Happy Easter

I didn't see many Easter eggs, but the signs are still here! Hope you all enjoy a wonderful Easter holiday, when we celebrate the gift of life and the resurrection. I'm going to celebrate with the token Easter candy. Sorry, no peeps here. Just the real thing!

California here we come!

It's official, these east coast Chipmans are becoming west coast Chipmans. I have officially accepted a position with our division in El Segundo (basically LA), starting mid May. Not to say that we're ready to leave DC; there are so many friends that we'll leave behind. This has been our home for several years, and more so for Abby. There are so many great memories and experiences that we've had. After all, this is where we met, and has beeen our first home together.  So there are definitely some mixed feelings.

Since we do like adventure, we've decided to not do any house hunting until we get there. In fact, we're not even going to pack until the week before. OK, it's not because we like adventure. I'm out of the country until the week before, and Abby is busy with tax season at work and helping one of get best friends get married the day before we move. It is a little crazy. Oh, and we're running the Indy half marathon the weekend I get home too.

The move is basically a new assignment for me with the same company. This will at least help minimize some of the change and facilitates the move. We're still working on the details, but we know that I'll be working near LAX. So now the hunt is on to see where we'll live. Could be north in west LA, or in South Bay. We do know that we won't be on the beach though.  Something about real estate in CA.... Any way, more to come in the future. Just wanted to share...

Espana

So, Abby had to return to the states early, and I had to head to the middle east, so I spent the last day of my vacation in Barcelon. It was a busy day, but I got to see lots of the city. I basically walked everywhere, and I was exhausted at the end of the day. There were times I wondered if I would be able to pull off seeing so much in one day. I spent the early morning in the old city. Since it was Monday, there was a lot closed, like the Picasso Museum. Bummer, but there was plenty more to see in town. I stopped in a lot of churches. I love visiting churches, because there is a reverence there that allows you to escape the rest of the world. Regarldess of religion, these are holy places where people come to worship. Many are the product of peoples' lives, having taken years to painstakingly build and create. There is also often a quietness there, which allows worship to occur. (I'm always careful to show respect and reverence when photographing a church. I have mixed feelings about photography in churches, but it allows us to capture some of the beauty of these places.)

I also stopped by a couple the Gaudi homes. Unfortunately the second had just closed for a private event, but the first was fascinating. La Pedrera has the scuptures on the roof that you'll see in the pictures below. The inside chambers are actually very different from what you might expect if you'd only seen the outide. Of course, mixing styles seems to be characteristic of Gaudi, so I should probably not be surprised. Anyway, they were great fun to see.

Of course, I also stopped by the Sagrada Familial, which is a church still being built and worked on, but it's another Gaudi work, which may be evident from the styles. I found this church to be very interesting, but it didn't carry the same quietness that the others did. There's also no way to capture it all in a picture. It's enormous, cavernous, and brightly lit. At any rate, it's quite the site and experience.

Before it got too dark, I headed down to the beach, and took a short walk in the Mediterranean. I couldn't resist the chance to get in, even if just for a little bit. I'd originally planned to go diving here, but it turned out to be too difficult to coordinate with my other trips, and include the requisit time out of the water before flying. Still, I've managed to get into the Red Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, the Carribbean, and the Pacific Ocean in the last year. More diving needs to happen!

I struggled to come up with that one picture that I could take at twilight. If you've seen some of my other pictures, you'll probably notice that I really like taking pictures at twighlight, just before it becomes night. I honestly didn't find a well lit place, but this turned out quite nicely. No additional lights, just the ambient light of night and the city on this one. (Actually, there were lights there, but they weren't turned on. Go figure.)

I loved Barcelona. It was a fun place to visit, and I wouldn't mind going back. I can see why Abby enjoyed it so much. Anyway, here's some pictures, without further ado...

City of lights

This is a beautiful city, a wonderful country, and the best companion ever.

We arrived early in the morning on Abby's birthday. It was a really fun and different way to spend her birthday, and I was so happy to have her with me, there, on that day. It was a great way to enjoy some time together after a good amount of time apart, and before another big trip apart. I love you Abby!

The other purpose of this quick trip was to join with my mission president and a number of other missionaries for a brief reunion after being home from my mission 14 years ago. How wonderful it was to see some familiar faces, and to be able to speak the language in a natural setting (as opposed to responding to "Oh, say something french"). At any rate, it was a wonderful trip. I think both Abby and I were pretty exhausted after all of it, but it was so wonderful being there together. I think we managed to see all of the main touristy things, but our schedule certainly did get the best of us a few times. I usually like to plan everything to the detail, and know all the hours, maps, etc. This time we just enjoyed the trip and the experience. There were lots of crepes to be had, as well as some incredible food at the reunions. I think Abby may request that I get a recipe for Macaroons. :-) I think the highlight for me was introducing Abby and the Cuenots. Three people that have had (and continue to have) a tremendously personal and strong impact on my life. It was wonderful.

I discovered something new this time in Paris, that I hadn't seen before. There's a small bridge, the Pont des Arts, just to the side of Notre Dame, where people have attached hundreds, if not thousands of small locks; each with a small inscription proclaiming their love. It's really quite an impressive site. We took a picture of one of these locks just so you could see how great it is.

We may also have set a record for late nights, getting home around 1 or 2 am each night. Too much to see, too much to do, and loving every minute of it. I love traveling with Abby. She is so much fun. We always try to see a little bit of the normal life in places, and often we've ended up getting to see some small glimpses of it, or at least missing the main rush of tourists. It's been a lot of fun. Thank goodness that we have forever to enjoy together!

We also had a chance to get out of the city a little bit. Mont St Michel is an abbey that dates back to about the 8th century. It sits out on a small "island" just of the Breton (in Brittany, not England) coast, not far from Normandy. During high tide, this used to be an island, and in low, it became accessible by land. Now there is a causeway providing access at all times, but the tide is still quite impressive to see. They say it comes in quicker than a galloping horse. At any rate, this is were we watched the sunset on Abby's birthday. I might add that it did get a bit cold that night waiting for that perfect moment. (Photographically speaking of course, because in my view, the whole trip was the "perfect moment".)