Soral, Switzerland

Our good friends Scott and Heather are hosting us for a few days in Soral, Switzerland, a village just outside Geneva.  The quaint little village is a welcome rest from the busy schedule we had in Paris. 

Soral, Switzerland

A farm just down the road from their house

View of the full moon from our host's kitchen window

Dripping Diamonds

We had a great picnic dinner on the Champ de Mars and waited for the first light show of the evening.  The best way to enjoy the tower!

Beautiful Stairs

We took the stairs all the way to the top of the Arc de Triomphe.  So worth it.  Go there at sunset and you'll see a beautiful view of the Eiffel Tower and the rest of the Paris skyline.   I love this view we shot of our ascent to the top!

A Sunny Day in Versailles

We've lucked out on this trip and have had 10 straight days of sun.  We took the Paris Metro out to Versailles to see some of the incredible interiors we'd only seen in books.  I'll admit that the crowds were a bit overwhelming, but we were able to view all of the best spaces in the Palace. 

We arrived in the morning and caught the bright reflection off of the Palace's gold leaf facade

I was lucky to only catch a few visitor's reflections in The Hall of Mirrors.   The room was packed with people from all over the world.

The most enjoyable part of our visit included a long walk out to Marie Antoinette's private oasis.  She created a sort of fantasy land that reflected the look of her native Austria.  In a strange way, I would liken it to Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch.   It was a  place where she wasn't restricted to daily palace regimine and could just be carefree and young.

The Grotto and Music Room

Collection of thatch-roofed buildings on Marie Antoinette's estate.

Pumpkin Harvest

Ordinary Objects of Art

A collection of vintage bottle stops we saw at a family brewery in Bruges. 

Bonjour!

We were in Paris the last few days, but I was unable to get any photos uploaded (sigh).  I'm going to try and put together some posts on our finds tonight!  We're now in Geneva, Switzerland visiting some good friends.  They surprised us with a weekend at a thermal spa so stay tuned for some great Alpine design!

Local Specialty

We read that the local cuisine in Bruges included Mussels and Frites, so we sat down at the most appetizing restaurant we could find and ordered our own pot to share.  The presentation was beautiful and the the taste was amazing!  Even if it is a bit touristy, be sure to try this dish when you visit Bruges.