First Fois Gras

I am sitting in Marjerie's apartment in Paris, sipping powdered coffee and listening to French music videos on TV. In half an hour I will leave for the gare to pick up Vanessa, my Canadian friend. Believe it or not, she is a French student, in France, and has never been to Paris! I am so excited to show her one of my all-time favorite cities today. It's always fun to see Paris with someone who has never seen it before. Everything is more exciting and beautiful when seen through someone else's eyes for the first time. We are going to visit the Christmas markets here and go to tea and see (not climb) the Eiffel Tower ... there is so much to do! Not to mention all the last minute Christmas shopping that always comes up. ("Yes, I know I already got my mom 14 gifts, but she would just love this ... and it's only ... euros!")
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Last weekend I was in Tours with the family I live with. Ok, actually, I thought I was going to be in Tours. It was more in the general vicinity of Tours - namely, on a farm in the middle of the country. I will have to go back to see the actual city, which I hear is rather lovely. But the weekend was wonderfully passed (sorry, that's my French coming out: Vous-avez passée une très bonne journée ? ). There was lots of talking (good for my accent) and lots of food (bad for my forme). The big dinners were very traditional (think fois gras, lots of cheese, and six courses) and, because the grandfather used to own a vineyard, the ever-present wine was very good as well. I must have been a big hit with him (he loved to speak French to me veeerrry slowly) because he invited me to visit him in St Nazaire. He also wants to come take me and his granddaughters to a vineyard outside of Angers sometime after Christmas, to educate us on wine tasting. On Friday afternoon, we also went to see the tiny Château d’Azay-le-Rideau. I'd never say no to a castle!
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This past week went by in a whirlwind. I went to a fabulous jazz concert with Katrin and Vanessa on Tuesday night. We had vin chaud after the concert of course. Then, on Wednesday, I made peanut butter cookies (gifts for Marj and Sofie) with Katrin. Katrin was so funny, she just loved the thought of eating classic American cookies. And she can't stop laughing whenever I say "Holy Cow!" You learn a lot about yourself when you spend time with German friends.

München, du bist mein groß liebe!

Last weekend, I had a lively, colorful, beautiful, cold, glorious time in Munich. I definitely achieved my purpose in going: to buy as many Christmas ornaments as I could get my hands on in a limited period of time. I was alone the first night, which was a little depressing. Especially when everyone around me was either in a group or with their S.O. Nevertheless, I loved Munich! I couldn't get enough of it. The buildings are old and elegant and the markets are fabulous. I did not buy any glühwein or punch or even coffee that first night and I'll tell you why; they serve you the drinks in actual mugs! Millions of people come through and, rather than wasting all those paper or plastic cups, you get your glühwein (or whathaveyou) in a bright red or blue mug that has "Christkindlmarkt" painted on the side.
It is the cosiest thing I have ever seen. You stand with all of your friends around little outdoor tables, being jostled by shopping tourists and natives on every side, but who cares when you've got your glühwein?? Because I was all alone, I couldn't stand laughing and telling stories with anyone around any table. So I contented myself by looking at everything around me (generally, awe was involved) and I eventually bought a currywurst for dinner. It was very good but it made my gloves smell like curry powder for the rest of the night and part of the next day too.
The booths were all in the shape of little chalets and they were all decked out in their holiday decor. There were booths selling old-fashioned straw and wooden ornaments, booths selling gingerbread, bratwurst booths, lots of glühwein booths and countless others selling a jumble of christmas balls, angels and manger scenes. One or two tiny chalets even had roasted chestnuts! I had to try some of these the next day because I've never actually seen real roasted chestnuts before. They were sweeter than I expected. A little too sweet, to tell you the truth, and very dry. But I convinced myself that I liked them well enough, since they are such a Christmas classic. I sang part of "The Christmas Song" to Katrin and David while we were eating them, but all I got were blank looks. They don't translate that one in Bravaria I guess.
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The second day was Saturday and I started out by visiting the Alte Pinakothek museum...for nearly four hours! If you ever go to Munich, you have to see this place. Filled with German and Northern European paintings from the 13th-19th centuries, it's heated halls are the perfect remedy to a freezing cold day outside. It was downright tranquil - a nice change from the clamorous hustle and bustle outdoors. I spent the whole morning there, and a few extra minutes in the museum store, before donning my coat and scarf again and heading back out into the cold.
This time I met Katrin and her boyfriend, David, at the Marienplatz (the main market under the town hall with the glockenspiel). We had a good afternoon climbing the Altes Peter, for a great view of the city (see left), and mostly just wandering around some more. I finally got my glühwein and we got bratwurst again too. It was a lovely day (the weather held up all weekend, by the way) and I went back to my hotel room that night loaded down with all the new ornaments and Christmas cookies I had bought.
When I woke up on Sunday, the first day of advent, I decided to visit some of the cathedrals in town. St. Peter's was definitely my favorite. I walked into a cloud of incense - literally, the whole church was foggy with the stuff. But it was beautiful. The sun shone from the east, in clear beams of light through the windows. They reflected off of the magnificent bronze alter sitting at the apse of the cathedral. Very baroque, I thought, but I daren't take a picture! This was the first Sunday of Advent, after all. I was sitting there surrounded by parishoners who bowed before sitting down - pictures?? Horrors! And so, instead, I prayed. I murmured what passages of the Bible I could remember. I prayed for protection and I thanked God for his blessings (don't forget, this was also the first Sunday after Thanksgiving!). How beautiful it was, and how warm and peaceful. I love a good European church. They remind you of how many other people share, and have shared, your faith. You sit there and think to yourself, this church has stood over centuries of advents. You are suddenly surrounded, no longer alone, but with those who also believe.
All in all, the weekend definitely put me in the Christmas spirit, a thousand times over. Everywhere I turned, there were people and more people. The open-air aisles were extremely crowded but I managed to squeeze my way into the possession of dozens and dozens of traditional German ornaments. If you ever want to your get Christmas shopping over with in one weekend, go to Munich. My only problem was limiting myself once I got started. Everything seems special when it is made for the Christkindlmarkt in München. Every purchase is justifiable as a result, so it's hard to quit! Luckily, I ran out of time. But I was literally buying ornaments and gifts up until the minute I dragged myself away on Sunday afternoon, to catch my train.
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My trip home was uneventful for the most part. I made it back to Angers by midnight and woke up with a cold the next morning. Today is Sunday again, the second advent weekend, and I am about to bundle up once more and head downtown. I am going to the much smaller Angers Christmas market and I may make a quick stop at the Cathédral St-Maurice.

Pluto's Christmas Tree

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jKVuL6xi8Rk

This is my favorite christmas cartoon! I've always been fascinated by Christmas Trees. I want to walk around in one like they do in this cartoon. I used to lay under our tree and look up into the branches when it was lit up at night.