Warning in advance: Celine's computer is French. And, even though I change the language setting to English, the spell check is still in French. So, there will be some hedious misspellings. Please view these as hilarious as opposed to sad. I'm a spell check dependent person, and I accept that. So, warning duly given and on to the good stuff :-)
Today, Celine and I were walking around Paris. Walking has become what we do best. If ever there were a book written about us two, they would call it "Nous Marchons" (aka: "We Walk"). It's how we've seen both Paris and London. We'll either walk from where we are and walk back a different way. Or, for further out adventures, take the London Underground tube, the bus, or the Paris metro. Today, we walked for 6 hours. Previous days, even longer. Through rain, through crowds, down empty streets, past shops, past many pâtisseries, stopped at several :), have stopped for bathroom breaks when we see public toilets, filled up waterbottles, taken many (understatement) pictures, some videos (I think I will take more... some end up kinda funny), browsed flea markets, talked to other travelers, lived in hostels, etc. While in Paris, we've made our home at Celine's Uncle's appartment.
So we find ourselves today at Notre Dame Cathedral. A Sunday evening mass is going on but visitors are still allowed in. The vastness of the cathedral, the bishop giving a service, and the organ playing make me feel in awe of where I am... like, how am I even allowed to stand here in my jeans and sandels and be a part of such a sacred ceremony? The feeling is kinda disrupted by all these people around me snapping pictures and taking holding a video camera as they walk. But whatever. We realize we need to be accross town by 8 for dinner. It's taken us since 2pm to get to Notre Dame. It's 7:30 now. Granted, there were many stops between when we left Pierre's flat and now, but we still have a lot of ground to cover. Pierre's dinner is something no one wants to miss.
After so much walking, Celine and I have settled in to a casual silence. We take in the sights, and pepper our wanderings with chit chat here and there. Celine pipes in to tell me a little history, I pipe up when my stomach rumbles or I want to stop at a shoppe. In London and Paris, Celine holds the map and navigates. I watch for cars (look to the right in London!). Today, we hustle home. We have a fast pace. We don't always stop at intersections or cross at crosswalks. We're more bold when crossing before cars.
Pierre is Celine's uncle. Right now, only Pierre and his daughter Matild are at home (his wife and other kids are already en vacances). Pierre went to culinary school and worked in the States as an apprentice. He is a wonderful cook and knows English. Mm. Good combo :) I try to learn as much as I can from him. Their appartment is small by American standards. 6 people, 3 bedrooms, 1 full bath, 1 shower room, and 1 toilet room. A kitchen big enough for 1 cook, a livingroom, and a dining table. Their living room has wi-fi, and right now I'm chillin on their sofa. The wifi's the strongest in the living room, and doesn't pick up most other rooms in the flat.
Matild is 10 years old, and is taking English in school right now. We are at about the same confidence level with eachother's language... that is, we both tend to end up having Celine translate for us :P While her mother is gone, Matild helps her dad prepare dinner and set the table. Same set up as the US. Today for dinner, we had white wine with Raspberry flavored syrup. It is bubbly, and I am quickly getting used to the taste (We've had wine or something stronger at every meal except breakfast).
Salad is the first coarse in this dinner. (It sometimes comes after melon or rice and veggies). The dressing is light, and composed of vinegar, oil, and mustard. My first dinner's salad had fresh French mozaralla balls. Omg they were amazing. I wish I could share that with you. Anyways, the four of us share dinner together. I am happy Pierre knows English. While it's broken, we can still communicate with the help of Celine. I think my always clean plate and smiles with 'mercis' and pats on my full belly send the right message. The food always comes out in shifts, and consists of at least 3 or four coarses. We go through an impressive amount of dishes in one meal. This evening I counted at least 12 plates, 3 pieces of silverware per person, and 3 glasses per person. Tonight, we had a tomato and cucumber juice that tasted better than V8. The other glass is a water glass for either tap water or bottled sparkling water. Everyone, even Matild, has a wine glass. Today, after the salad, we have mushroom and cheese ravioli. Then, chocolate and caramel eclaire's Celine and I brought back from a pâtisserie. For previous dinners, we've had basil rice with sliced warm tomatoes, fresh cantelope, salad, and chocolate and pear pudding. Today for lunch, we had beef and chicken filled fried dumplings, hazelnut potatoes (hazelnut b/c of their size, not taste), cooked carrots, and frozen lemon treats that resemble the frozen lemon desserts you get at six flags, but these are served in actual lemons! :) And with every meal, there is fresh french bread from the bakery downstairs.
The view outside our flat is full of other's windows. We all live in multi-story buildings close to eachother. The windows and patio doors are cracked open. As I hear sounds of laughter and quick-paced chatter of large groups, I am glad we are only 4. Matild is a bit quite at the table. Either she feels it's her positition at the table or she is shy around me, I don't know. She is very helpful in clearing dishes and bringing new coarses to the table. As the guest, I am always served first in everything. It is a casual dinner, but there is clearly an order in which things go. Celine and Pierre converse in French, and I interestedly listen and try to pick up phrases I know. Usually, I can comprehend the topic of conversation. Pierre initiates conversation in English to make me feel included, and we get as far as we can. Celine will often help fill any gaps. He is lighthearted and funny, and full of information about the city's history and sites.
I am glad we have a home here, with warm showers and clean comfy beds. The closest metro station is 4 minutes downstairs and down the street. The company is wonderful and the atmosphere very laid back. After several really hectic days of siteseeing and traveling and train catching, I finally feel like I'm on vacation. Relaxed and soaking in the culture.
