Thank you all for sharing this part of the adventure with us, and I hope you stick around to hear about all of the adventures to come. I can't promise they will be as exciting, humorous, and photogenic, but hopefully they will continue to give everyone out there a glimpse of how you too can live the life of A Well Kept Man (or Woman if that's your style)....
A place where I basically do what my wife tells me to do...or at least that's what she thinks.
20 May 2009
Au Revoir Suisse - La Fin
The Swiss experiment is now over, after 10 months of getting the opportunity to live in an absolutely gorgeous place we are headed back to America (by the time you read this, we will already be back). We both decided that we will miss our evening walks down to the lake the most, followed closely by skiing in the Alps and the chocolate. The high cost of living conversely will not be missed, nor will the inability to communicate with the locals...

Thank you all for sharing this part of the adventure with us, and I hope you stick around to hear about all of the adventures to come. I can't promise they will be as exciting, humorous, and photogenic, but hopefully they will continue to give everyone out there a glimpse of how you too can live the life of A Well Kept Man (or Woman if that's your style)....
Thank you all for sharing this part of the adventure with us, and I hope you stick around to hear about all of the adventures to come. I can't promise they will be as exciting, humorous, and photogenic, but hopefully they will continue to give everyone out there a glimpse of how you too can live the life of A Well Kept Man (or Woman if that's your style)....
19 May 2009
Last Few Days in Switzerland
Lausanne was host for the time trials of the Tour de Romandie (basically our geographic area's version of the Tour de France) so we checked that out one afternoon/evening. But our favorite way to remember our time here was to take our nightly walks down along the lake...très romantique!
Our goal was to go leave Switzerland with no regrets, and I can honestly say we achieved our goal. We didn't necessarily get to every nook and cranny of Europe, but we did see quite a lot of it (her?). Here are some stats and figures to help put into perspective what we were able to do over the last ten months...
1. Number of European countries visited between the two of us: 11 (that's a different country every month since I included Switzerland, which we visited every month)
3. Days of skiing: 15 (prior to Switzerland we skied a total of 10 days in the previous 9 years we've been together)
4. Number of free refills: 1 each (at a Subway sandwich shop in Germany)
5. Number of ice cubes consumed: 18 (at the same Subway)
6. Distance driven in ten months: 20,000+ km/12,400+ miles (this is a conservative estimate)
8. Department store item returns conducted in French: 2
9. Swiss customs violations: 1
10. Number of times the check was voluntarily brought to my table at the end of a meal: 0
18 May 2009
Helpful Hint for My Readers
15 May 2009
Causing Trouble with My Cousin
14 May 2009
Visitor Overlap
13 May 2009
Traveling Companion on Provence Trip
Interesting fact: My dad is the record holder for most pictures (1,366 photos), as well as the per day record holder (171 photos per day) by a visitor of ours to Switzerland.
12 May 2009
Roman France - Avignon
11 May 2009
Roman France - Les Baux-de-Provence
The fortress had a display of medieval siege machines (catapults and trebuchets), and we were able to watch them fire water balloons across using some of them 
(it would have been more fun if they used pumpkins, but since a major road runs below the hill, they were probably worried about hitting a passing car). At its peak, the village housed over 4,000 people but apparently that population is now below 30. Its jagged rocks below the plateau are said to have inspired Dante's description of Purgatory in the Inferno. The stop was completed with some fresh baguette sandwiches from the city, which we ate a turnout alongside the cliffs which provided a dramatic view of Les Baux from below.
08 May 2009
Roman France - Nîmes
There are also canals running through the city which begin near the Roman Temple of Diane as a result of a naturally occurring spring. The exact purpose of this temple is unknown, but the ruins are part of what was most likely a much larger area of buildings, gardens, and monuments. Seeing such ancient buildings truly makes you stop and ponder just how long people have been running around on Earth.