July 18, 2010

La Rentree

We are packing up this week, but managed to see the Bastille Day fireworks at the Eiffel Tower (see picture above, taken by Megan). Truly spectacular, each series matched perfectly to music and a huge, but congenial crowd.

The weather is absolutely perfect; high 70's, sunshine, no humidity. The girls are spending time with their friends and looking forward to coming back.

Things I Will Miss About Paris

1. Walking everywhere

2. Hearing men ask their wives/girlfriends "do these jeans make me look fat?"

3. Bakeries

4. Watching women explain patiently to their husbands that, while they do already own 6 black purses, this particular one has stitching that matches the new pair of shoes they just bought and therefore must be purchased.

5. The gym; the old men in pajamas, the old women in phenomenal shape, the young men so enamored of their reflections in the mirror that they forget to work out.

6. The man in the corner store, the pharmacist, and our neighbors, all of whom have been incredibly kind to us.

7. The elderly woman who dresses in stilettos, skin tight jeans, and a shirt that says "Swinger."

8. The Sunday market, where the poultry guys sing chicken songs, and women complain loudly if the radishes they buy have any white spots on them.

9. Speaking French.

10. Cafes. Sitting at cafes. Drinking at cafes. People watching at cafes.

Things I Will Not Miss about Paris:

1. Appliances designed for Thumbelina.

2. Real-time American sports.

3. Buying groceries every day.

4. Grocery stores that stock pig's feet removers, but don't have bandaids (I'm not kidding). What if you cut yourself removing the pig's feet? It's a very tricky piece of equipment.

5. Scowling. The incidence of scowling is roughly five times what it is in the US. And these people live in Paris! What's to scowl about? It's not as if they live in Wichita!

6. Smokers.

7. The cost of living.

8. Crowded metros.

9. Man purses.

10. Apartment living.

Favorite recent conversations:

Megan: "Mom, can I hang out at the Eiffel Tower with my friends today?"

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Me, to rental car agent: "Do you need to see my driver's license?"

Rental car agent (giving me a very odd look): "No, Madame."

Me: "Are you sure?"

Agent (exasperated): "Of course I'm sure!"

Turns out, I had offered to show him my license to cook. So much for being fluent.

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Erin: "Mom, my friend Abit (Indonesian) only gets one hour a day to do her homework and play. Then, she has to help her mom with all of the chores. But, she's really happy!"

Claire: "Mom, on your next sabbatical, promise me we'll go somewhere where they speak English."

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Rob: "I need to go back to the rental car agency."

Me: "But you already returned the rental car."

Rob: "Yeah, but I thought I might rent another one, just for the day. To drive around Paris. Or just to park out in front of the building."

Apparently the agent was quite stunning. The only upside of the fender bender we experienced in Croatia was her pout when he told her about it. He was sorely tempted to crash again, just to see her pout. I was sorely tempted to run him over.

See you back soon!

June 12, 2010

Pics: John and Rob in Verona, Claire in Geneva, Me with My New Gladiator, Rob and Erin in Croatia, the girls on the Ferry from Split, Erin driving the monster (what? Rob was tired!).

We are back from our European road trip.

And, by the way, here's the difference between men and women, with respect to trip planning:

Me: About 6 months ahead of departure date, reserve the apartment, flights, train, rental car, ferry, check into what to do at the destination and by associated tickets. Two weeks ahead, pack four suitcases (1 for the girls, 3 for me), purchase all manner of overpriced containers for makeup, dirty laundry, sunscreen, underwear etc. A week before departure, get haircut, mani-pedi, massage (the planning has been very stressful), buy four new pairs of shoes, go out to a series of dinners with girlfriends since I won't see them for two whole weeks.

Results: flight is overbooked, charged the equivalent of an extra plane ticket for excess baggage, stub toe on said excess baggage trying to get it off carousel at airport (ruining pedicure), rental car is unavailable (see blog from last summer), overpriced beauty product containers leak sending unidentified toxic, sticky gels all over clean clothes. Arrive at rental to find it is a quarter of the size advertised, has bugs and no air-conditioning. At least one child comes down with stomach flu.

Rob/my brother: About 6 days before departure date, start looking for apartments. Find perfect apartment one hour later. Morning of flight: stuff two pairs of shorts, two polo shirts, 2 T-shirts, a swimsuit, toothbrush, underwear and flipflops into a backpack. Get on flight.

Result: Arrive at destination without incident and walk off airplane with carry-on luggage only. Find that you have reserved too small a car to fit the group, but are able to smile and wink your way to a massive upgrade which just happens to be available. Arrive at rental to find it is larger than advertised, has air conditioning and is spitting distance from a private beach. Children are healthy and ecstatic.

Rob/John to Kara: "Why do you get so stressed out about vacation planning? Everything works out fine."

Kara to Rob/John: "Bite me."

A brief summary of our trip:

Munich: Drive-by. We were there long enough to go to a beer garden for dinner, eat wienerschnitzel, drink beer, drive around the city and head out for...

Croatia: Long day. GPS put us on some side roads in Slovenia and we had to race to make the last ferry out of Split for the island of Brac, where we were staying. Made it (of course, since men were in charge) and had a great week in Croatia. Highlights included:

Erin discovering sea glass. She and I hunted the beach every day for new pieces. The locals looked at us, scratching their heads and wondering why we flew across the world to clean up their beaches.

Scooter rental. Three adults, three kids. No problem, right? I took a brief test drive to make sure I'd be able to ride safely with Erin on the back. Good thing. I gave it some gas, then had to swerve to avoid crashing into a couple of pedestrians. Unfortunately, I forgot to take my hand off the accelerator. I veered left, straight for the harbor. To avoid flying into the water I laid the thing down. On the pavement. On my leg. Small scrape on my leg. Large gash on my self-esteem. Croatian scooter owner: "You will now give me back my scooter. You are too dangerous." Well, we knew that already, didn't we? Luckily Claire had not been terribly excited by the prospect of zipping around the island on two wheels and offered to stay home to babysit me.

Overheard in Split: American Dad to his family: "Do the math. Two bucks for a postcard. Two bucks to mail it. Not gonna happen."

Verona: Arrived the evening of the World Cup match between Spain and Germany. Walked all over the city the next day. Fantastic.

Geneva: Took Rob and the girls to the house we lived in when I was a wee child, to the school I attended, and to the house we lived in until I finished 8th grade. Had a fabulous lunch on the lake. Saw the Jet D'Eau, the Clock of Flowers (all natural now, to celebrate the year of biodiversity. It may be biodiverse, but it's pretty ugly). Walked through the old city, window-shopped and back in the van headed for...Paris.

Overheard in a Geneva parking garage (large American to his wife): "If this garage costs more than fifty bucks I am NOT going to be happy."

Rob and John left this morning for the US. My sister arrives tomorrow. We return to the US on July 22nd. I hope to post once more before we leave.

Hope you're enjoying summer!