Back in School

The local citizens have pretty much cleared out of Paris. There are still lots of tourists, but it's very quiet. August is a big vacation month in France and everyone heads to the coast. We've even seen restaurants and butcher shops that are closed for the entire month. Most of Lori's colleagues are going away this month, but because she is essentially the temp, she's required to stay in the office all month. This is one of the reasons we've decided to not take any significant trips this month.

Since we are going to be around, I decided to use this time to improve my French. I started a month of classes yesterday. I know most of the words, I just need to be in a place where everyone only speaks French. This will force me to improve my syntax and grammar. Talking with the checkout girl at the grocery store, just isn't challenging anymore.

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Quiet Week

Life has returned to normal around here. Things have been quiet since our guests left. It's been too hot to do anything strenuous. We can no longer complain about the cool, wet weather. It has been in the 30's for a week and it looks like the next week will be the same.

Yesterday was the finish of the Tour de France in Paris. I'm not a big cycling fan, but I thought it would have been nice to watch the riders coming down the Champs-Élysées. It was way too hot to be standing in the sun on concrete and asphalt though, so we passed.

We are taking a mini-break from travel for awhile. We have been on the go quite a bit and we have a busy travel schedule in September, so we thought we would stay around the city for a month. The weather is great and it's the perfect time just to sit in a café or restaurant and watch the world go by. Needless to say, there won't be many blog updates for awhile. I hope everyone else is enjoying their summer as well.

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La Fête Nationale

Char and Jack just got on the bus to the airport. It was sad to see them go. The apartment is so empty and quiet. I think they had a lot of fun while they were here. Sometimes finding food that an 8 year old will eat, was challenging. Apparently Mussels are gross. Overall, Jack was great though. He was very inquisitive, especially when it came to the castles in Germany.

Their final day here was also La Fête Nationale in France. In the English speaking world, it's referred to as Bastille Day because it falls on the date the Bastille was stormed in 1789. The French mark the day with a very large military parade down the Champs-Élysées. I thought it would be cool for Jack to see all the tanks and armoured personnel carriers driving and the troops marching down one of the most famous streets in the world. Not to mention the aircraft flying overhead.

While there were very cool moments, it was a lot of standing around and waiting. Unless you were in the stands with the dignitaries, and you could hear and see everything, it was kind of boring. It was also very crowded. We found a doorway to a movie theatre, that was elevated and in the shade, to watch the parade. We were the first ones there, but it wasn't long before we were joined by dozens of other people in this tiny space. I now understand why Lori's colleagues prefer to stay at home and watch it on TV, which is what we ended up doing. Once we got back to the apartment, we saw all the army vehicles driving down the street, parachutists landing right in front of the reviewing stand and the French Special Forces putting on a demonstration by the L'Hôtel national des Invalides.

At night there was a massive fireworks display put on at the Eiffel Tower. The parade may have been a disappointment, but the fireworks far exceeded our expectations. In fact, I would say they were the most impressive fireworks I've ever seen. They coordinated the lights on the Eiffel Tower with the fireworks. In Jacks words "that was awesome". I'm glad their final night in Paris was a hit.

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Weissbier

It's no secret that I am a beer fan so it should come as no surprise that one of my favorite parts of our trips to Germany is the beer. I prefer to drink Weissbier during the summer, especially when it's warm like it was this past weekend. Weissbier is made with wheat instead of barley and would be similar to the white beers in Canada like Rickard's White, but they are much better. They are so delicious and refreshing, it can be dangerous to drink them on a hot day. It's finally warm in Paris so I'm glad I brought a few home with me.

I also picked up a stein while we were in St. Goar.

Speaking of beer, my wonderful wife is sending me on a beer trip to Prague, Munich and Bamberg at the end of September and the beginning of October. Lori will join me before and after the trip. I'm so excited.

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Rhine Valley Part 2

We had another great trip to the Rhine Valley. This was the first time we have returned to a place we have already visited and we enjoyed it just as much as we did the first time. The weather was fantastic, it was sunny and warm the whole time we were there. We stayed in the town of Bacharach in the Hotel am Markt.

It was really nice, but because it was built in 1900, there wasn't an elevator so having a room on the fourth floor was a little tough. We toured the town and took another river cruise with Char and Jack. We also went to St. Goar to explore the Rheinfels Castle. It is the largest castle overlooking the Rhine and construction was started in 1245.

Aunt Lori and Jack were very interested in exploring the castle.

The view of the river from the castle was incredible.

 Jack spent some time in the stocks for a crime he claims he didn't commit.

We are back in Paris now and I'm looking forward to a quiet morning. Too many stairs, too much heat and too many questions from an 8 year old have worn out Uncle Dennis.

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Mind the Gap

I am back in Paris and I have Char and Jack with me. I think they really enjoyed their time in London, I know I did. I love the polite announcements when you're riding the tube reminding you to "mind the gap" as you leave the train. We managed to find some good pizza for Jack and he really enjoyed the double-decker bus tour. He could not understand why he couldn't go into the Queen's house though. Here are a few photos of our time there.

We have the rental car already and we are hitting the road early tomorrow. We are cruising to Germany in style, we were upgraded to a Mercedes Benz. Look out autobahn, here I come.

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Charlene & Jack

Our next group of visitors are on their way. My sister-in-law Charlene and my nephew Jack are coming to Europe for two weeks. They arrive in London today and I'll give them time to settle in and get over their jet lag, then I'll meet them tomorrow. I love London and look for any excuse to spend a couple of days there. On Friday, we will come back to Paris on the Eurostar train through the channel tunnel. We only have one night in Paris before we head off to Germany for a few days. Charlene's family is from Germany and she wanted to visit while she was here. Since Lori and I fell in love with the Rhine Valley, we thought it would be a perfect place to take them. We'll be back in Paris next week and then they will have a week to tour around Paris. I'm pretty sure Euro Disney is on the agenda. We are really looking forward to their visit.

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