Euro Park

Early Saturday morning found us boarding a train for Rust, Germany. The O'Connor family had long ago booked a trip to Euro Park, and when Ada and I set our dates to be in town, we were invited to join the expedition, but we would need to take two trains and a bus to meet them there,
As there would not be enough room in their car. Now Ada and Liz set off to a destination we know nothing about, needing to change trains in an unfamiliar station, with only minutes to find the right track and make the next train, and departing that train in the town of Rust, and find the bus to Euro Park - all in German, which neither of us speak! We got there without a hitch, and enjoyed two days in this most amazing park!

Together with the O'Connor family, we went on rides, saw shows, and enjoyed this German style theme park, all decorated up for Christmas. Most memorable for me was the circus - a full under-the-Big-Top extravaganza, complete with trapeze artists, magic shows, animal tricks with camels, zebras, ostriches, horses, and even a kangaroo. The Kangaroo was pretty much a one-trick-pony: he only jumped!

After a second full day in the park, Ada and I left to find the bus that would begin our return trip to Basel, while the O'Connor family left in the car for home. As we waited at the bus stop we arrived at, the appointed time for the departure of the bus came and went. We discovered too late that the bus departed at a different bus stop! Now we had not only missed the bus, but the two train connections! Again, lots of questions with answers only in German, but again, we found the right bus, and made other train connections, and made it home. Whew! Love Liz

Christmas in Basel

By now I should have sent four or five Blogs about this family trip to Switzerland, but there was no Internet accessibility during the long hours of travel, and ever since our arrival in Zurich, Ada and I have enjoyed active and long days, and endured even longer nights as jet lag kept us wide awake when we should have been sleeping!

Derek ordered a very expensive camera lens to give Angela for Christmas. All such items ordered in the USA have to be shipped to me, an in-Country address. Bringing it with me in my carry-on luggage was the safest, but it was a show stopper when it came to security inspection at Heathrow. We still could have made our connecting flight to Zurich, but Ada had inadvertently left a pair os scissors in her back pack, so the second complete search meant we missed the flight! Efforts to contact Hedy Fuglisher who was to meet us in Zurich failed, so we just had to reschedule our flight and wing it. Eventually we got to Hedy's flat, and spent two days with her, touring Zurich and visiting her brother Peter and his wife, where we had a cheese fondu that was delicious! We arrived Friday night at the O'Connors in Basel, ready for our next adventure staring early Sat. Morning. Stay tuned! Love, Liz

Liziz Log - La Cuisine

For most aspects of eating here in Switzerland and in France, the emphasis is on fresh - as in the beautiful variety of bread and croissants baked fresh daily, tender young lettuce and succulent tomatoes fresh to the table after being picked ripened on the vine. In the south of France they are as proud of their olive oil as they are their wine, and justifiably so. I will never find in Stater Brothers Supermarket anything close to the cheeses I have tasted here! Wines in France are dryer than California wines, as there is a legal limit to the amount of sugars that wine can contain. The French mostly drink a dry Rose with their meals, and it is very modestly priced. I prefer the sweeter whites of California, but I did my best to make a thorough comparison test! We have done a lot of walking on this vacation, but I am afraid I have not walked enough to offset the intake of the great cuisine - I'll be wearing some of it home around my waist! love, Liz

FW: Liziz Log - The Crew

Where in the world will I be on my birthday?  Having a birthday in August has meant that I am anywhere but Twentynine Palms for the celebration.  This year it will be Basel, Switzerland, as a "grand finale" to a wonderful vacation with the O'Connor family.  With Derek as driver, Angela as navigator, I joined David (6) and Hannah (4) in the backseat as we drove through Switzerland and France to Provence and the French Riviera, and back to Basel.  Tomorrow, (my 68th birthday) we will take a train to Gruyere, Switzerland for the day, and return to the O'connor  residence for "birthday surprises".  I leave early the next morning for the long journey home. Sharing in the lives of my family are the most meaningful experiences I have, and I count the blessings that give me these opportunities. Love, Liz

Subject: Liziz Log - The Crew
From: lizmeyer920@hotmail.com
Date: Sat, 4 Aug 2012 18:58:14 +0200
To: lizmeyer920@hotmail.com

Sent from my iPad

Liziz Log - Market Day

If its Friday, the market is in Lumarin, but every day of the week brings the market to another village, one just needs to know the schedule. This is not just a block of fruit booths and jewelry, these venders line the streets in every direction offering clothes, baskets, fresh fish, sausages and meat, of course cheeses of all kinds, fresh bread, pastries....the list goes on and on. You can tell the locals from the visitors.. They are all carrying their basket with wheels, stocking up for the week, they pause to greet each other and catch up on the local news. in Mexico, all prices are negotiable, but here I haven't seen any bartering here. Such a colorful way to go shopping! love Liz

lizizlog - joi d'vivre picture

Liziz log - Joi d'vivre

Happiness is being in this beautiful region of Provence, France.  We enjoy the life of warm weather, wine, olives, and antiquity.  Life here accepts history as its legacy, restores and retains these edifices with respect for their history, and leaves modern day visitors with the opportunity to live in the past, and enjoy life in the present.  Cool breezes are used as the air conditioning, using open doors and windows as the source for cooling.  Grapes and olives are not the only produce that thrives in this region, tomatoes and melons are supreme, add Basel and local cheese and french bread baked fresh daily, and one has the makings of nirvana.  Life is good! Love, Liz