Giverny... Monet's home and garden

Just an hour drive from Paris is the small town of Giverny, famous as the home of impressionist painter Claude Monet.  For the last 43 years of his life, he lived here and painted his water lily series among other paintings.  The gardens and ponds are well-preserved and tended perfectly.  When we walked through his home, it was easy to imagine his day-to-day life here.  It's like time stood still, you could almost expect him to walk through the door with fruit, cheese and wine.  There are also many photos of him in and around the house, walking through the gardens, and entertaining his artist friends. 

This was one place at the top of my bucket list to visit.  It was even more amazing than I had imagined.  Even though it was crowded with summer tourists, you still got a peaceful and tranquil feeling here... much like his paintings. 



One of many paths through the arbored gardens



View of Monet's home

A stream running into the Lily pond

A bridge in front of the famous Lily pond

A familiar scene from Monet's paintings

The pond seen through willow branches

Hydrangea

Another famous site with a famous couple

A happy sunflower

...and a happy Mary

See you in Normandy,  Au Revoir!

Paris...can you ever get enough?

We arrived in Paris at our hotel on Sunday evening after a chaotic drive through the center of Paris.  I can't believe Pete can maintain his calm demeanor as I see cars coming from all directions.  We even drove right through the mother of all roundabouts - the Arc de Triomphe.  There are 10 streets that dump into that roundabout.  After settling in to a teeny tiny hotel room, did I say tiny already?  We set off to the Latin Quarter to get Parisienne bistro food. 

After walking over the Seine, we found a bistro that served us a classic "menu" meal of 3 courses:  Salad, Poulet (chicken) with Pommes Frites (french fries), and of course, Chocolate Mousse.  The Latin Quarter (Left Bank) is named for the students and professors who spoke Latin on the streets nearby at the University of Paris (Sorbonne).  The heart of the Latin Quarter is the boulevard St. Michel.  Students call it Boul Mich.

Monday morning after Pete left for meetings, I grabbed my guidebook and explored St. Michel, stopping in many fun shoe stores.  I must have been in 100 shoe stores and bought none!  The Sorbonne is located just off St. Michel and it's impressive to see the place where so many intellectuals in scarves and berets came and went.  On to the Pantheon and the Luxembourg gardens, where I enjoyed a perfect day for people watching.

Pete joined me for dinner with his local salesman, Alain.  He took us to one of his favorite restaurants that features food from his boyhood home in Southwestern France.  The food and wine was fabulous.  It was another great day and a half in Paris. 

On a typical street in the Latin Quarter

Nighttime in Latin Quarter

Artsy photo by Mon Pierre

On the Seine at dusk

Walkway to the Sorbonne

The Pantheon

Luxembourg Gardens in full bloom

Notre Dame along the Seine

Waiter whipping up the signature cheesy potatoes from our favorite restaurant

Amore Paris!

.... and on to Giverny and Monet's Garden.  Au Revoir!

Reims - In the Heart of Champagne Region

On our way to Paris, we drive right by Reims, a town located in the Champagne region of France.  So this time we stopped and toured the Cathedral.  It was built with golden limestone taken from the medieval city walls.  Like many European cathedrals, it is HUGE.  The defining feature of this church is its windows designed by Marc Chagall.  He was a french artist born in Russia in an Hassidic Jewish family.  In 1971, when he was 84, he took on this job.  A local artisan he worked with used medieval techniques from the 13th century to create the special sea-blue glass in the background.  It combines both images from the Old and New Testament.  As a stained glass artist, I can only say these windows are awesome.





The massive doors to the Cathedral

2 of the 3 Chagall windows behind the altar

Close-up of Madonna and Child

... and on to Paris!  Au Revoir.

Women's World Cup Day in Frankfurt



World Cup party on the banks of the Main River in Frankfurt

Since the finals of the Women's World Cup was being held in Frankfurt, we hopped a train in Wiesbaden for the 40 minute trip to the Stadion.  We did not have tickets but thought we might be able to buy some on site.  We arrived quite early - about 6 hours ahead of game time.  After wandering around the stadium, we found mostly Japan fans trying to also buy tickets.  It was sold out and tickets were going for over $400 each.  About that time, we ran into an American couple who were retired military and living in Frankfurt.  They told us about the fanfest area along the Main River where we could watch the game on big screens.  That was all we needed - yet another festival !!

We got on a Frankfurt Tram and headed for the fanfest.  We started to see fans with American flags, walking through the streets.  It's funny how a sense of pride washes over you when you see your flag in a foreign country.  I of course got homesick again.  No matter, we found our way to the waterfront and an instant party was on. 

We eventually found ourselves sitting at what was to become the American consulate booth.  They were so happy to see us, they told us to stay and meet Jill Biden and Chelsea Clinton when they show up.  Unfortunately, they were delayed and were whisked off by helicopter to the stadium for gametime.  We did meet the ambassador and told him about Daktronics.  He just smiled and nodded - typical politician. 

Before the kickoff, there was a great live band called "The Baseballs" who looked and sounded like a 50's greaser band but played covers of contemporary stuff like Lady Gaga and Kings of Leon....in 50's style.

Finally it was time for the match and a large crowd had gathered around 3 giant screens to watch.  The first half was full of "almost" goals but ended 0-0.  We decided to head back on the train and catch the final minutes at home.  Good thing cuz we all know how it ended.  Oh well, on to the Olympics!



First stop Sangria booth



Next stop - Brat stand with the meat "just-a-swingin"



A german soccer team showing off their lederhosen



Same soccer team in training




Another pretzel at the USA booth




The Baseballs performing under the giant soccer ball




Pete with USA military fans





Mary cheesing out with the Ambassador

Best part of game.... just before it started.
Behind is the Main River and Frankfurt skyline.

Harry Potter Premiere in Madrid

We had a chance to catch the European premiere of Harry Potter's final movie in Madrid.  Pete's company, Daktronics, installed 2 very large high-definition screens on the facade of the historic Cines Callao.  Daktronics CEO, Jim Morgan and his son Mark attended as well.   The event featured a "live" broadcast from the London premiere as well as "live" from Callao square.  Daktronics video boards carried the feed from both cities. 

After the red carpet in both cities, the premiere was shown in the theatre.  Pete was busy schmoozing with his customers while I sat in the theatre with 3D glasses on watching the movie in Spanish (no subtitles!).  OMG, I came out totally confused and sick to my stomach (kidding).  But since I had never read the books or seen the movies before, I relied on Mark and other aficionados of Potter to get me through. 

We had an al fresco late night dinner (starting at midnite - even late for Spanish standards) near our hotel.  Our local salesman, Ivan and his wife Mafe, ordered up all types of tapas for us.  It was a great finish to the day. 

Cines Callao with video, satellite truck prior to event



Representing Daktronics: Jim, Stefan, Claudia, Sabina, Rolf, Us.
Mark - Photographer



People gathering in Callao Plaza for Premiere



Lovely Senorita's:  Mafe, Mary, Sabina, Claudia



The "Live" shot shown on Daktronics board is from Trafalgar Square - London.

 Adios! from Espana!

Strasbourg, France

On our first weekend back together in Germany, we drove a few hours just over the border into France to Strasbourg in the Alsace Lorraine region.  It's the home of Quiche Lorraine!  You can tell from the pictures that the city is an interesting mixture of southern Germany and France.  Half-timbered homes are everywhere.

Sitting at a wine stube, you hear both german and french being spoken.  Not this guy though, he speaks almost perfect english.

 

The focal point of the city is their ornate cathedral Notre Dame. It was mostly completed in 1284

The Petite France area is surrounded by canals and has these beautiful homes with half timber walls and stucco.





This building has a mix of half timber walls and french windows.



This shows how different one side of the street can be from the other.



Istanbul - Europe Meets Asia

Istanbul is where east meets west.  It sits on an isthmus between the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara which connects to the Mediterranean.  The Bosphorus river unites the 2 seas and Istanbul sits right at that junction.  Some of us remember this in grade school history class as Constantinople.  In fact, it was at one time the capital of the Roman Empire.

The picture is taken from the old Galata watchtower overlooking the 2 great mosques:  Topkapi Palace and Hagia Sophia.  This may be where Dylan got his inspiration for All Along the Watchtower (Pete's story).

We were here holding regional meetings with partners of Daktronics. You may recognize another Brookings neighbor on our Bosphorus cruise. 


The cruise took us just underneath the suspension bridge linking Europe with Asia.  On the right is Asia and the larger part of Turkey.

Ottoman Baroque Architecture

The streets of Istanbul are filled with the over 13 million people here.  The mosques are the real link to the past but are generally museum pieces now.   
 

It is a very western country in terms of dress.  This just may be the shopping capital of Europe.  This was the scene on a Satuday in May.  All along the streets are tiny shops with all kinds of knock off brands and western clothing.  And of course, there is the spice market... amazing aroma as you pass through.
 

It was daunting to see all the different spices arranged so perfectly in piles ready for vacuum packing.  I ended up with a variety pack and some interesting teas. 
 

Inside the market, there are endless passageways to meander around and find some of the same things over and over again.  Honestly, how many hooka pipes and pashmina's can you buy? Certainly though, there is a healthy economy here based on the transactions that were happening. 



And on the bridge, one fisherman after another catching these tiny fish that could only be used for bait for the sport fishermen.  Or maybe they are served in the restaurants just below on the first level of the bridge.  The world of commerce keeps moving in Istanbul.

Tschus!  Elveda!