Are We Back Home?

WELL, THAT DEPENDS on the definition of 'home.' It isn't likely that we will ever call this part of the world home in the traditional sense, but after spending each summer 'on the road', it is always good to be back. Settling back in to our house seems to get a bit tougher each year (more things? more going on? kids getting older? us getting older?) and the first few days are pretty chaotic as we are simultaneously unpacking from our summer trips and unpacking from the storage in the house. This year we had a slight advantage in that we spent the last few nights at our neighbor's house, rather than in some apartment in the village nearby. The house is vacant most of the year since our neighbor lives in the U.S. We're very happy he let us crash for a few nights.

On the way home from the Massif Central we did manage to squeeze in a couple more fun things:

The Viaduc du Millau, the tallest bridge in the world (not to be confused with

the 'highest' bridge, which is something different. By the way, it's the 12th highest bridge in the world).

Yes, there is a rest stop and souvenir shop.

Then my favorite part -- a trip to the famous Combalou caves in Roquefort-sur-Soulzon, home of one of France's most famous cheeses.

Mold...

Thousands of rounds of cheese aging for 3-12 months.

The tour in Roquefort was really great. There are several companies who run these free tours and we chose the Societe tour. They are a giant industrial manufacturer (which has some downsides, I know) but their tour was the most comprehensive. And the tasting at the end was terrific -- although Henry took one bite and spit it on the floor. The only people in our house who like blue cheeses like Roquefort and Bleu d'Auvergne are Patrick and me, but Kerri even found a few varieties that she liked during the tour so I consider it a success.

Anyway, summer is over. We're back to our (still) temporary home. Classes for Henry start tomorrow and the twins start Wednesday. Here we go...