Day 8 - Versailles, but not really...

We woke up ready to go to Versailles, France to see the beautiful palace of Louis XIV! I had been once before, but it was a quick trip as we didn't realize the enormity of Versailles.  The BHW really wanted to go and I was excited to see it again and I knew one fabulous four year old princess who would LOVE the Hall of Mirrors!  Off we went and easily found our way.  Hurray!  We pull up and I am surprised at how few cars are there, but it was pretty chilly and a Monday so I was thinking we would have the place to ourselves!  How cool is that?  We go up to the ticket door and it is locked.  Hmmmm... what is up with that.  I find two gentlemen and in my best French ask if they speak English.  One points to the other and he very unwillingly turns to speak to me.  I ask him where the ticket office is and he tells me it is all closed on Monday.  Then stupidly I say, "Is it Monday????"  I had no idea!  I was so mad at myself for this really stupid mistake!!!  I am a travel guru!  This was a total rookie mistake that I shouldn't have made!!!  Aaaarrrggghhhh!!!  The BHW was so kind and didn't get upset at all as he knew I was already kicking myself!  We took a few pictures in the entrance area and decided to head into the town for lunch.

We found a wonderful little restaurant with lots of ambiance!  I had the turkey normandy which was a turkey cutlet in a cream sauce with mushrooms, Jemma and Tom had pizza.  Flat Zachary thought it was a really cool little place.  They had some of the best Chocolate Mousse I have ever put in my mouth!  

We headed back to Paris and took the long route... darn those French and their horrible road signs!!!  We made it back and decided to go to Notre Dame and eat at the cafe across from there that I always seem to eat at!  Notre Dame is just a beautiful cathedral.  Jemma was just mesmerized.  There was a service going on and we just walked around, looked and answered Jemma's questions about God, Jesus and all that goes with that.  She is so darn interesting to talk to and asks the best questions!  She adores the nativity story and she was the one who first noticed the stations of Christ's life done on the walls.  She started telling us about what she saw... Mary on the donkey, Jesus born in the stable, angels singing... Then she said, "There's naughty King Herod.  What is that man doing to the baby next to him?"  Holy smoke!!!  It was a guard running a sword through a baby!!!  I am very honest with her about most things to a point.  We talked about how Herod wanted to be the only king and he didn't know exactly were Jesus was so he had a lot of the first born boy babies killed.  This did not sit well.  She starts saying in a loud voice, "I don't want to see those bad men anymore!!!" over and over.  We walked down past it and talked it over, but it was definite that we weren't going back there!  I was able to get some nice shots of the nativity and my favorite of her staring at the candles.  As we had to walk back by, she kept saying that she wasn't looking at those naughty men any more!!  Bless my baby's heart!  

We headed across the street to the Cafe Le Notre Dame where I always go.  I promise you, it was the same man that has been there since I went my first time in 2000!  It is amazing how much nicer everyone seems to be when you have a cute little girl with you!!!  He was absolutely charming!  This is the same man who I KNOW went over to the table of girls next to us and talked about us one time.  I know this because he tolerated us as we ordered, went over to the girls, said something to them, and they all turned to look at us and started laughing!  This same man spoke in beautiful English to Jemma, and even asked her to draw him a picture which he kept and put in his pocket when she was done!  Note to self, when going to Paris, take a small cute kid with you.  If you don't have one, borrow one!  Jemma even drew a picture for us that I am going to have framed.  It was her, Mommy, Daddy and the Eiffel Tower.  Can this kid be any cuter???  I think not!  Who needed the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles?  They had mirrors on the walls and she entertained herself while we had a lovely dinner of Croque Monsieur which is a toasted ham and cheese sandwich, but I promise you... it is the BEST ham and cheese sandwich you will ever eat in your life!  

I just want to point out the adorable dress she is wearing!  It is a pillowcase dress with an Eiffel Tower print all over it.  My wonderful Mother-in-law made it for her and has become a whiz at making these precious dresses!  I love them because she can wear them forever and in all seasons!  Jemma loves them because she would rather wear a dress than anything else.  Thank heaven for wonderful grandmas!  Jemma is lucky enough to have not one but three very special and talented grandmas!  Thanks Nana for learning how to make these dresses for us!

Day 7 - Paris

Not only were we in Paris and about to go the Eiffel Tower, but I was about to see one of my best friends in the world!  Suzanne and I taught together in Tennessee and she is one of the kindest, smartest, dearest people in the world.  I adore her.  She married a wonderful British man named Daniel and they took the Chunnel over to visit us in Paris for the day!  Sadly their three boys stayed home, but we were so excited to see them!  It was a very cold Sunday morning, but the skies were blue and we were going to see the Eiffel Tower.  I am fortunate enough that this was my 7th visit to the Eiffel Tower.  I don't care how many times I see it.  It is one of the most magnificent sights in the world.  The plan was to get there early, take the trip up to the top, come down and meet Suzanne and Daniel for lunch.  We hopped on the Metro and Jemma promptly fell asleep!

We woke her up and took her around to the Eiffel Tower.  She was in awe!!  She kept saying, "It's humongous!!"  She was precious.

We waited in line FOREVER!!!   I would have never guessed that on a Sunday morning in the frigid cold, there would be that many people!  Jemma was so patient.  She chased pigeons, chewed gum and wanted to talk about Gustave Eiffel (thanks Magic Tree House books!)!

We finally made it up after waiting in line for about an hour and a half!  The top level was closed so we only got to go to the second and first floors.  We had so much fun and she was so excited to see it all!  She really wanted to look through the telescope so of course, we obliged!  Here are a few shots from the second level.

We didn't go on the first level.  Tom didn't really get that there was the first level so we skipped it and headed down to meet Suzanne and Daniel!  I was so excited when I saw her green coat come dancing through the crowds!!  We all walked down the allee and took pictures with the Eiffel Tower in the background.  The first picture is my darling friend and her husband!

Notice, I am holding a paper doll named Flat Zachary!  He was a school project from our friends in Michigan.  Flat Zachary was a world traveler!

Photos by Jemma below!

We then headed off to Sacre Coeur.  I had never been there and wanted to go so everyone was kind enough to oblige!  It was a trek up the hill to the church, but worth it.  It is a byzantine style church that took 35 years to build.  There were mosaic tiles that covered the walls and ceilings that were astounding. Jemma was fascinated and had many questions.  She loves to hear stories from the Bible.  She is so inquisitive and I love it!

 After walking through the church and watching the entertainers in front, we went into a warm shop and bought some souvenirs.  We then headed back towards the Eiffel Tower to eat dinner.  We went to a wonderful little restaurant and had a nice warm dinner.   I had my usual in France...quiche lorraine and creme brulee!  The food was really good and the service was excellent.  I have been to France many times and I can say that as far as service goes this was by far the best experience we had ever had!  Everyone was so friendly.  It sure beat the time that Tom and I were there and went out to a restaurant.  We sat down at the table, the server walked over and took the table cloth right off the table, then proceeded to ignore us!  This trip was definitely better!!!  Check out the cold red cheeks on everyone!

Why does Jemma look so mad???   Is that a glare or what?!?  I am doomed when she is a teenager!  Suzanne and Daniel gave her a sweet little Barbie (with a bad haircut!) which we carried all over the rest of Paris!  Jemma would "talk" to her in French!  She is now officially the Paris Barbie!

After dinner we knew we had to go back and see the Eiffel Tower at night.  If you think it is beautiful by day, then you have to understand that it is SPECTACULAR at night!  Tom and I have our own "spot" on a bench right below it that we love to sit on and just stare.  What is even better is every hour on the hour, the whole tower sparkles.  It takes your breath away!

We bid au revoir to the Suzanne and Daniel as they headed back to the Eurostar.  I was so happy that they came to see us!  We took Jemma to the carousel that is right on the Seine river by the Eiffel Tower. She was in heaven!  I wanted to have a portrait done of her by a local artist, but we had used all our cash up.  They were out that night and we should have done it, but didn't!  That is my only regret!  Her expression though on the carousel is priceless.  I will never forget seeing her smile as we went around and the Eiffel Tower was in the background.  What a perfect ending for a perfect day.  Talk about taking your breath away...

Day 6 - Bratwurst and Snow

We woke up really late this morning after a night of dining and dancing and I went into full panic mode!!!  One of the only things I wanted to do in Germany was go to the market in the square on Saturday morning and eat a bratwurst from Frau Stich!  We almost got up too late!  I rushed everyone out the door and we arrived at the market.  Frau Stich looked right up and recognized us immediately!!  She is the sweetest lady!  We had our hot bratwurst in front of the church and just enjoyed it even though it was freezing and flurrying!

Marina and Siggi met us there and we first went into the church to see the beautiful nativity scene and stained glass windows.  Each church in Germany has their own nativity scene and each is individual and beautiful.  This one is all hand carved wood.  Each figure is probably 2 ft. tall.  Gorgeous!  We popped into Peter's Backeri for a hot chocolate and berliner donut!  Then we headed back to the apartment to pack up for France.  It was really starting to snow and we were a bit worried about the drive, but reservations were made so we took off.  This was the beautiful view off of our deck of the vineyards.

This was the nightmare scene of our drive through France and this isn't even the bad part!

The roads were horrible and it kept on snowing.  I felt so bad for Tom having to drive in all that mess and then we got to the area where our hotel was... let's just say the signs in France aren't all that great!  Jemma wasn't minding any of it...

Once we made a few circles around Marnee Le Vallee, we made it to our hotel.  I have stayed in this hotel several times, but this was my first time on this side of the hotel.  To my joy and delight, I opened the curtains and there in the distance is the Eiffel Tower!!!!  I swung the curtains closed, told Jemma what was there and informed her that we had to wait for Daddy!  I couldn't let her first siting of the Eiffel Tower be without him!  He came up and I told him what was there.  Jemma was dancing around and we went into full show-stopper mode!  Daddy picked her up, and I flung open the curtains like I was unveiling the Mona Lisa!  Jemma was giddy and kept saying, "There's the Eiffel Tower!  Isn't it beautiful!"  Then I noticed her looking down.  The cries of joy came over the swimming pool under our window.  "Isn't it pretty with the light in it?"  "It's so green looking!"  "Do you think we can go in it?"  I kept going back to the Eiffel Tower and she kept going back to the swimming pool!  I guess that is what you should expect from a four year old!  Priorities, you know!

Here is a horrible picture of the Eiffel Tower from our room.  There is a sad story that goes with this.  I love photography.  I love to take pictures.  I have a big Canon, big flash, big lens, tripod and all that good stuff.  The BHW gets frustrated sometimes because he says that I miss what is happening because I am always behind the camera.  I agree to a point, but I do love to capture it in a good picture.  With that said, he somehow convinced me to just take his Kodak point and shoot.  I kept thinking... I lived in Germany for almost 3 years and got beautiful pictures with a point and shoot... I won't have to lug the camera all over (even though I do like to consider it a bit of exercise!)... It holds a ton of pictures, and so on.  We get there and after the first day or two, I say, "We better charge the camera so we are good to go."  The BHW starts digging through bags.  Guess, what... NO CHARGER!!!!!   I almost cried.  I knew then that my pictures would be very limited.  I got some nice pictures, but I didn't take as many as I would have.  I must admit... it was nice to be an observer and not worry all the time about pictures!  Don't tell him I said that!  So here is the too far away picture of the Eiffel Tower!

See what I mean???  Hey, we know what it is and that is all that matters!

Day 5 - The Big Party

Today was Marina's birthday!! This was one of the reasons we came on this adventure was to celebrate Marina's 50th birthday.  Let me tell you guys.  The Germans know how to celebrate a birthday!  If it ends in 0, you better watch out!  It is a big one!  First off, your doorbell rings at midnight and there is a large group of friends singing to you!  Your halls have been decorated and the celebrated Birthday Tree is in place.

This usually leads to a party that lasts well into the morning!  

The next morning, we headed over to their house to have breakfast, but stopped to buy flowers.  Flowers in Germany are so lovely and it is customary to take flowers when you have been invited to a home.  The are so creative and unique with their designs.  The florist even gave Jemma three yellow roses!  We arrived with our gifts and had a wonderful breakfast together.  Marina opened her gifts from us which were a monogrammed candle ( I made myself - thanks Amy from Playing Sublimely!) and a monogrammed silver necklace.  I live in Charleston... we monogram everything.  I wouldn't be surprised if Charlestonians underwear aren't  monogrammed!  Jemma even made her own gift.   A paper plate completely painted black. She was so proud! She even made sure that we packed it!  We hung out that day and Jemma and Isabel did their "thing" which was looking at Peter Pan clips on Youtube!

The Family went home for a nap before the big party.  We arrived to the Adler in Ottersweier which is a new restaurant across from where I used to get my hair cut.  Well, I say new, but it isn't new, but the building is.  It is a beautiful restaurant with different sections and a biergarten in the back.  We were in the big sections which is decorated like an Italian street.  The floor is stone, the walls are painted like homes with balconies and things.  It was just beautiful.  Jemma even asked who lived in there!  This is a Party with a capital P!  The food was amazing.  First course was a tomato cream soup, followed by an Italian appetizer buffet.  There were meatballs, tomato mozarella caprese, beef thinly sliced with cream sauce, shrimp and squid in a garlic oil marinade and that just names a few!  This was the buffet.

Then we had salad and after that came noodles in a white wine cream sauce.  In between courses were birthday wishes and events.  The funniest was when all the neighbors, made Marina do a "fitness test".  She had to hula hoop, jump rope, and all kinds of things to pass her 50 year fitness test.  It was hilarious!
Of course, the neighbors all sang to her.  It was wonderful to see the friends we had lived with for 2 1/2 years.  Many of them didn't know we were there and it was a huge surprise!  They didn't recognize me, but when they saw Tom they figured it out!  It was so much fun!

Notice who is sitting right next to Marina.  She tried to climb in her lap, but we wouldn't let her!

Marina's "birthday cake" from the neighbors!  Don't ask!  

All those cute fans though are money!  Very nice!

Then came another course of food!  We had veal wrapped in parma ham in a white wine cream sauce,  filet in a balsamic sauce , and potatoes.  

Jemma found a playmate.  Her name was Maeva and she is so cute!  She spoke only French, Jemma spoke only English and we are at a German party!  It all worked and they were so sweet dancing and coloring together!  This area is about 20 minutes from France.  So Marina has family that lives there.  We are so multi-cultural!!  

Marina's daughters did a beautiful power point for their mom.  It was pictures of her growing up and very special.

The dancing began and Jemma was the dancing queen!  She kept dancing with our neighbor Gaby who would swing her around and around.  She would hardly dance with her old mom as I wasn't as much fun!  Then came dessert!  It was a coffee flavored ice cream wrapped in a ball of chocolate ice cream, which was then rolled in cocoa powder with chocolate crunchies.  After this came a buffet of cakes and pies that people had brought for the birthday!    The dancing queen started to wind down around 1:00 and the Family left the party and headed back to bed.  It was such an honor to get to be a part of this birthday for Marina!

This is Vanessa's boyfriend, Phillip, who Jemma was quite taken with.  Jemma took some pictures and this was one of MANY that she took of Phillip!

Our German Family

 The Family