Celebrity Sighting- of sorts

We left rainy Florence for the coast where we were greeted with nearly perfect weather for the late afternoon. We explored little Vernazza up and down and enjoyed the rocky beach. We caught a beautiful sunset from a cafe tucked into the cliffs just off the Cinque Terre Trail, high above the town.

The place was filled with tourists and it was very busy. We had to wait for the stairs to clear just to get down from the train station. A very large group of fifty-something hikers trekked through the tiny town square, all with hiking poles and backpacks. They had stickers identifying them as a group. I couldn’t imagine trying to hike these narrow trails with a group that big. The small town was packed, and it’s not even summer. What would Rick Steves think? And there he was. Rick Steves standing in front of me. He was alone, so I walked up to him to ask for a picture, and he said, “no, I’m working, if I stopped to talk with everyone, I wouldn’t get anything done.” Then he walked up to chat with a local man I’d seen on the other street. OK, well I took his picture anyway, but not with me in it! 

Later that night, Taylor and I snuck out for a drink, leaving the kids up in the room playing on their iPods. We walked into the restaurant below our rooms and who was there inside? The same Rick Steves. I convinced Taylor to grab a table close to them so I could eavesdrop. There were only three tables occupied, so perhaps it was obvious that we were choosing a table for that reason, but I didn’t care. I was sure he wouldn’t recognize me as the stalker from before. 

We had a nice time, and I admit, I dipped into Rick’s conversation from time to time, just to be nosy. Today, we headed out for a late breakfast and it started to rain. We ducked under a large awning for a bit and I looked out to see a man standing alone under an awning across the street. Yep-Rick. So at this point, we make eye contact and I wave. Oh no it’s the stalker, he thinks to himself no doubt. But then I yell over (just so he knows that yes, I am a stalker) “come over here— my kids want to meet you!” So he ran over to our awning and I told the kids that this was the man whose voice they heard on the audio tours of the Uffizi and the Accademia. They all chatted him up a bit, and I was relieved that Samuel didn’t tell Rick that he thought his Uffizi tour was boring, or try to school the celebrity on his art history facts or anything. Of course Rick Steves was totally undaunted by the rain. When Cooper told him he wanted to go to the beach, his reply was- “it’s a great day to go to the beach, it won’t be crowded.” Yeah- and it’s raining! As I mentioned in an earlier post, I don’t share all of his travel principles. I have my limits on how far I will go to avoid crowds or save money. But you gotta admire his enthusiasm. Anyway, we ended up having a nice chat, so maybe he won’t think I’m a crazy stalker after all. And he told me that he pulled his kids out of school every year in April to travel- so there! 

The lodging available here in Vernazza is mostly in “rooms to rent;” they are tucked in here and there, on top of restaurants and in buildings with other apartments. It was difficult to find a place big enough for all of us, but I scored a double room. Of course I thought that we wouldn’t spend much time in there anyway, so what difference did it make how big or nice the room would be? Oh-no…  here I am sitting in the room waiting out the weather. I feel very stuck. I a pretty sure Rick Steves would be out there finding something interesting to do. But the Shorts are inside their cramped room — boys are playing iPods (of course), Taylor is sleeping (natch, he’s very good at it), and I am blogging and trying to keep my Type A, plan-making, busy-body, control freak self from going insane. I did not come to Cinque Terre to sit in a hotel room, people! I did drag the family up to a castle outlook earlier today, but that was all they could take. The weather is supposed to clear in about an hour and we plan to take a train to Monterosso, instead of hiking today— Plan B— ENCORE! 

Together in Florence

Well, no trip is without some hiccups and I guess it was Taylor’s turn. After a mechanical delay and a reroute to Detroit, Taylor arrived in Antibes a day late. 

Of course I was disappointed that I wouldn’t see my husband, but my type A self was also disappointed about the plans I had to cancel— but I had reservations! I was lining up a baby-sitter! I planned a late afternoon stroll to the beach and a morning workout route that would take us by the market just as the stalls were opening. I MADE PLANS!! What do you mean you’re not going to be here til tomorrow!? 

By the time he arrived, Taylor had less than 24 hours in Antibes. The boys were disappointed too. So I cancelled the idea of a romantic dinner and made reservations for the pizza place with the boys. We took our lemons and made limoncello this time.

The next morning, we caught our train to Florence. Sadly, the coastal route is a local one, so it made for a long trip. After seeing so many families on the trains, I was happy to be complete this time. 

As I mentioned previously,  the kids get to play their iPods and watch movies on travel days, so they really look forward to them. I was sort of embarrassed that Taylor was going to see the way I really control the children— bribery!  All of my reports home about how good the boys have been were going to be exposed as hyperbole— big deal they’ve been good: they play on their iPods all day. You call that parenting? WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING FOR TWO MONTHS?

Of course after they started driving us crazy and were the loudest people on the train — to Italy— that’s saying something! So ten minutes in, Taylor was totally on board with the plan! We plugged them in and had some time to catch up on the long train ride. 

Leaving Antibes, I felt like I was in the closing scene of a movie. I ran into a few friends on our way to the train station and a few of the shopkeepers noticed our suitcases and leaned out to wish us well. I got a proper send off like a girl leaving her hometown and heading for the big city. Very touching.

Saying goodbye to one of our favorite sites of Antibes-- the bakery!

After we checked in at our apartment here in Florence, we set out to get one site in before dinner— the Bell Tower at Palazzo Vecchio. I had heard it was great to catch at sunset— and I thought the boys would enjoy climbing 223 steps after being on a train all day.  

Florence, near sunset, from the Bell Tower at Palazzo Vecchio

Walking the streets of Florence reminded me of our first day in Antibes after being in Sancerre. People everywhere. The boys were unsettled by the busy-ness of Antibes. They didn’t like it at first and complained it was too crowded. By the time we left, of course, the boys were right at home. I’d like to say I planned it this way— but I didn’t figure it out until now—  going from Sancerre to Antibes to Florence to Paris was probably the right pacing for my boys. It takes them some time to get accustomed to the bustle of the big cities and they need figure things out a little at a time. I had joked that I wanted to get my courage up before I took the boys to Paris by myself. Seems we’re all getting time to get our courage up before heading for the big city.

And on that note, I’m hoping the Louvre will go better than the Uffizi. The kids got very impatient with all of the art to see. I had downloaded an audio tour in hopes that it would keep them entertained. Contrarian Bennett Short immediately dismissed the idea.  Cooper and I were sharing an iPod, so I was tethered to a seven year old in a crowded museum. Uh- that went about as well as you can imagine. Samuel decided that he was better off reading all of the signs and then surmising VERY LOUDLY what he thought each artist intended and why the work was significant. A few Auzzies heard him and were interested enough to follow him around for a while, like he was a tour guide. The kid is brilliant if not exhausting. Luckily I chose to listen to the audio guide, which conveniently drowned out the kids’ bitching and moaning. At one point I looked over at Taylor and suggested that we just keep the ear plugs in so the kids would think we were listening and not talk to us. Of course he had already thought of that and just gave me a big knowing smile.

We survived and then after a late lunch we took them to the Accademia to see David. I was expecting the worst after the Uffizi experience, but the Accademia does not disappoint. They put David right there at the beginning— like, we know this is what you came to see, so here it is. But the kids didn’t stop — they loved everything there, including, much to my surprise, the numerous altar pieces. Holy shit— they were paying attention to the story of Pentecost? What do you mean “why is Mary being coronated?” You’re naming Michelangelo’s prisoners? Explaining foreshadowing? I love these kids— where we you at the Uffizi? We had to drag them out of there. Go figure. 

Bennett and I sneak a pic of David...

Lots to see in Florence and of course I am doing my best to keep a healthy pace for the boys. Rain is expected throughout our time here— changing plans and canceling reservations— AGAIN!! It’s all good because we are together and loving exploring this big city as a family. 

My Antibes List

Things I will miss about Antibes:

Friendly Waiters and Shopkeepers

From our night time walk the other day.
Creperie still at it-- look at that jar of Nutella
behind the crepe griddles!

Perhaps this is more a reflection on me, but there is not one restaurant in my hometown where the proprietor comes out to give me a kiss when I arrive. Does this happen to everyone else and I just don’t go out enough? I mentioned in an earlier post, if you show up somewhere more than once in Antibes, you are a treasured regular. I even had an owner ask me if I wanted my usual table after I’d been there only twice. I was wondering the other day— will they notice when I am gone? Then this charming Scandanavian couple came in (I could tell they were new to Antibes) and the owner was just as nice to them. I overheard them say they were in town for three weeks— so this is how it goes in Antibes.

The Ocean

OK- I love Hampton Roads because not a day goes by when I can’t see water of some kind— river, bay, ocean. Lovely. Here, I get to see the magnificent azur ocean nearly everyday. It is just as intriguing as the first day I arrived. I can understand why so many people in the world desire to be right here on this coast. Cooper is not as impressed— he keeps complaining that the beach is so dry, “everything is so dry, how can there be so much water here and it is still dry?” He’s not used to the idea of rocky coasts; he’s accustomed to wetlands and rivers and grass in the dunes. Of course the Mediterranean is rocky and dry.

The Sun

It has been sunny all but four of our 49 days here and it only rained twice. Great— I’ll take it and store it for when we are in the UK. The Cote d’Azur gets 300 sunny days a year.

Night time stroll down to the beach- just because.

The Alps

When we come down our little walled-in street and out of the archway into the promenade, I am face to face with a view of the Alps. It takes my breath away every time.I don’t know why I am still so surprised to see those big mountains— I guess I have a goldfish brain. I literally stop and stare for a minute and forget what I was doing. Maybe this is why it’s good I’m a flatlander. When I lived in Miami, I had a friend from West Virginia. When I asked her how she could live in a place where she didn’t see water everyday, she asked me how I could live in a place where I didn’t see mountains everyday. Got it.

This fountain re-used a Roman column
(dark marble portion). It's usually surrounded by cafe tables
but we had it all to ourselves at night!

Routine for my Boys

My kids are homebodies! Can’t believe it; I was so frustrated by this at times because they would choose to stay in the house instead of go out exploring. I understand now that it is more a craving for routine for them. Our outings have gone really well because I have slowed things down to meet their pace. I’ve said it before; I’ve given up a lot of what I want to do for what is right for them. We settled into a great routine here. It’s been instructive for me to see this at work in a different setting. 

Speaking French

I have to admit, I have a lot of fun speaking a different language. I don’t care if I suck at it, everyone seems to be in on the joke down here. It feeds my brain. From here on out, we’ll be tourists and no one will care if we speak French or not. I have to say though, after a long conversation, I get really tired, I can hear myself get all screwy, then I realize I am messing it all up and I pop back into it. The Anitbois must think I am schizophrenic or have a tic or something.

What I Will Not Miss:

Dog poop- come on people! But I understand it’s worse in Paris.

Loud neighbors— and I was worried about my kids. But that’s a later post.

Motos- we live in the pedestrian zone, the streets are so tiny- where are they going?

Taylor’s on the plane and we can’t wait to show him around. We’ve really gotten to know this little town and I hope we can come back someday! 

Franglais

My biggest surprises on this trip have been how bad my French is and how little Cooper is learning. 

I thought I had a good grasp of French after studying it all of those years (I should not admit this, but I minored in Foreign Languages at UM). Putting it all together on the fly is challenging. I change tenses all of the time when I speak and I get so confused! And the worst offender— passé compose with etre— still screws me up! And I was convinced it was intuitive! Nothing French is intuitive!!!! This language is friggin HARD!

When I need to do something important, I try to use email or write it out in advance because my written grammar is so much better than conversational. And the French do not speak French very well! At least down here- good lord— much of it is jumbled and they have a lazy accent. I know — that is terrible to say. I met a girl at yoga who said her French is much better than her Brit husband’s, but he mangles it all together and speaks very fast, so everyone says his is better than hers. It maddens her! Oui is “wai” and je suis is “zjwe” and they use “on” as a subject for everything! Who knew? I’ve barely scraped the tip of the lingua iceberg! 

I am so surprised that my youngest isn’t picking it up like I thought. Maybe it’s all sinking in and it’ll come out later. Everyone said the youngest pick it up the quickest, but so far… rien. And yet— he. understands. everything! Will not speak it.

Samuel has gotten so used to people here speaking English to him that he’s started speaking English to people first instead of French, which is considered incredibly rude. When we first got here, he would address everyone in French- very confidently and very LOUDLY. Now, he’s especially bad in touristy areas because he correctly assumes that everyone is from somewhere else. Nevertheless, I keep reminding him that he needs to speak French.

Bennett would never try to speak French in the US, but now he is a natural. He knows a million words and it’s so charming to hear him put them all together. Although, as Samuel likes to pick on him, he puts things together as you would in English, which is quite amusing to us. But his vocab is correct. He has made a lot of progress; I’m going to have to figure out some way for him to keep it up at home.

Together, we speak English during homeschool and then in the afternoons, we tend to speak Franglish, especially out in town. The week the boys were in French language school, everyone’s French improved. Yesterday at the park a woman was sitting on the bench with us and then she got up and left. I assumed she was leaving the park, but I think she was just getting away from our bad French!

Alors, tomorrow is our last full day of homeschool and I told Samuel that he will work on essential Italian phrases instead of French— that should keep him busy. There were a lot of Italians at the language school the week we were there and I have to say, with all of the cultural sensitivity in my heart, those people were crazy! We are going to fit in beautifully in Italy. And we’ll be tourists, so if we don’t speak the language, it won’t be a problem! But we are going to have a blast trying. Andiamo!

Our trip map, for review purposes (and in case you've lost us already!).
 Taylor arrives in two days, then off to Italy!
More on our itinerary in my post "Short Map from Crazy," February 15.

How much suffering can one family endure?

It was probably not a good idea to cover the Reformation and the religious wars of France right before we celebrated Holy Week with the Roman Catholics. When I took the boys to participate in walking the way of the cross on Good Friday, Cooper kept staring at everyone, suspecting they were looking for firewood along the way. I told him we were safe, but he was never quite sure.

When I first noticed this old stone path going up the hill— it was marked Chemin de la Croix, XVI Siecle, I was sure they would be doing something special here for Good Friday. Sure enough, they advertised a “Stations of the Cross- for families and children.” My kids persuaded me to stop for ice cream on the way (it was gouter hour, after all), and promised they would finish before the Stations— it was supposed to be family friendly, but I thought arriving with ice cream cones would be crass, even by American standards. 

Waiting to go up the Way of the Cross

It took a little longer than I wanted and by the time we got to the debarquement, it was already crowded. One group had already started, and they were staggering the small groups, going up with different priests. We went up with an older gentleman who appeared to be a Deacon, and did our best to be solemn for the occasion. The boys were great. There were a few other kids with us, but it was mostly adults. We didn’t have any programs, so my kids had no idea what was going on. The guy read the station, then let someone read a prayer, then he would give a little sermon at each station. My guess was, that as Deacon, he probably didn’t get to preach much, so maybe this was his big break. It was taking longer than I anticipated, but his little sermons were appropriate and thought provoking. The kids mostly paid attention to the readings (they were familiar with the stories at least), but during the sermons they were pretty lost, so they would kick around rocks or pick up bugs. 

About the fourth station, a group led by a young priest I recognized from church Sunday, came speeding up behind us. Our guy instructed us to step aside and the other group passed us. The other group was singing and Samuel looked at me accusingly. “Sorry” I whispered—Then the boys started complaining that we were in the wrong group—like the grocery store check out— the other line is always moving faster than the one you’re in.

Another station later, up comes another group, but they respectfully hang back and do their station downhill. Their guy has a loudspeaker strapped around him. When he’s done reading, everyone starts singing a little chant. Samuel leaned over to me and said “nothing like getting upstaged by a guy with a loudspeaker, huh?” Then our guy motions for them to go around us. Are you kidding me? Seriously? We were about to get lapped again!? This group began to pass us, and I noticed that they all have little handouts, and there’s a kid in front carrying a big wooden cross. 

We let them go by, then I motioned to my boys- this is it, we’re making break for it! So we turned and followed the other group. Sure I felt a little guilty. I know we’re supposed to suffer on Good Friday. One man was walking the hike with no shoes on; I’ve seen footage of people in some countries who whip themselves and cry the whole way of the cross. I get it; but know your audience! This was advertised as the family and children’s way of the cross. Even Jesus let the kids sit down, for God’s sake!

The new group had it all organized— who was reading, who carried the cross; they had their readings printed out, they had songs and clip art on the page. The kids were reading and singing together. Then I noticed a lady was helping the priest. Totally the DRE (Director of Religious Education). Yep- been around churches enough to know one when I see one. Figures. 

The day was saved, my kids approved and it ended with an amazing view, from an old path used by pilgrims for about 500 years, on the Chemin Frances, on the way to the Camino de Santiago in Spain, we’re told. It was very moving to see everyone participate in the practice; my kids responded better to the readings done by other kids. They saw the other kids carrying the cross and taking it seriously. I didn’t need to say anything more to my kids for the remainder of the afternoon. 

Note to my church friends— who probably won’t read this until after Easter Sunday when you’re in a puddle from working so hard to get Easter services done—good liturgy is the work of the people, right? It was beautiful to see it all come together. 

Lighten Up!

Well, last week, I got my shopping jones. The kids were at school, so I had a little time on my hands, but really I had been thinking about it before. It’s spring here. Officially, the tourist season began April 1, so lots of stores and restaurants are open for the first time since we arrived. The weather is warmer and more people are on the streets of Antibes. The tourist train is running!

I keep threatening Samuel that if he misbehaves,
I'm going to make him ride this through town right when the schools let out!

Let me just say that I think I did an amazing job of packing us all up for three months! I had followed the advice of a couple of travel web sites and kept to a simple color palette for my clothes: black, grey, blue and cream, with one accent color (I chose red). No prints (they don’t match everything else). Not a lot of white (I regretted bringing white immediately after the first time I did laundry— the chalky water in Sancerre turned our whites clay colored). I did the same thing with my kids outfits— very smart packing. Even so, with all of our suitcases and switching trains in Paris to get from Sancerre to Antibes, I still wished I’d packed lighter. And I need to get even lighter to give Taylor a big suitcase to take home before our next leg.

I was preparing to take my kids to church for the first time on Palm Sunday and realized as I put my outfits together that I brought a lot of black to France— hardly spring fashion!

Samuel walked in from Judo
as I was writing this. Either he got tall,
or he lost weight-- probably both.

And it’s not just that I’m bored wearing the same clothes for two months— they are literally worn out! The boys’ clothes are worse because I wash those more. Bennett and Cooper have holes in shirts, ripped cuffs. Bennett went right through the knees of his only jeans playing table tennis last week! I have to say, I didn’t expect all of this washing and wearing to make our clothes fall apart!  Poor Samuel’s pants are falling off of him! Despite his bread and chocolate diet, the kid has lost a lot of weight from all of our activity. Definitely time to go shopping!

I didn’t want to spend a ton of money— clothes here are expensive! Of course I intend to pick up a few fashion souvenirs to bring home, but right now I am thinking about my essentials. I chose a new scarf to lighten things up a bit and pull in some spring colors. Then (sorry to my husband, who is convinced I have an outerwear psychosis) I bought a new coat— this time, a light khaki. It’s not waterproof, but it came with a hood, so I can wear it in a light rain. I’ll send my black liner and navy coat home with Taylor, and keep this lighter coat and waterproof shell in case we get really terrible weather in the UK. 

Then I found a pastel colored blouse at this store that I think is the French version of The Limited— but it’s cute and matches the one skirt I brought— I plan to wear it for Easter. OK— making progress, blouse, coat, scarf. Then I decided to get some shoes! 

I wanted to buy these:

But, I still have a lot of walking to do on this trip, and limited room in the suitcase, so I bought these:

New shoes, scarf

new coat-- feeling like Spring!

Remember my first fashion post about shoes? I bought my black flats as an afterthought. I ended up wearing them much more than my hikers. They are very comfortable, even for long distances, and who wants to look like a hiker all of the time? Look at the shoes I brought; you can see how much walking we’ve done. Wow— and getting ready to do more! 

Can't believe I've worn these so much!

There’s a shoe store down the street where I see a lot of old ladies “licking the windows”— that’s the literal translation of the French saying for “window shopping.” I knew that was the place I needed to go for comfortable shoes :). Definitely a good move. I’ve given them a trial run on the streets of Antibes and I think they’ll be great for Paris. 

On to the kids— there’s a weekly clothing market here that is amazing. I got Samuel a pair of shorts for 5 euro (and myself a longer pair of shorts— also 5 euros— suddenly I am 45 and in France, I am very self-conscious in my short shorts!); I picked up a belt for Samuel. I had to replace two pair of pants for Bennett, so I hit a sale at the French version of “gymboree.” French clothes for children are so adorable! I requested that Taylor bring him some more shirts, but Taylor is afraid he doesn’t have room in his luggage, so I bought Bennett another shirt— but then I HAD to buy him a scarf and hat for a total French ensemble: 

soooo cute! 

Waiting to pick up some a shirt or two for Cooper somewhere and that should get us through the next month here. I popped into the Red Cross office around the corner to ask about donations, but I feel a little guilty dropping off our worn out clothes! Better to get rid of them now than on the side of the road in England, I guess (hopefully the correct side of the road, that is!— but that’ll be a later post!)

Taco Tuesday

On our way home from Monaco, I dashed into a boulangerie to pick up some snacks for the ride home (didn’t want to get caught without provisions). The trains were delayed and overcrowded, so it took a few attempts to get on one to take us to Antibes. Once we boarded and got settled, I broke open the snacks and that’s when Cooper nearly cried, “I am so sick of being in France! Why do they have candy for snack? I want a regular snack!” 

Well, I am partially to blame. I have succumbed to the “gouter hour” habit of buying my kids a crepe or ice cream for their afternoon snack. Chocolate muffins and creme-filled beignets seemed a completely appropriate snack to buy at the bakery, but Cooper was fed up. 

The boys haven’t embraced all that French cuisine has to offer, that’s for sure. Then after we saw the Lego movie the first weekend we were in Antibes, they started asking for Taco Tuesday. I told the boys “sorry, they don’t have tacos in France.” Bennett was so disappointed the first time he ordered a hot dog and he was served a sausage in a crusty roll. Tough luck kiddos. You’re here to learn French culture, eat like the French. 

I started to feel sorry for them and bought a “taco kit” at the grocery store; I decided to surprise them with a “Taco Tuesday.” It was Old El Paso, an American brand, so I was sure it would be good enough for the kids. They’d get a little taste of home, I’d win mommy brownie points. Win-win.

I found a crepe pan in the house- perfect for warming tortillas, right? Good Lord no— I already posted about sub-par rental house cookware, right? Despite a quick cleaning, the crepe pan retained a butter patina; it was so old, apparently it had hardened into a rapid heating tool of instant tortilla burning. I sprinkled the orange powder over the ground beef with a tinge of guilt. Although a vegetarian myself, I felt I needed to offer condolences to the cow and the butcher who artistically ground it especially for me in the boucherie, only moments before I transformed it to brightly colored taco meat. And the Old El Paso salsa that I squeezed out of the plastic bag? It was labeled mild, but it should have been labeled “bland tomato product useful for salsa, runny ketchup or unimaginative spaghetti sauce.” My choice of cheese was brie, chèvre or American. I save the good stuff for myself, of course. The boys won’t touch anything that smells like cheese, so American it was!

The kids loved it. They did not complain one bit. I opted for a salad. We will not celebrate Mardi Tacos again until we get home.

What could possibly go wrong?

Tonight we continue a tradition that we just started a few weeks ago called “Leftovers and Board Game Night.” We hope it’ll be as popular as “Pizza and a Movie Night,” which we also know as Friday nights. I am determined to get my kid to play with the Pick-up Sticks I bought when we got here. I was convinced they were perfect for our trip. They are small, easy to pack and you can play anywhere. They also served as Wolverine claws, magic wands, daggers and ninja throwing sticks and were promptly confiscated.

It was chilly and cloudy today in Antibes, so we didn't get out much; we opted for catching up on homeschool. Now the kids are a bit stir crazy (or was it the waffles and ice cream they just ate for “gouter”?). Perhaps the Pick-up Sticks can wait til next Wednesday.

Back to School (for one week anyway).

Check-in at CIA-Antibes; Samuels said,
"mom it looks like summer camp."
All of the counselors had yellow t-shirts
and welcomed the kids as we came in.

Getting this post up from last week a little late- 

This week was simply great. The kids were in language school, so I had my mornings free. But I promise, that’s only part of the reason we had a great week!

School this week was night and day from our experience in Sancerre. First of all, there were other people!  It was the first week of their Juniors program, which features language lessons each morning, lunch at the school cafeteria (served up by a crazy italian guy who has declared war on butter— it is not healthy! but then serves nutty buddies for dessert), and then afternoon activities and tours. There were 90 kids at the school the week! My extroverted children were in heaven! 

Samuel went to the Junior program and the littles just had a course in the mornings. After the first day of testing, they decided that Bennett was a little more advanced that the others, so they offered him to go into the Juniors program for the mornings. It was so much more flexible than the other school. When I asked them if they decided about Bennett moving up, they said to me, “no, it is your decision if you want him to move up!” Customer Service? In FRANCE? At a language school? 

Americans v. Swiss
boys in table tennis!

Anyway, enough of that. The kids loved the school and loved being with so many kids from all over. At the end of the week, Cooper asked if they could do it again! Alas, it is not in the budget, so they’ll have to settle for homeschool with mom (maybe that’s why they liked it so much— no homeschool this week!).

Aside from learning a lot of French, their eyes were opened to the culture of European kids— and not just the 12 year olds smoking. Samuel was amazed that many of them speak really good English, in addition to learning French. “How is it that they already speak three languages?” Like it was unfair to him or something. He was also surprised at the amount of American culture that they share and yet he knows very little about French pop culture. “Why don’t we have French songs on our radio like they have English songs on theirs?” And he was amazed at how much traveling they do and he has vowed to make traveling a priority (oh- I better go back to work, and FAST! next blog post: Carrie’s resume!).

Meanwhile, in the mornings, I got to do some shopping (more of that in a later post), I settled some more travel arrangements and visited some little coffee shops. One morning I met my crazy neighbor friends for coffee. I bought them coffee and they spoke french with me— seemed like a good deal— 6 euros an hour is the cheapest deal yet for French conversation lessons! They told me more crazy French history lessons (they love that we are studying French history!) and I battled it out with using etre with passe compose and clarified the difference between the word for boring (ennuyeux) and the word for annoying (ennuyeux)- yeah, it still gets me when I try to tell people that while we liked Sancerre, my boys thought it was boring- or was it annoyingly boring? Anyway- luckily I am fluent in crazy, so we got along swimmingly. With all of the time I spent shopping and coffeeing and speaking with the boys’ teachers, I think my French got better this week too! 

Samuel had evening activities as well, so we spent a lot of time going back and forth between our house and the school and one of the dorms, and back to school. The activity and and socializing was good for all of us. The boys were in separate classes, so they enjoyed some time apart as well.

To celebrate our successful week, we decided to try a sushi place Samuel and I had seen. It’s not fancy, in other words, perfect for me and the boys at night. No risk of ruining anyone’s romantic dinner. Just when it appeared we were the loudest table in the place, a large group of people showed up and took the large farm table down the center of the restaurant. They ordered a bunch of sushi and beer, then I noticed some of them were drinking red wine. I heard that French people ate bread with everything, including sushi in particular, but red wine? Not sure about that. Then I realized that they were crew members and not even French people! When in France… uh— no! 

Nevertheless, we ended our week pretty well— overall I feel like things have been a success here in Antibes. My thoughts are already turning to the next phase of our trip— when we turn in our house keys, put on our backpacks and go. Given some of the little mishaps and behavior issues, I have to admit, I am getting a little nervous. If things get really bad, I’ll look back at this week and smile! 

I'll be Your Tour Guide!

I really think travel logs are boring. Most of them go into details about where they went, where they ate, what the region is known for, etc. If I look at them at all, I’m skimming them to see what sites are mentioned and then move on.

My blog is more focused on bringing my kids to France and the experiences we’re having here. But, I feel like I owe a little update as to our locale— so here’s a little picture of our town.

We’re in Antibes, France. It’s on the Mediterranean coast, but also part of Provence. There are no lavender fields here, no fields at all in fact (and come to think of it, no grass, really). This is an old port town. Antibes expanded its port, used since the days its early Greek settlers called it Antipolis, to accommodate huge luxury yachts. It’s not a port in the Norfolk sense (cargo), more like a collection of marinas massed together. These are the largest yachts in the world, owned by royalty and business tycoons and entire countries, and Antibes is the only port in Europe big enough for them to berth. It’s big business here. 

When I planned our trip, news of the yachts kept popping up on searches; friends told me they were here. I didn’t factor them into my plans at all because I didn’t plan on venturing over to the yacht basin other than once to check them out. Little did I know that most of the captains and crew members are English speaking. Likewise there’s a little strip of shops and bars that cater to the English, Aussies and Kiwis (not too many Americans). The result is that many people in Antibes speak English. Good if I get really stuck, but bad when I practice my French. I’ve gotten better at telling people when they ask us if we speak English that yes, but we are trying to speak French. After that, they usually let us speak our terrible French to them. Many times they say to me- “good, you’re in France, you should speak French.” The boys and I really make an effort to speak French; this sounds obvious, but you would’t believe how many people just go into a place speaking English first. 

Buildings are supported by
these connectors in between them

Our cross street that
we walk daily.

We live in the old town portion of Antibes, in the (mostly) pedestrian zone. Sometimes a car will try to navigate our narrow street and we have an occasional moto, but it is designated as pedestrian. I thought our street was pretty narrow but there are others in the pedestrian zone closer to the Picasso Museum that are even more narrow. I thought it would be difficult without a yard, but my kids can play in the little street. Most of the time we go to one of the two playgrounds one block from our house, or sometimes we go to the one by the sea which is three more blocks away. My kids love the playgrounds; they are urban (gated and surfaced), but my kids love to climb and they have their run of the places everyday until 4:30 when the other kids get out of school. We tend to go to the playgrounds in the late afternoons so my kids can have other children to play with. The town is bustling around 4pm, when the kids are getting out of school and everyone has their “snack hour” (every country in Europe has its version I guess). The cafes fill with people and there’s a line at the bakery to get bread for dinner. It’s a great time to be out and about in Antibes. We typically get gelato in the afternoons.

Here's an arch built in the Middle
Ages with Roman ruins.

Antibes is influenced by its proximity to Italy; in fact it was Italy until not too long ago. The menus feature Mediterranean specialties like seafood, pasta and pizza, bruschetta and of course gelato. You won’t find bouillabaisse on the menu here. In Provence they have a different version with a thick stew garnished with some pieces of fish and shellfish. Of course I can’t go into too much detail about the food in restaurants here because my experience is pretty limited.  I am dining with three young boys who are not very adventurous and can’t stay out late enough for the traditional dinner hour. We typically go out to restaurants for lunch and my kids prefer panini and pizza. My guilty pleasure is the local charcuterie. Yes I am a vegetarian; but it’s here where you’ll find the lovely cheese and vegetable pastries, quiches and salads like taboulleh, pickles and salmon cakes. I ducked in there one day when it was slow and told the guy I eat only fish and asked him to point out all of the things I could eat in there. It was an amazing tour! I was quite surprised at all of the wonderful options I had in a place that specialized in cured meats. I usually grab something in there to eat at home when the kids are eating one of their boring staples like pasta with butter or fried chicken.

Our days are usually like this: homeschool until 12 or 1pm, then go out to a restaurant or picnic for lunch. We usually walk around old town or go to the park or beach after lunch. I try to knock out an errand with the boys each afternoon. The boys have judo on Mondays and Thursdays. I try to plan something fun for our weekends and that has been pretty easy. There have been festivals or special sights to see each weekend that we’ve been here. 

Some sub-tropicals! Love them.

My favorite thing about Antibes are the little narrow cobblestone lanes lined with stucco or stone buildings with tile roofs. Here and there, there are little courtyards and palazzos with palm trees and other subtropical flora peeking out. The wisteria is in full bloom right now. Today the boys were running down one of our streets and it was absolutely picturesque. Some little corners remind me of Miami, whose settlers were emulating the mediterranean in that city’s design. There are a few Roman ruins here, but they are mostly buried under the old city. The boys and I like to search for old Roman stones and columns that were reused in medieval times for other structures, like the walls and towers in the oldest part of the city a few blocks from our house, and a fountain in front of one of our favorite restaurants. Our tour guide from our first week here said that if the stone was from a sacred structure, it was re-used and placed upside down so it would be less legible. It makes the stones easier for the boys to spot because the writing is upside down. 

The weather here is very sunny. We enjoy being outside most days. I mentioned in an earlier post that many of the restaurants have larger patios than dining rooms. You can tell everyone is wishing it was a little warmer. You can spot the tourists because they already have shorts on. Most everyone else is waiting til it gets a little warmer. It doesn’t stop them from going to the beach of course. The water is still pretty cold but some people go in anyway. Most everyone else just enjoys being on the beach or picnicking. 

We’ve made some friends here, mostly the shopkeepers and waiters who we are in regular contact with. It is so nice to be considered locals by them. When we see them out and about, my boys greet them enthusiastically and it always makes them feel good. The boys have friends from Judo too and we often run into them at the park. I usually chat up the parents while we watch our kids play. Because we’re here in the old town all of the time, we tend to run into the same people everywhere and that makes Antibes feel like the small village I imagine it once was. 

I really think this was the perfect spot for us to settle in; some locals have complained to me that Antibes is too transient. But coming from a place that is also pretty transient, I feel like I’ve been on both sides now. You need to be willing to put yourself out there in order to get noticed in an environment that is always changing. I don’t think any of my friends would have questioned my assertiveness, but they’d be surprised how timid I can be when I am not always sure of myself (my language, my place, etc). We’ve definitely been noticed in our 10 weeks here, and I’ve been bold enough to get out there and make it happen for us too. I’ll forever be indebted to Antibes for taking us in and letting us be ourselves in France while learning more about being French.

Cooper learned "Can I play with you" pretty early on this trip.
This is his favorite park.