I am really looking forward to . . .

Fabric softener!! There is nothing worse than coarse towels when you get out of the shower
A dryer. Part of the previous problem
A bathtub. We don't have one.
Having church in English
Eating a real breakfast and not just toast and hot chocolate.
Having my own space!
Dollar movies
Not getting second hand smoke while walking down the street, everyday, everywhere.
Seriously, fabric softener!!

French Films

I went to see a movie tonight. I choose to see a cartoon because I thought it would be a little safer. I'm not sure it really was. I am starting to think that all French films are bizarre. Maybe it is just because I am from a different culture, but I have seen some strange ones. The cartoon one was a little scary, I jumped several times and it was kind of like watching a sci-fi movie in another language. I couldn't quite figure out the world it was set in. However, Klaus Badelt wrote the music. He did Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl. The first movie I went to wasn't too bizarre, but it was kind of like Sliding Doors where you are watching two realities, and figuring that out and following it in another language was a little hard for my roommate; I did a little better. The film I saw inbetween those two was quite bizarre.
Anyway, that's my little tirade on French films. We are thinking about going to see one called Disco next week. I think its about three guys who are still living in the disco era but its really current time. We'll see!

Tourist season

We were at the Louvre on Wednesday for our art class. There were so many people there! I was going to say ten thousand, but then realized that that probably wasn't an exaggeration. I wish I had realized how lucky I was back when I was one of three people taking pictures of Venus de Milo, or one of ten looking at the Mona Lisa. Alas, those times are no more. Good luck getting up to the Mona Lisa. There are more people in Paris too, and I walk around cursing the inconsiderate Americans.

The last few weeks

My roommate and I have realized that we only have a few more weeks to see everything we want to in France. And do everything. Now it is crunch time. Good news is, we have finished most of our homework, we just have to keep up with small study sessions (like maybe an hour for all our classes put together) every night. So we can do that when we get home and can spend the rest of the time seeing Paris! Sad news is, the weather isn't really cooperating. However, we decided to get out there anyway. Today we strolled up the Champs Elysée and hiked up the Arc de Triomphe. Tomorrow, maybe a stroll by the Seine, or another museum visit. Yay!

Macaron Day

Thursday was Macaron day at Pierre Hermé. Pierre Hermé, we have decided, has the best macarons in Paris. They cost about 1,5 Euros a piece. Macarons are two little cookies with some kind of creme in the center. A little like Oreos, but with soft cookies instead of hard, and about a hundred times better. You can pick which kind you would like, from simple flavors like chocolate, pistachio, and lemon, to slightly more exotic like rose and olive oil with vanilla to really different like cream cheese, orange and passion-fruit (that one is quite good).


On Macaron Day, Pierre Hermé gave away free macarons!! You could get three free and then if you donated to help the orphans, they gave you a special red one (I think it was mostly red with chocolate on the inside). Considering four macarons would normally cost about six euros, which is nine dollars, we went and got some. It was definitely worth waiting in line for forty minutes.

Second day of Castles

In case one day of chateaux was not enough, we had a second. Considering how many chateaux there are in France, we hardly saw a percentage. This was the last day of our trip to Normandy and Brittany. It was pretty, and even though it was supposed to rain all day, it just barely started when we were leaving our last destination. Maybe someone was watching out for us. . .

They used to carve homes out of the mountainside and people still live in them. Pretty interesting.


Chateau de Clos Lucé - Leonardo da Vinci's house. We weren't allowed to take pictures in his house, so I only have pics from the garden.


Some of Da Vinci's inventions


Chateau Blois


Chambord, from the front


From the back. When I was in high school, this was my favorite French chateau. It is also the largest, so large in fact that no one ever lived in it. It was originally built as a hunting lodge.


Ever After Bridge. They took a lot of locale from this chateau.


Double helix staircase, designed by Leonardo de Vinci


Cathedral at Chartres


By the time we reached Chartes, the clouds were setting in, we didn't see much of the cathedral, especially since we went to look at the stained glass windows and it was hard to see them well enough to understand the stories, let alone get good pictures. We went over the symbolism talked about here. Maybe because one of the directors wrote the article. Funny how things work out.

Learning curve

I think that being in a singles ward has spoiled me. I still look at adults as if they know more than I do. But after twenty years as a member and many years of higher education, I am slowly becoming aware that I can't expect everyone to do a perfect job in their calling. In our program we are singing for a single adult conference, with some of the single adults. Last night we had a rehearsal with all of us for the first time. It took two and a half hours. I expected there to be good time management and I expected the director to know how to run a choir. I was disappointed. But after much reflection, I came to the realization that I can't always expect people to be good at everything and sometimes my job is just to support them in their calling, even if I could do a better job. Not that I would want the job. But I need to learn to be a little more forgiving, because I've had far too much training in classroom management, and that's really what the problem was I think

First Day of Castles

On our trip to the Loire Valley, we visited a lot of castles. They are actually called chateaux. (chateau is singular) There are a lot in the Loire Valley. One map has 38 listed.

Ussé. The original Sleeping Beauty castle. It inspired the story. We didn't actually go into this one, but I'm glad we went to see it.


Soccer player and sign. You'll never guess which chateau we're visiting here.


The 'Love Gardens'. Each section represents a different kind of love: tender love, tragic love, passionate love and fickle love.


Chateau de Villandry


Eating lunch in the square in Tours.


Chenenceau from the entrance.


Some friends in Catherine de Medici's garden



You can see the initials of Henri and Catherine de Medici on one of the many fireplaces.


Chenenceau from upstream


A view from Diane de Poitiers Gardens


Caryatids


The pictures are grouped by chateau, so first I list the castle and then the pictures that happened there.
We spent the night back in Tours, a cute little town. The town square is really beautiful, you can see it in the lunch picture. A few of us went to a little creperie for dinner and had omelettes. They were so good! And then of course crepes for dessert. I went to bed really early this day, I was so exhausted from traveling!

March comes in like a lion

You know that saying? Well, it never made much sense to me, but now it does. In France they call it La Giboulée de Mars. Pretty much, when you get up in the morning, you have no idea what the weather is going to be like. That is because it constantly changes. If there is a twenty percent chance of rain, you will feel rain drops, in between two sections of absolutely beautiful sunshine. Right now, there is sunshine streaming in my window as I get ready to leave for the day. However, there will be at least two or three times today where clouds cover the sun and the rain comes down.
Happened yesterday. We went to the Eiffle Tower because the weather was just gorgeous. By the time we got there, it was cloudy and the wind was blowing. I felt a few little drops on my head before we made it to the entrance. It was a little windy climbing up, but once up, you couldn't stay still for too long, it was too cold. So. Always wear your coat and scarf.

Angers

This next place was actually a fortress built in the 13th century. There actually have been a lookout station here since the 9th century, but the major fortress we see today was built in the 13th. It was changed a few times, like when Henri III had the roofs of the towers leveled. It houses the Apocalypse Tapestry, which has six sections headed by long pieces and two rows of seven panels in each portraying the story found in the book of Revelation. Makes you want to go read the Book of Revelation again.

Chateau d'Angers


This is the building the tapestry is housed in.



The Apocalypse Tapestry. Really cool. Little dark, though. No flash allowed.


The face in the lime tree. And a couple others.


Half Timbered house.


I'm sad that I didn't get any pictures of the Abbey we stayed in over night. Actually, it was a convent. How cool is that? Now I can say that I have spent time in a convent.

Climbing the Eiffle Tower

Today we finally made it to the Eiffle Tower and climbed the 700 stairs. The view is fantastic, you can see so much. It was totally worth the climb. And I also know of a surety that heights make me nervous. I think its climbing up or down and realizing that all that is between me and a horrible plunging death is a thin sheet of metal. That thousands of people have walked on. Not a very comforting thought. But I did it. Here's the proof.



And it was quite cold. We kept waiting for a day that was a little warmer, but tourist season is starting and the lines are only going to get longer, so we just decided to go for it.
The Eiffle Tower. It kind of makes Paris Paris.

Mont St Michel and St Malo

Mont St Michel. This was a beautiful place. At high tide, it is completely surrounded by water, and at low tide, by quicksand. Fortunately for those of us not wanting to die slowly, they have built a causeway.


Cloister at St Michel. The cathedral here is half Romanesque and half Gothic, because part of it was rebuilt. Interesting mix. Really, its just all cold because they didn't have heaters when they built it.


St Michael burning a hole in the bishop's head so he'll build a cathedral. That's one way to do it.


View of St Malo. Originally a walled city, you can walk around the entire city on the ramparts. Ok, so actually just the old city because now the city is also outside the walls. Still.


A corsair. That's french for "pirate under the direction of the king"


A pillbox. Its a little beat up.


The war memorial at St Malo


Le Solidor


Pirate Ship


The workout girls in the hotel room. You might recognize travel buddy.

Normandy beaches and Bayeux Tapestry

The first day of our trip, we went to the beaches of Normandy, which the Allies took on D-day. What a moving experience. We just haven't faced war like that in the States. We watched a short video on some of the soldiers, and I don't think there was a dry eye in the group. It was incredible. I learned so much, and appreciate so much better the history here.

Omaha beach


Map of landing beaches


Some of the graves.


Memorial at the Normandy American Cemetery.


Point de Hoc


These are the holes left by the bombs from WWII


This was the entrance to where we saw the Bayeux Tapestry.


You aren't allowed to take pictures of the tapestry, so I didn't. However, it is an elaborate tapestry sewn in the late 12th century telling the tale of William the Conqueror, and it is 70 meters long. It is pretty cool, and very detailed.

Normandy and Brittagne

This last week, we travelled to Normandy and Brittagne (also known as Brittany). I'll try and get stuff up as quickly as possible, I was almost caught up before the trip, but then I wasn't near a computer. I took over six hundred pictures on the trip, which makes over 2000 pictures so far of my sojourn in France. Some I need to get rid of. But what memories!!

My favorite place in Paris

The Opera Garnier!!!!


An entrance on the side.


Front of the Opera


Ceiling above the staircase


The Grand Staircase. Can't you just see this used in Phantom of the Opera. PS. This is really where the book/show is set. Yes, there is a subterranean lake underneath. And a six ton chandelier that fell and killed someone during the building of the Opera.


The beautiful hall. My opinion is this is where 'Masquerade' should be performed.


Rudolf Nureyev's costume! Really, Rudolf Nureyev!


Costume sketches. They are on display along with some costumes as well.


Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn!!


Statue on top


Seriously, this place is a performers dream. It is so beautiful!! The outside has names of famous composers, playwrights and choreographers on it, and there are several statues of the same inside. The performance space is huge, the foyers are beautiful and the displays are fantastic. We went down to the bottom floor of the tour and they had ballets showing from video. I could have stayed for hours. I loved the whole thing!!