Bonne fête national : 14 juillet

Today marks the 223rd anniversary of the Bastille Day in France. The revolution put an end to the royal authority and gave birth to the declaration of human rights.

Last year, I was on the road trip to Toulouse with Bob and Sheree. We went to see the fireworks held in Carcassonne, a fortified city in Aude Department. The fireworks that Mr. Ozaki puts together in Miyuki-no-hama in Odawara is amazing but this one in Carcassonne was superb. The entire cité looked like it was on fire. An unforgettable moment.

Nathan and I visited Carcassonne later in 2011 with Donna. It was a windy and delicious visit where we first tasted the dish called Cassoulet. The reproduction of it later at home turned out excellent and it was happily added to our family meal list. An unforgettable meal.

This year, we spent the eve of July 14th with Isabelle and Nicolas and their family, surrounded by 4 dogs and 6 puppies. Another unforgettable moment with super puppy actions.

Today, Nathan and I are packing instead of playing scrabble!

J'en ai marre !

I have always enjoyed packing and moving, looking for the new adventures ahead. Well, not this time apparently. The boxes in our living room are still in random "miscellaneous" status and I even started knitting instead of packing in this hot weather! This weekend, we were visiting our friends in Toulouse to pay a visit to their 7months old baby, and my knitting instinct kicked in. It was so good to see them again one last time before we leave France for good...

As they said Chana was welcome as well, we decided to drive instead of taking a train or a plane. It was a long drive but it was worth it. On the way, we simply took the toll road, but for our return trip we drove the  national road which took us through small towns and mountains. In fact, our dear friend from Oregon took me on this trip last year around the same time. So it was great to share that experience with Nathan this time. The conclusion is, France you won my heart.

Between Rodez and Mende, we stopped for a picture break in Chanac. Close enough, right Chana? Here is a great photo of Chana saying "J'en ai marre!" meaning I am fed up or I am sick of it. Our Namesake photo shoot continues. Live it up poochkin!