Bali Pics now available

Lots of monkeys, lizards, chickens, pigs, fish and cows. Not to mention lots of great surfing, snorkeling, kayaking in the rain, swimming and even renting a scooter for the 3 of us. Mom, don't look at those pictures. The people just loved Mathieu. Everywhere we went they all wanted to touch him and take pictures with him. Even with their limited English they would always ask him "What is your name?" and "How old are you?" Midway through the trip he started to get the hang of the questions and answered back. We were having such a good time it was difficult to comeback to reality.

Our trip started down in Balangan Beach, a small seaside village where I got to surf overhead waves on a 5'11" surfboard which is way to small for me. The next day I found a bigger board. The only time we got ripped off was here. I guess you live in learn. We did a trip to see the Uluwata Temple and to have dinner at Jimbaran Bay and we paid way too much. Dinner was really cool though. You get to pick out your fish and then go sit right on the beach and they serve you dinner. Not bad.

Then we headed up north to Pemerutan and Lovina where we snorkeled and kayaked. We went kayaking in the national park. Mathieu didn't want to get into the kayak so we had to leave him behind with our driver. Apparently he was quite happy staying behind. He loves boats but apparently not small boats. Anyway it rained the whole time we were on the kayak. Luckily it was still hot. Overall the north wasn't that exciting, partly because it rained the whole time, and the fact that there isn't much to do besides kayaking and snorkeling. We only stayed 2 days up there and then moved on.

From there we stopped for a swim in the hot springs (can't remember the name) on our way to Mt Batur, the volcano. The hots springs were a nice stop off. The volcano is actually 6000 ft high and there is a beautiful lake at the base! We couldn't see the top though due to the clouds and rain. We only made a short stop there and then headed down to Ubud, a town in the center of the island known for shopping, the Monkey Forest and Balinese dancing. Mathieu loved the Monkey Forest and the dancing along with all the dragons that came out at night on the streets (the kids dressed up as dragons and paraded around the streets).

We did a day trip to Sideman to see the "Terraced Rice fields". At lunch Valerie ordered fresh coconut juice and they actually climbed up the tree and cut down the coconut. It was pretty cool to watch.

Next we were off to Amed. This was one of our favorite spots. It is a very quiet seaside village with beautiful coral reefs just off the beach. Needless to say, we did a lot of snorkeling. We also rented a scooter here (Only 4 Euros a day). We all hopped on and drove from beach to beach to snorkel. There is very little traffic in this area so it wasn't dangerous. We were there during the Balinese holiday. During the morning all the Balinese go to the temple with their family and then they celebrate with food. The basket of food that the women were carrying looked really good. Unfortunately, tourist are allowed to join in.

Our final stop was Seminyak, Legian and Kuta. We tried to avoid these spots for the most part since they are big tourist areas. We were right to do so. The first night we stayed in a hotel with a bunch of Australians getting loaded in the pool. Might have been fun if I were 20 with no kids but that is not the case. I went to another hotel the next day to see if we could move there but he was completely booked. However, he had a friend with a hotel not far away and suggested that. He actually took me there on his scooter helped me get booked and then returned me, all for free. We ended up loving the hotel. It was small and quiet, with a big pool, no drunk Australians and perfectly located. Sometimes people can be surprising. I would have loved to pay the guy back by using his taxi service or staying in his hotel but we had no need for either.

Anyway, in this area we got our fill of sushi, surfing and swimming and then regretfully took our flight back to France.

Mathieu's First Time Skiing

Ok, we were bored and decided to torture Mathieu last weekend. How better to torture him than to take him skiing for the first time. He actually really enjoyed it. Except he wouldn't let momma let go.



















Look Mom I am really excited!!! Mom looks just as excited.

Easter in Sète

We went down to Sète last weekend for Easter to escape to cold of Lyon. Séte is located in the south of France, on the Mediterranean, close to Montpellier. It is a beautiful little seaside town with long boardwalks and sandy beaches. Valerie’s cousin’s daughter was nice enough to give up her apartment for the weekend.

Mathieu did his first Easter egg hunt on Sunday. Of course, with the age range being from 3-8 Mathieu didn’t have much luck finding eggs. However, we came prepared. We brought chocolate eggs and hid them as we went so Mathieu could experience the sensation of finding eggs. He loved it!!!

Mahé, Mathieu’s semi cousin came over on Saturday and they both had a lot of fun playing together. I say semi cousin since it the boy of one of Valerie’s cousin’s daughters. He is the same age as Mathieu though.

On another note, Mathieu moved into a big boy bed. We got him new beds for grandpa’s house and our home. The transition was simple and he is really happy being in his new gigantic beds. I have added a couple of pics for entertainment.

Ahhh, the pleasure of discovering chocolate eggs on the ground.

Mathieu and Mahé hanging out together.

Big boy bed with all Mathieu's friends.

Winter COLD Weather

Well, we haven't had a winter like the east coast of the US but on the otherhand it has not been pleasant here. It has been cold, cold, cold. Since we got back from vacation back in early January the temps haven't gotten up above 40 and that is being conservative.

I have been in Lyon now for 5 years and have never seen so much snow. It doesn't stop. For 2 weeks we have been getting snow almost daily. Temps today rest in the low to mid 20s and it continues to snow.

In fact, it is rather annoying because even though we have gotten a ton of snow. It doesn't rest on the ground more than a day. In the morning Lyon is white. By the afternoon it is all gone. Crazy. Outside of Lyon a lot of the schools have been closed due to the snow (outside of the city it doesn't melt so fast) and of course, the train system has been in havoc. I feel sorry for commuters.

Anyway, this weekend is going to be exactly the same. We can't even go skiing because, it is the winter vacation in France and everyone is in the mountains right now. Of course, we are not at all envious since the temps are barely in the teens on top of the mountains. Enjoy your vacation frenchies.

In other news, Mathieu is starting realize that snow maybe cold but it can also be fun. He actually enjoyed the sled for the first time last weekend.

PS, don't forget to check out the new pics posted on the left.

Had to post this one. It is not on vacation but I just received it today. It is a photo from here in Lyon.

Mathieu is not to sure about Santa Claus. Christmas morning in Ft Lauderdale at our favorite hotel the Marriot.

Christmas morning in Ft Lauderdale. Gotta love our Christmas tree. You have to give up some things when you vacation over Xmas. No complaints here.

Back from Florida

We just came back from vacation in Florida where we did a home exchange in Ft Lauderdale. My mother came out and spent her first Xmas with Mathieu and family. Mathieu of course loved it and he doesn’t stop asking for Mamie. I think he wants more presents from her.

We spent our days at the pool lounging and happy hours at the cabana on the beach. Unfortunately, I found out there is really no surf in the area so that was a bit disappointing. On the other hand, we went over to Naples, Ft Meyers, and Sanibel Island and there were some nice waves but I didn’t have time to surf.

I got in touch with an old friend from high school, Mike Harris who lives out there. It had been 20 years and he still looks the same. We spent New Year’s Eve at his home in Boca Raton and had a blast listening to live Brazilian music and drinking Sangria. I had to practically drag Valerie out of the house at 3am. Thank you Facebook, for that.

We went to the famous Le Tub restaurant “supposedly the best hamburger in the country”. It was a really cool dive bar-type setting right on one of the canals. It was bit cold to sit outside but the interior was all about fishing. The hamburger was giant! it had to be over a half pound of beef. The hamburger was really good but I found it to be too big. Maybe I am becoming too French (small portions) or I just can’t eat like I used to.

As always the trip was too short but we left at the right time since the temperature hit all time lows a few days later. The last few days that we were there we actually had to wear pants and jackets. What crazy weather.

We had a bit of a problem on the return unfortunately. We took a train from Geneva to Lyon and when we got off the train in Lyon I forgot my backpack. I realized it about 15 mins later so I ran back to the station and the agent told me it had left for a cleaning depot. This was good news since that means the train was empty. 30 mins later the agent told me a cleaning crew found the backpack and that they would send it back on the next train. Well, when I picked it up I noticed that it was awful light. I looked inside and found out that someone had stolen our camera (all our vacation photos), my iPod, our American telephone, 30 American dollars, 2 bottles of alcohol purchased at duty free and some cards for Mathieu. The agent said it was probably a passenger and not the cleaning crew. Personally, I call bullshit. How would a passenger have had enough time to go through every little pocket of the backpack? Only the cleaning crew had the backpack long enough. I filed a police report but I highly doubt anything will happen. I am going to watch all the selling sites for the next month or so to see if my iPod and camera show up.

Anyway, luckily my mother took some photos. I will post those as soon as possible.

DINGGGGGG

Well the driver's license test didn't go well. Looks like I will be retaking it in February. I am definitely pissed about that but there is nothing I can do and I need to stop stressing about it.

Anyway, there are some new pics available on the left from December.

Driver’s License Update

It’s not over yet. Just to give a little update on the agony of my work to get a driver’s license in France. Yesterday, I took the actual driver part of the test. Of course, they don’t tell you right away if you passed or not. The only way you would know if you failed is if the inspector hits the extra brake in the car. The good news is that he didn’t have to use his extra brake.

I did do something that didn’t make him happy. There was a “roundabout” type of intersection that I kind of hesitated when exiting. The problem with this intersection was that it wasn’t a normal exit. The inspectors like to use this type of intersection to trick you. Luckily I had already done this type of intersection a couple of times before so I knew what to expect but when I exited I hesitated a little too long and a car arrived behind me and I kind of slowed him down. It wasn’t really bad but the inspector told me that I had caused the driver to slow down and that I shouldn’t have hesitated so long.

Besides that issue, at one point the inspector told me I was going to slow and should drive normally. Otherwise, I successfully answered all the questions he asked me and I successfully navigated the “French right-hand priorities”. So now I am awaiting the results. Unfortunately, even though these were not big errors it could cause me to fail the test. Obviously, I am a bit stressed out about it. I should receive the results in a couple of days and then I will know whether I have to take the test again in a couple of months or I am officially a French driver.

New Photos Available

Check the photos albums on picassa section on the left. Mathieu just had his 2nd birthday and his first pumpkin carving experience, even thought the neighbor's kid did most of the work (it was his first pumpkin carving as well).

Otherwise, Mathieu is really starting to come into his own. He is starting to say a lot of things even if we don't understand him half of the time.

On my side, I am still working on the drivers license. Apparently, my bad habits will make me fail the test since they are very strict. I don't necessarily agree with all the things they say I am doing wrong. Most of my issues center around the fact that I don't look around enough and that I use the clutch too much. Because of these things I will fail the test so the monitor says I need to continue taking course until I have fixed them. Of course, each course is 62 Euros which means more money in the school's pocket. I am definitely going to spend more than I planned.

I can't believe that they aren't more lenient for people who have driven for 20 years! Pathetic.

French Drivers License

Well, after 4 years of driving in France, it is time to get a real French drivers license. Unfortunately, that means devoting a lot of time and money to the cause. Getting a drivers license in France is not easy. First off, the success rate for the test is below 70% and we are talking about French people taking the test. Second, the test comes in one language, FRENCH; meaning foreigners are at a disadvantage with the language barrier. The test is 40 questions in which you can only miss 5 and to make matters worse they place trick questions on the test. You really have to pay attention to every little detail in the picture to answer the question. On top of that each question may have 2 parts and there maybe more than one correct answer but never all correct answers. So tell me this doesn’t sound stressful. Well, if not I haven’t even begun to discuss the cost which is a bit cheaper for me since I already have an American drivers license. The minimum cost is around 600 Euros and each time you fail a test you have to pay an additional 80 Euros and wait a month before you can take it again! Well, with a success rate of less than 70% imagine how many people are paying additional costs. I have talked to many French people who paid over 1000 Euros for their drivers license.

A little note: Valerie renewed her California drivers license in May. She failed 2 times on the same day and passed the 3^rd time all at a cost of $20???? Why can’t it be that easy here?

So, when I first started taking practice tests I was missing 20 on each test. As of a few weeks back I was hovering right around 5 mistakes. Some days I would miss 2 other days I would miss 8 or 9. I decided it was time to take the real test so I signed up to take the test last Monday. Anyway, last Wednesday I took a practice test at the school and missed 11. CRAP, this got me really stressed out. The thought of failing and having to pay another 80 Euros was killing me. So every night I came home and took practice tests on a software program I downloaded. It got better until Saturday when I took 5 practice tests in a row and failed all of them. Once again, more stress. Really has to do with my state of mind. So Sunday, I spent another couple of hours taking tests with better results.

Come Monday morning, I was really stressed out. I had to meet at the school at 9am and a bus transported us to the testing center. No one said a word on the way over. The driver tried to assure us that it would be ok but nobody was buying it. At the center we waited almost an hour. Of course, this only compounded my stress. Once we were checked in and seated they handed us a remote control to answer each question that flashed up on the movie screen. The test took about 20 minutes. Overall, I felt it there were some difficult questions but most I had seen before on one practice test or another. Finally, the moment of reckoning came. They called my name I went up to the front of the room "in front of everyone" and they handed me a piece of paper. I took the paper and walked out the backdoor. The Driver immediately asked, well? I said I don’t know I haven’t looked. He took the paper and looked and said, YOU PASSED!!They only tell you how many you missed if you fail so I have no idea how close I was.

Out of the 9 students who went 6 of us passed. HAPPINESS, I never have to take the stupid test again, unless they take my license away…

At this point, I have spent 450 Euros with no additional costs needed but I still have to take the actual driving test. I took a course recently with an instructor and they said I have a lot of bad habits that need to be fixed before taking the test. Hopefully, I can fix them soon so I don’t have to continue shelling out 60 Euros per driving course.