We got back on Wednesday from our 4 week trip to Europe.

We spent 12 days in London, 7 in Spain (Calella/Barcelona), 5 in Paris and 4 in Brussels. We booked our mini holidays while in London and used local people. It might have been higher than if we did it from here, but we only knew that we had plans for London and left the rest up to chance...it worked out and was a surprise for us all when we picked random countries based on availability. They English bloke said we were quite 'potty' to land there with 4 weeks to spare and not have every day accounted for,lol

Flew from Gatwick to Spain for an All inclusive experience, after spending part of the night at Gatwick airport. It's now fondly known as 'camp Gatwick.' We arrived there after midnight and had to check-in at 2:50 a.m. so it made no sense to book a room.

We used the Eurostar twice to visit Brussels and Paris. The kids were in awe (we'd been before when they were tiny tots), but it was a different experience now seeing the things they'd studied in school or read about. Worth every pound/euro (though quite expensive)!! But there are ways to keep your costs down. Highly recommend a European holiday but wait until it gets cooler...we were there for some of the hottest days in history. Not a pleasant experience on the tube or metro.

The French were surprisingly friendly. I had heard so many bad reports from folks over the years, but they were lovely. The English in generaly were hilarious (love their sense of humour), but the Belgian folks weren't terribly warm or friendly. The Spanish weren't too bad though Mexicans beat them any day with food and friendliness. My Spanish was definitely Latin American and I was told so, lol

Now it's time for the kitchen once more. Cabs come in on the 8th.

Hope everyone had a great summer.