{Slightly [home]sick}

{The romance of France}

While I wait for my redcurrant muffins to finish baking, I will share some photos I took when I accompanied my father on a business trip to Germany and France in November 2006.
Only a little at a time though.. there are simply too many wonderful photographs to share at once!
I am 90% Norwegian..
However in my family tree studies I discovered that
I have one French ancestor
from the 1100's
named Gerard LeBlanche.

We went to Strasbourg, France.
It was rainy and gray.
Stopped at a cafe for a hot coffee and a peach tart

Some water got in my 35mm camera while I was changing film, but miraculously it was undamaged.
We visited a cathedral that was undergoing renovations.
I learned that an art museum nearby housed a painting by Sandro Botticelli (my all-time favorite renaissance artist)
and I insisted that we just had to go!
Father, being completely uninterested in art, breezed through the many rooms filled with priceless paintings, while I lingered.
I spent quite a few minutes looking at his painting.
In each of the rooms there stood a guard (understandable, since there are priceless works of art out in public).
In one of the rooms the guard was young-ish, about my age.
He said something to me in French, to which I replied:
"Je compe apul l'Francaise".
"I only speak a little French".
So he said to me in english "You are very beautiful. I could just kiss you."
Well, I was very flattered!
So I talked with him for a few minutes and he asked me to dinner..
but of course I couldn't go because I was leaving in a couple of hours with father to return to Germany.
So we parted with an "Au revoir!"
On the way back to Germany father and I stopped for a baguette sandwich.
By that time the schools were let out and the streets were filled with children all in uniform.
It reminded me of when I attended catholic school (despite neither my family nor I being catholic).

renovated cathedral
renovated cathedral
renovated cathedral


palais de rohan
palais de rohan
palais de rohan

{Last night's wine party}

finally, rain, thunder and lightning

{In dreams we come}

{High school days}

{Schlechten Traümen}

more bad dreams last night

tomorrow and friday we are supposed to get thunderstormsa real treat!
living in the mountains of california, we only got a thunderstorm about once a year

when i opened the windows this morning to air out the apartment
i was greeted by the voices of hundreds of frogs
birds too
there was a cardinal in a tree
i'm glad that spring is coming

{Ringfinger}