 'dead-zone' so it may be a while before we post. I have some post ready but without the ability to upload pics and videos, what's the point?

So be patient, the pics are coming.

Drex

Full bellies, happy family

2009-07-11T01:23:00.000-07:00

Fletch jumping into Alsacian culture.

Strassbourg is a wonder. Immediately after we arrived, we sighed a collective sigh and felt the tensions melt away. Strassbourg is a big city, but it is no Paris. There is no rush and people actually say ‘Pardon’ when stepping to the side.

Mike on Ille Petite France

Strassbourg’s Notre Dame

We had a nice hotel in Strassbourg, close to Ille Petite France, an island of half timbered buildings and cobbled alleyways. The canals provide for quite a number of bridges and strolling is definitely the way to move. We enjoyed the compulsory boat ride through the waterways, up one lock and down another, but walking through the old town was my favorite.

Me, representin’ the 541

My glowing wife, the glow caused by the excellent food, and maybe a little love

And the food. Let’s just say that we have not all so thoroughly enjoyed our meals before. What a place for a foodie. I recommend everything and I think I may have tried it all.

Fletch was recording our boat ride. Great pic!

I will let the video speak for itself. Sorry if you don’t have a high speed connection (Mom) but we seemed to take more video and less photos this time.

Video Two days in Strassbourg

Today, we traversed the Black Forest via our Mercedes van (yes, a Mercedes). It’s more utility than sport, but I noticed that Paige didn’t ask me to drive at all today. Hmm. I guess I’ll have to wrestle the wheel from her if I want to drive. But I was able to enjoy the amazing scenery out the large windows. Every five kilometers or so, there was a ski station or lodge to pull up to, and usually a gasthous. I could manage here. Sorry for the lack of pics. Seems Paige can’t drive a manual transmission and snap photos all at once. She’s not a superhero, no matter what she tells us all.

Our lone pic from the Black Forest

In Mulhouse we have a cabin (trailer home) rented in a nice campground. We pulled in and realized that we had no towels or sheets, two things we had planned on renting for our week here. But we rushed toward town, with closing time and Sunday closures looming. About 1 k from our campground, we found a SuperU store. We could not have asked for any more. Able to buy bath towels, sheets, a few baguette, wine and pasta all under one roof. A pleasant evening, meal and company out on the deck of our cabin. In a campground in the middle of a city of 100,000 residents. As peaceful as that can be.

For those of you who have asked, we plan on attending three stages of le Tour de France. One, just north of here that terminates in Colmar, Stage 13 on Friday July 17. Another, a time trial around Lake Annecy, Stage 18 on June 23. And ultimately, we will be on top of Mont Ventoux, the last battle of the tour, Stage 20 on June 25. So look for us there. We should be easy to pick out of the million or so faces, no?

Bonjour from le Alsace!

Up To Speed on a TGV

2009-07-09T05:17:00.000-07:00

If you’ve noticed a little pause in our blogging I apologize. As I write this, we are going 150 mph east through the French countryside, a compact node of high speed activity. Fletch is watching a video on my iPod, Grey is playing his PSP, Drexell Jacob is looking out the window at the blurred images, Michael is reading and Paige is researching the sites to see in Strassbourg. We’ve left Paris on a TGV, the French high speed train, and should be in le Alsace this afternoon. I will try and catch up, it is a daunting task.

We spent Monday, the first day in country trying to stay awake. I posted some pictures then of our epic adventure. I could barely walk by the end. But we managed to see some cool things, DJ and Fletch showed us the sites and by the time we hit the beds, we were almost cured of jet-lag.

Tuesday was even better. We awoke early and lined up to catch the first few elevators to the top of the Eiffel tower. Spectacular view. And I was beginning to understand what Paige has been going through for three weeks. Traversing Paris with two small children and a stroller is no small task. But the view was appreciated by all and many, many pictures were snapped, more than blogger would allow us to post in a year. We finished the day where we started, watching the Tower sparkle with lights every hour for five minutes. The merchants selling souvenirs and trinkets around the tower are incredible, and not in a good way. I said ‘No’ firmly at least forty times and yet they still approached us every 2 minutes. Paige had to hold me back when one of them told DJ to shut up after he said “No“ rather forcefully. Thank goodness she’s here to keep me out of jail. That applies in the US also.

Dumb and Dumber at the Tower

Yesterday was incredible. We hired a guide to take us through Normandy and the D-Day beaches. He met us at the train station in Carentan and loaded us up in his mini van. Every building, road and field had some meaning and our guide, Francois, knew them all. He was incredible, a student of history and friend of some veterans. Mike and I were in heaven, having just read some volumes of history, so many of the places were fresh in our memories. At our first stop, Francois gave us all notebooks filled with laminated pages with pictures, maps and illustrations to help us understand what he was saying and what we were seeing. And then, almost offhand, he mentioned that the house we were parked next to was the infirmary in Carentan, a place where Major Winters, from the book ‘Band of Brothers’ had been treated. We wound up the Cotentin peninsula on back roads, past many, many placed that we had read about. Through hedgerows and highways he drove us. On one narrow road, Francois pulled over and, looking at me through the rear-view explained that the farmhouse next to us was Brecourt Manor, then waited for the name to register. If you have read ‘Band of Brothers’ you may recognize the name as the first battle in which Easy Company was engaged. It was awesome. The museum and church at Ste. Mere Eglise was great, as well as both Utah and Omaha beaches. But the day was concluded in somber fashion at the US cemetery at Coville sur Mer. All in all, an incredible day. I’ve traveled Europe before and always scoffed at guides and guide services, but a day like that one is hard to put a price on.

Stained glass at Angoville au Plain

(from top left: Fam at Paratrooper museeum, Ste. Mer Eglise, notice paratrooper hanging on church tower from parachute top right, fam at Utah Beach, Fam at Brecourt Manor memorial, at US cemetery and Mike at a windy Point du Hoc)

Today we awoke, threw our things together and caught two taxis across town to avoid the Metro. Avoiding the masses to catch a TGV east with four adults and two children, is another thing well worth the price.

I hope to update more often now, but hopefully, I’ve given you a glimpse of what we are up to. Thanks for all of your comments, we are able to see them all. If we don’t get back to each of you individually, just know that we will soon.

Bon voyage!

1eme Jour

2009-07-07T03:33:00.000-07:00

Paige was on a mission the first day to keep us all awake. Mostly she succeeded.
Grey succumbed to jet lag, but Paige took the rest of us for a swim.

We all rested well, a long day behind us. Bon jour.

We are here!

2009-07-06T23:05:00.000-07:00

For all of you following us, Grey, Michael and I arrived safely in Paris about 24 hours ago. A day in Paris has soothed the bitter taste of Canadian beer and currently we are gearing up to ascend the Eifel Tower. (I'm kidding about the beer).

More to come soon. - Drex

You missed your connection but there's some great back bacon and maple syrup for breakie, eh?

2009-07-04T16:01:00.000-07:00

F*&K! I apologize to my mother for the profanity. But everyone else can kiss it.

Mike, Grey and I arrived in plenty of time for our first flight this morning. Unfortunately, our aircraft did not. A one-hour delay sent ripples through our travel day which were then magnified by a twenty minute taxi to the terminal, the 30 minute wait at customs and no less than three airport employees with lousy directions. I'm angry, they might not have been that bad. But it is enough to say that by the time we where ready to board an airplane in BC, there were none that could deliver us to Toronto or Montreal in time to connect to Paris.

The hotel seems nice, but charges $12 Canadian for in-room Internet access. Canada can kiss it too. Right now, I'm typing furiously in the lobby, the lone free wi-fi spot in the area and shooting daggers at the concierge. The meals are provided and the ticket agent recommended a nice bus ride and tour of downtown Vancouver. But I would trade it all along with the remaining US dollars in my pocket to be able to hug DJ and Fletch and gaze into my wife's deep, brown eyes.

F*&K.

Introducing the new photographer of the family...

2009-07-03T08:38:00.000-07:00

Sorry it's been a few days since I have posted but with the long days of being a tourist and the humidity I am so wiped out by the time the kids go to bed that I just can't think and I go to bed myself. So I decided to post this before dinner tonight so I won't have any excuse not to post. Well on June 30th we went to the Louvre. DJ has been begging me for days to go to the Louvre so he can see the Mona Lisa. So, finally we went and well it started out very frustrating because the kids were hungry and Fletch needed his nap and well after DJ and Fletch ate an over priced not so appetizing lunch at the cafeteria at the Louvre we were finally ready to see some very old art. DJ really wanted to see some Egyptian Antiquitites too so we started out in that wing and really never left until we saw the Mona Lisa...For those who have never been to the Louvre, that museum is absolutely HUGE you could spend 3 days in there and not see everything. Anyway, Drexell discovered in that museum that he likes to take pictures and so practically every photo in this post is taken from him (except the ones of course that have him in it.) He was very cute and wanted to document everything. He told me that he wanted to show daddy everything and then I told him that daddy had been there twice and that he already knew it all...but that didn't deter him to take about 250 pics! And it was a good thing DJ was taking all the pics because daddy told us to look for the fruit faces and well when we got back he asked us if we saw them and I said, "oh shoot I forgot to look for them." So, as I was looking through the photos I saw a picture of the faces...We saw them and didn't even realize it!
until next time...Au Revoir!

Stuck on an island...

2009-07-01T08:41:00.000-07:00

Well, not quite an island. But it has been very hard for me these last three weeks. I want to be with my family so bad. But I have found some things that help ease the pain.

Check out my 3DB Wax blog to see what I've been up to...

Only three more days. I can't wait for DJ and Fletch to show me around the City of Lights. - Drex

Open For Comments!

2009-07-01T08:37:00.000-07:00

Many people have told me , 'Oh I just love the blog, but I've tried to leave comments and it won't let me.' I'm not that smart, so it took a lot of people telling me that before I did something about it. It only took 2 seconds to change and now anyone who wants to, should be able to leave a comment.

Did you try to comment before only to be denied? Go back and make the comment now! See something new that you want to comment on? Please do! The comments are my favorite thing about this blog, because we want to share our experience with everyone.

Thanks for reading! - Drex

3 days of fun...Enjoy!

2009-06-30T12:05:00.000-07:00

This was a park we went to on Sunday in the 5th district on the Seine. The park wasn't very big but it was full of families picnicking in it. That's what the french do ....the stores are either closed or they close early on sundays and go to parks and have HUGE picnics with family and friends. It's actually quite awesome and such a great idea! So, the kids played and Paul kicked my butt at Ping-Pong...My friend George will be so disappointed in me! I think it was the heels I was wearing.

On Monday we went to Hotel des Invalides. It is basically a museum dedicated to all the great french war heroes dating back to the 1st century. This museum was built back in the 1600's and was a war vetrans hospital (hence the name Hotel des Invalides) anyway since most of our pack right now is mostly boys and two of them are really into 'war stuff'' we thought it would be appropriate for Drexell and Oliver to check out this place. It is actually like 5 museums in one but you get to see most of it with one admission. There were only two we were interested in and that was Musee l'armee and the WWI-WWII museum. Musee l'armee was basically dedicated to all the body armour that the King Louies wore and all the weapons that were used back then. Most of the stuff was dated back to around the 16th century. Drexell got a major kick out that stuff. I couldn't believe how much of it they had. There were was enough it seemed to fit an entire army today! Then we went to the Musee dedicated to WWI and WWII...actually it started the entire series with the war in 1870 between France and Germany (remember it is a museum dedicated to the French army). That whole section took forever becasue there is so much to see and it was so very COOL! Paul kept saying he was coming back without kids. For sure. Let's just say the 3 year olds weren't as into it (well at least mine wasn't). Drexell LOVED it. He's taking after both sets of grandparents and is really getting into history. He is so ready for Normandy now! After that we went to the Gift shop and then I begged Paul for one more stop and he sorta rolled his eyes and said "what is it?" I said Napoleons Tomb please...and thank god it was on our way out and was a quick stop. Napoleon is in that photo of the tomb! Crazy to think that!

So, I have failed to mention that it has been very HOT here. It's not like it's hitting the 100's or anything but the humidity makes it feel hotter. Everyone is sticky and needing a shower like 3 times a day....I remember this from the last time we were here. I sure miss Bend's dry weather. So anyway we thought maybe we would go to some sorta waterpark today but after some figuring we decided to just go to a park. Well we entered this park and it was beautiful and quiet and not too many people. UNTIL, we hit the play area....We have this great book called Paris with Kids and it said that this play area is the biggest in Paris. Well it's big but when you are in a city with millions of people it tends to fill up quite quickly! Ohboy, it was like a whole new world..Not only was there alot of kids but they were in huge groups too! So, we did a little playing and had a picnic and then went home.
So, tomorrwo another scorcher and so we are going to the Louvre where they better have AC!

There is no other place....

2009-06-27T12:05:00.000-07:00

We went to the Jardin d'acclimatation today at the Bois de Boulogne. I believe Bois means wood in french because this area is one big wooded area. There is camping and even mt. bike trails. This park is so cool. There are carnival rides, animals to look at (a bear, bulls, pigs, sheep, llamas and etc....This cool little musical area, zen gardens, herb gardens, house of mirrors, fountains to play in and even these misters that the kids dug (because we didnt bring their swimsuits). And this big dragon roller coaster that the kids wanted to go on. When the rest of the family gets here our hotel is near this park so we'll have to check it with the rest of them. All right I just wanted to post pics for you but I have to go to bed now....

Paris with Kids

2009-06-26T13:26:00.000-07:00

Not a lot to report today so I thought I would just post some pics. We laid low today because of the weather. Plus, Oliver got to go to his new school and check it out and meet his teacher. The boys and I just hung at the apt. and Fletch had a nap and DJ and I cuddled on the couch and he wrote a couple of emails and I worked on my Suduko book. It was nice and then later we went and got a crepe nutella and some rasperies at a local fruit stand. After dinner we decided to take the kids to the Lux for some play time and tennis lessons. Paul totally taught all the kids how to hit the ball. He was such a great teacher that now DJ wants to take tennis lessons when we get back to Bend. I can handle that, I love tennis. But not before the kids performed for us in the living room. It was great they totally put on a performance for us! So, we got the kids back kind of late and gave them all a snack and sent them to bed....Just another day in Paris!

The pics below are from yesterday when we went to the Tuilleries Gardens and played in the playground and walked around the park. It is such a beautiful park and at one end is the Louvre and the other is the Champs Elysee so its a pretty popular park. A very expensive park too...We bought 4 apple juices for the kids and two double espressos for us and the bill was 25 Euro. Lesson to be learned!

2009-06-24T12:05:00.000-07:00

My reward for being such a great walker and keeping up and not complaining, too much. Mom let me get a double scoop...triple berry sorbet with vanilla ice cream....Yummy!

We went to the Eiffel Tower today and the plan was to go to the very top but we got a late start and well lets just say that the line to get there was at least a 3 hour wait and with a 3 yr old that is very busy that just didn't seem feasible. So, Drexell and I discussed it and we decided that we will wait when daddy, papa and Greysun are with us. We then had lunch in the park and then headed on down to the Champs Elysses(that picture of the sign is for you dad) to see the Arc de Triomphe and get some ice cream at the Haggen Dazs. Fletcher fell asleep so he didn't get his ice cream until we got near home. We also rode the Metro today for the second time and I have found that it is much easeir to get around Paris then walking around. We walked the wrong way to get to the Metro stop I wanted that would take us directly to the Eiffel Tower and when I realized our mistake It was quite far and DJ was a little frustrated to have to walk a little longer so I got out my handy-dandy Metro map and jumped on at the nearest stop and got us there in like 15mins. I am such a pro now!

2009-06-23T12:58:00.000-07:00

Monet and Van Gogh

Musee d'Orsay is right behind us!
My Merry-go-round fun.

As you all know we went to Musee d'Orsay today and Jardin des Tuilleries. I thought maybe i should post some photos of Fletch so he doesn't feel left out...Thankfully he slept for most of our time at the Musee so DJ and I could have an enjoyable time looking at art. Understandibly Fletch is not into it, being 3 and all. But, DJ and I had a great time together admiring all the artists. After we went to the garden and the boys wanted to go on the merry-go-round but I knew there was a trampoline near by too so I gave the boys a choice and DJ chose trampoline and Fletch chose MGR (of course, his favorite pastimes are chasing pigeons and MGR's) What is he going to do when he gets back to Bend? There was also this 'play' park that i think was developed by a minalist artist because it was very spacious with these pretty basic play structures for the kids, but they seemed to like it and threw a fit when I said it was time to go! Tomorrow is the big outing to the Eiffel Tower...we plan on getting up early and getting an early start so we don't have to wait for a LONG time! Wish us luck and as always i'll post photos!
Au revoir

The Super DJ Post from Paris

2009-06-23T09:47:00.000-07:00

Bonjour from Paris! I'm having a great time in the big city. I even asked my mom if we could buy a house here...and she said that would be great but she thought it would be a long way for daddy to commute to work, so I'm guessing that is a no since I remember how long the plane ride was to get here. Anyway, my mom, Fletcher and I went to the Musee d'Orsay today and looked at A LOT of paintings and sculptures. It was really neat and we even saw a room full of Van Gogh paintings. I posted a few pics of me with a couple of my favorites. I even posted a picture with me with my favorite statue too. The picture on the upper left is of me on the terrace of the Musee that is on the fifth floor. It was really high and we saw a lot of tour boats on the Seine.

After the Musee, we crossed the Seine and went to the Tuilleries Garden, its a huge garden near the Champs Elysee and the Louvre. I wanted to go to the Champs Elysee but mom said no because it was getting late and we still had to walk home. Which is only a 20 min walk but a long one for a kid my age. I'm doing really well about walking everywhere. Mom keeps saying that I'm a champ for keeping up. Anyway the pics below are of me at this cool trampoline station at the Tuilleries. I payed 2 euro and got to jump as much as I wanted for 5 minutes...I was sweaty and hungry after that session...We're going to bring Oliver and Sarai to that park because it was a lot of fun. See that big sphere I'm standing on in the last pic? Well I had to take off my shoes to get up it and when I did it was really hot! I guess sitting in the sun all day made it that way. Well I hope you all enjoy the pics...I'm sorry there arent any of Fletch but I think mom will post some of those later.
I miss everyone and hope everyone has a great summer....I know I will!
Au revoir,
Drexell J.

More Pics....

2009-06-22T12:48:00.000-07:00

None of these pics are from today. I just wanted to post some more pics. Today was just another day of hanging out at Jardin du Luxembourg. We played in their awesome park, listened to a high school band from Glasgow play movie songs (really good). The kids played a little tennis and then we went and got a hot dog baguette sandwich that was smothered in cheese (don't knock it till you try it.) Tomorrow our good friends who have graciously let us stay at their flat are going to London tomorrow for the night. So, DJ, Fletch and I are on our own...I'm a little daunted by it but also excited to try and manuver through this city on our own. We may go to the Musee d'Orsay tomorrow and the Eiffel Tower on Wednesday. Drexell has been begging me to get him a mini- Eiffel Tower statue( which are every where) ever since we got here so I'm guessing that will be the day he gets it!
all right wish us luck!

Just another day in Paris....

2009-06-21T12:41:00.000-07:00

(l-r from the top) from the window of the apt. and the street from the apt. DJ and Oliver at l'eglise saint-sulpice. (second row) Fletch and Sarai at L'eglise Saint-Sulpice. Me at The Lux. Fletch at The Lux. (third row) all four kids watching sailboats at The Lux. BFF's at The Lux. DJ watching some live music. The boys draggin behing the Caravan of Chaos. (fourth Row) Merry-go-round watchers. The boys found an air vent on the sidewalk. and DJ and Oliver racing at a really pretty park, it was a tie.

Please watch this video ....This is what I'm dealing with right NOW at 10:15 pm on a sunday night.Let's just say that I am not going to get much sleep tonight....Maybe I should just join them! No, I can't I don't have the energy... Let me tell you a little bit what its like...so, I'm barely sitting 3 feet from Molly and I can't even hear her talk to me without me going Huh? what did you say? The music is Techno and vibrating the walls, people are screaming and the crowd keeps getting bigger and bigger! BUT, the most amazing thing is that my kids are actually sleeping through this!

So, besides all the craziness around here we have had some great outings the past couple of days. Yesterday, was Saturday so Molly was off work and so I got to go and hang with her and the kids for the first time. Not that hanging with Paul isn't fun but you know it was cool to venture out into Paris with Moll and the kids. Plus, Paul was having fun in Barritz surfing (a much deserved little vaca for him, being Fathers day weekend and all.) We took the kids shopping and to a couple of parks around the 7th district. It was pretty low key, and fun for the kids because they got to ride on a merry-go-round (again, they are in every park) and have a picnic in the park. Speaking of parks, there is something the US need to adopt from the French and how they maintain their parks.... Garbage cans, and recycling bins. I mean I know it is a big city and there are over 3 million(i think) people that live here plus tourists that there needs to be some sort of system, but man it is nice to be able to turn around and find a garbage can AND recyling container on every corner....they are everywhere. It totally keeps their parks beautiful. Today was Fete de la Musique and well most of the day was filled with music all over the city. So, today we decided to go to The Lux and hang out and find some music and well this was the 3rd time we had been there and boy was it the busiest I had seen it. I'm guessing because of the Festival but WOW it was crazy! This must mean the coming of summer and the busy season for France and the rest of Europe. A total contrast to the first week of being in France when I got to hang out at the parks with the rest of the locals...
until next time,
Au revoir!

2009-06-19T12:35:00.000-07:00

So, after seeing us all today wandering through Paris I have decided that the official name of our group is The Caravan of Chaos. It's a pretty hilarious group of two 3 olds and two 6 year olds. We walked to the Notre Dame today and trying to maneuver through a crowd with two strollers and two 6 years olds making jokes about each others 'Golden Underpants' and cruising around the sidewalks like no one else is around it totally dawned on me that that name for our group is very appropriate. So, today we did go to Notre dame and while it was a pretty uneventful day, in means that nothing catastrophic happened to us, because everyday is pretty amazing that we are in Paris. But anyway the walk to Notre Dame is pretty short and before we went in we decided to have a PB and Jelly sandwich. Having lots of snacks and lunch with us is pretty important becasue the kids could have a melt down at any point in time. Anyway we went inside and of course it is very busy and people are going left and right and the kids are a little amazed by it and then the first question we hear is why are we here? why is this such a big deal? And then Paul says to me 'ummm....I think we need to do more research on our sightseeing trips so we have an answer to that type of question.' Wow, what a concept....boy are we sheep? do we just go places where everyone else goes? sorta and there is something to that becasue the Notre Dame is absolutely huge and looks like nothing at all surounding it and the architecture is abosolutely beautiful! I mean come on kids The Cathedral is like 700 years old! Just appreciate that it is still standing. So, while inside we saw a chorus of women singing and Sarai wanted to sit and listen so we did for about 10 mins. then we continued on the tour and then we all stopped and touched a pole that was helping to keep the Cathedral upright and was made of stone and we all tried to lift it and then I said look kids this is 700 years old! and they thought wow this so cool and went on to try and knock it down. So, there you go that is what you get for culture.....

Prancing around Paris

2009-06-18T07:18:00.000-07:00

(all photos taken at Luxembourg gardens except Fletch chasing Pigeons at Sacre-Couer)

all right, now I really do feel like a heel when my husband has to blog for me because I'm too busy wandering around Paris with 4 kids, one other adult and 2 strollers. We are like a caravan of chaos on the streets of Paris. People stare and some people smile but most don't even care and just keep walking like we aren't even there. Which is fine with me. Overall the trip has been a BLAST! The kids have been really good at times and really bad at times (to be expected). But what I do know is that they are having lots of fun and enjoying this special time with their friends Oliver and Sarai. Since I haven't posted at all I'll start from the beginning.....
On Sunday June 14, 2009, Drexell, Fletcher and I embarked on our first adventure on an airplane. I have flown many of times but DJ and Fletch have never flown and I was not sure how they would act on a plane and more so how I would deal with it. Well it was mostly painless and Drexell understanding the tense situations with Fletch (a 3 yr old) did whatever it took to keep him happy and quiet. DJ even let him use his headphones that aren't earbuds and don't hurt your ears (Thank you, Drexell). Another shining moment for DJ was when we almost missed our connection from Vancouver to Toronto. We knew it was going to be tight so we decided to rush from the beginning and after being misinformed about our luggage being sent all the way through, we were told that we had to go and pick up our luggage and drop it off at another location, and continue on to our flight. The total walking distance is 36 mins to our connection and we had to back track a little so by the time we made it to our flight (running) they were calling the last call for flight 180 to Toronto. DJ was so awesome! He ran his little heart out while wearing his heavy backpack and pushing Fletch in a stroller (who is also heavy) and he did it all without complaining at all, even though I was yelling at him to hurry up, hurry up!! That was probably the most intense moment I have been in in a very long time. So, we obviously made it to Paris, but we couldn't do it without Fletch getting sick, of course. About 20 mins to landing he started throwing-up and didn't stop until we got to the Scofields apt. about a 2 hour time stretch. I'm guessing it was a long day for him!
So now we are on day 3 of our 2 month long trip and so far we have had Crepe Nutella, Crepe fromage, Croque Monsieur and Gelato. We have rode the metro, went to Sacre-couer, Montemartre, Jardin du Luxembourg (twice, it's near the apt.) and Jardin des Plantes. It seems like a lot but it is very pertinent that the kids get out of this very small apt. at least once or twice a day.
Au revoir

You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him blog about it

2009-06-17T15:26:00.000-07:00

All apologies to my wife who is so busy in a foreign country with two kids that she hasn't been able to write about it. But I thought this photo of the kids at Basilique du Sacré-Cœur, the highest point in Paris, was just too good not to share. That's (from left) Fletch, Oliver, Drexell J and Sarai. Oliver and Sarai are the lucky hosts to my family along with their parents Molly and Paul, all of whom deserve a hearty, "Merci!"

Be__Strong_

2009-06-13T19:17:00.000-07:00

I watched them clear security and waved to them through the glass. My eyeballs could have floated out of their sockets. Back at our room, I changed and went for a run. The Columbia River on one side, PDX on the other. I wondered what Lewis and Clark would think if they passed this way today. Out of the shower and I noticed a small branch and pebble that Drexell Jacob had found sometime this weekend and carried with him until we cleared out his pockets this morning. I wiped my eyes and popped them into my pocket, until I see him again. At the front desk, they gave me a toy car that Fletch had left in the shuttle van. In my pocket with the branch and pebble.

I need a nudge to remember sometimes but it's worth marking here: I'm the luckiest bastard that ever drew a breath and I don't deserve the beautiful family and life that I've been given.

I'll see you in three weeks, my Love.

New Video Cam

2009-06-09T18:34:00.000-07:00

So I splurged. Kind of. A big 'Thank You' goes out to my father-in-law, Mike (Grand-Pere Michael, another author on this blog) for giving us early Christmas presents, one of which is the coolest little video camcorder I have ever seen. A Flip Ultra HD, smaller than most digital cameras, will hold 120 minutes of HD video. Just what we need for the trip, a camcorder to fit in your pocket. The video above is a sample, more to come soon...
-deRex

le pissoir de Barnes

2009-06-04T08:50:00.000-07:00

We have been planning like mad. Every day it's something new. Clothes, backpacks, directions, reservations. I was talking to Jeff McAlpine, the reason that this family is about to embark on our European adventure. We talked about the challenges of taking small children abroad, and I related how relieved I was that Fletcher, age 3, is recently potty trained. Jeff said that they were making progress on Emmanuel, his 3 year old, but he only liked to pee outside. Fletcher is exactly the same way, I told him. In fact, Drexell is 6, almost 7 years old, still prefers the backyard, the park, the open air for his pissing. It must be a guy thing. Jeff and I decided on a title for our grand European Tour: Pissing All Over France 2009.

Le pissoir de Barnes. Viola'!

It's a fitting name, and it may last much longer than the summer. Most of what I write after all is just pissing in the wind. Pissing and moaning. Full of piss and vinegar. Well, maybe not so much anymore. But here we are, about to take the whole family, entire families to Europe. God help us all.

I hope I don't piss all over myself.

le pissoir de Barnes

Frenchglen is as close to France as I got this summer

Happy Fathers Day'

Moab MTB

New Year, Goodbye 2009

Merry Christmas

Swim Lessons

Winter Storm Warning

Anyone There?

Back Too Soon

White Chocolate Magnum Bar, An Ode To Thee

In Transit

Etienne Bapteme

Back in the Alsace

Lac Livin'

Pont de Gard

Mt. Ventoux

Le Tour en Annecy

Swiss Love

The View From Here

Speedbump

Lauterbruennen

Stage 13, le Tour

Le Route de Vins

In the Mulhouse...

Dear Diary 12/07/2009

Radio silence

Full bellies, happy family

Up To Speed on a TGV

1eme Jour

We are here!

You missed your connection but there's some great back bacon and maple syrup for breakie, eh?

Introducing the new photographer of the family...

Stuck on an island...

Open For Comments!

3 days of fun...Enjoy!

There is no other place....

Paris with Kids

The Super DJ Post from Paris

More Pics....

Just another day in Paris....

Prancing around Paris

You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him blog about it

Be____Strong___

New Video Cam

le pissoir de Barnes

Be__Strong_