Champagne, France

My friend Heather flew in from Geneva to spend a weekend with us in Frankfurt.  We planned a night in Champagne, France, a four-hour drive from Frankfurt, to walk through Champagne caves and to eat at one of France's renowned three-star Michelin Restaurants.  We took a tour of Veuve Clicquot learning about the champagne making process and the woman behind modern champagne making, Madame Clicqout.  We discovered where people hid during World War II and then touched the early machines used to make the bubbly wine.  We drank the reserve, and tried a rose.  Rained poor down in the small town of Reims so we tracked down our hotel which housed the restaurant.  We savoured every fine detail the hotel provided from the mini pastries in our room to each of the six courses at the four-hour dinner.  The house-made spreads, smoked salmon, fresh breads, omelet with raw-milk cheeses, crepes at the buffet brunch the next morning created an amazing finish to my last girls' weekend in Europe - at least for a while.

Playdates

The kids organized a playdate in April.  They each invited a special friend for a soccer match ("football" as Owen has been calling it), pizza, and sundaes. We tied in a contentious girls versus boys battle.  The kids ordered our favorite pizza and each ate 6 slices.  After an hour of playing, we lined up the toppings and made heaping sundaes with our favorite brand "ja" ice cream.  We survived the night with no stomachaches.

First Holy Communion

Emily received her First Holy Communion last Sunday.  She was one of  seven kids and the British priest had a small private mass.  He said, "You kids will look back on your First Holy Communion and remember your lives in Germany."

Montmarta

The second day I organized a tour of Montmarte.  I hoped it would be a little less crowded then the other sites, plus we could enjoy the amazing views.  Cristinia explained the neighborhood history to the kids.

We rode the tram up to see Sacre' Coeur.

We looked over Paris,

and lit candles in the Church.

We tried to take family picture.

We enjoyed an espresso,

and walked down the "mountain."

The kids wanted to see the Eiffel Tower.  We found a playground and enjoyed the back-drop.

Then headed back to our little apartment.  Emily played a tune as we waited for the train.

A Few Days in France

Emily and Owen asked us repeatedly to go to Paris.  They wanted to take the train from Frankfurt, but paying 200 euro a head made driving the four and a half hours a better option.  I found a little apartment on the Seine River in a very small town Villennes sur Seine.  We did take a 20 minute train ride into the city both days.

We started the trip with a food tour.  We learned about how the strawberries, which are currently in season, originated in South America.

We walked down a movie-set like street and tried cheeses in a Fromagerie.  We learned how the food selection of the cow, sheep, or goat affects the taste of the cheese.

Emily worked on her journal at an adjacent cafe.

Chocolate came next.  Magic bells, rather then a bunny, bring candy eggs to the kids in France.

We had eclairs at the number three shop in all of Paris.

Owen asked Mary Ellen, "Do you know Amil?" Owen's friend who also traveled to Paris over Spring Break.  "Owen Mary Ellen does not know every person who comes to visit Paris."

Emily very excitedly said "You remind me of my great-grandmother."  Um.  How do I recover from that one.

We spent a few hours at an amazing playground, which we had to walk around like eight times to figure out how to enter.

We tried to stop at the Notre Dame to visit Quasimodo, but the several thousand people standing on the square in front made us say a prayer of thanks we were not staying in the city itself.