Tag: friends

The one about road trips and water bottles

Last Wednesday Tim and I drove to Tallahassee with Paige and got her all set up in her new apartment. She was excited and happy about the year ahead. I was…not so much.  I’m going to miss her. 



Luckily, sort of, for me I got another chance to see her a few days later. Apparently she forgot to pack this…and that…and so Linda and I drove back over with another carload of stuff (plus a few more groceries😬) on Saturday. 



Sunday morning, Linda went with a friend from school to visit the Castillo de San Marcos (fort) in St. Augustine and had her first ever visit to a Dunkin Donuts. I stayed home and slept late and then drank copious amounts of coffee and read a book. Both of us had a delightful morning. 


That afternoon Clay came by with a friend. Which was nice because we usually don’t see much of him once school starts…unless he needs to do laundry or runs out of food. 🙄


I’ve been cooking some more “American” type meals for Linda. Roasted pork medallions with egg noodles was a hit, and so was the meatloaf and mashed potatoes – especially the mashed potatoes. She loves those. 

Linda is enjoying school and has made several friends – one of whom will be coming home from school with her tomorrow to work on homework and have dinner with us. I’m so pleased with how well she’s adapting to life in the U.S!

Paige had her first day of classes yesterday. So far, so good! She’s also been busy running around filling out job applications (any Tallahassee friends who know of a part time job, please let me know!)


We’ve had lots of thunderstorms the past couple of days…and apparently, there’s more to come!



In addition to the threat of a tropical storm, our neighborhood is currently under a boil water advisory. Which is really, really not fun. So, in between rainstorms I’ve been running to Publix to buy water. Lots of water. 

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For Paris is a Moveable Feast

We had a wonderful reunion with Simon and Louise our second evening in the city. I can’t believe it’s been 8 years since we’ve last seen them! We also got to see their sister, Alice, and meet her charming boyfriend Charlie. 

The next morning Paige and I wandered explored Pigalle a bit before making our way to the Latin Quarter and the Musée National du Moyen Âge (aka Musée de Cluny) which has been on my bucket list for years. It’s a very small, little known museum dedicated to the medieval time period. It’s in an old abbey from the fifteenth century and has all sorts of fascinating, cool stuff…






And it was all very interesting and wonderful. But honestly, I was there to see one thing. 

Several years ago I read a book called The Seventh Unicorn by Kelly Jones. It was about a woman who worked at the Cluny Museum in Paris and about a series of tapestries. Then a couple of years later I read a book called The Lady and The Unicorn by Tracy Chevalier, which was also about the tapestries. I was intrigued. And ever since I have wanted to visit the Cluny and these mythical series of tapestries for myself. 

They were magnificent. Truly, my photos cannot do them justice. Take my word for it; they’re tres magnifique in person!


After visiting the Cluny, we stopped for coffee and then met up again with Simon, Louise, and Simon’s friend Alex. We walked around a bit, and then hopped on the bus to go to the catacombs. Apparently, though, every other tourist in Paris had the same idea because the line for the catacombs was around the block! So, we decided instead to walk to Montparnasse and take in the view. 






After taking in the view from the top of Montparnasse and relaxing with a glass of wine (in Simon’s case, a massive beer) on the rooftop cafe, we went to Louise and Alice’s flat, where Simon and Alex prepared us a wonderful, gastronomic feast à la française. (And really, as if the French accent isn’t enough….is there anything more fabulous than a man who cooks?)


I managed a photo of the carpaccio, but after that I was too busy eating and drinking wine. Sorry. Besides the carpaccio we had salad with homemade vinaigrette (of course) and ham and cheese crêpes, and Louise made a peach dessert which I don’t know the name for – but it was fresh peaches diced up with sugar and marinated in wine and it was delicious. Everything was delicious. The wine was delicious, the crêpes, the salad, the peaches…

Aahhhh. 


And if I haven’t mentioned it before, let me just say how awesome Simon and Louise are. They were great kids when they were 12 and 14 and they are great now. We had such a lovely evening with them and their friends – they’re all so warm, open hearted, witty and kind. They have been great hosts and have made our visit so enjoyable. 

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