gabriella & jd (and alex! and vincent!)

Strasbourg. We spent the long holiday weekend in Strasbourg, France, in the Alsace region. We took the fast train from Gare de l'Est and it only took a little over 2 hours. We stayed near the pedestrian area and cathedral, and did lots of walking and eating. The first day was rainy, then it cleared up and was hot by the time we left. Alex liked watching the boats go through the canal locks and under the covered bridges that turned to let the boats pass through. We also toured the Kronenbourg brewery right outside of town. Beer is no longer brewed there since 2000, but it is still the headquarters and labs. Week before. Alex was in desperate need of a haircut, so JD decided to do it on his own! Not bad for the first home haircut.

This week. On Sunday we went to Montmartre but it was really crowded, so we left and ate lunch. Alex discovered the window makes a great train track. Alex likes to get the ladder out and play in the closet. Last night he enjoyed chewing on the broccoli stalk. Then it was time to make some phone calls home. Alex Dancing movie

Amsterdam. We just returned from four days in Amsterdam. JD had a meeting, so Alex and I tagged along. We took the fast train and enjoyed the ride in first class with wifi and meal service. Amsterdam was nice, we walked all over the city and had good meals including an Indonesian rice table. We didn't see too much sun and it was fairly chilly, but we managed to cover a lot of the city. The amount of bicycles in the city was truly amazing, and the canals and canal houses were really cool.

Rest of the weekend. Alex needed new shoes. We discovered pletzyl's (onion poppy seed rolls) used for pastrami sandwiches in the Marais. We walked through the Latin Quarter and down Rue Moufftard, and discovered the hotel I stayed at in the 90's is still there, Hotel de France. We then walked through the Jardin du Luxembourg and back up St. Germain. Yesterday, Alex helped take Lincoln to the vet for a check-up with the use of his stroller. I walked around Invalides and the Eiffel Tower on Monday. I'll have to go back to the Musee Rodin since it is closed on Mondays. Alex loves the Pompiers (firemen) of Paris, especially the ladder trucks we see.

Giverny. On May 1 we took our first train ride adventure outside of Paris to Giverny to see Monet's gardens. The weather was great and we walked and walked and walked! Rest of Week. We finally had sun on Wednesday after a few days of rain. Alex went to his preschool for the full afternoon on Thursday, and was so tired he fell asleep on the metro before we got home! I finally got a chance to go to the Warhol exhibit at the Grand Palais.