Car rental

When I arrived in Geneva, a long term car rental was prearranged for me with the good people of Europcar (kind of like the blind date thing). They wanted to give me something in the automatic diesel, the sound of which started to make my stomach go sick. I asked if they could give me a stick shift gas variety and they were nice enough to give me a brand new Renault (don't pronounce the T!) Laguna. I thought wow.......the chance to try a French car that has not been in the US market for over a generation....will I be in for a big surprise.

The car is well equipped. Mirrors fold-in automatically, tire pressure is displayed on the dash, speed limit governor, full controls on the tilt wheel, 6 speed, no key ignition. Performance is really peppy for a diesel. I've taken it at 160 km/h without a problem but it does bounce a little.

Well after a month, the fun is gone. Turning is like a ford F350 so you had better plan your turns way in advance. On Monday in our parking lot, I went around a double parked car and slightly clipped a curb. When I got out of the car, I heard the front tire start to go flat with a puncture in the side of the brand new Michelin tire. Turns out the car doesn't have a spare so I had to arrange for a tow though my good friends at Europcar. Two days later and 5 calls to Europcar, I finnaly was able to pick-up the car. A new rim, towing, replacing the pressure sensor, and Michelin tire only set me back 570 euros ($825). They did give me a wash though!

This weekend we are going to Milano for a few days R&R at the Westin. I'm seriously thinking of taking the train as without a spare, I don't want to be stuck in Italy for 2+ days to replace a blown-out tire.

I really do look good in this car. So much so that every time I drive, automatic cameras take a picture of me. I wonder what newspaper will run my picture!

Looking forward to meeting Monique in Milano. Ciao!

Happy Holidays from Annecy

It has been several weeks since the last update, my excuse….family is with me and we are enjoying the French life. I should have gained 5 kilos from all the food we’ve experienced but my wine drinking regimen seems to be doing the job of washing out the unwanted weight! Aimee and Lonnie flew to Nice to visit Monique mid December then we all hooked up in Lyon for two nights of cold Christmas shopping. Aimee and Monique went back to Antibes for Mo’s last week of teaching before her holiday break then we met in Brignoles to enjoy Christmas with my friends Jean-Claude et Patrick who own a B&B. There we enjoyed some time with my aging aunt Yvonne who at 98 years still eats like she is 20 years old.

After Christmas, we all drove back to my apartment in Annecy for a few days of relaxing (and some work for me), Christmas decoration viewing, day trip to Mt. Blanc, and what else….more eating. I thought a visit to Mt. Blanc would be a ho hum trip to the snow but what a spectacular sight this mountain is with several glaciers seemingly ready to flow down the mountain side and swallow-up the village of Chamonix. The inset picture seems like it was taken of a model but that little mountain is over 10,000 feet above where I took the shot (elev. 4810 meters). Highly recommend a trip to visit this area before the last glacier disappears.

Chamonix

Last Saturday, Mo and Aimee took a train to Lyon then on to Paris where they will enjoy New Years before Aimee returns to the US on the 3rd. Mo will return to Annecy for a few more days of family fun then we all split up again. I’m enjoying the family as much as possible before I’m left alone Jan 15th to work the job I came here for! We’ll probably take Monique to Milano next weekend (only 3 hours away) where she can hop on a train to Antibes.

France is obsessed by Noel and anything festival for that matter. Every town is lined with banner lights, numerous manger scenes in les eglises, ice rinks, and just like the US….Christmas shopping like crazy. The supermarches are packed with people getting food for the massive holiday meals (you think the French drive crazy; you should see them pushing shopping carts). At Jean-Claude’s we had two supersizer meals….the réveillon (Christmas Eve) and le jour de Noel. Between the two meals, I consumed two bottles of Champagne, six different wines, and 10,000 calories of the most wonderfully prepared food (oysters, escargots, fondue, pheasant, chapon which is a neutered young rooster, buche de noel, and on and on). Half way into each meal I could see the pain on my family members faces as we never have eaten this much food in one setting (everyone else didn’t have a problem wiping their plates clean with French bread).

Lonnie and I celebrated New Years in the apartment (boring I know but we did it up with a fine meal and Champagne). This morning, we celebrated another New Years listening to KFOG on the web, drank the last of the Champagne and watched the fire works over the SF Bay Bridge live on CNN. What a cool world we live in.

I’ll be returning to the US on Feb. 9th and will stay for only a week working remote control, catching up on chores, wine making, and hopefully visiting a few friends (I’ll bring some French wine as a bribe!). Bones fetes mes amis!

Patrick with Lonnie, Monique and Aimee in front of his Creche