Spain

We're back from Spain, and while that country will always impress and provide loads of enjoyable experiences, the best part of the last 7 days has been seeing Harlowe. Before we flew to Zaragoza we were joined by Bill and had a really fun few days in Upminster and Cambridge playing with him and showing him our favorite places. We had a game of freeze tag in Upminster Park and Bill taught Michael how to punt on the River Cam - always a good skill to develop! We were amazed he could maneuver the heavy, long pole and simultaneously not slip off the punt and into the river, all the time avoiding the other boats full of tourists.

After seeing Harlowe at the airport, and meeting her Spanish parents (Carlos and Sol) and her sister (Irene) the highlights included Harlowe's tour of Zaragoza, three days hiking in the Pyrenees, visiting medieval castles and towns, a trip to Pamplona, lots of shopping for Spanish fashions and lots and lots of delicious food tasting. Oh, and the whole thing started off early Sunday morning with Bill, Harlowe, Carlos and I running the Zaragoza 5K, raising money for water projects in Africa.

In Zaragoza we walked all over, along the River Ebro, through the Plaza de Pilar and into the famous Basilica. The city was full of classical musicians playing in the streets and we stopped to listen to Vivaldi's 4 Seasons. We saw posters of what looked an awful lot like Barack Obama advertising furniture.....lucky for some Spanish model who now has many job opportunities! We also saw loads and loads of identical red bikes lined up everywhere, and Harlowe explained that the city provides these to cut down on traffic and bicycle theft. Every night a truck drives around to redistribute them, a very clever system.

When Harlowe had to return to school on Monday we drove a few hours north into the Pyrenees and found ourselves in Castejon de Sos, a sweet little town in the Hidden Valley just a few kilometres from the French border. We walked and played and enjoyed the incredible views and friendly people. Bill went on a hike with Carlos and his friend Jose Ramon, one of 200 people who still speak Patues, an ancient dialect of the region. Jose Ramon is a farmer in the valley and Bill learned so much about the natural and human history of the area. On the way back to Zaragoza we saw field after field of endless red poppies, and stopped at the thousand year old castle of Loarre, supposedly the best preserved Romanesque fortress in Europe.

We took Harlowe out of school one day to spend the day with the whole family in Pamplona. We walked the narrow roads of the running of the bulls, but didn't see any fortunately - except for Michael who obliged us by pretending so Harlowe and I could feel the energy of the summer's Fiesta de San Fermin and the Running of the Bulls. We walked through lots of history here, from the Gothic cathedral, to the city's walls built to withstand the Moors and later Napolean, and all the way to the bars of Hemingway.

We all tried new foods, but we were especially proud of Anna who discovered she loves mussels! Good thing we were running and hiking a lot because it balanced somewhat the huge amounts of tapas, wine, churros con chocolate, Serrano ham, etc. etc. we enjoyed each day. Harlowe took us to her favorite kebab place and Anna, Michael and I were delighted to taste the Spanish version of this Turkish dish we had come to love. Back in Zaragoza Harlowe welcomed Anna to her school for a morning, and Anna loved this; she got to feel very teenager-y and meet many of Harlowe's friends. They went out to get a morning croissant together on a break from classes. Very different from 6th grade at Santa Rita!

During our time here Harlowe continually amazed us with her maturity and expertise in speaking and undertanding Spanish - she goes quickly and uses that cute Spanish accent with the 'th'. Bill and I have been a little worried about her, and not so sure we were the most responsible parents sending her off to some big European city for 6 months. Next week she turns 16, and we definitely have nothing to worry about; she is a lovely, friendly, confident, educated and thoughtful young woman (well, maybe still a little worrying....parents' pregorative I guess). In very large part this growth in Harlowe is due to her Spanish family welcoming her so wholeheartedly into their home and hearts and taking such good care of her. Thank you Sol, Carlos and Irene!!



This has been a glorious week full of new places, new family, and of course the warmth of being surrounded with the energy and love of the five of us being together again. Seeing the joy of Harlowe, Anna and Michael rush into each other's arms at the Zaragoza airport and hearing the laughter all week from all of us playing together has been wonderful, but I've also been reminded of where and when I'm happiest: in those quiet early morning hours just after the sun's rise, as the house (or hotel room) slowly wakes up and Bill and I can just lay cuddling and chatting, getting ready for our day. This is my favorite place, and I've missed it. Now Bill is flying back to California and we're off to Paris; Anna, Michael and Harlowe will miss Daddy and I will miss my Honey till we're all together again at the end of June.