Mike and Penny Mihaly Visit

Very dear family friends and Godparents to Kate came to visit us as part of their European adventure this June. We took them to one of our favorite visitor spots, the ski town of Chamonix, France. In addition, we made sure that they experience the real local flavors-- a trip to the Sunday Market. Plus, they also attended our neighborhood BBQ for an afternoon. All our Swiss neighbors were welcoming, and they got a feel for what our life is like in Switzerland. Penny was busy sewing for us before she left-- cool pillow cases for the girls and a stylish cooking apron for me. Anna and Kate were so happy to see them. It had been almost four years! We hope they come back again very soon. We'd love to travel with them to Hungary some day- Mike's birthplace.

The Crans Chateau Opens for the First Time in 10 Years

This is the gorgeous chateau just up the hill from our house. They do produce a number of wines. We happen to enjoy the pinot noir. The caves are often open, but the home rarely opens to the public. So, the girls and I (plus Anna's good friend Mayu from school) made a side trip there on our way to the pool. We were glad that we did! I wish I would have learned more details about the home and it's history. The tours were in French and I had a couple girls who just wanted to walk quickly through the rooms dreaming that this was there house. It was a good dream. 

Girl Scouts This Spring

Axelle- My Fun French Teacher

This is how I am learning French-- hiking, biking, cooking French dishes, doing yoga.... Okay, yes I do have a number of workbooks, a notebook full of vocabulary, and homework, but I am having so much fun! Axelle comes to me twice a week. She didn't realize how much I looked forward to her visits early on when I knew nobody and couldn't figure out how to translate my bills without her! Nothing has changed. I still look forward to our lessons!

We Say Hello to Kris, Greg and London, and Farewell To Taffy

Tower of London.

Where the Crown Jewels are kept inside the Tower.

London Bridge.

Walking home on Picadilly after the Phantom.

Changing of the Guard.

The Glass Carriage - the one William and Catherine used.

The State Carriage - this weighs 4 tons.

Westminster Abbey is an incredible place. 

Our friends the Soupens.

The girls in Covenant Garden.

The Tube is a great way to travel.

Outside Kris and Greg's apartment - ready to go to Lion King.

Special dinner to celebrate Taffy's life with Kris and Greg. Greg broke out a 1995 Krug and 2001 Hewitt - wow!!

Long-time friends Kris Harvey and Greg Kryder and their golden retriever, Taffy, moved from Paris to London in the fall of 2009. You can see them in early blog posts in Paris and during our summer week in southern France. While Steve paid a quick visit in May, 2010, the family hadn't gotten to London to see them yet. We took advantage of a four day weekend in June to make the quick flight over to see them. Sadly, only 1.5 weeks before we were to arrive, Taffy passed away. We are all saddened by this, our family was very fond of her. We decided to use the time to celebrate her life with Kris and Greg, while taking in some of London's great sites.

London is an incredible city and Kris and Greg's apartment is ideally located in Mayfair, between Hyde Park and Green Park. We toured the Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, the Royal Mews, saw the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, and enjoyed having tea. We also took the girls to the theatre and saw Phantom of the Opera and The Lion King. We enjoyed both of them. Phantom turned out to be special because we met John Henry Owen and Tabitha Webb, the actors who played Phantom and Christine. They signed our program and spent time chatting with us. Owen was voted the favorite Jean Valjean in Les Miserables, and has played Phantom over 1400 times - what a treat.

We also had lunch with the Soupens - good friends from Dubai. Ashley and Steve worked together in Dubai for Honeywell. It was so good to see them again, too. 

We continue to be blessed and are mindful of how fortunate we are.

Lucerne with Auntie Jenn

Simple ingredients - butter, veal, butter, bread crumbs and butter.

Famous Lion memorializing the murder of unarmed Swiss Guards during the French Revolution

Chapel Bridge. Tower was used as a prison. 

A little fuel after an full day of sight seeing.

Classic Swiss town in the German speaking part of Suisse.

Ridiculously beautiful place.

The site of considerable butter intake - The Old Swiss House.

Steve had a business meeting in Lucerne in June, 2010. Unfortunately, it was business first and he didn't get a chance to see as much of the city as he wanted. He did have a fantastic dinner at The Old Swiss House - one that he wanted to repeat. Auntie Jenn was visiting us in Crans on her way to Berlin and we decided to do a day trip to Lucerne. It is a bit of a drive, so we had to move fast and pack as much in as we could. We had lunch at the Old Swiss House (it was veal, butter and Barbaresco - heaven), viewed on the the largest Picasso collections outside of Spain, strolled across Lucerne's famous 14th century covered wooden bridge and took in the beautiful scenery - another example of quaint Swiss-German architecture, pristine lakes all surrounded by the majestic Alps. This place is crazy beautiful.

Morges Tulip Festival

Just south of Lausanne is the city of Morges. Like so many cities in Switzerland, considerable resources and care is invested in the parks and gardens. And it shows. Each May, Morges holds it annual tulip festival at Parc de l'Independance. It is a sight. With over 100,000 tulips representing 300 varieties, the colors are amazing. Kate was in her element and documented the trip with over 300 tulip photos. Not sure we got them all, but we have many photos to enjoy. To add to the views, the park is located on the banks of Lake Geneva. The flowers, the lake and the Alps - simply breathtaking. And it's free......