Zurich

Hello Again!  We have been away from any internet connections for a few days, so we will catch up slowly.  We left Jordi’s house Sunday night, and arrived in Zurich Monday morning.  We had a great time—I want to go back!  We were able to do a tour of the city and surrounding areas.  We saw the beautiful old city, took a ferry on Lake Zurich, and rode a cable car up the mountain in a neighboring town called Horgen.   The view from the top of the mountain was incredible.  The day was sunny and warm—it was a beautiful experience.  We bought enough souvenirs and gifts to fill two suitcases!  It was so fun to be in the city that my ancestors are from.  I can only imagine how desolate the Salt Lake Valley looked to them after leaving Switzerland.  It strengthened my faith to be there—I really felt like they made the journey with me.  Who wants to go back with me?    Tuesday morning we took the bus to the nearby town of Kilchberg where we visited the Lindt and Sprungli Chocolate factory.  We didn’t know exactly where to go when we got off the bus, but we did the smart thing and followed our noses.  If only I could bottle the smell. . . We started walking the wrong direction and immediately could tell because the smell got weaker!  My Great-Grandmother worked at the factory for years to earn enough money to come to the US.  It was so neat to be there.  Tuesday afternoon we took the train to Strasbourg, France.  More on that in the next blog.  We fly home in the morning, so Au Revoir!

**Benjamin and Mary, we will see you very soon!  We love you!

First View of Switzerland from the train; Downtown Zurich

View of Grossmunster Church from across the river; Ferry on Lake Zurich

On the Ferry; Postcard-worthy View

View from Mountain overlooking villages and Lake Zurich; Juan Carlos de la Mancha Mojada's Swiss cousin:  Heinrich von Uberblatter

Neil at the Lake; view of Fraumunster Church through a beautiful street

The Real reason Laura went to Europe

Us with Jordi's Family the day we left Terrassa:  

Laura, Ana, Daniel, Antonio, Jordi, Laura, Neil

Terrassa and Barcelona

Hello again. Last night we were able to travel to downtown Barcelona and see the city by night. We left Jordi’s house at 9:30 pm. I don’t remember the last time I left the house that late on a Saturday night for anything other than a quick trip to get milk before Sunday—have I gotten boring? Anyway, we had a great time. It is such an amazing experience to be somewhere with such a rich history. We saw a museum that had an exhibit celebrating 1000 years of art. That’s a little more history than you will find in California. Today we were able to have a “typical” Sunday breakfast—Spanish churros that you eat after dipping them in hot chocolate pudding. It reminded me of all the toast and cocoa I ate on Sunday evenings as a kid—Neil can no longer think I’m weird for doing that! We were able to attend church in the Terrassa Ward. Every time I attend church in a different country I am reminded of how the Gospel is the same—the Lord loves all his children individually, and his blessings are extended to all. Neil was able to understand the meeting—I understood that people were talking, but that was about it. I loved singing the hymns in Spanish—the only unfortunate thing was that while I was singing I thought of Mrs. Boom (7th grade Spanish) and how she would be pleased I actually knew how to pronounce the words. After church, Jordi picked us up and took us to many cultural events. We saw Catalan dancing, some Gigantes in a parade, and the building of human castles. He said the only thing we missed on our trip was seeing fire runners—I guess we will have to come back. This has been an amazing stop in our journey. I am in a constant state of amazement at the beauty and history of this beautiful world. Next stop—Zurich! We love you all. Thanks for keeping up with us. Note: The computer is being obnoxious about the pictures--sorry for the random order.

***Benjamin and Mary,
Jordi bought you some presents—you are going to love them! We miss you and can’t wait to see you.

Catalonia

¡Hola, Salutaciones de España!
We’ve been touring all over northern Spain the past two days. Jordi’s family has a second home right on the coast of the Mediterranean, so we drove up there yesterday and walked through several small towns along the coast. We saw where Salvador Dali was born and lived most of his life (in addition to melted clocks, we discovered that he also had a bit of an obsession with eggs). We also got to walk and drive through several towns that have been around since medevil times. The towns are beautiful, exude charm, and embody an incredible amount of history. All of the towns are very much built around the Catholic church. One of the coolest things we saw was a monastery near the top of a mountain that overlooked the Sea. Apparently the monks there were dedicated to medicine and healing (we figure that anyone that could survive the trip all the way up to the monastery must had already had a pretty good shot at surviving, so the monks were probably pretty successful at their job). The view was obviously spectacular. After visiting several towns we went to a local market and Jordi bought several types of meats and cheeses for dinner; he also made us a Spanish Tortilla (kind of like a potato omlet). This morning we saw some more towns, climbed up a old abandoned rice silo that has been converted to a wetland observatory, and met a cow named Juan Carlos de la Mancha Mojada (I just decided). If you want to change his name Benjamin, you have my permission-- the rest of you must call him by his full given name though. After driving around a bit more we returned to the house of Jordi´s family near Barcelona (Terrassa) where we had lunch with much of his family. They are a lot of fun and have been incredibly hospitable. We have offered them space in any and all of your houses if they ever want to visit the United States (consider it payment for the hours of enjoyment you have undoubtedly experienced living vicariously through our Blog). We love you and miss you. Que Dios les bendiga.

Night Trains and Barcelona

Hello! We made it safely to Barcelona and have been out enjoying the city with Neil´s friend Jordi. We took the train to Paris yesterday and then connected to our departing train station using the Metro. It was an interesting experience with all of our suitcases, but we made it. We left our luggage at the station and went exploring in Paris for a couple of hours. We then boarded the Elipsos night train to Barcelona. It was a very cool experience. See pictures for our room number. You football fans might find the numbers interesting. Today we have seen a few of the main sights in Barcelona (see pictures). It is a beautiful city and we can´t wait to see more. The only down side is that every time we see a child Neil and I are reminded how much we love and miss our kids. We love you Benjamin and Mary!

Roscoff, Day 4

This will be short because I have to run to catch the train.  Yesterday I went to a little laundramat (sp?)  I managed to figure it all out, even though all of the instructions were in French and there was no attendant.  Two French ladies came in shortly after me and were also trying to figure it out.  They were unsure what to do, so I helped them--after that they would smile and wave at me when we crossed paths in town--it's nice to make friends.  Last night Neil took me to his big conference banquet.  I am adding some pictures we took from our phones.  I have never seen so much seafood in my life.   I'm not sure that I want to again, but it was a really fun experience.  Well, Au revoir for now.  Next stop. . .Barcelona.  We love you, Benjamin and Mary!!!  Be good for Aunt Barbara, and feel better soon!!!!!

Roscoff, Day 3

Good Morning!  Life is going well for us here.  Yesterday afternoon Neil and I got to take a short boat ride to l'ile de batz.  It is a beautiful island that made us feel like we had stepped back in time into a fairy tale.  We had our first real look at the expanse of the Atlantic Ocean, and got to wander around on the beach.  We also found a great little patisserie shop (see photo).  We don't understand much French, but we did understand "chocolat."  Neil is in lectures all day today, and I am going to do exciting things like laundry.  We love you and miss you all!

On a little street in l'ile de batz

In keeping with the tradition I started in Jordan (although I did not take my shoes off here), this photo represents the fact that we were visiting a new body of water

Awww.  Isn't that cute.

I think this one speaks for itself.

Benjamin!  This man was holding up his lobster just to show you!!!!!

Roscoff, Day 2

Hello again.  Last night Neil skipped the conference dinner and we finally got to spend some time walking around together.  I've been getting a lot of weird looks walking around by myself, so it was nice to have Neil with me.  Today is very overcast--yesterday's sunshine was so nice, but will probably not return.  I'll post again when I have something more exciting to say.

View of the Notre Dame Cathedral from our hotel window

Neil and I on the waterfront

Our European Adventure Begins

Hello from France!  

I guess it takes traveling to the other side of the globe to get me to actually post to this blog.  Neil and I arrived last night in Roscoff, France.  He is attending a conference where he gets to spend 4 fun-filled days listening to lectures of other scientists from around the world.  I get to wander around, eat, look at the ocean, and miss my kids (well, we both get to do that last one).  We left Friday (October 10) and flew from Sacramento to Salt Lake City.  Aunt Barbara picked up Ben and Mary, and then Neil and I boarded a plane to Paris.  Then we sat, and sat, and sat.  Four hours later we took off.  I guess there was a computer glitch in Atlanta that made them accidentally overload the plane in SLC by 3,000 pounds.  The pilot decided the plane could fly with 3,000 fewer pounds of fuel (how is that possible?).  They siphoned the fuel, and we were off.  That was a really fun way to start a 9-hour flight.  Needless to say, we were late getting to Paris which made us miss our connecting train.  We had to buy new tickets on a later train (which I will make sure Delta reimburses us for), and we finally arrived at about 9:00 at night.  Total travel time:  About 29 hours.  The good news is that we were so sleep-deprived before we left that we were able to get a little sleep on the plane, and had no trouble sleeping through the night here.  I feel more alert today than I have felt for the last couple of weeks--I guess I had "pre" jet-lag.

Neil left the room at 7:30 this morning.  I got to sleep in and eat a great breakfast in the hotel.  Since my diet is out the window for the trip, I had a croissant baked with soft dark chocolate in the middle.  I think I like French food.  After breakfast I walked around for an hour and a half awed and amazed by the beauty around me.   Even our hotel is beautiful (on the outside).  It sits on the beach with views of the water one direction, and views of the town on the other.  We are on the 4th floor and have an amazing view of the local Notre Dame Cathedral, the main streets, and if I stretch  I can see the ocean.  I am such a spoiled brat.  I can't wait to see what is in store for us on this  trip, although I miss Benjamin and Mary every second.  Every time I see a child here I get a little sad, but I know they are having fun with their cousins, and are in good hands.  Tomorrow Neil will be able to spend the afternoon and evening seeing the area with me.  Check back for updates!

My cute kids at the airport having a Cinnabon breakfast of champions

Views from our hotel window

View of the hotel (white building, gray roof, far side) on the coast

Happy New Year!

Hello! We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and are enjoying a bright new year. Welcome to our blog. I wish I had the time to make it amazing--kind of impossible with two active kids! I will try to keep it updated, so check back soon!