Funny story #54: for some God-forsaken reason I thought our flight left Paris today, so we returned our motorhome and prepared to leave for the airport only to discover that our flight is tomorrow! Hmmm...should have looked at the date on the plane tickets a little closer. (I guess the good news is that I'm totally loosing track of what day it is...) So, as I told my kids (who travel like total champs!), "What do you do when life gives you lemons? Go to Paris Disney!" So that's what we're off to do. Not a bad consolation prize for missing your flight.
Not so funny story #32: we got lost so many times on the way to our hotel that we got here too late to catch Disney today...but there's always tomorrow! We're learning a lot about ourselves, about extending grace, about patience, and about how little we know French. But hey, on the bright side, these are going to make for quite some memories and stories to tell!
Prior to our flight-missing-getting-super-lost-day, we had a great time seeing the first 3 stages of Le Tour de France. It started in a region of France called the Vendee. It's west of Paris along the coast. Think of a really big Napa Valley. Beautiful rolling hills, green vineyards, cool evenings and warm days. We saw many windmills, chateaus, tiny roads that were much too small for our motorhome, and lots and lots of cycling fans from all over the world. It was such fun to join people in their exuberance for cycling and Le Tour. We put up a huge sign on our motorhome that said, "Chico loves Le Tour". We were hoping it would be shown on t.v. Anyone see it?
We headed back into Paris where we climbed the Eiffel Tower, saw Notre Dame, the Arc de Triumph, and all the other amazing sights. We ended our time in Paris with a beautiful Parisian dinner. We appreciate how the French take their time, aren't rushed to get through meals...or anything, really. It has given the five of us lots of time to reflect, talk, tell stories, hold each other, laugh, and well...bug each other. Ah, Paris! Ah, family!
We'll head back to Edinburgh late tomorrow evening where we'll end our time in Europe. Then it's back to Chico for a bit, and on to Family Camp at Mt. Hermon.
A few words summarize our time: beauty, family, laughter, good food, amazing sights, and gratitude.
Sounds very cool and very French, mon ami. Enjoy your time--the Tour de Sabbatical is certainly in its latter stages.
ReplyDelete