FINAL POST FROM MY PARIS TRIP

I'm behind in my blogging.  My last week in Paris was busy, so very busy.  Not only was French school kicking my *&!, but I got to be so very close to the new group that we were on the streets until late! Oh yeah,  I guess that means that the verdict is in!!!  My class rocked.  I'm on Facebook with each and everyone of them.  They are fabulous!!!

Having said all of that, on Thursday I decided to get a "good" lunch in a local restaurant.  For that particular pleasure, I went back to my old hood, rue Cherche-Midi.  I happened upon this little joint and the outdoor menu board looked interesting, not to mention the white table cloths and starched waiters.  I ordered the prix fix lunch including a cold chick pea soup with mascapone and lemon.  After that I enjoyed the salmon with sesame seeds and seasonal vegetables.  Delicieux!  Finished up with coffee and lot's of conversation with a truly cool waiter who had spent a year in London.  And so, . . . his English was great, but he appreciated my need to speak French.  His boss gave me French and English menus so that I could compare and translate any food items that I didn't understand.  I would go there again, AND AGAIN.  No tourists.  At least not any without a backbone.

After class on Thursday most of us headed to Luxembourg Gardens.  We had gelato, coffee, sorbet, and most important, CONVERSATION, . . . in FRENCH!!!  Crazy, I know!  Anyway, a few of us hung out late and grabbed some food.  Just fun with great folks.

On Friday I decided that I should have a party, a petit fete, if you will.  I had this great apartment, and I thought that my class should come over and hang.  They did.  It was memorable and a blast, at the very least.

There are several people who touched me in a very important way.  Carmen, the instructor for my three weeks at Alliance Francaise  made all the difference in my school experience.  She taught me not only about language, but about culture, and, in my particular case, patience!   Hsiang Chieh Lo (pronounced "Chantier" in English) an AMAZING translator from Taiwan and Gianluca Musatti, a young chef  from Italy became my very closest friends.   Hsiang Chieh is just plain special.  Not sure.  Just special.  That's all.  Gianluca is the same age as my Graydon.  Sometimes you just connect with people on a level that is hard to explain.  I hope to have them in my life, . . . .ALWAYS!!!  On our last day of class Gianluca couldn't be there because he was taking a patisserie class at le Condon Bleu.  He showed up at my apartment with a box of homemade macaroons (yes, he made them) and an apron that said, "le Cordon Bleu Paris".  The macaroons were too good to be true, and the apron was FOR ME.  I'll cherish it always.   Afterward, Maria (beauty from Valencia, Spain), Martin (some kind of genius physicist from London), Martina (cute girl from Norway), Gianluca, Hsiang Chieh, (coolest people ever!) and I ran around Paris trying to find GOOD CHEAP food.  Oh, did I mention that it was raining cats and dogs?  Ended up at some dive, but steak frites is always a good bet.  We were so hungry that it didn't really matter.  ALTHOUGH, I did see that they had "horse steak" on the menu.  Didn't really work for me.  Not at all!

I got homesick, although I absolutely appreciate the opportunity and don't regret the choice for a minute.  I gained some cherished memories and lifelong friends.

The trip home was okay other than about six hours of delays.   I was pleasantly surprised by American Airlines.  They were polite and helpful at every turn.  However,  I can't say that for all of the travelers.  Sorry to say that all of the rude folks were AMERICANS!!!  Not sure what that was about.

All that said, I was smiling so big when I got to Chicago that the customs agents were kinda laughing.  When they asked what was up, I said, "just glad to be back in the US".  That's true.  At the end of my second week of French class, we had a little Q and A from all of the students to each student, taking turns.  They asked if I preferred Paris or Austin.  I said (in French),  I LOVE PARIS, but AUSTIN IS MY HOME, and I can't wait to get there!!!

Loved Paris, loved the experience, love my new friends.

Glad to be home ya'll!!!

Getting ready to tear up my kitchen, a little.  I'll blog about that.  I'll need an outlet.  Before that, however, going to NYC to see the kids and then the Cape to  . . .?????  Afterwards, heading to Marietta, Ohio for the Sternwheel Festival with my folks for some family time, and working on my pickle recipe.  Stay tuned.

FOOD!!!!

Generally, there's not a ton of restaurants open on Sundays in Paris.  Last night I was craving a steak, and no real grocery stores within walking distance were open either.  I took a little stroll through my quiet neighborhood (particularly quiet on Sundays) and happened upon a bistro with people and FOOD!  

People are a good sign.  If a restaurant is dead on a Sunday, you can bet that you'll be dead if you eat there.  Anyway, I got my steak, and it was delicious.  The service wasn't so good, but it didn't matter.  I was in my own little world.  Gorgeous weather and amazing people watching added to the experience.  I'm not big on bearnaise sauce, but I tried theirs.  It was the real deal.

Although I wasn't all that hungry, I decided that a good lunch before I started my final week of French school was in order.  Taking the safe route, I chose the Brasserie Lutetia at the Hotel Lutetia for lunch at their outdoor tables.  The waiters are friendly and professional, and the food . . . terrific!  I ordered a haddock dish with risotto.  Good idea all the way around!


I've stayed at the Hotel Lutetia several times.  I would stay there any time.  The art deco palace has a lot of its own history.  The Hotel was home to Jewish refugees before the Nazis invaded Paris in June 1940.  And . . . General de Gaulle spent his wedding night there.  Besides, I'm a Left Bank girl all the way.  The Lutetia (Rue Raspail) and L'Abbaye (Rue Cassette) are my two favorite hotels in Paris.  


This is my last week at Alliance Francaise.  There are only four of us left from the previous class, but now we've grown to about a dozen, fourteen, or so.  It takes a little heat off of me, because there are so many other people for the teacher to be concerned with, not to mention different strengths among us.  Our teacher Carmen is still the bomb, but the verdict's not in on the personality of the newly formed class.  Stay tuned.  Gotta go.  I've got SO MUCH French homework.