Poland!

Wow...Poland...what an awesome country!!!  It was nothing like I had pictured in my mind! With all of the very stylish, well-dressed people, high end clothing boutiques, 5 star restaurants and vitatlity on the streets, it was hard to remember that I was visiting a former eastern block country.  Not until you see and study the architecture and notice the demise from  the war, does it really sink in.   

After leaving Madrid on the 22nd, en route to Frankfurt, Millie developed a fever of 103 and was feeling AWFUL!!  We took her to see the doctor at the airport in Frankfurt immediately after arriving (Jaimeson pushed his flight to Austria back a few hours to stay with Millie and I and make sure she was ok).  Turns out her two front, top teeth were painfully making their way through her delicate little gums, causing the fever and discomfort.  We were prescribed some suppositories and given the OK to fly to Warsaw.  The meds broke her fever and she felt a bit better for our travels to continue.  Poor Millie!! Uncle Billy picked us up at the airport in Warsaw in a taxi and got us back to his place.  Thank goodness he did...the language is completely unrecognizable to say the least....and I wouldn't have known where to begin to get us around...pointing to things only works for so long.  After a year in Poland, Billy's polish is fluent and pretty flawless from what I could tell.....it was fascinating listening to him speak!! 

Sadly, over the next couple of days, Millie felt really crummy and didn't want to do much, except lie in Mama's arms...and that was ok.  Lisa, Alex, Logan and Haley arrived the second day and they were AWESOME sports, given Millie's condition and her low spirits.  We tailored our schedule to keep things light and mellow.  We luckily made it to Krakow, a beautiful city about 2 hours (it took us 4....ha!)  from Warsaw, with a lot of culture and history.  We were able to drive by and through Auschwitz as well, the largest of the Nazi German concentration camps....it was a very thought provoking and somber experience...we all sat in silence for a bit.  And on the last day, Millie was feeling better, so we did a walking tour around Warsaw and spent much of the time in the beautiful parks decorating the city!  Unfortunately, we didn't get to see all of Warsaw and Krakow that we would have liked to...but that's ok!  Most importantly we got to spend a lot of QT with Lisa, Billy, Alex and the kids...it was incredible!!!! 

And I can't end this blog, without mentioning our sleeping conditions!!  Uncle Billy has an awesome apartment...newly built and decorated, it is very hip and modern, classy and clean!!  A total bachelor pad!  However, it was quite tiny for 7 of us to sleep.  Lisa's family shared the double bed...all 4 of them, Millie and I were nestled together on the couch and Uncle Billy...all 6'6" of him slept "snuggly" on the inflatable twin-size air mattress on the floor next to  Millie and I. Ha!!  Good thing we're all family!!  And as most of you know, as 7 of us were sharing a 400 sq.ft. apartment with no AC, Jaimeson was flying in the owner of Red Bull's private jet to Monocco.....rough, huh?!!!  

Enjoy the photos...sadly, i didn't take as many pictures as I would have like to, since Millie was sick!!  

the family...you can see Millie isn't herself :(

Haley doing a great job of making Millie feel better

the cousins

pooped after a long day in Krakow

cool art in Krakow

botanical gardens in Warsaw

walking like a big girl

starting to feel better

cute dresses from mimi and pampa

!Adios Espana! (El Ultimo Capitulo)

We only confirmed this trip to Spain a month ago, and came over here with reasonably low expectations. Our reserved hotels looked cool online; we knew you could rent Audi's over here for little more than a Ford Focus; several people had told us that we would really enjoy the history of a city like Sevilla, the architecture of Barcelona and beaches of San Sebestian; but we had no idea that this country would be this damned cool!

From the incredibly friendly and warm-hearted people to the highly-varied and exotic topography, to delicious cuisine and perhaps the most impressive urban aesthetics we have witnessed anywhere on our passport pages, we have to give Spain a 9.5 out of 10 (if more kids could swim in our hotel 'spa' pools, Madrid wasn't a confusing mess to drive in, and the Canadian dollar were a little stronger against the Euro, it would have been 10 out of 10!) 

But enough words. Its late and all of this laughter and smiling has left us drained of energy. Check the largest stack of photos The Good Kids blog has ever seen, and hugs to all.

ps - Could there have been any better way to spend Father's Day today than cruising a beautiful park in Madrid with my girls???

On a bus tour in Seville...it was a smokin 45 degrees, but who's counting....

bus ride around town

catching a breeze on the bus in Sevilla

Plaza de Espana in Sevilla...a really impressive spot

Cooling off with Mr. Fishy in Sevilla (after it took 25 minutes to blow him up!)

It was 45 degrees celcius (113 Farenheit) and with a lot of humidity! It dropped to a "cool" 40 in the evening!  Fortunately the weather got cooler as our trip progressed.

Hotel Alfonso XIII in Sevilla...don't ask for it as a Westin because no one knows/cares!

Jules and Milliebeans atop The Alhambra!

The cruiser footpaths of Valencia - such a cool city

L' Hemisphere...the future is really here!

The Art and Science Museum in Valencia....the Architecture is AMAZING!

a good giggle on the train ride through the park in Valencia

You, pal!

One of hundreds of outstanding street performers in Barcelona. Julie put a Euro in his tip cup and he didn't emerge for a couple minutes. When he jumped out of it and changed her look of disappointment to sheer terror, he apologized saying, "Sorry, I wasn't ready yet!"

Millie busted by Paparazzi...Twittering her peeps!

s

standing like a big girl at a great restaurant in Barcelona

The beaches of Barcy...not to be missed!

Looking out on the Mediterranean in Barcelona

Gordon Gecko's got nothing on the Good Kids!

Monserrat - its like 2 million feet above sea level!  Incredible!

The queens outside our classy hotel, Maria Christina, in San Sebestian

The minute before we decided we had to come back with swimsuits to this awesome city beach in San Sebastian

Carousel ride in San Sebastian, along the boardwalk

Millie playing in the sand in San Sebastian...after and before taking her first dips into the Atlantic Ocean

Dada helping Millie catch some air

All these good times can make anyone tired

Happy Father's Day Dada

A paddle boat ride in the lagoon at Parque Madrid...complete with parasol to block the sun! 

being cute

We met some new friends in San Sebestian. Despite what cool tour guides they were, 

Millie liked their dog, Newton, the best! We WILL NOT be showing this picture to Walter...what happens in Spain, stays in Spain!!

Please don't make me leave Spain :(

Spain Part Dos

picking a "Valencia" orange...they were all over the city!

washing it...

...and sharing it with millie!

with Millie behind the map, who needs a GPS!! (ha...ask us about this later ;-)

getting some zzz's during one of our long road trips!

Hello from Barcelona!  We made it!!  It's been an amazing trip thus far!!  We're here for 3 nights.  Millie is OVER the car, so it's good to be staying put for a bit.  After we left Seville, we headed to "Alhambra," which was once the residence of the Muslim rulers of Granada, in southern Spain.  It is a beautiful palace set in the hillside.  Our little tourist stop on our way to Valencia.  Valencia is the third largest city in Spain and an incredible city at that.  We fell in love with it!!  We were only there for a short 24 hours, but feel like we walked the entire city.  We saw as much as we could in a short amount of time.  They are known for their incredible architecture and the blend of modern life with old world charm.   A romantic and stylish city!!!   From there, we headed for Barcelona!!  We had heard from others that we were going to love it, and they were right!!  It feels like a mixture of Paris, NYC and London, with a spanish twist...very international.  The shopping is to die for (but SO expensive) and the food is out of this world....oh...and the Sangria...we can't get enough!!!   We'll be here for 3 nights.  We are excited to check out all of Gaudi's architecture, known for his Modernist Style and his highly individual and unique designs.  This is one of the things we've been most excited to see first hand! 

So how's Miss Millie doing??? (this is her blog afterall...) she is doing FANTASTIC!!  Although if you asked her in the car the last few days, she would have said "I'm over it!"  We have put a lot of kilometers on the car, and she isn't super fond of road trips, but she was a total trooper!!   There are definitely more challenges traveling with an 11 month old, but she gets an A+ for being such an adventurer.  We're just hoping she can get back on a "normal" sleeping schedule when we get home :)  She is VERY popular amongst the locals!!  The waiters at every restaurant have held her and walked around with her, the street performers stop to say hi to her, and people on the streets come up to squeeze her cheeks....I said it before...Spain truly LOVES kids!!!  

We're off to San Sebastian in a couple of days and then to Madrid, where we split ways...Jaimeson to Austria and Millie and I to Warsaw!!!  We'll keep you posted!  I only have a few pictures to post above, as Jaimeson has the camera, and he is out taking pictures, while I'm with Millie in the hotel room while she "naps!" (Her definition of "napping" right this second is tossing all of her toys out of her crib, and making mama get them and put them back in :)  We'll put a link to all the photos at the end of the trip!!!!  Adios for now ;-)

11 Months old Today!

Just kickin' it in Barcelona for my 11 months birthday!!   I enjoyed a croissant for my birthday breakfast, and I'm getting ready to hit "Las Ramblas" for a city stroll!!!  

Viva Espana - Part Uno!

just waiting to board the plane in Vancouver

night night (I don't know if Millie will ever travel coach again :)

just hangin in my pod

after a good nights sleep I'm watching cartoons with dada before breakfast

our regal room at the Westin in Sevilla!  They filmed "Lawrence of Arabia" here

tub time

pooped after 18 hours of travel and a walking tour around town

Sevilla

fabulous eats in Sevilla...Millie flirted with all the waiters...Spain LOVES kids!!!!

Its been an amazing 72 hours (not that anyone is keeping track officially what with these time changes and all!) since we left Vancouver on Thursday morning. For starters, Millie proved her given name 'Amelia' an excellent choice once again by flying like a champ all the way to Madrid. She received positive feedback from several individuals, including some stuffy-looking Euro suit wearing guys up in the Business Class pods with us :)

Once in Madrid, we started taking in this beautiful country immediately, heading out to a local placita by our hotel for some tapas. One thing we keep noticing all around us is the presence of so many beagles - easily the most popular canine type here in Spain...finally a country that gets it - haa - but mostly reminding us that we miss Walter.

From Madrid, we once again braved the most incredibly confusing street signs, maps, tiny winding city streets, underground tunnels, etc to escape to Sevilla. I can't say I recommend renting a car and driving oneself around Spain's urban centers - its not easy! And if you do, save on the car upgrade, and elect the GPS no questions asked. Fortunately 1) the people here are incredibly helpful and understanding and 2) thanks to our time in PR, we understand about every 4th word when receiving directions (abajo, atras, arriba, derecha, izquierda y nada mas!), so we are getting by, if only by a thread.

So far we love it here, though. Its all we had hoped for in terms of a beautiful place with an impressive history and lovely people. More updates coming soon though, since we have lots to see here in Sevilla today! 

For those tracking our trip to follow along it looks like this...

June 12/13 - Madrid

13/15 - Seville

15/16 - Valencia

16/18 - Barcelona

18/20 - San Sebestian

21/22 - Madrid

22/26 - Warsaw (Jules and Millie), Austria (Jaimeson)

love to all y viva Espana!

The Good Kids