Yesterday night, some of my girlfriends and I got together for a clothes swap. I hadn’t done one since junior high school and had totally forgotten how fun they can be! If you haven’t swapped, I highly recommend it. Swap clothes, tools, books, raw materials, or anything else that can be used for a little bit longer, and kept out of a landfill.

Picture this: it’s a Monday night and 10 sweaty women are in various stages of undress. A woman in her skivvies is trying on a skirt; a few other ladies are clickity-clacking their way up and down the hall – trying to determine if their new old shoes will fit. From various rooms, you can hear the “ooh” and “aww” of a chorus of women endorsing each other’s fashion choices. Good times!

I was able to score 3 pairs of shoes (hooray for vintage!), a scarf, some sunglasses, and a beige kimono. I also took home a few bottles of nail polish and a white ribbon that once belonged to a wedding dress. The cost for this bounty? I merely had to contribute some items that I no longer need. (OK, let’s face it: I never needed them at all!)

Swaps allow you to find one-of-a-kind, vintage, and just-plain-weird items. They’re also great opportunities to shop for upcoming Halloween costumes. Swaps are free, fun, and a great way to spend an evening. They’re also a perfect chance for you to think about what you have, need, and could stand to part with.

For more opportunities to swap, check out some of these websites:

Free Cycle Calgary http://groups.freecycle.org/freecyclecalgary/description

Calgary Bike Swap http://www.calgarybikeswap.ca/Bike_Swap.html

Calgary Seedy Saturday http://seedysaturdaycalgary.shawwebspace.ca/

Also, browse Facebook for a variety of seasonal and one-off swap events.

A final comment: I sometimes find it hard to part with old clothes, because in my mind, it’s like parting with cold hard cash. But this time I told myself: there will be women at the swap whom I may not already know. Swapping clothes will be an investment in new friendships, and therefore, worth it.

And, I was right! After the swap, I walked back to the C-Train with my new friend Angela – each of us carrying a bag of new duds.

Swap on!

May 14-16

After breakfast we explored the old town – Al-Qasr –mud bricks and palm tree lintels (still used today), covered walkways, domed buildings – dating from the 7^th Century and originally housing early Muslims from Mecca. The guidebook says it was built on Roman ruins, but our guide didn’t mention that. Colin climbed up the old minaret to get a great view of the whole town. It was occupied for several hundreds of years; the modern (and occupied) town is right next to it.

Next oasis is Farafra (again, a series of oases “line” the road; the district is called Farafra as is the main town). We stopped for lunch which Shariff the driver cooked in a café (we will find that he knows many cafés between here and there and does the cooking – don’t actually know why!). Next door there is an amazing art gallery – completed conceived and built by local self-taught artist Badr Abdel Moghny, whose work has been exhibited internationally. It was closed but we went back to it later: his eclectic style covers sand paintings, sculptures of found pieces, rock carvings, etc., all housed in a traditional building with many small rooms and a 2^nd floor balcony.

Then through town and on into the White Desert: take sand dunes and cover with “snow” which is actually limestone “sheets”, sometimes in small patches, sometimes as rocks, sometimes in large sheets, it’s the most bizarre thing to see and experience. This first night we didn’t drive far into the desert, but drove around and camped by wonderfully-shaped, wind-eroded features.

We set-off to explore by foot as driver and guide set up camp: a long wind-break is attached to the down-wind side of the Land Cruiser, the sand in front of it is covered in rag rugs and a low table forms the campsite. We were offered tents but just slept in this space on foam mattresses and sleeping bags. Shariff does everything, including cooking. He graciously allowed me to chop onions and peel potatoes! We had sliced potatoes boiled in a tomato-onion mixture, rice, sliced tomatoes and cucumbers and grilled chicken – delicious! We had green-coloured cantaloupe and peaches for dessert. Sunset caste the white structures in a pinkish hue! After dinner we talked for quite a while. Turns out that our guide was in Tahrir Square for the whole Revolution: the demonstration was planned for January 25, a Police Day, to protest the seizure and murder of an innocent man in Alexandria 2 or 3 months earlier. It was planned between educated young men on the Internet. He is of course very rightly proud of having been part of it all. He told us that the Police shot into the faces of the young men leaving the mosque after prayers: the brother of his wife was killed and a friend lost his eye. His wife who is pregnant (and is also studying pharmacy) brought him food and clothes. He is very optimistic for the future of Egypt although he doesn’t think any of the current presidential candidates is the right one (“he –or she - must be new but over 40”). He constantly speaks about “before the Revolution” and “after the Revolution”, for instance in terms of the now ease in getting desert permits. Shariff our driver was also in Tahrir Sq (he was one of the men fighting the Molotov cocktails, wearing homemade helmets).

It was quite cool at night, but it was incredible! I woke up early enough to see dawn (5:20 precisely!), and we were all up and about by 7 so breakfast could be prepared and eaten (beans, soft cheese which is called feta, but is way nicer than our version), cucumbers, tomatoes, cheese….

We drove back to Farafra for a quick dip in a “hot spring” – a great volume of water coming out of a pipe and into irrigation ditches. I dunked my feet; the others dunked their bodies! We drove back to the White Desert – this time significantly further than last night: we drove up dunes and down (only getting stuck once!), around rocks and over passes. We got out and walked when caution dictated it! And drove up to see a large arch where the underlying rock had eroded away. It’s all quite magical, and if you don’t think about it you really think those white limestone sheets are snow drifts remaining on summer slopes!

We camped on a high sand dune overlooking a wonderful vista of strange shapes. We were facing east with a ridge behind us so we didn’t get a sunset and although I woke up just before dawn I couldn’t be bothered to get up and take photos.

And I forgot to mention the foxes! On both nights we were visited by packs of small sandy-coloured foxes – between the size of a large cat or small dog, yapping and scrapping over our food scraps (far from not feeding the “animeaux sauvage”, it appears to be expected!) At first one bold one came to investigate and each evening this increased to 9 or 10 – charming to look at, although in the morning you could see their tiny paw prints very close to our beds. Anna says one jumped on her chest just like the cats!

We broke camp and “rode” down the sand dunes at an alarming pace (you apparently need momentum to get through sand!), and so back to the main road. There have been road blocks/police check points at intervals. Since the Revolution this has just meant slowing down and saying a few pleasant words, sometime they take down our license plate, sometime “Canadian” is said. Along the desert road these checkpoints also have an ambulance and a solar-powered station. The ambulance:population ratio is significantly higher than in say rural Alberta, and likely higher than in Calgary as well!

Next stop is Crystal Mountain – an area with calcite crystals in the rock formations; very pretty. Continuing on we’re aiming for the Black Desert, but first we stopped for an Egyptian coffee/pineapple pop/water melon slices at a café/general store owned by a woman who moved from the Delta with her husband and 4 children; the husband died 2 years ago and she runs the store which has everything from food for your desert expedition to local handicrafts, including woven rugs which looked quite nice; the price was right and we bought one each, and she gave us each a piece of jewelry (Colin and Anna got wristbands, I got a necklace); lovely thought. We were also given a water melon….

The Black Desert is regular sand dunes “covered” by black basaltic-like rock. We drove to a place particularly rich in the black rock which looked to us like lava-flow. Colin thought it likely to be the hard rock (diorite) used in antiquity to quarry granite. Our guide, however, said there was a German(?) survey which found the black rock to only be surface-deep and not basaltic at all. Colin is skeptical and will do some research at home…

We arrived at our final destination – Bahariya Oasis, and the major town of Bawiti. The guidebook says this was a centre of agriculture in Pharaohic times, producing wines sold in the Nile region. We did indeed see grape vines, but these days for eating not drinking! We drove through a bustling market to the local museum which houses 10 of the “Golden Mummies” found in the neighbourhood. These were not mummified in the usual way (brain not removed); I think the binding produced a more “plaster-of-Paris” effect than usual. The faces certainly are covered in plaster and fairly garishly painted, some with gold paint since these wealthy merchants couldn’t afford gold. After the museum we went to the actual (26^th dynasty) tombs – some 7 meters below ground. The walls are still covered in decorations, although markedly cruder than the royal ones we saw in Luxor. The father’s tomb employed a local artist but for the sons’ an artist was brought from Luxor.

A bit further into the oasis and we arrived at our destination for the night: Qasr El Bawity hotel – a wonderful series of rooms around a forecourt/garden, but its main claim to fame is that it has its own hot spring and a swimming pool! Again we are the only tourists here, but last night they had a group of overland travelers, whom we saw in passing earlier. After lunch, we shower and wash clothes (which dry in no time!), and relax in the cool but very refreshing pool, then take a very hot dip in our own natural hot pool (well, the water is natural, the pool is like a huge bath). It instantly reminded Colin and me of the private pools at Rotaroa! The only problem with this place is the flies (to be honest, they are everywhere when you stop); Colin wants to declare a “no fly zone” but no one is listening! Tomorrow we’ll be back in Cairo after this wonderful interlude, seeing another side of Egypt that not too many tourists (especially this year!) see.

Paris: the city of pain au chocolat

For some reason, there are many more girl characters than boys in books to prepare for a visit to Paris. Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans is the classic, about the twelve little girls in two straight lines following Madeline into adventure.

Another fine picture book is Everybody Bonjours. This is a simple story of a little girl doing all the major tourist “to do” Parisan activities with her family. The painted watercolours are simple, colourful, and appealing. The book verges into silliness in the scene of the girl standing ALONE in front of the Mona Lisa! The Louvre mob scene around the famous painting is ten people deep.

We also enjoyed the picture book A Spree in Paree by Catherine Stock. Monsieur Monmouton’s barnyard animals all join him on a trip to the favourite tourist spots.

For an 8 year old boy, I figured gargoyles, the French revolution, and the Eiffel tower would have the biggest appeal, so I gathered some nonfiction information books about those topics. You Wouldn’t Want to be an Aristocrat in the French Revolution : a Horrible Time in Paris You’d Rather Avoid by Jim Pipe was a hit, both for it’s humour and it’s comic illustrations.

Since the trip, I’ve read The Invention of Hugo Cabret : a Novel in Words and Pictures by Brian Selznick. It’s a well written mystery about an orphan who lives in a Paris train station, and would be good for boys or girls of upper elementary school age.

Our top Parisian DVD recommendation is the delightful Ratatouille about a rat who wants to be a chef.

Top attractions for kids:

• The number one appeal is the bakeries, and there are many. Simon was delighted when our friend Gail took him to compare the neighbourhood bakeries’ pain au chocolat, a pastry with chocolate inside. They returned with a bag of samples for breakfast.
• The museums are not oriented to children, like the interactive displays in North American buildings. However, we had a fun time at the Louvre by pretending that Simon could look at ONLY 10 paintings. We picked dramatic ones with stories, like the shipwreck in The Raft of the Medusa, the Coronation of Napoleon and, of course, the Mona Lisa. The book Louvre in Close-Up by Claire D’Harcourt is a good introduction.
• The Cluny Museum was a hit because Simon is interested in the Middle Ages. The highlights were the medieval pilgrimage tourist souvenirs found in the Seine and the unicorn tapestries.
• We spent an enjoyable afternoon at the Sunday pet market near Notre Dame Cathedral. Simon rescued a rabbit that made an escape. The other days of the week this is a flower market.
• In keeping with the child centered trip, we promised we would only visit one church, so we chose the stain glass filled Saint Chapelle on a sunny day.
• A carrot at the end of our visit was Disneyland Paris, an easy train ride from Paris. They had an Indiana Jones rollercoaster with a loop that we dared each other into riding.

Kari

My 12-year-old daughter just got her first pair of eyeglasses.

Memories of my own angst-ridden, pubescent experience with glasses came flooding back. Like many teens and pre-teens, I hated how I looked in my glasses. I found dealing with puberty (with its physical changes and skin problems), braces and bad perms was more than challenging enough without adding goofy eyewear to the mix.

Thankfully my daughter's glasses journey has been entirely painless; she found frames she loves and is thrilled to be able to see clearly again ("The world—it's so detailed!")

After coming across a few old pairs of frames recently, I did some research on how to recycle them. I also came across sites debating whether glasses or contact lenses are the “greener” choice. Some eyeglass manufacturers are making eyeglasses from recycled or environmentally friendly materials. Who knew?

So here are some links to sites with more information on seeing more green:

Two places that will recycle your old eyeglasses:

Third World Eye Care Society Canada

Canadian Lions Eyeglass Recycling Centre (CLERC)

Three sites that take an environmental look at glasses and contact lenses:

“Glasses vs. Contact Lenses: An ophthalmic guide to saving the planet” Slate.com

“What Is More Sustainable: Eyeglasses Or Contact Lenses?” Treehugger.com

“Can I wear glasses or contacts and be green?: From 3D glasses to eco-unfriendly frames to disposable contact lenses: keep the environment in your sights” Guardian.co.uk

Photo courtesy of www.lottieanddoof.com

If you can boil water, you can create colourful, cool frozen treats to satisfy your hot weather cravings. With fun molds available in a variety of shapes and sizes, a whole array of popsicle forms and flavours awaits you.

The building block of paletas, a Spanish term for frozen treats on a stick, is a sugar syrup. It is this easy to prepare: place 1/2 cup of sugar and 3/4 cup of cold water in a small saucepan over low heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil for 1 minute. Set aside and cool completely. Makes 1 cup.

The second essential ingredient in popsicle making is fruit. I have honeydew melon versions for you, blackberry lemonade, strawberry/cranberry and sour cream cherry paletas to share with you. Each one showcases jewel-like colours and deeply satisfying natural flavours, unlike the icky-sticky fake pops you buy at the supermarket. Thanks to Bon Appetit magazine for these great ideas.

Layered Melon, Lime and Lemongrass Paletas

1 cup sugar syrup; 3 stalks lemongrass, roughly chopped; 1/3 cup lime juice; 300g chopped ripe honeydew melon.

Place half of sugar syrup and lemongrass in a small saucepan over high heat and bring to a boil for 1 minute. Strain and allow to cool. Add lime juice and stir. Set aside. Place remaining sugar syrup and melon in a blender and process until smooth. Divide melon mixture between 8 x 1/3 cup ice block molds, insert stick and freeze for 2 hours. Pour the lemongrass mixture over the frozen melon mixture and freeze for a further 3 hours. Makes 8.

Blackberry Lemon Paletas

1 cup sugar syrup; 1+1/2 cups lemonade; 2 tbsp. lemon juice; 140g blackberries.

Pour the sugar syrup, lemonade and lemon juice into a large jug and stir. Divide berries between 8 x 1/3 cup capacity ice block molds. Pour the lemonade mixture over the blackberries, insert stick and freeze for 4 hours. Makes 8.

Strawberry and Cranberry Paletas

1 cup sugar syrup; 1+1/3 cups cranberry juice; 8 strawberries, sliced.

Pour sugar syrup and cranberry juice into a large jug and stir. Pour half the cranberry mixture into 8 x 1/3 cup capacity ice block molds. Place 2 strawberry slices into each mold, insert sticks and freeze for 4 hours. Pour remaining cranberry syrup into molds. Divide remaining strawberry slices between molds and freeze for a further 4 hours. Makes 8.

And, now, for the adults. . . .

Sour Cream, Cherry, and Tequila Paletas (recipe by Fany Gerson)

8 ounces stemmed and pitted cherries, fresh or frozen; 1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar; 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice; 2 tablespoons silver or blanco tequila; 1+1/2 cups whole milk; 1/2 cup granulated sugar; 1/4 teaspoon salt; 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, or 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract; 1+1/2 cups sour cream.

Put the cherries in a nonreactive saucepan with the confectioners’ sugar and cook over medium heat, stirring, until the mixture comes to a boil and the sugar has dissolved. Lower the heat, stir in the lemon juice, and simmer, stirring often, until the syrup has thickened and has a consistency like maple syrup. Remove from the heat, stir in the tequila, and refrigerate until completely chilled.

Drain the cherries, reserving the liquid for another use (soda!). Combine the milk, granulated sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan. If using vanilla bean, scrape the seeds into the mixture, then add the pod. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture just comes to a boil.

Remove from the heat, add the sour cream, and stir with a whisk until completely smooth. If using vanilla extract, stir it in at this point. Let cool slightly, then discard the vanilla bean and refrigerate the mixture until completely chilled.

Put a bit of the sour cream mixture into each of your molds, to a height of about 1 inch. Freeze until the mixture begins to set, about 30 minutes. Divide the drained cherries among the molds, then pour in the remaining sour cream mixture, dividing it evenly among the molds.

Freeze until solid.

Buzz some fruit into a sweet slurry, freeze and lick, with our support: