Tuesday, the Last Day, in Paris

Today has been a very fun and much more relaxing day. I fell asleep last night shortly after 2:00 AM (this jet lag thing has completely messed with my body). I got showered and ready this morning, and at 9:30 Staci had her tutor Sylvie come over to talk to us in French. Sylvie is a very sweet French woman, who served her mission in St. George, and got her degree from BYU. She was very kind to me, and said that my french is very good. While speaking with her, I realized that I have lost a little bit of my french accent, but I am still a good french speaker. I also had to think hard about some vocabulary words, and some had completely left me. But I was surprised that I could actually still carry on a conversation with her, and feel pretty good while doing so. I was definitely slower than I used to be, but what can I expect after 11 years of not using the language at all?

So after visiting with us for a little over an hour, she offered to take us shopping at a mall somewhere near the Opéra de Paris. I bought a dress and a scarf that are both très chic. Oh là là! We window shopped a little, just checking out a few stores in the mall, and then walked to the Opéra and took a few pictures. Then Staci & I parted ways with Sylvie, and we took the metro to the Place de la Concorde. I took so many pictures! There was the obelisque, and the fountain where Andy threw her cell phone in The Devil Wears Prada, and the Hôtel de Crillon, which is the hotel where every famous person stays when they visit Paris (no, I didn't see anyone famous and yes, I was a little bummed.) The Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe were in the distance, and there were also other important government buildings that I took a few pictures of. Then we got to visit the U.S. Embassy. So cool.

Then we came home, dumped our bags and backpacks, and went shopping at the Monoprix one last time. I bought more chocolate. You know, because I don't have enough. Although the cheap stuff will be for a giveaway on my blog, and the expensive stuff is for ME!

For dinner tonight - un crèpe avec du jambon et gruyère, and a whole assortment of leftover desserts in the fridge. Tonight I will pack up, and tomorrow morning at 6:15 AM the Parishuttle picks me up to take me to the airport! The flight is 11 hours, and then the drive home is 3 1/2 hours. Tomorrow will be a very long day, but then I will be home with my family again!

I have been so appreciative of the hospitality Rob & Staci have shown me. It has really been an amazing trip, and I have enjoyed every minute of it! (Well, not the lack of sleeping due to jet lag, but everything else.) Thank you so much Rob & Staci!

Monday in Paris

What a great day!  And so tiring, too.  Today I chose fashion over comfort, and my feet are crying out in pain.  I'm pretty sure we walked 100 miles today.  Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating a little.  

First, we stopped at the FNAC and I bought a cd that Sarah (the girl from Orem) told me about, of a french singer called Tété.  She promised it was amazing, so I bought it even though I haven't heard any of the songs.  Next we walked to the Arc de Triomphe and walked the 284 steps up to the top.  I just love being able to see the entire skyline of Paris from there.  And seeing all 12 roads leading out from l'étoile.  Of course, I'm taking lots of pictures and having Staci take lots of pictures of me too.  Then we took the metro way out to La Défense, which is on the westernmost side of town.  It is the business district, and the metro station was also an RER station, a train station, a bus station, a tram station, and a taxi station.  And it had a McDonald's, and all sorts of other stores.  We went outside straight to the giant arche, which is a huge square (like the square is a skyscraper with offices inside of it), and I took more pictures.  It is really funky, but it's a big part of the Paris skyline so I was excited to see it.  Then I was sure there were some funky-cool statues in the area somewhere that were in the movie The Devil Wears Prada, so both Staci and I asked around to people to see if they knew where they were.  They had no idea what we were talking about.  So we walked around for a while, searching for this square of sculptures, and couldn't find it.  But I did find a giant thumb sculpture, and a weird looking "thing" that kind of looked like a monster out of Beetlejuice. But we never found the thing I was looking for, so I was kind of bummed.  

Next, we got back on the metro and decided to head east, straight to the other side of Paris, to go see a cool cemetery where Jim Morrison and some authors and other famous people are buried.  (We were going to go to the Catacombs today too, but we found out they are closed on Mondays.  It was going to be a morbid kind of day, but we didn't end up doing either the catacombs or the cemetery!)  On the way to the cemetery, Staci mentioned that the George Pompidou center and the only LDS church in Paris are within a block of each other.  So I spontaneously said, "Let's get off and go see them both!"  So we got off the metro and went to the church.  It happened to be open, so we went in and went to the bathroom.  A clean church bathroom is way better than any old bathroom in Paris!  I took pictures of the main hallway and the parking lot.  (When you see pictures of the "parking lot", you'll laugh.  Maybe 9 cars can fit in it.)  It felt nice to be there though.  The spirit was there.  

Next, we walked across the street to the George Pompidou center.  I wasn't actually interested in going inside; I just wanted to take a picture of the outside.  It is a modern art museum, and the outside kind of looks like what the inside of the walls would look like - pipes and stairs and stuff with clear class walls.  We started to walk away, and then I said, "You know, we didn't get to see the other side.  Maybe it looks different."  So we walked back and started to walk around it, and voilà!  There was the funky-cool square of sculptures that I was SO SURE was in the business district!  If you have seen the Devil Wears Prada, imagine the part where Andy is giving a scarf to the super model, (at least I think it is this part) or maybe it is raining or something and they are doing a photo shoot.  And there are lips that shoot water out of them, and other crazy sculpture things in a pool of water.  I'll have to go home and watch the movie again.  Anyway, I was very excited. Except it is March, so they didn't have the water on.  Too bad.

Right across from the square were four small cafés, and we chose one with "crêpes" in the name for lunch.  I had the "menu," which means lunch special in French.  I had a green salad (just lettuce, nothing else) with vinaigrette, a savory crêpe with ham, cheese and a sunny side up egg cooked and folded inside of it, and a buerre-sucre crêpe (butter/sugar) for dessert.  The price also included a glass of cider, but I'm pretty sure it was alcoholic, so I asked for a glass of water instead.  The waitress looked at me and said, "No cider?  Do you want coffee at the end of your meal?"  I said, "No, just water please."  And she shrugged and walked away.  Crazy Mormons. Anyway, it was delicious, and I ate every morsel.  I would have licked the plate like I did with that yummy cheesecake a few weeks ago if I weren't in a fancy french café. 

Then Staci told me that the Notre Dame cathedral was only a couple of blocks away, so we walked over to that.  We had to cross the Seine River, and there is was.  SO many tourists. Like, hundreds, maybe a thousand, just sitting in the square in front of the doors.  I didn't feel like I needed to go inside since I had already been in it before, and since I went inside the Sacré Coeur just a couple of days ago.  So I took lots of pictures on all sides, and then we went back to the metro to go pick up Elli and Xandi from school.  We stopped at a magazine stand on the way so I could buy a couple of french magazines.    Then we went to the Monoprix grocery store after picking up the girls to purchase a few things.  Then I came home, ate a pot de crème (tastes like crème brulée without the hard, sugary top - YUM!), and put my feet up to write this blog post.  And now I'm going to go listen to my French cd.  For dinner we're having leftovers - quiche lorraine, boeuf bourguignon, and crème brulée for dessert.  With all this yummy food, I think I've died and gone to heaven.  Have I said that yet?  I may be repeating myself, but who cares?  I'm enjoying every bite!

Sunday in Paris

Today was Stake Conference for Staci and Rob.  I was a little bit bummed that I didn't get to see where they go to church every week (I wanted to see if it was the same one I went to 15 years ago when I came to Paris to visit our foreign exchange student.)  But the really cool thing was that Stake Conference was at the Palais des Congrès de Versailles.  In other words, it was just across the street from the Palace of Versailles.  (Collective sigh - oh, darn, so sad for you Erin.) So we took the RER to Versailles.  I haven't quite figured out the difference between the metro and the RER (which is also called the SNCF).  I know they both have separate lines throughout Paris.  I think the RER is more like a train?  It is double decker.  But quite a bit of it was actually above ground, although some was underground like I said before.  It was definitely more confusing than the metro.  I could figure out the metro.  I couldn't figure out the RER. Neither could Staci.  We couldn't even figure out how to purchase a stinkin' ticket.  But we asked the man at the counter, and that helped me realize that I understand French better than I originally thought, because I understood what he told us.  But as we waited for the next train, we realized we didn't know which train we were supposed to take.  So we went around and started asking people.  Keep in mind we were two women wearing long dresses.  So we asked a woman how to get to Versailles...she looked us up and down and asked, "Are you going to Stake Conference?"  And we were so thrilled - yay, here's a Mormon, and she's going to help us get to Versailles!  (Staci and I are both directionally challenged.)  So we introduced ourselves.  Her name is Sarah, and she is from Orem, and is here taking classes at the Sorbonne for five months.  She loves French as much as I do. And she blogs!  I haven't looked her blog up yet, but I am going to very soon!  Anyway, we had a great visit with her on the RER. 

I took pictures and video of the train and tracks for my boys.  I also saw the Eiffel Tower, in full, and got photos (through the dirty plexiglass window, of course), and I got pictures of a hot-air balloon that I knew the boys would like.  When I got back to the house and was telling Rob about it, he said, "You are the first person I have ever heard of who talks about riding the RER with excitement, like "I got to go on the RER.'"

It took us over an hour, close to an hour and a half to get to Versailles.  Conference itself was fine.  Between the microphone reverberating/sound bouncing around the hall, and the talking/noise making children, I wasn't able to understand a whole lot.  I got the gist though. And the main speaker was Elder Robert C. Oaks of the 70 (Staci originally thought it was Elder Oaks of the 12, but it wasn't.  That's okay though.).  He spoke about strengthening our families, paying our tithing, and having faith.  

Afterward, Staci, Sarah and I walked across the street to the Palace of Versailles.  We didn't actually pay to go inside.  I have already been there before, albeit 15 years ago, but I didn't feel like I was missing out on anything by not going in again.  But the gardens are free to walk through.  So we saw the gardens, which are symmetrical in design, and the man-made lake, and l'orangerie, which was not half as beautiful as it was last time I visited.  It is March, so there aren't any flowers in bloom.  So it was a little bit plain, but it was still fun to be there and for the three of us to walk around and talk.  I really liked Sarah.  What a nice girl.  (Plus, she worked with Kallie's husband Ryan at Tahitian Noni a couple of years back!)  Anyway, the three of us sat down on some stairs and ate sandwiches that Staci had packed, and then we walked back to the RER station and got on a train right away.  And then just behind us the sister missionaries and an investigator got on the train!  So all six of us squished into a seating area, and we talked and laughed and got to know each other as we rode the train home.

As soon as we got home, I changed into my sweats and put my feet up (my aching legs!).  Rob made us waffles with fresh fruit syrup for lunch, and for dinner tonight Staci is making boeuf bourguignon (a recipe she got from a woman in the ward).  So much good food!  I'm having such a wonderful time! (And I've told Rob & Staci thank you like a million times.  I hope they know how much I appreciate them.)

Saturday in Paris

The bad news first: we didn't get to go to Mont St. Michel, because Rob tried to get their vehicle working and it wouldn't start up.  So that was a little bit of a bummer because I have always wanted to see it.  But I got over it quickly because of the good news.

The good news is that we got to do tons of other cool stuff instead.  Rob stayed home with the kids all day so Staci and I could go into Paris and do whatever we wanted.  My feet are seriously throbbing from walking so much today.  But I don't care!  I am having so much fun and enjoying myself so much they can fall off, as long as they wait until I get back home.

Anyway, first we took the bus to Musée d'Orsay, which is a museum with paintings and sculptures by people like Van Gogh, Monet, Renoir, Degas, Manet, Cezanne, Toulouse-Lautrec, and probably 30 others.  I enjoyed it, even though I don't necessarily appreciate art like this as much as I could.  In fact, I thought of Christian's sister Jasamyn practically the whole time and how much she would have loved this museum.  Many of the paintings were right up her alley - the type of stuff she would draw (you could be famous Jaz!)

Then I had heard about a chocolaterie through a French woman's blog called Boutique Michel Chaudun (at 149 rue de l'Université).  It was a little further away than we had anticipated from the Musée d'Orsay, and we walked probably 1 1/2 miles.  But once we got there, it was so worth it.  The woman who helped me was so kind, and let me try two different samples.  And YUM!  I spent an obscene amount of money at their store.  The owner, Michel Chaudun, used to be head chef for La Maison du Chocolat, which apparently is really fancy and really expensive.  I was so excited to find this place!

While looking for the chocolate store, we saw many sites and took pictures - the Seine River, the Pont Alexandre (very ornate bridge), l'Hôtel des Invalides, and again the top half of the Eiffel Tower.  I'm starting to think I may not get a picture of the entire Eiffel Tower while on this trip.  It's been fun taking so many pictures of cool things.  

Next, we took the metro to the Sacré Coeur.  First of all, I have to tell you I am so excited that I am finally getting how the metro works!  I know that sounds kind of ridiculous, but when I was here when I was 17, I felt completely lost and completely scared.  And now, I think I kind of get it.  Anyway, we got off of the metro at the bottom of the hill, and walked up this completely packed street to get to the basilica (or Catholic church, for those of you who don't know).  It was very busy, I'm sure because it was a Saturday afternoon, but I thought it was really cool to walk up all of the steps I have only seen in pictures and walk through the church.  There was a taped recording playing over and over of something - I wasn't paying much attention, probably hail marys or prayers or something, and we walked in a formation around the inside perimeter of the church.  So many people had lit candles, and it was kind of weird to see a store selling books and stuff inside a church.  

Then on the way down the hill we stopped at one of the tourist traps and purchased a few trinkets to bring home.  And then we took the metro back to the stop by her house and went to the grocery store for a few items, and then to the boulangerie and I bought another baguette and another mille feuille.  Yes, I'm consuming calories at an alarming rate.  No, I don't care. For dinner tonight we are having a quiche lorraine using a recipe from a french woman in Staci's ward (using gruyère cheese) and macaroons for dessert.  

I am so excited about what we are doing tomorrow, but I am keeping it a secret until tomorrow's post!  But it involves the RER, which is the underground subway system that is underneath the metro (which is also underground).  So it is like two stories underground. Scary!  But so exciting!!!

Friday in Paris

Playhouse Disney in France has some shows in English and some in French.  It also has some shows from PBS on its channel, like Bob the Builder and Thomas the Tank Engine.  While Thomas is in French, I thought it was funny that Bob the Builder was translated from American English to British English.  It was really funny to hear all of the characters speaking English, but with different voices and British accents!

Hypocritical moment of the day:  Xandi (age 3) really wanted a Dove dark chocolate first thing this morning while I was eating breakfast.  I said to her, "Oh, I don't think we need to eat chocolate so early in the morning," at the exact same time I was spreading Nutella on my baguette.  Oops!

I went to bed at 8:45 last night.  I woke up at 2:30 in the morning, and laid in bed until 5:00 when I finally fell asleep.  I didn't want to get up and do anything because I didn't want to get my mind working, but it didn't really help because I still just laid there.  Then I slept from 5:00 to 8:00.  This morning, I ate a yaourt vanille (vanilla yogurt - YUM; yogurt is better in France than in the States) and half of a baguette, part slathered in Nutella and part slathered in camembert cheese.  I read the French newspaper and watched a bit of Disney channel in French.  Then Staci and I talked and talked and caught up on life since we saw each other last (in Iowa for those of you who don't know).  Then we took Xandi to school at 1:10, and started walking.  I'm pretty sure the ball of my left foot is growing a blister, but I don't care.  We first walked to the FNAC, which is a huge bookstore in Paris.  They sell electronics and music and dvds too.  The store has five floors!  I didn't find anything I couldn't live without, but I did buy a couple of kids' books in French.  I think Ethan & Aidan will like them, even though they are in French.

After we left the FNAC, we turned a corner and two blocks away - voila!  There was the Arc de Triomphe!  So we walked over to it - no easy feat considering you can't reach it above ground.  Surrounding the Arc is l'Etoile, the mother of all roundabouts.  Imagine 6 or 7 lanes worth of a roundabout.  Even with only one lane someone is bound to cut you off.  Anyway, we went down to the metro station and found an entryway to get to the arc.  We walked around it and took pictures.  12 different streets converge at the arc, the biggest one being the Champs-Elysees.  (At the other end of the Champs-Elysees is the Louvre).  Then exactly in the opposite direction from the Champs is another road, I don't know what it is called, but at the end of it is the business district with the giant carré, or square perched directly behind the end of the street. And underneath the arc is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.  I talk about it so much because the top of the arch is my favorite place in all of Paris.  I am in love with this area of Paris.  I even like it more than the Eiffel Tower because you can actually see (the top half of) the Eiffel Tower from the arc.  You can't see the Eiffel Tower from the Eiffel Tower!  And part of the magic of Paris is seeing the tower in the skyline.  Anyway, because it was an impromptu decision to go visit the arc, we didn't have time to go up to the top.  That is okay, because I am completely content.  

Then we stopped at a boulangerie/patisserie and got a mille feuille (Napoleon) dessert.  YUM! Then we took the Metro to the Parc Monceau station - my first time on the Metro this time around.  It wasn't nearly as scary as when I went in 1994.  Cuz you know, I'm older now and stuff.  Then went to the Parc Monceau and ate them (I took pictures, so yummy), and shortly after that Staci's kids got out of school.  It's a 20 minute walk each way from their house to the school.  I have definitely walked more in the last two days than I have walked in the previous year combined. 

For a before dinner snack, I had another crêpe avec jambon et gruyere.  And for dinner, ratatouille and salmon.  And pain au chocolat for dessert.  I hope to gain a few pounds while I am here.  I am going to enjoy every bite of delicious food I eat!

Day One in Paris

My flight from SLC to Paris was a direct flight.  Luckily, we had a tailwind so we arrived nearly one hour early.  (9 hrs 30 mins instead of 10 hrs 20 mins)  Also, the plane wasn't full, so there was no one next to me.  Unfortunately, the armrest wouldn't go up since I was on an exit row, so I still had to squish in my chair.  And since I don't sleep well on airplanes, I only got about one hour sleep.  Right now it is 8:15 PM Paris time (1:15 PM Utah time), and I have only had two hours sleep since yesterday morning.  But first I wanted to talk about what happened today. Please understand if I'm not very coherent.

I arrived at 10:00 this morning, and got my luggage.  No one was at the douane (customs), so I didn't have to declare to anyone.  Good thing I didn't have anything to declare.  The Paris shuttle arrived around 11:00, and we drove the streets of Paris and arrived at my friend Staci's house about noon.  They have a beautiful house!  Tall ceilings, spacious rooms.  It's on the fourth floor of a building in the 17th arrondissement, which is in the northwest of Paris.  I ate a crêpe with gruyere cheese and jambon (ham) for lunch, and then took an hour nap.  When I woke up, Staci and I walked around the neighborhood for two hours while her kids were at school.  We went in all sorts of stores - a children's book/toy store, a grocery store, a boulangerie (bakery), a chocolaterie (chocolate store), and other stores.  I love walking the streets of Paris.  Just hearing the sounds of the cars (I took a picture of a Smart Car, which is a car that can barely fit two people in it) and the people speaking French.  We saw a few Metro lines, and we bought some Metro passes (and I took a picture of one of the stops because it looks so cool.  I didn't bring my camera cable with me so I will download pictures when I get home).  Then we walked around Parc Monceau, which is a beautiful park with statues and other ancient ruins and stuff, and then picked her girls up from school.  Their school is located in the park.  Elli is in kindergarten, but here they go all day - from 9-4:20.  Xandi is 3 years old, and is in preschool and goes from 1:30-4:10.  On the way home we stopped at the grocery store and I bought Camembert cheese and Nutella, and then we went to the boulangerie and I bought a baguette.  Then we came home, and I called Christian and talked to he and Aidan (I cried because I miss my family so much; Ethan was at school).  

For dinner we had chicken and dumplings - thanks to Staci for making it!  And, of course, we had baguette & camembert, and then for dessert they bought me a "welcome to Paris Erin special cake" - a chocolate and raspberry mousse cake from lenôtre.  It is a fancy schmancy chocolate store in Paris that is quite expensive, but they have started making cheaper versions that they sell frozen at the grocery store.  Then I called home again and talked to Christian and Ethan.  Staci has free calling to the United States on her phone here.  I don't know why, but I'm not complaining!  I can call my family as often as I want to.  

I am so excited for this upcoming week and all of the fun things we have planned!  Heck, even if I sit here and read the french paper and watch french television, I'm excited.  But I have internet access, so I should be able to post something every day, as long as I am not too tired.  But now, it's 8:30 and I am way past exhausted.  I'm off to bed.  

And Christian, I love you.  And tell the boys I love them too.

Funny Photos

I was picking my nose in these silly glasses.That's silly, huh!(Ethan was upset with Aidan because he was taking his picture and he didn't want his picture taken! I laugh out loud every time I see this picture.
P.S. I got permission from Ethan to put this picture on the blog.)