We're still here

I've gotten a few reminders that I haven't posted in awhile. Although it makes me feel good to know that people are still checking in on us, it hasn't given me much motivation to blog. I like to read, sew, swim...the list is actually quite long. Blogging is not on that list. Blogs are really just glorified journals and for those of you who don't know, I have never been good at keeping a journal. I probably have 8-10 journals that are partially filled, or empty depending on how you look at it.

From the looks of many of your blogs it seems like I have not been the only one on hiatus. Maybe that's a good thing. I'd like to think that instead of blogging about my life for the past month I've been living it instead. We've had Christmas, vacation time, a birthday and more. Henry has started learning how to ski (slow process) and Alex started ski club. Pete's been traveling like crazy. We've had sicknesses but are starting to get healthy (cross your fingers for us). Bottom line: we are still alive and happy.

Welcoming 2010

Another year has flown by and we are rapidly approaching our 2 year mark in Switzerland. Some of you will recall that our family celebrates my birthday and the New Year together. This year it was complete with a funfetti cake followed by sparklers outside. Although my birthdays rarely make me feel any different, the approaching 8 year mark for Alex has me realizing that I am in fact getting older...and maybe a little wiser too.

Castle City

Instead of driving 7 1/2 hours straight home, we decided to break up the trip and stop at a city recommended by our friends the Atchleys: Carcassonne, France (picture above courtesy of Wikipedia). It is a fortified city in Southern France, complete with a castle inside the city and a cathedral. For those of you who are movie buffs, parts of Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves was filmed in and around Carcassonne. We stayed in a hotel which was a short 5 minute walk to the city walls and had a great day exploring the city. We topped it off with dinner which included a regional dish called cassoulet. Click on the link and you will see why Pete was the only one brave enough to try it!

Walking to the fortified city

Ruby, Alex and Henry just outside the city walls

These aren't castle walls, these are walls around the entire city. The castle is a separate fortress inside the city.

Ruby and Alex (2 little specs) on the drawbridge into the city

Christmas wishes in French...

...and English

Heading up to do the ramparts walk around the city to the castle

The kids on the ramparts

A view of the castle from the ramparts

Inside the city there are restaurants, hotels, stores and cute little houses where people still live

Pete and the kids inside the castle courtyard

One amazing wall of the castle

Pete and Ruby

A shot of the city and the cathedral from the castle ramparts

Those 2 tiny specs are...

...Alex and Pete exiting the castle

This charming but expensive hotel across from the cathedral has been around as long as the city, but obviously was not always a hotel. Supposedly the likes of Walt Disney and Johnny Depp have stayed here. You can check out their cool website here.

Christina and Ruby on the streets of Carcassonne

Outside of the walls there is a lovely old carousel.
Henry chose the rotating "teacup".

Ruby

Alex

Christina preferred not to lose her lunch

The streets of Carcassonne lit up at night

Exploring the oceans

While we were down by the harbor, we decided to take the kids to the Barcelona Aquarium. The brochures from our hotel looked pretty cool and I thought since it was right on the Mediterranean it might have some really neat exhibits. Although Pete and I were a little disappointed (we think the Long Beach Aquarium is better), the kids were in heaven.

Do sharks eat goofballs?

Sea Queen Ruby

Sea King Alex

Sea Prince Henry

Ruby and Alex checking out the sharks

Alex is looking for...

...Dory and...

...Nemo

Ruby was a little unsure when we walked through a tunnel and the fish were all around us, including the sharks!

Our sea explorers:

Henry

Alex

Ruby

Churros, Chocolate, Columbus and more

Our second day in Barcelona was spent on or around the Ramblas which is like Main Street. It starts at the Placa de Catalunya which is the central square and heads all the way down to the water. Our first stop in the morning was a little cafe called Granja La Pallaresa that Rick Steves recommends for hot chocolate and churros.

The hot chocolate wasn't as sweet as we are used to and was thick like pudding. The kids loved the whipped cream on top and weren't afraid to add packets of sugar to their chocolate.

Henry, who is our true chocolate lover, was in heaven

The churros were little and obviously different than the monstrous cinnamon coated ones the kids get at Costco. I thought they were delicious and was also a fan of a new pastry that Pete decided to order.

After our mid-morning treat, we headed down toward the harbor. Behind Pete and the kids you can see the Christopher Columbus Monument. The kids had no idea who he was so Pete had a good time giving a history lesson.

The front side of the monument

Pete and the kids in front of La Boqueria Market. This is like the farmer's market to end all farmer's markets.

It was pretty crazy and crowded inside but we did manage to get some yummy fruit smoothies and fresh fruit that we haven't had for awhile in Switzerland. We also sampled a specialty in Barcelona, pa amb tomaquet, bread topped with crushed tomato and olive oil.

Here we are on the Ramblas. The kids had fun looking at all the birds and animals for sale (like outdoor pet shops full of rodents, turtles, bunnies, you name it) and also picked out some souvenirs.

We ended our day on the Placa de Catalunya

This may have been Henry's favorite part of the day when he was allowed to run free...

...and chase pigeons!