Photo by The Joneses Basque dancers perform at a festival we attended while in Boise. — — — — — — SLIDE SHOW: Boise is a hip, fun city — — — E-mail Gisela! Got a comment for Gisela about their trip? Sent her an e-mail, giselaontheroad@yahoo.com — — — View Larger Map
ARCHIVES: You wouldn't believe how beautiful Canada is! Wouldn't change a thing Who knew there was so much to see in South Dakota? Time is flying by — but at least we're having fun! I (heart) Hart Ranch, South Dakota Rallyin' in Goshen, Indiana A special day From friends to work to warmer temps, we're still having fun in Florida Traveling to Texas Finally, we're in Alaska! On the way to Canada Boise sure has changed a lot Escapees Rally in Wyoming Bittersweet trip through the southeast From Boy Scouts to ‘Stars on Ice’ Michigan is full of treasures Arriving in Florida Earning our ears Celebrating Christmas and New Year's in Florida and the Disney Parks Down in the Lowcountry Making our way through Minn., Wisc. and Ill. The holidays in Florida Our time in Lakeland has come to an end Couldn't have had a better time in Omaha! Arriving in Charleston A day with friends from Frederick 'Life is good' in Lakeland, Fla. Leaving Florida, and heading north Our final days in Kentucky Into the Keys Out of Charleston and off to Indiana Dreams come true in Vermont You never know what you'll see or who you'll meet in Alaska Leaving Indiana, but not before taking some of the state's best sites Idaho is full of natural treasures — and moon-like craters, too It's all about the theme parks From prairie country to beautiful views to grand 'ol Yellowstone Thunderstorms, flooding, tornados and a visit with the 'Duke' And so it begins ... Moving days for Greg and his family The gang's all here! Happy to be in Florida again Strawberries, and more strawberries 'The RV Capital of the World' From the beautiful Maine coastline down to southern Connecticut Training for our jobs at Disney World Chillin' out at 'Camp Monaco' Under the weather Back in Florida At long last, back in the area Lots to see in the 'Show Me' state With family and spectacular sights in Hailey, Idaho Look back, look ahead Back in the Lower 48 The cold weather is hitting Florida From Dallas to devastation Back on the road again Leaving Idaho and heading east Beautiful Alaska A memorable visit to Alaska's Kenai Peninsula Watch out for flying dinner rolls

We left our motorhome in Hailey and took the CRV to Boise to spend a weekend with Tory (Bonnie’s son), his wife Julie and daughter Kenna who is 10 years old. Kenna is a lovely girl and I enjoyed seeing her again. She was excited because her dad and she went school supply shopping and she showed me all the "cool" items she bought. She admitted that she is ready for school to start.

I lived in Boise in the 1960s for a couple of years and it sure has grown and changed into a truly metropolitan and beautiful city. It was fun driving around, but I hardly recognized any of the places I used to know. Boise must have grown tenfold since I lived there.

Tory and Julie had something special planned for every day we were there. The first evening they took us to a wonderful Italian restaurant, that featured "wine tasting" for the evening we were there. This brought back a memory from a visit to an Italian restaurant we went to shortly after I came to Boise.When asked what I wanted to drink I asked for wine — a normal request for a German. The waitress gave me a funny look and said "I’ll see what we have." She came back with a small water glass of red wine. I really think it was their cooking wine! Yes, Boise has changed.

Friday evening we went to a wine tasting festival put on by a local winery. We tasted several of the wines, had good food and listened to the band that entertained us with great music. Bonnie’s widower Bob was there too and we had a nice time catching up on the news in our lives.

The next day we went to the farmer’s market and afterward to a Basque Festival. The farmer’s market was wonderful and covered several blocks. There was much more than fruits and vegetables, it was more a combination of local foods and an arts/crafts festival.

There were several local wineries that let us taste their wines, what excellent wines they were! And, coming from a wine-growing area (Rheingau) in Germany, I love and know a good wine. It surely surprised me to see so many wineries in the Boise area, especially after thinking about my first experience with ordering wine there.

The Basque Festival was very enjoyable. Boise has a very large and active Basque community with a Basque museum and cultural center. The performances were wonderful.

We listened to some great bands playing original Basque music. There were several dance groups all in colorful, authentic costumes. It was a joy to listen to the music and watch the dancers. It reminded me a bit of the times our German club in Augusta, Ga., performed at the annual ethnic festival.

We were sad to leave because we had such a nice time, especially since we knew that our time in Idaho was coming to an end. The plan was to head east once we were back in Hailey.

As with the other family visits, we thoroughly enjoyed spending time with each other, sharing memories, and making new memories. We are truly blessed to have had these opportunities.