Wednesday, April 28, 2010

J'ai trompe


Trompe (with an accent over the e that I don't know how to make) means making a mistake. Yesterday was a big day of trompe-ing (Franglish) but it ended up with some great experiences.
Our first plan was to get up early and take the train about 45 minutes away to Monet's Garden. This is the garden where he painted his famous water lily paintings. The train left at 8:20. We had a wake up call for 7, but I was in the shower before then. We left the hotel by 7:30, but by the time we found the correct ticket office for the SNCF, learned that American credit cards don't work in the self-serve machines, and stood in line to buy the tickets, we missed the train by 2 minutes. Earl and I were both kicking ourselves, playing that "if only...." game. The next train didn't leave until 10:20 so we had a lot of time to kill.

When we got off the train we rented bikes. Earl always rides ahead of me because he's a faster rider. At one point, I was chasing after someone, calling to him because he missed the turn to Giverny, when it turns out not to have been Earl but someone else dressed in brown. We missed the bicycle path and took the busy road. Then we thought we were at a different museum instead of the gardens. Finally, once inside, we tried to enjoy the beauty and forget about our eventful trip there.
After walking and sitting, and oohing and aahing over the house with its bright colors and Japanese art collection, we were ready to bike back. We bought a scoop of ice cream from an ice cream truck -- I got cafe flavor, Earl had tiramisu -- we sat down and looked at the train schedule. The last train listed was at 2:20. Earl looked at his watch. It was 2:05 and we had four miles to bicycle through the French countryside.
We ditched the ice cream cones and hopped on the bikes. Then we began to ride like crazy. We weren't very far before I pictured the schedule in my head and realized we had been looking at the Paris to Vernon schedule rather than the Vernon to Paris train schedule. I yelled for Earl to stop, but he was already too far ahead. I tried to catch up to him, he even waited for me at one point, but as soon as he saw me, he started bicycling again and my yells didn't reach him. That's when I decided to stop. If I couldn't catch him then he would eventually have to come back for me. I stood still on my bike, enjoying the shadow that fell on the countryside when a cloud moved across the very blue sky. I wished I had the camera to take pictures of the scenery. Eventually, Earl came back looking for me and I explained our trompe again.
We slowly rode the rest of the way to Vernon and caught a train back to Paris.
Our next mistake was also transportation related. We were having dinner at Marie's parents. Marie is the French girl who came to stay with us last summer. Dinner time was set for 8 or 8:30. I knew we should arrive closer to 8:30. We left the hotel at 7:45 with a plan to get there by bus. We had to change buses three times. The third time, we got on going in the opposite direction. We rode to the end of the line then had to wait 15 minutes for the next bus to arrive.
At nearly 9 oclock, we found the building and someone was going into the outer gate. They let us in. But, as we looked at the tall building, we realized that we had no idea which apartment they lived in and we didn't have their phone number. We stood in the courtyard and called toward the open windows, "Marie!" "Jean-Baptiste!" No luck.
I asked people who walked in. No one knew them. Finally, a man showed us a little screen that, if the proper button was pushed, would list the tenants name alphabetically. We found their name and called. Marie came down the elevator and took us to their apartment on the seventh floor. No wonder they couldn't hear us.
Marie's parents, Jean-Baptists and Alice were very charming. We had drinks on the terrace and could see the Eiffel Tower from there. We drank a delicious honey liqueur and had some rounds of bread with pate.
We moved to the table for the first course -- a green soup. Yes, that's right, green. Many times the French will make a vegetable soup and then puree it all together so it has the consistency of tomato soup. This was made from courgette, which we had a hard time figuring out but finally decided it was zuchinni, although the French/English dictionary suggested summer squash. The pale green soup in the white and blue bowls was beautiful. I did not get a picture.
After that we ate thick tuna steaks with a sauce made from basil, lemon and cream -- yes, green again. We had white rice and carrot medallions too. Then came the cheeses -- four different kinds, all gooey and delicious melting on my tongue. Finally, dessert, which I was too full to eat, but ate any way. Raspberry sorbet made by Alice and a citron tart. Hmmm. We didn't stay for coffee because Alice was driving back to her parents' house in the suburbs.
Alice and Jean-Baptiste were very interesting and friendly. I'm glad Marie stayed with us and we were able to make this connection. Earl kissed them both on both cheeks before we left, but he blames the honey liqueur. I shook hands, but I liked them both very much. Here's what we saw when we got to the train station. And we got on the train going in the right direction.

6 comments:

Cant Wait to Repeat This said...

Now that's a true vacation story, had it gone any other way we wouldn't have remembered it eight years from now.

So funny.

Ohhhh the pictures are to die for.

Lucia said...

Great photos! That's what I call an adventure the Murphy's Law way but it all ended up very nice, n'est pas?

Sheila said...

That brought back so many memories of Beth's & my trip to NY.

And that dinner sounded scrumptious, so i guess I'll just have to look up Marie and hope for a dinner invitation. :)

Monet's garden was beautiful, that is definitely now on my must see list.

Ooh not sure when you're leaving but there was a store that I WAS hoping to visit if we ever make it to Paris, here's the info just in case you have some free time:

the store is called Free’P'Star:
The two shops, one on the Rue Sainte-Crois de la Bretonnerie and one on the Rue de la Verrerie, have racks overflowing with great finds — retro day dresses, distressed leather jackets, baggy knit sweaters — for less than what you’d pay at H&M.

Angelique said...

You rode bikes to Monet's Garden?!

I don't even know how to respond. It's like a dream

bingo malone said...

Interesting reading Sis. Sounds like you are having a fabulous time. All the food references reminds me of reading Hemingway. Of course there's too much going on for it to be a Hemingway novel.

Anonymous said...

[b][url=http://www.uggsclearancemall.co.uk/]uggs clearance[/url][/b] Vendor ship employment can get paid you fantastic level of revenue. Numerous academies are there for giving schooling for people who needs to be car dealers. In these academies they'll teach you every thing about automobile dealership.. There are numerous distinct features. Most will sell an inferior substantial top quality sweep -away from tote for a ton much more than it is actually really value. I witnessed a supplier on provided who provided the precise same real tote for just two rather diverse prices.

[b][url=http://www.bestlouisvuittonbags.co.uk/]louis vuitton uk[/url][/b] When you ought to, you are able to require acetaminophen or ibuprofen for discomfort aid. When you're very unpleasant, you could specific just plenty of milk to create your situation additional tolerable. This may prolong the procedure, having said that, for the reason that stimulating your nipples and draining your breasts signals the body to generate extra milk.

[b][url=http://www.cheapuggbootswebsite.com/]uggs boots[/url][/b] For all individuals periods browsing, a purse -- provider is vital for pretty much every single stylish. Besides the stylistic benefit of a significant finances, brought up goods that accommodate a fair goal that are unable to confirm neglected. For all people occasions procuring, a purse -- provider is vital for virtually any stylish.

[b][url=http://www.uggsbootsoutletmarket.com/]ugg outlet[/url][/b] Although you will get last moment flights towards the city, you'll want to use them, since it will allow you to pay a visit to Union Sq.. This buying region is without a doubt shopper's heaven with stores standing amid blossoms and road performers. You can stop by Macy's Neiman Marcus, Levi's and Saks listed here.

[b][url=http://www.uggsbootsoutletmall.co.uk/]uggs boots[/url][/b] Scaled-down handbags (based within the situation) are generally an indication of low-maintenance. These females you should not need to have plenty of material items - just their wallet and perhaps the peculiar lip gloss. They are not all that involved aided by the way they look; they only choose to be relaxed.

Cockadoodle Doo or Cocorico?

 We stood in the middle of the road, having walked together 13 miles that day and Claudine grasped my forearm. "Mais non! It doesn'...