Julien's family has organized a quad output to climb the highest mountains.
Nicolas and I turn first to have breakfast with Glenn and Mary, our hosts for the week. I said initially, Nicolas was staying with the President of the main club in Durango where he actually spent a night. He was very well received course. That said, the husband of the President is a cardiac surgeon and has a busy schedule as we can imagine and they have a baby 9 months. So they could not be present to bring home after Nicolas's first day of visit. Glenn and Mary, be my guest, then very kindly decided to repatriate him home for the rest of the stay. I personally ensure that my "flock" (not my Zouaves!) Are kept in optimum conditions. Indeed, housing is not limited to providing a room. The host family must be available so that we can have the quality required by the exchange program and can thus have the opportunity to discover a part of American culture, secondly to discover our own. This experiment enlighten me on the organization to implement when we receive next year the group of Colorado in our Rotary District. Little information for non-Rotarians, many of whom we read: Our district stretches from the Northern Alsace Franche-Comte up. It has 59 clubs over 2000 Rotarians.
back to our breakfast: We go to a bakery amazing. The fabrication shop is visible from the counter, the loaves are offered more appealing as each other and it's the same for all the croissants and pastries on display. The choice is difficult! We'll still be this difficult event and we install quietly at a table where we share our treasures with great reinforcement and miammmm hummm.
Our gustatory ecstasy was rudely interrupted by the untimely arrival of a fellow armed with a wand he brought down on our table without warning. Nicolas and I look up, mouths wide open to intruders. The latter, standing next to us and criticizing the eye, asks: "Where are you from?". We do not conduct large and a small voice answered "We're French." This place is it forbidden to French? We do not know what to think and expect the next burst ... The unknown continues with a slew of questions: How city in France are you from? You're there for how long? Which hotel are you staying? What is your room number? ... Oh my God, maybe we dealing with the immigration service!
Nay! We are actually in the presence of the bakery owner who, intrigued by our presence (we are apparently spotted at 100 sites around), trying to get to know his way. The baguette, excellent indeed, is a gift that soon to be followed by sweet and savory breads, cereals that tastes Nicolas wide-eyed and a walnut bread sliced ... We leave this famous bakery, not in handcuffs as we had first assumed but loaded with presents, compliments of Chef! Welcome to the Wild West!
Barely recovered from our emotions, we arrive at Eddy and Nancy, host of Julian. The quads are aligned in the driveway that leads to their beautiful and impressive log home nestled in lush forest. We have already understood from day one in the U.S., now is the time and after hours is more time. Everyone is busy, we tend Nancy hot sweats, gloves and hats that We put without discussion. The mornings are cool and we'll climb in altitude. The teams are divided on gear and before you even understand what happens to us, we go to the top.
Julien is currently driving a quad individual Nicolas is embedded in a 2-seater buggy and I'm in the back of an ATV driven by a funny lady blonde in mini shorts and cowboy boots ... I still can not realize what happens to us! The boys, meanwhile, smiling to the angels.
Maybe you wonder where Mary. Well learn that the lady in question sends into the air ... A thousand pardons for this naughtiness. More seriously, our Bubble Girl (I nickname gave him meaning "bubbly girl") was invited for a trip by private plane by the hosts and a couple of friends. She's gone fly over part of Colorado to near Monument Valley in Arizona ... Yet also incredibly memorable adventure!
As for us, we plunge into the forest still climbing and climbing to the top. Tis the season for "colors" and the trees are trimmed yellow, orange and ocher as if to seduce us and it won because we succumb to such beauty deployed. Some lakes of azure blue come to us in the eye and the sun rays redoubled nimba this fabulous setting of unparalleled brightness ...
And finally, the turning of a shoelace, looks a clearing. We are at 3500 meters above sea level! Everyone jumps on his machine and grabbed his backpack for a hike to a lake after which a picnic on grass is expected. Cautious and aware of my limitations, I warn an aside that I stay there with a good book. When I find myself only a few minutes later, I realize that the mountain is home to bear and we can not exclude the possibility of a visit to one of them. I decided to do a methodical search of the bags of vehicles to organize my possible survival. I can not find a hunting knife and a walking stick that I put beside me, ready to sell dearly my skin ... Bear!
2 hours later, my friends back. Phew! Bear certainly had other commitments and do not come to fight. I planned to make a nice nap but I had to stand guard all the time! Oh you can laugh! I liked seeing you there!
And we go down the mountain, giving us fun in the mud puddles as we pass through without slowing. Needless to describe our condition on arrival. In my case, my mud mask acted as a sunscreen and saved me a good sunburn, which was not the case of Nicolas who ended the trip as red as a lobster. Julien, meanwhile escaped with a slightly pink nose.
Nancy lent me his bathroom to shower, shampoo and blow dry human figure that gives me and we went to the famous Strater Hotel described above.
We join Mary who shows us some pictures from the sky and start looking for a pub to spend our "Durango Dollars". Indeed, our Rotary friends gave us $ 30 each in the form of vouchers to spend in the day and only in this city. This currency Local is designed to stimulate the economy of the city.
is around a burger (yeah, one more ...) we tell our adventures of the day .... and what a day!
Christine
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