A picture says it all

Mont Blanc sunset from our balcony (50 miles away as the crow flies)

Mont Blanc sunrise from our balcony

A bread trashcan to feed the ducks on the lake (left-over pain from local boulangeries) The french word for trashcan is poubelle - everytime the kids hear or say it they end up in fits of giggles for several minutes (poo bell)

The kids first drink from an "eau potable" fountain
They thought it was so cool. Now, they check every public fountain for the "eau potable or eau non-potable" sign

These are the funniest signs the kids have ever seen....they leave nothing to the imagination. I'm going to lobby for some of these on the North Davis greenbelt~!

a funny metal sculpture the kids found in a hair salon window.

In the Trees ; Tarzan & Jane

R - about 15 feet off the ground


h- thoroughly enjoying an exhilarating zipline


Forestland - a cool parcour sportif of zip-lines, tree-climbing, harnesses, repelling and the like. A park our friends the Bardsley's would LOVE. The kids grabbed their harnesses, climbed up to the course and took off. (It's clear to see from the pictures who's the fearless beast and who's the cautious, yet, confident player.

R - enjoying his time on the zipline


both on a more technical part of the course


R - Commando-style


They loved it, until R got to the first zip-line; he was nervous, a bit scared (he thought he would fall off/down the tree when he took off, he was told to hold on only by his thumbs). After I explained the proper way to hang on, he was still nervous, but made-bold and went for it. Brave boy! He loved it and had no hesitations after that.

h - She was fearless and fast from the beginning (her life story) - putting the kids in front of her at unease. I was gently told off by a parent.....what can I say to a girl who feels the need for speed?

Here's an excerpt from the Forestland website - the English translation is a hoot:

DESCRIPTION

Playful and sportive, at the same time accessible and family oriented, allowing to move from tree to tree through different workshops (bridges, Tyrolean, monkey bridge, net to be climbed, Tarzan's lianas, giant step, etc.). Thanks to an assurage technique taken from mountain climbing and from the Via-Ferrata, the ride is completely secured. Various levels of difficulty are proposed: children, juniors, adults, sportsmen.

OBJECTIVE

Besides its playful aspect, this activity allows each to discover or to rediscover - The balance - the self-control - the mastery of the dizziness - the concentration - the autonomy - the empowerment - the overtaking of one safely - the realization of child's dream: climb and evolve in trees. Here is an original way of spending a pleasant moment of relaxation and evasion, in group or in family, while getting itself strong and unforgettable sensations... A ride for the most sportives was studied to allow them to live a real challenge!

SERVICE AND QUALITY, SAFETY (SECURITY)

The installation and its follow-up during the exploitation are insured by the staff, highly considered stemming from the mountain, diplomas holders, professional guides of the works in height on rope, and, acrobatic, specialized in this kind of installation. The used materials are standards C.E ., we guarantee a seal of quality strengthening the safety. Before the opening to the public (as well as in several stages of the construction), an office of independent control delivers a certificate of stake in correspondence of the realized ride. We propose an infrastructure adapted to the needs of the site and its development.

FUNCTIONING

Thanks to the compulsory passage by a " briefing initiation ", an awarded diploma guide welcomes the participants, and explains them the deposits of safety and the use of the material supplied on a ride of initiation, specially foreseen for that purpose (lasted approximately 15 mn). Then, all along the route, explanatory and attractive panels (in the form of sketch) describe gestures to be made. Furthermore, a team of driving forces goes through the site on the ground, permanently, to advise, reassure, and help if necessary, every person in trouble.

C.....O.....L.....D Mon/Tues June 20-21, 2011

DIVONNE POOL - yes, it was cold. Colder than any pool I've ever been swimming in, kids, too. Hannah's lips turned blue quickly. There were 4 diving boards, a waterslide; and 50 m lap pool. Rock loved the high dive and the water slide was a hit...read on.

Picture 6 teenage (French) boys and one long, SLOW water slide (Rock had to propel himself down w/ his hands). What's the best way to speed things up? Bare skin! Hannah just wanted to watch for a while :). Rock couldn't wait to give it a shot.....If you were wondering - it's WAY faster!

LAKE GENEVA - Versoix Plage - yes, this was incredibly colder than the pool - Plus Froid! A rocky beach, which, fortunately, the rocks were warm, because everything else was cold - I can't even talk about the water w/o shivering. There was a platform about 50 yards out that the kids wanted to swim to. Hannah put her toes in the water and and thought better of it. Rock immediately (well after a few minutes) dipped himself and bolted out of the water to warm up. I just sat and enjoyed the lunch I packed, knowing I would probably die if I went in above my knees. After about an hour, Rock said, "You know, if Dad were here, it would be way funner. He would actually be in the water with us." Well, I can't let Trav upstage me, even if he wasn't present. So I mustered all the warm courage I could within (it's not much) and got in the water. Rock and I swam out to the platform - yes, ladies and gentleman - it was cold. On our return trip we decided to convince Hannah to come out w/ us. It took some work, but she relented. The three of us swam back out to the platform and returned to the beach. Never (probably) to do it again.

after the epic swim

Geneva Ward - Sunday June 19, 2011

We went to the Divonne Sunday market (one of the biggest, and the most expensive, markets in France) and the kids were in heaven. Olive samples, watermelon samples, clothes, spices, meat, cheese....they were loving it~! We then went down to the lake and watched the Dragon Boat races: Sculls with a dragon head and tail on each end and a team of 10-20 from all over the region. They had races all morning. We watched the 1000m race with a staggered start, 3 1/2 times around the lake. It looked like so much fun!~

The ward was fantastic. Hannah was really excited and really nervous to meet Alexa. She's been told many stories about her few months here as a baby that included time w/ Alexa and her family; but, as all children do, was hoping that they would get along now. A smashing success! Alexa came right up to her after Sacrament, introduced herself, they chatted briefly and then took off for class. They had a bit of free time between class and Sharing time so they were outside running around. What fun to have an instant friend.

Rock was a bit more hesitant, nervous and anxious. After Sacrament I walked him to Primary, he was certainly not eager to go in, but our good friend Allison saved the day again. I opened the Primary room door and she was leading the children in a welcome song. When she saw Rockwell she sang out his name and warmly welcomed him in, and offered him a seat w/ his class. He was so relieved, shyly smiled and teetered in to his seat. He made fast friends with a boy named Sam Caine, and now he can't wait for a play date (school's still in session here - one more week)!!!

After church Rock said "All the kids in my primary class pretty much misbehaved, except me. I was the only one that was good."

Fatigue - Part Deux / Fete de la Musique a Geneve

h slept until noon; R was up at 4:30am. Both ways it's going to be a looonnng day.

Today (6/18) we spent the day in Geneva visiting our old haunts, including our old flat w/ one of Voltaire's homes behind it, our favorite park w/a cabled spider web (recalling memories of a front flip that shaved the skin off the upper inside of my left leg 9 years ago); the first slide h ever went down by herself; the steep path I used to walk/run everyday (w/ h in the jogger -tough momma).

We then walked to Old Town Geneve where the fete de la Musique was. LOVE that fete. We walked through the Reformers Park - a fabulous tribute to those bold men, strolled through Old Town and hit a cool toy store - again a memory from our previous stay.

Reformers Wall
John Calvin -2nd from left

One our way back to the car, we crossed a pedestrian only bridge (over the Rhone river). Hannah commented that it looked like a "Lover's Bridge". "What do you mean" I asked. "It looks like a bridge where people would come in the middle of the night to kiss." xxx

M3:

h - "seeing the couple kissing soooo dramatically (passionately?); running around the lake in Divonne w/ mom - planning to 'train' to impress Daddy by the end of summer" (she did 4 hanging pull-ups yesterday -w/o too much effort!!!!)

R - he fell asleep before I could ask him, though he claims Geneva is 'boring' through fits of giggles and hysterical playground play. He was intrigued by boys at a park playing basketball w/ soccer balls. He's also fascinated by the graffiti art found all over.





T - "After R found his 1 Chf coin in a puddle he spent the rest of the day looking in puddles and gutters for more. And when I carried him on my shoulders he asked me to walk closer to the puddles so he could look down in the puddle for more Chf."

H - "I suppose my M3 is my running commentary in each post."

FATIGUE - Fatigue - fatigue - & a Park 17 Juin 2011

Jet lag had hit, though we tried to keep the kids up w/ a trip to a park that had a small zip-line and a walking tour of Divonne-les-Bains. Nevertheless, everyone (mostly them) was wiped.

Most memorable moments (M3) :

-responses when asked the above question:

R - "sleeping; oh yeah, the zipline; and I just blanked out at our neighbors when they spoke to me in French."

h - "zip line; not understanding our neighbors speaking French to me. I just stared at them, not sure what to do."

Geneve, Suisse 16 Juin 2011

We Made It!

H & R were incredible travelers - in awe of the planes, the TV's (w/ remotes! and video games on Swiss Air); slept well, albeit briefly; and kept us moving with their excitement.

Check it out, remote controls on the airplane!!
Do they have Wii Mario Bros?

As the plane began it's acceleration down the SFO runway, R said "Mom! We are ON our way!", excitement tingling in his voice.

Swiss Chocolate on Swiss Air....for breakfast!

Upon arriving, customs was a breeze (welcome to Switzerland), and baggage claim was speedy. We had hoped we packed light

Our life in 4 bags, + 4 carry-ons. Pas mal!