Easter In The City Of Lights!

After promising to hold my hand on the airplane, Marta convinced me to take the flight to Paris for a five day getaway. As it turns out, facing my irrational fear of sitting on top of jet fuel and being propelled through the sky was worth it...Paris was awesome!

We spent our first day hiding from the rain and dodging tourists. Just as we got into the elevator and made our trip to the top of the Eiffel tower, we were blessed with some sunshine. The view was spectacular, and the gale force wind gave the experience some extra flavor. I couldn't help but smile when we reached the second level and scenes from National Lampoon’s European Vacation were clear visions in my mind...Rusty and that stupid embroidered beret. Good times!

The next day we were spoiled by the works of Da Vinci, Monet, Van Gogh, and many more, as we strolled through the Louvre, and D'Orsay Museums. Monet is the man, and the Mona Lisa...looks very much like a man!

On Monday we had amazing weather, and the motivation to take advantage of it. We spent the morning strolling the streets of Montmartre, taking in the sites, including the Sacré-Coeur basilica and the famous Moulin Rouge. This whole area was full of small streets with bakeries on every corner. Good bakeries! The croissants were to die for! After lunch we visited the grave of one of our favorite writers, Oscar Wilde. The cemetery was beautiful, and his headstone was a site, adorned with lipstick marks of people showing their appreciation. On one corner of the massive headstone someone had written a message to the deceased author that I found rather touching. It read “Thank you for Dorian Gray, you are the reason I now love literature". We finished our day by walking along the Seine River beneath the lamp-lit bridges and beautiful architecture. Notre-Dame was even more amazing by night!

We made use of the rest of our time in Paris getting lost in the gardens of Versailles, drinking great French wine, and getting our much-needed vitamin D from the sunshine. Marta and I had such a wonderful time in Paris. It was extra special because we had the chance to experience it together.

Riding The Alps..."Softly Gently"

So, what do you get for spending nine hours on a bus full of drunken Slovaks? Four days of amazing snow and sunshine with a side of skiing and riding in the Alps, that's what! Last week was our spring break, and we did everything possible to ensure that it would be one to remember.

We loaded the bus in Bratislava at 10:00 a.m. with our good friends Zuzi, Greg and Peter, and our voyage to western Austria had begun. After stopping every few hours to let the "on-a- mission" drinkers answer nature's call, we finally arrived in a small alpine village called Haselgehr. All the right ingredients for a great time were present, and the conditions on the mountain were sick!

We spent the next four days Warth-Schroecken surfing the Alps. The terrain was freaking amazing! It was like lift serviced backcountry. The ungroomed, knee-deep white stuff was such a treat. We met some new friends, and spent our time not thinking about teaching. What more can you ask for?