Grands-mère (Grandmother)

It was a special day Tuesday when Grandma Beck & Paul arrived. I tried to keep them busy so that they could stay awake until bedtime, but the jet-lag was difficult. We drove around some of the little villages surrounding Fontainebleau and fed the swans on the Seine that first afternoon.

Taylor had to leave Wednesday for a business trip at the London Business School. He invited Paul to go along, so yesterday the two of them took the fast train & headed off for England. Last night they went to the musical "Les Miserables" & today while Taylor was at LBS Paul went sightseeing on his own. They will return to France tomorrow...Meanwhile Mom (or should I say Grand-mère) and I took the train into Paris to have a little fun of our own! With mom's bad knees & sore feet I was worried about all of the stairs going up and down from the subways. I was worried she might trip and fall...guess what? Yep, I'm the one that fell down the first flight of stairs we had to take getting to our first subway. Oh brother! Just call me "Grace". Mom on the other hand didn't miss a step all day long.

Because my mom has already seen the sights of Paris we chose to do a few other things like visit the oldest kitchen store in Paris, DEHILLERIN. This place has been in business since 1820 & it's awesome. We bought a "French whisk" that will be sure to whip up a fluffy omlet or souflee. Afterwards we walked the Champs de Elysees & ate lunch at a quaint restaurant. The sun was shining & it was a great day to be wandering around. Somehow we seemed to be on a "foodie" tour of Paris. That's not so surprising since my mother owned a catering business for 40 years and she has taught me all about food preparation, eating well & enjoying the sights and smells of cuisine! We ended up at the Bon Marche gastronome section where mom was amazed at the size, selection & delicacies available.