A little “Non”
Today demonstrated the lovely blend of what big city Euro travel can be like. Exquisite beautiful churches-
Tiny old buildings tucked into odd corners -
And then you blend that with 90 degree heat, the cafe running out of food but not telling us (and figuring that we would eventually just leave if they ignored us for long enough) and having the wrong swimming trousers for the public pool. That is a typical European vacation in a nutshell -- many folks telling you “non." Liv and I have enough experience to find food even during the mid-day siesta hours, and luckily the kids are staying amazingly flexible when seemingly every plan changes, so we continue to roll with the punches and enjoy the experiences. It was nice to hear Lyle request today that we get back on the road and into our “old” routine, as it is easier. Tomorrow we head up the Loire. Campgrounds seem to be every few miles, and we will strive to have really light days where we don’t cover as many miles and instead do more village wandering. We will see how that works for us. Looking forward to being out in the countryside again, but we will miss our Irish campground neighbors who always bring two glasses of wine by for us in the evening, and made a point of telling me that since we were traveling in the morning, if they weren’t up yet, they had left coffee on the “gas hob” outside their tent for us so that we could have a cup before we went. So many generous people in the world. We feel grateful to have this chance to meet some of them.
And then your regular wood and hydraulic pachyderm-
This collection of mechanical art really puts the Burning Man folks to shame -
And then you blend that with 90 degree heat, the cafe running out of food but not telling us (and figuring that we would eventually just leave if they ignored us for long enough) and having the wrong swimming trousers for the public pool. That is a typical European vacation in a nutshell -- many folks telling you “non." Liv and I have enough experience to find food even during the mid-day siesta hours, and luckily the kids are staying amazingly flexible when seemingly every plan changes, so we continue to roll with the punches and enjoy the experiences. It was nice to hear Lyle request today that we get back on the road and into our “old” routine, as it is easier. Tomorrow we head up the Loire. Campgrounds seem to be every few miles, and we will strive to have really light days where we don’t cover as many miles and instead do more village wandering. We will see how that works for us. Looking forward to being out in the countryside again, but we will miss our Irish campground neighbors who always bring two glasses of wine by for us in the evening, and made a point of telling me that since we were traveling in the morning, if they weren’t up yet, they had left coffee on the “gas hob” outside their tent for us so that we could have a cup before we went. So many generous people in the world. We feel grateful to have this chance to meet some of them.
-Dave
Great report, Dave... spinning to the positive at every turn. Maybe you could expand on the 'swimming trousers' comment? Did they object to your flouncing? Dang foreigners!
ReplyDeleteThe loose shorts for guys are a “non”! Must be speedo or spandex. Sheesh!!!
DeleteYour Irish neighbors will be remembered! Hooray for kids wanting to get back on the road. : ) Were you turned away from the pool?
ReplyDeleteOh, what a wonderful post. Thank you soooooo much for keeping this blog. We here on the other side of the pond live for these updates. INCREDIBLE mechanical art!! Love it. Hahaha, the wrong trousers for the pool. Did you guys try to swim in your bike shorts? We'd love to see some photos of the lovely people you're meeting. Keep having fun and enjoy the Loire! Molly sends her love.
ReplyDeleteI am really shy about doing that but can try...!
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