a slower pace

In the photo above, four of the five of us are sporting new shoes. This was not an indulgence. This was a result of the sad loss of one of our small backpacks in transit from Amsterdam to Marseille. Just listen to that sentence! I really have nothing to complain about!

As you can see from the serene expressions on our girls' faces above, France has had a deliberately slower pace. (And I think if they ever form a band, this would be the most awesome band photo....)

I have most purposely not blogged much, simply to get off the phone and get into the slower pace. It feels fitting! While we were hitting multiple destinations each day in London and Amsterdam, we have viewed the France leg of the trip as a slower, more relaxed portion from the beginning. 

And so much of our time has been spent wandering around our little village of Sanilhac. 

(This scene above is right outside our front door. This place feels ancient!)

We have also visted a few nearby sites. My particular favourite has been the "Pont du Gard". This is an ancient Roman aqueduct - apparently the tallest aqueduct structure preserved. It is incredible. Like my dad commented, "It's a whole lot of stonework for a little bit of water". Haha! Oh dad! 

(this is the very tippy top, where the water would have passed through)

(The landscape around the Pont du Gard)

Walking through an ancient tunnel, which can be assumed to have been used to carry materials to build the pont...?

Ryan couldn't resist a tunnel lunge. :)

This may or may not have been the state of exhaustion the girls were in after spending a bit of time at the Pont du Gard. We laid down for a relaxing rest on the lovely platforms for picnickers and tried to wait until dark when the Pont would be lit up. We failed to last that long. Well, the girls did. :) SO TIRED! The heat, the climbing up to above the Pont to see it, etc etc etc. They were pooped!

Also, Ryan stacked some rocks. Nice stack, Ryan. 

So that was the Pont, a highlight for me! Ryan's big highlight was when we went into nearby Avignon and visited Le Palais des Papes, or "The Palace of the Popes", where 9 consecutive Popes lived and reigned. It was amazing!

(Avignon feet, now a complete set of 5 new pairs of shoes...!)

Ummmm, hottie!!!

The Palais des Papes, build on rocks - it's so cool to see!

I could just add more and more photos, but you get the idea of the grandeur! Amazing! Merveilleux!!

Now, our friends back home, the Boisclair-Joly family, had mentioned to us previously that in each little town down in the south here is to be found a carousel, and that it was a bit of a special family thing they did in each town they visited. Well what do you think we encountered as we came out of the palace? You guessed it!

Yahoo! And just as the sky darkened and the thunder and lighting becan crashing, the girls had a very fun, and dry, ride. 

Very fun! And then, as if we hadn't experienced enough awesome for one day, we were caught in a CRAZY THUNDER STORM AND DOWNPOUR on our way through the winding and confusing roads back to our car!

It was hilarious! We were as wet as if we had been jumping into the river with our clothes on! Crazy rain! And so funny!

And so today, we are enjoying a nice day in, playing in the pool in our little courtyard and looking forward to dinner out here as well. We will light it up and sit here:

Yes please! And that is France so far, my friends. :)