France & London break

Harriet's classes concluded near the end of March and after a blitz of work including writing papers and interviews our family took a planned vacation during the last week of Harrison's Easter school break. We flew on March 28th from Edinburgh to Limoges (via Stansted ... not Heathrow thank goodness with it's recent Terminal 5 problems) and visited our cousins Colette/Patrick and their children. Many of you know that they were the subject of a BBC multi-part documentary on the show 'No Going Back' which coincidentally is being aired on Canadian television at the moment ... about four years ago they quit their jobs as lawyers in London and bought a huge piece of property and a castle-like chateau that was in desperate need of repair. They have been renovating it in stages and for the past three or four years lived there and made it their business since they run it as an upscale accommodation with meals available. They have children including two close in age to Parker and Harrison and it was particularly nice for our children to play together since they don't often get a chance to see family. Colette is a fantastic cook and we ate some outstanding meals (many hours in length!).

When we weren't at their home we explored a bit of the countryside and attractions including a wolf sanctuary, a village destroyed in World War II and left in ruins as a testament to the horrors of war (Oradour-sur-Glane), and a very cool zoo that is designed more like an outdoor farm with huge enclosures (Parc du Reynou). Having rented a car, this was the first time that either Harriet or I had driven since July last year ... while a bit rusty at first it didn't take long to get accustomed to it again.

On the way back, we stopped overnight at Stansted airport just outside of London. The next day we took the train into town and went to the O2 stadium to see the exhibit of "Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs". We all loved it, particularly Harrison who now wants to become an archeologist / Egyptologist. I was really glad to take him there because in 1979 my folks took me to Toronto to see the 1st Tutankhamun exhibit that toured the world and it made quite an impression on me ... it felt rather "coming full circle" to take Harrison there now. Later that day we flew back to Edinburgh and returned home.