Arles, Aixe, and St. Remy

Today we had a typical French breakfast. It was delicious. We headed on the road to go to Arles. Today was market day. Our group had a fun time shopping. Instead the three of us chose to photograph the market. We also tried some fresh raspberries. We wandered around some alley ways and got some great photos of typical buildings in southern France. We then went to the Museum Granet. It was the perfect size. We went in and viewed some famous French artists that were influenced by Cezanne or influenced Cezanne. We grabbed a quite bite to eat and had a picnic in the square. Then we went to the bus and headed to Aixe. After about an hour drive, we went off the bus and toured the historic Roman town of Aixe. We toured around the whole town and saw the city with its many windows and shutters including the place Van Gogh loved to paint, our final stop in this town was a wonderful ice cream place that served ice cream that had honey and olive oil in it. From there we went to St. Remy, the town that Van Gogh's work was in. Unfortunately, the museum was under repair, so we only got to see replicas and a video, but we did get 2 books out of the deal. And because we were in St. Remy in the afternoon we got to listen to "Honky Tonk Woman" in a french accent.;

Figueres, Nimes, and Avignon

Today we did a lot of traveling by bus. We first went to the Dali museum in Figueres. We enjoyed seeing the painting of Abraham Lincoln and paintings about Don Quixote. After spending time looking at his work, we found a little shop to buy waters for a great bargain and headed towards France. On the way across the border we saw some old forts from both Spain and France that were run down. We also saw some sunflowers and lots of olive trees. Three hours later, we arrived in Nimes. It was a beautiful little city very much like those we saw in Italy. The Roman Arena was the center of the old walled in city. We reviewed Roman history then rushed to the Maison Carree that we had studied in Art History last year. We took a few pictures then got back on the bus and headed on a 1 hour journey to Avignon. We barely made it to our entry time at the Palais des Papes and walked through the rooms that were the home of popes clement and Benedict. From here we went to the nicest hotel of the tour(so far) just outside the city. We will stay here for two nights before we explore more parts of France.

Barcelona

Today we slept in a little, but still managed to cram in a lot of stuff. After breakfast we hit the town and headed to Parc Guell. This park is one of Gaudi's famous sections of town. Originally it was going to house 60 homes, but today it houses mosaics, Gaudi's home, and a gift shop. We then headed down to the Mediterranean to take a short dip. It was still a little chilly! :) Wasting no time, we headed to another famous Gaudi called La Sangrada Familia. The church was beautiful. But, this Guadi is not even finished yet. Our tour guide was amazing and the history behind the church was also very entertaining. We learned that Gaudi's architecture in the church resembles trees, light, and flowers. He is even considered a genius in the world of architecture.
Tonight we are staying in Figures and tomorrow we start our trek into France.

Day One Barcelona

Ahora D,T, Y H estamos en Barcelona.
Yesterday, we enjoyed the sights of Barcelona. We visited the Casa Batllo after arriving at the hotel. We then walked around Las Ramblas, and the gothic quarter. It was beautiful. We then stopped for lunch in a traditional market. Ham and cheese sandwiches! We then visited the Barcelona Cathedral and witnessed the older generation dancing to traditional music.

About Kaui

Kauai is the oldest of the Hawaiian Islands. was first settled around 5 or 6AD. Several centuries later Captain Cook landed on Kauai near Waimea. Initially, islanders believed Cook was sent from the gods but eventually they changed their minds. Much of the island was covered by sugar plantations but they are no longer profitable and only one large plantation remains. There is one coffee plantation that is still in operation and some taro fields as well. The primary industry now though is tourism. There are lots of local food favorites including shave ice, papaya, macademia nut ice cream, apple bananas, and pineapple. We have tried them all.

Kaui

We're here (after 12 hours on two planes and 2 hours in airports). It's raining and raining and raining. We drove to the top of the canyon yesterday and saw ..... clouds. We also went shopping at Costco, Kmart, and Borders. We had dinner on the beach. We hope to snorkle today. The girls will also go to swim practice with a local team. The views look like they might be spectacular if we get a few minutes of sun. It is apparently the wettest since the hurricane hit Kaui in 1992. The girls have some factoids to post, so check out the random facts column at left. More later. C