Hola from Barcelona!

Lu here reporting from our hotel room in the middle of "pedestrian way" (do not know the spanish/catalonian). Dad and I arrived very early Tuesday (12/18) morning and spent the day wandering the streets near our hotel and adjusting to life 6 hours ahead. We began our journey at 7am when Mom (Cathy) picked us up and brought us to the train station. We took the train to NYC, cab to JFK, and sat in the airport for close to 5 hours. miserable. Just so you know, we took AeroMexico to Spain, why? I am not sure myself. It was through Delta but gave us something to laugh about for our 5 hour wait. The 7+ hour plane ride went fairly well except for a few 50-100ft. turbulance drops in which an announcement was made to "buckle your seatbelts tightly and hold onto/secure all infants". We enjoyed Mr. Bean's Holiday as entertainment along with some movie called StarDust which I do not recommend.

 

Anyway, Marisa & Ed arrived earlier than we expected and surprised us at the hotel! They smell like Europeans and I'm pretty sure the smell of Ivan's house will be with them forever. Upon entering their room here in Barcelona, one is overcome by the smell of smoke/meat/horses. It's really rather remarkable the smell one can contract when spending a week in the woods of France. Marisa would like me to clarify that they do not have the body odor issue many true Europeans seem to encompass, rather smell differently than normal and right now mostly of a wood-burning stove. Just for clarification.

 

When Marisa & Ed arrived we were all tired and hungry from traveling so we walked until we found a place to eat and ended up at one of the best places we've been all week! It is a famous restaurant visited by hollywood megastars and we had our very first tapas! We were not sure how to order them and there was only one english speaking waitress, but we loved them and might even return to this restaurant for a second meal! This concluded our technical day 1 but we were satisfied to be settled and looked forward to our week.

 

Barcelona is an amazing city though not a great place to learn traditional Spanish. The language here is Catalan, from Catalunya which is the northern region of Spain, and is vastly different than traditional Spanish. We have been able to get along fine language wise, but Dad simply pointed to an item on a menu without any clue as to what he was ordering and it ended up being like chicken cordon bleu with fries, great luck! This luck was much appreciated when we realized there was a very large octopus in the front viewing area which could have been his meal. Whew! This was the only restaurant where nobody spoke any english and it was a struggle to make it through the meal. We are trying to speak the language but find ourselves speaking Italian or French more frequently than not, odd.

 

Our first day was cold but beautiful and we spent the day in Barceloneta which is an area of the city surrounded by harbors. You will never imagine the number of boats we saw docked but we have some pictures to give you an idea. After finding the bathroom and looking at lots of jellyfish on the surface of the water under a boardwalk, we moved on to visit a beach and walk through a weird circus I could have lived without. For lunch we ate at the oldest tavern in the city and everyone had a fantastic meal, me especially with a simple green salad without dressing. This was the ONLY item on the menu that did not have seafood or some part of an animal I'd rather never know people actually consume. Dad and Marisa split a paella which is a seafood extravaganza! It was served dramically and enjoyed by all, except me. I should mention that lunch is a big deal here and is eaten around 2-3pm as dinner is 8-11pm. Many restaurants are not open for dinner until after 8pm and most shops are closed from about 2-5pm. After lunch we walked to a large park equipped with it's very own Arc de Triomf. It looks a lot like the original only it's pink! After taking glamour shots, we went to the Picasso museum which was very interesting spanding Picasso's entire life and works. We tried to get into a cathedral and a music hall but both were closed for siestas so after sitting in a cafe and enjoying pastries and warm beverages, we return to our hotel for a few hours to rest. Marisa, Ed, and I watched YouTube videos and Garfield's Christmas to pass the time, very enjoyable. For dinner we walked to a restaurant that was recommended but ended up next door at another fantastic place that is a chain over here. It's called La Quinze Nits and it was one of our favorite meals (you will hear this a lot) in which we enjoyed 3 full courses of somewhat American somewhat Spanish dishes. I had pasta with meat sauce and a chicken and ham plate, but everyone else tried something new! The atmosphere was perfect and we spent a very long time just sitting and talking, a great night!

 

Thursday, or what we liked to call Wednesday due to our lack of ability to retain any sort of time reference, was another great day in the city. I forgot to mention that we have a very large buffet breakfast included in our hotel rate which usually takes us about an hour to consume and is the time we spend planning our day. So as I was saying, we had a great second day taking a gondola up to the highest point in Barcelona which features a large castle. It was fun to take the gondola ride up and Ed commented that it made him want to go skiing and Marisa responded by exclaiming that this ride made her never want to ski again. When we reached the top we took a right which brought us all the way around the castle when we could have gone left and been right at the entrance, silly Americans. It was a nice walk though and we had great views of the city throughout it. When we finally arrived at the front of the castle, we were able to play on some war machines and paid 1 euro each to go up to the roof of the castle for more pictures. It was amazing and we were able to see where we had been and where we wanted to go. After coming back down on the gondola, we walked up another hill to see the Olympic stadium and area that was used during the '92 Olympics. We decided to go to the Olympic museum and were all glad we had. We took pictures inside the stadium then went to find out what this very grand, breathtaking building was that we had seen from the mount. It ended up being an art museum which was not something we were interested in but we took funny pictures infront of the palace and continued on our way. For lunch we ate at the previously described non-english speaking, giant octopus eating cafe/restaurant/bar for lunch. Need not discuss this experience any further. We walked back to the hotel exhausted and got cleaned up for dinner. Once again, we were not able to get into the place we wanted to go but we went to our second choice, LA FONDA, for obvious reasons. For those of us who do not know, "La Fawnda" was the girlfriend of Kipp Dynamite, brother of Napolean Dynamite, of the box office smash hit thriller that bears his name. Many pictures were taken and added to the joyful experience of the night. I should mention that on our way to this restaurant Maris and I found many stores we wanted to shop in but are now unable to retrace our steps down the few of a million tiny streets that graph Barcelona. La Fonda was another hit and 3 course meal.

 

This morning we decided to revisit the music hall we had tried to tour previously and booked ourselves for an English tour at 2pm. This gave us enough time to visit the most repulsive cathedral, if one can even refer to it as such,  built by Gaudi. Gaudi is pronounced "gawdy" which gives you, the reader, a clue to his style. His work decorates the city but this structure is by far the most dynamic to say the least. He died before he finished it so the entire inside is scaffolding, but the 14 spires he wished to have are in the process of being completed. We will upload pictures of this place so all can enjoy its grotesque qualities and frightening expression. George Orwell was quoted saying he wished it had been demolished in the civil war and was astonished to see that nobody had demolished it themself since then. After spending more than half the day walking, we went to our music hall tour which has certainly been my favorite place so far. It seats upwards of 2000 people and is entirely tile and mosaics. We were not allowed to take pictures but will be returning to the shop to buy pictures, that's how incredable the hall was. I cannot describe it's beauty and refuse to try. When a preview of Bach's feud was played it was several notches above that of the glorious organ playing we fondly remember from our youth at St. John's. Similarity though, both scared us greatly but for drastically different reasons. This organ has over 3,000 pipes, I guess that's a bit larger than St. John's as well. We went to a cafe for drinks then a humongous outdoor food market with skin of sheep, body parts that should certainly NEVER be consumed, and other mysterious goods that made me want to vom (as in vomit). This place was on the Travel Channel as a highlight of the city. I was glad to get out of there but everyone else greatly enjoyed the experience, they have much stronger stomaches than I. Marisa and I enjoyed a fantastic experience at a small candy bar called "Happy Pills". You are given a medicine vile to fill with your favorite candies then can pick out your own label. It was cute and we loved it! We are now having our own siesta which typically includes checking emails, watching short videos, reading, showering, running, etc. whatever one desires and is a great part of the day. We are heading the Le Quatre Gats which is supposed to be one of the best restaurants in the city, it sure will be hard to beat our previous places! Picasso frequented this restaurant while living in Barcelona and designed the menu, so maybe it will be better. We are going to do a bit of shopping/wandering since it is still far too early for dinner, 6pm here currently. We had planned to go to the top of the Barcelona cathedral which is practically outside our door, but realize that it will be too dark for pictures and so I guess we'll do that tomorrow.

 

I should say that we had been planning on taking a bus tour every day but decided to wait and today the bus drivers went on strike until after the holiday. Great. Just our luck. We are better on our own anyway.

 

It should be noted that the forecast has been for rain everyday and we have only seen a few drops and the television has never been turned on for there is just far to much else to do!!

 

We shall see what the rest of the trip brings which can only be more great times and amazing places. I would recommend that each of you come to Barcelona at least once in your lifetime, if not for the highly attractive males then for the food/sights/people/culture.

 

Au'revoir, Adios, Ciao.

Lu

more pictures online!

http://www.shutterfly.com

 

login: eddiec1313@gmail.com

password: marisa

 

enjoy!

Grande finale

Tonight we had a "petite fete" in honor of our last night at Cavalus, since tomorrow TS is leaving, too. It's our last night as "Hed" and "Madeesa" - we'll miss the accent. Ivan brought out a lovely bottle of champagne and some local wine. He was cooking some type of fowl for dinner (between a chicken and a duck - any ideas?) and all was well until he threw the entire pan of grease into the fireplace and started a chimney fire that extended into our bedroom, which is directly above the fireplace in the family room.

We threw water on it, of course, and managed to stop the flames within 10 minutes. Ivan said it's good when this happens because it cleans out the chimney for him, though "it is a little dangerous." We had a good laugh over that. It's a little smoky in our room now but luckily no damage done.

We had "French fries" with dinner tonight. Seemed appropriate for celebrating our last night in France.

After dinner, Ivan wanted us to burn our Cavalus pictures onto a CD for him, since we got some nice ones during this weekend's trek. That would have been no problem, except for the fact that we took a few pictures while cleaning the kitchen that we would have preferred Ivan not see. Miss Flora has this wonderfully chocolatey junk food cereal that only she is allowed to eat and we had a picture of Ed pouring the box right into his mouth. So, no problem, we thought. We'll just make sure to load the pictures while Ivan is not around. Unfortunately, Ivan not only wanted to be there while we burned the photos, he wanted to sit and look through 400 of them, starting in Greece, and with himself in control of the mouse - quelle horreur!! We had to grit our teeth during the "Hed is eating ze cornflakes of Flora!" comment but overall, it was fine. Lucky for us, Ivan was a bit tipsy by that time and couldn't be ruffled by much of anything.

So tomorrow morning we are up bright and early for our departure. We're glad that our final evening here remained true to form for Cavalus. We prefer to go out with a bang.


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Sunday at Cavalus

For your entertainment, we will now give you a complete run-down of our day. Did you know the word "absurd" is of French origin?

We got up this morning to a freezing cold house. The door had to be left open all day for a hose to travel from the bathtub to the water trough in the barn because the pipes in the barn froze again. Usually Ivan doesn't care when the pipes freeze because "they will thaw when the sun hits them" but apparently today he decided his horses should have water.

The light in the bathroom didn't work for a while so the door had to be left open, only an old curtain providing privacy from the entrance hallway. Spoiled brat Flora drew all over one of the bathroom mirrors with soap so it is hard to use; and there is no light in front of the other mirror.

We were supposed to leave at 10:30 to get the four horses we abandoned last night. Ivan said 10:30 would be perfect because that way there would be sunlight in the valley during the whole walk. So at 10:00 we and TS were getting ready to leave when Ivan came in to say that it will be too cold in the valley to walk, so we will delay our departure until noon. This ensured that it would be dark when we got back from the walk tonight since Ivan said it would be at least 2 hours each way and it gets dark early. Hopefully you recall that the extremely dangerous (and cold) idea of walking 4 horses through the woods in the dark was exactly what we hoped to avoid yesterday by splitting the journey into two days. It was also ridiculous to push back our departure because yesterday we set out at 7:30am in the dark, when it was surely colder than at 10:30am today.

Ivan has an ancient SUV that he can't drive off the mountain because it is uninsured and hasn't been inspected in years. It definitely would not pass inspection, given that the back door doesn't close and there is no glass in the rear window. While we waited to leave, Ivan wanted us to bring 2 horses to the higher pasture ("the plateau," about half a mile straight up from here) but then changed his mind because Flora said she and her friend wanted to ride them today (remember that, it comes up again). Instead, Ivan said we all needed to go up to the plateau to bring back hay for the horses here.

We piled into the SUV and started up the mountain. On the way, we passed the logs that we cut on Thursday, the pickets ready to be used for new fencing, the fence that we broke on Wednesday by rolling a tree trunk through it, and the weed-whacker that we forgot on Friday near the tree we cut down but haven't yet chopped up.

Then the SUV ran out of gas. For some reason, Ivan did not suggest that we run the quarter mile back to the house, where he keeps extra fuel. Instead, he actually put the truck in neutral and allowed it to roll backwards back down the mountain, through the switchbacks, stopping only for Ed to get out and pick up the weed-whacker. We had to be extra careful not to hit the horse that runs loose in the road in front of the house.

When we arrived, thankfully alive, Ivan put a few gallons of gas into the SUV from a watering can. But the car still wouldn't start because the battery was dead. (Time is ticking, it is now noon...)

Bobbin came over with his car and jumper cables. They got the car going again and Ivan took it to attach the trailer, which we would need to carry all of the hay back from the plateau. Why we didn't have the trailer in the first place is, of course, a mystery. Meanwhile, Bobbin found a crate of oranges in the saddle room (why not?) and began sorting out the rotten ones while he talked to The Spaniard. Bobbin offered his house to TS for the winter since he is living in the Mongolian tent, but during this morning's conversation he said his plans have changed and TS can no longer live there in January or the first 2 weeks of February. Like father, like son.

So we finally got to the plateau, where we loaded up the hay, and then returned to Cavalus. Rotten oranges left on the bench by Bobbin. Surprisingly, Ivan had not thought to clear a path to get the hay into the barn so we had to roll the 300-pound thing around the tractor and other obstacles to reach our final destination. Also surprisingly, Ivan did not actually assist with this process, just shouted out directions while the three of us pushed.

Then Ivan decided that he didn't want to set out on a long walk without eating lunch, so we all trooped inside and sat gloomily in front of the fire for 30 minutes while Ivan puttered around. Now 1:00. With no explanation, Ivan directed us to get back in the car along with a 15-year-old boy who for some reason had been allowed to sleep over in Flora's room last night. We gathered that we were going to drop this kid off at home but it was entirely unclear why we all had to go and when we would finally get started to get the horses.

We drove down the mountain, both of us and TS crammed in the back seat. Suddenly, with little warning, the entire sheet of glass in The Spaniard's window came out and we had to drag it into the back seat with us. The three of us laughed until we cried and the funniest part was that Ivan never showed any recognition of what had just happened, he completely ignored it. So we merrily put on our hats and gloves and drove the rest of the way in chilly, exhaust-fumed cameraderie.

At one point during the ride, a deer jumped out and ran down the road in front of the car. It was especially scary because it tripped and fell twice and we almost ran over it.

We dropped the kid off and then drove to the pasture where we left the horses last night. During the drive, Ivan kept pointing out landmarks for us to remember. Since we three would be walking the four horses back to Cavalus on our own. He dropped us at the pasture and sent us on our way.

So we each led one horse and trusted that the fourth would follow its friends, which thankfully it did. It was a nice day for walking and most of the trail was very nice, though we did have to go quite a distance along the main road. "Not much traffic here," sayeth Ivan. In fact, 30 cars passed us and each time the horses were nervous, and it was not easy to keep the free horse out of the road. Ivan was nice enough to follow along in the car while we were on the main road. We also had to pass through the center of a town with the horses, which was somewhat embarassing.

In all, the walk took about 3 hours and was quite pleasant. We got back to Cavalus at 4:00, cold, hungry, and tired. Of course, there was only one stall available so some of the horses had to double up (didn't go over too well with them) and one was left free in front of the house. Flora was very excited because one of the horses we brought is "hers." She oohed and aahed over it for five minutes, then put it into a stall (unfed, after walking for two days) and did not acknowledge that we three had trekked about 25 miles with that horse to bring it to her. Nor did Ivan mention that detail. When we went into the house, we were dismayed to find no fire (reminder: only source of heat), even though Ivan had been there all day. While we were feeding the horses, we found the kitchen mop and bucket, inexplicably left outside, frozen into one solid block of ice. We left it outside.

Apparently, several of Ivan's horses, who live in a pasture about one hour from here, somehow escaped during the day today. Ivan said it was probably because they'd had no food for several days, since the snow covered up their grass, and got out to look for food. That's probable. Ivan had to go find them, so we had to roll the same hay back onto the trailer so that he could take it with him. Luckily, he left at 6:00 and will probably not return until late.

While he was gone, Ivan wanted us to bring three horses up to the plateau. It seems he forgot that we had already walked horses around for him a bit this weekend and didn't want to ask Flora to do this small chore, even though two of the horses were only there because she wanted to ride them today. So we trudged up the mountain, three tired horses in tow. One of the horses came from the far mountain with us this weekend. He had a cowbell around his neck to make it easier to find the herd in the mountains. Of course, the buckle on the cowbell strap broke so Ivan couldn't get it off, so the poor horse is still wearing a cowbell. We stuffed a glove in it so that we wouldn't have to listen to it for the whole weekend, but that glove got lost somewhere so by tonight it was clanging away.

After depositing the horses at the plateau, we returned to Cavalus and were sitting in front of the fire when suddenly - what do we hear? Cowbell horse had somehow escaped from the pasture (we have passed by those new pickets exactly 6 times today) and returned to the house. The three of us decided that he could stay here overnight. We just put hay for him on the garage floor.

We recently received a phone call from someone a few towns over - about an hour's drive - to say that more of Ivan's horses are loose. They threatened to call the police, so TS called Ivan's cell phone to let him know. Who knows what he will do about that.

We're reluctant to post this blog because it's only 7:00 and who knows what the rest of the night has in store? Luckily, right now TS is cooking a lovely dinner and the fire is huge and Ivan and Flora aren't here to disrupt our quiet evening. The only sound is the gentle clanging of a cowbell....

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What a day

Today we walked over 20 miles for 9 straight hours in the ice and snow leading four horses up and down two mountains. It was probably the most dangerous day of either of our lives. Luckily Ivan realised (finally) that it was getting too dark to walk the horses through the woods so we left them in a field and took a cab back here. Tomorrow we think it's only 12 miles roundtrip to bring them the rest of the way. Ivan says it will take 2 hours. Ha!

Two days until we leave here...
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Cleaning and Noel

Today was a long day. We tackled the kitchen, which was at such an advanced state of dirtiness at the outset that it felt distinctly unsatisfying at the end. After 4 hours of concentrated scrubbing, there remain many grimy spots. As Ed put it so nicely, "it's like trying to clean out a puddle."

One big thing that we have forgotten to mention is our Christmas experience in Europe so far. Now that it's less than 2 weeks away we have of course been thinking about it, though sadly we haven't really had any exposure to the joys of commercial Christmas. We are trying to accustom ourselves to the idea that we're not really having a Christmas this year, since it will just be the two of us in a hotel and we don't even know where yet. We are okay with that though it is sad, too. They only have one little string of greens here at the farm; they're going away for Christmas this year so they aren't going to decorate. They have a very lovely advent calendar, though, which consists of small gold-wrapped presents dangling with red ribbon from the greens that are strung along the exposed beams in the ceiling. Very pretty to look at and every day the gift has a different person's name. So far Ed has received a truffle and a burned CD and Marisa has received chocolates and a special pen. It's a nice idea and was very thoughtful for them to include us, so at least our one and only Christmas exposure has been a good one.

Tomorrow, rumor has it that we have to wake up between 5 and 6 to drive to some place "in the high mountains" where Ivan keeps some of his horses and then we are going to walk back to Cavalus (all the way down "the high mountain" and back up this one) leading said horses. We can't get anyone to tell us exactly how far it is but supposedly it will take all day, which is why we have to leave so early. Considering that it will be us, Ivan, and The Spaniard, there is a good chance that the entire day will pass with fewer than 10 words spoken. So another fun day is in store. Though on the bright side, the weather has been incredible here lately - there was snow on Monday and every day since has been cold but bright and wonderfully sunny so it's fun to be outside where everything looks clean and sparkly - so it may be an enjoyable day after all.

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The French Connection

So much to say and we don't know where to start! We seem to have left the blackberry charger behind somewhere in our travels, so when the battery died last week we were incommunicado for several days until we received a new one from Cathy/mom - thank you!!

So now... Where to begin? We are still at the horse farm Cavalus in the French Pyrenees. They have a website so you can google Cavalus for pictures if you're interested. It has been quite an experience. In all honesty and fairness, we can't actually say that it has been bad. But we can make it clear that it has not been our favorite place to stay. On the upside, it is an absolutely beautiful location. 360 degree views of the mountains and a lovely rustic farmhouse and plenty of lovely horses. Based on location and ambiance alone, it is fantastic and we are glad to have been here just for that.

On the downside. If you look up "The Boonies" or "backwater" in the dictionary, you will find Cavalus. The greatest insult they throw around here is: "est-ce que vous etes un espece de parisien?" or "are you some type of Parisian?" The Pyrenees have no relation to Paris whatsoever. Ivan's son (we call him Bobbin; real name unknown) lives in a small house up the road (why??) and has no job. Apparently no one here finds it necessary to be employed. He asked us whether most people in Boston work during the week or not - and was interested to hear that the answer was yes!! We can't quite figure out how they survive up here, though it is quite clear that one requirement for the survival of the population is the death of the trees. We have cut down 3 trees in the last 4 days and chopped them up into firewood, which Nien says will last one week. We think she's exaggerating but since their entire (huge - functions as a guesthouse and sleeps 15 people) house is heated only by wood fires, it may not be too far from the truth. To give you a slightly clearer picture: Bobbin and his girlfriend are moving OUT of their house for the winter and into a "Mongolian tent" which they are buying and plan to set up on a hand-constructed wooden platform higher in the mountains, purposely accessible only by foot. Apparently the word for this neo-hippie-ism is "baba-cool". Our guess is that they'll be baba-freezing in January without a heater. Or baba-asphyxiating from trying to start a fire in their tent.

Aside from this slightly antisocial oddness, everyone is pretty nice, though Ivan prefers not to talk (we've sat through two painful lunches with him during which no one said a word) and Nien is, well, bizarre. She told us about her "very, very avant-garde" school in Amsterdam (of course) where she learned all about how to express her internal emotions through external movements and where they "did such intense body work" that she needed therapy afterwards. It's all a bit of a circus here.

The work has been fine, we just wish there was a bit more of it. We usually spend the morning busy; from 9 to 1 we have been either gathering and chopping wood, building fences, or tracking down horses that escape at least once per week. (Aside: why we don't just fix the broken fence that allows them to escape time after time is a mystery). This work is pleasant enough, though at times wrought with danger because Ivan wears no protective gear and swings the chainsaw like he's doing a do-si-do, and the ax broke today so that a hard enough swing would send the blade flying off the top of the handle, but we use it anyway. At 1ish we stop whatever we're doing to have lunch, often leaving wood on the tractor or tools in the pasture, and then we do nothing for 2 hours. The Spaniard has a siesta and Ivan disappears. We usually take a walk and feed the horses to pass the time. Some days we do work again in the evening, but lately most days we don't. We just leave the wood on the tractor and the tools in the field overnight and instead of working, have nothing at all to do. The bad part of this is that it is infuriating, since we have yet to finish a single project and the horses continue to escape while the wood for their fence sits by the side of the road half a mile away. The good part is that it gives us plenty of time to run every day.

In addition to that enjoyable farmwork, Nien has also delegated to us some household jobs. Sweeping and dishes we do not mind. It is, however, somewhat demoralizing to clean someone else's bathroom. And today she asked us to spend one day before we leave cleaning the kitchen. Like really cleaning it. As she said, "it's nice for this to be done at the end of every year" since it is never done otherwise. We have to pull appliances away from the walls to clean the backs of them, clean out the refrigerator (yuck), use a hands-and-knees scrub brush on the floor, and get "all those icky places way back in the corners that nobody ever wants to do." The crowning glory is that we also have to wash all of the walls, ceiling to floor, with soap and a sponge, including the grease-soaked untreated-wood window frames. She was going to have us repaint the walls and ceiling but luckily the store didn't have the right paint. And it's not that the house is dirty, persay, but this morning the cat caught a big rat in the living room. While we were sitting there. It then brought it up onto the couch next to Marisa. Now, we don't want to be ungrateful, since these people are allowing us to stay in their house and eat their food, but doesn't it seem as though they're maybe taking advantage of our inability to say no, just a little bit? We will clean the disgusting kitchen, but we're not too happy about it.

On a lighter note, here is a list of interesting foods we've eaten here so far - keep in mind that "interesting" can go either way: lots of quiches and tarts, escargot (chewy), lamb hearts (also chewy), "ze pizza" (love the accent), remarkably delicious butter, crepes with sugar, crepes with cheese, crepes with nutella, pate (on the table at every meal), and anchovies (Europeans love their anchovies). Quite a mix of good and bad, no?

Think that about catches you up on our adventures here in France. Looking forward to Barcelona next week!

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