And that’s a wrap!

My morning results email from LearnedLeague contained a surprise: I am currently first in my rundle (A Morningstar)! The last time I was in the A (top) rundle, I spent the entire season in the relegation zone (bottom 3)!

Of course, this was only the second day of the season and I benefited from my opponent of yesterday forfeiting the match. I am willing to bet that I do not end the season in first place.

Other than that, we spent all day flying home (uneventfully), unpacking, and dealing with the accumulation of mail and such that was waiting for us.

Expect less frequent updates for a bit.

A trip to the country and two trips on the Seine

This morning took us to Auvers-sur-Oise, the town where Vincent van Gogh spent his final months. In the 19th Century, there was frequent direct train service from Paris; today, you’d have to change trains, so our excursion was on a bus (it took more than an hour to get there – Paris has not yet solved its traffic problem).

It’s a charming little town; we had no time to explore on our own, though. We stopped at places where van Gogh had painted, as well as the inn where he spent the last few months of his life and the cemetery where he and his brother are buried.

Auvers-sur-Oise mailbox
Le jardin de Daubigny (van Gogh)
Le jardin de Daubigny today
La marie d’Auvers-sur-Oise (van Gogh)
La marie d’Auvers-sur-Oise today
Auberge Ravoux, where van Gogh spent his last few months
van Gogh’s room
Anton Hirschig’s room (van Gogh died here)
L’escalier d’Auvers (van Gogh)
L’escalier d’Auvers today
Vincent and Theo van Gogh’s headstones

This afternoon, we took a Seine cruise on one of the Bateaux Parisians fleet. I’m only posting a few of the photos I took.

Can one have too many photos of the Eiffel Tower?

On Bateaux Parisian

Alexander III Bridge

National Assembly

AmaLyra made one final sailing after dinner so everyone could see the Eiffel Tower sparkling at the top of the hour. We said goodbye to our new friends and are back in our room packing for an early morning departure tomorrow.

Last sailing of the AmaLyra