So West & Stella, Nathan, Keira & Shane, (and Jay, Lucy & Finn, and BUG too — in absentia for now), thanks for letting us hang out with you and your parents. We totally dug it.

Here in the northeast we have developed a somewhat distrustful relationship with the weather, this winter. So we are reluctant to acknowledge the current state — budding trees, chirping birds, shining sun — as actually being “springtime.” We have been punished before for our overconfidence: the snowstorms of Groundhog Day and oh, what’s that other important day, right, THE FIRST DAY OF SPRING have made us gunshy. Our clan spent Spring Break a few hundred miles south, in Charleston and Savannah — where it was warm and persuasively buggy. There, spring had come. We returned to snow and freezing rain. But now the evidentiary coup de grace has been delivered: Cleo Carver turned FOUR this week. As Cleo reminds me, her birthday is in spring; ergo, it is now spring.

…to be more precise, we jumped into several lakes during our recent wonderful trip to Italy and Switzerland. In Italy we stayed with Grandma Lynn and Papa at a lovely, large house in Lesa on Lake Maggiore. We explored the Lake’s islands and sites — including some fantastic gardens that clearly thrive in the hot weather — and cooled off in the Lake and the pool. Lake Maggiore is the larger, but less busy, neighbor of Lake Como, home to the famous Bellagio, where we disappointingly found neither choreographed fountains nor craps tables. As Papa George reminded me, Lake Maggiore is also home to Stresa, just north of Lesa, where the hero of Hemingway’s Farewell to Arms recuperates, and we found its lakeside cafes quite well-suited to rest, relaxation, and rehabilitation.

Hikers at Oeschinensee

After a terrific week in Lesa, we drove north to Switzerland through a gorgeous alpine pass. For the last leg of the drive we were actually on a “car train” which carries a single line of cars, with passengers sitting inside, through a tunnel to our next home in Kandersteg. From this home base we took day hikes that began with an assist from a gondola or funicular to get us several hundred meters UP so that we could enjoy a more leisurely stroll through cow pastures and around pristine (if chilly) lakes. The landscapes were unbelievably dramatic, the architecture quintessentially “Swiss,” the wildflowers colorful.

After a day in Bern to see the fine collection at the Kunstmuseum (note to Lance: Kunst is German for art) and explore the city, we saw one last picturesque lakeside town: Luzern. Here, our engineering hearts warmed to the sight of the compound steam engine on our ferryboat and to the many wonders of the Verkershaus (Transport Museum). Through it all, we enjoyed great company, good meals, always preceded by a glass or two of Prosecco. Lots of photos are in the Italy-Swiss Album.  Thanks to Grandma Lynn and Papa for sharing a great trip with us!

(With apologies to Matthew Arnold)…with just 26 hours in San Clemente we visited three beaches.  Full documentation in the album at right.  Thanks to the Hoida-Mulholland crew for a beach-tastic time.  Next time on the Atlantic coast!

]]> http://www.gliderboy.com/archives/532/feed 0 http://www.gliderboy.com/archives/468 http://www.gliderboy.com/archives/468#comments Sat, 11 Jul 2009 18:46:55 +0000 Jenn http://www.gliderboy.com/?p=468

We recently returned from a week in Colorado.  Aunt Maya and Uncle Tommy were excellent hosts, and the five cousins played together non-stop.  When we took pictures, we didn’t even have to tell them to smile.  We had lots of fun at home and out at the pool, the zoo, the science museum, various parks, and at the theater.  We even managed to see the Butterfly Pavilion with the GREAT Grandparents Stroud!  Copious documentation is provided in the Colorado 2009 album.  Thanks Crawfords for a wonderful week.  While Maya claims that we are missed, something tells me she isn’t referring to Leda and Cleo’s pre-6-am wake-up each morning

As best said in the proverbial Jewish grandmother accent, the title states that we’ve been remiss in updating our familial Web 2.0 “status”.  No more! Clear out the backblog™ and move forward. Christmas/Hanukkah were spent bathed in warmth and sunshine on the western coast of Mexico. Zihuatanejo to be specific. Other than being the terminus of Andy and Red’s exodus from Shawshank, we knew precious little about the town and its possibilities. It’s most redeeming quality at the outset was that is had a direct flight from Denver (for my sister) and that it wasn’t the most popular destination in Mexico. 

Turns out Zihuatanejo is not too bad at all. 80+ degree weather in December and lots of sunshine did wonders for our tans. Hanging out with the grandparents and cousins during our stay made it all the more enjoyable. Typical day had us at the beach in the morning and swimming in the pool in the afternoon. Cocktails promptly at 5pm were followed by excellent Mexican cuisine prepared in a sweatbox kitchen by Papa. We visited a ton of local beaches and found that they all had warm sand, small waves, and an army of small restaurants that all shared the same menu (quesadillas and pescadillas abound, oh and guacamole by the gallon). Special trips to the locals’ beaches and the central mercado gave us an idea of how life works in town. 

What isn’t included in the above encapsulation is the time spent enjoying a family reunion and seeing the cousins get to color, romp, swim, pal around, and laugh with each other. No matter what the locale, that’s always the best part of the trip. We eagerly look forward to our next intersection with Grandma and Papa (March) and the Crawfords (June). 

Way too many pictures from this vacation can be found in the two Zihua albums [#1 and #2].

Today Big Brown is racing in the Haskell at Monmouth Park, so there’s a big crowd to see the Derby/Preakness winner and his peers competing.  But the REAL race fans were there Thursday to see lesser-known ponies take a spin ’round the track.  Leda shared Uncle Gary’s affection for the grays, but her most powerful preference was for the horse/jockey combination wearing the most pink and/or purple.  Nevertheless she was the day’s big winner, picking two winners in six races.  Her selection methods at the paddock were even displayed on the track Jumbotron, as you can see in the Monmouth Park photo album.

Sicily, it turns out, has seen everything. Everything and everyone, from the ancient Greeks and Romans to the Islamic so-called “Moors” to the Normans. Everybody left their mark, architecturally at least, so in two weeks we saw a bit of everything. There’s a cathedral in Palermo that has literally seen it all — it was built as a mosque and has been added onto, remodeled, and “improved” by everybody since. The ancient sites at Segesta, Selinunte, Agrigento, and Villa Casales pretty much knocked our socks off.

Yep, we did the traveling with kids thing again, once again aided tremendously by our partners in crime, Lynn and George. They were more than willing to take a gelato break whenever we needed to recharge the girls between temples. Leda picked up enough conversational Italian to order her own snacks, and corrected Papa’s pronunciation. Cleo became even steadier on her feet, perfecting the gait necessary to cruise down the beach to leap into the onrushing surf Our homes were both well-appointed and well-situated for our explorations of the island, and we even managed to see Mount Etna!

Photos are in the two Sicily albums — start with Part I to see it all in chronological order.

At the end of a day at the Shore, there are rituals. If you’re Erica, you head to the end of the dock and throw bread to a lucky duck or two, and hope the swans don’t swoop in. If you’re Rocky, you follow Erica because she has food. If you’re Leda and Cleo, you’re still savoring the taste of the crumb buns you had for dessert after dinner, tired from the sun on the beach and the wind in your face on the boat ride, and you follow Erica because she’s Erica. If you’re Toby, you’re cleaning the grill and kibitzing with Ray and Pat. If you’re the Raybird, you’re gazing out at the island looking for osprey. If you’re Jenn, you have internalized your mother-in-law’s guidance about the light at this time of day, so you rush to the end of the neighbors’ dock with your camera.

And the light wasn’t bad before dinner, either.

Time once again for the annual pilgrimage(s) to Newark’s Branch Brook Park.  For the few weeks each April when the cherry blossoms are in bloom, this park is fantastically photogenic.  A great spot to picnic, stroll, or just sit and marvel.  This year we were delighted to have Grandma and Papa with us for the fun.  Many more shots in the April 2008 album.