A day in Versaille

We took the commuter train out to Versaille today, the boys were excited because it was a double decker train and they got to sit on the upper deck. We were very lucky that it didn't rain today -- it rained a lot last night. I went out for an early run along the Seine river, out to the Eiffel tower and back, so I was already a little tired, but knew we had a long day of walking ahead. We started with a tour of the castle, and had to wait in a fairly long line to get in, but it moved quickly. The last time we were here was our honeymoon! That was 15 years ago and a lot has changed at Versaille. They now have a whole new wing that is open, and they have restored a lot of the rooms and are in the process of restoring even more of the interior and exterior.

After our tour of the castle, we went into the gardens for some lunch and to wait for the water and music show. The grounds have about 30 fountains that run on the weekends for a few hours with music. There is also the "dancing fountain" as Brandon calls it. Here's some video of that one, as seen by Andrew:



The boys liked this one the most, but I had some other favorites, as well:










After spending nearly 2 hours wandering through the gardens and seeing ALL the fountains, we trudged our way over to the Trianon palace (with a little help from some ice cream for the boys) and had about 15 minutes to walk through that much smaller palace. It would have been nice to have some time to look at the grounds, but at that point we were all tired, and with a stop at the bathroom and making our way back towards the train station, all we wanted to do was stop and have some dinner (some traditional crepes, yum!) and then a train ride home. Of course the US vs. England game was still on when we got back, so we let the boys stay up and watch the end of the game. They still aren't on a normal sleep schedule yet.

Tomorrow we will probably go to the Eiffel Tower unless the weather is bad. A friend has invited us over to her house in the afternoon. I thought it would be nice for the boys to see how a normal french family lives. It will be a good change of pace for them, particularly after a long day of walking. Not sure if we are taking the elevator or the stairs at the Eiffel tower...

Rainy days in Paris

The last couple of days have been a bit rainy. Mike took the boys out to a kid park yesterday, then I took them to Notre Dame Cathedral where we got to meet a priest and hear all about the Easter story -- at least until I explained that I was raised Catholic and knew about it already. The boys liked looking at the models of Notre Dame being built best. I think they were impressed with the stained glass. I lit a candle for Mom and Dad. Today was museum day, Mike took the boys to the Centre Georges Pompidou where they have modern art -- Andrew actually enjoyed it and got to see some artists he learned about in art class this year. Brandon was less enthusiastic, but he enjoyed playing with the audio tour buttons. He still had energy after they got back, so I took him for a walk to Luxembourg garden. Hopefully they will start to get on a regular sleep schedule, Andrew had trouble falling asleep last night and slept until almost 10 this morning.

I got some time in at a bookstore and found used versions of some books I wanted. I actually have gotten some writing done over the last couple of days and have been reorganizing my book project based on the latest interviews I have been doing. I may end up doing 2 books instead of just one. My french seems to be coming back as it usually does after a week or so in the country. It's a relief -- I was starting to worry that I was going to lose it after not spending much time in France over the last few years. I think regular visits will have to be in the schedule from now on...

Hanging out with Mike and the boys

I'm very happy that Mike, Andrew and Brandon made it here safely yesterday. Mike and Andrew took a nap after arriving, but Brandon (aka, energizer bunny) was bouncing off the walls, so I had to take him for a walk on my way to get my keys to my office at the university. We got them up after we got back and went for a boat tour. They still had a lot of energy after that, so we went to the Tuileries garden where Brandon rode the carousel a couple of times and bounced on a trampoline for about 15 minutes while Mike and Andrew played football and soccer. Then they both ran all the way back to our apartment. I think they slept pretty well last night.

I had more meetings today and hope to get some work done but it's hard to stay motivated when you are surrounded by Paris!

In Paris

The French Senate

In the Jardin de Luxembourg

I managed to leave Rotterdam without getting a picture of my nephew Alfonso and me together, but I'll see him again in Berlin. My sister Rhonda will be meeting us in Berlin, so he is probably going to come to Berlin while she is there. I arrived in Paris around noon today and spent some time getting settled into our apartment before taking a walk along the Seine.

Later I took a walk to Luxembourg Gardens -- it is very close by, which will be helpful when the boys are feeling antsy. Our apartment is small, but right in the middle of things, and I expect we won't spend a whole lot of time inside.

Sunny days in Rotterdam

I am in the Netherlands and have had another set of very busy days here, lots of meetings, mainly in the Hague. I'm relaxing with my nephew in Rotterdam today, and then heading to Paris tomorrow. It's nice to have a lazy day where I could sleep in and get reorganized.

A few more pictures from Brussels

...I couldn't resist posting a few more...

I'm in Brussels and had to get off to a running start. My plane was about an hour and a half late getting into Brussels so I only had about an hour to hang out at my hotel before heading to my meeting at the European Parliament. The meeting was being sponsored by the Socialists in the European Parliament and the Helsinki Commission which is chaired by Congressman Alcee Hastings. He is very interested in the situation for people of African descent in Europe and helping to get them mobilized politically. The title of the conference was "The Transatlantic Minority Political Leadership Conference." It was very interesting for me, since two of the topics, antidiscrimination policy and immigration, are what I'm here to study. I also met one of my hero's a former Member of the European Parliament who was one of the driving forces behind antidiscrimination policy in Europe in the 1980s and 1990s. He actually offered to give me some of the materials he has saved from that time period to use for my book project! This is a very exciting development.

It's a beautiful evening in Brussels and I'm glad I got a chance to walk around and take some pictures. Heading to Rotterdam for more meetings tomorrow.