Poppa Bob comes for a visit!

Upon arrival back from Berlin, we had a happy reunion with my Dad, who came to visit for about a week. My uncle Richard and aunt Shreve were also in town, as Richard received an honorary degree from the Autonomous University of Madrid for his lifetime achievement in Spanish History scholarship. Dad stayed with them, and we had many opportunities to hang out, do a little exploration of the city, and eat many a meal. We also got to celebrate Dad’s 84th birthday with him. After almost a year apart, it was nice to spend some relaxed time together, much of it indoors as his visit aligned with a big heat wave in the city. No matter, it was a warm and wonderful visit.

Poppa Bob reading some books he brought

Lex made a wonderful card

Aghast to turn 48

A sweltering Madrid from a rooftop restaurant

Richard in a spectacular outfit for the ceremony

Willa wearing her new birthday dress from Mima

Our last night together

Side trip to Berlin

Carl had a talk to give at Founder’s Pledge in Berlin, so we decided to make a trip out of it and pull the kids out of school for a few days. We had a great time, with lots of substantive experiences learning about the DDR and World War II. This was Willa’s first exposure to a lot of these topics and opened her eyes quite a bit. We also were able to spend a lot of time with Joe and Stefanie and their twin boys. Joe and Stef were a classmates of Carl’s at Princeton, and they are taking a sabbatical year in Berlin. We explored several museums, landmarks, and memorials, as well as a lot of the street art and culture of the city. Kids explored an adult-free adventure playground with fire and sharp tools while we had drinks nearby. We ate a lot of Vietnamese food (prevalent in Berlin due to a big Vietnamese community that started to grow even before the Vietnam war), enjoyed a robust public transportation system, beer gardens, lovely street markets, and very beautiful springtime weather. Unfortunately, we were then beset toward the end with illness: both Willa and Lex got very sick our last day with fevers and some prolific barfing. In our rush to pack up amongst the sick kids draped over the hotel room, we neglected to pack Willa’s beloved Bunny, who has been with her through thick and thin since birth. When we finally arrived much worse for wear at 1am after a rather uncomfortable RyanAir flight, only to discover we had left Bunny behind, Willa’s grief was significant. The hotel has yet to find Bunny. In the meantime, Lex recovered mostly by the next day but Willa’s fever still raged, and I ended up taking her to a hospital as we were concerned about her breathing. She has some kind of virus and will be fine, and hopefully her heart will mend, too.

Tiergarten Park

In a Trebant car at the excellent DDR museum

temporarily jailed for intransigence

interesting courtyards everywhere

at the East Side Gallery

with Joe, who is not even so big by German standards

many painted sections of The Wall

Checkpoint Charlie

Christof participates in the Blue Door project

the adventure playground!

Brandenburg gate

Memorial for the Murdered Jews of Europe

a pale, sickly Lex

Willa rallies for the plane ride home

sporting her hospital bracelet

Lex comforting Willa on the loss of Bunny

Sojourn to Toledo

We are so lucky to have Toledo so accessible, just a 30 minute train ride from the center of the city. We cajoled the kids into coming on a day trip there this weekend, and all of us are glad we did. We had a great time exploring the different parts of town, which the kids noted reminded them not only of Segovia but a lot of the hill towns we had seen in southern France last summer as well. The central cathedral was truly spectacular, and came with an excellent audioguide tour. It was a picture perfect sunny day with a cool breeze, and we loved how all the streets are shaded with lyrical canvas awnings strung along them. We also visited two synagogues in the Jewish quarter, and admired the very many sword, knife, and other exciting sharp objects that are sold in town according to a long tradition of weapon craftsmanship. Along with some delicious tapas and well more than 8 miles of walking, it was a good and full day!

Willa turns 7!

As might be imagined, Willa’s anticipation for her birthday was heated, intense, and prolonged. One day a long while ago, Carl reprimanded her slightly for something and she turned to him and said in an exasperated tone, “DAD! It’s three weeks until my birthday and you’re treating me like this!?”

Her desires were for a Greek-myth theme to the celebration, and a long black dress for the occasion. We tried our best to deliver. We crafted a scavenger hunt and some other games, and invited all the kids in her class. We also invited my cousin (2nd, once removed, I think!?) Jason Sinclair and his wife and son Sebastian, who we have become reacquainted with, since they also live in Madrid. I made an owl cake, to represent wise Athena. There was plenty of drama to suit a 7 year old’s party (though a good deal of it came from Lex, who had part in developing the hunt and who had very strong feelings about how everything should go), as well as a dose of chaos. But in all, Willa was delighted to receive some very girly presents from the attendees. For someone who has largely resorted to forks and sticks as playthings for the last year, this was a big improvement in circumstances.

Receiving an actual makeup kit from Isa

clues for the hunt

with Makuey, her school buddy

The hunt commences

Sebastian

Triumphant at Arachne's Web

Very Pleased

Around town

We are peppering our afternoons and weekends with a good deal of treats and outings to get us through the slump that the boys are experiencing as we near the end of our year, and the call for home gets louder and louder. There are sleepovers, helados, festivals, and the boys had a camping trip with school to Ávila. We went to a bowling alley and also the Hippodrome race track. Willa continues to go off on the regular with her buddies Sammy and Jonathan for adventures without us to swimming, overnights, and attractions involving sugar.

the morning after

legos with Jonathan

With Regine for a night of Flamenco

bowling

with Ruben

to school by scooter

the hippodrome

watching the races with Danny, Sammy, and Isa

Italian fest pizza workshop

shelter building on camping trip

The divine Alhambra

A wonderful trip to Granada

We took advantage of a long weekend to take a 4 day trip to Granada. The trip by bus was uneventful and we found an affordable an comfortable place to stay in the beautiful Albaicin neighborhood. We had plenty of time to take in the tapas, churros, helados, and other delicious fare, along with the lively atmosphere, the beautiful hilly streets, a Flamenco show, the famous sites of the city, and the views bathed in golden light. Although the visit to the Alhambra alone was worth the trip, we all tremendously enjoyed the city as a whole, from the food to the North African/Arabic influences, to the little details of handmade patterns of river rocks on the narrow streets.

Blue doors, Granada Edition

New routines, new friends

Despite bouts of orneriness and preteen angst emanating from Lex, Jasper’s usual struggles, and Willa’s melodrama, things became settled rather quickly and easily here in Madrid. This is in large part due to the fact that we met some lovely people right away at Maxwell, and their willingness to bring us into their lives and lend us a hand when we’ve needed it has made all the difference. Willa threw herself headlong into her new social life at Maxwell and has scooted off eagerly to school every day.

There has been more resistance on and off from the boys, but have generally accepted the routine and each have a good buddy in their class. For Jasper, this is Ruben, who was at Quad with him. Having Ruben there to show Jasper the ropes and to be his companion at school has been instrumental to his adjustment. Lex has Danny, whose mother Isa has been incredibly caring, helpful, and generous. Her younger son Sammy is in Willa’s class, and there have already been many playdates, outings, sleepovers, and collaborations. We also have been enjoying getting to know Shira and Guy, who have Jonathan in class with Willa and a younger son Yallie. Willa is regularly inserting herself into their weekend plans and getting invited for sleepovers, even on school nights!

parque de attracciones

building fairy houses at the parque

Sleepover with Danny

building in the woods at Casa Del Campo

Sleepover at Jonathan's

pre-haircut

post haircut!

out to brunch for mother's day

night visit to Reina Sophia

Visits upon arrival

As soon as we landed in our piso in Madrid, we had a lot going on. Our apartment, while in a very well appointed, comfortable neighborhood called Rios Rosas, was rather sterile and needed a little outfitting to make it work for longer-term living (some more kitchen items, etc). We needed to get the kids ready to launch into their new school situation, including outfitting them with uniforms and some school supplies. And we also had two sets of visitors: Jared + Michelle and their daughters Tegan, Tenley, and Meyer, who we had gotten to know in Cabrera at the Hive, live in Lisbon and came to Madrid for the weekend. We met up several times for some meals, playgrounds, sightseeing, and an Easter celebration at Plaza Mayor. Then our dear friends and neighbors Anne + Garry and their boys Noah and Lucas arrived for a visit as well. They rented a beautiful apartment nearby and we filled our days with hanging out, leisurely dinners, seeing some museums, and a soccer game.

Meanwhile, the kids started school. Although they were excited by the novelty and appreciative of the structure and stimulation, it was a big adjustment. Lex had a particularly hard time missing time during the day he wanted to spend with his best buddy Noah. It triggered an acute sense of homesickness that has not completely let up after all these weeks.

Delayed Report: Segovia and on in Spain!

Apologies for the lag in blog reporting. To summarize, we’re very settled in Spain now and I have been meaning to get our blog every week but it has somehow failed to happen. I will try to dredge up my memories to catalogue our time in Spain.

After arriving from Cairo at the airport, we rented a zippy little car and drove up to an AirBnB in a tiny village in the foothills near Segovia. It was a warm, cozy, serene, and comfortable place to land after the frenzy of Egypt.

We went on some peaceful walks in the countryside, and went to Segovia twice to explore the hilly streets of the walled city, the Disney-esque castle, the spectacular Roman aqueduct,and the general feeling of being back in Europe after points more unfamiliar.

Ramadan and Friends in Cairo

Carl’s buddy Karim kindly offered us an apartment to stay in within New Cairo when we returned from our tour. We were embraced by his extended family: his lovely parents, his sister Norhan and her kids. We spent two wonderful evenings breaking fast with them, Willa had a sleepless sleepover with Lara, who she quickly bonded with, and we had a fun visit to Kidzania Cairo. Our last night, Karim’s father surprised us with the gift of a glorious, beautifully crafted carpet. Their generosity was very moving.

The Valley of the Kings and Hatshepsut's Temple

One of the most memorable and impressive sites we visited was the Valley of the Kings. A complex of tombs that were constructed underground in the Hills near Luxor, they were designed to deflect raiding and theft. Because of their underground location, the carvings and paintings are incredibly well preserved.

We visited in the afternoon on a day where the temperatures reached 105. It was challenging to move about in those conditions, and made it nearly impossible to imagine the toiling it took to create these structures in the first place, and then the years and years of painstaking archeology to recover them (just a fraction have yet to be found). We felt bad for our guide, Amr, who was enduring these long days while also fasting for Ramadan.

We also visited the Temple of my favorite Pharaoh, Hatshepsut. She cleverly assumed the throne in the 15th Century and ruled successfully for over 20 years. Considered to be one of the most successful Pharisees ever, she declared herself King and insisted on being depicted as a male in her statuary.

Karnak and Luxor Temples

The final destination of our Nile Cruise was the city of Luxor, which spans the banks of the River and has incredible treasures on both the West and East Banks. Our first stop was the spectacular Karnak Temple, a massive complex with evidence of it’s original, colorful imagery everywhere. The Obelisk’s pair is the one in the center of Paris. At Luxor Temple, there is also a beautiful old Mosque within the complex; an interesting layering of history.

To Aswan and up the Nile

I am writing this after we have moved on from Egypt to Spain, as we didn’t have much internet access during our journey up the Nile or back in Cairo with friends.

We flew to Aswan, where we were immediately ferried to Philae Temple, on a small island where it had been relocated, piece by piece, after the installation of a gigantic dam on the Nile in the late 60’s. It was spectacular to encounter, with so many dramatic carvings and hieroglyphs from the Ptolemaic period. From there, we settled in for a night in a Nubian village on the river, where we explored the colorful painted homes and had some delicious food.

We decided to splurge on a side trip further south the next day to Abu Simbel, an incredible complex built by the egomaniacal Ramses II for himself and his favorite of scores of wives, Nefertari. She’s the only Queen to have a temple built to her, though we later learned about the standout reign of a female King, Hatshepsut.

We then boarded our Nile cruise boat, where we moved North through Edfu, through the Esna lock system, and on to Luxor. The kids loved the novelty of staying on a boat, and Willa in particular demonstrated enormous enthusiasm, appetite, and gusto in regards to the ample buffet meals.

Philae temple

Practicing his smiting

the depiction of multiples is wonderful

Colorful houses in the Nubian village

a spice vendor

the spice vendor showed us his gators

The spectacular Abu Simbel

It intimated the Nubians and also us

Inside Ramses II's temple

we wonder why the Pharoe is offering Eiffel Tower souveneirs to the Gods

Thoth, the god of knowledge

In front of Nefertari's temple

In our room on the Nile Cruise!

The cleaning crew was extremely creative

View from the top deck

Wonder of the World

We had an epic day of High Tourism, where we visited the Great Pyramid of Giza, learned about its construction, crawled into its bowels, and were duly awestruck. We also rode camels through the desert landscape, experienced to Great Sphinx, and went to the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization, where we communed with over 22 spectacularly preserved mummies of Pharaohs and Queens, some over 3000 years old. While the rest of us loved spending time among the massive pyramids, Willa was most impressed with the mummies, one of which was grinning and looked like he was giving us a thumbs-up.

Cairo!

We arrived in Cairo a few days go, the day before Ramadan, immersed instantly into its chaos, noise, and constant activity. Our hotel in Zamalek has a lap pool that is filled pre-dawn and late into the evening with children and teens doing their swim drills to the demanding barks of their coaches. We are learning to dart across beeping traffic to get from one place to another, and tolerate the dry heat during the day. We loved going to the museum in Tahrir Square to begin to grasp the history of this country, and wandered the small streets of a historical part of the city behind old city walls. We’ve had a lovely guide with us named Hahmed, who told us being with us reminded him of being at home, as he has 3 kids of similar ages.

There’s a lot to adjust to, with the intensity of the city, a very different culture and language, and the added element of Ramadan to the mix. It has been engaging, disorienting, and a lot to learn and absorb.

our new favorite spot, Cairo Kitchen

listening to Hahmed

the old city

a quiet morning, the first day of Ramadan

Last days in DR

We squeezed in a lot of last minute trips to the beach, some final gatherings and conclusions to projects, and a lovely quick visit with Carl’s cousin Mike + wife Marisa. We went to Cabarete one last time with them to do a last trapeze class, during which Jasper caught hands with the other trapeze swinger twice (!!), and we all gave surfing a go. As might be expected, the boys took to it immediately and Carl got quite the hang of it. Me, not so much, but I tried. We spent a little time in Santo Domingo on our way out, unfortunately getting very lost, stuck in horrible traffic, and fearing we would miss our flight out. Luckily, there was a delay and we made it onto the plane for a long, long journey to Cairo.

Jasper makes the catch!

Mike and Misa help Lex prepare for his power point

Lex and Will present final projects at the Hive

Francis and Lex say bye

Well, that was a quick 6 weeks!

We had thought 6 weeks in Cabrera would roll out before us in a long and leisurely way. Yet somehow, here we are with only a few days left!

I would be remiss in mentioning that it hasn’t been all smooth-sailing around here. There have been some significant problems at the Hive this session, and it has been rocky for a lot of families. Our kids have been lukewarm about the programming there (or really, the lack thereof), though they have have lots of fun freedom and social time. We don’t regret our time here at all, but have learned that a more “un-schooling” approach is not ideal for any of our kids, despite their very different learning styles and stages. The general rumble of chaos underneath things here has spilled over into our home life, and things have felt strained and stressful at times.

We’re trying to soak up as much time with our lovely new friends and with our delightful temporary pets as possible, and are looking forward to having Carl’s cousin Mike and wife Marisa here with us for a visit during our last weekend. Then we’ll get our ducks in a row for another long haul trip to Egypt, leaving Wednesday evening and arriving in Cairo Thursday via Madrid.

Dinner with Taryn+Marty+crew

Taryn and Marty making dinner

one last dance party

Brilliant move, making room for lego in the luggage

Flor is constantly looking for snuggles

Arlo, resentful of Flor

Party on Secret Beach for Trekker's Bday

Tidepooling

Roasting bread

Carl and Trish fetched the pizza

Taryn with another rescued dog, Bob

Trekker with cake and onlookers

Me and Flor at Cabo Fino

Lex with Francis and Viggo

soccer game Hive vs Esperanza

Animals all around

Early on, a sweet little kitten started showing up around our door. We couldn’t help but put out little bowls of milk and food occasionally, and then regularly. The kids named her Arlin, and then we discovered he was a boy, so now he’s Arlo. He’s super affectionate and we all feel very fond of him. We arranged recently to get him neutered and vaccinated. Hopefully, he’ll be able to go to Canada for adoption with our friend Julie, who works in animal rescue. Otherwise, he will go live at an outdoor cafe/farm with lots of other animals around.

We also began fostering an adorable street dog named Flor, who will also be headed to Canada with Julie. Flor is wonderful - extremely well mannered, calm, and so affectionate that her whole body swivels back and forth with joy, not just her tail. It is a marvel, considering she has been living on the streets her whole life. She loves being walked on a leash and we love having her around. I fear saying goodbye to both of them will not be easy to do.

The menagerie feel is expanded with the addition of several animals at the Hive, particularly by Kiki the chicken and Ferdinand the goat. Both are extremely comfortable around the kids and wander freely both outside in the garden and inside the building as well. We observed Ferdie helping himself to several leftover mojitos and Piña Coladas at a Happy Hour the other day. There’s also a Dorito-loving donkey at our friend’s place who will run along side you and bray in a loud but charming manner. All of this delights our kids to no end.

The Hive chicken, Kiki

Willa with Arlo

Willa with Ferdie, after he'd had some mojitos

Arlo making himself at home

School chicken

Feeding catfish and turtles dog kibble

Hotel Turtle

Juju (Yoo-Yoo), the friendliest donkey ever

Sweet Flor