Mon Aventure

There is so much more to see and do in London. For one thing, I intend to go back to the National Gallery.
WITHOUT Chris. He just couldn't appreciate it and I don't blame him. It's not his thing. He endured it for a while for my sake.

I stood in front of a Renoir original and I got really emotional. I wasn't expecting that.  I like Renoir, but he's not my all time favorite and I didn't realize I could be so emotional about art.  I usually look at it as a job.  It's what I get paid to do.  But standing in front of a Renoir original, I realized I was as close as I'll ever be to one of my childhood tutors.  I learned to paint by renting big Renoir coffee table books from the library and copying his and other artists famous works.  Why did I feel a strong connection to him more than the others in that moment?  I have no idea.  It's an experience I will never forget.

Below is a photo of a postcard of the original Renoir I saw in the London National gallery.





Speaking of paintings, the one I told you I was working on is finished and has been shipped to the owner.

Here's the finished project before it was framed...

I've been trotting the globe for over a month now, but I'm back in Geneva and we can finally sit here and have a proper chat.  As we talk, a bee occasionally flies around my head.  Our windows don't have screens, so every creature that flies feels welcome in my apartment during summer.  I like it and I don't like it.  Occasionally I find bird poop on a table.  I'm not sure whether to be bothered by the bird poop or charmed that a bird was in my apartment.

Since my last post we've celebrated our 10th Anniversary at a Resort in Virginia, spent nearly 3 weeks at home visiting his family and my family and we've played the tourist in London.  London is freshest in my mind because we were in London only 2 days ago, so lets work backwards and talk about London first.....

We saw and did many touristy things... the National Gallery, Buckingham Palace, Harrods, The Tower Bridge, St. Paul's Cathedral... but I think our fondest memory, when we look back on this trip, will be the fun we had exploring and just being together.  Running through the rain to the safety of a coffee shop, drinking a beer or two at a Pub and laughing more than usual afterwards on the way to Buckingham Palace, and even fussing at eachother about nothing when we were tired, hungery or needed to pee.

If you ever go to London, DON'T spend money on "Churchill's War Experience." Our first clue should have been that it was not listed as one of the 50 things to see on the bus route. It smelled bad and was more like a haunted house than anything else. So cheesy.


I think Buckingham Palace was Chris' favorite, I'm not sure.  But for me, it was a big deal to buy tea from Harrods. 

I'm hard pressed to decide which I liked better: the National Gallery, or getting my very own Paddington Bear from Paddington Station.  I'll talk about the National Gallery in a separate post, but here is Paddington Bear...

"Not all those who wander are lost." -J.R.R. Tolkien

It's a rainy day here.  A good day to sit and have a chat with you.

The rain matches my mood.  I'm homesick for the U.S. and for family.  I think this can't be avoided when you move to another country.  I think it's part of the experience.  On the other hand, I think some people are meant to live far away from their roots for a long, long time.  I don't think I'm one of those people.  I think that living in Europe for a few years is an experience I will never regret, but at the end of these few years, it will be right for me to return home, when others fall in love and stay forever.

In the meantime, every moment is precious and many happy memories are being made.  On Saturday I had my first experience with white water rafting.  Chris and I both went.  The following photo was taken in the girls changing tent.  A wet suit is the most difficult piece of clothing I have ever tried to put on. 

I enjoyed rafting, but given the choice, I'll raft down a lazy river with a can of beer any day over the constant jumpy nerves of white water rafting.  Chris, on the other hand, was in his element.  Risk and extreme sports make him come alive.

The last 2 weeks have been busy.  I flew around preparing the apartment for our first overnight guests only a week after our shipment from the U.S. arrived.  I also threw a small baby shower for a new friend from Ireland.  Did you know baby showers are an American thing?  Yes.  My Irish friend says it hasn't caught on in Europe, but she thinks it's a "brilliant" idea.  She was so excited to tell her Mom and friends back home in Ireland that she was getting a baby shower! 

Everyone is enamored with our quaint apartment and the special touch American furniture adds to it.


All of you homemakers out there will appreciate this next bit of news..... today I found myself washing out a zip lock bag for re-use.  I haven't found zip lock bags in Switzerland.  The few zip locks I do have innocently came over with me from the U.S. not knowing their worth.  When I visit the U.S. in August, I'll be stocking up.

This morning when I woke up, my dark Red Lilies finally bloomed in my bedroom window box.  I've been waiting for 2 months for this!


Last week I found a swan nest when we were walking along the lake after dinner!  Did you know it stays light til 10:30 at this time of year in Switzerland???  It's so hard to go to bed at a decent hour!  This swan didn't seem to be affected.