French Alps: Les Alpes Oz en Oisan station

(I had my laptop with me--minus the internet-- so I journaled while in the Alps...here are my entries from the beginning of the week)

Day One (Sunday)

Today was my first day in the Alps. We arrived early evening on Saturday, giving us just enough time to rent our skies for the week! Let me just say this….when I woke up this morning I sat up in bed and the ALPS were staring right at me!! It is absolutely gorgeous. I don’t even know the altitude level here, but we are so high up, at the top of the mountains with beautiful snow everywhere. Our cabin is kind of tucked into a little village of cabins and we are just above the chair lift! It’s a 3 minute walk to the ski lodge and chair lift….c’est parfait! The cabin has 3 levels, with 2 apartments basically…it is modern and all furnished, and enough beds to sleep 18 people! Yep, it’s my family (The Vatins) + 2 other families and the grandparents…the exact same people from my summer at the ocean! I luckily have a double bed to myself, although it’s a pull-out couch in the downstairs apartment living room, but no one else is using the room or the kitchen so it is just fine…and luckily the temperature in the “salon” is perfect, whereas some of the bedrooms are really hot and I heard some saying they couldn’t sleep because it’s too hot.

Anyways, after waking up I got dressed in my long johns for skiing, then went upstairs to have breakfast and coffee with the family…Jerome and I decided to ski together the first morning because 1) I was a little nervous about skiing for the first time again after 5 years, and 2) I don’t know the mountains and didn’t want to get lost (although we obviously have a map of the mountains). Anyways, I got lucky enough to have sufficient clothing to keep me warm, a mixture of my clothes and borrowed ones, but it’s all good! We walked down to the ski shop where I picked up my skis and boots (Yep, we can leave our rentals in the shop and just get them when we go ski), and then got on the chair lift. The lifts we’ll be using mostly are actually the little ‘gondola boxes’, so one just walks into the box carrying the skis, snowboard, etc. That was a first for me! Anyways the ride is about 5 or 6 minutes up to the top, and boy it is beautiful. I looked often, but not too much to scare myself. When we got off and put my skis on (Jerome snowboards) I was AMAZED and breathless at the view. WOW. Once we started, it was like I had just skied yesterday. I was flawless in my skiing! Haha. It felt so good to do it, and I had no problems at all…Jerome and I went on the first 3 out of 4 levels, up to red (but not black)…so that was cool to challenge myself the very first morning…one run was filled with moguls too, and he took me on it without asking me first, knowing I could handle it. So that felt good. The weather was PERFECT….clear blue skies, sun shining, no wind, no rain or snow, and not cold. The snow had an almost perfect powder too. It was practically perfect, ideal. Our last run of the morning we took 2 different lifts all the way to the top, taking a run that lasted about 35 minutes to descend. It was great. I almost started crying as we were skiing down the ALPS…haha. I even brought my camera in my pocket and took some photos along the way.

With my schedule it works out that I’ll get to ski every morning until lunch time…which is great because that seems to be when there are less people out…around 11 a.m. more young people seem to show up on the slopes, making it a bit more difficult for me (because of my peripheral vision issue..haha). So I will try to be on the slopes every morning around 9:30 or so….and possibly take one day off, but perhaps not! The little kids take ski lessons each afternoon from 2-4:30, so I will be staying in the cabin with Virginie’s niece, Victoire, who is still a toddler and too little to ski. She will nap, giving me time to relax and read. Today when I went to pick up the kids at lessons, I HAD to take photos of Tiph, Martin and Matt…they were so adorable in their snow suits, helmets, goggles and skis…I even told the family about how I began to learn around Matt’s age by skiing in between the legs of my dad and our friend Kurt. “BILLY!”

For the most part I think the week will be nice and I’m going to enjoy this opportunity to ski in the Alps. I know I may have some sore muscles, and I may even try snowboarding one day (although I don’t think so on this trip)…even though this is a great experience, I still am missing my family back home and it is not always easy to be around 17 people that are all part of the same family, excluding me…but in general they are good about including me…sometimes the work aspect of this gets in the way though and it isn’t always the most comfortable feeling, but I’m a strong girl and if skiing in the Alps means sacrificing some of myself for the family I’m sure as hell gonna do it! I’m also looking forward to stuffing the kids’ stockings that I made, and surprising Jerome and Virginie with the 2 I just made for them on Friday…I brought mine along with me that mom sent me as well, so we will be the only 6 with stockings on Christmas morning, “mais c’est la vie!!!”


Day 2 (Monday)
It is about 2:15 pm here, and I’m alone in the cabin and Victoire is sleeping upstairs. I’ve had a pretty good day so far. After “taking the petit dejeuner” with the family, a bunch of us got ready and hit the slopes! We made an extra long haul up to the top of a different side of the mountains than yesterday, and for the first run it was myself, Virginie, Jerome, Monsieur and Madame, and Valerie and Thomas (Virginie’s brother and his wife). It was a fabulous view of the Alps, and a different one from yesterday, so of course I took more photos. Halfway down the hill Virginie and Jerome split from the group to venture off onto another side, so I continued on with the rest of the family because I had to eventually make my way down to return to the cabin to help with the kids’ lunch. My legs were definitely sore from yesterday, so I got tired quicker today, and the snow was not as powdery as yesterday, and a bit icy, but nonetheless it was still an amazing morning of skiing! The weather was again perfect and the sun shining. I finished the runs with just Valerie, and then I returned to the cabin to help Guislaine and Gille with lunch. After we fed the kids the 3 of us ate our lunch and had wine and cheese, along with good conversation. I really enjoyed visiting with them, especially Gille, who is Virginie’s brother-in-law. They live in Kenya, and he speaks English fairly fluently and didn’t hesitate to initiate the convo in English…we didn’t talk that much over the Summer vacation, so it was cool to visit with them about what I want to do in the future, and his job in Kenya with an oil company called Total. Anyways, it made me feel good to have nice conversation with the other family members, and Guislaine is also very friendly….so anyways, I’m off to make a chocolate cake for tonight and then read a new book. We are going to mass tonight at 6, and then celebrating Christmas. Tonight is Christmas Eve, and tomorrow will be a normal day of skiing.
(Later that evening)
This afternoon I made 3 apple tart pies with Madame and Monsieur…we sat around the table and peeled so many apples for about 40 minutes, and I observed exactly how easy it is to make them, so I’m excited to do it for myself some day. When the children returned home from ski school we hurriedly bathed and dressed them and then all 18 of us piled into 3 cars to go to mass down at the bottom of the mountains in a little village. The church was beautiful on the outside, but it was definitely very far from any type of Christmas Eve mass all of us are used to. The church was cold and kind of dark, there weren’t any Christmas decorations or lights, and there wasn’t any music or choir. Everyone was dressed fairly casual and all wearing our winter coats inside because of the cold. We all sang together with the priest, but it was definitely a mass in the Alps. They did however have all the children sit in the front and carry candles down the aisle. Anyways, it was fine enough and then we all returned home…and had Christmas! The children ran inside and saw that “Pere Noel” had passed through the cabin while we were gone and everyone had their own little pile of gifts…I ran downstairs and grabbed the stockings I had made for my family and put them on the stairs for the kids to find. They all enjoyed their little gifts from me, and I’m glad I made all 5 of them a stocking so hopefully they will save them for the coming years. I took pictures of the kids opening gifts. Matthieu fell asleep too early and didn’t open his gifts with the others. I even had my own little stash of gifts from the family, which was a pleasant surprise, as I knew my main gift was the entire ski trip! Virginie gave me a beautiful brown and gold necklace and 6 movie tickets for the cinemas in Paris! She also gave me a French easy recipe book and I’m so excited! Her mother gave me bracelets from India that she bought in Bordeaux. Valerie, Virginie’s sister-in-law gave me a 3 set picture frame from our village in the Alps. It’s wood and has skis and ice skates on it, so I’ll definitely use pictures from this vacation to put inside the frames. Ghuislaine, her sister, gave me a beach towel and sac from Kenya. It’s the same one the other girls in the family used this summer at the beach, so I’m excited to have the same ones. It’s really pretty. Along with these gifts I brought along my stocking that mom sent me and a few of Megan’s gifts for me…including another season of “The Golden Girls”! I can’t wait to watch! After opening gifts the children played with their new toys and we all sat around drinking champagne (including the bottle that Courtney bought last weekend for me from Champagne). We had some yummy appetizers and then sat down to eat fras gras (duck liver), which I tried, but did not particularly care to eat much. Haha. I ate a few bites with an open mind before Valerie told me what fras gras really is. It has the texture of pate, which I do not like (it makes me think of dog food). You eat it with toasted bread, like a spread. It’s definitely an acquired taste. I didn’t hate it, but did not have the desire to finish my helping. I’m glad I tried it though! Then we had some salmon, and then ate the apple tarts that I’d made! Everyone was having fun visiting and drinking, so it was a good way to spend Christmas Eve.

Day 3 (Tuesday)
Christmas day! But it does not feel like it at all to me. Since we did Christmas last night, no one has even said “Joyeux Noel” or anything like that today. It’s a little odd to me, but that’s okay. We are just doing the regular ski routine today. I just went for one run this morning because the second I put my boots on my shins were ACHING! I have never felt this kind of pain before on my bones. It definitely is not regular muscle aches from skiing, as I’ve had that before obviously. It feels like my bones are bruised and I think it must be from the boots I’m wearing. Anyways, I went up on the chair lift with Ghuislaine, Gille and Valerie, but I didn’t even go all the way to the top with them because I knew I was going to have difficulty getting down the slope. It hurt the entire way and I almost thought I was going to either vomit from the pain or just burst into tears. I was close to just sliding on my bottom to finish the run, but I toughed through it and got to the bottom okay. I returned my skis and boots after just the one run, but oh well. I didn’t sleep so well last night and I’m keen to just relax today anyway. Tomorrow I will try different socks and possibly a new set of boots and hope that is better. My legs feel okay otherwise, but if I force pressure on my shins or put the boots on the pain is almost unbearable, so I think I’m definitely bruising and need new boots. Since it’s Christmas day I’d like to watch one of my holiday movies that I brought, and maybe read a story to the kids later. I’m going to read my new John Grisham book that Carolyn and my dad gave me, The Innocent Man. I like it so far! The weather is still perfect here, so that’s really nice. I’d kind of like to go ice skating, but I don’t think it’s near our side of the mountain and may not be convenient to go…if not I’ll go when I’m back in Paris. I think I’ll be ready to return for sure by Saturday!

Friday, Dec. 28, 2007 (last day)

It’s almost 9pm here, and I’m ready for bed. It’s been a good, but kind of long week. And now today everyone except for 3 of us are sick…probably the flu. Soo clearly it is time for us to depart and get home. I skied every morning except today, and each day the weather was great. Last night I did not sleep well at all, so I tried sleeping this morning and just stayed inside all day. I got to take a nap this afternoon too so that was nice. My skiing was okay, but I started feeling less confident in my skiing ability, at least when I went down the icy runs. So I didn’t get too extreme with my skiing, but that’s okay. Yesterday I did 2 runs on my own. A couple afternoons I was in the cabin with just the grandparents, and I helped Madame make apple pies, and today we played with little Victoria. The kids skied every day and Wednesday we took the two 6 year olds (Ines and Blandine) down a green run. Ines is a great little skier (she reminds me of myself, haha). I had fun singing Christmas songs with the kids, and I hung out with the older cousins a few times. We watched episodes of “Prison Break” on their new DVDs they got. I watched the first 6 episodes from Season 1, and now I’m HOOKED and have to find a way to see the rest when I’m back in Bougival.

The brother and his family all left today, so now I’m alone in the downstairs apartment for the evening, which is fine with me. I helped all day with the kids, and since almost everyone is sick, I was ready to get downstairs and take a hot bath. Yes, a BATH! This week I’ve taken my first baths in 6 months! Haha. No bath in Bougival in my studio. Tomorrow we’ll get up fairly early to pack everything into the car and clean the cabin. Then we’re back to the city. I’ll arrive in the evening and can’t wait to get home. I have some visitors this week, and am seeing “The Nutcracker” on Christmas Eve at the Opera so I’m excited to have another holiday, and start the New Year. This week was pleasant, and I’m very appreciative of all the family does for me. I’m glad I came and skied in the Alps! But now I’m ready to get back and start the next phase of this job (meaning COMPANY FROM THE STATES!)

Adventures with C Dawg

I know it's been awhile since my last

blog, but I have been SUPER busy, thus making me extra tired with little time to do my online journal. Anyways, my friend Courtney Brown from UCR and San Diego came to visit me for an entire week! She just left this morning, and we had a great time. Thus, this is my first opportunity to blog all about it!

We spent the first evening on the Champs Elysees looking at the lights, followed by drinks at my favorite cafe near the Arc de Triomphe. We visited for a few hours and really got caught up on our personal lives! It was super nice to visit and go out. Friday morning she came with me to Tiphaine's class to see how teaching English goes for me....she loved seeing the little French children and sang Christmas songs with us. Then she did lunch time duties with me, helping feed the kids, etc. She introduced herself to the family and spoke in some French (she studied it quite a bit back in high school) so they were pleasantly surprised to communicated with her in French. She enjoyed seeing some of the family culture. This was her 3rd time in Paris, so she welcomed these new experiences as opposed to touristy stuff.

Friday night we took the train to Bordeaux! Oh boy...we had some crazy stuff happen to us (got on the wrong section of the train...not realizing there were 2 trains CONNECTED until we tried to get to our car and we could walk no further...then later switched cars when the train made a 2 minute stop..and THANK GOD because when we got to Bordeaux we saw that the 2 trains had disconnected, thus we could have ended up in the wrong city if we had stayed in the first car!)...I lost some gloves on the train, had to carry a ridiculous bag full of kids' ski clothes to deliver to Virginie's sister, and the worst of all was that I BROKE the house key to Virginie's parents' house at 2 IN THE MORNING! We were locked out and I was freaking out....long story and reasons behind why I was so worried, but luckily it all worked out, Madame woke up and opened the door (clearly irritated with me), but all was well the next morning and they fixed their door....

Courtney and I decided to get a hotel the 2nd night so we could be nearer the center of town. We wine tasted at a great winery and had our personal teacher...it was great. Amazing red wine from Bordeaux!

I bought a bottle for very little Euro, and she splurged on an expensive bottle. Then we went to Tours and visited 3 chateaus! It was great...Chenonceau being the most beautiful...then we saw Leonardo da Vinci's house/chateau...it was beautiful and very cool to go inside. I had no idea he was such an inventor also! He invented sooo many things, including the life saver ring floaty thing! haha

I'm giving the short version of this vacation because I'm exhausted, but I wanted to blog quickly about the trip....it was cold, but we had a great time and I'm so glad we wine tasted in Bordeaux and saw wonderful chateaus in Tours...and Tours is only an hour from Paris so I'd love to go again with friends and maybe go to Vouvray to wine taste!

Courtney went to Epernay one day and tasted champagne all day! She even bought me a bottle of Champagne, so that was super nice. I had to work a little that day so I stayed home. We did a little shopping (or I accompanied her)...we also went to some great wine bars and a piano bar in Paris and I discovered a great new street near the Louvre, so that is always good!

She ended up staying one extra day, so she saw a Christian Lacroix exhibit in Paris while I worked, and then we went to a movie together at La Defense just to relax for her last night here...we saw "I Am Legend" with Will Smith. GOOD BUT REALLY BIZAREE and scary....cool plot though.

Okay, I will try to blog one more time tomorrow......with more details. THEN I'M OFF TO THE ALPS! Saturday morning we leave super early for a long car drive...and will be there for one week, returning the next Saturday. I will get to ski a couple days, and go sledding w/the little kids and just hang out in the cabin (17 family members including me staying there)...so I'm just looking at this as a ski vacation and not thinking about Christmas because I know they don't celebrate it a lot like I do, and to avoid getting sad on Christmas day I'm just trying to not think of it and instead just see it as a week long vacay with snow...I will take lots of pics, promise! Apparently there is the longest ski run in Europe at the mountain we're going to....10 miles long, and takes 90 minutes to descend...hmm I'll give it a try hopefully!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

It's Christmas time in the city!

Hi everyone. It's Tuesday evening here and I just returned from Paris (I had the afternoon off work). I got off the metro at Hotel de Ville, where there is a big ice skating rink just in front of the beautiful building! It was soo pretty, and I arrived after it turned dark so it was great. Raining, yes, but just fine for taking pictures and seeing all the lights and some people skating. I went there to find out the deal w/skating, and it looks like I can go for 5 Euro! So, that is on my to-do list before Christmas. Then I just walked down the block to see Notre Dame all lit up. It was sooo pretty! The cathedral at night is pretty anyways when it's lit up, but there is now a BIG Christmas tree in the front w/gold lights and red ornament balls. I arrived just as the bells were ringing too. I got great pictures, and even more of the Seine River w/pretty lights on the surrounding buildings. I was only in the city for about 2 hours, but it was a nice evening just to get out of Bougival.

Kirsty left last Thursday :( We saw each other Wednesday to say bye and hang out for a bit...it was nice, and I'm going to miss her! I spent Saturday being productive in my studio, and then got kind of fancied up and went into Paris with Ashley and Mathieu. He had a 'crepe party' at his new little studio apartment next to the Bastille with just a few friends. Then we went out to a couple bars and ended up at dance club with TECHNO music. THAT WAS A FIRST....let's just say that is NOT dance-able music for me...haha. But we were out til almost 3...then crashed at his apartment and I caught the 6:30 a.m. train back to Bougival. That was my first time staying out in Paris all night...it was fun, but not like a huge BLAST, but that's okay. So I spent most of my Sunday sleeping and being totally lazy.

My friend from San Diego, Courtney, arrives on Thursday! We've been emailing plans back and forth...and as long as THE NEW TRANSPORTATION STRIKE ends on time, we've made plans to take a train to Bordeaux for the weekend to wine taste. So let's just hope the trains will go. How lame. Otherwise we are going to just hang out in Paris. Definitely ice skating I think. It's supposed to get pretty cold this week, but as long as it's not raining I can handle it.

I've gotten 4 boxes of christmas gifts! Thanks to everyone! I've found out that the family here does not do Christmas at all like I'm used to, so it looks as though I will be opening some of my gifts on my own before we leave for the holiday, and maybe some after too. But I'll try to get Ashley to watch a Christmas movie with me and open my gifts with me or something. I'm sure I'll cry a little on the big day, just because it's hard not having a traditional Christmas with my own family...but I'll survive. It WILL be my first time back on the ski slopes in probably almost 5 years! So I can't complain about that...and on the Alps!

One last thing....I am going to see "The Nutcracker" ballet at the Paris Opera de Bastille!!!!! Yep, this little "mouse" and "party girl" is finally going to see it professionally and in PARIS!! New Years Eve exactly...I'll go to the opera to start my evening, then off to the Champs Elysees to party and see the fireworks from the Eiffel tower. (apparently I'm their first au pair that doesn't have to work on New Years Eve, so I get to benefit from the big night in the city!)

Madeleine at Christmas

Well, we are starting to prepare for Christmas (actually I have been in Xmas mode since Strasbourg). Despite developing a cold (sick once a month now?), I am getting in the holiday mood and excited to introduce some of our American and Kluss/Hull traditions to the French family. And to top it off, I've received 4 packages already in the mail! 3 from my mother and 1 from my sister, plus Ive been told to expect at least 2 more! Inside one there was some silver star garland, so I've already hung that in my studio along with the stocking my mom sent me!! It was a great surprise. THe rest of the gifts are wrapped so Ive stashed the boxes under my table to wait for the big day.

Tonight I am babysitting and just read the Madeleine Christmas story to the kids. Tiphaine loves my Madeleine books, and today I found 2 cute little French Xmas stories so I had to buy them as souvenirs I will keep for myself and children and read to them in French. Anyways when I read the Night BEfore Christmas in French it was really cute...after reading the page when the dad hears a clatter on the rooftop and he looks out the window to see what was the matter, Tiphaine looked at me and said "C'est qui, Laura?" Who is it? I said; "I dont know; who do u think?" and she said in a cute little curious voice; " Je crois que c'est Pere Noel!" I believe its Santa Claus! The look on her face was priceless and she really wasnt sure! hehe. A cute memory, and those I am cherishing because there are a lot of difficult times with the job and life away from home, so I just have to keep this all in perspective and enjoy the good memories with the kids and family.

Tomorrow the kids dont have school so we are going to make some Christmas decorations and put ornaments on the tree. I should have the afternoon free so I will go into Paris and maybe see the Christmas market. I also want to find the ice skating rinks! Courtney B from San Diego (sister from UCR) arrives next Thursday and we are going wine tasting in Bordeaux, then hopefully seeing the Nutcracker ballet at the Opera in Paris!!!

I love you all and wish you a happy holiday month, and say a prayer my cold goes away and that I can be healthy for Christmas!

Strasbourg cont....

(sorry, have to continue in a new entry)

We finished our tour by stopping in a GREAT little town where we went to a cellar and had a private wine tasting. First we had a sparkling wine (but not called Champagne because it's made in Alsace!), then a Riesling, then Pinot Gris, then something I can't even remember. We were drinking wine made from the vineyards we had just driven through! that was really neat. So we each bought a bottle (they bought 4, I bought one)...they were NOT expensive, and I decided to save mine for when I have company from the States 'next year!'

The last day before catching my train I did some small gift shopping for Christmas, tried the vin chaud, went to le Petit France and took great photos, saw the Alsace Museum and kept on walking! I really enjoyed seeing a totally different life in France, a different city (which I could see myself living in, or at LEAST returning in the Spring when it's not sooo cold, and even going back years later for the Christmas markets to buy nice decorations for my house). I would really like to go for a longer period of time, as I didn't see everything I wanted. Strasbourg is also a big city in France government wise....lots of brand new MASSIVE buildings built along the canals for various important government, museum, media and buisnesses. Anyways...I will post photos soon.

There were also some fun street entertainers, like Charlie Chaplin and musicians that entertained the big crowds. The square was full of families, couples, so it was a little lonely doing it all alone, but that's okay. At least I DID it, another thing to add to my list and am happy I went through with it. I'm learning a lot about travelling, through trial and error...haha.

Back to the grind in Paris. Getting ready for Christmas, busy with the kids (who have been ill and making my job much more difficult, but still cute as ever). I am going day by day, sometimes harder than others....but I am looking forward to my friend from UCR who is coming on Dec. 13th and we will travel that weekend, then to the Alps for Xmas, then friends from Idaho arriving just after the New Year. So I am just focusing on those good things, even when work is tough on me...as long as I'm healthy, that's all that is REALLY important, right? The rest I can handle and get through. Sometimes it's hard being here, especially during the holidays, as I'm missing my family and friends, but I know this is a big life experience for me and I'm doing some great things...so just one day at a time, stay healthy, and the rest I take as it comes!

Frolicking in Strasbourg

Hi everyone. I spent the weekend in Strasbourg, France (which has gone in between Germany and France for YEARS, but is currently a part of France). It's in the Alsace region (just search for this online, and you'll recognize right away some of the famous characters, clothing, etc). Strasbourg, as well as the smaller towns and villages nearby felt like entering into a 'land' in Disneyland, NO JOKE. It was great. Every year there is a big Marche de Noel (Chrstimas market) in the Alsace region, a few in every town. It is overwhelming. The whole town is decorated for Christmas starting around Thanksgiving time, so I had great timing. Lights and Santas and wreaths are everywhere, and the markets are filled for blocks with vendors selling gingerbread, other breads, cookies, (and i mean A LOT, LIKE COSTCO STYLE STOCK UP FOR THE WINTER/GIFTS), ornaments, holiday decorations, jewelery, gifts. It is also known for its 'choucroute' (sauerkraut), and 'vin chaud' (hot wine). The hot wine was great. I even bought some postcards w/the vin chaud recipe on it. The market I was at most was right underneat the Notre Dame cathedral in Strasbourg. It was a gorgeous cathedral, and one day I ascented to the top (VERY HIGH)...I lost my breath climbing it and also got dizzy on the top (fear of heights) but was there long enough to see the great view and take pics of the city. There is also an astronomical clock inside that rings every day at 12:30 and the apostles circle the crucifix, etc. I went and saw that Sunday (and took video of it, and pics). While in the city I walked A LOT, and saw the Alsace museum, Le Petit France (a great little neighborhood), went on the boat tour around the canals (similar to the Seine, but the Ill and Rhine Rivers), and just learned a lot about the history of the area. The architecture is AMAZING and so adorable, some buildings dating back to the 14th century. I even went inside a prison and saw a bridge where people were tortured (mainly women for being prostitutes). I took TONS of pictures of the city, and also video. So much of the city was built to accomodate for war conditions.

The best part of the weekend was the private, all inclusive bus tour I took just outside the city through the wine route, small villages and up to the chateau Haut-Koenigsbourg. I decided since I was alone and the weather wasn't ideal to wander around the city all day, I'd take this tour. It was just myself and 2 other women from New York in a small bus/van with the French driver. He was really friendly and spoke in both languages. We went to some of the small villages and saw towns that weren't destroyed during the wars, some houses still standing from the 14th and 15th centuries! We drove through the wine route and saw the vineyards just alongside the car. They went forever, and even up into the hills! It was really great. From the car we saw several chateaus (castles) up in the hills, it was spectacular. They were built ages ago to protect the valleys below and 'guard' the valleys during the wars. The weather wasn't ideal for great views or pictures, but I did my best and got a few good ones. I also took video during the drive and up in the chateau. I could see the MASSIVE Koenigsbourg from down below, then we made the ascent up the mountain (approx 6,000 feet above), like going to the ski hills. When we got there the driver gave us our admission tickets and the 3 of us took the 45 minute walk through the castle. I took video while one of the women read the guide and led us through. It was crazy, this castle was very mid-evil almost...NOT luxurious like Versailles. Clearly designed by men, we didn't think women even lived here. It was also kind of cold, with windows almost facing walls so sunlight wouldn't have been optimal. There were stoves throughout the castle though. So much of it was just walls, so a fortress for the war. Looking out the windows were hills and cliffs and terrain, I could IMAGINE a war occuring here, and why they built the castles at the very top, to see everything going on below. The only 'luxurious' room was the dining room. Throughout each room there were religious tones (even the 'host' as ornaments on the trees), crosses, a chapel, and then also lots of hunting tones too. We meandered through each room, and walked carefully up all the winding staircases. It was really cool to at least go there. Looking at pictures of the chateau I can see that the 'best' photo is taken from an aerial view from the helicopter, as it's almost impossible to get a great picture because it's soooo big and so high.

Thanksgiving blog: A big succes + "French Pecan Casserole"

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone back home (although a day late)! Wow, what an experience I (we, Ashley too) had! The night before we prepared 3 beautiful pies…then I was up at Ashley’s house at 7 a.m. before work started simply to clean (elbows deep) the turkey, and prepare the stuffing. Our only work obligations were to take the children to school in the morning and lunch time. So after dropping them off at school we returned to Beatrice’s house (where Ashley works) to stuff the turkey. I have never done this before, and the turkey was 13 KILOS, a.k.a approximately 28 pounds! It was massive. We ordered it from the butcher and when Ashley went to pick it up she said they were burning off the feathers and getting ready to gut off the head! WOW. Anywho….needless to say, buying a turkey in France is not like walking into Albertsons in the States and buying a seran wrapped turkey.
We worked vigorously for an hour, putting the turkey in at 10:45 a.m. and continuing to prepare the rest of the dishes. For some reason, I was not feeling well at all during the day, and had ZERO apetite, so that was not fun….but I did my best to stay enthusiastic. Ashley got the kids from school while I continued cooking and making the kids’ lunch. Once we took them back to school it was basically a chaotic afternoon and evening. I brought 3 dishes over to my house to put in the oven (since the 28 lb turkey was in her oven). After a failed attempt once at my Grandma’s sweet potatoes, I decided to try it one more time, so we bought a few more potatoes and I used a bit different technique, and the 7 big ones I made came out well (at least to the eye). Side note: EVERYTHING we made looked yummy, but we had NO IDEA how any of it was going to taste until it was time for everyone to bite into the dinner. Because all the dishes are perfectly displayed, etc, that you can’t bite into it for a taste test, because it’d ruin the presentation! We also found ourselves being chemists in the kitchen….because in France there are ingredients that do NOT exist. Such as: brown suger, corn syrup both light and dark…and these were essential ingredients for the pies…so we had to produce a simple sugar by boiling it over the stove, etc. We looked up substitutions on the internet and COULD HAVE used molasses as a substitute for brown sugar but that doesn’t even exist in France…haha. So…not only was it our first time ever hosting and making Thanksgiving dinner, but it was in a foreign country where ingredients don’t even exist!
So at my house I made the potatoes, another dish of extra stuffing and the green bean casserole. ANOTHER obstacle I had was the ovens here….taking a burned dish to realize that the oven is set to Celsius degrees, and not Farenheit…so once again being resourceful, I looked up the conversion rates of degrees on the internet, and found out that when my recipes say 350 degrees, it is REALLY 180 degrees on the ovens here…and of course every oven is different, so it was really a trial every time we put something in the oven, if it would come out perfect or a bit crispier than wanted. Ashley and I took about a 90 minute break to be alone, relax, shower and get all dressed up for the evening. Neither of us have slept much in the last 3 nights, so I was exhausted, didn’t feel very well, plus overwhelmed with the meal. When I returned to Beatrice’s house it was really fun the rest of the night! We decorated the dining room and it looked gorgeous! Ashley found some table clothes that looked really nice, and we used candles and fall colored berries and flowers. I found the idea to use little pears as place settings. I stuck a toothpick in each pear and taped a small strip of paper with everyone’s name on it. The kids had little turkey place settings that I made a few days ago. They sat at the bar just next to the dinner table. Beatrice’s kitchen was wonderful for cooking and setting out the food, and it was nice to be able to have the kids at their own table. She has a great kitchen, perfect for preparing a lot of food and entertaining. She was even running around helping us clean up and set everything out. She let us use her fine china and wine glasses and she even sneaked away to put on her pretty black cocktail dress so she was dressed up like Ashley and I. It was really fun. Then she got her American flag and hung it outside the balcony in front of the house! It was really cool. The family was very enthusiastic about celebrating the American holiday. Beatrice’s 2 little girls even dressed up in little cowgirl costumes! Then my family arrived and everyone (16 people) gathered into the kitchen to watch Ashley carve the turkey. Oh man…we were so curious/worried how it was going to turn out because it was a big debate all day long how long we’d keep it in the oven (28 lbs, no thermometer in France, + the temperature difference in the oven). But it was PARFAIT!!! Beatrice’s mother was right next to Ashley to inspect the turkey and her word was final, “C’est bon, c’est parfait, c’est impeccable!” And she was sooo right. The turkey was amazing! The meat was just perfect, not too dry or too moist, just the right white and yummy brown meat too. And all the adults agreed it was cooked just right and could not have been taken out of the oven at a better moment. So, I won’t lie, it was by pure accident that our turkey came out as well as it did! Haha. Ashley and I were sooo excited, especially seeing everyone’s reaction to our turkey. Before eating, we took some photos and then Ashley and I told the Thanksgiving story, both in English and French. We fed the kids first (well actually the parents did since we were hosts and officially not working, ha). The kids mostly ate the turkey and mashed potatoes, along with some corn, and the sweet potatoes. Later they all shared a big plate with pieces from the 3 pies. The adults ate just after, and I explained to them that there are not ‘courses’ during Thanksgiving really, that we all just pass the food around and pile anything we want on our plates at one time. It was funny to see everyone up at the buffet/bar picking and choosing their food, eating American style and not like what they’re used to. It was also cool to have them all asking me what each dish was, what was inside, etc. I saw LOTS of smiles and that felt good. Jerome and Virginie were ‘open minded’ and tried everything I think. The grandmother liked trying everything too, and that was great coming from an older woman who has cooked for a long time and never had a Thanksgiving dinner before. We had fun conversations, and Ashley, Kirsty and I randomly broke into song….Mary Poppins, The Sound of Music and Wizard of Oz. The ‘vibe’ at dinner was a lot different than during a French meal. It was a bit more relaxed and loud, since everyone could walk up to the bar and take any food they wanted, at any time…I even saw them hesitate at first and then I said “No, go ahead! No courses tonight, just eat as you like!” And several conversations circulated around the table throughout the dinner. It was a bit fast in the sense that we didn’t eat until 8:30 pm because of everyone working that day, and last minute preparations…and then the little kids were getting cranky and tired, so that was a bit unfortunate. It wasn’t like eating at 3 pm, taking time, hanging out for hours afterwards and eating more pie at 9 pm. Haha. So it was a LONG 2 days ending with a 2 hour dinner and then everyone off to bed. But we had a good time, and got lots of compliments. There are lots of leftovers of course too. As far as the meal goes, the turkey tasted great, the sweet potatoes were not AS good as my grandma’s but tasted good and everyone liked them, the green bean casserole and waldorf salad were yummy, cran salad and baked brie w/pecans yummy too. The stuffing was very good too, not perfect but had a good flavor. The apple pie was definitely the BEST of the 3 pies. It was the pies that only had a slightly different flavor or texture to it…because of the substitution of ingredients. The pumpkin pie tasted as it should but was a bit more flimsy and less thick and firm inside (noticeable only when you cut the slices). The pecan pie looked amazing, and actually tasted amazing too, it was just that when we cut it, it didn’t come out in well defined pieces. Haha. So Ashley and I came up with the new name, “French Pecan Casserole”. Everyone loved the desserts though, and we think Joe (Beatrice’s husband) ate it all by this morning (the day after) for breakfast!

So, I know this blog is really long, but I just wanted to write this all out, more so for myself so that I will always remember my first Thanksgiving in France, first time doing it myself, and the French families’ first Thanksgiving EVER! I missed my family, and the day definitely got frustrating for me at times, and when my parents called I felt bummed out at first….but then once we started the festivities and after seeing how gorgeous our food and table was, I felt better. Ashley and I worked our butts off! And I WILL SAY, that Ashley knew more about preparing the turkey and some of the dishes, more than I did. And I told her that obviously! She should take more credit than me, but she told me that she would not have been organized enough to pull it off, and so the 2 of us made a great team. We planned this weeks in advance, and no matter how prepared we thought we were, I was still taking trips to the grocery store even the DAY OF…haha. But oh well, now I have a new appreciation for my mother and grandmother and aunts! And it was good to have a friend to do it with, because the next time I host the holiday I will have a VERY GOOD IDEA of how to make it work! She and I both got teary eyed a bit during the meal, but it was just bitter sweet. I missed my family and the whole ambiance of the day in America…but I am proud of how it turned out!