Spring is on its way...

Someone is turning six soon...

And that means that spring is just around the corner.  We've been getting some hints of it lately, and the temperatures have been reliably above freezing here the past couple of weeks, but there's still not much green to be spoken of.  But we've been trying to be outside as much as possible when the sun is shining.  Like Bea's class, the Dinos, who were on their way to the park when I rode by on Thursday.

I stayed and played with them awhile.

And Bea played with Erik and some of his girl classmates across the street while I ran and got some bread that afteroon.

This morning was promising nice weather for the day, so we started making our way across Majorna to wind up at Röda Sten for a picnic we thought.  We ended up meeting with Saskia and her family, and joined forces.  After acquiring our picnic supplies though, we were surprised by a persistent downpour.  So we piled in a tram and had our picnic at our place instead, and then all played with Lego until the sun came out again...

...and got some ice cream to eat at the park.

Kalas förberedelser

Weekend outdoors

Can it be?  Has springtime finally come to Sweden?  The weather this weekend would suggest so.  We took an early tram out to Saltholmen with Bea's classmate Maya and her family...

...to catch a ferry...

...to Brännö, where we've rented a place to celebrate all the May birthdays in their class.

Bea, Maya, and Zoe (and parents!) all got ice cream at the end of a long day of exploring on the island.

This morning the family all joined the Komet Club Rouleur ride on the Säröbanan trail south of town.  We were soon left behind, but we all caught up for coffee in Billdal.

Last pictures from Paris

Yes, it's been a week (really? a week?) but have some final pictures from Paris that have to be shared.  These from the phone. 

The Quai Branly museum had a nice totem pole and leather walls, and a window with this nice view.

The KCR umbrella came in handy for more than just spectating at Paris-Robuaix.

The top floor cafe at the Musee D'Orsay, where we rested our weary feet on the last day.

Bea mailed a coupled postcards across the street from our apartment...

...not far from where we were picked up by this 1920s Peugeot at the stroke of midnight.

Eggs Benedict.

Bea's pictures

Bea carried around Hans's old mobile phone while in Paris, to use as a camera.  She can be an enthusiastic photographer.

From the flea market.

At Laduree in Printemps.

She took lots of pictures of the green trees on the banks of the Seine from the Bateau Mouche...

...and snapped a shot of her grandma...

...and the Eiffel Tower.

The living room of the flat.

A pigeon in a rainy square.

I can't really even speculate as to how she snapped this shot from a Metro platform.

An automaton outside the doll museum.

Her dad at the icecream shop.

Last day in Paris

At the end of an eventful week in Paris, we all had different destinations for the last day.  I headed into the northern hinterlands of the city to visit the Alex Singer shop, a legendary bicycle constructeur...

...while Bea and her Grandma visited a doll museum.  We all met at the Centre Pompidou afterwards.

Bea and I visited the Eileen Gray exhibition:

And then we ate lunch at the top floor.

Afterwards we visited Dehillerin, a truly amazing restaurant supply shop.

And then, Notre Dame.

The skies cleared for a few minutes!  Though this was followed by hail.

And we finished a full day with some amazing ice cream at Berthillon.

Lunch at the Jules Verne

The big highlight of this trip has been eating lunch at the Jules Verne restaurant, halfway up the Eiffel Tower.  Bea has been anticipating this moment for months!

The restaurant has its own elevator in one leg of the tower.

The dining room features ponderous place settings and carbon fiber chairs.

Bea was on her best behavior.

Hans enjoyed the view...

...and the food.  This is the main course.  Can you spot the rabbit?

On the way out you can peer into the kitchen.

Have YOU ever considered the thermal performance of the Eiffel Tower?

Afterwards we headed to the Arc d'Triomphe for a different perspective on the city, before walking down the Champs Elysees and across the Seine to the Musee d'Orsay, where we took a quick stroll through the fifth floor galleries before heading home, exhausted from a full day on the town.