Amelia was cold. She insists that after spending the last winter in the South she has lost any immunity to the cold that she may have acquired from 18 years of living in Michigan.
I was really excited for the ferris wheel.
Monday morning I had to go to my Gay Paris class. I probably could have skipped, but I really didn't want to. Besides, the twins were still jetlagged so it gave them a chance to sleep in. I tried to force them to come with me and be educated, but sleep was more appealing, go figure.
After class I went back to the hotel and met up with the girls and we walked over by Centre Pompidou, a few blocks from our hotel. We grabbed some lunch at a random cafe and then I had to go to my French class. We had a field trip to a little boulangerie in the 19th that makes organic breads an pastries. Their oven is 100 years old! And they don't use yeast, they use fermented grapes and a leavening agent. I do not know how that works, and she explained it in French, so... but then we got free food! We had a pistachio grapefruit tart and a bunch of bread and jam and butter and tea. It was great. Plus I got back my French test and I got an A!
By the time I got back to the hotel it was dark, so we hopped the metro back over to Place de la Concorde, to walk the Champs Elysees.
Ferris wheel AT NIGHT!
Champs Elysees, looking toward the Arc de Triomphe
I tried to take a picture of the twins with the Eiffel Tower. It didn't work.
We walked down past the little white huts that sell stuff, looking for gifts for the twins to take back to their friends, and a ring for Hayley to replace her lost ring from Rome. We didn't find a ring, so we kept on toward the arch.
Took a pic looking back toward place de la Concorde
On the way back down the Champs Elysees, I told Hayley we had to go to Laduree for macarons. She told me she didn't like coconut, so I explained to her that French macarons aren't like American macaroons. We stopped in and left with a chocolate for Hayley, chocolat amer for me, and vanilla for Amelia. Everyone was pleased, and so we decided that we would have to come back on Friday so the twins could try to take some back to the States for their friends.
Then we went back near our hotel for dinner at Hippopotamus, a French chain. More chains? Yes. But at least this one was French!
Tuesday I had an excursion for my literature class. We went to Jim Haynes' studio. He was reeeeally interesting. He hosts open dinners every Sunday, and all you have to do is call to tell him you're coming and pay like 15-20euro and you get to meet people. It's a very cool concept, and he talked to us about Henry Miller.
While I was off doing that, the twins went to Versailles.
That night the housing director for my program, Ida, had a concert. Her band is called House Special, and they're a cover band. They hand out a "menu" with songs they sing renamed like foods, and people yelled out what they wanted to hear. It was a lot of fun, and she sounded great. We got to meet my friend Alison's friends, who apparently were also at Versailles when the twins were! I guess they were right next to eachother in line, too. Small world.
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