I will begin blogging June 1 from Silver Spring, MD. I'm spending a few days with my friend from high school and visiting Falling Water and a couple other places of interest. Meanwhile, I will experiment with a few photos from my trip to Florence and Pisa, Italy as well as Paris and Beaune, France. I couldn't figure out how to download photos from my tablet while I was there.

The Leaning Tower of Pisa

The Duono in Florence

Eunice with a glass of Tuscan wine

Eunice preparing to taste wine in Beaune, France. Does anyone see a theme here?

Eugenie in Orleans

May 28, 3:20 p.m. (8:21 a.m. CST) Third Post

I am at my hotel near the CDG airport, a bit harried from the experience. My friend Fabienne had made a reservation for a shuttle to pick me up at my apartment today at 11:00. I waited an hour and finally called the company, only to be informed that the pick-up was for tomorrow. Actually the company's web site is extremely difficult to navigate. They demand to know the flight time and number--which we gave. Fabienne even called and spoke to an employee, explaining that while my flight was for the 29th, I was spending the night at a hotel the 28th. We also wrote that in the "Comment" space, as instructed. The woman I spoke to today informed me that they didn't have time to read the comments, and that I would have to email the company and ask for a refund--which I did. I also pointed out that their employees are not very observant. Why would I want to be picked up in Paris 20 minutes after my plane left CDG? I haven't heard from them yet, but to date I have quite an investment in getting to the airport.

I'm ready to come home!

May 28, 10:05 a.m. (3:05 CST) Paris

I'm back from having breakfast with Eunice and family. The family is on the way to see the Catacombs and then Versailles. Eunice has been having some fairly severe back pain, so she's staying at the hotel for the day.

I walked over to a cafe near their hotel, which was about a mile, so I already have two miles. I don't suppose I will be able to improve on that very much because the shuttle is due to pick me up in about 50 minutes. So it's "Good-bye Paris; Hello Roissy (the area where CDG is located)."

It was raining all the way over to the hotel and sprinkling a bit on the way back. I have heard that this spring is the coldest on record since sometime in early 20th century. When I was here last May, we had very little rain, and the temperature was mild most of the time. I have needed a coat almost every day in France, as well as my umbrella.

Something I forgot to mention about yesterday when we were in the Jardin des Tuileries, there were two goats eating the grass in a long ditch. Eunice's grranddaughter said that they were chained; however, my photograph does not show a chain. Those crafty French--what a great way to avoid mowing in a steep ditch.

I'm sure that I will think of several other things that I have forgotten, so I'll try to include them when I get home and my final blog with the best of my photos.

May 28, Paris 6:55 a.m. (11:55 p.m.)

I'm packed, bathed and waiting to walk over to the Isle Saint Louis and have breakfast with Eunice and family. Then I'll walk back to my apartment and wait for the shuttle to pick me up and take me to the airport. I'm hoping that he will drop me at my hotel instead of the airport, because I'll have to wrestle my luggage onto the airport shuttle that makes the rounds of all the hotels near the airport.
When I return from breakfast, I may do another entry--just because I will have to have something to while away the time. Perhaps I will even have something of interest to report.

May 27, 8:27 p.m. Par4is (1:27 CST)

I'm still in Paris, and I'm just back from dinner at Le Danton, one of my favorite restaurants in Paris. It's not terribly expensive--as Paris prices go--and it's close to my apartment. I had "Saute de veau," a petit picher of Cote de Rhone, and ended with cafe creme--a cup of strong coffee with quite a lot of cream in it--about the size of an over-sized tea cup--probably about 8 oz. I met the most delightful woman from California, a retired librarian. I'm not sure what her name is, but I have her email address and she has mine. We were both sitting at little tables in the window of Le Danton, which was an excellent place for people watching.
Speaking of people watching in Paris, I have seen some of the most chic women as well as some of the tackiest. Almost everyone is wearing skin-tight jeans or just plain tights, including some who shouldn't be wearing either one. I've seen lots of piercings and lots of tatoos, but probably no more than in the U.S. In the final analysis, there's probably no better place in the world to just sit and stare at the people walking by than in Paris.

My pedometer is now up to 16,549 steps and 7.31 miles. That's not a record for me, but it's probably close to a record for this trip.

I'm pretty much packed and ready to leave tomorrow morning at 11:00. I may be able to have breakfast with Eunice before I leave and before she leaves to go to the Catacombs with her family--then on to Versailles. I don't envy that trip, but her youngest granddaughter is in France for the fist time, and of course it's understandable that she wants to go to Versailles. Eunice has decided to sit in a cafe while they are in the catacombs. I think she's wise. Once through the Catacombs is enough--glad I did it, but I don't want to do it again. I still haven't been to Pere Lachaise--maybe next time.

May 27, 4:09 p.m. (9:09 CST) Last Night in Paris

I'm hoping that I've walked off some of the croissants, etc. that I have eaten while I've been in Europe. I just looked at my pedometer and it says that I have walked 13,176 steps today, 5.8 miles, and burned 397.2 calories.
I sent to the Louvre this morning with Eunice and her family. We mostly concentrated on the Greek, Roman, and Egyptian exhibits, with just a quick run through some French paintings like Corot and Delacroix.  I saw enough religious paintings in Italy, so I was happy with the 19th century French paintings. We were all pretty tired by 1:00 p.m. so we stopped in the Tuileries Gardens and had a sandwich.

At that point, I parted with Eunice and family and went in search of Emma Gilkerson's Pastry shop. I found it; unfortunately, it was closed. It will be open tomorrow, but I won't have time to return. Too bad. For those of you who don't know Emma, she was one of our Sister Cities scholarship winners several years ago. She studied in France and ended up marrying a Frenchman.

Paris, May 26, 6:57 p.m. (11:57 a.m. CST)

Seeing Christiane and Bernard today and having a meal with them was a real treat--as always. They seemed enchanted with the album, which is mostly about their granddaughter Eugenie, but Christiane and Bernard as well as Fabienne and Marc also appear a few times.

Our meal began with hors d'oeuvres (pate de canard and bite-sized pieces of quich) and aparatifs (champagne) on the terrace. There was no rain at all today, and the sun was shining. It was a bit chilly, but worth it for the wonderful ambiance. Next, we went inside and had white asperagus with a sauce made of creme fraiche and a little vinegar--what a treat. Of course there's always bread on the table. The main course, which the French call the entree was porc Orlof and spinache. Next came the salade and the cheese course, and last the dessert, a rice pudding. After the food came the espresso and a digestif--three choices of brandy. As you can see, the French know how to make a most enjoyable meal. Christiane is a wonderful cook, and I believe that Bernard is responsble for the porc Orlof.

A little after 4, we started back to Orleans, actually Fleury-les-Aubrais, a subburb of Orleans so that I could catch my train back to Paris at 5:27. Chaumont-sur-Tharonne, where Christiane live is about 35 k. from Orleans. The train was on time, and no one even asked to see my ticket. I caught the Metro back to the area where my apartment is located, and for once I was able to make the key work without too many tries.

I'm not sure what I'll do on my last day in Paris, but I'll try to think of something I haven't done before.