DC Weekend 2014

My birthday passed without incident (or photos, I must admit).  LBJ organized some enjoyable gifts, such as all three seasons of The Killing, the best crime drama in years (it's Danish - was shown with subtitles on BBC4 last year), and a guidebook for Tennessee (where we are going on our summer vacation).  LBJ's parents had us over for dinner, as they were off to France the following weekend for their semi-annual one month visit.

View from the airport Metro stop

The following Thursday, I flew to DC for a conference.  Alas, there was not a non-stop flight that day, so I connected via Philadelphia on U.S. Air.  The airplane was quite new and had individual TV screens with hundreds of movies on demand.  So I caught up on some of my movies and even got some work done.  I was impressed by Dallas Buyers Club but found American Hustle disappointing.

In Philly, I discovered that my connection to DC was on a prop plane.  I misread the boarding time, so I arrive at the gate 10 minutes after boarding has started, but nearly 30 minutes before take off.  The agent explains to me that she needs to go check on the weight of the plane.  She then leaves me at the counter while she goes outside (no jet bridge for this flight!) to talk to the crew.  I'm standing there thinking about how to channel my inner Aldo to make sure that I get on that plane, as she gives me the impression that it's not clear whether or not I'll be allowed on the flight.  About 10 minutes later, she reappears, scans my boarding pass, and I'm off to the plane.  I'm told to take any seat I like (there are 3-4 left).  The 30 minute (if that) flight is choppy but I'm just happy to be on it.

My time in DC was great.  The conference was very useful.  My talk went reasonably well; it was a bit challenging as the paper had already been published.  Usually one presents work in progress at these conferences.  I met up with two of my advisors from graduate school, as well as a classmate.  Also chatted with a former graduate student from Kentucky and other people I know from conferences, visits, etc.  Plus, I was able to catch up with friends in DC.  I was happy to hear that we may be able to host two of our friends in Dublin in the fall.

On my last morning, I woke up at 6am due to jet lag (but better than the previous morning's 4am wake up).  It was Sunday.  I decided to take a bike ride along the bike path that runs near the Potomac River.  The hotel offers complimentary bikes, so I headed out at 7am.  Stopped for breakfast at Starbucks - the only place I could find open at that hour.  I headed toward Mount Vernon, but I stopped a few miles short.  On the way, I stopped at a very pretty park called Jones Point Park.  I had never been there, but it was very interesting.

Lighthouse at Jones Point Park

Afterwards, I had time to stop at Trader Joe's for some emergency provisions (and a mid-morning snack), with enough time to shower before check-out.  I then went to the airport and dropped off my bag - I was able to check in even though the flight was over 6 hours away.  Then I took the subway and met a friend for lunch (BBQ!).  Then the friend's family joined us for a leisurely walk around Roosevelt Island.

On the bridge to Roosevelt Island

I did not sleep much on the plane - was awakened by dinner service and had a hard time getting back to sleep.  But it was a very good trip.  Plus, the next day, LBJ had her final exam for the courses she's been taking since September.  Woo-hoo!

France (April 2014) - Part 3

The next day was yet another sunny day.  We started the day with an errand to the shops, followed by a brief stop at a playground (which was a pretty good playground).  Then, we spent the afternoon having lunch and lounging with a friend of mine from tennis.  He and his wife have a home about 15 minutes from my in-laws' house.  It was nice to hang out with someone we knew in France.

The next day was Easter.  The weather was lousy.  We headed off to Narbonne for a few hours.  There is a Sunday market, so we did a bit of shopping and then found a restaurant for lunch.  It was nice until they forgot our order, and the girls' meat was undercooked.

The next day, it was still raining, so LBJ took the girls to a nearby water park.  (I was not feeling well that morning, although I felt better after some additional rest.)  The weather improved after lunch, so FABJ and I rented bikes from a nearby village and took a bike ride along the Canal du Midi.

Taking a break by the canal

Our bike (bikes?)

It was a very enjoyable ride, although it was a bit challenging to steer with the extra wheel and passenger.  But FABJ and I had a good time.  

Our last day in France, we went to Montpelier to the Aquarium there - good move since it rained much of the day.  The girls and I had a good time while LBJ got to relax a bit.  (However, lunch was a bit stressful - the kids were a bit anxious.)

Of course, the weather was awesome the day we returned to Ireland.  The weather wasn't nearly as good there, I must admit.

France (April 2014) - Part 2

The next day (Good Friday) also had very nice weather, although a bit more wind than the previous day.  Today's activity was to visit one of the Cathar castles in the area.  Our original plan was to visit one of the largest and relatively more accessible ones (after Carcassone, of course), Peyrepertuse.

However, FABJ started to get car sick soon after we left the freeway.  We pulled over in one of the towns along the way so she could get a bit of rest, a drink, and a snack.  She did better after that, but we didn't want to risk a repeat of a previous trip to France when she threw up in the car (less than a mile from our destination).

So we decided to visit Queribus instead.  It's not quite so large and imposing, but it does have an amazing view.  Since it was close to lunchtime, we started our visit with a picnic.  Fortunately, there were a couple of picnic benches that were outside but mostly sheltered from the wind.

A feeble attempt to capture the amazing view from the castle

The girls were real troopers on the hike.  They had their walking sticks and made it to the top without fuss (about a mile, perhaps a bit less).  In fact, I was the one who had to stop for a minute after entering the castle grounds, as the wind was howling through the doorway (which opened to more steps rather than an indoor space).  After a minute or two, I got my breath and was able to continue.  It turns out that it was the worst spot.

A bit breezy at the castle

We had a good time exploring the castle ruins (despite the wind).  Then we returned to the car and headed off for a well deserved snack.  The girls enjoyed their ice creams as we sat outside in a cafe in a small French village - a very touristy thing to do (so we did it).

Apparently, the Cathars were not very tall

By the way, note the Decathalon top that I am wearing.  And FABJ's hiking stick (purchased on a previous visit to Decathalon).

Once again, we returned home for a leisure meal.  And some ping pong.  This might have been the day when I won my only match against LBJ (she won 3, I think).  I was unable to resist the temptation to smack the ball (and keep it from going out).  Plus, I can't really implement my preferred tennis strategy of serving and volleying.  Those are my excuses - for now, at least.

France (April 2014) - Part 1

Over Easter, we took our first vacation since New Year's (and, frankly, that trip didn't really feel like a vacation with the cancelled flight and the lousy weather).

We spent a week in France, staying in a village called Nevian.  We flew into Toulouse and rented a car from there.  It's around 2 hours by car to the house that LBJ's parents have (and were kind enough to let us use for the week).

The weather was amazing when we landed.  It was in the 70s and sunny.  Not too windy either, which is saying something - this is the windiest part of France.  LBJ should know, given her work in the energy sector (and all the interest in renewables, including wind).

The weather was still glorious when we woke up the next morning, so we decided to go to the beach. After a stop at our favorite store in the area, Decathalon.  How do I describe this shop?  It is like a giant Costco devoted to sports (and without the membership fee).  They have an amazing variety of products and they are all quite reasonably priced.  We got fleeces, t-shirts, hiking shirts, rash guards (shirt-like things to wear over swimsuits to keep warm and avoid sunburns), etc.  FABJ even got some early birthday presents - riding boots and pants (jodhpurs).

The beach was nice - we had a picnic there.  Well, I ate on a bench next to the beach, as I didn't want sand in my food.  Call me a fussy eater.

It appeared that the only people on the beach were foreigners.  I think there were Brits and Germans there along with us.  It was probably too cold for the locals.  FABJ did get her feet wet, and she even got LBJ to get her toes well, too.  But ORBJ and I had no interest.

A picnic at the beach

The girls had a great time playing in the sand.  In theory, they were building sand castles.  In practice, they were happy to dig trenches and get all sandy.

They even had the energy to play with the exercise equipment that is next to the beach.  I'm not quite sure that this is what the town / city planners had in mind, but it was somewhat amusing to watch:

ORBJ training for cross country skiing

FABJ strengthening her core, French style

After that, we stopped at a local supermarket, bought a couple of things for dinner, and made our way home.