Chris is going to Paris!

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Hello Friends and Family!

Christopher is leaving for Paris today! He was originally scheduled to chaperone on a trip to Rome later in the summer, but due to some scheduling conflicts (I think) he was moved to this trip to Paris! He doesn't get back until Monday morning, so perhaps I will have more blogging time.

The wine here is SO disappointing. If anyone feels likes spending $30 to ship me a bottle of Washington wine, I'll pay you back! Not really, but the wine is bad. However, I feel like I have traveled from the coffee capitol of the world just to find what truly great coffee tastes like. The coffee at our bathroom stops along the highway is some of the best I've ever had, let alone the adorable streetside cafes! I don't know if I will ever be able to drink Starbucks again!

The toilets here have two buttons. Which button you use is dependent on what you are flushing. I get a kick out of going to the bathroom just because I think it's so funny.

I think I'm starting to have some insight into teaching and parenting, and some insight into myself as an obnoxious teenager. We went into Italy yesterday, to a beautiful city called Bergamo, and I hardly remember any of it. I was too busy counting heads, pulling kids apart that were hitting each other, urging kids to walk faster, pulling them out of shops while en route to a destination, and making sure they didn't walk in front of cars. And of course the whole time all I'm hearing is "I'm tired!", It's hot!", "Why can't I sit down?", "When are we going to eat?". These comments are funny to me because as a kid, when I asked these questions, it never occurred to me that the people in charge were just as hot, they had been awake just as long, their feet were just as tired, and they were just as hungry. Now, on the other side of the fence, it's almost comical how egocentric they are to think that we aren't on exactly the same page, and that we would love to get away from them and go to bed too! Also, I find that even though I know I'm tired and hungry and hot and sleepy....I can't show any of that because you just can't show weakness when you are leading 30 kids around Italy. You HAVE to be the one with the answers, the one pushing them from behind to keep up, the one constantly vigilant for traffic or lost kids. There IS no tired, hungry, sleepy, and sore when you have to be on the ball. It's been an interesting change of perspective.

Some of the counselors next week are chaperoning on a trip to Venice and they get to see Verdi's La Traviatta at an outdoor opera house. I'm so jealous!

That is all I have for now, hope the holiday was fun and that everyone stayed dry and warm!

Andrea

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