to pick up where i left off...

lyon was wonderful. i had a few relaxing days staying with my wonderful friends sabrina and antonin. we hung out at the apartment, went shopping, saw more of the city, and then i took off for paris.

i spent one last day in paris with sheena. we bought picnic food and wine and headed for the river. unfortunately, we headed to a place where locals sunbathe -- the tannest man i have ever seen with BRIGHT white hair, a nerdy-looking guy with a thong swimsuit, a man with THE LARGEST nipples i have ever seen, a transexual, a woman with fake boobies and several young men with a six-pack each.

after lunch we spent some time in the luxembourg gardens - my favorite spot in paris. then sheena had to head home and i went and sat in front of the notre dame to say goodbye to my favorite city in the world. sitting on the base of the horse statue, i met a young man extremely high on weed, an older couple from minnesota and their tour guide who asked me to stay in france to be with him. the fun never ends in paris!

the next morning i took a train to the airport to meet my parents. we rented a car and thus started our family adventure! we spent an afternoon in tours, exploring the old town, walking along the loire river and drinking beer. monday morning we started our tour of the chateaux! we visited clos luce and the amboise chateau, chenonceau and azay le rideau. tuesday we drove to nogent le rotrou. we relaxed at the gite, took a tour of the town and went to patricia and dan's house for dinner. they were much too good to us, serving an eight-course meal complimented with several different wines. wednesday we took a tour of the region and that night a group of 14 of us ate at the creperie and then went out for drinks at la casa. thursday we visited the chateau in nogent and then we went to rosslyns house for lunch. in the afternoon we shopped around in nogent and then headed back to the gite to relax, pack our things and relax. friday we drove to rouen to visit the city where joan of arc was burned at the stake. a very cool city. then we drove to our hotel in paris and tucked in for the night. i took a train into paris for one last whiff of the city i love so much. saturday morning we drove to the airport, returned our car, and got on our plane home.

i enjoyed the time i had to travel to dublin, aix, lyon, and around northern france. it was nice to see places i have already been - i was able to relax and enjoy the people i was with.