Whew...I don't even know where to start. Where did I leave off? After Bruges we went to Amsterdam. Greg, unfortunately, had to go back to Luxembourg for work.
As soon as we arrived in Amsterdam, we dropped our bags off in our super cool house boat and headed off to Anne Frank's house. As we stood in line for the Frank house, we tried our very best to explain what we were about to see to Sam and Ben. They didn't get it at all. Sam couldn't get beyond her name..."Why does she have two first names?...Is that why she is famous?" Mackenzie has read the book several times and absorbed every minute of the experience. She left there and said, "My body isn't tired, but I feel tired." The whole experience was very emotional for her and I think she really did get it.
Our second day in Amsterdam was spent walking around the city. We visited the floating flower market and made it just in time to watch the closing of a flea market. The afternoon was spent in the main city park playing frisbee and people watching. I think the highlight of the kids' experience was our dinner at the famous Amsterdam Pancake House. The wait was well worth it. The kids had huge crepes topped with powdered sugar and syrup. Yes, this was their dinner. Nana and I split a Caprese pancake, which was arguably, the best thing I've eaten in Europe.
The next morning we headed back to Luxembourg to celebrate Mackenzie's 11th birthday and Greg's 40th. I have to admit, both days were pretty uneventful and I'm certain, quite disappointing for both them. We planned to go water skiing on Greg's birthday, but it was raining, so we spent the day wandering around Luxembourg.
Which brings us to Thursday of last week...Thursday, the kids, Nana and I drove to Langres, France where we met up with the Lewis family. The initial plan was to meet at a campground, set up camp and then find a hotel for Nana. However, Nana, didn't want to miss out on the fun and decided to brave three nights of sleeping in a tent with the Chapman family. I'm not sure who suffered more, Nana, sleeping on the ground or the rest of us, dealing with Nana's snoring! Regardless, I have to say, we were all pretty impressed with Nana's fortitude.
I've asked the kids what has been the highlight of their trip so far and they have all said, Langres, France. I'm not surprised. First of all, the campsite is no ordinary campsite. With the exception of having to sleep in a tent, it would rival most 4 star hotels. There was a pool, restaurant, store, ping pong tables, kids' club, etc. We could even get fresh bread every morning. The kids were in heaven!
Our first day was spent exploring the town of Langres, walking around a market and trying to use our limited French. We enjoyed a perfect French lunch of baguettes, cheese and fruit under a tree next to a beautiful wheat field. I couldn't believe I was sitting there with the kids in the perfectly French moment.
That evening we picked up Greg from the train station and enjoyed a BBQ and lots of great French wine.
Saturday was a day for the kids...it was spent playing at the lake. We had planned to try and go water skiing, but for 25 Euro/person for 15 minutes, we decided to rent a paddle boat instead. A much cheaper option.
Greg and Nigel were in charge of the paddle boat and picked up all five kids at the beach. The kids were having a blast jumping of the back and having diving contests until an upset Frenchman approached them in a small motor boat to tell them they were exceeding the two person limit on the boat. They were also not allowed to beach the boat. Greg and Nigel had managed to break 2 of the rules within about 5 minutes of renting the boat. Of course, the dads both decided the best way to handle the situation was to pretend they couldn't understand what the man was saying and went on with business as usual. After two hours of boating, they dropped the kids off on the beach and Karen helped Nigel paddle the boat back to the dock. As soon as they approached the dock an angry Frenchman pointed to them and said, "You two, come with me." He gave Karen and Nigel the business. Karen and Nigel handled the situation perfectly and pretended they didn't understand a thing.
Sunday afternoon we headed back to Luxembourg, but stopped by a couple French towns on the way.
Which brings me to Monday...today. Today we have done laundry and started packing for a trip to Dublin. We are leaving at 3:30 am to drive to Brussels to catch a flight to Dublin. I'm so not looking forward to the journey. I can't wait to get to Dublin, but the morning could be long. We'll be in Dublin Tuesday through Saturday. I hope to bring my computer, so I can blog from there.
Ugghh...I feel like I've left so much out. I just wanted to get the main info down, so I don't forget what we did and where we went. I can't believe how much we've seen in such a short time.
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