Spring Forward, OK?

Spring seems to have stalled here.  Maybe it needs a little inspiration.

A little of this.

A few of these.

Leading eventually to this.

Still Adjusting

Or maybe it's Spring Fever.

I'm back at work and over my jet-lag.  But the new wrinkle is that my lovely husband, who's been out of work since Christmas, has gone and got himself a job, which, Yay!

But it's all an adjustment, isn't it? 

I'll work on some posts this week.  And come and visit all your wonderful blogs again, now that my computer has finally decided that she will, in fact connect to the internet. 

In the meantime, I hope you like the picture, taken in the courtyard of a clinic in Africa.  And if you could possibly...

It means "Please Wait" in Swahili.

Thank you.

 

Walking Through Amsterdam

After the Africa portion of my trip (there will be pictures and stories, I promise!) I had a couple of days in Amsterdam.

It was my first time there and I was utterly charmed.  Well, what's not to love?  There are canals and bridges.

And it's Spring!

Water is so soothing to walk beside.  Or ride over...

And then at the end of the day, I got to return to this hotel room.

Thank you, Merci, Asante....

Whenever I set out to learn a few words in a new language (so handy when travelling), I always start with thank you.  So it seems appropriate that I begin the story of last month at the end, with a thank you.

When I found out that we would be finishing our trip to Africa with a few days in Amsterdam, I emailed Pia, to see if there was any chance we could meet.  I thought it was a long-shot, since she seems to be so busy.  But she emailed me back an enthusiastic yes.

I spent a lovely day, being shown around this beautiful city by one of my favourite bloggers.  Pia showed me her favourite neighbourhoods and a few of her favourite shops.  We stopped for tea and talked as though we had known each other for years.

The next day, I was invited to see her houseboat.  We had more tea and conversation.  I came away really happy to have met such a lovely, generous and thoughtful person. 

And with renewed enthusiasm for this blog.

Thanks so much Pia!  I look forward to returning the favour when you find yourself heading this way!

 

 

Let's Get Away

It's really hot and humid here today.  I feel like going to the beach.  Who's with me?

You can cool your toes.

Have a game of Frisbee.

Leave your cares behind.

The decorating's easy.

You say you need beach reading?  Check here for the read of the summer.

Musee d"Orsay - Repurposing on a Grand Scale

You can't go to Paris and skip the Musee d'Orsay.  Even on our very first, three-day visit, it was on the agenda, and  rightly so.

Just across the Seine from the Louvre, Musee d'Orsay started life as a train station.  But as the population grew and traffic patterns changed, it was no longer needed for that purpose.  What to do?

This being Paris, the first thought wasn't, thankfully, "Let's tear it down and put in a strip mall!!!!"  It's a beautiful structure that needed some grand purpose to fulfill its destiny.

And what better purpose than housing an art collection?

The tracks were torn up and flooring put down, but you can still see that it was once a train station. 

*Update* I've just noticed that this post has totally replaced my last one, instead of just adding onto it, like they're supposed to.  Ugh!  I've mentally re-traced my steps and figured out what I've done.  I'll try to get the pics back up this afternoon, but don't think I can adjust the comments.  So Corine's comment and my reply are about that, currently invisible post! 

I thought I was being so productive, too, blogging in the morning.....

Eye Candy From Montmartre

Just a short post today.  Most of the group went to Montmartre.  I stayed home and slept - I've got a bit of a cold.

Alan very nicely took some pictures for you.

We're heading home early tomorrow.  I'll take a couple of days off from posting, but there's still so much I want to show you.  I'll be back Wednesday.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

 

Too Many Names

When World War One began in August of 1914, everyone believed that it would all be over by Christmas.

Young men the world over heard the call and signed up.  One of those young men was my grandfather, Harry Dean. 

Over the course of the next four long years, he fought in the trenches of the Western Front.  I don't know what he hoped to find in France, but what awaited him was a battlefield of mud and horror.

One of "the lucky ones", he managed to survive the war and its terrible battles, including the Battle of Vimy Ridge, considered by some to be a high point in the history of Canada - a battle that solidified our status as a nation.

In a field, on a hill outside of Arras is a monument to that awful day of triumph.  Carved into the sides of it are the names of young men killed in battle, whose bodies were never found.  Eleven thousand two hundred and eighty five in all.  A further six thousand nine hundred and ninety eight names are carved in the Memorial Arch of the Menin Gate at Ypres.

Vimy is a beautiful monument, a place of silence and of ghosts.

We went today to pay our respects to my grandfather and his comrades. 

Also there were a group of men from England, finding the name of an ancestor.  I quietly stepped away.

 

Surrounding this spot are fields of lumps and hillocks and holes - the long-ago battlefields, left to heal as nature sees fit.  Grass covers the mud and trees grow, but the scars in the earth remain.

It's a powerful testament to all that was lost in those four terrible years.

 

Back Again

It was  a very busy two days in England.  You can read about it here.

A Wet Saturday in Paris

Yesterday was perfect.  Today's a bit chilly and damp.

It wouldn't be Paris without the Eiffel Tower.... 

And one for Pia.  Shall we call it "My Heart Wanders to Paris?"

We will be heading to England early tomorrow morning for a visit with my cousins.

I've decided not to bring my computer with me, so I won't be posting again until Tuesday.

While we're away, we'll be having dinner with a possible long-lost relation of Dad's.  Either that or he's just a random stranger with no connection to the family whatsoever...

I'll keep you posted!

 

More Pics of Our Apartment

The foyer:

The back garden:

The fountain:

And some statuary:

Oh, wait!  Ha ha!  That's not our place at all!  It's the Rodin Museum!

Memorial de la Deportation

At the end of Ile de la Cite, just across from the gardens of Notre Dame Cathedral, is a small sign, pointing.

This is a memorial built to commemorate the thousands of Jews, homosexuals, disabled people and resistance fighters rounded up and deported to the death camps by the Nazis.

You read the explanations on the plaque and then go down the narrow stairs, built purposely to give a sense of what it was like for the deported - narrow aisle-ways, restricted views.

Inside is silence, the names of the camps (so many of them!), two cells.

The Tomb of the Unknown Victim.  And thousands of lights, each one representing a person deported, never to return.

Simple, powerful, not to be missed.

April in Paris - A Good Start

We're still settling in and getting our bearings here.  That process was somewhat hampered by the fact that the phone rang at three o'clock this morning.  We can only assume it was a wrong number - the only people we gave the number to swear it wasn't them. 

However, we don't actually know how to answer the phone - merely picking it up doesn't seem to work.  More research is needed...

We did take a nice long wander, down to the Seine and through Notre Dame Cathedral.

Here are a few pictures.

I hope you're enjoying your stay so far!

April in Paris - The Arrival

Well, that flight wasn't so bad... a bit crowded and boring, as always. 

But here we are, safe and sound.  In a lovely little courtyard apartment that proves you can safely pick rentals off the internet.

One quick picture to stir your curiosity and then it's time to wake the dreamers and head out for a walk.