Marching on toward March

Ericka and I both have field trips this week. I'm taking my students to the Electricity Museum and Ericka and her second graders are going to the Aquarium. The flu is knocking out students left and right, hopefully there aren't too many absences on field trip day.

We just finished booking our Carnival Break vacation to Italy and Switzerland for the third week of March. I'm looking forward to interacting with snow in the Alps. It's been too long. Here are some photos from the past few weeks.

Gators vs. Longhorns

Family during Christmas

Riding the train to go surfing.

Success during the Outing Club fishing trip

Air pollution makes for good sunsets

Water pollution makes for good sea foam

The Holidays

Ericka returned to Portland for the holidays and I traveled around Portugal with my parents and brother. It rained a lot, enough that we broke down and bought a dehumidifier for 100 euros. We also took advantage of a washer and drier at a motel over Christmas due to the fact that it is very difficult to dry clothes at home. Like most of Portugal, we have a washer but no drier, and clothes don't line dry in 100% humidity. Winter in Lisbon is similar to winter in Portland, Oregon, but about 10 degrees F warmer, and more humid.

It was very nice to see my family, and I was sad to see them leave. The pictures below include trips to the local castles of Lisbon, surfing on Christmas Eve, scooter rental, and a stay in the Algarve and Seville.