Day 17 - PARIS in the Sun After a bit of a sleep in, we headed to Paris. The trip to the Eiffel Tower took a bit longer due to some temporary closures of the underground lines servicing the Eiffel Tower area (Summer seems a terrible time to close some of the busiest tourist stations, but C'est la vie). We were able to score tickets to the top of the tower only a few days in advance, which was very lucky. You really should buy them as soon as you can. All of us were very excited about the structure and mechanics of the various parts of the tower, especially the lifts. In case you didn't know... the Eiffel Tower is very tall. With nothing else around it nearly as tall, the impact of the ascent ... read more

Day 15 - Art Appreciation We planned a less ambitious day today. Northern France was the home of Claude Monet, the leader of the Impressionist Art Movement. His home and gardens in Giverny were turned into a museum open for public tours in the 1970s. Monet painted some of his most recognizable works while living there, including Waterlilies. We were able to walk through his home and see reproductions of the many works he painted while living there. We were also able to see the lily pond where he painted many famous works. Anne really enjoyed the visit. She took many pictures of the flowers, landscapes, and Tony and Michelle. Tony took many pictures of Anne taking pictures. We had lunch at the restaurant across from the museum with some French dishes. Afterwards we headed back ... read more

Day 13 - Nothing is open on Sunday In France, Sunday is a day to spend with your family. This is not compatible with our tourist schedules. Time to kick back, eat some freshly delivered croissants, watch the rain, take a walk by the river, go to the pool, and attempt to find an open restaurant or grocery store. That's pretty much what we did today. The resort has bread delivered each morning at 8AM. Orders have to be in by 7:30 the night before. We ordered 6 croissants (hey, they could have been small) and a baguette, all quite tasty. Michelle and Tony gobbled theirs up but Anne saved her second croissant for an afternoon snack. After breakfast we all went for a walk around the grounds. There is a small island across the bridge ... read more

Day 11 - And You Thought the Alamo Was Old After a fine breakfast provided by our B&B hosts we scuttled off to Stonehenge just up the road from Salisbury. The rain that had been hovering about 3 days off the whole time we have been here finally caught up with us and we hoped to see Stonehenge before the real rain started. The site was closed off several years ago to prevent damage that was being done by the hordes of visitors every year. The last time Tony was there you were not able to get very close and had to look at the site through a wooden fence. The new arrangements are much better. While you can not walk among the stones unless you have a special tour time, you can get very close ... read more

Day 9 - Golf? Aye, Golf! After yesterday's road trip we all needed some time out of the car. Michelle and Anne spent the morning playing Crazy Golf (Minigolf). Michelle tried to get the ball to go the wrong way through the dinosaur. After crazy golf we all ate lunch and then Michelle and Tony played 9 holes of REAL golf. The resort had clubs for Michelle, but they had to go down into the "haunted cellar" to grab them. Michelle got the hang of it rather quickly (except for the sand traps) but they both spent quality time looking for lost balls. After golf it was time for a dip in the pool. We rounded out the day with a driving tour of Barton-under-Needwood and dinner at a local tavern. Tomorrow we checkout and head ... read more