New Fall Wardrobe?

This collection really makes be miss Mad Men.

Images via.

Week in Review #30

Whew, I guess I've been on a bit of a blogging break (I even missed a Week in Review!).  In the last week we've been from Normandy to Paris and then to Amsterdam where we were stuck for an additional four days due to Irene.  I finally returned home on Wednesday, exactly THREE months and a day after I left Brooklyn for Uganda.  Looking forward to getting back into the swing of things, but for now I'm just happy there is a three day weekend before school resumes again.  Now, on to unpacking.

Photos by JM.

Rendezvous with History

The slogan of the 1944 Historical Trail is They Had a Rendezvous with Destiny, You Have a Rendezvous with History.  And boy is that true here in Normandy!  It is so very exciting to be exploring Band of Brothers territory (Captain Winters, you're my hero) and to see so many fascinating sites.  The weather, scenery, and food have also been fantastic.  Word to the wise, ris de veau is veal pancreas (it was also my dinner).  

Photos by Oh MG.

Week in Review #29 - Paris Snapshots

View from Victor Hugo's apartment in Le Marais.  Not bad.

JM at lunch (I could get use to rose every afternoon!) and at Eglise St-Germain des Pres.

Merci to Emilie for recommending that we go to Merci.  Once there I realized that SFGirlbyBay also raves about it - such an awesome shop!

A stop for eclaires & macaroons!

Tuileries picnic!

Woohoo, Paris!

Photos by Oh MG.

Train Travel Done Right

Woohoo, we are in Paris!  After a fantastic and educational time in Amsterdam yesterday (eating croissants, renting bikes, visiting the Dutch Resistance Museum, and the Anne Frank House) we got up early this morning and headed to Paris via the Thalys train.  And oh my, was it a lovely train ride!  Train travel is just not something we've got down in the US.  This morning we got a full breakfast, coffee & tea, complimentary newspapers, a second beverage service, a passed plate of mini sandwiches and pastries - and did I mention it was only a 3 hour and 15 minute train ride and there was beautiful scenery?  We arrived at 11:30 AM and made our way to the little studio apartment we rented in the 1st Arrondissement.  Of course since there is so much to do here, we hit the ground running.  I will post Paris photos over the next few days, but for now some shots from Amsterdam yesterday.

Vacation lie I will tell myself: I can eat unlimited croissants if they are whole wheat and seeded.

Despite generally being very nervous on bikes in big cities, I LOVED riding in Amsterdam where cyclists always have the right of way and there are tons of designated bike lanes.  Also, I loved seeing basically the entire population out and about on their bikes.

Our two museum stops were fascinating and moving.  We walked right into the Resistance Museum late in the day and only wish we could have spent more time there.  The wait for the Anne Frank House was 90 minutes, but once inside we were completely captivated.  The Secret Annex is preserved and you can walk through the entire attic space.  I was particularly touched my the small special exhibit on Anne's older sister Margot, about whom much less is known, but who seemed like an amazing young woman. I want to do a re-read of The Diary of Anne Frank now that I can contextualize the place from which she was writing.

Photos by Oh MG.

It's Fun to Be a Tourist