Everything Evanston in July

So... the saying that "it's not the heat, it's the humidity" was definitely reinforced during our month in Evanston from July 3-August 2. And for the last few days, it was also the smoky air coming down from the wildfires in Canada. Yikes! 

We returned on July 3rd and rented a car at the airport for the weekend, making it easier to deal with transportation with the kitties as well as other weekend plans. On July 4th, we enjoyed the day off to get settled back in and hosted Evanston friend M for dinner at our apartment (the rooftop deck and grills were too busy). Then we strolled down to Frio Gelato on our way to the beach for the awesome fireworks display over the Lake. 

On the way, we saw "mini fireworks" among the plants (e.g fireflies), which is the first time I've seen those amazing little creatures since we lived in Madison. So cool! Once we got back to our apartment, we just sat at the kitchen table with the lights out to watch all of the other ongoing fireworks displays in downtown Chicago and the surrounding suburbs south and west of us. A great vantage point!

The next day, we drove to Mr. E's mom's condo in downtown Chicago to drop off her birthday card and gift (hibiscus plant) before going to the Art Institute for a couple of hours to see the Frida Kahlo exhibition, which was closing the next weekend. It was interesting to learn about her brief but impactful time in Paris and her friendship with Mary Reynolds and other key figures of the art world. I particularly liked one sketch of Mary and her cats (note: not done by Frida).

We also had enough time for the Caillebotte exhibition, which both Mr. E and I really loved. I didn't know much about this painter, and it was fascinating to see how prolific and influential he was during his short (45 years) lifespan. I also didn't realize that it was his collection of works that formed the basis for the Musee d'Orsay in Paris. Incredible! We purchased a poster of the exhibit to add to our gradually growing assortment of art in Evanston. 

To celebrate his mom's birthday, we got takeout at Minghin Cuisine and hung out at her condo for a bit before driving home (with leftovers!). The original plan for the birthday celebration was for Mr. E's sister L and brother-in-law M to host a family gathering at their home in Oak Park, but L was sick so we had a relatively last-minute change of plans. It all worked out for the best, though, since the new schedule allowed for our museum visit. Oh, and also some views and sounds of the Nascar Chicago Street Race outside the windows of the Caillebotte galleries!

The following weekend, Mr. E took a Lyft to downtown Chicago on Saturday morning for the annual Big 10K race (he did the 5K) while I stayed home with the kitties and participated in an ATA webinar. He got home in time for us to check out an open house at noon, and then I met up with my friend R at 1pm for coffee and tea at The Understudy Cafe. It was great to have a chance to catch up with her since we hadn't had our usual virtual monthly check-in in June. Then I took the train to the Alliance Francaise to meet up with Mr. E and his mom for the afternoon Bastille Day festivities, including a quite impressive waiter's race (I got some fun videos but they don't cooperate well with uploading here).

We had dinner again with Mr. E's mom, this time at Avli on the Park, a Greek restaurant just around the corner from her condo. 

On Sunday morning, we had an appointment at Blick to order some custom mats for several of our posters from France, which are all non-standard sizes so need some additional care prior to framing. Then I headed to the airport in the early afternoon for my trip to Portland to help A for a few days with the ongoing process of sorting through and organizing stuff from her mom and other items in storage at the house. I'm glad I was able to help out with this process, as it's still so challenging and emotional for A (and her dad), and it gave us some good quality time together, including for pedicures on Tuesday afternoon once we were done for the day. I also had some lovely conversations with M, and the three of us had a couple of strong Scrabble matches as well. 

I was back in Evanston by the end of the week, so Mr. E and I went to check out one of the events for the multi-day Plein Air Festival. The block party was on a section of Main Street, so we got to peruse many of the works and enjoy some live music as well. We followed this up by stopping by the finale on Sunday at the Rotary HQ just a few blocks from us. We also fit in another open house on Saturday morning and wrapped up the weekend with our First Aid / CPR course at the Y on Sunday afternoon. Both of us had done this type of course in the past, but quite a few techniques have changed, and neither of us had ever learned about AEDs before, so this was a very helpful course to take. We had to complete several hours of online homework in advance and then finished off with the 2.5 hours in-person skills practice session. We're now certified for two years!

In the middle of the next week, I was fortunate enough to have an in-person GALA event at the Rotary HQ, which was a fabulous way to get a better understanding of this language services association and make some local contacts. I've already had a virtual meet-up with one of the presenters and will be connecting in person with another attendee when we're back in Evanston in the fall. All small steps towards my encore career transition! The event ended with a reception on the third floor, and I got to spend some time on the outdoor terrace that offers a partial view of our apartment building (in the middle of the photo, tucked behind the tall dark grey building).

During the week, I also attended a Land Use Committee (LUC) meeting related to the proposed high rise building that is anticipated to be constructed on a lot to the south of our building (yes, it will eventually block much of our view). The proceedings definitely reminded me of my time on the Planning Commission here in Sacramento! I left after about an hour and watched the rest of the public commentary with Mr. E through the live streaming services.

On Friday, my old friend and ex K came to meet me for lunch at Le Peep. I think it's been about eight years or so since we've seen each other! He and his spouse, C, and their twins live in Geneva, IL. We had a lovely time catching up, and I'm hoping we can continue to stay connected more often as Mr. E and I spend more of our time in Evanston. That evening, our apartment building hosted a resident's BBQ on the rooftop pool deck, so after doing some bike shopping in the afternoon, Mr. E and I stopped by to check out the offerings. Not too much for me except a bag of Fritos, but Mr. E was able to grab enough for his dinner later that night.

Saturday afternoon, we practiced our pickleball skills during the open gym time at the Y dedicated to beginners and families. Oof! I definitely need more practice! I'm glad we'll be taking another beginners skills workshop series in the fall. Mr. E met up with M in the afternoon to hang out with him as he got his UW Madison Terrace chair tatto, and that evening, we all went to the Out of Space open air concert festival in nearby Skokie to see Gabriela y Rodrigo, a favorite duo of M & L. Mr. E and I got to test out our new beach chairs (excellent!), and luckily the sun was mostly down by the time we arrived, so the weather was actually quite pleasant despite the warm and humid temperatures from earlier in the day.

On Sunday, we went to two open houses (not impressed) and finally made it to the beach in the late afternoon. Of course, our timing was just perfect to arrive at Clark Street Beach as the clouds rolled in for a couple of hours in what was otherwise a sunny and clear day. Too funny! We still enjoyed wading in the [surprisingly warm] Lake and reading on the beach. Next year, we'll need to do this more often, especially now that we have our comfy and easily-portable chairs.

The following Friday was Mr. E's birthday, and we met up with his family for an early dinner at the Oyster Bar at Shaw's Crab House. We had spent most of that day preparing and getting organized for our return to Sac. So on Saturday, after brunch at Le Peep, we packed up the kitties and did our final cleaning chores before M picked us up for the trip to O'Hare. The nice thing about the return trip is that we arrive at a much more reasonable time thanks to having the time difference work in our favor (and thanks to being so much closer to SMF than to ORD)! We were able to unpack and pick up takeout dinner in a reasonable time and start to get settled in for our month-ish here in Sac.

Other items of note for July included visiting two "new" restaurants, attending two Book Club meetings (for me) and several more amazing sunsets, including a very weird almost-fake looking red ball o' sun due to the wildfire smoke (photos below). 

The first restaurant was Tapas Barcelona just across the street from us (which we realized we'd actually been to years ago with M & L... oops), and the second was Kuni's Japanese Restaurant (which only Mr. E had been to once with M & L). Tapas had some wonderful seafood offerings and were unhesitatingly helpful in accommodating my allium allergy, so we'll definitely be making that part of our regular rotation. Kuni's was only meh, and considering how many other Japanese options we have even closer to us, we've pretty much taken that off the list for a repeat visit. 

We returned to Sac Aug 2nd and will be here until the 26th. So nice to be out of that nasty humidity!!! The triple digits here really aren't bad at all when the air stays clear and the temps drop nearly 40 degrees at night to the mid-60s.

June in Sacramento

Mr. E and I spent the month of June in Sacramento, enjoying some of our favorite local activities as well as the lovely early summer weather. We only had a few days of temps at or near 100, and the wonderful Delta Breeze always kicked in to cool things down overnight. Yay! I was very pleased to learn that the pool at the Central Y was finally open for more extended hours and that the temperature was [mostly] consistent so that my morning swims were quite pleasant. I also got to take advantage of a weekly mat Pilates class on Wednesday evenings to supplement my ongoing weekly virtual French yoga on Wednesday mornings. 

Sunday, June 1

Beer & Ballet is one of our favorite annual shows at the Sacramento Ballet, and this year's production was the strongest (and longest). We were fortunate enough to see the final performance of two wonderful dancers, Ava and Kaori, as they retired from the company. We've seen them both develop so much as performers over the years, so it was both touching and bittersweet to be there for their last series with the Ballet.

Saturday, June 7-Sunday, June 8

The annual Art Auction at the Crocker on Saturday evening included some appreciative remarks and thanks for the outgoing Museum Director, whose nearly 25 year tenure has really influenced the Museum and its role within our community and the region. We managed not to make any purchases this year, although we did bid on a couple of items, and I think we both slightly regret not making a stronger vie for the Thiebaud sketch, since we love his work so much. However, this particular piece didn't really call to us, so we didn't put forth full effort to acquire it.

On Sunday, we met up with our monthly brunch group in the morning followed by an afternoon massage for Mr. E and hosting the French Cercle de Lecture at our home for me. We had a very small group of just four people, including me, which actually worked out quite well given that our main living area isn't that larger. We had a very interesting discussion about L'Arabe du futur, and I was excited to learn that our next book will be one of my favorites, Au bonheur des dames, and that the next meeting will be in August, when Mr. E and I will be back in Sacto again, so I'll be able to attend.

Friday, June 20-Sunday, June 22

The Sacramento French Film Festival was at the Tower Theatre again this year. As sponsors, we get two festival passes to all events, including the opening and closing night receptions. Unfortunately, I had inadvertently watched the opening night film, En fanfare, during one of our flights for our trip to France, since the SFFF program hadn't yet been announced at that time! Mr. E and I still stopped by the reception to pick up our passes and poster but decided not to stay for the movie.

On Saturday, we both attended L'Histoire de Souleymane and Les Barbares, which gave us very diverse experiences since the first was a moving personal drama and the second was a lighthearted group comedy. 

Sunday morning, I started off with my regular Book Club and got to catch up with M, L, and H as we chatted about life and our fiction selection for the month, The Lady Vanishes. Then I returned to the Tower to watch Un ours dans le Jura, a fun quirky comedy. Mr. E joined me later in the afternoon for Soudain seuls and the closing film L'Attachement. We enjoyed some of the dessert offerings on our way out as well.

Wednesday, June 25-Sunday, June 29

I attended my third book group of the month through the California Groundbreakers California Book Club on Wednesday evening. This organization hosted a number of interesting in-person events prior to COVID, but this was my first time joining up with the group again since they reinvigorated their offerings. We had a very small group but a very engaging discussion about immigration, assimilation, history, and culture.

The weekend was full of Crocker Museum visits for me! Mr. E and I both attended the Director's Circle reception on Friday evening and enjoyed some snacks and beverages as we learned more about the three new exhibitions. The evening included a brief introduction and welcoming remarks from the new Museum Director, and we're looking forward to his official welcome reception at the end of next month.

On Saturday afternoon, I attended the Art + Film event honoring a Hawai'ian artist and poet. Interestingly, as the presenters talked about the featured artist's work, I realized that Mr. E and I had seen an exhibition of his poetry as curated for part of the Hawai'i Triennial back in 2022. Quite a coincidence!

Mr. E and I both donated blood on Sunday, but my appointment was earlier in the day so that I could meet up with S and N at the Crocker in the afternoon to hear a talk by Cara and Diego Romero about their newly-opened exhibition Tales of Future Past. I had heard Cara Romero speak at the Block Museum in Evanston in the fall, and I really appreciate her work and her approach to her art, so it was interesting to hear her talk about this new exhibition and in particular to learn more about how she and Diego collaborate and support each other as artists working in different media but with some similar themes and concerns. After the talk, we toured the exhibition, and N also discovered the nearby print exhibition, which she loved since she's recently added printmaking to her creative pursuits. S and I spent time in the Museum store and chatting in the indoor courtyard until N finished up and closing time approached.

Scattered Throughout the Month...

I managed to fit in a massage, a hair cut with my favorite stylist at Super Cuts, two pedicures at the wonderful Nature Love eco salon, dinners with friends L, B, and A, and breakfast and Happy Hour with S. Mr. E and I had a lovely meet-up and catch-up with E & C, including a brief round of the "button game," and E and I also found time for a coffee walk one morning. And then we packed up our summer clothes, gathered the kitties into their carriers, and returned to Evanston on Thursday, July 3, just in time to enjoy the holiday long weekend in our second home.

San Francisco Weekend Getaway

Friday, June 13-Sunday, June 15: Train, Rally, Art, Brunch

Mr. E and I headed out at 1pm for an early afternoon Amtrak + bus connection trip to San Francisco for the weekend. Unfortunately, once we reached Emeryville to meet up with the bus, am Amtrak employee informed everyone that the bus needed repairs. There was not ETA for when the bus would be fixed or another would be brought in instead, so Mr. E and I decided to check out the option for a Lyft to Union Square and our hotel. The ride was just over $30 and totally worth it so that we didn't have to wait or deal with the walk from the bus stop.

We got to our hotel, the Hilton Union Square (where I had stayed for the CSSO Conference back in March), around 4:20pm. The front desk staff was super friendly and helpful and made sure we had a room with a good view! We were in a corner 1-bedroom suite on the 25th floor with a panorama out over the city and part of the Bay.

After we got settled in, Mr. E went to the Fitness Center for a short workout in the rather large Fitness Center on the first floor. Before going to the Cityscape Sky Bar for snacks and beverages, we did some errands, including procuring some popcorn for me along and trying to find an HDMI cable so that we could access our streaming services by hooking up my laptop to the TV. This is one of those hotels with very minimal TV channel offerings and no streaming at all! We struck out at CVS (store closing so very low stock of everything), Walgreens (popcorn purchased here), and Ross. Luckily, the nearby Target was much larger than we expected and had numerous options for HDMI cables. We made very good use of our new purchase over the next two nights to watch Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part 1 and The Accountant 2.  

[Note to self: Leave HDMI cable in big purple for future use while traveling!]

When we got back to the hotel, we headed up to the 46th floor for an amazing panoramic view and some beverages. I enjoyed my Negroni with Junipero gin (new to me), and Mr. E found his 0% ABV "beer" to be quite refreshing. We split the cheese & charcuterie plate, which offered lovely portion sizes of each item along with sufficient bread and crackers on the side. We had scoped out some nearby restaurants for a potential takeout dinner, so Mr. E hopped across the street to Oma Sushi and brought back the Caterpilla roll for me as well as a terikyaki Bento box for himself with some seaweed salad and a side green salad to share. Yum!

On Saturday morning, I went out for a walk before my Zumba and yoga in-room workout routine. I considered going to the rooftop pool on the 16th floor, but there were other people already there, which would have made it challenging to do laps. We decided to get brunch at Caffe Central and opted for takeout since there weren't any tables available. While Mr. E waited for the food, I started back towards the hotel, picking up Starbucks on the way. Mr. E had the California Bagel Sandwich with a fruit cup and I had the Union Square Plate. We enjoyed our brunch at the high-top table in our site overlooking downtown.

Our first destination of the day was the No Kings rally, so we left the hotel around 11am to head towards Civic Center Plaza, which is where I thought the rally was taking place. Unfortunately, we didn't have the most updated information but were able to find out that the event was starting with a rally at Dolores Park followed by a march to the Civic Center. We headed towards the Park to meet up with the crowd and got there just in time for the beginning of the March. Lots of great signs and a huge turnout and some sights that were very "San Francisco-y" as well!

Since we had timed entry tickets for the Wayne Thiebaud: Art Comes from Art exhibition at the Legion of Honor, we didn't participate in the march and instead grabbed a Lyft to the museum. The exhibition was so interesting, since it focused on how Thiebaud was inspired by so many other artists and frequently borrowed or even copied from their work in his own paintings. I was really fascinated to see how his painting evolved over time, since I usually think of his style as being heavily layered paint but very smooth and glossy. This wasn't the style he used at all for some of his earlier works!

Mr. E particularly enjoyed this exhibit, and while he lingered in these galleries, I had time to check out the porcelain collection and the current works on paper from the Achenbach Collection. There was another Thiebaud piece in this gallery, too!

We grabbed a Lyft back to the hotel and relaxed for a bit before heading to E&O Kitchen and Bar, one of our favorite SF spots for Happy Hour. We enjoyed our 1/2 dozen oysters (for each of us), mushroom skewers (me), and short ribs and pork bun (Mr. E). I also had the Tradewinds G&T, which has a beautiful purple color thanks to the pea flower infused gin. Unfortunately, I somehow manage to knock the glass over, which not only spilled my drink all over the bar but also broke the glass!!! I guess I'm stronger than I realize... ha, ha. The staff was very attentive in rushing to clean up everything and to remake my drink. 

On the way back to the hotel, we stopped off at One 65 Patisserie for some macarons, truffles, and cookies. I had checked out their offerings earlier in the day when we were next door at Caffe Central and knew that I wanted to return for some of their beautiful and amazingly intricate creations. My favorite was definitely the s'mores truffle -- somehow they managed to get all the appropriate layers of flavor of the marshmallow, chocolate, and graham cracker into a tiny little ball. Impressive!

We made sure to spend our daily $35 credit for food and beverages at Herb'n Kitchen at the hotel, although Mr. E was dismayed to discover that his bag of salt & pepper chips contained garlic powder as well. Grr. This is why I read ingredient lists on almost everything, because you just never know where such things might lurk...

On Sunday morning, I repeated my walk and Zumba activities and then swam laps in the lovely and warm outdoor pool. We met up with L, an alum from my NYU SPS MSTI program, and her spouse, A, at Honey Honey Cafe & Crepery, which was an awesome spot for brunch. It was really nice to re-connect with L in person and to get to know her spouse a bit. They moved from New Jersey to Redwood City last year and were kind enough to make the drive into downtown SF to meet up with us. 

We had arranged for a 12:30pm checkout at the hotel so had some time for reading and Duolingo practice after brunch before we walked to the bus stop near the Salesforce Transit Center to start on our Amtrak return trip home. On the way, we paused at One 65 so Mr. E could get a sandwich, and I procured one final s'mores truffle as a treat for later. The train home was less crowded than on the way into SF on Friday, so we enjoyed a very peaceful ride (except for having to hear some stuff from the phone of a passenger sitting two rows in front of us... put your ear buds on, dude!). The walk home from the train station in Sac was a bit toasty but tolerable, and we were back with the kitties by 5pm to settle in for the rest of the evening.

A really enjoyable SF weekend getaway with perfect sunny but cool weather! The only disappointment is seeing how this city is still suffering from the effects of the pandemic and the growing issues of homelessness and drug use. It's quite sad, since the city also still has so many wonderful things to offer, but we'll likely explore other areas for hotels for any future visits, as parts of the Union Square neighborhood just aren't very pleasant to be around. 

May Evanston Events

Thursday, May 1: May Day Rally + Better Off Read Book Club

I was able to attend a bit of the afternoon rally at Fountain Square once I wrapped up work meetings. The Mayor of Evanston gave some opening remarks.

Later in the evening, I went to the Better Off Read Book Club at the library. The selection for this month was Long Island, which I mostly enjoyed although it was hard to empathize with several of the characters. But it was great to discuss the book with others and start to make some new local connections. Unfortunately, I'll miss the next few meetings since we'll traveling or in Sac, but I definitely plan to re-connect when we're in Evanston for the fall.

Saturday, May 3 & Sunday, May 4: Lakeshore Shuffle 5K, Coffee at the Lake, Man of La Mancha

Mr. E and I walked the 5K Lakeshore Shuffle on Saturday morning since I'm not able to run anymore, even this type of shorter distance. The weather was still a bit chilly but beautiful! 

On Sunday morning, my friend R drove up to meet me for coffee and tea at the Lake. We took advantage of the indoor kiosk space and then walked along the Lake for a bit. In the afternoon, Mr. E and I went to the final performance Man of La Mancha at the Wirtz Performing Arts Center. The show was amazing, and the setting in an immigrant detention center was so evocative and emotional. We were both in tears after the finale! We asked a staff member if we could buy one of the big posters because we wanted to remember this experience, but unfortunately they weren't for sale. So instead, Mr. E grabbed one of the smaller flyers from the men's room for us to take home and frame. 

Thursday, May 8: Spring Sip & Stroll

We visited several downtown businesses as part of the Spring Sip & Stroll, including the new Herson's Barbershop, where we met the super-friendly owner who assured me that he's very comfortable doing women's short cuts. I ended up making an appointment with him later in the month since I'm still trying to find a good local salon within walking distance of our apartment. (I was very pleased with his service and pricing!)

Thursday, May 15: Arts & Craft Beverage Crawl

We were supposed to join up with our friends M & L for arts & craft beverage crawl along the Main / Dempster mile, but unfortunately I was having a multiple migraine week and wasn't feeling up to being social or any sort of adult beverages. Mr. E enjoyed the get together, including dinner at Kuni's, one of M & L's favorite Japanese restaurants.

Saturday, May 17 & Sunday, May 18: Dinner at Eataly + Hubbard Street Dance

My sister J was in town for the weekend for a work event and invited us to join her small team dinner on Saturday evening at Eataly in downtown Chicago. We met up with her a bit early for some family chatting and then enjoyed getting to know some of her close colleagues. Unfortunately, the dinner experience overall was subpar due to lackadaisical service and undercooked pasta (at a pasta specialty restaurant!). Mr. E had some words with a manager and got our bill reduced by nearly 2/3, which was covered by J's company. I think they appreciated our "contribution"!!!

On Sunday afternoon, we headed back to downtown Chicago for the Spring Series performance by Hubbard Street Dance. Once again, the company was AMAZING! I had watched several of the pre-show interviews and sneak peeks online, which helped to really appreciate some of the pieces and better understand the creative process behind-the-scenes. Coincidentally, this series was at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance in Millennium Park, just down the street from where Mr. E's mom lives, but since she was already in France with Mr. E's sister and brother-in-law, we didn't have a chance to meet up with her.

Friday, May 30: As It Is In Heaven

As one of our final Evanston activities before returning to Sac for the month of June, we went to see As It Is In Heaven at the Wirtz Center. We both enjoyed the strong performances, including all of the singing and instrumentals, but the script and subject matter weren't quite as compelling compared to other shows we've seen so far at this space. We're looking forward to the announcement of next season's offerings and hope to add several to our calendar.

Scenic Views

The late Spring continued to provide lots of scenic views, including lots of forsythia and pansies and many multiple-bunny siting days. We also had some gorgeous sunsets and sunrises (with surfers in the Lake -- brr!) along with some VERY weird thick fog that hung around all day. We thought perhaps this was an annual weather event in Evanston, but according to the locals, it was unusual for them, too!

Lyon River Cruise: Cruise Day 7 (End of Trip)

Wednesday, May 28: LYS > YUL > ORD

The schedule indicated an arrival in Lyon around 4am, and I had hoped to do my morning walk along the city streets. However, when I got up just after 6am, it was very obvious that we hadn’t reached the city yet. In fact, the boat pulled into a small dock south of the city to restock on supplies before finally continuing on to our final destination. We had to have our bags packed and ready outside of our cabins by 8:30am for the crew to organize them according to follow-on plans (e.g. additional travel or taxi service).

Unfortunately, our final breakfast was a bit low on some items, including scrambled eggs, so we made due with other options and grabbed some mini toast crackers for later. We had to vacate our cabins by 9am but didn’t need to leave the boat until 11am, so Mr. E, M, and I got Mr. E’s mom, aunt, and uncle settled in the Lounge Bar and then headed into the city for some final walking and exploring. We lingered over coffee at Starbucks and then took our last stroll around the city before returning to the boat to meet up with the family and catch our respective taxis to the train station (M, Mr. E’s mom, aunt, and uncle for return to Paris) and the airport (Mr. E and me).

Our return trip was on Air Canada, and we had paid for extra-space seats in the economy section, so we had a two-fer together for our flight to Montreal. I definitely learned that it’s worth paying more for some sort of business class seats given my ongoing issues with the left side of my back and leg, as it was quite challenging for me to get comfortable in the smaller seats without the ability to really stretch out. I watched a few really great movies (The Killer, Tarla, and most of The American Society of Magical Negroes) and started but didn’t finish one movie that wasn’t so great (Inside).

We had smooth passage through customs and immigration in Montreal and took advantage of access to the Mont Blanc lounge for lunch, knowing that we wouldn’t have many options on our flight to Chicago. We arrived a little early at O’Hare, just after 8pm, and grabbed a taxi home to Evanston and the kitties, making it back to our apartment by around 9pm. This gave us time to unpack and get settled before wrapping up the evening. Mr. E had gotten his second wind so stayed up for cocktails and TV, but I went to bed and enjoyed returning to the night-time snuggles and nesting with Louis XIV.

Overall, a really great trip and wonderful to spend time with family! We learned that we prefer a larger riverboat with some additional public space, which is good to know for any future plans. This boat had only two decks, primarily because it had to go under so many bridges on the Rhone River, and it only had the Lounge Bar and sundeck as general gathering spots. The boat we were on in Bordeaux had three decks and included another salon area, so it was easier to spread out and have some different spaces during the free time on board. Mr. E’s mom seems interested in one of the Portugal river cruises, also offered by CrosiEurope, so we may have to consider adding that to our plans within the next year or so.