Two Problems

We seriously can't get enough of this show.


Paris has gone wine crazy, and after a dissapointing trip to the "Foire de vins" at the Inno we discovered the cave at the Grande Epicerie. We're in big trouble....

Anyone interested in a wine tasting/evening of watching 24??

The road to Mont St Michel

Here are some pictures from our weekend in Mont St Michel. Lucky Erik got to avoid driving, so Alex and I took the wheel to get us there. We learned that the yellow roads on the map are much faster than the red ones. The 5.5 hour drive there was only about 3 on the way back. Plus super driver Alex conquered not only the round-about at Porte Maillot, but the mother of all traffic circles at the Etoile. We had a great time!

(click on the picture to see the whole album)

More pictures from Steve and Christy's visit

Steve and Christy made us a delicious dinner at the apartement they rented

Enjoying some Devaux champagne


Picnic-ing on the Champ de Mars in front of good ol' Eiffey


Enjoying a drink on the banks of the Seine

Why I love our grocery store

Not only does our local Inno have an amazing wine selction on a regular basis, it also has a Foire aux vins on right now. I haven't quite figured out what makes this fair special. Aside from the many posters, the red carpet and the decorative trees, it's still the same old wine section, if not a bit smaller than usual due to all the renovations that are happening in our store (demain sera plus beau-'tomorrow will be prettier' is a common slogan for stores undergoing renovations).

But wait. There are wine tastings. They were tasting champagne when I was there at noon today. There is free delivery for your purchase of more than 50euros of wine. And, I think you can pay in installments if you have the Monoprix card, but that seemed like an odd thing to offer for something like booze.

Anyway, Erik and I picked up the catalogue (yes, there is a catalogue) that they recommend that you peruse at your leisure, then come back in and stock up on your favorites. Which I'm sure we will do

Sigh. What will we do when the grocery store doesn't sell wine anymore? It seems like such a foreign concept...(like fat free yogurt. And margarine. Remember when I liked that stuff??)

La rentree

I realize it's been awhile since I've posted, but there's been a lot going on around here lately.

Mainly, la rentree.

Which means, basically, 'back to school time' but almost seems like a holiday of some sort. Our gym felt it necessary to make a special class schedule for this trying time of the year, and the grocery store has been innundated with people stocking up their kitchens and on school supplies after being away all summer.

Anyway, the nursery school started on Tuesday (for a reason that I'm still not clear on, considering that Monday wan't a holiday here) and I had a bit of time before to go in and attend staff meetings that were in Japanese, oh, I mean French (my French went on vacation this summer and I've been having a really hard time getting back into it. It didn't help that this staff meeting was over 3 hours long and consisted of such important topics as plant placement in the garden, renovations that badly need to be done but can't possibly happen before school starts and a fun 60 min session trying to hash out the perfect lunch schedule for all the teachers).

But the kids showed up on Tuesday morning and fell right back into their old routine. Most of the kids in the 4 and 5 year old classes are students that were here last year, and it almost seems like they never left. Some of them are still a bit confused about who their teacher is, and what classroom to return to after English, but I'm sure it will all get sorted out soon enough. Oh, but they're still so QUIET!!! At lunch today I don't think any of the kids said a single word. It was lovely! I realize it won't last, so I'm trying to enjoy it while I can.

That's about it. Classes at the American school don't start for me until the 20th, so I'm trying to enjoy my free Wednesdays.

We're going out for dinner tonight with Steve and Christy, who are staying in a cute little apartment in the Marais. And we're trying to figure out where to go for a weekend when Roman is here in October. Any ideas?

For all of you who went back to school on Tuesday, I hope your week has gone smoothly. Hard to believe it's the beginning of another year! I guess time flies when you're having fun...or living in Paris. We'll be home before you know it!