Everyone remembers Parents Weekend in college. Students who have been away from home for a few months look forward to seeing their families, and to dinners at nicer restaurants than you would ever go to on your own. Being 27, married, and living in Paris, I thought Parents Weekends were over years ago, but once my mom and dad arrived on October 2nd, I realized just how much you miss your parents, no matter how old you get. We had a fantastic week together, and by chance, Peter's dad was in town for the weekend at the same time! Needless to say, our week was filled with fun family dinners and a few other adventures.
Nuit Blanche (White Night)
The night my parents arrived just happened to be Nuit Blanche, an annual festival where everything in Paris stays open late into the night (or early into the next morning!) and the whole town seems to be out and about, drinking on the streets, listening to music, etc. At first we were charmed by the exciting vibe the city had, but after an hour or two of exploring, we realized that Nuit Blanche is just an excuse for people (mainly teenagers) to drink in public. However, we did enjoy seeing the city all lit up at night, particularly seeing the Hotel de Ville (city hall) and Notre Dame, and enjoyed our fair share of good wine and food, including a stop at the candy stand on one of the brightly lit bridges crossing the river Seine...at 2 am.
The Family at Hotel de Ville
Notre Dame at Night
The City of Lights
The next day being Sunday, most restaurants, shops and museums are closed, but the Jewish quarter, the Marais, is always bustling and filled with shoppers. While dad had work to do, and Peter headed back to Jouy to do his homework, Mom, my friend Priscilla and I spent the day shopping and enjoying plates of falafel salad. The forecast had called for rain, but the blue sky was out all day.
That night, we were able to join Peter's dad, Roger for a tasty, but different dining experience for us. Having reserved a table at the hot new restaurant, Le Chateaubriand, we were surprised to find that this establishment was a Kosher-only restaurant. Clearly, there are 2 Chateaubriand restaurants, and while we didn't find what we had expected, we had a fun evening all together anyway!
Out to Jouy-en-Josas
Naturally, Mom and Dad wanted to see where Peter and I are living. We tried to tell them there wasn't much to see, but they ended up being glad they came. Taking the train from Paris to Versailles can take 12 minutes, when you catch the express train. This day, we took the 25 minute train and stopped in Versailles to check out the market. They loved seeing this enormous market, filled with more than just the usual local vegetables. We saw a cow carcass being hung from a van and butchered on the street. (I tried to snap a photo, but I got a scolding). There are also four buildings as a part of this market, each containing a different specialty, like Italian delicacies or Asian cuisine.
From the market, we took a 15 minute cab to HEC's campus to see our new Home Sweet Home. We brought Peter our treasures from the market and had a delicious lunch of Italian ham wrapped around goat cheese, a sample of cheese and bread, olives and brochettes of turkey, sausage and vegetables.
After sending Peter off to class, I took my parents back to Paris, but only after a walk through the little town of Jouy, depicted below.
Enjoying Paris
On Thursday, Dad went off to Amsterdam, and with Peter at school all day, Mom and I had some nice Mother-Daughter time for shopping (numerous pairs of boots and maybe 7 new scarves are now a part of our wardrobes). October is upon us, and Paris in the autumn is just beautiful. Out on a walk we came upon a little square with two restaurants, a little church and ivy-covered buildings. We were so charmed that we stayed for lunch, and enjoyed two "bricks", thin, savory pastry stuffed with cheese, chives, and other goodies.
We had such a pleasant lunch, that we made a reservation at the restaurant next door for dinner that night, and Peter joined us for a great night of delicious pumpkin and shrimp soup, Peter's stir-fried escargots and, of course, a taste of chocolate mousse for dessert.
Last Day Picnic
The whole week was fantastic, but all good things must come to an end. After a beautiful dinner at a Robbins family favorite restaurant, La Cigale Recamier where we enjoyed oysters and souffles, Peter had to head home on Sunday morning to do homework, and Dad's flight was that afternoon. We enjoyed a picnic in the Jardin du Luxembourg on what can only be described as a perfect, golden October afternoon.
Mother-Daughter Last Day
After bidding farewell to Dad, Mom and I had one last day together. After a visit to the Musee D'Orsay (using the new, free pass, the Carte Blanche that Peter and I got as a gift from Liz and Tom!) we stopped at Bon Marche to pick up some lunch favorites like bread stuffed with olives and feta, a little cheese plate, some bressola, and two cans (yes CANS) of wine, that honestly tasted as good as any inexpensive wine we've ever had in a bottle!
For our last dinner, these artichokes from the market were the biggest, and the tastiest we'd ever had. The temperature had slowly been dropping all weekend, and a nice fire made it cozy while we watched a movie and feasted.
It was a great week with Roger, Karen and David, and we're so happy we were able to have our families come to visit. We look forward to seeing everyone at Christmastime, but until then, we're satisfied with living "La Vie Francaise" for a little while longer.
We also had a lot of chocolate.
We also had a lot of chocolate.
Did I mention the chocolate? I think you get the point...
Bruges also gets its charm from the beautiful canals streaming through the city. It's known as "Venice of the North", and is a very romantic city, even having a "romantic neighborhood" with a lake named "Love Lake". Below are some pictures from our canal boat ride.
After the canal ride, we took a tour of the only remaining brewery in Bruges's city center, named "De Halve Maan" (which based on the logo we assume means "The Half Moon").
We had a fantastic tour guide who kept us entertained, and taught us a little about beer-brewing, and also shared with us access to the roof, where we enjoyed an amazing view of this amazing city.
