All's Quiet on the Homefront; All is Well Overseas

Hello again. I was finally able to have contact with Cliff today. As I suspected, they've been on the run pretty much since they got there and have gotten into their hotel very late each night until today. Tuesday, Cliff's group did not make their scheduled flight from Amsterdam to Madrid, as suspected, but were instead booked on a later flight. This gave them an 8-hour layover in Amsterdam which turned out to be great for them. They stashed their stuff in some lockers at the airport and took the train into downtown Amsterdam for a few hours. So, they turned the situation into a bonus stop on their trip. They got into Madrid at almost midnight on Tuesday night and crashed at the hotel before a busy next day. On Wednesday, they drove to Segovia (about 1 hour away) for some sightseeing, then on to Avila for more sights and a performance. After that, they had a group dinner and got back to their hotel late. Today, they had another performance (this time right in Madrid), followed by a Madrid city tour (rescheduled from the day they ended up spending in Amsterdam) and a visit to the Prado Museum, which Cliff said is fabulous. We were able to chat via iChat this afternoon (late evening for him), and the connection was crystal clear with almost no delay at all. Technology continues to amaze me. Tomorrow, they go to Toledo (about 1 hour out of Madrid) for sights and a concert. Saturday, they load the bus and drive most of the day to Granada, which is in the far south of Spain, not too far from the Mediterranean. It sounds like they are having a fantastic experience. Cliff said the architecture is amazing, and the college kids are enjoying new experiences like having wine with their dinner and using a bidet.

The kids and I continue on here. Today we had a playdate at the park with some friends, followed by some much needed naps. This afternoon, I attacked all of the yard work alone for the first time since we've lived here. That sounds kind of lame of me, but I've been pregnant during 2 of the summers we've lived here, so Cliff has kind of been the lawn guy. I think I managed to do a pretty decent job, so I feel pretty pleased. I will have to do it once more before Cliff is home, then I will gladly let him do the next round :-)

I hope to hear from Cliff while he's in Granada, but if not, it appears his hotel in Sevilla (Monday-Tuesday stay) has FREE wireless internet (his current hotel charged him 6 euros for the wi-fi today), so I should definitely have more updates by then.

Gina