We’ve arrived (again!) in California, this time on a one way flight. France gave us quite the parting gift — a major heat wave! — in late June when we made our trip back to the US, bringing seven suitcases, a bike box, and two backpacks with us. Heat waves are called “canicules” in France, and this one was so bad it broke records across France and extended across Europe. When we left Angers, it was 106 degrees, and it had already been over 100 degrees for the prior several days, and a week of 90s before that. In a country that seems allergic to air conditioning and window screens, everyone was overheated; the country saw at least 48 drowning deaths of people trying to beat the heat and over 1,000 deaths from heat related conditions. Sadly, this was the second canicule of the summer, and a third has already started.

While we miss France dearly, we are grateful to be somewhere cooler (and have air conditioning) and able to be helpful to family where we are needed. We’ve also eaten at a couple of our favorite places and explored our Airbnb neighborhood a bit. Yesterday, we took a walk in our favorite park and came across this lily pond which made me smile. So many happy flowers with their faces to the sun, rooted to the earth.

We’re off to Seattle tomorrow to visit some friends and family who we haven’t seen since we left for France. Summer is the perfect time to visit and we can’t wait to see the mountains and the blue skies which are gorgeous in July!