The last few weeks have been full of change! When mom and I arrived back in Strasbourg in the middle of November we had a few sunny and beautiful days...I even wore my flats with no socks! But then the air turned cooler and it seemed as if the trees all dropped the remainder of their leaves over the course of a day....winter had arrived in Strasbourg. So far it has been mostly wet. There have been a few days of snow, but it either melts upon landing on the ground or it melts the next day. The temperature has hovered between -1 and -5 degrees Celsius, so it has not been really cold. However, the dampness makes the cold seep into your bones, so I am finding that I get chilled really easily and need to wear my long johns and big sweaters even though in Winnipeg I would never pull these items out until it hit around -20 degrees Celsius.
The week mom spent with us in Strasbourg was fantastic! It was so fun to show her around and have her see what our life is like here in France. Dave was unfortunately really busy that week, so mom mostly only saw him on the weekend - but we managed to eat out together twice and enjoyed a dinner of traditional Alsatian food one night and Tapas another night.
Also, a highlight for mom was the fact that her visit corresponded with the release of the new Beaujolais Nouveau (released only once a year) so she was able to taste it for the first time in France (at a much reduced price compared to what it would be in Canada)!
While poor Dave was at school and working on group projects, mom and I looked around Strasbourg, did some shopping, ate at my favourite places and took a couple of day trips. The first place we went to was the little city of Colmar, only about a half hour train ride from Strasbourg. It was a really pretty little town that I had heard about lots and it had been recommended to me several times as a place to visit. So mom and I spent a wonderful day looking around the pretty little town centre and enjoyed seeing the Christmas decorations being set up.
The pictures above are from a part of the city called Little Venice, because the buildings are situated along a canal and originally you could only reach their entrances by boat. It was a really sweet, charming area and in nicer weather you can even go on "gondola" rides there in the canal.
We took a tour of the town on a little train and learned some interesting historical facts about the city. One of their most notable citizens was Auguste Bartholdi, the man who designed the Statue of Liberty, and his artwork can be seen all around the city. On the most famous building in Colmar, the House of Heads (named so because it has over 100 sculpted heads on it) is a sculpture by Bartholdi...plus the town has a whole museum dedicated to him and his works.
Besides taking in the local architecture and history, mom and I also did some eating (nutella crepes!) and shopping (very cute little stores).
Mom and I also went into Germany a few times to do some exploring. One day we went just over the river from Strasbourg into Kehl and did some shopping. And another day we took the train to a town called Baden-Baden (meaning Bath Bath), a place known for its hot springs and mineral waters! We went on a beautiful, sunny, but cool day and walked around the town for a short time before heading to the spa where we were going to "take the waters"! The actual spa was called Caracalla Thermal Spa and you can pay to go in for either 2 or 3 hours. There are two outdoor pools, one indoor pool, a hot tub and a cold tub side by side, plus three different saunas on the main floor. On the upper floor is an area called the Roman Spas - and it is a non-optional "clothes free zone"! There are multiple saunas (aroma saunas, vapour saunas, crystal saunas, fire saunas, etc) and hot tubs on this level, including some cool outdoor saunas. Mom and I took off our bathing suits and wrapped ourselves in our towels and went into the clothes free zone! Thankfully and fortunately towels were not forbidden. Unfortunately, most of the older men did not seem to have any desire to use the towels to cover themselves up, so I saw a lot of things I wished I hadn't!
But all in all it was really fun and super relaxing....me left feeling so relaxed and sleepy!
When my mom left it was really hard to say goodbye. We had been together constantly for 3 1/2 weeks and it was great to have her with me for that time. But she had to go home to my Dad and Kristen! And of course she was missing Lily! Thank you so much for coming to see us mom and for all the great times we had!
The weeks since my mom's departure have been busy! I had some catching up to do on emails, grocery shopping, errands to run, etc since being a leisurely woman of travel during the previous weeks. I also had to finalize our Christmas plan for traveling to the UK on Dave's school break (We will be going to Edinburgh for a few days before Christmas, then to Cardiff to spend the holiday with family friends, and then to London for a few days). I also went back to work, babysitting my little French girls and also started tutoring two little boys from India three times a week (I met their mom through a lady who attends the same bible study as me and was looking for an English tutor for her sons). Plus, my mom bought Dave and I a small oven before she left so I have been taking advantage of all the new cooking/baking possibilities now open to me and have been whipping up old and new recipes that utilize the oven!
And obviously, the holiday season is now upon us and is in full swing in Strasbourg. At the end of November we went to an American Thanksgiving celebration/potluck at a French family's from church with other North American expats that attend Trinity. It was so fun and special to celebrate Thanksgiving with our new friends and Dave actually took the afternoon off of studying to come. There was so much amazing food - turkey, potatoes, stuffing, sweet potatoes, homemade buns, green beans, casseroles, pumpkin and apple pie - and we had just a fantastic afternoon!
And during the last weekend of November the Christmas markets in Strasbourg officially opened and with them all the Christmas activities in the city commenced! There are skating rinks, concerts, petting zoos, Christmas booths set up with crafts, candies, jewellery, food and hot mulled wine and ciders! It is truly magical here right now and many people come here this time of year to see Strasbourg, the Christmas capital of Europe! The whole city is decorated in lights and decorations and in the main square there is a gigantic Christmas tree - one night a group of ISU students went to see it get lit up, being informed that the official lighting of the tree was to happen that night. We got to the spot early and a group of about 25 of us started to wait in front of the tree, over the next hour a large crowd followed our lead and gathered around the Christmas tree expectantly.....
After waiting an hour a nice Australian lady came up to us to tell us she had just found out the tree was not going to be lit until the next night!!! And true enough we walked around to the other side of the tree and saw the sign informing passersby’s of that very fact! So we decided to go home to our warm apartment and eat instead!
I have been enjoying the Christmas activities and have spent a few hours wandering the markets and drinking vin chaud (hot wine) but Dave has been very busy with school - surprise surprise! The other night he pulled an all nighter to get some work done for his team project - I felt so bad for him! So I have tried to bring some Christmas cheer to him - and have done some decorating in the apartment to make it more festive for Dave....I made a Christmas centrepiece for the table and got some mini lights and real pine from the market, with which Dave made a mini Christmas tree for our place!
Also, the ISU students were able to participate in some festive activities this past weekend when a joined American/Canadian Thanksgiving and Christmas potluck and party was held at the school! The "other" Dave in the class organized a fantastic party complete with games and food and a gift exchange and Joao organized and ran karaoke!!! The main hall of the school was decorated and we all sat at one big table, family style, that was decorated with poinsettias, candles and oranges!
We had an amazing dinner complete with chicken (good job Mark!), roast beef (good job John!), potatoes, sweet potatoes, stuffing, salads, and even Indian food (Yay Sunny)! Next came the games portion of the evening - bobbing for apples and three legged races! And finally, before the karaoke began - a gift exchange!
The limit for the gift exchange was 2 euros, so people had to be creative with what they were going to bring! There were a few very popular items in the exchange (we played the game where when your name is drawn you can pick a new unwrapped gift or steal a gift someone before you has already opened or stolen). There were smartie robots (see above picture), toy guns, energy chocolate, and rainbow condoms that got passed around a lot - but for some reason the gift that I brought was never stolen. So lucky Michele, who was the first to open my gift, got to keep it! Check out the sweet necklace she ended up with - for life!!!! Hahaha (it’s a creepy fox head!)
At the end of the evening we settled in for some always amazing karaoke times courtesy of our awesome DJ Joao - we enjoyed some Journey, Backstreet Boys, Alanis, Avril, Queen, Madonna! It was a great night - and so fun to celebrate with the ISU "family"! Thanks Dave for the idea and for all your organizing and decorating!!!
Another somewhat ISU related get together that I enjoyed recently was a lunch with Zahira, Maite, Mark and Teresia and baby Max - all the other significant others of the ISU students who are here in Strasbourg, or as Mark likes to call us, the First Wives Club. We had lunch together, drank wine and then went to do some shopping in the markets. It was so fun and I am looking forward to doing it again!!!!
To everybody back home - we miss you and talk of you often! It will be strange not being with you all this Christmas but you will be in our thoughts and prayers. And to those who are with us here in Europe, we are looking forward to spending the holiday season celebrating with you and getting to know you better!
Love Heather & Dave
