pillars

reims and troyes are old, very old, old enough that i found mention of both in first few chapters of the book i selected for my flight home -- crown and country* (david starkey, who has recently been in the news for being a "dyspeptic television personality" of a historian who advocates britain's inherent britishness; this book hits you over the head with that belief).

this is reims part ii, in which i do visit the cathedral notre-dame de reims (along with two others + a basilica), and in which i also eat a single shining macaron from la petite friande. this particular macaron is called "stade de reims," and sports the colors of a) the local soccer team and b) the famous biscuits roses of the city. it is, according to my host sister, the best macaron in the world. i don't disagree! however, i've only eaten two macarons total.

*it was starkey or a biography of john lennon. looking for sheer length, i failed to take into account that historical surveys of royals (and exclusively royals) are hopelessly dry, william the conqueror's bursting bowels notwithstanding. howard zinn, this is not.

read on for history + photos

scale of dragon, tooth of wolf

pictured below: a few stray coeurs de boeuf. literally, something along the lines of "cow's hearts." fear not: i hadn't just witnessed a bovine rehash of the one scene in philip pullman's the golden compass that nearly made me throw up when i was in fifth grade.

into the rib cage iorek reached, and he plucked out iofur's heart, red and steaming, and ate it there in front of iofur's subjects.

these have nothing to do with polar bears.

it was a saturday morning in epernay, and coeurs de boeuf are tomatoes. saturday mornings here, as everywhere, bring the farmers' market! seen: a fish lying in a pool of its own blood, an upside-down rabbit that still had lights in its eyes, and plenty of cheese. 

we spent that afternoon picnicking in nearby, beautiful reuil. i'm amazed that driving fifteen minutes, here, takes you to an entirely different city. driving fifteen minutes, back home, takes me to school. that night, there were more motorcycles on the avenue du champagne than the total number of motorcycles i've seen in my life. ouais! ouais! mes oreilles! 

happy discoveries: french-dubbed doctor who, which is not called docteur qui (most of the shows here are dubbed and not subbed -- is that normal or do the french just really, really not want english in their lives?); the sun doesn't set until nearly eleven p.m.; pizza crêpes; the charming village of ay; really good canteloupes!

[under the cut: vegetables. florals -- not just for spring! a photo of myself in which i look like ewan mcgregor. not related at all: guys on motorcycles around around nine-thirty in the evening (note the presence of the sun). +  more!]

à la recherche du pain perdu

fill out your very own proust questionnaire! alternatively, simply read proust's answers & wonder if he was serious about his favorite fictional hero being hamlet. 

[under the cut: process photos.]

france

after a ten-hour plane ride, i arrived in paris hungry, thirsty, and soundly disappointed by my week with marilyn. (ex machina is no longer available on air france, and we should all mourn that fact. écoutez! whiplash, however, is available and is just as good if not better according to everyone except my father.)

after a thirty-minute train ride (train of great speed, indeed) i arrived in epernay thrilled about everything! here, the weather is perfect (for now), the trees are gorgeous, the food is excellent! all the shops are within walking distance! (the walk to the boulangerie for breakfast yesterday lasted under two minutes!) the sales are incredible! (i've seen a 70% SOLDE sign in almost every shop.) the people are so nice!

tidbits: mystery novels are romans policiers, the lending library has an entire floor devoted to CDs, the cheese is fresh (and neither pre-sliced nor pre-grated), mcdonald's is hipper and sells salads, butter comes in a massive 500g stick and people aren't terrified of it, drivers are nice and don't try to run you over when you cross the street, french fries are just fries (obviously), french toast is "lost bread" and not quite so tooth-achingly sweet (less obviously), regular television channels show u19 soccer matches, crystal light is not powder but syrup, i bought a denim jacket (in what universe? this one, evidently) --

-- did i mention that everything is within walking distance?

portrait of the author

[click onward for croissants and rogue apostrophes, among others]