Yvoire II

The parents checking out one of those crazy trees!

Yvoire

We went back to the small medieval town of Yvoire in France with my parents. It was just before Christmas so the town was practically empty. A much nicer (though bitterly cold) experience than the previous time when the town was overrun with tourists! This house was built right into the old wall!

Guests Round Two

The Christmas events around here took place at my relatives abodes, but we had my parents visiting at the same time. Today I post shots from our second wave of guests which included my cousin and his family from London. Here is one of his kids with the neighbors chihuahua puppy. It doesn't get much better than kids and puppies, does it?



We all took a walk to the local Ferney-Voltaire cemetery. It is situated on a hill and has a nice view.



The other daughter who could end up being an excellent photographer like her dad!



The flame stone at the bottom of the hill seems to be a memorial to firefighters.

Christmas Dinner

We went to some of my relatives house in Prangins (near Nyon) for Christmas dinner (or lunch to some). I think a good time was had by all and we enjoyed some very good food!



I'm coming to get you!



This Argentinian beef was some of the best I've ever had! It melted in your mouth. I'm not sure if it was the beef or the way it was cooked. Probably both!



J helps assemble a complicated toy.



My first time eating a Yule Log.



Naturally, there was good wine too!

Dinner at Home

My parents came to visit over Christmastime, so we had a small dinner party. One of our friends from Russia made this amazing mushroom soup.






My mother and I made Glühwein.



Our X-mas corner complete with Weihnachtspyramide and decorated Palm tree.



Also part of the X-mas corner.

Basel Christmas Market

The day after spending Thanksgiving with our friends in Basel, we headed to the Christmas Market. It was the best I've seen outside of Germany. Admittedly, my only recollections were of attending them as a child so they seemed quite magical. This one lived up to the memories!






This guy was the Grinch.












There were many cute handmade wooden toys available. It made me wish I was shopping for some younger kids!



Making things out of glass.



Puppenhausmuseum



I'm pretty sure this was Santa scouting for presents!



That is going to have to be one big kiss for the load of mistletoe he's carrying!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone! To mark this event, I'm featuring two sunrise shots from outside our apartment. This is often what we see on the way to work in the early mornings. A little fog mixed with a bit of sun. Beautiful!