Paris, part 1

Carl and I said our goodbyes to Cécile and her family and made our way North, to Paris (on the OuiGo, of course).  We stayed right next to the canal St Martin.  The area is very hip right now.  Très bobo.

Carl and I have both visited Paris before, so we mostly just wandered around, ate, drank, and visited some old favorites.

We did make a stop at La Durée for the best macorons in existance.  And, obviously, I got them carefully nestled inside that cat box.

Flavors we sampled included: rose, raspberry, pistachio, lime-basil, and lemon.  If you have the means, I highly recommend picking some up. (harhar)

Pézenas, Montpellier

It is comforting to know that some places never really change...

After being away for two years, when we returned to Pézenas (the very old and very small town that I lived and worked in from September 2011 to June 2012) the differences were minute.  They put in a weird fountain, they finished their work on the sidewalks, the store that once sold weird dragon and sword things now sells spices to tourists.  

The pigeons still shit in the same concentrated spots, the market is still on Saturdays, the Café des arts is still the placce to be, the same grumpy Southerner still drives the 103 bus to Montpellier, and Jean-Charles still buys his fish on Tuesdays.

Imagine his surprise upon seeing me after two years down by the market in town.  Priceless.

Speaking of the 103, we hopped on the bus and headed off to Montpelliier for the afternoon.

Things are pretty much the same there, too.

Carl and I had a lovely lunch of galettes and crêpes, followed by the most perfect café noisette (espresso with a dollop of foam).

Voilà:

Dang, that's pretty.

I think I'll always love it in the South of France.  I'll be back before too long, I suspect.

Hérault!

I thought that pulling into the good ol' Gare St Roch and stepping on to the platform in a familiar train station would feel so good after being away for two years...  But I had no idea that they were in the process of renovating the whole station.  The old station was completely blocked off since they were working on it, and they had redone the entire second floor.  Cécile was waiting for us in her car and I had no idea which way to go.  Stressful.

Obviously, we found her and had a very pleasant drive to Nezignan l'éveque while catching up and chatting about what we would do for the next couple of days while in the area.  After arriving at her house, the first thing I did was go up to the terrace.  It was raining all around the little village, but we never saw a drop.

Carl and I watched the clouds roll by out on the terrace as Cécile prepared a delicious dinner, and her 4 kids ran around inside the house.

I missed that view.

Cécile's four-year-old, Héloïse (who was in her terrible twos last time I was there) said she remembered me.  She followed me around the entirety our stay, and always asked to sit by me at the table.  My favorite interaction with her this time was when she whispered in my ear that the town you can see very far away is Pézenas and you can see it from the terrace.  She told me that if they lived in a house in Pézenas, she would be able to look very hard and see this house in Nezignan from far away.  But they don't live in Pézenas, she said, and that was a good thing because she liked her house there in Nezignan.

I love this tiny village.

Carl and I took a walk before dinner.  We strolled aimlessly through the winding streets of the old town surrounding an old church and (the remnants of) a small castle until we happene upon a cemetary.  Carl couldn't resist, so we walke amongst the graves and took note of interesting names and graves. 

I hope that I can return to Cécile and Olivier's house soon.  No more than two years between visits.  I promised.

OuiGo!

First off, before I show you pictures and regale you with tales of our adventures in good ol' Montp and the surrounding area, I have to give a shout out (AHHHH) to OuiGo.

These were the only trains we could rely on during the strike, they were on time, fast, and comfortable. And a ticket from Lyon to Montpellier was €10.  Exsqueeze me? Baking powder?  That's right. €10.  Our tickets from Montpellier to Paris were (you guessed it) €10.

To those of you who have not often traveled in France, this is a huge FREAKING deal.  €45 to Paris is an ok deal for tickets bought a few weeks in advance and it's not unheard of to pay €90. 

OuiGo, you are the best.  And I love you.

<3

http://www.ouigo.com/

The catch: You need to print out your ticket yourself or put it on your smart phone to show at the station (easy), you only get one carry-on for free and you need to pay a little extra for a bigger bag (whatevs- same as most airlines these days), there is no bar car (bring your own snacks- train snacks are expensive anyways).

Lyon, part deux

(Get it? Because it sounds like the train station? ... Never mind.)

The rest of our stay in Lyon was walking around, drinking, eating, and hanging out with friends.  So, essentially, perfect.

Delicious ice creams.  It is actually more like gelatto in France.  Lemon is one of my favorites.  Or if you're getting two scoops get a combo of lemon and raspberry.  So devine.

 I realize that Minneapolis is beautiful in its own right, in its own ways, but can you imagine being surrounde by so much beauty and history and grace all the time?  I think it would be romantic.

My only complaints are the (poorly done) graffiti (mostly just dumb tags) and the often overwhelming smell of pee as you walk down a street.  That's all over France, though especially in Paris.  But we'll get there later.

After dinner (which was delicious) we walked down to meet some more friends for drinks on one of the boat bars.  They are actually called péniche but I really liked the way boat bar (BOATBAR) sounds.

The sunset over the river was beautiful, and the city lights dancing on the water afterward was breathtaking.

Carl said he's rather go back to Lyon than Paris again.  I can't say I'd complain.