Saturday, July 02, 2011

Reflecting on friends

This is one of the spires that adorn the roof of the royal residence in Loches. It's not anything special or dramatic, but I like it nonetheless. I'm still posting photos from the few days we had with our California friends. We had such a good time and enjoyed showing them some of the local sights.

And you know, we had to compete with the likes of Rome, Florence, Venice, Paris, and London, all places they visited on their trip. I hope we measured up. It's always nice when friends come to visit. In addition to hanging out, eating good food and sharing the local wines, we also get to see the place we live in with fresh eyes.

Being a tourist in the place you live can be fun. One example: I went to our local zoo for only the second time in eight years. The zoo at Saint-Aignan (actually it's in a neighboring town called Beauval) is well known in France. People come from all over the country, and Europe, to visit it. It's open seven days a week most of the year, closed only on Christmas and Easter.

We spent about four hours wandering around the zoo marveling at the amazing animals and how close we could actually get to them. And yes, I have pictures and will post some of them in the next few days.

Our friends left our house last week, and are leaving Europe today to head home after their three week journey. We miss them and hope they come back again soon.

11 comments:

  1. I had kind of hoped we could stop by for a few hours this trip, but it now appears I'm not up to side trips.

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  2. My brother and niece "did" the zoo at Beauval last summer and raved about it. Consequently we are borrowing a friend's two children on our next trip chez nous so we have a reason to go ourselves. We're looking forward to it.

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  3. I must go to Loches!!

    BettyAnn

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  4. Great tennis match today!
    We want to visit the zoo, too!

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  5. Now that's just about the nicest thing anyone could ever say about visiting friends.....you miss them and want them back soon!! They must be wonderful people.

    Victoria, Bellingham, WA

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  6. starman, we're quite a hike from Paris. Another time, I hope!

    jean, it's well worth the time. Enjoy!

    bettyann, yes!

    evelyn, I saw most of it, but not live.

    victoria, we had a very nice time!

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  7. I never enjoy Portland more than when I show it off to out-of-towners. I would welcome the chance to give & your guy a tour...

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  8. We saw an ad for "your" zoo in a Paris Metro car last week!

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  9. By the way, Walt and Ken, your place is one of the top tourist spots in Europe: outstanding, friendly, and welcoming hosts, with an out-of-this-world cuisine. Surely you knew that!

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  10. We had a marvelous time with you both. It was my favorite place to be because it was "home." Much better than staying in a hotel. I love the company! Yes, we saw many amazing sites, but everything in your neighborhood ranked right up there with them. We thank you again for your gracious hospitality. I hope it won't be 8 years before we see one another again. xo

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  11. stephen, if we're ever in Portland, we'll take you up on it.

    chris, cool! And thanks!

    ginny, we really enjoyed your visit. I hope that, too.

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