Emily turned 15 today!!!
Thank you for the nice gifts you sent her :o)
Thank you for the nice gifts you sent her :o)
Wednesday, April 30, 2014
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Camping Aftermath
Today as I was walking around the house I realized it looked like a disaster zone. We just returned from camping a couple days ago. Normally Jay would set-up the tent outside to clean it and then leave it to dry in the sun but, he couldn't set anything outside because it was raining! I guess we brought the rain with us from Normandy.
Needless to say, we had to lay stuff out around the house. Have a look....
Needless to say, we had to lay stuff out around the house. Have a look....
Brussels, Belgium
This is a continuation of our great Spring Break adventure. We packed up our tent and belongings (yes it was raining) from the Boy Scout Jamboree then headed to Brussels for yet more fun and adventure. It took us about 3 hours to drive there from Normandy.
The hotel we stayed at was right behind the king's palace! (My apologies in advance for not taking pictures of the beautiful palace.)
We spent Sunday evening and Monday morning exploring what we could see and find in Brussels.
Here are some photos of what we saw in Brussels. (By the way, Jay's dad served a mission in Belgium so we spent some time pondering about whether we were seeing things he had seen when he was a missionary there :o)
This wraps up our 5 day spring break adventure. We arrived safe and sound back to our little apartment in Frankfurt at about 11:00 pm. So glad to be back home (I'm such a home body!).
The hotel we stayed at was right behind the king's palace! (My apologies in advance for not taking pictures of the beautiful palace.)
We spent Sunday evening and Monday morning exploring what we could see and find in Brussels.
Here are some photos of what we saw in Brussels. (By the way, Jay's dad served a mission in Belgium so we spent some time pondering about whether we were seeing things he had seen when he was a missionary there :o)
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| On our way to explore Brussels. |
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| Brussels has beautiful gardens in the city. They even have carpets of flowers....so beautiful! (Of course the carpets are outside ;o) |
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| Statue of Queen Elizabeth. |
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| Authentic Belgium waffels! |
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| Most authentic of all...strawberries and cream - yum! |
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| Waffels with cream and caramel...ooh, yum! |
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| Standing in the middle of the Grand Plaza. |
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| Happy to be in Brussels Grand Plaza. |
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| The Grand Plaza |
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| more Grand Plaza... |
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| Ivan touching the spire. |
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| planking in Brussels :o) |
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| Grand Plaza |
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| Exploring the streets in Brussels. |
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| Sherlock has a pub in Brussels...who knew? |
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| Neuhaus...the best chocolate around. The only thing missing from this picture is the lovely smell of the fresh chocolate. |
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| Look closely behind Jay and Ivan and you will see the famous Mannekin Pis fountain. This little statue is to Brussels what Michael Angelo's statue of David is to Italy. There is a standing tradition that all dignitaries do for this statue when they visit Brussels. If you'd like to know what that is, Google it :o) |
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| Ahh...we are eating Belguim fries! If it isn't a Belgium waffle, it has got to be a Belgium fry. This is good eating and they have about 20 dipping sauces to choose from. Wow! |
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| An amazing cathedral on the way back to our car. |
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| They have more cathedrals and churches in Brussels than you can shake a stick at! This is taken from the car on our way to the Atomium. What's that you say? You'll see it soon enough. |
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The amazing Atomium! Yes, it is a sculpture of a unit cell iron crystal. This very sculpture was created for the 1958 World Fair in Brussels.
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| I can't resist a beautiful garden. This is opposite the Atomium. |
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| Jay, Emily and Ivan went inside the Atomium. I waited and rested in the car - I know, I'm a party pooper. |
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| views looking out from inside the Atomium... |
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| traveling inside the Atomium... |
This wraps up our 5 day spring break adventure. We arrived safe and sound back to our little apartment in Frankfurt at about 11:00 pm. So glad to be back home (I'm such a home body!).
Boy Scout Jamboree and the 70th Anniversary of D-Day
We've just returned from the Boy Scout Jamboree in Normandy, France commemorating the 70th anniversary of June 6, 1944 - the invasion of the coast of Normandy in World War II.
We camped with 2,000 plus other boy scouts and their leaders at the coast where the invasions took place. Family was invited as well so Emily and I went along.
It was probably one of the hardest camping trips I've ever "survived." It only added to the experience considering the boy scouts were learning about a very somber and horrific time in history for thousands of young soldiers and their loved ones.
So what did I have to complain of? Well, first I need to tell you that it rains 328 days out of the year (according to a local we spoke with) and it usually stays around 50 F (according to the same local - who also said on rare occasion it sometimes gets in the 90's in the summer, and only a day or two).
When we arrived, it was overcast and there was no rain or wind so putting up our tents that first day wasn't so bad. However, that night, reality struck. There was no sleeping for light sleepers (namely me). Monsoon rain hit hard and the sides of our tent whipped back and forth nonstop while water began seeping into our tent.
Emily got very sick in the middle of the night, too. She remained sick the duration of our camp trip - 3 nights and 2 days. Every day she lay in her sleeping bag with a fever and upset stomach. She and I stayed in our tent warm in our sleeping bags while the boy scouts carried on with their program.
The scout leaders were amazing. They woke day by day in this unbelievable weather and forged forward with the scouts. I am amazed to say that they kept up with the rigor of their mission of making this once-in-a-lifetime experience for their scouts as memorable and special as they could.
The first day of the jamboree (Friday) the scouts went to the museum in Caen - a nearby city. This museum is excellent for the information it has on the invasion of Normandy (although it isn't solely a museum about this war). After their visit to the museum in Caen, they went on a historic hike to the Pont de hoc. From their trail above they could see a few remains of the war in cliffs below.
The second day (Saturday) all the scouts went to a cathedral in Caen. They attended a non-denominational worship service where a replica of the liberty bell in Philadelphia was unveiled for the boy scouts. They let one boy scout from each country pull a rope that rang the bell. The bell rang about 7 or 8 times Jay said.
This cathedral is planning to hang this bell among the other bells they have there. The official time of unveiling the bell (and baptizing it - which is what catholics do to their bells - which, of course, I didn't know) will be on the official 70th anniversary of the invasion - June 6. However, it was allowed to be unveiled for the boy scouts at the time of the jamboree - very cool :o)
After the worship service and lunch the boy scouts returned to camp and rested before the last big event. This event was a huge campfire on Omaha beach. Merit badges and various scouting awards were given. Finally, a large stage with huge screens and chairs were set up for speeches and performances. There was a band and choir that performed for everyone. The speeches were given by local government as well as Boy Scouts of America representatives.
Emily and I went to this event. It was the only event she felt well enough to attend. Unfortunately, however, it proved to be too much for her and she was sick all over again that evening.
At the end of this eventful day, a meal was catered for all involved. Wow, that was an amazing feat and they did it very well. After the sun had set and we had all eaten and did our best to stay warm, fireworks went off over the water at the beach side at Omaha beach. The fireworks were fantastic.
The following pictures were what I was able to take during the times of non-rain (which, during the day, there were times of no rain) and when I was actually outside of the tent.
We camped with 2,000 plus other boy scouts and their leaders at the coast where the invasions took place. Family was invited as well so Emily and I went along.
It was probably one of the hardest camping trips I've ever "survived." It only added to the experience considering the boy scouts were learning about a very somber and horrific time in history for thousands of young soldiers and their loved ones.
So what did I have to complain of? Well, first I need to tell you that it rains 328 days out of the year (according to a local we spoke with) and it usually stays around 50 F (according to the same local - who also said on rare occasion it sometimes gets in the 90's in the summer, and only a day or two).
When we arrived, it was overcast and there was no rain or wind so putting up our tents that first day wasn't so bad. However, that night, reality struck. There was no sleeping for light sleepers (namely me). Monsoon rain hit hard and the sides of our tent whipped back and forth nonstop while water began seeping into our tent.
Emily got very sick in the middle of the night, too. She remained sick the duration of our camp trip - 3 nights and 2 days. Every day she lay in her sleeping bag with a fever and upset stomach. She and I stayed in our tent warm in our sleeping bags while the boy scouts carried on with their program.
The scout leaders were amazing. They woke day by day in this unbelievable weather and forged forward with the scouts. I am amazed to say that they kept up with the rigor of their mission of making this once-in-a-lifetime experience for their scouts as memorable and special as they could.
The first day of the jamboree (Friday) the scouts went to the museum in Caen - a nearby city. This museum is excellent for the information it has on the invasion of Normandy (although it isn't solely a museum about this war). After their visit to the museum in Caen, they went on a historic hike to the Pont de hoc. From their trail above they could see a few remains of the war in cliffs below.
The second day (Saturday) all the scouts went to a cathedral in Caen. They attended a non-denominational worship service where a replica of the liberty bell in Philadelphia was unveiled for the boy scouts. They let one boy scout from each country pull a rope that rang the bell. The bell rang about 7 or 8 times Jay said.
This cathedral is planning to hang this bell among the other bells they have there. The official time of unveiling the bell (and baptizing it - which is what catholics do to their bells - which, of course, I didn't know) will be on the official 70th anniversary of the invasion - June 6. However, it was allowed to be unveiled for the boy scouts at the time of the jamboree - very cool :o)
After the worship service and lunch the boy scouts returned to camp and rested before the last big event. This event was a huge campfire on Omaha beach. Merit badges and various scouting awards were given. Finally, a large stage with huge screens and chairs were set up for speeches and performances. There was a band and choir that performed for everyone. The speeches were given by local government as well as Boy Scouts of America representatives.
Emily and I went to this event. It was the only event she felt well enough to attend. Unfortunately, however, it proved to be too much for her and she was sick all over again that evening.
At the end of this eventful day, a meal was catered for all involved. Wow, that was an amazing feat and they did it very well. After the sun had set and we had all eaten and did our best to stay warm, fireworks went off over the water at the beach side at Omaha beach. The fireworks were fantastic.
The following pictures were what I was able to take during the times of non-rain (which, during the day, there were times of no rain) and when I was actually outside of the tent.
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| Viva France! |
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| Hedges delineated each camp spot. |
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| The hedges are reminiscent of what the soldiers had to face when the tanks finally made it ashore....it was hell for them. |
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| Our scout troops own little camp spot - our tent is the red and gray one. |
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| Ivan in full scout uniform :o) |
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| A peek inside our little tent home. |
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| Walking down to Omaha beach from our camp site. |
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| remains of the war |
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| Monument built on Omaha beach. |
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| Screen, stage and chairs for the final presentation |
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| The master of ceremonies during the dress rehearsal. |
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| The choir during dress rehearsal...they did not wear coats during the actual performance...brrrrrrr!!!!! |
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| Band performing for "the real thing" (not a dress rehearsal) |
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| Bombers flew overhead as part of the presentation |
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| One speaker - A French government representative - announcing that people were working on making this site an UNESCO world heritage site. |
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| Looking over some of the crowd... |
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