Episode 27: July 2007
Highlights of the month include:
• July 4th celebrations
• Sheorey parents’ visit to Midland
• European vacation (Amsterdam and Switzerland)
• Daphne and Pierre’s wedding in Cadarcet, France
The number 27 is an auspicious number in the Sheorey – and now Shorg – household. Neal proposed to me on the 27th day of the month, our birthdays are 27 days apart…the list goes on and on. Not surprisingly, this episode being our 27th installment, July was a great month!
On the tail-end of our weekend in Chicago, we started July with an action-packed week at work, thankfully broken up by a holiday in the middle of the week: July 4th, the Americans’ Independence Day. The evening of July 3, we drove to Bay City for what was advertised as the best firework display in the region. True to form, the 45-minute show did not disappoint. Something that continues to astound and inspire me is the national pride that Americans have, and the celebrations of the country’s independence brought out the best of this patriotism. The crowds were a sea of red, white, and blue, with children and elderly alike stopping to salute the flag and sing the anthem.
On July 4 we were invited by some friends to their house on Sanford Lake (about 10 minutes away from Midland) to enjoy an afternoon outdoors. And what would a day of patriotism be without a barbeque and a sacrifice of one’s digits by putting on a display of personal fireworks in the backyard?! Thankfully, no one lost a finger.
Over the next week, our schedules settled down and allowed us to catch up on some hobbies. I have joined a book club which is made up of a great group of girls who get together each month to discuss our book of the month. July’s book was “Eat, Pray, Love,” a great biography by Elizabeth Gilbert. This time the club met at our place for the monthly debrief, which ended up being more about pop-culture gossip and the wine than the book itself.
We also kept up with our fitness activities, although we are not training for any major events at the moment. Neal and I are now both playing Ultimate Frisbee two nights a week. It is a great sport that allows us to run around and get a decent workout while having fun. Neal is also playing in a weekly golf league, and he and his partner are on track to finish in first-place this season.
In the second weekend of the month we were visited by Neal’s parents who made the trip up from Oklahoma. Although they had been to Midland before (when Neal previously lived here), they had yet to see our new digs and we had not seen them since our Hindu wedding in January. We spent the weekend cooking, playing cards, and spending time with each other. We also took the opportunity to check out some of the local sites. One nice outing was for an afternoon stroll through the Dow Gardens, a wonderful park that has been meticulously manicured. We also made it to the movie theater to see Michael Moore’s new film, “Sicko,” which we thoroughly enjoyed and definitely recommend. Overall, it was a relaxing and fun weekend together.
Two days after Neal’s parents left, it was our turn to travel, this time for a two-week European summer vacation. After 11 hours of flying we arrived in Amsterdam where we stopped for, literally, 24 hours. As soon as we checked into our hotel we dumped our bags, showered, and set out to explore Europe’s largest historical inner city. We came away very impressed with Amsterdam. The city has many facets: impressive architecture, featuring grand gabled houses, history housed in hundreds of museums (none of which we had the time to visit), old world charm, cozy bars, and a great culinary scene. We took in as much of the city as we could by foot, then caught a mandatory boat ride to see many of the 160 man-made canals. The canals give the city an incredible feel – narrow streets, tiny bridges, and waterfront property everywhere you look. We followed up our boat tour with a snack of über traditional fries and mayonnaise and then dinner overlooking one of the canals. Before heading back to our hotel, we waited for nightfall to arrive before making one last tourist stop at Amsterdam’s famous red light district, which we found fascinating and disturbing all at the same time. The district features hundreds of scantily-clad women on display in window fronts with red fringed curtains, attempting to entice passers-by to stop in. The openness and legality of the whole scene were rather shocking, as were the ages of some of the women who looked every bit like teenagers. And, yes, it is true that purchasing and smoking marijuana is perfectly legal in Amsterdam when done in sanctioned shops and “coffeehouses.”
The next day we were back on a plane, this time to Zurich. Upon arriving in Zurich, we were greeted by our dear friend, Maria, who kindly picked us up and hosted us for our four days in town. During that time we caught up with friends, shopped, ate, and enjoyed walking the streets of Zurich again, reminiscing about the places we used to frequent. It was wonderful to be back again and reminded us how fortunate we were to have lived there and made such fantastic friends.
After four days in Zurich, we boarded a train to Lausanne where we were picked up by Dad and Julie for the next part of our journey. We spent two days with them at their home in Vevey and took day trips exploring some of the local sites. On the first day, we visited a very impressive waterfall, Gorge du Denard, and saw an old amphitheatre in Martigny. We topped off the day by driving along a very impressive mountain road that has been literally carved into a mountain and made just wide enough for only one vehicle to pass through in most places – despite the sheer drop on one side and the two-way traffic. At the end of the road was the picturesque town of Deborance, a village of some 10 houses set in a very rustic and pristine setting. The drive back down the mountain was equally interesting (and nerve-racking)! On day two, we drove to the famous ski town of Chamonix, France. Despite the ski season being several months away, the town is just as popular in the summer with hikers, mountaineers, and tourists coming to the area to catch a glimpse of the massive Mont Blanc, an impressive mountain that spans into three countries (Italy, France, and Switzerland). We spent the day looking around the town and then went to the top of Brevant (2,532 metres, or approximately 7,000 feet), a mountain on the other side of the valley from Mont Blanc, to get some good pictures of the mountains and a bird’s eye view of the valley below. It is an extremely beautiful part of the world!
The next day we packed up again and continued our adventure by car, with Dad and Julie in tow, to the south of France to attend our friends’ wedding. Along the way, we made a few stops. The first stop was a delightful little town just across the Switzerland-France border called Annecy. The town dates back to the 1400s and has a beautifully-preserved old city comprised of a maze of lanes, passages, and arcaded houses that are lined below and between the branches of the Canal du Thiou, which ultimately flows into the River Fier. It was a great place to stop for lunch and to absorb some history before continuing with the remainder of the eight-hour drive to our final destination, Foix, in the Ariege region.
The Ariege region is at the foot of the Pyrenees Mountains in southern France. The truly rustic French countryside offers a glimpse of the past, with rolling hills, quaint towns, caves, and many Cathar castles. Surprisingly, there was more to see and do in the area than our four days would allow. We toured around the town of Foix, which was our favorite town in the region. We also visited the nearby town of St. Giron, a pre-historic cave called Mas de Azil, and even had a relaxing canoe one afternoon along the river just outside our hotel.
That Saturday was the wedding of our friends, Daphne and Pierre. The wedding was held at Pierre’s family’s estate in the small town of Cadarcet. I had the honor of being a witness at the civil wedding, which was a small ceremony held in the mayor’s office. Following that was a full church ceremony in the local cathedral, conveniently located about 20 steps from the mayor’s office. Following the wedding, all the guests returned to the family estate for aperitifs, dinner, and an evening of dancing. It was a wonderful wedding. The bride and groom looked fantastic and the setting was incredibly romantic as the estate overlooked beautiful gardens and the rolling hills of the Pyrenees. A great time was had by all!
The next day we loaded up the car again and the four of us (Dad, Julie, Neal and I) drove one hour north to the city of Toulouse. Along the way, we stopped in the old fortified towns of St. Martin d’Odysses and Carla Bayle, the latter having an amazing view of the valleys below as it was strategically positioned on a hill. We also stopped at a small town called Lezat s/Leize, a quaint village that had the coolest display: on the front door of each house in the village was a professional black-and-white picture of the family that lives inside! As we looked at each picture we were reminded that a picture really can say a thousand words.
Toulouse was a very interesting city, with a history dating back over 2,000 years. We spent most of our time exploring the old district, winding through streets until we came upon the impressive Place du Capitole, the home of the Capitole Theatre and the Town Hall. The architecture of the city was very beautiful and somewhat Parisian. Being a Sunday, most things besides restaurants were closed, but that did not stop us from walking through the city, admiring the buildings, visiting the inside of some wonderful churches, and enjoying our final dinner in Europe (which did not disappoint).
And so ended our vacation in Europe and the month of July. During our two weeks in Europe, we managed to catch up with family and friends, relax, see the sights of Amsterdam, western Switzerland, and southwest France, and celebrate the marriage of two of our dear friends. Who could ask for a better vacation?!
See you next month!
