Vacationeering

Ah! Our first real vacation (i.e., does not involve visiting/mooching off relatives in other states)! Our first real vacation in five years and the first vacation, for the wife and I, sans children since our honeymoon to Napa Valley, eleven long years ago.

Spent the weekend doing a phenomenal amount of work. My better half cleaned the house up and down, ’cuz my mother is staying over the week watching the little ones. She did about eight loads of laundry, mine included (which she almost never does). She also swapped out the girls’ winter clothes for summer, no small feat in itself as it involves several trips up to the attic.

Me, I mowed the front and back lawn, gathered up branches, seeded the backyard, cleaned off the deck, tidied up the garage, and actually built an electric grill. I was so exhausted I felt the need to soak in a hot tub, and even that felt like work. We had some delicious sushi (and a little ice cream) to finish off the weekend. We watched the finale of Celebrity Apprentice after the little ones went to bed, and then we went to bed and were out like lights within three minutes of hitting the sheets.

Some last minute stuff today: pack, pay bills, do the Hopper thing here. I think over the next five days we’ll be in Paris, I’ll queue up some “Best Of The Hopper” posts that are worth a second look. I’ll try to pick some that are funny or at least witty, or ones that will make you scratch your chin or pet your beard. So do check back every day for something interesting. And, of course, when we’re back next Sunday, I’ll do a recap of our trip to France.

I have no idea what to expect overseas. Quite a few people have warned me that I may be made the target of stereotypical French scorn and muted mockery (or not so muted). My brain can’t wrap around that; I mean, it’s not like we’ll be in the Burgundian countryside; we’ll be in the heart of Tourist, Inc, Franco-style. But maybe that’s the reason why. Dunno. Interested to see if any anti-Americanism or anti-Tourist-ism comes into play. Let you know in a week.

We do plan to do all the tourist-y stuff, unabashedly so. See the city from the top of the Eiffel Tower. Tour the Louvre. Pray in the Notre Dame Cathedral and the Basilique du Sacre Couer. Walk under the Arch de Triomphe. Dine on a floating restaurant on the Seine. Stroll the Champs-Élysées. Drink lots of famed French wine. Drink a glass of cognac.

All right. Got a couple of phone calls to make. Have a great week, check back daily, and be sure to stop by next Sunday for a Hopper take on the City of Lights.