Our Writer Friend

Marilyn Kaye is a writer in Paris. She retired from her university job in New York (where we met in the mid-90s), sold her apartment in Brooklyn, and moved herself over here. She’d been spending nearly every available break and vacation over here already, so it was not much of a shock, and she’s a busy lady, so we don’t get a whole lot of time with her, but I had lunch with her one time and then we made a plan to have dinner with the kids. She brought Meredith two books and all of us a darling set of placemats, and then we enjoyed an al fresco meal by the Stravinsky fountain. Thayer was able to do a few laps, meet some Americans, and cause trouble for the waiter, who called him “a little catastrophe” (well, it sounded cute in French, anyway!).

Marilyn has no children of her own, but she loves kids and they love her back. She writes her novels for the “tween” and youth set, mainly, and she’s got a great grasp on the latest literary trends in this arena. Her current series, Gifted is rather like ABC’s “Heroes” -- but for the middle-school set. There are six books out (anticipating three more!), starting with Gifted: Out of Sight, Out of Mind.  Meredith has read and loved them all; I have to admit to getting a bit wrapped up in the suspense of the overall story arc, myself, and I appreciate Marilyn's character development. A book geared for older youth, Demon Chick, concerns a teenager girl whose mother sold her to the Devil in return for fame, fortune, and political power. An intriguing concept, I found, plus I really enjoyed Marilyn’s depiction of hell-as-suburbia! A bit mature for Meredith, thematically, however, so I’ll hang onto it for another couple of years. [If you’re interested, the Gifted series and Demon Chick are available at Barnes and Noble and Amazon.com].

Marilyn is also the godmother to something like four French kids. This is pretty amazing, considering that she’s neither French nor Catholic. But she is like a Fairy Auntie to them all and is very involved with them, picking them up from school, taking them to dance class or music lessons, babysitting, and – the best part – going on vacation with them and their parents, to the south of France, for example, to Italy, to Corsica, and currently to the Dordogne.

Her life here is never dull, that’s for sure, and I can’t imagine that she’s ever lonely. She joined a group of ex-pat writers at one point, but she soon tired of the moaning and belly-aching about not having friends or feeling like they have a place here. This is not her experience at all, as she has had friends here for nearly 30 years, if I’m not mistaken! Marilyn is totally engaged with Paris and Parisians. And although I love my family, and I wouldn’t trade them for the world, part of me can’t help but envy her ability to be spontaneous and to answer to no one but herself, in the main.  If only she’d start a salon, she could be a 21st century Gertrude Stein!   Except much, much nicer.  Plus, she’s got Tilda Swinton as a BFF, but that’s another story!

It’s a Disney Kind of Day, Part II

As with our arrival in the morning, the first part of our day at the Disney Studios went extremely well. First of all, Monsters Inc’s own Sulley was greeting people and since he can’t speak (he’s not a “face” character, like Tiana) or write (his huge paws don’t allow it), it’s just a minute or two of interacting and a photo op with the big blue guy, so the line advanced quickly. The kids loved meeting him and he chased Thayer around a little bit; they had a good performer in the suit! Then we walked over to the Cars Rally ride, which had virtually no waiting, but Thayer wanted a blue car and bonked right into another child who was also heading full speed ahead and damn the torpedos toward her chosen car. No big boo-boo, fortunately, but some crying before the ride, which is a bit like the teacups, but tamer.

Now, Meredith had requested a showing of Animagique, which is a live-action spectacle that features Donald, Mickey, a bunch of animal friends, and black lights. By animal friends I mean Sebastian the crab, Simba the lion, Rafiki the orangutan, Baboo the bear, and King Louis the chimpanzee. I will let you guess which songs they sang. We got good seats, but had to wait – sitting down, mind you – for about 15 excruciating minutes while we listened to the theme song, Animagique. Over and over. This made both kids extremely restless, but the show finally started and there were bubbles and other diversions for 20 minutes. I do think we waited nearly as long as the show lasted. That’s how it goes!

Back outside, the next item on the schedule was to camp out and get a good spot to watch the Stars and Cars parade. We have never seen this before and I was especially looking forward to it. Two issues: first, I had no idea where we should position ourselves for what would be about a 40-minute wait; second, Meredith noticed that Stitch Live would be starting in English in 5 minutes. And she told Thayer. And then, that was all they wanted to do.

Now, I realized right away that we would have TIME to do both things, that the Stitch show only lasts about 15 minutes, but that we were unlikely to find a decent viewing position for the parade by the time we got finished with the blue guy. But they outnumber me, my children, and really it’s their time at DLRP, so I relented. And in we went, and doesn’t Meredith get picked as the “best monster” and enjoy a brief exchange with Stitch. He asked her where she learned to be such a good monster and she said, “Monster School” – not the kind of response he was expecting, I don’t think! And he took her picture and it appeared up on the screen for all to see. She was delighted; personally, I was glad she responded appropriately – this not generally the kind of situation that our Meredith seeks out or enjoys. Sometimes, the growing up enhances her already engaging personality. I was proud of her.

But lo, it came to pass: when we emerged from the theater, there were TONS of people on the parade route. Right in front of the Stitch entrance, however, there was some open space right at the rope. I suggested we take it. The kids were displeased, but we went for it. We got pressed in pretty well, with about 5 minutes to parade time, when Thayer announced that he needed a potty. So I pulled him out of his spot, barked at Meredith to keep our places as much as possible, and ran him to the closest restroom (at least I knew where they were).

When we got back, there were easily three times as many kids squeezed into the space than when we left. The families who had waited for an hour to make sure their kids were in the front? Suckers! And the parade was pretty much in full swing, with uniformed chauffeurs driving the characters around in custom cars. Then they all got out of their cars and it was obvious that we were in the WORST place to see the show. While each of the characters was on the stage, the others made the rounds (if we had had our autograph album this would have been great), but Meredith was in a terrible state, not even wanting her photo with Remy or Woody or Gaston. Then she turned around and noticed that the stage action was being simulcast on a diamond-vision screen behind our heads. I did not think this was the best way to see the show, actually. Then both kids were happy to leave…

…especially when it was made clear that Playhouse Disney LIVE would be starting in 5 minutes! And since the parade was in full swing, the attendance was pretty light. This is a 30-minute puppet show with one live person who interacts with both the puppets and the audience. There’s a “frame” story that involves Minnie’s surprise party, and then three interior stories that are basically ads for Playhouse Disney shows – Handy Manny, Pooh and Friends, and Little Einsteins. As Gru says in Despicable Me: “This is garbage! You actually like this?” Really low-end for Disney, I’d say, although there was a bubble machine (again with the bubbles!) and other stuff gets floated down on the crowd for effect. I found it painful, however, just as I find the live action Winnie the Pooh show painful.

When we left that theater, you would have never known a parade had come through a few minutes before. These Disney people can be extremely efficient, when they want to be. Not so much for our 30 minutes or more in line to ride the Disneyland Railroad from Main Street to Discoveryland (that’s Tomorrowland for y’all who are keeping track in the States), I do love the train, though, as it takes you past things that are not particularly themed, but also through the Grand Canyon (replete with taxidermied animals) and both the Pirates and Small World rides. Once off and into the future, we went to check out Autopia, the car ride of the future (or something. Why is this in the science fiction part of the park?) Anyway, only 20 minutes to wait, which went by fast, and Thayer and I shared a car and Meredith had her own car, on a different track. And two cars broke down in front of Meredith, which backed up the entire ride for quite some time (good thing the cars don’t have horns!). I just missed getting a photo of a woman talking on her cell phone in the hold-up (really?), but Thayer started to do the pee-pee dance so I was also getting stressed out during the wait. Finally she was able to finish her circuit and we could go (pun intended!).

Then Meredith got one of her wishes: Captain EO. This is a 3D adventure from the 80s that features none other than the late-great Michael Jackson. It was a collaboration between George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola, and MJ and it’s quite a hoot. Some of it is very Star Wars-y, so imagine some of the space flights in 3D – pretty cool! And there are dancers and flashing lights and weird alien creatures and Angelica Huston plays the evil lady (good bit of casting there). I don’t know if Thayer could follow the action or not, but even he seemed to enjoy it!

Then we had one last mission: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Back across the park we walked, and the posted wait was 30 minutes. So we go in. The line looks just a wee bit better than last time, when it was more than an hour. I am concerned, but we start snaking our way in and it’s looking pretty good for time when there is an ANNOUNCEMENT in about five languages: the attraction is experiencing technical difficulties and has been temporarily halted. I tell the kids that if we don’t move in 5 minutes, we’re leaving. And so we wound up leaving, getting a couple of Happy Meals (which are far and away the cheapest eats in Disney Village), and taking the RER back to the Big City. It was a dismal way to end the day, but we were all exhausted from the stressful morning, the big crowds, and the long day. In the end, we actually crammed a lot in, but the feeling of being thwarted was hard on everyone. Next time will be better…

It’s a Disney Kind of Day, Part I

One of the best pictures I have ever taken of the kids!

After a few weeks of recovery and anticipation, I decided to take the kids back to Disney, with an eye to doing things that we didn’t get to do last time, what the French would say was raté… Unfortunately, we had a number of obstacles to overcome before we even made it to the park, nearly an hour later than I had planned, which got things off to a difficult start. We were otherwise fairly successful in hitting our targets, but a few glaring exceptions spring to mind. I’m thinking that the “Free Return Trip” offer at DLRP this summer is to help locals feel less ripped; they can return to spend a second day, as we did, focusing on what we hadn’t gotten to on Day One.

But first things first: We were dealing with a lice infestation. France is full of lice and they love my Meredith (all biting insects love her; she must have an attractive scent!). She had ‘em two years ago, as well. The centres are not particularly concerned about them (in 2008, Thayer’s centre posted a small, handwritten sign that just said, “Attention, poux” with a drawing of a little beastie). Anyway, we stopped at a pharmacyand the recommended treatment involved a leave-in poison (8 hours minimum!) along with a shampoo to (theoretically) loosen the dead nits. So we treated our heads that evening (Thayer has sensitive skin, poor fella, and the poison spray stung his scalp) and went to bed. First thing in the morning, we were faced with three “shampoux” in a row. No one was happy about it, but it was done and we were out the door.

Then we went to the metro, where I wanted to purchase 10-trip tickets to the park. The very ticket window where I had previously been able to buy my monthly pass, as well as local tickets, had suddenly become an Information Desk, and cannot sell tickets. My American credit cards do not work in the vending machines; I need human help. So we had to go to another station for that. Lost a good 30 minutes of precious morning time just trying to get into the RER!

And when we finally made it onto the platform, with two minutes until the Disney train was to arrive, Thayer announced that he had to pee. I did not take this well, because there was just nowhere to go down there, except that this is Paris, where boys and men can go about anywhere. So Meredith and I downed a small bottle of water that I had brought with, and once we were in the train I had Thayer make use of it. Not with 100% success, I might add, but better than having wet his pants before we even got to Disney. Then we washed our hands with sanitizer and wet wipes and had our breakfast on the train. I mean, really.

Because we didn’t get to the park until 10:30, we could not get on one of the Main Street trolleys that Thayer had wanted to ride. They only go in the morning, to help get people to the Central Plaza (in front of the Castle) in style.  So we walked up Main Street and visited the dragon under the castle (She is big and menacing. Extremely well done!). And we stopped to get Peter Pan fast passes and then rode the Pirates of the Caribbean ride, which has always been a favorite (Meredith does not look at all the skeletons), and Thayer remembered, before we got to it, that we would pass a restaurant inside the ride. I guess some experiences do stick! After that, we went back to the castle to “read” the story of Sleeping Beauty (it is her palace, after all), which is told in stained glass, tapestry, and statuary, with illuminated manuscripts all along the way. Extremely lovely, but a bit more crowded than I would have liked. And, as an aside, the whole park was like that on this visit, even a cool, overcast day with a sprinkle here and there.

We then rode the Carousel (with perhaps a 5-minute wait; that is the fine with me!) and it was time for Peter Pan. A Disney employee rode with us and shone a black light and a laser pointer on various elements of the attraction, something that the kids got a big kick out of. At this point, I’m thinking that we’re off to a great start! and perhaps the day won’t bear the mark of the morning’s misadventures.

Our restaurant was not quite ready for us at noon, so we had time to walk through the Passage d’Aladdin, which features a series of dioramas, partially animated, that tell the story of the film. Very pretty, that, and a great way to get us in the mood for our fantabulous lunch at Café Agrabah. A delight to the eye, the location involves both interior and exterior seating in a recreation of a casbah - - many small rooms linked together, mosaic tables, stained glass light fixtures, and our favorite area with cloth ceilings (like in a tent) and small pouf cushions to sit on. The staff wears richly-colored satin harem pants. It creates a beautiful, exotic atmosphere. No skimping on the meal either, as the buffet features what Americans call “middle eastern” food (the French associate it more with North Africa, actually) – stuffed grape leaves, olives, taboulleh, hummous, eggplant, then cous-cous, schwarma – and pasta with meatballs, to be sure! For dessert: baklava, pecan and coconut cakes, fresh fruit and, well, crêpes. The kids ate exceedingly well and chose fruit with their crêpes (Meredith had fruit salad, Thayer enjoyed a pomme granny) and I indulged in a mint tea, which came in a lovely, traditional silver pot with a long spout, big enough for all three of us to have some.

Somewhere in there, we rode the tea cups... 

 

As we were finishing up, I went over our plan for the afternoon (we had already decided not to stay for the fireworks; we will do that when Daddy gets here!): still very much on the agenda were Buzz Lightyear and Big Thunder Mountain, although we had ridden them both last time – they are great favorites! The Fast Pass times were not conducive to our other plans, however, so we let them go in favor of one of Meredith’s goals for the day: to meet Tiana, the Princess with the Frog. After visiting the Nautilus (Captain Nemo’s submarine) we walked back down Main Street and got to the spot about 5 minutes before she was meant to appear. There were quite a number of people ahead of us in the queue, but we staked our claim. Just before Tiana arrived, however, a Cast Member came over to our part of the line. Without actually saying it, he suggested that we might not get to meet her after all, as she is only available for 45 minutes at a time, but that we could come back for a later time (and wait again). The families around us in line had trouble understanding that the neutral comments added up to: “You will not meet her this time. You got here too late.” Meredith wanted to stay, to some degree, so we agreed to wait 20 minutes and see where we were. The result: not nearly far enough along to think that we would see her; there were simply too many autograph hounds and photographers and chatters in front of us. This was now the third desired activity for the afternoon that was not panning out. Some crankiness emerged. In the end, we left the line and headed for the Studios…. Which will be covered in Part Two of our Disney Kind of Day!

A month (or more) of Sundays

I have already noted that Sunday is a day off for the French. Well, mostly. And since I have been working on Saturdays, at least for a few hours, it is Sunday that has been my day of rest from work. I also have tried not to schedule too much activity on Sundays, so we can sleep in and enjoy the day. Herewith, an overview of our Sunday activity, or lack thereof:

Sunday #1: Bon appétit exhibition and felafel lunch in the Marais with J (see my post, “Perfectly fine for Sunday”)

Sunday #2: E and M, the pals with whom we would spend Bastille Day, arranged for us to meet for Brunch and a trendy (the French would say branché) restaurant. E had found it on line and was especially pleased that it featured a kids’ menu. Which turned out to be a sugar-fest, but they loved it: hot cocoa, fresh juice, pancakes with syrup, and dessert (one panna cotta, one chocolate mousse). I had the house brunch, which included coffee, juice, eggs, mushrooms, bread… and fromage blanc for dessert. It was fun to catch up with them and M took some great photos of the kids!

Sunday #3: We did not make plans with anyone else for this Sunday, but chose rather to head up to Montmartre, the hilly neighborhood in the 18th arrondissement in north-central Paris. First things first: playground and carousel ride! Then we got some crêpes à emporter and ate them by the playground. Once our bellies were full of ham and cheese, we hiked up the hill to visit Sacré Coeur, the newest church in Paris, I believe, now celebrating its centennial. It looks like a birthday cake on the outside. Lots of interesting artwork on the inside (not all of it aesthetically pleasing in my book, but that’s okay). Then, because I am a soft touch, we rode the little Montmartre train around the neighborhood. It was less that 10 euro for the three of us, and proved both entertaining and relaxing (it took about 40 minutes); I was glad the kids didn’t ask too many questions about the red-light district (although I had to explain the term “peep show” to Meredith). To get home, we first took the funicular (that’s a fancy, old-timey word for tram), then continued on foot. But we did stop for ice cream, and then at a nearby park, for some better playground recreation. We got home in time to see Germany beat the pants off of England in the World Cup quarterfinal; Thayer picked the Germans to win and he’s had pretty good success by going with his gut, or by what color the team is wearing, or whichever socks he likes better. I have no idea. We also finished our 1000-piece Disneyland Paris puzzle, enjoyed soup, bread, cheese and salad for dinner, and watched a DVD that we brought from home to end the day.

Sunday #4 July 4th See previous post: “Americans in Paris III”
Sunday # 5 See previous post: “Weekend in the country”

Sunday #6 : This may have been our best Sunday yet! Meredith slept over at her new BFF’s house. A is Anglo-American, like some other wonderful children we know, and she lives just behind the big church, about 5 minutes from us. When Thayer and I went to pick up our girl, A’s mother kindly offered me a coffee and we chatted while the kids played with A’s hamster, Caramel, and her various Build-a-Bear stuffed animals.

We were sad to leave! A’s mom was quite fun to chat with, but we had a date with another family, so we headed home to collect our picnic food and then descended into the metro. Because we were going to the Luxembourg gardens, we had a rather long ride on the train. Thayer had staked out his favorite spot at the front of the front car, and was enjoying the view through the front window, when the conductor came into our car (we were stopped at a station, of course!) and invited us all to join her IN THE DRIVER”S COMPARTMENT! This was amazing; Thayer was in bliss. Of course, we stayed there until our stop, then thanked her for her kindness, forced Thayer off the train and went on our way.

A few minutes later, we had met up with my former classmate, S, her husband R and their 3-year-old daughter L. This is an Italian family, actually! S and I took a few classes together at NYU and I remember meeting R’s brother, H, when he was visiting S from Rome. Not long after that, H re-introduced S to his brother R and the love affair began. I saw S two summers ago (she usually teaches for an NYU film school summer class in Paris), but I hadn’t seen R since 2000, I think! He and S came to visit us in Queens and met baby Meredith. And this was my first time meeting L, who is cute as a little Italian button. She attends a centre near her home and speaks a fair amount of French.

All of the kids enjoyed the big sand pit in the Luxembourg playground, and Meredith of course was off organizing other kids in various activities. Thayer climbed the “Eiffel Tower” – a very tall play structure, one that I think would not be legal in the US, and the kids all had lunch (of various sandwiches and saladières – my beloved tuna and veggies in a pop-top tin) and the grown-ups chatted and caught up. Gorgeous day to be out, too!

The bell rang just before 4 o’clock: The puppet show was going to start. My kids were pretty ready for a break in the action, and L had gone to the 11 am show, so I wrangled my two into the theater. With some snacks that I had in my bag (why I don’t always have snacks in my bag is a mystery to me. They come in handy all the time.) Today’s show: The Three Little Pigs. This is a part-Disney, part-French, part-I-don’t-know-what version of the story. Unlike many French fairy tales, it does not end badly, although the wolf does get part of his tail bitten off by a crocodile.  When all seems lost for the pigs, the hero of French puppets, Guignol, shows up to save the day. He’s a bit like the woodsman in that regard, I guess, but he can pretty much pop into any narrative at any time. And he’s great at beating up on other characters. Anyway, the kids enjoyed it for 45 minutes and then we met back up with the Italians and the kids played a bit more, but everyone was pretty weary by then. We said our good-byes and headed back to the metro.

Once back in the ‘hood, we stopped at our local Monop’ (this is like a quickie-mart version of the Monoprix, and some are open on Sundays) to pick up some essentials (milk, for example), then we climbed up the stairs to fix supper. Meredith loves the soup-in-a-box and picked “Pot au feu,” which is similar to Beef vegetable. Thayer enjoyed canned cassoulet, with white beans and saucisses (French version of beanie-weenies!) that was very tasty, whilst I finished off the duck and potato mélange from earlier in the week.

It was still early, so we had time to watch a whole movie, Kiki’s delivery service (highly recommended if you haven’t seen it!) and to savor an ice cream bar. And to savor some quiet family time. Days like this are too few and far between, in my book, but I know we’ll have more of them when our actual vacation begins on August 6!

14 juillet: La fête nationale!

In the past, I have celebrated Bastille Day in a variety of ways. It happened to be my college boyfriend’s birthday, so some years back it involved candles and cards and cake. Then there were the years of dancing with the firemen. Many of the Parisian fire stations hold Firemen’s Balls on the 13th and 14th of July, with DJs or live music and food and drink for sale and good fun to be had. One memorable summer, one of my pals made it a priority to kiss a fireman and we all made sure she got her wish! Also years of the fireworks on the Champs de Mars, dazzling eruptions of color around the Eiffel Tower – excellent wow factor there.

These activities were, for me, pre-kiddos in Paris. Les bals du pompier are clearly not for the under-18 set, and my last experience of the feux d’artifice involved some young boys hurling fire crackers into the crowd for sport, and dealing with the awfully crowded metro home. So we were looking for something other to do. And our friends E and M suggested the morning parade on the Champs Elysées (that's French for Elysian Fields, which is where -- according to ancient Greek legend and myth -- great warriors go when they die), something I (and they, it turns out!) have never actually done. It was a date.

E and M are a delightful, young Franco-American couple, married now for a couple of years. Both attorneys, they used to live in OKC, but they moved to Paris about 18 months ago hoping that E would have an easier time finding work (she’s the French one). And she has (M landed a job at an international law firm before they departed). I really like both of them and am a bit sad that they left Oklahoma, but now we get to hang out with them here, which is great fun, actually. We did brunch together soon after our arrival (see upcoming the “month of Sundays” post for more on that outing!), and we arranged to meet in front of the Pizza Pino on the Champs around 8:30 AM for the bit Fête Nationale. Possibly the earliest RDV of our whole trip, but who knew what kind of crowds would be amassing in the mean time?

So I had to awaken the little monsters, tired from our California connection the night before, and get them in the metro. We brought breakfast with us: baguette and nutella and some fruit and bottles of water (a bottle of iced coffee for Maman), and we were glad to see that the Pizza Pino was on the much less crowded side of the Champs Elysées. M and E were delayed, as the vélib stations near the Champs had been inexplicably closed for the day, but we staked a little claim along the barricade in the meantime. “Formez vos bataillons!” we sang.

There were lots of well-dressed military types in the street, sporting various dress uniforms, some with spats, some with plumed hats, some with swords, some with automatic weapons. We were handed programs by a charming female member of service, and told that we could not bring our liquids in with us (lots of barricades for crowd control, but not difficult to manage. We could leave our bottles by a big tree, where they would be safe and not fodder for passers-by. My glass pot of Nutella was allowed in, however. Such are the vagaries of the system. Good thing, though, as the kids were starving. And the waiting was torture (as my dear Dr. H. likes to say, life in France involves “the torture of waiting.”)! Then there was some music. And the well-dressed brigades stood at attention. With their backs to us. (So that’s why there were three times as many people on the other side!) The good part was, we got to see the faces of the commanders who were inspecting the troops. Which went on for a while, up and down the Champs. And then, more waiting. And then, President Sarkozy rode by, waving at the gathered crowds (The man is short. He could never get elected in the States.) And then, when it didn’t seem like we could wait any more, a nice man with lots of ribbons on his uniformed chest approached us, the masses at the barricades, and asked if we were hungry. And then he handed out Twix bars. Really! I was thrilled that the weather had cooled off, because Twix bars on a hot day would be just horribly melty and sticky. The kids were thrilled.

Finally, finally, the parade began. Right from where they’d been inspected, each group fell in and started down the Champs toward the Place de la Concorde. And then there were planes that flew low overhead, in tight formation. Wow! One of the first passes involved a v-formation of fighter planes that spewed streams of blue, white and red smoke in their wake. This was the highlight for Thayer, I think, and really impressive to see in person. A few more planes, lots more marching, and then --- the skies opened and it started to pour. I mean POUR! We beat a retreat out of there (with nearly everyone else, I might add), and tried to take cover in the Pizza Pino. It was closed. Just across the street, Pizza Roma. Doors open. We go inside, the kids are hungry (it’s about 11 by now), so why not? The maitre d’ says, practically without stopping: “Sorry, we’re full. Sorry, we’re closing. How many in your party?” E laughed and said she could see the panic on his face as a throng of damp spectators rushed the doors.

Our Party of Five climbed the stairs to the upper level, where we could see a bit of the soaking wet parade (all of those beautiful uniforms!), now including tanks and vehicles and flags of many nations (the Francophonie were out in force, celebrating 50 years of independence for many of the former African colonies). Lunch wasn’t served until 11:30, so we had dessert first, crème caramel, pains au chocolat, and ice cream for Thayer. Bubble gum ice cream (yecch.). Then we could get some pizza and pasta. Not the best meal. Not the best prices (hey, it’s the Champs!). Not the best service (when Meredith asked if she could have some bread, the waitress said, sluggishly, “If you want.”). And I was thinking that for some foreign visitors to Paris, this is the kind of experience they have, over and over. Overpriced, pedestrian food and the frazzled servers. But we were dry and happy.

The rain abated, a bit, and we said our good-byes to M & E and crossed back over to the Disney Store, which Meredith had honed in on as soon as we surfaced from the metro. And the skies opened some more, so we wound up spending about an hour in there, I’d say. Without a purchase! Then we booked it to the metro and stopped at the Alimentation Générale near our stop to get some milk. The nice man there gave us plastic sacks to put over our heads for the 1-block dash to our building.

Once home, we relaxed, dozed, and watched “Enchanted” in 11 small parts, courtesy of You Tube. And then I asked the kids if they wanted to do something else, a surprise. That might involve more rain. They were up for it, so we headed out again, this time to the Grands Boulevards, where we went to see Toy Story 3 on its opening day in Paris. We saw the V.O. (original version) with French subtitles. Movies in France deserve a whole different post, but suffice to say that the kids had Eiffel Tower gummies and thoroughly enjoyed the film. I did, too. Those Pixar people are amazing.

Then we went home and it was nearly 10 when we had dinner (soup, bread and cheese) and by the time we were ready for bed, we could hear the thunderous booming of the fireworks. Since the buildings are uniform in height (6 stories or fewer) there’s no sound barrier, so even all the way across town the noise came to us. A happy sound, I’d say. And speaking of sounds, I realized, as I was falling asleep, that we hadn’t heard La Marseillaise (France’s national anthem) a single time, all day! Curious, no?