Sunday, 22 September 2013
Paris to London
We got up early in Paris yesterday, ate our final pain au chocolat for breakfast, oh man, am I going to miss those. Louise drove us to Gare du Nord to embark Eurostar but en route drove us all around Paris. Showed us the opera de paris, montmarte, arc de triomphe etc. So awe inspiring. Made it through customs and dragging our bags through the train station and arrivedin London midday. Grabbed a taxi to travelodge and wandered out for lunch to pret a manger kings cross, famous for its healthy food, and more famous because duchess Kate has been spotted eating there. We consumed a healthy lunch, except for Amy, who discovered their hand cooked sea salt and cider vinegar crisps. Lost our bags to her. Can't blame her, they were so good.
Wandered back to travelodge via Tesco. Grabbed some English cadburys to consume in our room, Sam found bassetts jelly babies. Candy tastes infinitely better in Europe. It's also cheap, a tin of quality street costs 4p here!! InNz you pay $25. Guess what my suitcase will be full of coming home :) Noticed immediately how everyone eats on the go here. Streets are covered in litter and people don't look nearly so healthy. Ahh the French have converted me. We relaxed in our room for a few divine hours watching English tv, and then mum and dad Cahill arrived. Our rooms had been mixed up, so we had to swap over. Bit of a mission but they gave us all complimentary buffet breakfast which seemed worth the trouble.
Travelodge has an adjoining restaurant where we ate dinner. I had a steak and ale pie, with mash and peas. I think I'm addicted already. The water though, ugh.. in Paris, all Amy wanted to drink was their bottled water. Here, the tap water tastes awful!! Made our way back to our room and crashed into bed exhausted. Slept till 5am and now ready for a full day of London sights.. Big Ben, planetarium, London eye and in the evening Sam and I have a champagne tour of Buckingham Palace.
Saturday, 21 September 2013
To market to market
So for our final day is Paris, we decided to stay local. I had intended for us to do montmarte and Sacre Ceour, along with rising early to get up the Eiffel Tower.... as it seemed mandatory for Tim to at least do those things. However when I put it to him, he replied "I will do them when I come next time". I half entered into a lecture about when next time would be, and then realised he was right. He will probably be back here sooner than I.
What he really wanted was to stay away from the metro and enjoy being here at Stephane and Louise place. Awesome decision.
Aunty Louise drove us first to a dairy farm Ferme de Coubertin, which supplies raw milk and yoghurt. They drink mostly long life here, except for those who use the local fresh supplier. From there we headed to the market. That was hands down the best experience yet! Sam and I loooooved it.
Basically it's loads of deli style stalls, food set behind glass, of everything imaginable. This is where most do their weekly shopping. There are lots of similar stalls so you get the joy of being picky. The fish stall, did every seafood you could think of, crabs, lobster, flounder, tuna, mackerel, trout, shrimp, snails and so on. Everything is fresh, brought in from yesterday's catch, the crabs and lobsters still alive, so walking past the fish market was akin to stepping into the fresh seaside, no retracting odours. The meat options are mind blowing. Not a single inch of any animal is wasted, you can buy the heart, kidneys, liver, thyroid, tail and everything is presented as wholesomely edible. Thus, you get a meal creativity which is far from the limitations of supermarket mentality. The chickens still have their heads and feet attached, and are a yellow sort of colour, so apparently more healthy than the anaemic white versions common in NZ. The cheese stall has probably 100 different choices, and they slice off what you need, as opposed to the valumetric plastic wrapped chunks. The fruit and veges available are seasonal and loaded with flavour. At any stall you purchase from, you are asked when you plan to eat what you are buying. The reason being that they will choose what will be best for when you want to eat it. When we bought quartre figs, and told them we were eating them that day, he made sure to choose us ripe ones. Then there are stalls of deli,s, precooked meal stands, crepes, bread, flowers, linen and so on.
The whole process is not a hurried mad affair, there is a serious and slow attendance to the process. You don't get shoving and screaming kids, stall owners are eager to engage with children and encourage them learning, trying and enjoying food. When Amy chose a bunch of cherry tomatoes to snack on, her purchase and chewing was met with nods of approval and joy. The food isn't any cheaper than NZ really, except that the French do not scrimp on food. They're not wasteful or excessive, but eating well would be their greatest priority.
Cereals, cleaning products and other items are obviously bought from the grocery store
We left the markets beaming and came home to eat lunch of couscous, mdeterranean chicken stew and wine in the hot sun, on the deck. And bask in the quiet. It's so apparent here in France, and particularly in chèvreuse how much less noise there is to contend with. Shops aren't blaring music, your neighbours aren't cranking up their stereos, and thus, you find yourself naturally slowing down. After a siesta Louise drove us to de la Madeleine chateaux ruins which is idyllic. The view is incredible and I wish I could capture the feel of the place and bring it home. We then briefly stopped in to see the church of St Matin in chèvreuse, which happened to have a wedding on. We got to see inside before the guests came in. The church was constructed in 1609 and has a warm rustic lime and sandstone feel, ornate with stained glass windows. It's one of the prettiest I've ever seen. The bride arrived so we sat and watched the wedding guests and bride mingle, getting a feel for culture and admiring how the woman all wore dresses, and some men wore hats. We then drove to the chateau de dampierre and climbed the hill to stare over its magnificence. The whole trip Sam and I had our heads out the window, , trying to capture the sights and smells. We arrived home for dinner, a planned affair to celebrate our market choices. We had salami and pâté en croute for our appertif followed by dinner of baked potatoes, courgettes and barecued horse meat kebabs. That was followed by Camembert and epoisses cheese, grapes and figs. Bats flew around us while we ate and we admired the little mole hills in the backyard. I crashed into bed while Sam tried to capture the hopefully last race of the Americas cup, which was postponed... So we will have to find ourselves a kiwi pub in UK tomorrow and watch it with fellow loyal folks. In the morning we head on the Eurostar to London. Can't wait to watch Sam come alive in his home country.
What he really wanted was to stay away from the metro and enjoy being here at Stephane and Louise place. Awesome decision.
Aunty Louise drove us first to a dairy farm Ferme de Coubertin, which supplies raw milk and yoghurt. They drink mostly long life here, except for those who use the local fresh supplier. From there we headed to the market. That was hands down the best experience yet! Sam and I loooooved it.
Basically it's loads of deli style stalls, food set behind glass, of everything imaginable. This is where most do their weekly shopping. There are lots of similar stalls so you get the joy of being picky. The fish stall, did every seafood you could think of, crabs, lobster, flounder, tuna, mackerel, trout, shrimp, snails and so on. Everything is fresh, brought in from yesterday's catch, the crabs and lobsters still alive, so walking past the fish market was akin to stepping into the fresh seaside, no retracting odours. The meat options are mind blowing. Not a single inch of any animal is wasted, you can buy the heart, kidneys, liver, thyroid, tail and everything is presented as wholesomely edible. Thus, you get a meal creativity which is far from the limitations of supermarket mentality. The chickens still have their heads and feet attached, and are a yellow sort of colour, so apparently more healthy than the anaemic white versions common in NZ. The cheese stall has probably 100 different choices, and they slice off what you need, as opposed to the valumetric plastic wrapped chunks. The fruit and veges available are seasonal and loaded with flavour. At any stall you purchase from, you are asked when you plan to eat what you are buying. The reason being that they will choose what will be best for when you want to eat it. When we bought quartre figs, and told them we were eating them that day, he made sure to choose us ripe ones. Then there are stalls of deli,s, precooked meal stands, crepes, bread, flowers, linen and so on.
The whole process is not a hurried mad affair, there is a serious and slow attendance to the process. You don't get shoving and screaming kids, stall owners are eager to engage with children and encourage them learning, trying and enjoying food. When Amy chose a bunch of cherry tomatoes to snack on, her purchase and chewing was met with nods of approval and joy. The food isn't any cheaper than NZ really, except that the French do not scrimp on food. They're not wasteful or excessive, but eating well would be their greatest priority.
Cereals, cleaning products and other items are obviously bought from the grocery store
We left the markets beaming and came home to eat lunch of couscous, mdeterranean chicken stew and wine in the hot sun, on the deck. And bask in the quiet. It's so apparent here in France, and particularly in chèvreuse how much less noise there is to contend with. Shops aren't blaring music, your neighbours aren't cranking up their stereos, and thus, you find yourself naturally slowing down. After a siesta Louise drove us to de la Madeleine chateaux ruins which is idyllic. The view is incredible and I wish I could capture the feel of the place and bring it home. We then briefly stopped in to see the church of St Matin in chèvreuse, which happened to have a wedding on. We got to see inside before the guests came in. The church was constructed in 1609 and has a warm rustic lime and sandstone feel, ornate with stained glass windows. It's one of the prettiest I've ever seen. The bride arrived so we sat and watched the wedding guests and bride mingle, getting a feel for culture and admiring how the woman all wore dresses, and some men wore hats. We then drove to the chateau de dampierre and climbed the hill to stare over its magnificence. The whole trip Sam and I had our heads out the window, , trying to capture the sights and smells. We arrived home for dinner, a planned affair to celebrate our market choices. We had salami and pâté en croute for our appertif followed by dinner of baked potatoes, courgettes and barecued horse meat kebabs. That was followed by Camembert and epoisses cheese, grapes and figs. Bats flew around us while we ate and we admired the little mole hills in the backyard. I crashed into bed while Sam tried to capture the hopefully last race of the Americas cup, which was postponed... So we will have to find ourselves a kiwi pub in UK tomorrow and watch it with fellow loyal folks. In the morning we head on the Eurostar to London. Can't wait to watch Sam come alive in his home country.
Friday, 20 September 2013
Paris and police
So, in the land of the ambitious, we intended to have half of Paris under our belt today. Ha.
Stephane drove us in through the 10km tunnel and past water towers and flat land, and dropped us off at Le Grande Arche and we made our way by metro to Trocadero. The view of the Eiffel Tower there is amazing. We wandered through Trocadero to admire the buildings and people. I love how the french dress, the woman are tidy, elegant and modest. Lots of scarves. We tried to find a unique French place to eat lunch which was pointless really as everything is geared for tourists. Settled instead on Starbucks which was perfect. Took our time eating. I love that its expected you won't race through your meal, you aren't made to feel hurried. We wandered some more and passed gorgeous parks and quaint shops. Everything is so expensive! Eventually we conceded we were lost and grabbed the metro back to start point to wander down to Eiffel Tower. We passed a carrousel en route which was like something out of a book. Beautifully painted and ornate. Of course Amy wanted to go on it and beamed the entire time. At the foot of the Eiffel Tower we grabbed a cruise around Paris along the seine. That was such a highlight for me. Loved seeing it all... Notre Dame, the bridge of locks, the musee, the st Germanise des pres, you really get how incredible the history is. My favourite part was learning how Choltitz was ordered to bomb the entire city in hitlers orders, but risked his life to save Paris. This same man had bomded Rotterdam before they had surrendered. Incredible decision of courage.
From there we took a look at the line to get up the Eiffel and decided we didn't feel like cueing for 2 hours with 2 tired kids. We took a bus ride around the city on some rattly tourism bus and got off as soon as we could at the lock bridge. Grabbed ice cream (which of course meant sit down and eat slowly) and then walked to Notre Dame. The stained glass windows are just beyond capturing. Everywhere were signs asking for silence along with hundreds of prayer candles. To a 3 year old, that equals a celebration so Amy sung happy birthday as i walked her in her pram. People giggled while i pushed her around. The bells peeled out while we were there. Decided to head home. Made our way through the metro maze where armed police and soldiers were smothering, I guess looking for someone. Got the distinct impression whoever they were looking for was someone pretty bad, to require that band of force. Every metro stop in the city was covered, the escalators turned off. I hope (he) didn't decide the metro would be an easy escape. Eventually made it to st remy les chèvreuse swapping trains at bourg la reine, which I'm mastering saying and feeling so French to pronounce. Came home and crashed into bed. Wake up at 11pm and ate spaghetti bolognaise that Louise made and chatted with her and Stephane. They are such a hospitable, so warm and friendly. Love staying here. Slept till 7am and now ready for our final full day here.
Stephane drove us in through the 10km tunnel and past water towers and flat land, and dropped us off at Le Grande Arche and we made our way by metro to Trocadero. The view of the Eiffel Tower there is amazing. We wandered through Trocadero to admire the buildings and people. I love how the french dress, the woman are tidy, elegant and modest. Lots of scarves. We tried to find a unique French place to eat lunch which was pointless really as everything is geared for tourists. Settled instead on Starbucks which was perfect. Took our time eating. I love that its expected you won't race through your meal, you aren't made to feel hurried. We wandered some more and passed gorgeous parks and quaint shops. Everything is so expensive! Eventually we conceded we were lost and grabbed the metro back to start point to wander down to Eiffel Tower. We passed a carrousel en route which was like something out of a book. Beautifully painted and ornate. Of course Amy wanted to go on it and beamed the entire time. At the foot of the Eiffel Tower we grabbed a cruise around Paris along the seine. That was such a highlight for me. Loved seeing it all... Notre Dame, the bridge of locks, the musee, the st Germanise des pres, you really get how incredible the history is. My favourite part was learning how Choltitz was ordered to bomb the entire city in hitlers orders, but risked his life to save Paris. This same man had bomded Rotterdam before they had surrendered. Incredible decision of courage.
From there we took a look at the line to get up the Eiffel and decided we didn't feel like cueing for 2 hours with 2 tired kids. We took a bus ride around the city on some rattly tourism bus and got off as soon as we could at the lock bridge. Grabbed ice cream (which of course meant sit down and eat slowly) and then walked to Notre Dame. The stained glass windows are just beyond capturing. Everywhere were signs asking for silence along with hundreds of prayer candles. To a 3 year old, that equals a celebration so Amy sung happy birthday as i walked her in her pram. People giggled while i pushed her around. The bells peeled out while we were there. Decided to head home. Made our way through the metro maze where armed police and soldiers were smothering, I guess looking for someone. Got the distinct impression whoever they were looking for was someone pretty bad, to require that band of force. Every metro stop in the city was covered, the escalators turned off. I hope (he) didn't decide the metro would be an easy escape. Eventually made it to st remy les chèvreuse swapping trains at bourg la reine, which I'm mastering saying and feeling so French to pronounce. Came home and crashed into bed. Wake up at 11pm and ate spaghetti bolognaise that Louise made and chatted with her and Stephane. They are such a hospitable, so warm and friendly. Love staying here. Slept till 7am and now ready for our final full day here.
Thursday, 19 September 2013
Bonjour paris
Headed off to santosa island to universal studios. It was soooo hit and humid. Even the locals were cooling themselves down with cold bottles. Transformers ride was incredible. Absolutely worth going just for that alone. We headed back to airport around 4pm drained and en route last Amy's shoe. It was her only pair brought with us for the plane journey. And then sams backpack ripped at the seam.We prayed and stopped at the mall to look for new shoes and bag, but didn't feel to buy anything.
One of the first shops I'd gone into the day before,in the transit shops, was this gorgeous shop called accessorise which the cutest wee glittery girls shoes for $44. I loved them but couldn't justify the cost. As we sat down to eat dinner in the transit area, still shoeless and bag less, I was prompted about a $40 airport shops voucher we could pick up. I decided that would at least cover the shoes! When Sam and I went to get the vouchers, it turned out we qualified for $160 worth of vouchers!!
That covered the shoes, bag and Sam got me new perfume. God really does work all things for good.
Flew to Paris on the airbus. Amy slept the whole 13 hour journey. Got our luggage and headed to train to get rer b to st remy les chèvreux. No words. We had 11 luggage items including a car seat and had to hand carry the lot through the doors in the few seconds you get, not to mention the locals pushing through the doors. And then had to switch trains twice. We made it. Drained. Louise picked us up and drove us around her village then dropped us home as she headed off to work. Sam crashed into bed while I took kids back no village for walk, admired little French shoes, stopped at a daycare to admire how French kids really do eat just like the book French Kids Eat Everything says, bought un pain and bome de chocolate from boulangre, breathed in the smells, sights, homes, front doors, greenery and then walked home resisting the urge to devour items en route. The french dont eat walking around. No wonder theyre slim. Came back and ate said bread, with lashings of butter and fresh tomato, all while overlooking the commune. Divine. Sam was still asleep so i put on the cartoons till Tim said he'd rather watch paint dry in English than listen to another French tv episode. Classic. It was now 3pm. We couldnt wake Sam. The kids and I just sort of crashed at this point. We all woke up at 8pm to Louise home and giggling at her comatose guests. She fed us a mouth watering meal, tagliatelle, veal with white wine sauce, bread and pâtés and sweet melon. Dessert was mars bars ice cream bars, which I declined for certainty that I would become addicted and experience withdrawals in NZ where I'd be forced to create my own, as they don't exist in NZ, and then would likely be a Jenny Craig canditate. Just sayin. There was coffee eclairs, and chocolate mousse cake, almond custard cake and well, it just felt like half the patisserie on offer, but I was exhausted. Excused myself and crashed onto couch with Amy where we both fell asleep. Sam kindly out us to bed. Woke up at 4am. It's a new day! Today were off to Paris city to see sights. Louise is going to meet up with us after work and we will go out to dinner in Paris then onto La Grande Arche or a fireworks display. Can't wait. Personal missions today are to buy large amounts of French cheese, devour it guilt free as its crazy cheap here, find the thin chocolate biscuits that Tim loves and stuff those in my luggage as Louise said they do clear customs, visit Eiffel Tower and montmarte, find some antique stores, and some French kids clothing. What a dream to be here!
One of the first shops I'd gone into the day before,in the transit shops, was this gorgeous shop called accessorise which the cutest wee glittery girls shoes for $44. I loved them but couldn't justify the cost. As we sat down to eat dinner in the transit area, still shoeless and bag less, I was prompted about a $40 airport shops voucher we could pick up. I decided that would at least cover the shoes! When Sam and I went to get the vouchers, it turned out we qualified for $160 worth of vouchers!!
That covered the shoes, bag and Sam got me new perfume. God really does work all things for good.
Flew to Paris on the airbus. Amy slept the whole 13 hour journey. Got our luggage and headed to train to get rer b to st remy les chèvreux. No words. We had 11 luggage items including a car seat and had to hand carry the lot through the doors in the few seconds you get, not to mention the locals pushing through the doors. And then had to switch trains twice. We made it. Drained. Louise picked us up and drove us around her village then dropped us home as she headed off to work. Sam crashed into bed while I took kids back no village for walk, admired little French shoes, stopped at a daycare to admire how French kids really do eat just like the book French Kids Eat Everything says, bought un pain and bome de chocolate from boulangre, breathed in the smells, sights, homes, front doors, greenery and then walked home resisting the urge to devour items en route. The french dont eat walking around. No wonder theyre slim. Came back and ate said bread, with lashings of butter and fresh tomato, all while overlooking the commune. Divine. Sam was still asleep so i put on the cartoons till Tim said he'd rather watch paint dry in English than listen to another French tv episode. Classic. It was now 3pm. We couldnt wake Sam. The kids and I just sort of crashed at this point. We all woke up at 8pm to Louise home and giggling at her comatose guests. She fed us a mouth watering meal, tagliatelle, veal with white wine sauce, bread and pâtés and sweet melon. Dessert was mars bars ice cream bars, which I declined for certainty that I would become addicted and experience withdrawals in NZ where I'd be forced to create my own, as they don't exist in NZ, and then would likely be a Jenny Craig canditate. Just sayin. There was coffee eclairs, and chocolate mousse cake, almond custard cake and well, it just felt like half the patisserie on offer, but I was exhausted. Excused myself and crashed onto couch with Amy where we both fell asleep. Sam kindly out us to bed. Woke up at 4am. It's a new day! Today were off to Paris city to see sights. Louise is going to meet up with us after work and we will go out to dinner in Paris then onto La Grande Arche or a fireworks display. Can't wait. Personal missions today are to buy large amounts of French cheese, devour it guilt free as its crazy cheap here, find the thin chocolate biscuits that Tim loves and stuff those in my luggage as Louise said they do clear customs, visit Eiffel Tower and montmarte, find some antique stores, and some French kids clothing. What a dream to be here!
Tuesday, 17 September 2013
Long awaited
I've prayed for this trip for ten years. I can't put into words what it means to do this with Sam.
We got up yesterday at 5am and drove to Auckland. The day had to, and did, follow in a succinct order which required more of my brain than might have been there. Added to the usual need for travel order was a tricky situation that was uncovered last minute. We had booked the transit hotel in Singapore. However, as we are stopping here for 29 hours, not 24, it's not officially a stopover. That meant we couldn't get our boarding passes at Auckland for Paris, meaning needing to clear immigration at Singapore, meaning heading out of the airport, meaning not being able to stay in the transit hotel as you can't access it without a boarding pass. Super above my head. Anyway, at check in, we explained all this and of course, nothing they could do. But yet I had such a peace. I just smiled and said, that's okay. Couldn't believe I said that. Moments later a head lady appeared and told them to over ride the system and issue our boarding passes for Paris. Kind of unfolded in a blur of heavenly perfection and I just smiled.
Plane trip was good. 11 hours of flying, Amy was awesome. So was Tim. Turbulence, not so. We were stuck in our seat belts a lot of the trip, with the captain coming over the intercom saying something about severe turbulence. Hence Amy couldn't lie down. Hence she didn't sleep so was awake from 5am to 1am NZ time. What a girl.
Tim loved flying. I told him he could buzz the hostesses for snacks anytime he liked. He did so. Juice, chips, ice cream, etc. I made him refrain from telling me all the plane wing happenings. He knows far too much and was itching to launch into a plane crash investigations story in full detail. Ignorance is bliss.
Slept well and now off for breakfast in Singapore, to universal studios, shopping and night safari then flying out tonight at midnight for 13hrs to, drum roll, Paris. Eeeeek. Call me a romantic but I can't wait to kiss Sam at the Eiffel Tower. And pay due respect to the champs elysees :). Xxx
We got up yesterday at 5am and drove to Auckland. The day had to, and did, follow in a succinct order which required more of my brain than might have been there. Added to the usual need for travel order was a tricky situation that was uncovered last minute. We had booked the transit hotel in Singapore. However, as we are stopping here for 29 hours, not 24, it's not officially a stopover. That meant we couldn't get our boarding passes at Auckland for Paris, meaning needing to clear immigration at Singapore, meaning heading out of the airport, meaning not being able to stay in the transit hotel as you can't access it without a boarding pass. Super above my head. Anyway, at check in, we explained all this and of course, nothing they could do. But yet I had such a peace. I just smiled and said, that's okay. Couldn't believe I said that. Moments later a head lady appeared and told them to over ride the system and issue our boarding passes for Paris. Kind of unfolded in a blur of heavenly perfection and I just smiled.
Plane trip was good. 11 hours of flying, Amy was awesome. So was Tim. Turbulence, not so. We were stuck in our seat belts a lot of the trip, with the captain coming over the intercom saying something about severe turbulence. Hence Amy couldn't lie down. Hence she didn't sleep so was awake from 5am to 1am NZ time. What a girl.
Tim loved flying. I told him he could buzz the hostesses for snacks anytime he liked. He did so. Juice, chips, ice cream, etc. I made him refrain from telling me all the plane wing happenings. He knows far too much and was itching to launch into a plane crash investigations story in full detail. Ignorance is bliss.
Slept well and now off for breakfast in Singapore, to universal studios, shopping and night safari then flying out tonight at midnight for 13hrs to, drum roll, Paris. Eeeeek. Call me a romantic but I can't wait to kiss Sam at the Eiffel Tower. And pay due respect to the champs elysees :). Xxx
Tuesday, 10 September 2013
Monday, 9 September 2013
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