The Holidays

The Chili

We finally finished our roofs after 7 weeks. Yes we re-roofed both houses so we should be leak free for the forseeable future. Before, during and after the work we hosted 4 chili parties with some homemade meat and vegetarian chilis, and margaritas. It went well with very little leftover. In all we made about 20 kg(about 44lbs) of chili and invited almost 100 people.
Once the chili was finished it was time to prepare the holidays with the family. Gisele and her sisters planned the meals and decor, spending the first night at sister Christiane's in Alleins, the second in Avignon at their mom's, and the third in Rognonas with their cousin Jacques and aunt Irene. All went well and the meals were incredible.

Christiane's table for Friday before Xmas

We're now into out preparation for the return to the USA. We leave from Marseille Jan 9, spending 1 night in Frankfurt and continuing on to Dallas the following day.

The day before Xmas in Avignon

Jacques and Irene's table for Xmas day

Autumn in Uzes

After a full summer rental schedule we happy to be back home in Uzes. The weather's been very nice and although I closed the pool at the beginning of October, there were a few days when I would have been tempted to jump in.

We've had some small leaks the last couple of years in the Mas due in part to the fragility of the old roof. We'd patch one spot a leak would develop in another spot. Instead of maintaining that course we decided to completely redo the roof this year. We hired a company last spring and they started work about 2 weeks ago. They start at 7:30 in the morning so we've temporarily placed our alarm clock in storage. They expect to finish in about 3 more weeks and then we get our house back.

Alsace in eastern France

During the week of June 11-18, while our house in Uzes was rented, we decided to take a trip to a region of France which is very unique. Alsace has been sometimes French and other times German territory, depending on who won the last war. It has always had a large German influence due to its proximity on France's eastern border(front?).

Sightseeing in Strasburg

We began our visit traveling along the "Route des Vins d'Alsace", the wine road between Thann in the Haut-Rhine in the south to Marlenhein in the Bas-Rhin to the north stopping occasionally at interesting villages of which there were many. We spent most of our time walking throught picturesque villages with beautiful homes and gardens with windows surrounded by all sorts of flowers in vibrant colors. It was quite a change from the south of  France as was the cuisine which consisted mostly of sausage, sauerkraut and various meat dishes in addition to "flammekueche" which is a sort of thin crust pizza with cream, onions and bacon bits.

Another Party... or 2 ... or 3!!

Brad and Arielle at Susie's

Rachel and Jessa at Brad & Arielle's engagement party

After putting our RV back in storage in Texas. We flew to New Jersey to stay with Bill's sister Linda & her family. Linda's son Brad had recently gotten engaged to Arielle and we were overjoyed to be there for their engagement party. What a wonderful couple!
One of our favorite restaurants in NYC is Susie's Chinese Restaurant in Greenwich Village. They serve a delicious and crispy Peking Duck, putting it our our agenda when we're in the Northeast. We introduced Linda's family to Susie's several years ago and they've also become regulars.

Bill, Gisele, Larry & Linda in Atlantic City, NJ

We took a trip down to Atlantic City NJ staying at the Harrah's Casino Hotel where we wound up paying the electric bill, theirs not ours.

Friends and family at my birthday party at Deb's

As per every time we're in the area we headed up to CT to visit with friends and family there. We stayed the first nite with Carol in her home in Westport and then with Deb & Emily at their's in Trumbull. Deb & Em offered their house for us to host a wonderful party to celebrate my ongoing 60th with many friends and family. It was a great seeing everyone again and catching up, as well as 2 delicious birthday cakes from the 2 Marys - Janocha and Dunn.
Despite having such a wonderful time in the US it was time to return to France, which we did on April 4. We landed in Marseille on the 5th and proceeded to put our home in Uzes together at a feverish pace due to an early rental 4 days later. We managed this feat with the pool taking it's last filling drop 10 minutes before their arrival. Gisele spent the next week in Lourdes while I went to Carry-le-Rouet near Marseille to catch up on my sleep and reading. We met again on the 15th when I picked up her and 2 friends in Nimes, bringing all of us back to Uzes.

Bill with mother in law Therese celebrating his 60th
(Note the birthday cake in english)

We spent the next 2 weeks getting together with friends and family with the arrival of Gisele's niece Betty, sister Claudette and mom Therese.

Celebrating Bill & Georges' 60th and Gisele's ???? with french friends

May 1 was the next birthday event with a group of French friends to again celebrate mine and Georges' 60th as well as Gisele's much much younger and lower number with the actual day being May 8. New York Cheesecake was served.

Regina admiring the candle on her birthday cheescake

Jeremy, Malcolm, Fiona & Robin at my English surprise birthday party

May 8 was the next birthday event with a group of mainly english speaking friends. This being Gisele's date of birth as well as our friend Regina's, one would naturally assume that it was their day, but NO! it was another party for me! and a true surprise. Two New York Cheesecakes were served and my supply of Philadelphia Cream Cheese is disappearing quickly.

The Road home

Gisele with Bill's homemade margaritas

Gregg, Gisele, Muriel and Bill

The multi-talented Don Hart playing guitar at my 60th

We spent 4 wonderful weeks in Phoenix under warm sunny skies. Played golf once, but not very well, and the other members of my foursome were very patient. It was very relaxing and now that the month here is over I'm not really sure what I did. I guess that's vacation!

Bill on the golf course

Gisele organized a party for my 60th which was wonderful with good friends and excellent music by Don Hart. Our friends Muriel & Gregg offered the use of their home in El Mirage and I made a gallon of margaritas for the 35 guests. There must have been a hole in the pitcher since it disappeared quickly. I had a great time and look forward to 61.

Gisele saddled up at the bar in Tortilla Flats, AZ

The day after we took a  trip to Tortilla Flats, a stagecoach stop in the early 1900s and possibly the smallest community in the US with a Post Office with a population of 6. This was followed by a short visit to Goldfield which is as the name suggests, an old gold mining camp.

Muriel, Gregg and Gisele in Goldfield, AZ

It was my Birthday!

The evening was topped by an evening at the Arizona Opry which is a dinner theatre in Mesa with live country music & entertainment.

The stage at the Arizona Opry

We left Phoenix on March 13 for a 4 day stay in Sedona, Arizona a picturesque village in the red mountains 2 hours north of Phoenix. It's a beautiful town with many tours to view the red rock formations as close as possible. It was a very nice place to take down our motorcycle from the RV and tour the area.

The red rocks of Sedona, AZ over the motorcycle windscreen

Sedona, AZ surrounded by red rock mountains

Sedona Pines RV Park

We left Sedona on Wed. March 16 for Albuquerque, New Mexico to visit our friend Margaret. She took us around Albuquerque and up to Santa Fe. It was a wonderful visit and from there was the return trip of 3 days to Dallas to prepare the RV for storage before out trip east to visit with Bill's sister Linda in New Jersey and friends in Connecticut.

Gisele & Bill in Bruno's Restaurant in Albuquerque, New Mexico

Sunny & Warm in Phoenix

We arrived in Phoenix, Arizona on February 14 for a 4 week stay northwest of the city in Pueblo El Mirage Golf & RV Resort. There are approx. 1000 sites with an 18 hole golf course plus many activities and including a heated Olympic size pool. We've been swimming and bicycling every day, with Gisele doing her pottery and country dancing and me relaxing and reading.

Tucson, AZ to Palm Springs, CA

Regina, Gisele, Larry & Bill

at Vallauris Restaurant in Palm Springs, CA

We spent a very nice week in Tucson, swimming every day in an indoor heated pool and making various items in the numerous craft shops on site. It was difficult to take the road again but southern California beckoned. After 6 hours on the road we arrived in Palm Springs. The weather was as nice as Tucson and we would park at a casino overnight and head into town during the day. After a few days of this we decided to settle into a campground for a few days in order to clean up and refresh the RV and replenish. We found a very nice campground Desert Pools Rv Park  in Desert Hot Springs just outside of Palm Springs. Among the various activities & amenities were a swimming pool naturally heated by underground hot springs as well as 3 hot tubs similarly heated but all needed to be cooled as the water arriving at the surface was 130F. After a few days there we decided to change RV parks for another nearby park not far away but with many more amenities. On the way to pick up supplies before settling in, we developed a problem with the steering as well as the engine overheating and needed to be towed 60 miles to a repair facility in Colton, CA. The parts needed to be sent from Michigan via overnight mail so we spent 48 hours there before finally arriving at the other campground in Desert Hot Springs. It turned out to be a much nicer and larger park with more amenities as well as 2 naturally heated pools and 2 hot tubs. After settling in we contacted our friends Regina & Larry Whelan in Newport Beach, CA and they came to spend a couple of nights aboard our RV. It was a very nice time and we went into town for a delicious meal at the Vallauris French Restaurant in Palm Springs.

Our RV being set up for towing to Colton, CA

Naturally heated pool at Catalina Spa

Our week in Desert Hot Springs was nearly over when we received Giselle & Marco, two friends from Calgary, Canada whom we met in France. They came to the RV for lunch along with a Dave & Susan, their neighbors in Calgary who spend part of the year in Palm Springs.

Giselle, Susan, Dave, Marco & Gisele

Texas - south & west to Tucson, Arizona

We left Dallas after a couple of days due to advancing cold weather and headed south to pick up our mail in Livingston. From there we headed to the state capitol of Austin because as true Texans we needed to see where our laws are made how our taxes are spent. We should have looked on the internet since we weren't allowed into the Senate or House but we did see some beautiful 8 pound door hinges engraved "Texas Capitol". With all the closed doors in the building that contract must have been worth a few dollars. There were other impressive building including the State of Texas Museum which traces the state's history from the time it was part of Mexico, then a country, a territory and eventually a state in 1845.
We left Austin after a couple of days and headed to New Braunfels to visit with Mike a friend of Bill's from high school. It was good getting together and we closed the roughly 40 year interval pretty quickly. He took us to visit Gruene an old German settlement which has become a yuppified center of Texas country & rock music.

After a couple of days in New Braunfels we set out for San Antonio which we remember from our first visit approx. 7 years ago as a very lively, energetic multi cultural south Texas city. Unfortunately it rained the 2 days we were there putting a thick damper on the energy. We did walk the downtown and despite the weather enjoyed the architecture, Mexican food, Riverwalk and last but not least we must remember the Alamo.

After San Antonio our aim was to visit some French friends Herve & Susan building a home in west Texas near Marfa. Unfortunately he needed to be back in France and she was very busy with catering obligations so it was not to be so we stayed on the highway for the next 2 days arriving in Tucson on Jan. 17. We're staying at a very large and active campground in southeast Tucson until Jan 24, swimming and crafting in 75F and bright sunshine every day.

It's sunny here in Texas

The title says it all. We arrived in Dallas to beautiful clear sunny skies and 60F (15C). It was a long flight but non stop from Frankfurt so at 10 1/2 hours was a shorter day than it might have been. We picked up our RV from the mechanic where it was being prepared and serviced, parking it for a few days at a campground in Arlington, Texas between Dallas and Fort Worth. The first day was spent shopping to provision the RV for the trip and Bill found some very nice steaks for the grill while Gisele stayed with the rabbit food. Last night we went into the old section of Fort Worth to walk around the stockyards and rodeo area, dining at a Mexican restaurant.