FLANDERS

We have moved on to Dunkerque by train and are living on the Goelette Don Solano, a two masted wooden sail boat.  It's quite romantic and equally rustic.  We are moored in the outer harbor with expansive views of water and are a kilometer from town. It's quiet and peaceful here.  Gulls wheel and cry and the water laps against the boat gently rocking us.  The dark all wood cabin is aromatic with the smells of varnish and licoricey fuel oil.  Across the harbor are the industrial docks where giant cargo ships lay in wait, floating cities twinkling with a thousand lights.

Life here will be simple. We can wash with the water but drinking water is bottled.  The shower is nothing more than the rinse hose found on most kitchen sinks.  The head is rudimentary at best, no laundry, no refrigerator, no stove, no internet.  Lighting is dim and there is none on the deck but there are duel hammocks on the prow where you can watch the endless clouds cruise by.   The cabin where we sleep is just bed and walls and is about as cozy as can be imagined.We are off the tourist trail and off season as well.  Today we will explore the dunes along the English Channel and the farmlands of Flanders.

Paris

Sept. 8. 14 Paris
Our 6th day in Paris. Beth and I got the exact same cold at the exact same time!  This is remarkable because in 33 years of co-habitation it's never happened before. The same itch in the back of the throat growing into that icky burn moving north into the sinuses flooding us with snot, eyes watering in bright sun, dull headache throbbing, south to the chest, cough, cough cough.  And guess what?  We don't care!  If this had been a 10 day vacation I would be fuming but given the seemingly infinite expanse of time ahead of us it barely registered on my meter of concern.  We feel lucky that we got sick together.  No secret recriminations.  We are in synch!

Out illnesses has not kept us from seeing Pari either. Maybe our pace is a bit slower but we have seen and done a lot. We've walked and biked miles, visited markets and museums, eaten delicious things and had quite a few glasses of really good wine. It would be so easy to fall into a comfortable routine here but, because we are just starting out we are hungry for more exotic locales.  It sounds corny but the road really does beckon.  I am so excited about fading away into parts unknown.