Paris: the Last Day
Wednesday was our final day in Paris. I woke feeling horrible. My feet, legs and bones simply felt awful. Against all my upbringing, we stayed in. After lunch though, we pulled ourselves together and headed out. [Did I mention rain? Good thing we brought that umbrella.]
We returned to Notre Dame and then headed to Isle Saint-Louis, an area of Paris that I haven't been to before. Within blocks we found a chocolate store. We stopped and bought a gift box to leave for Anne and Henry as a thank-you gift, and a box of small dark chocolates for us to enjoy with our after-dinner coffees. In the next block I found a scarf for Lauren. In Paris this year, everyone was wearing these beautiful, striped scarves. I had looked at them in other stores, but the quality vs. price didn't work for me. This store had both. The right price, and the scarves were so beautiful. "Un cadeaux?" the young woman asked. "Oui," I replied and she packaged the scarf in tissue paper and a beautiful bag. The perfect gift for Lauren.
We then kept walking, across the Seine through many new neighborhoods and towards Bastille. Since we were early for our evening dinner with a friend, once again we stopped for a coffee and a foot-rest. Wednesday night's dinner was at the home of a fellow Filemaker developer. Ugo and I have only known each other online. As with all the Friday Night Chat members, he had anxiously followed my health during treatment. But, you know, I didn't really _know_ him. Our evening could go anyway.
Well, let me tell you, it was a wonderful evening! Once again, we were greeted with champagne. I had brought some small gifts for the children, so they liked me immediately. A jug of maple syrup for Ugo and his wife, and a Filemaker 7 book for Ugo. [Our bags were much lighter after this visit!]
Dinner was amazing! We began with foie gras. The next course included a veal roast, cooked to perfection, small roasted fingerling potatoes, and flagolettes, a delicious small dried green bean. [Leslie like the flagolettes so much, I made them three additional times during our trip.] The cheese plate was perfect. Five perfectly selected cheeses, each ripened to perfection. And then dessert... mousse au chocolate.
After dinner we were offered coffee, which we gratefully accepted. I sheepishly asked if it would be okay if I stepped onto the terrasse to have an after-dinner cigarrette. Well, actually, I could smoke inside, since indeed, they both wanted one too.
This was yet another wonderful evening in Paris. Ugo and his wife and children are exceptional people. My life is better for knowing this family. I have offered our home to them, should they wish to come to Boston for a visit. It is my hope that they will find this possible. I would love to introduce them to my city.
We returned to Notre Dame and then headed to Isle Saint-Louis, an area of Paris that I haven't been to before. Within blocks we found a chocolate store. We stopped and bought a gift box to leave for Anne and Henry as a thank-you gift, and a box of small dark chocolates for us to enjoy with our after-dinner coffees. In the next block I found a scarf for Lauren. In Paris this year, everyone was wearing these beautiful, striped scarves. I had looked at them in other stores, but the quality vs. price didn't work for me. This store had both. The right price, and the scarves were so beautiful. "Un cadeaux?" the young woman asked. "Oui," I replied and she packaged the scarf in tissue paper and a beautiful bag. The perfect gift for Lauren.
We then kept walking, across the Seine through many new neighborhoods and towards Bastille. Since we were early for our evening dinner with a friend, once again we stopped for a coffee and a foot-rest. Wednesday night's dinner was at the home of a fellow Filemaker developer. Ugo and I have only known each other online. As with all the Friday Night Chat members, he had anxiously followed my health during treatment. But, you know, I didn't really _know_ him. Our evening could go anyway.
Well, let me tell you, it was a wonderful evening! Once again, we were greeted with champagne. I had brought some small gifts for the children, so they liked me immediately. A jug of maple syrup for Ugo and his wife, and a Filemaker 7 book for Ugo. [Our bags were much lighter after this visit!]
Dinner was amazing! We began with foie gras. The next course included a veal roast, cooked to perfection, small roasted fingerling potatoes, and flagolettes, a delicious small dried green bean. [Leslie like the flagolettes so much, I made them three additional times during our trip.] The cheese plate was perfect. Five perfectly selected cheeses, each ripened to perfection. And then dessert... mousse au chocolate.
After dinner we were offered coffee, which we gratefully accepted. I sheepishly asked if it would be okay if I stepped onto the terrasse to have an after-dinner cigarrette. Well, actually, I could smoke inside, since indeed, they both wanted one too.
This was yet another wonderful evening in Paris. Ugo and his wife and children are exceptional people. My life is better for knowing this family. I have offered our home to them, should they wish to come to Boston for a visit. It is my hope that they will find this possible. I would love to introduce them to my city.
posted by *susan* at
4:00 PM
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