Well, there was the Nato occupation, yes. But the weekend in question was otherwise lovely. Really lovely. Nato actually accidentally brought home a dear, dear friend. One point in its favour. And it didn't manage to stop two other dear friends from getting married and having the wedding picnic to beat all. For this Nato gets half a point, since it had nothing to do with bringing us all together; but then again, it didn't intervene, which was a happy shock to us all. And it was sunny to set all records. No points for Nato for this one, though, for obvious reasons.
(above) Three of we four, watching the parade of Very Important People cross the Rhein, step out of their vehicles, be snubbed by Berlusconi, get their pictures taken and zoom off to the next thing on their Very Important Agendas. We were also, incidentally, looking for Härry. But he was nowhere to be found. Ah, well! We could (hardly) wait...
(above) The happiest, most well-found couple I've ever known forges ahead and into the future. Meanwhile, our escorts wait outside. (The scene, as we entered, was really funny, with radioed messages of the "shppttft! - yeah, looks like our party - pfftshtff! - three adults two children - psstshshtsht! - party entering - ssztpfft! - party taking the stairs - pshshtftft!" like. We were the last to arrive, and the gendarmes were visibly relieved.) Once inside, there was only us, a few gendarmes, the mayor and a few of his colleagues in a beautifully lit room that was like something out of a movie set in the 70's. Too good to be real. But real it was, and so was the exchange of vows and the kiss that sealed it all...
(above) Bärbel's loving escort (they are really and truly envious of Felix's luck. It'd be heartbreaking, if it weren't so funny); setting out the fabulous picnic; and, "Here's to the future!" ho-HO! The 'real' party's at the end of the summer. If it's even half as good as this day was, it'll be nirvana-esque.
(above) And last, but most certainly not least: our old, dear friend Härry, (and Jean-Philippe, Anne-Sophie and me) on the terrace at 2am - hence, our Sleep Series. Almost every time we're with Härry, we end up with a good series. This one was accidental, though. We wanted for all four to be "sleeping," but in every picture but the last one, a lone pair of eyes was gazing up at the camera. In any case, we're already looking forward to the next Härry sighting, perhaps next year, in Kiev...?
