After a long hiatus, we spent the weekend bouldering in Annot. It was the first trip in our new used Renault Espace, now named the "Dragon Wagon" by the kids, and I have to say that despite being an ugly car, it is great for road tripping. It is quiet, you can put as much stuff as you want in it, the handling isn't too bad, and it is comfortable. It also gets pretty terrible gas mileage, but hey, you can't have everything. The seats are removable and reconfigurable too.
Since we would be missing halloween, I convinced (forced) the kids to wear the costumes I had brought back from the states, and took some photos of them along the way
In front of the Mont Aiguille !
And up the road from a town near Annot, where Chloe and I had once stayed in a *terrible* hotel. They served us grey gnocchi.
and near the Verdon
Once in Annot, we headed up to the farm, unloaded stuff and went up the hill to do some climbing at the Paf le Chien sector.
I managed to do "Choupette Magique" without too much trouble and then Chloe and I fell off "la Dalle qui rend fou" until the light ran out.
My friend from work Alejandro and his girlfriend Anna showed up later in the evening, but despite my best efforts to stay awake and wait for them, I fell asleep!
The next day, after some aeropress coffee, we went back up the hill to the paf le chien and rue du plaisir, And Virage sud sectors.
The climbing was great, as usual, but Chloe dropped a shoe somewhere, and we all spent a long time looking for it. I eventually found it in a big pile of leaves. We went back to la Rouie (the farm) for lunch, and some of Alejandro's friends showed up with their two young kids! We all headed back out to the place des Cardeurs section where we all mostly fell of things (except the kids).
I did "le groin" in a try or two, but fell off stuff that I know I did last time, like "Citizen". Boooo!
We headed back to the farm once darkness fell, and we ate raclette -- using the raclette machine that we brought down from Grenoble. Zoe and I showed everyone how to make S'mores, improvising a bit with speculos cookies instead of Graham crackers.
The next day it was off to the Madness sector for some of the old classics. Chloe did an old project of hers called "Bachotage", as well as a new one -- Bacaulareat.
Next, we had the most amazing bouldering trip lunch ever: Alejandro made Paella! And then he and Anna schooled up on the do's and do-not's of Paella Valenciana. First: no mixing meat and seafood. Second, paella is not a dumping ground for the things you have lying around; it is a specific dish. It's pretty much oil, rice, saffron, flat beans, rabbit, chicken. It was pretty damn awesome, and the kids loved it. What a fabulous finish to a weekend of god climbing and perfect weather
There was just the small matter of driving home! Not too bad with the Fall colors though
