Talking on Skype on perhaps her last night of  freedom (though, at the time of writing, this remains to be seen), Jenna can at least enjoy the few perks of carrying a baby: a free stand to rest the microphone on (that’s what the big thing in the picture is), or the TV remote, or even a bowl of cereal.

Jenna, caught in the moment, on Champs-Élysées in Paris.

On our trip to Paris in September (a little side-trip from our visit to Norway), we felt obliged to do the tourist pilgrimage down the Champs-Élysées.

Yet this famed street was only the beginning of our long trek throughout the city. From the Arc de Triomphe we sauntered down (interrupted by  French hotdogs, and, don’t let me forget, the most delicious and decadent confectionary and hot chocolate so thick you could eat it with a spoon (and so decadent that even Marie Antoinette would have been right at home) from a most exquisite confectioner’s shop (and restaurant) next to the green space known as the Jardin des Tuileries) to the Louvre, where, under the open arcades, we were forced to seek refuge, for a while, from bitterly cold autumn rain; further on along the River Seine to the Île de la Cité (an island) and Notre Dame (which should need no introduction), onwards from there through narrow and extremely touristy alleyways in the Latin Quarter (our presence there certainly did not subtract from the tourist factor) where we had a good dinner nonetheless, and after a little detour through the gardens of L’Hôtel national des Invalides (though, since we arrived just before closing, not inside the palace itself, where Napoleon lies still (in every meaning of the word)), we finally ambled down (now quite tired, you can imagine) the long garden in front of the Eiffel Tower just in time for our scheduled 8pm tour to the top to watch the sunset (but more on that later).

Considering that we opened the day by walking through Montmartre (our very basic lodgings were here, and here we also sourced our breakfast: delicious croissaints and €4 coffee) and perusing the magnificent Sacre Coeur basilica (where we resisted the urge to buy memorial religious tokens from bright and colourful vending machines strategically placed inside that holy dome), that was quite enough seeing, walking, eating and doing for one day.

Here’s a photo from my most recent convocation. I graduated with an M.A. in Global Governance from the Balsillie School of International Affairs (University of Waterloo) in June (2010).

As an interesting side-story, the president of the university, David Johnston, handed me my diploma and we had a little conversation about IISD on stage, since he asked me what my plans were and I said I was going to work for IISD for the summer. He had been involved with the organization, but I forget how. Then a few of weeks later he was appointed the new governor-general of Canada!

I went back to St Catharines one weekend for a visit (I’m currently in Winnipeg) and we went to Niagara-on-the-lake to sit in a park and relax.

Jenna visited me here in Winnipeg, what is it, three weeks ago now? Anyways, she flew out here for a long weekend. We went and saw the sights, we even rented a car and drove up to Gimli, a little village by Lake Winnipeg that boasts Icelandic heritage. And sure enough, we even got to experience a little viking camp by a local “living history” group. One day we went in the Assiniboine Park Zoo as well, and we toured downtown, the Exchange District and the Legislature.

We were really lucky with the weather too the weekend she came: one of the days she was here was pretty much the nicest day all summer. It rained before she came and by golly it has rained the entire time since. I’ve stopped calling this city Winnipeg; henceforth I shall only refer to it as “Winterpeg”. Okay, that’s probably not entirely

But anyways, here’s a rare picture of us together (sad but true). The next three or four pictures are also from that weekend.

And here’s a picture of Morpheus and Jenna in the snow. He’s very traumatised.

From Jenna’s convocation ceremony, when she graduated with her Bachelor’s of Arts degree in Community Health from Brock University. She was glowing like the sun despite the wind. I graduated a couple of days later (pictures come later).

Here’s Jenna on St Pete’s Beach in Pass-a-grille, Florida, at the very end of the Gulf boulevard that skips from key to key down from Clearwater Beach.

Here you see Jenna in Germany, glowing like the sun despite the gray and dull day.

Jenna and I went on a “mini cruise”, a three day return-trip on a cruise ship size car and passenger ferry that traffics the route between Oslo, Norway, and Kiel, a port city in northern Germany. We got a few hours to explore the city (mainly the malls and the main shopping streets :P).