Leaving Kenya for Lebanon and summer break 2023
by jayhayman
We left Kenya on June 28th. A sad farewell to a great country. Was an amazing posting and the girls attended a great school in Braeburn.
Our itinerary over the summer was rather complicated, given Catherine’s work commitments. We initially flew to Beirut and stayed in the Kempinski hotel to meet with the owner and finalise the contract on a flat in Achrafieh. While we were there we explored the neighbourhood and enjoyed the superb food.
Paris
We flew to Paris, August 7th to stay with the in-laws. Shortly after our arrival Catherine flew off to Washington DC for a week. The FIL was clearly delighted to see us and took us to his favourite restaurant in Paris, Kei. A 3 star michelin restaurant offering fine dining. Everyone dressed up and the food was excellent.
Once Catherine had got back, she had a school reunion with her old Parisian friends– Henri Quatre school alumni. Everyone aside from Jean-Pierre and Maia seemed really depressed and introspective. Things had not gone as well for people as they would have liked. After a decidedly frosty reception from some, me and the kids beat a quick retreat back home. Catherine arrived shortly after 1200 when the weather started to get very cold.
By the time we had reached mid-July, everyone was gearing up to go on holiday. The pressure of looking after everyone combined with a bad foot meant the MIL was continually sleep deprived and angry while we were there. Continually shouting. Mainly at me. Predominantly over minor things. Including arguing we had broken her beloved microwave, which was 30 years old. The anger affected Lena most. She was out of sorts for most of the time. So, it was with some relief that we headed off to Spain.
Trip to Basque country
Getting there involved a short flight to Bilbao before driving to the Hotel Londres in San Sebastian.
We had harbored a long-standing desire to explore the city after it was featured on Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown. Regrettably, we overlooked the fact that millions of others had been inspired by the popular food series, and our visit coincided with the bustling summer season. I had mistakenly assumed that the lack of direct flights or trains meant it would still be an undiscovered gem. Somehow.
This notion was quickly shattered when we explored the old town later that evening. The narrow streets were crammed with tourists. Any reasonable tapas bars had long queues. Yet quality in most of the tapas bars – pintxos was thoroughly underwhelming. Most were rammed with tourists swilling beer with caps and shirts emblazoned with US sports teams. Catherine quickly ascertained that eating in bars further away from the old city was the best strategy. Still, we managed to have some very good seafood. But the experience did not live up to expectations.
Following our visit to San Sebastian we proceeded to an airbnb in the heart of the Basque region. Along the way, we made a stop in Bilbao to gather groceries and explore the Guggenheim Museum. Since its inception the modern art museum had massively boosted visitors to Bilbao. The building looked iconic from afar. However, I was rather disappointed by the experience. The building was oddly structured inside. And I didn’t appreciate the art. The key exhibition was by Yayoi Kusama. There was considerable hype about her. A huge statue had been made of her outside Louis Vuitton in Paris to much fanfair. But her work along with all of the other artwork was lost on me, to be honest.
After the Guggenheim we drove on to the airbnb. The day was incredibly hot, and we all remarked how green the countryside was despite record temperatures. The reason for this would became apparent later on. Once we arrived at our airbnb we realised it had some fantastic views, but was miles from anywhere. It was also prone to huge amounts of rain and was generally cold. Still, we used the opportunity to take the rental to go on walks in national parks. Unfortunately for the MIL, her bad foot prevented her from going anywhere. It all became too much for her and she exploded on the last day after trying to get her hands on some kitchen roll to take back.
Lebanon 