A French Adventure, Part I: Paris

I didn’t expect to love France. But I did. And the reason it was surprises me most: the people.

The French have a certain sophisticated, yet warm debonair. Many people, including French people themselves, have told me that, on the contrary, French people are snobby and have their noses in the air. If this is the truth, I had a hard time finding any French people to provide me the proof.

Anytime I asked passersby for help they were eager and excited to advise me. A few times I, myself even got stopped by French people who thought I was one of them and asked me for directions to somewhere. Since I don’t actually know the correct way in French to say, “I don’t speak French,” I would just say the latter. 

I love the way the French are not afraid to maintain eye contact. In the U.S., especially in big cities (cough*cough New York), people couldn’t be more distant and cold. If you smile at someone in a public place you are taken as a crazy person. 

My week-long trip began with two nights in Paris.

The flowers were beginning to bloom!

Let’s preface by saying this: my father is one of the most amazing people I know. Because of him my world keeps getting smaller and smaller. My dad has discovered that we have blood relatives in countries I once never knew existed. To name a few though I’m sure there are more: England, Greece, Italy, Turkey, France, Israel, South Africa, Belgium. It is an adventure in itself just to meet these people, let alone to visit them in a foreign place. 

Some of these such long-lost cousins hosted me for two nights at their beautiful home in Paris. They fed me, entertained me and cared for me as if I was one of their own. Even though we share a last name, I couldn’t begin to tell you how we are related and despite this they still consider me family and I them. How amazing to have such a big family! 

Left to Right: Jeremy, me and Noemi (Hopefully I am spelling their names correctly!)

Me and Philippe (I failed to get a picture with his wife Vanessa.. oops!)

My hosts Philippe and Vanessa illustrated visual guides for me of Paris and its special sites and advised me of what to see. Prior to arriving to Paris, my top two priorities were to visit Versailles, and to stand underneath the Eiffel Tower. And guess what: done and done.

I had only one full day to spend in Paris and since Versailles is more than a stone’s throw outside of the city I decided it best to pay a visit to the late Marie A.’s home first. 

Compare this photo with the picture above it. The previous photo was taken at 9:00 a.m. and this one was taken sometime around 2:00 p.m. - it's a good thing I went early and didn't waste any time!

WOW!

Versailles is incredible. What I didn’t realize is that Versailles has two (at least) additional chateaus on the property in addition to the main estate. I visited all three and rode around the gardens on the Versailles mini-train! Honestly though the gardens were nothing to write home about...

One of the chateaus.

There I met travelers from all over the world: The Philippines, Germany, England, Colombia, Argentina, France (of course…). I will let my pictures speak for themselves in regards to the splendor that is Versailles.

When I returned from Versailles I was pretty much pooped. But after a quick matzah break (after all it was still Passover...) I decided to pick myself up and take a stroll to the Eiffel Tower. I thought I would become filled with some kind of jubilant Eiffel Tower feeling, but instead I just felt like a foolish tourist. Despite this, I would have regretted it if I didn’t visit the Eiffel Tower.

Eiffel Selfie!

Here's the proof that I stood underneath it :)

My second day in Paris was limited - instead of a full day of touring I had until just 2:30 p.m. (14:30) at which point I needed to halt the wandering and catch a train to the west side of France. I decided that in order to make the best use of my time I should walk to the more historic area of Paris to visit Notre Dame, walk around and then eat lunch.

First things first. I got lost. When I say lost I mean I took one wrong turn (walking) at the Eiffel Tower and ended up an hour or so from my intended destination. It wasn’t until after an hour and a half of walking that I decided to ask a passerby how much more time I should expect to walk until arriving at Notre Dame. And to my own amazement, I was walking in the direction of Versailles!

On my long walk to nowhere I discovered there is a mini Statue of Liberty in Paris!

...and wheels bearing the names of the U.S. states Tennessee and Mississippi...

Eventually I caught the train back to Paris and found my way to Notre Dame. By the time I arrived the line to enter Notre Dame was 200-people long. I decided a better use of my time would be to head straight to the restaurant where I planned to eat lunch so I could have a nice sweet conclusion to my time in Paris.

But not before snapping a quick photo of the cathedral!

Le Potager du Marais is a quaint little vegan restaurant that is located by foot about 15-20 minutes north of Notre Dame. The cuisine is French but is 100% vegan. I of course stopped in to support the joint by ordering a three-course meal.

French Onion Soup with 'cheese' and croutons.

Eggplant Surprise - stuffed with 'cheese' and sun-dried tomatoes

Red Berry Crisp

All of the food was delicious. When it was time to pay I was so happy with everything that I left a 15% tip - in Europe I was told that people usually tip 10%. The server was so happy when I handed him the money for his tip that I thought he was a genuinely nice person. Only later did I find out that people usually do not tip in France at all!!! 

After lunch I took the metro back to my cousins’ to gather my things, say farewell and be gone. The next part of my French adventure will be continued…

This might be my favorite picture that I took. It characterizes Paris so well with the juxtaposition of the big city graffiti against the charm of the highly romanticized Eiffel Tower.

First Post from Israel!

It is not without major jet-lag that I sit down to write this post. I arrived yesterday around 1:00 p.m. Israel time and was immediately greeted by an hour-long line getting through passport control. Supposedly right now tourism in Israel is down, I can't even imagine what security must be like at its height...

My first flight from Dulles to Charles de Gaulle was about seven hours long. I sat next to a woman who just happened to be from Bethesda - nice coincidence! She was also en route to Tel Aviv. I was in the window seat and she was in the aisle. We got lucky, the middle seat in our row remained empty the entirety of the flight.

The first meal served on the flight was this:

The hot dish was a yellow rice with tomato stew and veggies. The meal also included sugar-free applesauce, a piece of multigrain bread, a roll, some dried fruit, some fresh melon and a small green salad. The salad was DISGUSTING! Everything else was okay.

The second meal on the first flight was supposed to be a light snack. When the stewardess came to drop it off to me I was very confused because the tray had dairy yogurt on it and some kind of muffin that had egg. The stewardess informed me that Air France does not serve a vegan snack, just the meals. Kind of absurd for a seven hour flight if you ask me. When I flew British airways in June, we had two full meals on each flight, and everything served to me was vegan. If you request vegan meals, you should not be served anything non-vegan at all... Good thing I brought some Larabars with me!

The next flight was approximately four and a half hours. I sat in the aisle next to two very friendly older French men who I think were a couple. They reminded me that in French the words for "thank you" and "please" are "merci" and "s'il vois plait." There was one meal served and it was this:

Evidently my dreams came true and I can now die a happy person, for I was bestowed with the joy of not one, but TWO vegan croissants! They one on the left even had dark chocolate in it! The fruit on the top right tasted kind of like grapefruit. The pudding on the top left was made of soy and was vanilla flavored. It was quite tasty but after having two croissants I couldn't bare to eat the pudding. The "entree" on the bottom was almost like a burrito or a Hot Pocket. It was filled with veggies and a yellow sauce. It was.. interesting.

From the airport in Tel Aviv I took a taxi to my friend Amir's house where I am currently staying a few nights. The taxi driver and I spoke in Hebrew the whole time! Originally he is from Russia (I think?). I tipped him well for being so patient with my lack thereof Hebrew abilities :)

From there I was warmly greeted in Giv'at Shmuel at Amir's family's home. I will save the rest for the next post!

Au Revoir Washington!

With a collection of diverse feelings I embark upon this exciting and much anticipated adventure. Today is the day it all begins.

"It" is my five month adventure in Israel.

From Washington I am flying to Paris and then from Paris to Tel Aviv. I arrive in Tel Aviv around noon on October 24.

So, I know what everyone is thinking - PARIS!!?? I wish. My time in Paris is just a one and a half hour layover at the airport :( Paris and I will have to get acquainted another time around. To what I am most looking forward on the journey to Israel is the food!

If you have ever flown on an international flight then you know how hit or miss the meals can be. I have read wonderful things about the meals on Air France flights and hope to also be driven by my tastebuds to write wonderful things. Maybe I'll even get to sample a vegan croissant! A girl can dream, right? I hope the person who sits next to me is going to be ready for all of my foodie photos!

Though this post is on the lighter side it is not without some bittersweet sadness that I leave my home behind. 

In honor of my motherland Maryland, here is a list of the things I feel I will miss most (people excluded because obviously I will miss the people in my life the most):

1. The dewey smell of rain and how it always seems to remind me of the Land Before Time movies. Anyone following me on this one? Tree Stars?
2. Holiday music playing on the radio nonstop around Christmas time. Good thing I have Mariah Carey's All I Want for Christmas is You on my iPhone!
3. Halloween! I can't imagine growing up and not going trick-or-treating! What else are you supposed to do on the night of October 31? Certainly not homework.
4. Thanksgiving - but mainly just pumpkin-flavored everything! I wonder if Israel grows pumpkins?
5. Large piles of crunchy brown leaves to jump into! That's the best part of Fall!
6. Ice skating outside! Not that I actually do this regularly, but it's nice to have as an option :)
7. Valentine's Day and hearts. Hopefully I'll still be able to send Glen Coco his annual Valentine!  Mean Girls reference anyone?
8. The way the snow looks on the trees in the Winter. It looks like a scene straight out of The Nutcracker.
9. Christmas lights! Does Israel do Hanukkah lights? This probably is not a thing. Ironic because Hanukkah is supposed to be the festival of lights... it seems like American Christian households are winning on this one!
10. Target! Who wouldn't miss this place? They have everything anyone could possibly need. Where else can you get a Dora the Explorer DVD, a few oranges and a bookshelf all in the same place? Walmart is not a valid answer because its stores are always very inconveniently located.

It is hard to believe the next time I post to this blog will be from another country! I feel like I am about to go on an undercover assignment. Stay with me throughout the next few months for some groundbreaking coverage ;) 

Until next time, !להתראות (Lehitraot! - This means goodbye/ see you later in Hebrew.)