BARCELONA & CARCASSONNE

Julia and I had a great time in Barcelona -- what a fun city! Some friends told me about an inexpensive bus, so we took a round trip there on the bus from Toulouse. It was fun to see the scenery from the upper level of the bus as we drove. After we arrived and checked in to our hotel, we went out for tapas. They were nice little bites.

The next day we went to Sagrada Familia. What an interesting basilica! I learned about Gaudi and this building that is always under construction.

The only disappointment of visiting the Sagradia was that they closed the tour of the upper areas because of high winds.

We took a bus tour of Barcelona where we could jump on and off to see the interesting sights, such as more by Gaudi: Guell park and one of his buildings.

During Julia's stay in France, we also made it to Carcassonne. I love sharing this medieval city with friends:

PYRÉNÉES: PART DEUX

In September, my friend Julia joined me for some European fun. I met Julia 30 years ago in Southern California when we were pregnant with our first children, and now she lives in Northern California. We will be neighbors once again as I return to California.

One of our first sight-seeing stops was to the Pyrénées, in the charming cities of Saint-Lizier and Saint-Girons.

Eric was our designated driver. I haven't driven much in France, given the narrow lanes and especially our very challenging parking options in Toulouse.

It was a little rainy and overcast so we didn't get a chance to go up into the mountains, but the small cities were charming.

SWITZERLAND

At the end of the summer, we were able to take a weekend in Switzerland because of great prices to Geneva on EasyJet! We rented a car in Geneva and drove to the Bern area to see the LDS Temple.

In Bern, we also enjoyed walking around the cathedral, the river, and a very interesting Einstein museum.

Next, we drove to Lausanne for our hotel and then for a boat ride on Lake Geneva.

Eric and I enjoyed the very beautiful water, mountains, and all of the scenery in Switzerland. What a lovely country!