We are finally all home again and it really feels good! Len is right back into the swing of things at work and the kids and I are doing a few jobs around the house, getting groceries, and hanging out at Silver Lake. I tried to go back to add some photos to the last several blogs but I'm having trouble getting them in the place I want them to go so I quit trying for now. Maybe someone will have time (and patience) to help me later. Both the kids and Opa and Oma and I were upgraded to comfort class for the trip home. This was much more comfortable! It's amazing how much difference a few inches of leg room makes! Our plane was diverted to Ottawa due to lightning in Toronto but, after refueling, we could return and were only a few hours late. All in all we had safe returns.
The boys were rained out of the Camporee and had to be evacuated. We got them 3 days earlier than we had planned. We did some very muddy laundry at Oma's, spent an evening with both of Len's brothers, and then made the drive home. Len and Jake were in Jetta and Michael and I were in Barney. They were ahead of us at the border and were selected for a random search. When we pulled up the guy said, "They'll meet you at McDonalds. They were randomly chosen to be searched." They had to fill out a few forms and answer a few questions but it was relatively quick and painless.
It feels good to be able to sleep in our own beds again. Jake is readying his room for Paul, our new exchange student. We hope to go buy a dresser today since Linz is using our extra one.
We need to sort through our thousands of pictures to be able to make an album that is a reasonable size to show people. That seems like an overwhelming task to me. Maybe that is the downside to using a digital camera!
Friday, August 15, 2008
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
So much to remember, So little time to write
We are no longer in Friesland. We had a good time there and enjoyed the little bit of time we spent with Oma's cousin and her husband. We went to see the dikes on Monday and it was very windy on the sea. We took some family pictures and many, many other pictures.
On Sunday, we went to the church that Oma grew up in. Several people recognized her and came up to speak to her. Afterwards, we drove around "town" to see the house she grew up in. A man came out and said that he had gone to school with her. They talked for awhile and Oma asked about his sister (who had been her friend). He said, "Oh, she lives just up the road! Get in my van and I'll take you there." Oma and I went with him while the rest walked to the cemetery. She had a short visit and then we walked to the cemetery as well. We found the gravestone of Oma's grandparents. On the way home, some other people came out of their house. Oma recognized them and we stopped so she could chat for a bit.
On Tuesday, we packed up early and left this wonderful house. We drove along the dike and back into the main part of Holland to bring the kids to the airport. We saw them off through check-in. I felt like a Mother Bird who just watched her kids fly out of the nest. I'm afraid I was a little weepy.
Once we dropped them off, we drove to Amsterdam so Peter could see it. We found a secure parking garage and Oma and Opa decided to go see the Rijts Museum so they could see the painting, The Night Watch. Peter and Leonard and I did some shopping and some walking around the city. We all met at Len's Uncle Cok's shop at 3 in the afternoon. He offered to take Peter (and us) out on the boat again so we got to float around through the canals again. What a treat! We went out for dinner with Cok and then took a tram back to our car.
Next we drove to Uncle Hans' house. This is another of Opa's brothers. We got there very late and were all tired. Leonard, Peter, and I are staying at the neighbor lady's house. We have a key and can come and go as we please. Yesterday, I biked with Lot (Hans's wife) through the area. It is a beautiful quiet country area here. We passed two families (at separate times) walking while leading their child on a donkey! In the evening we visited another friend, Mieke. We had a wonderful dinner at her home and find ourselves wishing for more hours in each day!
Today is Hans's birthday and we will have a party.
On Sunday, we went to the church that Oma grew up in. Several people recognized her and came up to speak to her. Afterwards, we drove around "town" to see the house she grew up in. A man came out and said that he had gone to school with her. They talked for awhile and Oma asked about his sister (who had been her friend). He said, "Oh, she lives just up the road! Get in my van and I'll take you there." Oma and I went with him while the rest walked to the cemetery. She had a short visit and then we walked to the cemetery as well. We found the gravestone of Oma's grandparents. On the way home, some other people came out of their house. Oma recognized them and we stopped so she could chat for a bit.
On Tuesday, we packed up early and left this wonderful house. We drove along the dike and back into the main part of Holland to bring the kids to the airport. We saw them off through check-in. I felt like a Mother Bird who just watched her kids fly out of the nest. I'm afraid I was a little weepy.
Once we dropped them off, we drove to Amsterdam so Peter could see it. We found a secure parking garage and Oma and Opa decided to go see the Rijts Museum so they could see the painting, The Night Watch. Peter and Leonard and I did some shopping and some walking around the city. We all met at Len's Uncle Cok's shop at 3 in the afternoon. He offered to take Peter (and us) out on the boat again so we got to float around through the canals again. What a treat! We went out for dinner with Cok and then took a tram back to our car.
Next we drove to Uncle Hans' house. This is another of Opa's brothers. We got there very late and were all tired. Leonard, Peter, and I are staying at the neighbor lady's house. We have a key and can come and go as we please. Yesterday, I biked with Lot (Hans's wife) through the area. It is a beautiful quiet country area here. We passed two families (at separate times) walking while leading their child on a donkey! In the evening we visited another friend, Mieke. We had a wonderful dinner at her home and find ourselves wishing for more hours in each day!
Today is Hans's birthday and we will have a party.
Friday, August 1, 2008
Friday Evening in Friesland
We are so spoiled! We drove straight to Friesland without a wrong turn anywhere. This also includes driving straight to Oma’s cousin’s house. This is a brick 5 bedroom home with gardens and art all over! Oma’s cousin went to school for art. (Ali definitely gets it from Len's side of the family.) She also was trained to teach art but since she is almost deaf she was never able to work in that capacity. Her home is filled with her work. Much of it she made for church and then took home afterwards. I plan to go around with my camera and take pictures of much of it. She is multi-talented. She draws, paints, makes sculptures out of plaster of Paris and some out of wood. She knits and crochets and incorporates them into her art projects. This is like living in a museum! We were greeted here by Oma’s cousin, Etje and her husband, Andries Peterson. (Andries is a teacher in a Christian school. However, the Christianity has all but disappeared so he is one of the few that still teach religion.)They had made home-made soup for us to have for lunch along with cheese and bread, strawberries, grapes, yogurt drinks, coffee, and a fruit tart to celebrate Oma and Opa’s 50th wedding anniversary. Etje and Andries are camping right now but they returned home to do all this for us. They are also giving us the run of their house while they are gone. They stocked their refrigerator for us so well that we could hardly fit in the little bit of food we brought from the cottage! They have also offered us their computer but they do not have wireless so Len is going to figure out how to transfer what I’ve already written on Len’s computer to Andries’ computer so I can post it on the blog.
After Andries and Etje left to go camping again, Oma and Opa and Leonard and I walked a couple of blocks to the nursing home to see Etje’s Mom (who was a sister to Len’s Beppe.) She remembered Oma and Leonard but not Dad and, of course, not me. Etje’s sister was also there. Deafness runs in Oma’s side of the family and Etje, her sister, and her mother are all either deaf or very hard of hearing. The sisters wear hearing aids but they really need to be looking at you to catch what you are saying or to realize you are talking.
Once we returned from the nursing home, we all decided to walk into Dokkum to do some shopping. BONUS!! There were sidewalk sales and a market in every street with people selling things. The vendors won’t be there tomorrow but the stores still will be. I bought a bracelet and Ali and I found a store where EVERYTHING was $2.50 (Euro that is). I bought a skirt and shorts and a shirt. Ali bought 2 pair of shoes and tons of clothes. We were very late meeting everyone else at our assigned meeting spot! Half of us decided to go home and half decided to shop some more since most of the vendors would be there until 9 p.m. Ali and Michael and I inadvertently lost Leonard almost immediately but we shopped our hearts out. We returned to the original meeting spot and sat on a bench until Leonard arrived. (Keep in mind this was an hour and a half after we had lost him.) We returned to the house and had mac and cheese for dinner. (Some of the earlier group got mac and cheese and some got leftover soup.) I wonder how we are going to fit all of this stuff into our suitcases!
After Andries and Etje left to go camping again, Oma and Opa and Leonard and I walked a couple of blocks to the nursing home to see Etje’s Mom (who was a sister to Len’s Beppe.) She remembered Oma and Leonard but not Dad and, of course, not me. Etje’s sister was also there. Deafness runs in Oma’s side of the family and Etje, her sister, and her mother are all either deaf or very hard of hearing. The sisters wear hearing aids but they really need to be looking at you to catch what you are saying or to realize you are talking.
Once we returned from the nursing home, we all decided to walk into Dokkum to do some shopping. BONUS!! There were sidewalk sales and a market in every street with people selling things. The vendors won’t be there tomorrow but the stores still will be. I bought a bracelet and Ali and I found a store where EVERYTHING was $2.50 (Euro that is). I bought a skirt and shorts and a shirt. Ali bought 2 pair of shoes and tons of clothes. We were very late meeting everyone else at our assigned meeting spot! Half of us decided to go home and half decided to shop some more since most of the vendors would be there until 9 p.m. Ali and Michael and I inadvertently lost Leonard almost immediately but we shopped our hearts out. We returned to the original meeting spot and sat on a bench until Leonard arrived. (Keep in mind this was an hour and a half after we had lost him.) We returned to the house and had mac and cheese for dinner. (Some of the earlier group got mac and cheese and some got leftover soup.) I wonder how we are going to fit all of this stuff into our suitcases!
Friday - Moving to Friesland
This morning we had to pack up and get out by 10 a.m. We made it by one minute to ten. :-) We loaded all of our luggage, bodies, and groceries into the cars and headed out to Friesland. I have been typing these updates on the trip there. I will save them and try to copy them into the blog when I get to a place with internet access and when there is enough time. We have left early each morning and gotten home so late that I haven’t been able to take the time to do this regularly. It has been raining off and on on our drive this morning. We hope it clears up when we get there. Tomorrow we will see where Oma grew up. That’s all for now!
Ann
Ann
Thursday - Amsterdam again.
On Thursday we decided to take the train to Amsterdam again so we could shop and those who were interested could go to the Rijks Museum. We drove to the train station in Ede and found free parking. We managed to all get seats together and had a nice ride into Amsterdam. Once there we had some trouble keeping all 8 of us happy. The guys finally gave us one hour to shop in a certain store and we found a meeting spot. It wasn’t enough time and we were late meeting them. Fortunately, they could watch some street performers while they waited. We continued walking and mostly window shopping. We planned to stop for lunch but only half of us were hungry. The kids also decided that if we were only buying one meal, they wanted it to be the Hard Rock Café. We headed across town toward it and the museum.
On the way, Opa and Oma showed us a door in the center of town that we could go through. It looked like you were entering a building but once through the door, you could see it was a walkway into a large courtyard. The noise and hustle and bustle of the city disappeared and it was like being in a completely different place right in the center of the busy city. There are actual homes in there now and it was where women who had never married had lived. There was a church in there and we went into a chapel as well. When we left, our senses were assaulted as soon as we returned through that door!
We continued on and found the Hard Rock Café. Len planned to take his parents somewhere else while the rest of us ate there but they decided they could have the experience too. Fortunately, since it was only 4:00 on a Thursday afternoon, it was not as loud as it was in Berlin on a Friday night! We filled our bellies with American food and free refills and took many pictures. On our way out, the waiter told us that the museum had closed at 5:00. We were disappointed but nothing could be done. We wandered back on different streets than before until we realized that we were headed for the Red Light District. It was one thing to boat past it but we had no desire to walk through it! We changed course and stopped in a few stores. We found an old church and right by it was a store. Oma found several things to buy. Most of the time the stores close at 6:00 p.m. but on Thursdays many were open until 9:00. (Much to the boys' chagrin and our delight!)
We headed back to the train station and stopped by the queen’s castle to take pictures and for those who were interested, to feed the pigeons. It seemed like a much longer walk at the end of a long day of walking! Once at the train station, we plopped onto a bench, removed our shoes, and waited the 30 minutes for our train. Imagine our horror when 5 minutes before it was to arrive, the sign changed to what should’ve been our train and it wasn’t! Lindsay and Leonard rushed off to figure out the problem. We were at the right track but on the wrong side! Linz hurried back to tell us that we had 4 minutes to RUN to the other end of the track. Oma couldn’t get her shoes on her swollen feet and then couldn’t run. The train passed us as we rushed to the correct place. We made it to the door on the very end of the train while people were still exiting and actually had to wait a moment until we could get on. We settled our hot, sweaty, sticky bodies into seats and enjoyed someone else driving home for a change!
On the way, Opa and Oma showed us a door in the center of town that we could go through. It looked like you were entering a building but once through the door, you could see it was a walkway into a large courtyard. The noise and hustle and bustle of the city disappeared and it was like being in a completely different place right in the center of the busy city. There are actual homes in there now and it was where women who had never married had lived. There was a church in there and we went into a chapel as well. When we left, our senses were assaulted as soon as we returned through that door!
We continued on and found the Hard Rock Café. Len planned to take his parents somewhere else while the rest of us ate there but they decided they could have the experience too. Fortunately, since it was only 4:00 on a Thursday afternoon, it was not as loud as it was in Berlin on a Friday night! We filled our bellies with American food and free refills and took many pictures. On our way out, the waiter told us that the museum had closed at 5:00. We were disappointed but nothing could be done. We wandered back on different streets than before until we realized that we were headed for the Red Light District. It was one thing to boat past it but we had no desire to walk through it! We changed course and stopped in a few stores. We found an old church and right by it was a store. Oma found several things to buy. Most of the time the stores close at 6:00 p.m. but on Thursdays many were open until 9:00. (Much to the boys' chagrin and our delight!)
We headed back to the train station and stopped by the queen’s castle to take pictures and for those who were interested, to feed the pigeons. It seemed like a much longer walk at the end of a long day of walking! Once at the train station, we plopped onto a bench, removed our shoes, and waited the 30 minutes for our train. Imagine our horror when 5 minutes before it was to arrive, the sign changed to what should’ve been our train and it wasn’t! Lindsay and Leonard rushed off to figure out the problem. We were at the right track but on the wrong side! Linz hurried back to tell us that we had 4 minutes to RUN to the other end of the track. Oma couldn’t get her shoes on her swollen feet and then couldn’t run. The train passed us as we rushed to the correct place. We made it to the door on the very end of the train while people were still exiting and actually had to wait a moment until we could get on. We settled our hot, sweaty, sticky bodies into seats and enjoyed someone else driving home for a change!
Wednesday – Opa’s old stomping grounds
Wednesday morning we got a much later start than we had intended but we headed off in our rental cars for a day of seeing where Opa grew up. We drove to Waddinxveen where Len’s grandfather was from. We stopped for a coffee and to do a bit of shopping. The weather decided to spit at us again. Opa found people to talk to about the town. Next, we drove to Boskoop where Opa was born and lived as a child. I was busy taking pictures and scribbling down as much as I could of what Opa was remembering. We saw the house he lived in and where his Dad’s shop was. There was a newborn baby crying in that house now. Life goes on. I hope I can read and transcribe all of my notes and scribbles and that they make sense with the photos we took! We walked all through the town and had ice cream in what Opa remembers as a bar for the down-and-outers. On our way out of town, we asked for directions and stopped at the cemetery. We found his mother’s grave.
We decided to return to Waddinxveen and find his father’s grave. On the way we saw several of the places where Opa worked as a teen-ager. At one place, the farm was now a couple of family homes and the people came out and talked to Opa and showed him around some. He mentioned the tile floor that the family had just laid in the kitchen then and the woman proudly showed him a section of it she had saved in her garden when she re-did the kitchen! It brought back many memories for him! We also found another farm where he worked (with the help of a very friendly young woman on a bike). It is now owned by some very obviously wealthy people judging by the car we saw in the barn! No one appeared to be home so we snooped about some. In the back were chickens, roosters, and peacocks. Opa really wanted to talk to someone and as we pulled out, a woman came out of the house to see what we were up to. He talked to her for awhile and then we hit the road again. We stopped a couple of times to get directions to the cemetery in Waddinxveen and then found his Dad’s grave, his step-mother’s grave, and some other relatives as well. Opa found a tombstone that he liked what it said and had us take a photo of it. :-)
Next we drove to the North Sea to find a beach. We parked on the road again and put our money in and got our ticket just like we were old pros. We took a short walk to the beach and took turns holding towels around each other so we could change into our suits if we wanted to. We walked along the beach, wrote in the sand, and Linz and Michael went swimming. The weather was perfect and we had a wonderful evening.
When we left, we were all sick of the peanut butter and cheese sandwiches that we had been eating all day so we opted to find a Pannekoeken Haas. (Pancake House). We drove and drove but couldn’t find one. We stopped at a gas station to ask but they just pointed us to the McDonalds down the road. As we were getting ready to pull out of the gas station, a man came up to the car and asked us if we needed help. We told him what we were looking for. He began to tell us how to get there but it was complicated. He looked at his watch and said that he would just take us there himself and that we should follow him. He was dressed in a suit and had a large fancy vehicle. We followed him for a long way right up to the entrance of a Pannekoeken House. He waved good-bye to us and drove off. We all had to go to the bathroom and were ready for some food. When we got to the door of the restaurant they informed us that they had closed 30 minutes earlier and we could not be served nor could we use the restrooms. We ended up at the McDonalds next door after all of that! We made many wrong turns on the way home and had to stop for directions (which were only sometimes helpful) several times. We did not get back to our cottage until mid-night and by then we were all tired and cranky!
We decided to return to Waddinxveen and find his father’s grave. On the way we saw several of the places where Opa worked as a teen-ager. At one place, the farm was now a couple of family homes and the people came out and talked to Opa and showed him around some. He mentioned the tile floor that the family had just laid in the kitchen then and the woman proudly showed him a section of it she had saved in her garden when she re-did the kitchen! It brought back many memories for him! We also found another farm where he worked (with the help of a very friendly young woman on a bike). It is now owned by some very obviously wealthy people judging by the car we saw in the barn! No one appeared to be home so we snooped about some. In the back were chickens, roosters, and peacocks. Opa really wanted to talk to someone and as we pulled out, a woman came out of the house to see what we were up to. He talked to her for awhile and then we hit the road again. We stopped a couple of times to get directions to the cemetery in Waddinxveen and then found his Dad’s grave, his step-mother’s grave, and some other relatives as well. Opa found a tombstone that he liked what it said and had us take a photo of it. :-)
Next we drove to the North Sea to find a beach. We parked on the road again and put our money in and got our ticket just like we were old pros. We took a short walk to the beach and took turns holding towels around each other so we could change into our suits if we wanted to. We walked along the beach, wrote in the sand, and Linz and Michael went swimming. The weather was perfect and we had a wonderful evening.
When we left, we were all sick of the peanut butter and cheese sandwiches that we had been eating all day so we opted to find a Pannekoeken Haas. (Pancake House). We drove and drove but couldn’t find one. We stopped at a gas station to ask but they just pointed us to the McDonalds down the road. As we were getting ready to pull out of the gas station, a man came up to the car and asked us if we needed help. We told him what we were looking for. He began to tell us how to get there but it was complicated. He looked at his watch and said that he would just take us there himself and that we should follow him. He was dressed in a suit and had a large fancy vehicle. We followed him for a long way right up to the entrance of a Pannekoeken House. He waved good-bye to us and drove off. We all had to go to the bathroom and were ready for some food. When we got to the door of the restaurant they informed us that they had closed 30 minutes earlier and we could not be served nor could we use the restrooms. We ended up at the McDonalds next door after all of that! We made many wrong turns on the way home and had to stop for directions (which were only sometimes helpful) several times. We did not get back to our cottage until mid-night and by then we were all tired and cranky!
Tuesday - Amsterdam Canal Trip
On Tuesday we drove to Amsterdam to see Opa’s brother Cok and his “girlfriend” of 25 years, Yvonne. We spent much time driving around the city looking for a parking garage where we could park all day. A very friendly man who had just moved from Friesland to Amsterdam with his family directed us to one. When we got there, Len didn’t dare go in it because there was no person manning the gates and he was afraid we’d get stuck in there and would not be able to get out. (If I had been in his car, I would’ve reminded him of when Opa picked us up at the train station in Arnhem. We had to put the parking ticket in a “vending machine” and it told us how much money to put in. It then gave us the ticket back and we scanned the ticket (marked “paid”) on our way out to get the gate to lift.) Instead, we parked on the road. We found a box/pole on the road for parking. You decide how long you want to park and put the money in. (Like a parking meter.) It gives you a ticket which you then put in your front window. If you park longer than your ticket says, you get a parking ticket. It is nicer than meters because one pole can service a whole block! As we were figuring this whole system out, it began to pour! Several of us took refuge under a roof near a daycare. We realized that we did not have enough coins to pay for 2 vehicles for an entire day. We stopped some people on the road and asked if they had ten Euro in coins we could buy. They sold us what they could and we all scrounged our purses and pockets and came up with enough. We got our tickets, placed them in the cars, and were off a little later than we had planned on. We now had to walk quite a distance to Cok’s store, The Frozen Fountain. (If we had known we were going to be parking on the road we probably could’ve gotten closer but it all worked out.)
We walked down many streets and across several canals and found the store quite easily. We were treated like royalty and were given coffee, cold drinks, cookies, and a tour of the store. Cok even gave Ali a book and signed it for her. The weather was rainy and drizzly and Cok wanted to take us in his boat so we waited out the weather for a bit. Cok and Yvonne do not own a car but they do keep a boat on the canals. When most of the rain stopped, we all climbed into the boat where Cok served us dried apricots, mixed nuts and dried fruit, pepperoni-like paper thin slices of sausage, chunks of cheese, wine, beer, lemonade, apple juice, and red spa. (Spa is bottled water. Red spa is bubbly and blue spa is still.) We motored off down the canal. A short way down the canal we passed the Anne Frank house. We wanted to go in and Cok was willing to drop us off but the line was so long we would’ve had to wait about 2 hours to get in and you can see it in less than an hour. We opted to take pictures from the canal and continue on our tour. We boated through many canals and saw a good part of Amsterdam from the water. We took many pictures of the boats and buildings. Many of the houseboats are hooked up to city water and sewer. They have gardens and clotheslines right on the boats. We even boated past the Red Light District!
We went through what used to be the harbor and went to see Yvonne at her studio. She is a free-lance artist. She was working but took us around her studio and showed us things she does. She also gave us some books and posters to take home. She seems to really have fun with her work! Yvonne agreed to take off work early and join us for an early supper. We needed to get back to our cars by 7 p.m. We boated to a restaurant, tied up at the dock, and went to eat. Several of us got a meatball, Len got croquettes, and Michael and Lindsay decided to be safe with chips and cheese. They tried some bites of our food as well. Yvonne ordered some French fries and some extra cokes for us to have and several people shared desserts. It was very nice!
Next Cok and Yvonne boated us to the closest canal to our cars. The boys and I wanted to see the Hard Rock Café so Len thought we should buy more time for our cars and walk there. The same man who helped us before saw us and came out to see if we had ever found the parking garage. It turns out that his house was right where we parked our cars! He invited Len into his house to meet his family and to look for more coins that we could buy from him. Once we had the coins, however, we decided to drive to find the Cafe and just let those of us who were interested jump out while the cars drove around the block. We did that. (We had a few cars honking at us but we got our pictures and T-shirts!).
Next came the drive home. We returned quite late and we were all tired. We opted to not leave at 7 a.m. the next morning but to shoot for 8 a.m. again and we all headed off to bed.
We walked down many streets and across several canals and found the store quite easily. We were treated like royalty and were given coffee, cold drinks, cookies, and a tour of the store. Cok even gave Ali a book and signed it for her. The weather was rainy and drizzly and Cok wanted to take us in his boat so we waited out the weather for a bit. Cok and Yvonne do not own a car but they do keep a boat on the canals. When most of the rain stopped, we all climbed into the boat where Cok served us dried apricots, mixed nuts and dried fruit, pepperoni-like paper thin slices of sausage, chunks of cheese, wine, beer, lemonade, apple juice, and red spa. (Spa is bottled water. Red spa is bubbly and blue spa is still.) We motored off down the canal. A short way down the canal we passed the Anne Frank house. We wanted to go in and Cok was willing to drop us off but the line was so long we would’ve had to wait about 2 hours to get in and you can see it in less than an hour. We opted to take pictures from the canal and continue on our tour. We boated through many canals and saw a good part of Amsterdam from the water. We took many pictures of the boats and buildings. Many of the houseboats are hooked up to city water and sewer. They have gardens and clotheslines right on the boats. We even boated past the Red Light District!
We went through what used to be the harbor and went to see Yvonne at her studio. She is a free-lance artist. She was working but took us around her studio and showed us things she does. She also gave us some books and posters to take home. She seems to really have fun with her work! Yvonne agreed to take off work early and join us for an early supper. We needed to get back to our cars by 7 p.m. We boated to a restaurant, tied up at the dock, and went to eat. Several of us got a meatball, Len got croquettes, and Michael and Lindsay decided to be safe with chips and cheese. They tried some bites of our food as well. Yvonne ordered some French fries and some extra cokes for us to have and several people shared desserts. It was very nice!
Next Cok and Yvonne boated us to the closest canal to our cars. The boys and I wanted to see the Hard Rock Café so Len thought we should buy more time for our cars and walk there. The same man who helped us before saw us and came out to see if we had ever found the parking garage. It turns out that his house was right where we parked our cars! He invited Len into his house to meet his family and to look for more coins that we could buy from him. Once we had the coins, however, we decided to drive to find the Cafe and just let those of us who were interested jump out while the cars drove around the block. We did that. (We had a few cars honking at us but we got our pictures and T-shirts!).
Next came the drive home. We returned quite late and we were all tired. We opted to not leave at 7 a.m. the next morning but to shoot for 8 a.m. again and we all headed off to bed.
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