After a better-than-expected meal and a 3 hour nap on the airplane (thank you, Tylenol PM) we landed in Paris. The airport was way bigger than we thought it to be. We went through customs and got our luggage just fine. Our driver George was waiting for us just outside the doors. We knew it was him b/c he was holding an 'Ethan et Amanda Foulkes' sign. Kinda nice to have someone waiting for you. It was about a 20 minute drive from the airport to the Blaison residence. Nice and quite with the occasional awkward laugh while George and Ethan tried to communicate. I kept my mouth shut and my nose to the window.
We arrived at the house where Chloe (daughter) was waiting for us. We paid George, grabbed a business card for a ride back and introduced ourselves to Chloe. This here, was the start of an uncomfortable day.
We went into the villa-cottage looking home and Chloe showed us the most important things in the house....exchange book, car keys, bedroom, wine, etc. She left pretty quickly; after all, how much can you say/hear "Merci" and "Bien" before someone gets sick of it. We made ourselves at home, put some of our things away in the empty drawers left for us and then took a nap.
Ethan wouldn't shut up. "Get up, get up, get up." I guess he didn't have Brutus to do his dirty work, so he annoyed me until I gave in and opened my eyes. After we drank a cafe we got ready to hit the town. We decided to stay in Sannois, too much effort for Paris today. Ethan decided he wanted to drive. I thought it'd be best if we walked, but he was persistent and he ended up being right. Downtown Sannois is about 5 miles away from the house, but it was getting late and we didn't want to be walking the streets at night.
We found a hotel/restaurant that looked nice to dine in. We walked in and said BonJour! to the maitre d'...he instantly replied with BonJour. BonSoir! then something else in French. Ethan replied in French, we want food. Do you speak English? (Mistake #1) We got a stern look, the maitre d' basically said no and then led us to a table. The waiter came over and asked comment talle vous, we didn't respond. (Mistake #2) He laughed (cackled really) and asked us how are you? Awesome, we were still nervous but started to feel better. (Mistake #3) We somehow ordered two girly drinks and ate our hors du houvres. They were good, cucumbers, olives, spicy carrots, some bean thing and bread. Yummy. I had the steak, Ethan had the chicken skewers. In the middle of the meal we were on edge about being the only Americans in the place. Ethan was trying to keep it together but was so shaky he ended up dropping a piece of chicken in his lap. (Mistake #4). This made the waiter laugh and probably feel a bit sorry for us. I ended up spilling water on my lap (Mistake #5) but nobody saw that one. Both of our meals were tasty. We decided to have some more cafe then head home. Of course we didn't leave before the waiter had the chance "accidentally" spill a cup of cafe on us. We jumped out of our seats at the empty cup (Mistake #6). Very funny David.
Finally we made it home, after trusting the GPS to get us there (Mistake #7). Now were having a bottle of wine and playing on our computers.
7 big mistakes our first day, not bad right? More later I'm sure.
-A&E
8 comments:
tres bien! love reading the details! and always interested in other people's houses so hope to hear more about that as you settle in. the "mistakes" will lessen and you'll relax as time goes by, maybe never totally but lots more. keep writing!
miz = the original exchangers (not so experienced at blog commenting)
I was so pleased to hear your account of your first day in France! I really look forward to hearing about each of your adventures and any more mistakes you might make though I'm sure they'll be few.
I loved the pictures and must say I'm quite proud. The one of Ethan is nicely composed and tells a story all by itself. A picture is, remember, worth a thousand words.
Have fun you two! And being the only non-French in a restaurant is exactly what you want. Otherwise you should have gone to Philly or something. Looking forward to more updates.
ps. perhaps consider allowing other "identities" for comments?
It all sounds so adventurous and fun! Before u know it, Amanda, you'll be wearing one of those chic long, drape-y scarves around your neck, knotted "just so" - like the European girls do.
Have a delicious time-
Hol Brooks in Colorado
Steak and fries? Chicken and rice? Where did you eat, Applebee's??? :)
As for "the most important things in the house", interesting list. Did she forget the cheese and chocolate, or are those the "etc" part? Sept grandes erreurs? C'était un jour splendide, en effet.
Gros bisous,
Daveeed et Suzahhhn
Ahh, fantastique! It sounds lovely already. By the way, if you are just mixing up "bonjour" with "bonsoir," you can be comforted that that's at least better than Dad, who, I seem to remember, was happily saying "bonjour" as he *left* the stores and restaurants. (Sorry, Dad - they knew you meant goodbye, and that's all that matters!) I would love to see some pics of the house if it's pretty!
xo ~Rish
Evan told me about your blog, so I am just getting started! This story made me laugh so hard!!!
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