Nonnina's Birthday

Mid-afternoon today, Charlotte and I decided to head on into Saint-Germain-en-Laye for a little bite to eat. We ended up at a very nice little restaurant overlooking the Château of the Sun King (Louis XIV) before he moved into his tiny little Château over at Versailles (yeah, okay...). I had me today, my first tasting of French onion soup (in France) and i must say it is very much like what you can find in the States. Charlotte had a Croque Monsieur, which was delicious, and they served it open faced instead of two pieces of white bread on top of each other. Together with some pommes frites, a 1664, water, and an espresso. As we were finishing up, our American comrades, Dylan and Alexis, stumbled upon us at the Cafe and joined us for a drink. Afterwards, we headed over to the French version of a Super Target, Monoprix, for a carafe of wine and some chocolates for the Beaumelou's. Dylan and Alexis also treated themselves to a carafe each, a baguette, and some chocolates.

With our carafes in hand, we headed over to the Jardins de Saint-Germain-en-Laye for a nice afternoon in the park. Laying out in the grass with other Parisians around playing futbol, talking in groups on the grass, people walking their dogs, French boy scouts (scoutisme) getting set up a camping adventure, was a beautiful and relaxing day.. and a bit intoxicating. It was getting a bit close to dinner time after finishing the carafes, and looking over Paris by the edge of the garden walls, that Charlotte and I decided to part ways with the other Orlandans. Unfortunately, with no buses running the Fourqueux, we had to rough it out most of the way until Francesca could pick us up minutes away from their house. However, this was not before we made it over to another grocery store, the Atac, for more booze and a fanta (do you wanna?). We purchased a bottle of Champagne, for it was Charlotte's grandmother's birthday, No Nina she goes by, also some Kroenbourg's and Boddington's for the men (Mr. Beaumelou and myself being the only two).

When we arrived back at the house, Caroline had bought me a book on Jerusalem from her lycée fair, which was perched up on the staircase waiting for me. Also, we had Charlotte's aunt Violaine, join us for a wonderful dinner in honor of Nonnina. Served was white asparagus accompanied with a light dressing that resembled the color of hollandaise sauce or mayo, lamb and potatoes with a mint sauce on the side. Desert was a delicious cake (the ones that you just keep wanting more), with a light cream filling, mild flavors of Grand Marnier or Amaretto (even though there was no alcohol in there I still felt like I could taste it), and little bits of chocolate.

And now, I am here writing this blog, restless and sleepless at 3.00 AM annoying Charlotte because of my jet-lag I suppose. Hopefully, I'll be able to get a free hours of sleep in because tomorrow is a busy one for me. I'll be taking the TGV (high-speed train) over to Metz, to get settled in before my study abroad begins on Monday.

Bonne Nuit.

Catacombs. Pantheon. Saint-Étienne-du-Mont. Jardins de Luxembourg.

Day 2 included a journey into Paris' 5th arrondissements to see the underground burial of the Catacombs. Charlotte, Dylan, Alexis, and myself also made it a point to see a few other historical parts in Paris' oldest arrondissements. Oh yeah, I also had my first royal with cheese at the French McDonald's (très délicieux, which was a big part of the day obviously).

Catacombs - commissioned by Louis XIV to take care of a growing amount of deceased due to excessive diseases. Bodies became so overwhelming during this time that there were coming out of the ground thus beginning the underground excavations of the Catacombs. The first bones brought down there dates back to 1788.

The walk starts in the underground burial.

Still not quite there yet.
An old friend of mine...




No bones were hurt in anyway.


Pantheon and Saint-Étienne-du-Mont - Pantheon was originally built as a dedication to St. Genevieve, but is now the resting spot for numerous famous French folks. These include: Voltaire, Rousseau, Marie Curie, Victor Hugo, and Alexandre Dumas. Completed during the start of the French revolution and at the end of the war, the French decided to use it as a burial for distinguished Frenchmen and 1 woman.

Saint Genevieve, the patron saint of Paris, is found in the Saint-Étienne-du-Mont; A beautiful church located in the 5th arrondissments aka the Latin Quarter.

Foucault pendulum (demonstrates the rotation of Earth's axis)

It's really this small...
Voltaire.
Rousseau.

Saint-Étienne-du-Mont.

Les Jardin du Luxembourg

Musée du Luxembourg
For Lolo, a Bichon-Frise spotting in the garden.


Dîner: Apertif -
Yes, escargot. Very tasty, kind of resembles the taste oysters, but from my opinion much tastier. Served with a garlic butter and parsley. Also was a sampling pâté: one came from a rabbit (my choice), the other a pâté with apple. Pâté is very similar to chopped liver that we are used to at deli's, etc.

This is the French supermarket that only has frozen items (where the escargot was purchased).

Dinner was spaghetti and meatballs with French sausage. Nothing too out of the ordinary, just delicious as usual from Francesca.

Now. Sleep.

Au Revoir.

Pari! ...(Paris)

The arrival in Paris was successful, although because of a lack of sleep on the plane I now resemble a "zombie" (at least Charlotte and Caroline say so..). So today is a day of relaxation, considering I have been up since 8 am Wednesday morning in America and it is now 1pm Thursday. So hopefully tomorrow I will be fully rested as Charlotte and I are planning on going to see the Catacombs in Paris.

Charlotte's house in Fourqueux is beautiful in the summertime. There's roses blooming all over, strawberries, raspberries, gooseberries, and even cherries almost ripe for the picking. Grape vines are wrapped around the front of the house and everything is in full bloom. No pictures as of yet, because you know, I'm still getting settled in..

For lunch today, I was treated with fresh baguettes, a leek quiche and a quiche Lorraine, salad and rose for a little afternoon drink. After, was a sampling of Camembert cheese and goat cheese from the area. Delicious, and stinky! Dinner, Francesca is slaving away in the kitchen cooking up some chicken curry for dinner and tomorrow, she has promised me a tasting of escargot! Supposedly, there is a supermarket in Europe that specializes in frozen foods and only frozen items. So that is where the snails will be a coming from, because snails are always bought frozen even at the fancy smancy restaurants.



Caroline says "Hi!!!!", and this is her eating a coca popsicle. mmmhmmm.

Lil' B gets a bath..

Had to give my little kitty a bath because she was playing around with poo a little too much, and this is the aftermath..