Back to School.............

Today is the first day of 2014 Fall Term at Portland State University.  Roger left early to take an art class and I followed at 10 a.m. for an Ancient Near East and Egyptian History class.  We love the challenge of learning and it is energizing to be with young people.

JAM - and Tick Tick BOOM...............

I'll admit that the title of this post sounds pretty crazy but there's an explanation............  JAM is a breakfast and lunch cafe on Hawthorne, across the street from my favorite bakery.  For years I've noticed people standing outside on the sidewalk waiting for a table to open so yesterday morning, Callie met me there to try it out.  It's a winner.................

http://www.jamonhawthorne.com/

Our timing was good because we had a table as soon as we arrived at 10 a.m. I love Portland's breakfast cafes because they know what people like and they offer eclectic and interesting dishes.  Check out the menu - it's three pages filled with choices.

Allison and I have season tickets to the Triangle Theater on Sandy Blvd.  It's a small theater group who come up with some "off the wall" and unusual plays.  Their goal is to provide plays that promote diversity and tolerance that addresses a broad range of social and political issues.  Last night was the first production of the season "Tick, Tick...Boom!   It's a musical so we not only enjoyed the acting and story, but we also heard really great music. 

To make the evening perfect we started out with an early dinner at Iorio, one of our favorite places to get fresh hand made pasta dishes.  The love affair with Portland continues.............

Adorable KYAN..........

This adorable little man is Kyan.  He is Roger's great-nephew who lives in Paris.  Here he is 10 months old.  Afram is his grandmother.

Duffy is the STAR..........

I never tire of photographing Duffy because he is just gorgeous.  Today Allison and I took Bella and Duffy out to lunch at the Riverfront.  We saved some bacon from our cheeseburger so here Duffy is patiently waiting for his bacon treat.  He's only seven months old but he is behaving like an adult.  He loves Bella but it's clear that he's still figuring out if she's a dog or some other unknown creature.....................

Finally - MONTREAL

We arrived in Montreal on Saturday, Sept. 6th..  The weather was sunny and warm throughout our stay and we had a great time being pampered by Lulu and Garik.  The city is modern but their history goes back at least 400 years.  We enjoyed a steak dinner in their "tourist area" the first night and it was like revisiting Paris with the streets and restaurants crowded with "beautiful people".

Here are a few photos from our visit to St Saveur, a lovely ski area north of Montreal.

Church in St Saveur

A Shop in St Saveur

And, finally a very sweet shot of Garik and Roger who are trying to show Lulu how to take a picture with her new I-Pad.  This is meant kindly but it truly was "the blind leading the blind".  The positive note is that, even though we're old, we're still doing our best to keep up with technology and Lulu got some beautiful photos while we were on our walk.  

Chateau Frontenac - Quebec City

This was the first view from the ship in Quebec City.  It is now the Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac Hotel

http://www.fairmont.com/frontenac-quebec/

Shopping in Quebec City

I was surprised to see this shop window while we were touring Quebec City.  Yes, the "F" word means the same in Quebec as it does here, however, it is used in a less harsh connotation.  You might say that it means something like "heck with fashion". 

Now I regret not checking out the merchandise..............