Achievement Get

We have had some amazing days in our first week of this Epic Vacation, but we have had some hard days. But we have figured out a way to talk about our challenges. I live with three gamers, so we started calling all our difficulties Challenges and all our successes Achievement Get, complete with Bonus points and Life Energy (sleep and food.)  I have a little chart with icons I have made for the major levels we have accomplished and the challenges met. (Theo likes this so much he is talking about minor events this way - like eating lunch, he says, "Lunch. Achievement Get!")

So here is our first week:

1st Level --
Airport MSP
  bonus: Elaine gives us ride and lines are short
  challenge: Kelly forgot camera battery on desk
Flying on the edge of night
  challenge: no sleep! except for Theo
  bonus: incredibly beautiful
Iceland!
  challenge: we understand no words and no road signs correspond to anything we have
  bonus: we land within 2 blocks of apartment and are able to find it and go to sleep immediately
Geysir
  challenge: directions to Skogra geysir tell us not to go to Geysir, which doesn't go anymore, except Skogra is 100 feet from Geysir
  bonus: Skogra goes off often and boys are delighted
Whales
  bonus: we sight a humpback, which is rare this time of year
  bonus: we find an American style restaurant to the boys can eat
                low on life force: zzz and hunger points

2nd Level --
Finding Keflavik Airport
  challenge: map does not correspond with any road names, and road we must turn on has no sign, and it is 5:30 am
  bonus: best cup of cappuccino ever in the Keflavik airport
Flight to Paris
   challenge: train we were told to take is closed
Escaping Gare du Nord train station
   challenge: sleeping people, being accosted by petitioners and the mentally ill
Climb Montmarte Hill
   challenge: carry all luggage up Paris's highest hill; miss funicular by 2 blocks
Find apartment
   challenge: find enough cash to pay rent in full
   challenge: remember code for door and how keys work
   challenge: family only has one working phone
Cathedral!
Tour Eiffel
   challenge: only one tower is working so line is 3 hours long
Achieve Rental Car
  challenge: rental car company moved day of rental; phone number does not work; no one knows where company has moved to
  bonus: information lady, on third visit, tells us where it is
   challenge: children are starving and tired of McDonalds
   challenge: credit cards do not work in any machines due to lack of chip
             low on life force: zzz and hunger points

3rd Level --
Dijon for the night
   challenge: need enough coins for toll road (American credit cards not accepted)
    bonus: truck stops hand serve espresso and pastries at midnight
Switzerland
   challenge: riding mountain road without throwing up -- achieve! with help of Jolly Ranchers
See Friends
   challenge: no common language
   bonus: everyone had lovely time
Eat a meal
   challenge: no credit cards accepted
   bonus: excellent meal
Escape Paris
   challenge: all roads near apartment closed for pedestrian day
   challenge: traffic and car wrecks

4th Level --
See Chartes Cathedral
   challenge: arrive one minute after it closes
   bonus -- eat fabulous meal
Hotel with Pool
  bonus -- ate three meals each (almost) and to bed before midnight!

Next Level --
Mt St. Michele