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Newsletter
Fall 2008
Dear fellow travelers:
Another year of travels has come and gone.
It started in early March with a mixed group from St-Cloud, the Twin Cities
and beyond…Not a minute was wasted by this eager crew, every one
kept on walking and learning as Paris tried to shake off Old Man Winter,
and put on its Spring apparel. Mothers & daughters of all ages;
brothers & sisters, best friends came, in two’s or four’s,
singles came as well, and returned home with new friends… We celebrated
the coming of Spring, and returned home refreshed, reenergized, hearts
brimming with pleasant and fun memories of times spent together. Thanks
crew for setting the tone to a fabulous season.
Our end of March crew was filled with active participants: grandparents,
parents and students from the Edina Immersion School were mixed with other
delightful and active travelers from Central MN. What a pleasure
everyone was! The children were curious, fun to be with, eager to use their
language skills, and together we traipsed all over Paris & the Loire
Valley. We explored secret passageways in castles, took a cooking
class, hunted for Paris’ best ice cream, went on a cruise, and walked
until our feet begged for mercy. The children never stopped to amaze us,
their skills and positive attitudes were a true reflection on the stellar
education they are receiving both at school and at home. Bravo!
The month of May welcomed our antique-flea market crew. This little group
was ready to experience Paris & country life. The people of Eastern
France’s small towns and villages welcomed us. We scoured antique
markets, attended Villersexel’s yearly village celebration and attic
cleaning (equivalent of a village garage sale, but with fun antiques instead),
visited a village wash house where locals treated us to wine & goodies.
Our day trips took us where trains don’t go. How can we forget going
to Morteau by the Swiss border to chat with the artisan cowbell maker,
and visit the Klaus chocolate factory? Didn’t we look glorious with
our smocks and hairnets on, while Camille shared with passion the secrets
of chocolate and caramel making?
The month of June welcomed our Sauk Rapids crew and two active seniors.
We covered long distances together thanks to high-speed trains. Seashore
destinations, Normandy with all its history, Brittany and Paris welcomed
this enthusiastic crew. Late night walks along the beach in St-Jean de
Luz with a moonlight swim, parasailing over turquoise waters along the
Basque Country coast, exploring Mont St-Michel Island, quietly reflecting
at the American Cemetery in Normandy, and checking out Paris’ landmarks
kept everyone learning and having fun… Thanks crew for your unending
energy, for enjoying a slice of French life together: “faire les
4 heures” was a tradition we all embraced as we made our afternoon
pastry shop stops. Yum!
October marked, with much regret, the end of the traveling season with
a group that was ready to see and experience everything that crossed their
paths from day break to late at night. This adult only group walked
the sole off their shoes in the streets of Paris, Florence, Siena, San
Gimignano and Venice…We laughed often & ate our way through
each and every place we visited … Adventures abounded with that
joyous group: a gentle walk with Cristina in Siena, water taxis in Venice,
strolling through San Gimignano, hiking along the Mediterranean coast to
visit Cinque Terre: a string of five fishing villages in the hills right
on the seashore, savoring bruschetta, garlic bread and wine at a local
vineyard, walking back to our hotel in Paris during “White Night” at
3:30 a.m., skipping down the Champs-Elysees together arm in arm… through
our daily experiences, we all became very close.
We sure miss you all!
A big “thank you” to each and everyone for your warmth, smiles
and willingness to make memories of a lifetime together, we truly had a
lot of wholesome fun. Let’s do it again soon.
Please remember to…
Embrace today with passion and joy, venture to dream about tomorrow, and
hug the ones you love, again & again…because it is awesome to
be alive…
A bientot,
Arlette
Random thoughts to ponder:
1. Benjamin Franklin said: “Traveling is one way
of lengthening life…”
2. Ernest Hemmingway, who fell in love with Paris gives
us these words: “If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as
a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life it stays with
you, for Paris is a moveable feast.”
3. Since I enjoy walking, and we do plenty of it on our
tours, I would like to quote another walker, Henry David Thoreau: “The
swiftest traveler is he that goes afoot.”
4. Ted Simon, another walker said in Jupiter’s
Travels (1979) “It’s no trick to go around the world these
days…but to know it; you have to smell it and feel it between your
toes. There is no other way…you have to stay on the ground,
and swallow the bugs as you go.” I say…don’t worry
about the bugs in France; we probably see one mosquito a week on our journeys,
unlike here in Minnesota…
5. John Steinbeck had another perspective on traveling: “When
I was very young and the urge to be someplace was on me, I was assured
by mature people that maturity would cure the itch…Now that I’m
fifty eight perhaps senility will do the job. Nothing has worked. In
other words, I don’t improve, in further words, once a bum always
a bum.”
6. I will end with a quote from King George V, knowing
that all past travelers will relate to this one… ”Always go
to the bathroom when you have a chance.” To which I will add
for our newcomers “don’t forget to have your 60 centimes ready
before you go.”
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