Lisbon

Ratings for Lisbon, Portugal

Sights: A+
Food: A+
Weather: A+
People: A+++

Aside from a scare involving Afton (post later), and the predicted hassles of traveling with FOUR kids, we had a wonderful time. Andrew speaks Portuguese and what really made this trip so wonderful were the people. Everywhere we turned someone was helping us, smiling or treating us like lifelong friends. If we stopped and asked someone for directions, they didn't just tell us where to go, they actually made sure we got there. We had at least 3 different women hold Afton on their laps while on the train/tram/buses, and someone was always cooing over Clara. At one point we were relaxing at a town square and Luke and Afton were running around kicking a balloon like it was a ball. I looked around and there were a handful of older women and men watching the kids with a smile on their faces.

We flew in and stayed for 4 full days. I'm posting a ton of pics just to show the diversity of this area. Lisbon was our homebase, but 3 of the 4 days were spent within a 45 min radius of the city. Also, somehow EVERYWHERE we went we beat the crowds- it was really remarkable.

Belém
Monastery of Jerónimos- late 1400's

Monument to the Discoveries and Maritime Museum

Belém Tower- early 1500's

Sintra

Palácio de Pena

Quinta da Regaleira mansion and gardens

Cascais
Great beaches, seafood and fun town center.





Above: We loved the roads in Portugal! They had such great designs and literally gleamed. Below: I didn't think to bring bathing suits, so the boys slowly stripped down to their undies.

Lisbon

Fasnacht Fire Parade

There are lots of different celebrations that go on during fasnacht, and this year Andrew and Sam went to the fire parade held in Liestal. I contemplated having our whole family go, but I'm SOOOO glad I opted to stay home. Just look at those flames- not exactly the type of place you want to go when the kids outnumber you 2 to 1. Instead, Andrew and Sam went with our friends and they had a fantastic time. Below is a link to the video footage Andrew took. The crazy thing is that after watching it Andrew commented, "Oh, I guess I didn't record the really big flames". Whhhaaat?? (Note: if the video freezes you can skip ahead a few seconds and it will pick up.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5cVEsgGWNg&feature=youtu.be



And below are some pictures from the Reinach parade. This year I skipped out on the Basel parades because Andrew was away for work. Again, the kid/parent ratio just wasn't working in my favor. We still had fun with the local stuff.

If you raise your hand during the parade you will likely get candy tossed at you. Luke didn't put down his hand during the entire parade.

Kinder Fasnacht 2012

Fasnacht just might be our favorite cultural experience here. The kids get a week off of school, and combined with our village's celebration, fasnacht is a two week party. Last year Luke was able to be in the kinder parade, and this year it was Sam's turn. It was just plain luck that both boys were able to participate, and for that I'm very grateful. It is an experience I hope both will treasure.

As I mentioned last year, the kinder parades are comprised of the children from the local Swiss schools. The kids in each class make their own costumes and march in the parade while throwing confetti and candy. After the parade is finished the kids all meet together for food and drink. At the International School the 2nd graders get to be in the parade, while the kindergarteners get to go watch. It worked our perfectly for Sam and Luke!

Sam's class chose to be dragons, and while not as impressive as the Swiss costumes (which usually involve paper mache), I thought they did a great job. Sam was certainly pleased with the costume selection.

Above: the kids walking to the parade start point. Below: all of the schools waiting to start the parade.



Sam's class walking by...



Some of the other costumes- I love how creative they are!

Luke enjoying the show and candy in his Superman suit.

Chocolate...and something that looks like chocolate.

Last Saturday was awesome. We visited a Swiss chocolate factory where we took a tour and sampled the chocolate. The kids were excited and well behaved, and I repeat, we were able to sample the chocolate. Success all around! Afterwards we visited Gruyere, which will always be one of my favorite Swiss villages.

The hour and a half drive home is where it got not-so-awesome.

Things went smoothly for about 45 minutes, and then Sam started complaining that he had to go "number 2". Minutes later we hit traffic, and two minutes after that we were at a standstill. At this point Sam was crying and getting borderline hysterical. Since we were completely stopped, with not an exit in sight, we told Sam to just go in his pants. He was horrified, and started to scream in pain. With no other options left, Andrew pulled over and had Sam go on the side of the road- right in front of all the other motorist. I would like to say that there was a tree or something to shield my child, but no, he was right out in the open. More appalling was the "gift" he left on the side of the road. At least we no longer have U.S. license plates. The remainder of the trip was equally eventful, and without going into too much detail, I will just say that it involved a reststop port-a-potty, more "number 2", a dry heaving mommy, and a child who had to ride home wearing nothing but a blanket. Good times.

The Callier Chocolate Factory

Sam and Afton sniffing some cocoa beans.



Mmmmm.....chocolate.

Gruyere

All last week we had temperatures in the 60's. After the freezing temps we were previously having, this has been a blessed relief. Last Friday the kids (who were off from school for a week) and I joined Andrew in Basel for lunch along the river. Is it too much to hope that winter is over???

Luke Turns 6

When I think about the names of my kids, I feel like I nailed it on the head with Luke. He is a passionate child whose name can be sweetly, playfully or sternly pronounced. It is also the perfect name to cry out in exasperation ("Luuuuuuuuuuke!").

Luke is still by far the most affectionate of our kids, and I don't see that ever changing. However, with that affection comes a sensitivity which easily leads to hurt feelings. When upset he can often be heard spouting threats such as, "I'm not going to be your best friend anymore!"or "I'm not going to be your son anymore!" Luckily for us, these threats usually lack luster and Luke is always eager to resume his best friend/son status.

As far as best friends go, Luke considers Sam to be his, and is fiercely loyal to his big brother. A couple of weeks ago there was a minor scuffle between one of Sam's friends and an older boy on the school playground. Sam jumped between the two to try and break it up, and in the process got pushed. Luke, who was standing nearby, jumped in to defend Sam. For some reason I find the notion of Luke defending his big brother oddly sweet, and were I to put my money on any of those school kids in a fight, it would be Luke. He is one tough cookie.

It has been such a pleasure to watch Luke grow and develop over the last six years. He is one of a kind with a heart much larger than his years. Lucky for me- at least for the time being- his heart belongs to me.

Potty Training Woes

Did you know that training toilets have many other uses besides being peed in???

For example, they make great helmets-



and great castles.

So far I have bought Afton two training toilets, and not once has used them for their intended purpose. As you can see from the pictures above, she uses them for many different (and often disturbing) things, but not as a potty. When I first introduced them to her our conversation went something like this:

Me: Afton, you need to pee in this potty.
Afton: No! It will get dirty.
Me: That's ok, I will clean it.
Afton: No! It is pink!
Me: It's ok, just use it.
Afton: Um, how about I use it with my diaper on?

I have a feeling that this is going to be a long process...