With tea underway, I slipped our final Parisian Croissants and pain chocolat into the over to warm before heading off to get dressed for the journey back to the USA.
We took our time eating and enjoyed a second cup of tea while relaxing, opening the window to the street to stick our heads out to test the air...too cold? too warm?? what to wear??? as over things?
Last looks, smells, and finding that the latte wasn't so pleasant because the trash was a day late being picked up! hmmm..... We were to pick our way between trash bins, to Port Royal Metro, which would take us all the way to Charles De Gaulle/Roissey Airport.
Having cleaned the apartment the night before, I managed a few more chores and a final look around prior to walking out the door with everything...minus the umbrella, which we had to leave...we doubted that customs would allow us to take that weapon with us on the plane.
DId I tell you about the Air France Pilot's Strike?? Oh, I didn't?? careless of me!
It was cause for some anxiety the day before..Day 4 of our trip, and the night of Day 3, we had both registered with Delta (our booking was with them, and code shared with Air France) for updates. They would not give us an update until 6 hrs before the flight! eh? We would be on our way to the airport!
Anyhoo....we trusted that their news was good news, and they said our flight was leaving on time, so we went anyway.
Quelle Surprise! to find my favorite Macaron Shop has wheels at the airport!
The shop assistant was very slow and thorough and he took each and every macaron and placed it ever so nicely in the pretty Laduree ( Lar doo ray) box, before coming around the side of the cart to put it in the hands of the purchaser. Service!:)
NOt to be outdone, Fauchon also had a display of Macarons, but not nearly as classy.
WE don't go near Duty Free, no, not even to look....so I took these photos on the fly!
Maxims used to be THE Restaurant to go to, back in the 30's through 50's.
We were a little horrified to discover we were booked on a 747, for the 8 and a half hour flight to Atlanta.
It took forever to board this giant, and the time passed where we should have had the doors closed and been leaving the gate. People really are pushing the boundaries rather with some of their 'carry on' luggage. The airlines should be stricter about their allowances, in our opinion.
Waz always has the window seat, and I usually have an aisle because of my bad hip...easier for me to get out of....but this time I was parked right in between Waz and a very large African American Priest, who put his mailing address down on his inbound reg. card as The Vatican...I just noticed, right?
There she is!
The food was excellent, coming out of Paris. The meal was tasty and we even got a chocolate covered ice-cream bar for a snack 2/3 the way through the flight. Flight crew were excellent and attentive to the infants and parents on board, and we had nothing to complain about...well, who else gives you a complimentary glass of Champagne when you first sit down, in cattle class??
We could all have done with more room...the fellow in front of me put his seat back, effectively cutting off the circulation in my legs, and the screen flickered a lot, so I thought my eyesight was failing, lol.
We endured, as you do, and have never been so happy to get off a flight and find American toilets at the end...dozens of them. We still don't understand how a huge airport like Charles de Gaulle has only three toilet stalls in the Ladies...come on!! and of course, flights land, and the queue is out the door and down the hall! aiee!
So, Atlanta was a welcome sight...only....the first, and VERY FIRST thing we noticed was the number of obscenely obese people everywhere. People walk, bike, scooter everywhere in Paris and in the rest of France too. We saw so few large people, and no children that we remember, who were obese.
NOT a welcome sight. It made us more determined to only choose fresh food form the outside aisles of the supermarkets and lose those extra pounds. Having walked so far, we had already made a good start.
The sun was setting in Atlanta when we arrived, and we were hungry and anxious to walk for a bit, and then sit for a bit...and mostly to walk for a bit more. The only food that looked not too obnoxious to eat was a Pulled Pork Sandwich, and a salad, which we shared. Long distance travel is never fun, and we felt sorry for the 83 yr old woman sitting near to us who had come from Jordan and Israel, through France, to Atlanta, and had an onward connection to San Antonio...She was exhausted, but had really enjoyed her trip. She didn't think it would be her last one either:) Good for her!
We had to wait for about 7.30pm to catch our little bunny hopper plane to Brunswick, which took around 50 minutes. It was with much relief that we found our car waiting in the parking lot and she started first time. Phew!
After gathering our bags, I had to get used to driving an automatic car again. I have since wanted to put my foot on the non-existent clutch...and have to laugh at the memory of all the bunny hops I did when I first got into the VW Polo we hired in France.:)
Home to the very dirty boat. We plonked our bags down in the middle of the salon, and went to bed. It was 4am, France time! We were exhausted. Bed never felt so good, I can tell you.
Reconnecting with people who were taking care of things for us, was fun. My Orchid, which Rhonda had been nurturing was throwing out new leaves, spikes and roots all over the place! heavens, what had she done to make it flourish so?? Lots of love!
It is always a bit of an anti-climax, coming down to earth after a long time away. We have had two long trips this year, and look forward to sitting tight for a while....well, we will be forced to, I'm afraid.
So, I'm going to call it quits here, folks, and wake my snoring husband... for a cup of tea before turning in for the night.
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