France: First Stop...Limoges

Danny and I decided years ago that we wanted to be sure that at some point, our children were able to go to France and meet their french cousins (and aunts and uncles). Danny’s aunts are in bad health and won’t remember our kids but we are certain that our kids will remember the visit. We had the privilege of taking Ben and his wife Ashley three years ago and today we began another adventure with Hallie and her husband Noah. I can honestly say that this is the first time that I have had an uneventful and completely on time Delta Airlines experience so yay Delta! We arrived in Paris around 6:30 this morning and had an unusually long time to wait in customs. Our luggage was within the first 5-10 bags off the airplane. Again, yay Delta! We got a taxi big enough for four by standing in the taxi line outside of the airport. It moved very quickly. I just don’t trust the “taxi hawkers” parked and pleading as you go to get your bags. We drove straight to the train station and with 30 minutes to spare we were able to get our first french pain au chocolat of the trip in a bag to go before we moved quickly onto the train. The train travel from Paris to Limoges took about 3.5 hours and was also uneventful and on time! We were met at the train station by our cousins Cathy and Christophe. Cathy gathered Danny and Noah and took them to the airport to rent our car that we will use when we go to Bayeux. Christophe took Hallie and me to the hotel where we had hoped to check in early but our rooms were not ready. Hallie and I left our bags at the front desk and went immediately to Monoprix to have a look around. As I’ve mentioned before, Monoprix is like our version of a super Target only a good bit smaller. There is a little bit of everything except for housewares. At least this Monoprix did not have housewares. Hallie has a passion for KitKats made in the UK and Danny and I always try to find them for her when we travel overseas. She insisted on buying the first package she saw just in case she couldn’t find any more. They really do have a different tasting chocolate than the ones at home. The M&M’s are different too and in this case, I prefer the ones at home to the darker tasting chocolate of the ones here.  Hallie and I went back to the hotel to drop off our purchases and wait for Danny and Noah to come back from the rental car place. Danny is driving a Ford diesel manual transmission mini van for us. Noah remarked that you just won’t find that combination in the States. At least in France they drive on the correct side of the road. We left the hotel with the men to begin wandering the city and doing our best to stay awake. After many years of doing this, Danny and I know that the worst thing you can do to help with jet lag is to give in and take a nap. We stay up and out in the sunshine for as much of the day as we can and then when we go to sleep at a decent hour, we take a melatonin to help reset our system and sleep away. We found my favorite chocolate shop here, Buissierie and looked for the “creepy baby faces” that we saw last year. We visited the Cathedral Saint Elienne today as well. We had to wait awhile to go in because of a wedding ceremony but it was really cool to see a lovely french bride and her new husband outside the church later. So basically we just walked and walked and walked until it was time for dinner. We revisited Le Chalet, a place we have been to a couple of times and it did not disappoint. We all agreed that Noah’s dish of Veal Cordon Bleu took the prize for the best tasting even though we all liked our dishes very much. Danny got Duck Confit, I had an Entrecôte Steak, and Hallie had Magret de Canard (duck breast). Hallie won the prize for the best dessert and also the funniest dessert. She ordered Chocolate Mousse and was presented with a giant bowl with a giant spoon that a couple of people had already been served from! Noah had Tarte Tatin, Danny had Creme Caramel and I had Profiteroles. I am about to fall asleep on my keyboard so I will leave you for now. Tomorrow we spend the day with our family. We are very excited. Until then…..