Last week and a weekend in the Loire Valley

Last week was really lovely, the weather was amazing! Monday night I had dinner with a friend of mine from UGA. It is so nice to see familiar faces, we went to this delicious French restaurant, and splurged a little. The name of the restaurant is Chez Janou, and it is this little ‘hole in the wall.’ It was so nice because it is entirely French, nothing on the menu was translated into English, so we were not entirely sure on what we were ordering, but when the entrees, plats, and desserts all came, each were delightful.
Tuesday and Wednesday I babysat, and took the kids to the Park. I have such a good time with them! Wednesday night, the Richers (my home-stay family) had a huge dinner party for Claire’s parents and sisters who are in town. It was really great and so funny because no one in Claire’s family speaks any French, and Madame Richers speaks a little French as does Monsieur Richer. At one point Monsieur Richer was talking about their garden in Normandy and he said very proudly, “We are tomatoes!,” it was hilarious because he meant to say we have, he really reminds me of a cartoon character, in a good way. Their youngest daughter Sixtine joined the dinner party as well (they have 4 children and 10 grandchildren). Anyways, Sixtine is what I envision an elegeant, charming Frenchwoman to be like. She was so nice and so poised. Sixtine worked in NYC for a few years so her English is perfect. She works in communications for Fidelity, and I had a great time talking to her about that since I am Speech Communications major.
Thursday, my friends Amy, Amanda and I, we discovered a store/restaurant called La Grande Epicerie! It is so a huge gourmet grocery store, a lot like Fresh Market or Whole Food, and they have an incredible Salad Bar. It honestly was a little taste of heaven! So I will be going there for lunch everyday from now on. Not to complain, but I am kind of over crepes and bread.
Thursday night I went to the Musee D’Orsay with Claire’s family, and also had dinner with them. Claire has two older sisters and one younger brother. Her younger brother could not make it, but it is so fun to see the dynamics between he and her sisters! Also because Claire is the youngest girl and I am the oldest. I really enjoyed being with her family, they were so sweet to me.
Friday night is the Louvre night, because it is ‘til 9:45, and free if you are under 26. I love going to the Louvre at night, it makes the whole building feel more mysterious, and the artwork in it!
Saturday morning, bright and early, and unfortunately in the cold rain, I left for the Loire Valley. Loire Valley is a region jsut a few hours south of Paris, known for its chateaus (mansions) and wine It was a great trip, I visited four the major Chateaus there and also did a tour of a Vineyard. Even though it was raining the whole time, the area was beautiful, lush and very green! My favorite chateau is Chambord. It is this enormous chateau; the roof of the chateau is meant to look like a mini-village, and it really does. In the 16th and 17th centuries they used to have balls and all kinds of parties on top of the chateau! Also the area surrouding the cheateau is a forest as big as Paris. It is one of the best places to hunt in France.
The name of the vineyard we went to is Vouvay. They specialize in white wine, and it is a smaller vineyard, which was really nice. We were given a tour of the caves where the wine is held, and we were talked through the wine making process. In the end we were able to taste many of their wines! And they were so good, I bought three bottles! One of their specialties in semi-sparkling white wine, and it very tasty! Very few vineyards makes semi-sparkling.
So back to Paris, unfortunately is a little wet and cold right now. But oh well, a good opportunity to used my museums passes!