Round The World 2007 - Mega Post

I haven't posted since Singapore. Where to start?

We had a lovely 5 days in Geneva where the whole family got gastroenteritis (Sensational.) Marc got sick first on our way from Singapore, then I was really sad to see my little Philippe being sick and not eating. Thank goodness it only lasted 2 days. It was finally my turn. It started the day we were touring the Swiss Alps (even more sensational). Luckily, it was all over when we catched our flight for Montreal at 5 am on Saturday morning.

Apart from that, Switzerland was great. We spent a lot of time with our friends Les Dunand. They all seem very happy to meet our son Philippe. We went for walks in the vineyards with Raphael, the third son of the family, who is learning the arts of wine making. We drove to Evolene, a typical Swiss village of the Valais with Jean-Marie and Alexandre. We visited Carouge, an old suburb of Geneva where Jean-Marie now lives. We spent some time chatting with Martine and we ate WAY TOO MUCH raclette, cheese and chocolate!

We then flew to Montreal via Frankfurt. That sucked. If you can avoid the Frankfurt airport, do so!!! It's badly ventilated, people smoke everywhere, there is no decent food, you can't find water or the toilets as the information system consists of a bugged touch screen boot that returns the list of all the airport facilities regarless of your query. And of course, no one to talk to to give you some live information! Air Canada sucked as well but what can you do when you live in a shoe??? They're the only ones servicing the Canadian cities and we need more Aeroplan miles.

We finally landed in Montreal. Thanks to the baby in the stroller we got the bypass and got into the country quickly. I nearly took a photo of Philippe next to the Canadian flag but decided not to. Both my mom and dad were waiting for us. I was so happy to see them, I ran with the stroller to meet them. No one got injured but we all shed a tear anyway! We then drove 4 hours to Pembroke, Ontario where we stayed with my sister Andree for the weekend. When I finally went to bed that night, I had been up for 22 hours and had fed the baby 8 times. I was completed exhausted and could not even answer questions! Andree helped me to bed and I fell asleep with Philippe in the minute. We killed the jetlag in one day!

It was great to see Andree and Sebastien again. It had been over 3 years since the last time. They now have a beatiful daughter Laura, 7 months older than Philippe. As it rained for 3 days, we spent all our time there talking about the old days and admiring our babies. They live in a house of over 100 years old, fully refurbished of course, and very comfy. Andree and Sebastien being good Quebecers, it was freezing outside but very warm inside. We spent the weekend in shorts and t-shirts, just like a Tassie summer! So much for all the winter clothes I bought for Philippe before leaving home...

Then back to Montreal. But that will have to wait. It`s almost 11 pm, I'm figthing one of the worst cold ever, Philippe is wacking every hour of the night so I'm off to bed. I have so much more to say so stay tuned for the next episode! (Photo will be added tomorrow, promise!)

Love, Edith