Fischer's in Berlin

Brian and the ladies outside our apartment

85 euros a kilo for one angry fish!

Rogacki's butcher counter

Pergamon's Roman Ruins

Museum Celia

The Fischer Ladies

Faith in Humanity

The Fischers had a rough October. Well, perhaps it wasn't rough per se, just frustrating. Near the beginning of the month, while in Lyon, my cellphone was stolen. Then later in the month as we walked up the street to our apartment after a long day of traveling home from Austria, we noticed that Brian's bike was stolen. Two very important items that were essential to our daily lives, (Brian biked to work every day), were taken from us. It was a disappointing time in our lives and I personally lost faith in humanity.

That was a difficult felling for me to grasp and deal with. Normally I feel very good about people and life in general. I can't count the number of times a stranger has offered to help Elise down the stairs of the metro station while I carried Celia in her stroller. On a daily basis, I notice complete strangers looking out for one another's well being. The world is orderly and people are good to one another.

But then October happens and we get nailed. And since the evil coincided with a turn in the weather, I became angry, disappointed, and lost the faith. It was an ugly, grey time. Fortunatly this evilness also coincided with a trip back to sunny Southern California, my family, and a break from France, french, and this life. (Not that this life is hard...I did mention that I spent October in Lyon and Austria, right? What am I complaining about here, really? Don't I make you crazy?) Anyways, I got away and it did wonders for my spirit and I returned a happier person with a better outlook on humanity. Not completly ready to trust the world again, but feeling better about life in general.

Then December comes around.

Our friend Pamela came to visit us for the weekend before heading off to the States to be with her own family for the holidays. Unfortunatly for Pamela, snow hit Europe and they didn't know what to do with themselves. Fligths were canceled and life as we know it stopped for all travelers. Pamela's Saturday arrival turned into Monday night after an entire day of sitting at the airport, on the runway, and on her flight. Yet even though she made it to Paris after a horrible day of travel, her troubles had just begun. She waited in line for an hour to buy a train ticket only to learn that she couldn't buy one at the kiosk because they don't take cash. (Aren't we great friends? We really helped her prepare for this trip.) After learning that the ticket counter was closed and she had no way of buying a train ticket, a lovely couple offered to buy her a train ticket, for free! They totally hooked her up with a ticket and saved the day!

But oh wait, it gets better....

While waiting for the train, Pamela's belly reminded her that the only thing she had to eat that day was a banana that morning for breakfast at like 5 AM. It's now almost 6:30 PM and Pamela would love nothing more than a tasty Orangina from the vending machine. However, the 50 she has in her wallet is not going to cut it so she roams the platform for anyone who can break her 50 and allow her to buy a drink without getting 5 and 10 cent coins worth of 48 euros in change. And guess what happens? A saint sent down from Oragnina heaven offers to buy her a drink, for free! He saves the day and Pamela's sanity after a terrribly long day of travel. A wonderful ending to a horrific day.

So, why do I share all this you ask? Well, the goodness continues. While waiting for the metro in Berlin, a young man was trying to buy a ticket with his 20 euro bill. Unfortunatly, the machine only took coins and he was unable to buy a ticket. Thus, he was stuck in Pamela's CDG/Orangina situation and needs to find someone, some saint, to break his 20 so that he can continue on with his travels. I watched him approach one person who was unable to provide him with the proper change. The next person he approached was also unable to break his 20, but went above and beyond the expectations of humanity: just like Pamela's angels, this kind soul offered the young traveler the change he needed to buy a ticket, no charge, no 20 exchange, no questions asked. It was awesome!

Its New Year's Eve and while some people out there are going to spend wiser this year or try to lose weight, (I wouldn't mind losing some Paris Pounds...), I've decided to not make a New Year's Resolution per se. Instead I'm decided to carry on the torch of the good karma that's been evident in my life over the last 10 days. I have seen, heard, and expereinced some of the kindest acts of human kind and my hope for 2011 is to be a person that makes those good things happen to others and to continue the flow of good karma to those around me. Now, I'm no saint by any means. I'm not trying to change the world and I can guarantee you that I won't be giving out my euros to any beggar on the street. I'm easily frustrated and there are times when my kids drive me crazy. However, in these past few days I've had a revelation to be better because it's been evident all around me and I really want to do good!

I am going to do my best to be my best on a daily basis. When I can go the extra mile to help out a Pamela of the world or single traveler of Berlin, I hope that my heart is open and that I do the right thing. And I want to remember that although I may get my phone/bike/something or other stolen again during the 2011 that I keep in mind that my one occurrence of badness is not outweighed by the good karma that is all around me.

Thus, as the New Year is rolling on and my eyes are rolling down, let us all cheers this New Year as a time to not start a new but to continue and rejoice in all the goodness that is around us. Happy New Year to you All!!!! It's going to be a great year!

Teil zwei

Alright, we're back....

Tuesday night in Berlin: after thawing out in the apartment and resting our legs and our bellies, we headed out to find some dinner. I was done with the metro and exploring for the day, (I probably could have done more and wanted to do more but my two tiny travel companions were done!) so we headed down the street in search for something to eat. At the Strausberger Platz we discovered our options: Italian or Chinese. Not being super excited for either, we walked back in search of some quick take out. By this time however, our feet are cold and we can no longer feel our noses, so I took some cold sad ladies home and Brian ordered us some Vietnamese Thai fusion takeout. Quite the Berlin night, eh?

(Celia in search for some food...have I mentioned before how much she LOVES to eat snow? Get this lady a glass of milk and she's set for dinner!)

Moving on, we wake on Wednesday for some toy shopping and Christmas Markets. Brian

headed off for his Berlin Tour, (we divided and conquered on this trip...although the ladies would probably be great on the tour, it was way to cold to drag them around. So B went first on Wednesday while the ladies and I went shopping!) and we headed out for the Ka Di Wi Department Store. We made it to the 5th floor and discover a floor dedicated to doudous! It was awesome! Every kind of doudou you can imagine was stuffed and on display, ready for small hands to grab and play with! The ladies went NUTS checking out all the fun toys and after 35 minutes of debate were able to select our German Doudou: a dinosaur for Elise and a small cat for Celia!

We left the Ka Di Wi in great spirits: we were warm, we had new doudous, and the fun was only beginning. Walking towards the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedachtniskirche, (which turned out to be completely covered in scafolding while they do some reconstruction), we came across an awesome Christmas Market! It was a perfect time to stop and enjoy a pretzel, a carousel ride, and a few spins on the merry go round before our feet freeze and it's time to return home!

Can you find Elise?

Wednesday dinner was a much bigger success than Tuesday. Germany has a very large Turkish population and during our Berlin trip we made it a priority to head down to Kreuzburg and taste some authentic turkish grub. We found Doyum Grillhause online and headed down there for an incredible dinner. We all shared some fabulous red lentil soup, lamb kabobs in garlic eggplant yogurt sauce, spiced kabob, salad, and turkish pizza. The dinner was outstanding!

Finally it's Thursday and it's my turn for a Berlin tour before we all head off to the airport. I met my group at 9:00 in front of the Brandenburg Gate and our tour guide Sam, a fine englishman who is working towards a masters in German history, took us off to explore some of the amazing sites and secrets of Berlin. Although it was freezing cold and I eventually lost all feeling in my limbs, the tour was fascinating. After talking about the Brandenburg Gate and the Pariser Platz, we went on to the Holocaust Memorial. Every part of the tour was a learning experience. We stood on the grounds of the bunker where Hitler took his life. Now a parking lot, the German government made a decision to not memorialize the location in any way. There is little acknowledgment or remembrance for the Nazi Army in fear that any memorial will turn into a place of hatred. Instead there is a small sign at the entrance of the parking lot asking you not to bother the residence of the surrounding apartment buildings about the location. Sam informed us that although most of the bunker has been destroyed, there are still some remains of the 4 meter walls that surrounded the structure.

The tour continued with a stop at the former SS Headquarters and along the Berlin Wall. We stopped off at Checkpoint Charlie and learned about some fabulous escape attempts. It was really an amazing experience to go through the city and learn about all the history. From the Huguenots migration to the book burnings of the past, I feel like my tour was just a small taste of what all happened in this amazing city.

As we were finishing our tour, I was quite amazed at the number of tour buses and other walking tours that were taking place around us. So many people flock to Berlin to learn about the past and experience it's history. And I just can't help but wonder what it must feel like as a Berliner to live in a place of such history: for both the beauty and the evil. This city once housed one of the most evil humans of all time and I imagine that must affect at least some part of your life. At just about every moment of the day in Berlin there is a guide discussing some aspect of that evil past. But then again, they are also pointing out incredible museums, beautiful monuments, churches, and buildings. It's quite the dichotomy that must make living and experiencing Berlin an amazing experience! One that I'm glad to have taken part in!

Ich bin ein Berliner

Okay, so I'm not a Berliner but I sure did enjoy the city. I did a fabulous job of eating all their meats and potatoes, drinking their beer, and taking in as much history as I could in a freezing cold 3.5 hour tour. (Sounds a little bit like a German Gilligan's Island, eh?)

Despite a rocky start on the airlines, our vacation in Berlin turned out fabulously. Like I said, we ate a LOT of meat and took in all the cool history the city has to offer. We battle some seriously cold days but still managed to have lots of fun!

We left Paris Monday night with no clue that Berlin was getting hit hard with the European Snow Fall. And unlike the wusses at Heathrow or CDG, Berliners know how to handle the snow...well, their not experts, but they are better. As our piolets requested permission to land, they were denied at Tegel Airport because the runways were not ready for any plane landings. Thus, we hung out in the sky for a little while and waited for Tegel to clean off some road. Eventually we were told to land in Dresden while everyone figured out what to do with all these planes that were supposed to land. Hmmm.....

B and I took out our Lufthansa Air Magazines to learn that Dresden is NOT Berlin. It's a good train ride away or something. So we land and we sit. Dresden doesn't want us so we can't deplane but they will allow us to sit on the runway while Tegel clears it's runways. But to make a long night and long story short, I'll sum up with that we eventually leave Dresden for Berlin, land in Berlin, and safely make our way to our apartment via taxi. We finally get in around 1:00 AM. Not a good start, but we're safe, warm, and we have beds for the night!

Tuesday!! What adventures await us as we tackle Berlin? Well we fortunatly slept until about 10:00 and slowly got rolling to the Pergamon Museum. Now, if you ever get to Berlin, you MUST hit up the Pergamon Museum! It is outstanding. The museum is by far the best antiquity collection I've ever seen! Even the ladies got into the amazing artifacts, friezes (not sure if that's the correct use of the frieze...), and displays!

After finishing up our culture for the day, we headed to lunch at Rogacki's. Another must on your Berlin To Do List. (We learned about Rogacki's the night before we left for Berlin by doing some serious research: Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations in Berlin.) Anyways, we had a late lunch of fried fish, potato salad, mashed potatoes, sauerkraut, a brat, and Elise's favorite: green olives wrapped in anchovies. (She really ate two of them! See picture at the right if you don't believe me....). It was a great lunch, cafeteria style, and the place itself was worth the trip. There were fabulous butcher and fish stands. Some of the most amazing looking things that I would have loved to explore had I (a) had the slightest clue what it was and (b) could deutsch sprechen! Either way, it was really fun just to be there, take in the experience, and watch all the people!

Alright, this is getting to be a novel of Berlin and I've had a long day. We'll do some Part Two of the trip tomorrow and I'll upload some more pictures to share. (BTW, being the smart, worldly traveler that I am I brought a 98% empty camera battery on our trip without a charger. Smooth, eh? So not a ton of pictures but some keepers that I'll share. I gotta keep you coming back to the blog for more....)

Off to bed. Here's a teaser for what's to come: Ka Di Wi shopping, carrousels and merry go rounds, and a 3.5 hour tour!

Good Night!

Sara's TTS

Today I mark as the beginning of my Time To Shine! For the next 3 months I am sans enfants every Tuesday and Friday and today I totally took advantage of it. And it was awesome!

I think today is a great day to start too. After defeating 1.5 weeks of the evil jet lag, readjusting to life in Paris, and trudging through a huge snow storm, the sun was out today and just begging me to get out and enjoy it! So I did.

Although the adventure started on a lame note, it all turned out pretty awesomely. I gathered up all our recyclable beer bottles and headed to the Bastille to exchange for them for money and buy some new, full ones. However, due to some electronical error or something, the store was shut down for the day. Lame. I debated returning home and napping the day away for about 2 minutes. Although my backpack and shoulder sack were weighing me down, I couldn't resist the other fabulous idea that popped in my head while riding the metro: a vietnamese sandwich! Thus I clanked my way up the streets of the 11th, 12th, and 20th, (it's really quite fun how much attention you get as your empty beer bottles sing as you walk along the streets. I got a lot of nice looks as I rattled away on the streets and even more in the metro!) to a tiny vietnamese sandwich shop that's really off the beaten path.

The journey to the Sandwich Shop was absolutely wonderful. In a matter of three arrondissements, I went through 4 different countries. There was the Moroccan area with many fine looking restaurants full of couscous and tagines. Lebanon and Turkey were up next and I was able to discover a fancy spice market which I will have to return to once I learn how to make some interesting meals! And then it was off to Asia. Okay, so Asia is not a country, let's narrow it to l'Orient. Vietnamese, Chinese, and Taiwanese markets and restaurants lined the streets and every one of them was packed. (If I wasn't dead set on my sandwich, it would have been hard to choose just one restaurant!)

I made it through the open market, (one of the angriest I've ever seen...I wanted 500 grams of mushrooms but the seller INSISTED I go for 2 kilos! I was scared and ran away! All the vendors were shouting and were very entertaining, I think??? :) Anyways, I miraculously found my sandwich shop from memory and sans iPhone. I was pretty stoked about that. And as I payed for my sandwich and walked back out to the street, all the clouds disappeared and the sun shone brightly. Thus, I headed to Parc Bellville to look for a nice bench on one of the highest points of Paris. It was grand and I got a great view as I gobbled up my delicious sandwich.

Then I took the long way home on Rue Oberkampf via Boulevard de Belleville and stopped at every ethnic market I could. It was so neat! The only problem I ran into was that I wanted to buy all the fabulous looking spices, sauces, and interesting looking canned goods that were on the shelves. A great dilemma to be in on my first day of shinning.

Je fais du jogging

Last night as Brian and I walked home from a delicious Moroccan dinner, I commented to him how I was sad and somewhat disappointed that I could not speak better French. We were in a restaurant full of french speaking people and we ordered our Moroccan food with horrible accents and pronunciations. Although I try very hard to speak the french, I am embarrassed by my inability to communicate properly. I have a million and one excuses for not speaking better, particularly two little tiny sweet excuses, but the other 999,999 are kind of pathetic. I just don't dedicate the time to learning the language like I should and always find something more interesting, and easier, to do than sit and practice. And, sure, those other things usually involve being with my ladies, email writing, news reading, or just wasting time online. But I can always justify that I "needed" some down time and was just too tired from the day's activities to sit and practice french! (I'm actually feeling a twinge of guilt as I write this...Comment dit-on Catch-22 en francais?)

But the sad thing is that by not learning french, I'm isolating myself from a huge population out there and as a result, I feel a bit lonely. It's a sad feeling when you can't make small talk on the train or while waiting in line at the store with your fellow rider/consumer. Not that I need to be that crazy American that doesn't shut up, it's just that it would be nice to be able to talk to the other moms at the park or in the yard, or even to the other kids in the sandbox. So, for all those million reasons for not learning, I've got one good one to get me started: loneliness.

So, feeling a bit bummed but motivated, I put in my earplugs, laced up my jogging shoes, and headed out the door this morning determined to make a breakthrough in the imperfect. As I jog through the park feeling sad and lonely, (did I mention I was listening to the rules of the imperfect?), I started to see my running buddy Asian-Man in his standard red shirt and white running shorts. And as we approach, he sticks out his hand for a high five and shouts words of encouragement. Now with a smile on my face and a quicker step, I continue on and repeat the words and phrases of the Coffee Break French crew. And as I hit my first straight-up-hill of Parc Monstouris, I see grey shorts Walking-Dude and he gives me his daily thumbs up and friendly Bonjour as we pass each other. After Walking-Dude, I come to Hard-Core Couple with their fancy running belts full of water and running gels and get the smile-nod combo from them as I continue to make my way down hill. I'm now repeating with confidence and the led in my shoes that I was feeling as I started this run has now disappeared. I'm running swiftly and easily with happiness as I realize that although I don't know any of their names, Asian-Man, Walking-Dude, Hard-Core Couple, and Black-Pants are my friends. (Well, the kind of friends that you meet in the park on dark, cold, sometimes wet/snowy days and together put your bodies through ridiculous torture as you all loop around a park!) I've made some great running partner friends that I can't communicate with through words but find a way to communicate through encouraging gestures such as high fives, thumbs ups, and smiles. And as much as I'd love to know their names or hear their stories, these friends are so very valuable to me. They push me on the days when running is the last thing I want to do. (Asian-Man saw me walk once and I got a good scolding....not sure what he said exactly but I didn't need to! I'm a coach and I know better; I just started running and he was smiling again!) Then there are days when I want to sleep in and skip the run. But then how would Walking-Dude feel if I wasn't there to say Bonjour to him. I'm sure his day would be ruined!

My revelation of my non-communicative international friendships really bumped up my spirit level this morning. It's great to think about how running and sport can bring us together no matter what language each person speaks. I love the community that is formed through sport and that words are not really necessary. (Although, those that know me well know I would not fair well without being able to talk some trash during sport. I think I just found some more motivation...)

I play soccer with french speaking woman and have taught and learned different rules and techniques of the sport through creative hand gestures, body language, and lots of mistakes. Although it's not easy, we patiently work together on the pitch, enjoy the game of foot, and even improve a little bit. A common language isn't necessary because we are motivated to learn and just enjoy the game. We don't need silly words when a quick high five and smile are going to let you know all you need: "You're doing a great job, it's great to see you, have a fabulous run, and we'll see you tomorrow!"

Playing and Jumping

We're having an awesome time playing in the leaves!!! Fall is the Best!

Happy Halloween Everyone!!!

To Austria and Back

Despite the French Unions' best efforts of striking and slowing down life in Paris, we did indeed fly out on the 20th of October to the fabulous town of Innsbruck, Austria. We made it up to CDG after two long, hot, packed train rides and even got to catch a little of the action:

There was a march of protestors along the airport road and we got to see and hear them profess their unhappiness with the French government over the proposal of the new retirement system. It was a site to be scene; especially the riot police all geared up in the Terminator outfits! I was glad to be on their side.

But moving on to bigger and better things: our vacation. We arrived in Innsbruck late that afternoon and relaxed in our apartment in Patsch, a small town to the south. We got to stay in the same place from last year. It was great to be settled in this beautiful town and listen to churchbells chime instead of police sirens of the city! It was great to be out!

Thursday we hit the mountains with Gina. Wonderful, wonderful Nana Penny babysat the kids and we got to enjoy some great snow on a beautiful sunny day. It was so fabulous and really quite amazing to be on fresh snow in late October. You gotta love Austria! I think I read somewhere that they can ski almost year round!

Friday and Saturday we enjoyed the city of Innsbruck: played at some parks, walked along the river, shopped, and ate delicious strudels!

We learned that all European cities, not just Paris, like to create parks that are death traps for children. This Innsbruck park was no exception. The kids loved it and had a great time trying to kill themselves on different wooden contraptions that were way too high off the ground but very fun to hang and jump from!

Sunday we returned to Solden for the World Cup Skiing Championship Series. Brian and I opted to snowboard again during the competition while Gina and crew watched the super fast skiers. We had another great few hours of boarding and just as we decided to head back and turn in our equipment, a huge fog came through and made visibility on the mountain nearly impossible. Brian and I thought for sure that we were going to die; you couldn't see more than an inch in front of you! I miraculously made it down the mountain by following Brian in his white jacket! (yeah, that was really helpful in a white snow fog!) and not falling on my butt during the slow ski among the 25 or so other people that we also trying to not die down the mountain! It was pretty awesome.

They eventually canceled the second round of the competition and we headed home to the ladies.

Monday we woke to this...

Patsch got nailed with a huge snowstorm on Monday and accumulated at least a foot of snow that morning! It was awesome! Elise and Owen did some nice sledding while I ran to the market for a strudel wrap to make lunch. Our plans to go into Innsbruck for a fancy lunch were shut down in favor of not dying on the road in a non-snow tire car! (Not dying seems to be the theme of this trip except if you're the ladies and Owen at the park!) So we had a relaxing morning of playing in the snow and enjoying the beauty and serenity of Patsch!

It's Snowing!

...and I'm loving it! I just took a super long hot back while snowflakes fell all around me! This is the life!

We landed in Innsbruck, Austria today to start a fabulous five days with Gina and her family, and fellow ski coaches and ski students. It's a pretty sweet set-up for Gina and we are lucky enough to reap the benefits. We'll be here until Monday and during our stay we will snowboard, (Yes! Snowboard in October!), visit the wonderful town of Innsbruck for some good Austrian eats, and snowboard/watch the first World Cup Weekend of the season. Not bad for a little getaway, eh?

But this fabulous vacation started with a delicious dinner by Gina and concluded with a wonderful bath with the sky window open just enough to allow tiny snowflakes to fall. Can you beat that? Oh, and the bath. Who doesn't love a bath? I miss them dearly and am so stoked to be in this apartment with a bathtub! Who cares about snowboarding when there's a bath? The boarding is just an added bonus! But I must say, my excitement does not match that of the little people. The ladies and Owen who took a multi-colored bath tonight and I'm sure will be geared up for number 2 in the morning!

That's about it from me for now. I will definitely write in more about our extra long weekend when we get back to city living next week. I know it's been a while since I last entered a post but it's been pretty quiet in the home front as we started l'adaptation for Celia at the creche and adjusted to the drastic weather change in Paris. It suddenly got VERY cold. And not the kind of cold that we love here while snowboarding in the Austrian Alps and on Glaciers. We at least have some sunshine to keep us happy as we dig out the gloves and scarves.

International Sympathy

So my cellphone was lost/stolen the other day. It was part my fault, part wrong place at the wrong time, part big jerk kids running off with my phone instead of returning it. It totally sucks. And for those out there that have experienced this loss, you can sympathize: lost contacts, notes, and calendars. I know no phone numbers and am trying to slowly recollect them via emails so I can rejoin my friends and society! Yes, I'm being dramatic but it's just how it feels. I wanted to call a friend the other day before she left for vacation and I couldn't do it! It was so sad!

But in the midst of these feelings of stupidity, lose, and frustration, I've had a fascinating experience: the international sympathy and understanding that comes from the loss of a cellphone.

Now sure, there are far worse things in life to lose. There are far more disastrous things that can happen to a person that no matter where you are from, it's bad. For me, my family is healthy and happy. We are safe and living a fabulous life. If the worse thing that's going to happen to me is a cellphone being stolen, I'll take it.

But the lose of the cellphone is something that we can all relate to: whether Finish, Israeli, American, German, French, we understand the horrible feeling of losing an essential part of your life: the phone. We all know it. You put all your numbers in there and no one has anything memorized anymore, or even written down! And, sadly, I greatly, almost unhealthily, depended on my cellphone. I couldn't even call my husband to tell him what happened because I don't know his number. My own husband!

But that's why the cellphone is so fabulous. It has made all our lives easier, no matter where you are on this planet! (Which by the way, I couldn't even find because I didn't have my map application to tell me!) And the iPhone is especially so very wonderful. Birthday reminders, pay the rent, learn the weather, awesome time-wasting games, sports' reports, and INTERNET! I could check my email while the ladies tried to kill themselves at the park. What am I supposed to do now? Save them? Lame!

Luckily, I am recovering nicely. Immediately after losing the phone I was able to go into the Bouygues phone store, (awesome coincidence that there was one right there around the corner), cancel the old phone, and get a new one without having to renew my contract. Now, the new one is nothing to write home about. It's super lame but it works. I get to keep my number so I'm slowly collecting old contacts as they call. There's no email or fun games and texting is a huge pain, but it does the job.

Yet, what is fascinating about this experience is the way all my "Paris" friends can sympathize. We come from all over the world and have different traditions and customs. We eat a lot of the same foods, but with our own special touches, flavors, and spices. We celebrate different holidays, have different histories, and often, speak different languages. However, it's really cool when you discover and think about how we are so very similar, no matter where we are from...

We have the same struggles with our kids behavior and we all experiment with different parenting techniques. We can complain to each other about the lack of sleep or kids not eating or behaving. Many of us miss home, miss the traditional food, or our old comfortable beds. We lose our phones and our keys (and sometimes our minds)! Yet, we all made a decision to give this opportunity to live in France a try and there are no regrets. We get to share our lives, traditions, and backgrounds with each other while living in one of the most amazing cities in the world. Each of us admits how great it is to be out here at a point in our lives where we were kind of settled and done with the whole new friend-making thing. We sacrificed comfort for an adventure. And I'm super happy that I'm here doing all this: meeting new people of all kinds, trying new things, and learning about how the other half lives. It's fabulous to be trying a new life, new culture, new everything. And when things go bad, it's nice to know I always have help and sympathy!

Awesome week

The Ladies in Lyon!

I need to chalk up the last seven days as being pretty fabulous. The weather has been cooperating and the dreary rainy days of late September have been driven away by the glorious sun of October. We're 8 days in and I am pleased to report that we are having beautiful fall weather in Paris. Which means it's time to get out and walk.

Which is exactly what Celia and I did last Friday. My little Celia loves to sit in her stroller and explore the city with me. Armed with a package of fruit snacks and the Lyon King book, that lady is content to just sit and glide through the streets of Paris. She also enjoys seeing some sites along the way: we saw "Elise's" Tower just beyond our view of the Arc de Triomphe, we watched lobsters crawl through the water of their tank homes at a fabulous open market, and smelled some beautiful roses of many brilliant colors. There was never a dull moment on our walk. And often the fresh air and calming ride lull the little lady to sleep; giving me an opportunity to stroll guiltlessly through the streets at my own pace and do some window shopping and menu reading. Plus, a short nap in between site seeing and park playing never hurt anyone.

So that's my Friday. Awesome, eh? A great walk through the streets of Paris. Catching a few sites, (forgot to mention the fantastic view of Sacre Coeur off the Boulevard de Courcelles. It was a clear, amazing day and the S.C. looked stunning!), great architecutre, and such neat restaurants and shops. I love wandering upon the different pockets of Paris. Each moment out in the world is so great.

I also love the opportunity to just wonder and think. For the first time in my life I get to get lost in my thoughts. I'm not trying to plan the next day's lesson or think about the choir of cooking that night, (I LOVE the 'choir' of cooking now!) I get to enjoy the moment, enjoy the city and this life, this freedom from responsibility. Especially now that there is NO french paperwork and I have NO responsibilites to the world. I'm just out with my lady taking it all in! And LOVING it!!!

But back to this awesome week: Saturday and Sunday were quiet days full of sunshine and relaxation. Sunday was free museum day and Brian and I took turns strolling though l'Orangerie while the ladies played in the Jardin des Tuileries. It was a great team effort that worked out well because the ladies are not yet fans of the art and don't last long in the musee. They were much more content to play on this huge slide/rope bridge contraption and trying to kill themselves than wonder around a museum where they can't touch anything!

Sunday night we were pleasantly surprised by Andy with an offer to babysit. Brian and I jumped at the opportunity to get out sans filles and enjoyed a pleasant evening out in the Marie district. We walked, ate falafel, and enjoyed some drinks at some different and interesting spots.

Now before this blog entry turns into a novel, I'll finish up my glorious week and sign off.

Monday was another great walk and Tuesday we were off to Lyon. After a great train ride we made it to Lyon late and checked in our hotel and headed to bed. Wednesday the ladies and I explored the city while Brian did some conference work. To me, Lyon is a tiny Paris. Fascinating buildings and architchture, beautiful bridges and rivers, and some good elevation to walk up. What defines Lyon from Paris is the Roman theater and ruins. The ladies and I played in the grass of the ruins and enjoyed the amazing structures and small village that was over 2000 years old. It was very, very cool!

We got to enjoy some delicious Lyonnaise food on Thursday for lunch and we continued to explore the city. We played at some parks, enjoyed the beautiful weather, and new city. It was fun to explore and check it all out.

And now we're back in Paris for a few more days before heading off to Austria. We are very excited to go back to Innsbruck and see our friends plus do a little snowboarding on glaciers in the Alps. It will be grand and most likely another awesome week!

I Won!

I'm feeling pretty bad ass right now! The French government has nothing on me!

Sure it took two visits to the CAF, 3 phone calls, and a few trees were sacraficed for additional copies, (not my fault), but the paperwork war is over and I am victorious. Elise gets to stay at school for lunch and we get to pay for it! Ha, Ha CAF! That's right, we get to pay! Wait a second, who won? We're officially responsible for the fees. Ah crap!

So it really only took two visits to the CAF despite my predicted three. On the first visit they told me that Elise had moved out and I need to obtain a french birth certificate to prove that my three year old still lived with me. Awesome! But the rest of visit #1 included a successful deposit of our 2008 declaration resources and the avis d'impots. So, I'm half way there. We need visas and proof that Elise is still ours, she is alive and well, living under our roof, and then we're done. One more strike on the triangle of doom!

Wrong!

Because, on the return visit, exactly one week later and a few phone calls by my friends at the beautiful BACE here on campus, they had lost my 2008 declaration resources, avis d'impots, and I still only had one daughter, Elise!!! Yeah, in the week since my first visit, Elise came home but Celia took off. It's like musical chairs of daughters. I don't know where they go but they have some tag team thing going on according to the CAF. They are morons (not E and C, the CAF!). However, like I said, I WON! I won't be defeated and I am armed and ready. I brought everything with on visit #2, hence the sacrificed tree, and I met their every demand. Bank account? Check! Visa renewal? Check! Bring it on! And although I did not leave the CAF with my Quotient Familial, (it will take another 10 days to process since they have to re-enter ALL our paperwork!), I did leave the CAF with a spring in my step and a lot lighter (of course, I just unloaded 10 kilos of papers!)

Oh, and to fill you in on the rest of the triangle of doom...

(1) The visa thing worked out beautifully! We picked up our recepisse (the receipt that says you successfully applied for your visa and the real thing is coming. Why they can't just give you the real visa I'll never understand but that's the way it goes! Welcome to France!) on Thursday and I could hear the triangle of doom crumple as I walked out of the prefecture.

(2) Even though CAF visit #2 didn't end with the QF, I went to the Mairie anyway to see if I could register Elise for the canteen. Maybe I'll get a nice guy for ONCE and be done with all this! Well, the stars were aligned. It was beautiful. He didn't even care about the QF because, dah, you can calculate the cost of lunch based on pay stubs. (So, why do they ask for the QF if they don't even need it? I'm not going to get into that. This guy is nice. He's completing l'inscription pour Elise. I'm going to run with it and bust out and not ask questions! Welcome to France!)

So BAAM! We're pretty much done. I need to follow up with the CAF on other issues however it is not a crisis and I'm not going to lose sleep or money over it. The most important thing here is that Elise can eat and we're not going to be penalized for not registering her by the end of September. Funny how such a little thing like paying for lunch consumed my life for the past 3 weeks. I can't decide if I feel bad for getting caught up in this silly game of bureaucracy with the French or if I feel proud for (a) figuring out the game, (b) winning the game, and (c) actually being able to communicate and understand about 43% of the game! I guess looking back on it all, I feel proud but a little silly for letting it stress me out. I should know better by now that even though they have their rules, rules are meant to be broken. I flash a little smile or show my Celia's red runny noise and I get a little sympathy and help. For as much grief as I give the French, I have yet to meet a person who has treated me poorly or made me feel terrible. I live in their world and I don't speak their language but 98.5% of the people I have had to interact with are patient and kind. I feel very lucky to be in such a welcoming place where even though I have to battle, it's always a friendly game!

Triangle of Doom

This week I embark on a journey from which I may not return. I am off to the CAF, La Caisse nationale des Allocations familiales, to obtain our Quotient Familial, QF. I am off to the place where souls are lost and people have gone missing in the vastness of paperwork. Lost, never to be seen again!

Why do it then? Well, Elise has to eat! At school that is. And the CAF is one of my stops on the triangle of doom that has consumed my world for the past 10 days and will continue to until I can successfully tear it down with a (1) avis d'impots, (2) quotient familial, and (3) l'inscription au restaurant scolaire. The trifecta of doom and my life this moment!

Thus, this week it's the CAF, followed by the Maire next week to figure out la tarification et la facturation au restuaurant scolaire. This after a fabulous trip to the centre d'impots last week for l'avis d'impots, Ad'I!

Oh, the avis d'impots? It's like your key to life here in France. From what I'm slowly, painfully, learning is that when a frenchman receives his/her avis d'impots in July, (basically it's your tax statement saying what you owe or are receiving from the French government for last year's taxes), you scan it into your computer, make 835 copies for all the government officials that will need to see it, laminate it in plastic, downsize a copy to fit in your wallet so you can show it off like a picture of a loved one, and then laminate it in gold and lock it in a safety deposit box where it will be stored for the rest of your life because you may need to show it at any moment. Key to life, no exaggeration. And until I started the registration process for Elise's canteen, in which I needed the QF but couldn't get that until I went to CAF with my Ad'I, I had never heard of the avis d'impots because we had not received ours yet! Thus, the first stop in my triangle of doom, the centre d'impots!

Here we go....Thursday I am armed with every document of my and my family's existence. Birth certificates (in English and French), salary stubs, marriage license, tax forms, passports, visas,...Everything! I'm ready for a battle with the tax man. Ninety minutes later I'm speaking with a tax woman about the missing foreign bank account information that has halted the delivery of our avis d'impots. They can't process our taxes until we give them our American bank information. Ah, but lady, flip over the last page of our paperwork. Yeah, that's right, it's all there. You received it in May. You just needed to flip over the page of our renseignements! Aaugh!!!!

Seriously? Yes, seriously! Here we are, the earthly conscience americans trying to save some paper by printing all our information double sided! I'm done trying to save mother earth while living in Paris!

Alright, so super frustrating but one point down, two to go of the trifecta of doom!

Which takes us to this week...

And although I used this weekend to relax and mentally prepare for the disappointment and dispair I will inevitably feel when dealing with the CAF people and they refuse my request for a QF because we have yet to receive our new visas, which expired in August and we started the paperwork for renewals in June but since no one works most of July and August we have yet to hear about new visas, (breathe), I am hoping for the best! :)

So, wish me luck! Let's hope for minimal paper-cuts and blood loss as I take on l'homme. I have taken down one angle of the triangle of doom and I am not scared. I will succeed! And being the math geek that I am, I wish I could come up with some clever way to defeat a triangle of doom. I can't just square it, hee hee, or cube root it, but I will destroy it! How to do that mathematically will be something I will ponder as I sit in the waiting room of the CAF. So stayed tuned because I am certain to come up with something mathematically witty as I wait!

A sight to be scene

The ladies and I stepped out this afternoon for a last minute shopping spree. We needed things for our spontaneous picnic and the ladies wanted to join me for the quick outing. So for some strange reason I grab the Cadillac of strollers, our BabyTrend Sit and Stand, load up the ladies, and we're off to the only market open on Sunday evenings. (Yes, the only market open. Thus, the busiest! And I for some reason decide to take my two young children???)

The funny thing is that while I'm walking down the boulevard I'm not so worried about the craziness of the shopping spree avec deux enfants. And it's not so much that we're walking in a pousette that is 8 times that of your average European pousette and will definitely not fit in the store. What is troubling me with our impromptu adventure is that we quickly left the house without considering our attire. And as I glance down at my two beautiful children, I can't do anything but laugh. Here is what I see: on this bright beautiful 75 degree day, my Celia is wearing her yellow rain boots, pink tights and poka dot dress that is FULL of stains from the days activities. But that my friend is nothing when you check out the Elise: princess ballerina tutu with fabulous stripped underwear that is totally sticking out and eye catching! Awesome! And to top it off, I am still dressed in my running shorts, gym shoes, and t-shirt from my recently completed run. A huge faux pas in the streets of Paris. Thus, the Fischer ladies are out on the prowl and ready for anything. Especially all those funny looks from everyone we pass!

Oh well. We're out and we're not going back. The ladies are content to be in their huge stroller and shopping. They are happily in each of their own seats (as opposed to Celia being on Elise's lab in the single, more appropriate pousette), there are no tears, no outrageous fits, we look quite silly but we're enjoying ourselves. Thus the adventure continues and on to the G20. And no worries. We completed the task with minor issues and were back at home, safe and sound in our private backyard picnic-ing within the hour.

Being out and creating quite the scene got me thinking about some of the incredible Paris sites and scenes we've had the pleasure of viewing since arriving here last year. We have gotten out to many of the top recommended places since arriving in Paris: The top floor of the Centre Pompidou and the top steps of the Sacre Coeur. We also got to the bottom of stuff: the base of the Arc de Triomphe which is always a thrill to stand under and gaze down the Champs-Elsees as well as the bottom of the famous Montmartre stairs (thanks Dad!).

Like I always say, it's a pretty great opportunity to be living here in Paris. This place is amazing, never a dull moment when you step out, and we've even had a chance to compile our own list of favorite views. Perhaps not found in your guide books or websites, these have become my favorite scenes in Paris, an insiders perspective!

• The pont neuf at night. Take a stroll across the bridge for an amazing view of the Eiffel Tower and the Seine. You can't beat it. Brian and I stopped there on our first visit to Paris and it's been one of the top place to go for me since. Now granted, I may be stealing this guy from the tour books, but it's pretty worth it.
• There is a fabulous intersection of three streets near the Port Royal RER stop near the Observatory. Stand on this intersection, Avenue de l'Observatoire, Avenue Denfert-Rochereau, & Rue Henri Barbusse, and face the Jardin du Luxembourg. As you glance up avenue de l'Observatoire, you have a fabulous view of the Sacre Coeur. (this one discovered by Brian)
• Another great night scene is to walk from the Ile Saint-Louis over the Seine on the pedestrian bridge connecting the Saint-Loius to the Ile de la Cite. This will take you towards the backside of the Notre Dame which will be beautifully lit up. I think the backside is even more amazing than the front, especially at night with all the lights. But be sure to stop off for a Berthillon ice cream before your stroll.
• A friend and I recently climbed to the top of the Parc de Belleville. This spot offers a beautiful view of the city that is similar to the Sacre Coeur just from a different angle. While there last month, the parc was in full bloom and so very colorful. It's a great spot to catch a nice glimps of the city minus the crowds of the Sacre Coeur.
• After catching the view from the base of the Arc de Triomphe, stroll to the bottom of the Champs-Elsees and pause at the entrance of the Jardin de Tuleries. Climb up the stairs and do a slow spin. There you will catch a fabulous view of the Arc, Louvre, and Tower! It's really quite neat!

Okay, so your next visit to Paris is planned. I'll write more about restaurant recommendations to accompany these fabulous views soon! :)

Other note worthy news:

1. Elise started school on Thursday and she LOVES it! She goes all day, eats lunch in the canteen, and thinks she is the biggest best girl in the world. (I think she's right!) We are so proud of her.

2. Celia's hair is crazier than ever:

We hope you all had a fabulous Labor Day! Happy 3 Day Weekend!

The Smell

So sometimes I feel bad when I am on my way to the Carefour market and I have to stop for a moment in front of the Subway and inhale a small taste of home. You all know that smell I'm talking about, right? It's the almighty Subway smell that was engineered to pull you away from whatever you thought you were going to eat or do at that moment and instead consume the Subway. You just can't escape it! How do they do it?

What I most enjoy about "the smell" is how it reminds me of one wonderful summer in which my good friend Maggie and I drove all over Wisconsin, Illinois, and Michigan working basketball camps. The lunch of choice? You guessed it: the Turkey sub, on wheat bread, extra pickles from Subway (followed up by an ice cream cone from the McDonald's). It was a fabulous lunch and easily found on the highways that took us from one Univeristy Girls' Basketball Camp to the next. Good times my friend, good times.

Thus, walking off the tram and heading to the market is sometimes briefly interupted by a quick sniff in front of the Subway. I'm back home again and Maggie and I are sucking down our extra large diet cokes and finishing off the last of our 6 inch. Not that I'm complaining or anything. I love where I'm living now and have never eaten so well in my life. The variety, the incredible tastes, the deliciousness! There are incredible sandwich shops that put The Subway to shame and I'm going to miss them terribly when this chapter of my life is over. But like any ex-pat living abroad will tell you, there's no place like home! The smells and all the other little things that remind you of that former life are small treats to savor once in a while. Even if it takes the form of Subway.

Now, granted, I have much fonder, better smelling memories of home than Subway but sometimes we have to take what we can get while living over here. For example, my good friend treats her and her family to a night out at The Hard Rock Cafe Paris once a month to get their greasy American fix. Another friend treats herself to breakfast once in a while at Breakfast in American here in Paris. And although I have yet to breakdown and visit either establishment, I was weakened today but a slice of carrot cake and rice crispy treat at the Sugarplum Cake Shop as my taste of home. How could you, you may ask, indulge in American style sweet treats when you have a delicious pan au chocolate at every corner? Well, we all have our weaknesses and mine is sugar in any form. (Did I mention that they also serve American coffee? Fresh roasted I might add.) We also shared a piece of chocolate cake that had this caramel frosting that floated off the cake and into my mouth. Plus, English was spoken and I didn't have to think and calculate my order in french before reaching the counter. I could mindlessly eat my delicious treats and even ask for more coffee! It was outstanding! Oh, and the little people weren't disappointed either! :)

Annecy

We just got back from one of the best holidays of the year. (Sorry, no offense to the family/friends companions of the summer, we loved being with you all! But if you had come with us to Annecy, you'd understand when I favor it to the rest! Can we still be friends?)

When I booked this apartment, little did I know that we'd be staying in Paradise, Gerard's perfect nickname for his villa in Menthon Saint Bernard. I thought I had simply booked a lovely little apartment not far from the lake and conveniently located near the shops of Menthon. What we discovered upon our arrival, thanks to Monique's generous offer to pick us up from the train station and avoid a 2.5 hour layover in Annecy after a 3.5 hour train ride, (HUGE!! Thanks Monique!), is that we truly landed in Paradise. The perfect little apartment opened onto a fabulous patio and garden, a garden that they openly shared with us and invited us to feast on all it's products. We started with one of the biggest zucchini's I'd ever seen in my life and continued munching on tomatoes all week. Add in fresh basil, parsley, purple spinach, beets, peppers, potatoes, and the most fabulous of all, zucchini flowers! A southern France delicacy, the male zucchini flowers is a very special treat. Gerard dipped them in crepe batter and fried them up for us on the second night as a delicious aperitif. A new, fantastic gastronomic adventure that we went back for the following night. Why not? There was left over batter and lots of flowers!

I could go on and write a novel about the week of a lifetime in Paradise, but in the interest of keeping my audience interested, the few and the loyal, and getting outside to blow some bubbles with the ladies, I'm going to throw down a list of the top adventures of the day and upload some pictures. Not the best blog entry of my life, but there are bubbles to be blown! Here's our week in Paradise in a nutshell:

• Amazing dinners from the garden. Sometimes close to 100% fresh! (too bad you can't "grow" cheese and baguettes)

Celia munches on spinach salad with tomato bread after picking our own carrots and spinach! Amazing!

• Sitting on a hammock
• Hiking and climbing...eating wild mushrooms and drinking water from a mountain stream
• Visiting "Cinderella's" Castle
• Seeing Mars as close to the moon as it's been in YEARS! Ahhh, to be out in the nature again! No trams, buses, trains, alarms! It was fabulous! (BTW, the picture below is our backyard! We shared the area with the horses...)
• Reading!!! (books without pictures!!!)
• Picking mushrooms and cooking them up for another fabulous treat! Oh yes, we ate wild mushrooms picked from the earth a few hours before. It was amazing!
• Ice Cream and floatees!
• Hiking in and out of rain although I would have to say I prefer the hikes sans la pluie!
• Being naked in your own backyard...(although you could probably pull that off in Paris too! :)

Alright, bubbles are waiting and I have to go! Looking forward to a quiet September...school starts on Thursday for Elise and I may have found a spot for Celia a few times a week. More on that later but keep your fingers crossed!

Happy Labor Day!

The Loire #2

Did I mention that my lady likes princesses and dresses? I'm not sure sometimes who this little one belongs to, but I guess she's mine! She's super sweet and I'm going to keep her, but where did she come from? :)We promised to return to this store in Chinon when Elise is six so that we can buy her a dress. She's 3 and a half right now and CAN'T WAIT!

So, we returned to the Loire but did I also mention that we caught the last stage of The Tour? It was awesome! Lance totally saw me and winked! I wish he would focus more on riding when I come watch him (he pulled the same thing back at in '08 at the Tour of California) but I guess he just can't get over me....

Anyways, the experience was awesome! From the crazy French lady trying to sneak up on us for a front row seat after we had been waiting for FOUR hours to the awesome 8 loop view of the riders, it was pretty fabulous to witness and see live! We loved it! It was a great final to our awesome Euro Sport Summer: Rugby in Paris, World Cup in Amsterdam, Tour de France! We're super cool!

But back to the Loire and Bretagne. The second trip to the Loire was great fun and we were able to explore more castles and gardens. The gardens of course were far more beautiful in the summer than winter. Flowers, roses, herbs, and vegetables everywhere and the ladies had a blast running through them, especially the Jardin de Villandry . We had great weather and the whole trip was just perfect.






This time around we were able to visit the Sleeping Beauty Chateau (Chateau d'Usse) and Breze Chateau. Elise was in heaven in Sleeping Bleauty's house and was able to explore the story of the beautiful princess. Breze was really cool because it has an incredible underground fortress to explore as well as a fabulous winery. It was fun for all ages!

After Loire #2 we were off to the west to Bretagne. We stayed on a beautiful little patch of land stretching out the southern coast of Bretagne in a city called Quiberon. Our fancy hostel accommodations were great and we had fun exploring the beach town and attempting to swim in the freezing Atlantic Ocean. The most awesome part of our stay was the restaurant that we ate ate for two of our three dinners. Now what amazing French Bretagne food brought us back for two out of our three meals you may be asking? Well, it wasn't the fabulous food, it was the fabulous playground on the terrace that kept bringing us back. The ladies played all night while we quietly ate our dinner. It was so amazing and free babysitting! Why haven't more people picked up on this besides McDonalds? :)

Our stay in Bretagne was totally mellow and great vacationing. We woke up late, hung out on the beach, and B and I took turns exploring the coast in the afternoons. We appreciated the down time, the great beaches, (even in the cold drizzles), and the ladies sleeping until 10:00 one morning. An awesome vacation!