Tennessee Trio of Terror - Part 2: Paris
Apr 13th, 2005, 09:03 AM
#42
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As her daughter (and why is that even when you reach the point you could take her in a fight, you still live in fear of your mother?) I must defend Saundra. She did not wear muu-muus on this trip...she had a european uniform of black pants, white shirt, and grey fleece vest which I never want to see again. In photos, it looks like the woman never changed clothes the entire time we were there.
sbparadis---please don't be jealous. We are going to publish Saundra's men of europe calendar for next year. We had an equal number of photos of monuments and mom with some man she picked up.
Side note: I picked up a wonderful purse at Un Apres-Midi de Chien on our tour that afternoon in amongst the spices, chocolate, and specialty kitchen ware!
sbparadis---please don't be jealous. We are going to publish Saundra's men of europe calendar for next year. We had an equal number of photos of monuments and mom with some man she picked up.
Side note: I picked up a wonderful purse at Un Apres-Midi de Chien on our tour that afternoon in amongst the spices, chocolate, and specialty kitchen ware!
Apr 13th, 2005, 09:45 AM
#43
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Ladies, ladies, ladies - I work in a library and have to cover my mouth to hold in the snorts of laughter from these posts and riposts. Going to Italy in July, so first I e-mailed the Rome thread to my friend who is traveling with us. She and I are hysterical, insist the husbands read it and guess what, they are less amused, so this is so a girl thing. And sorry Amy, I am looking for a summer version of Saundra's travel outfit. Ladies, just too, too funny. Will we ever find out what happened to Heather and her mom - do we care? After months of planning said upcoming trip I realize that no one ever talks about the most important thing you need to pack - a sense of humor! Please tell me that there's more to come . . .
Apr 13th, 2005, 10:32 AM
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i just have to add something. as of three days ago i am an unemployed (my choice) middle-aged (not my choice)mother of three teenagers (seriously doubting my choices here!). i'm addicted to the paris posts, and must say that this thread has given me some much needed humor during my time of need, i.e. looking for new employment.
a million thank yous to the tennessee girls from your next door neighbor in arkansas.
a million thank yous to the tennessee girls from your next door neighbor in arkansas.
Apr 13th, 2005, 10:35 AM
#47
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Hey MissDaisy, happy to be of service. I love reading people's trip reports and I really don't plan to make it funny but it just comes out that way. That's my personality and I tend to write the way I talk, in a stream of consciousness with lots of asides. Maybe this has something to do with that head injury I had as a child? Truth!! I always have to edit myself, I have no frontal lobes.
Apr 13th, 2005, 10:57 AM
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SharonG - You have eclipsed "Days of our Lives" with your very witty trip report and I love it!
carolA - You DON'T want to show your kids a Turkish toilet believe me.
We do have them, but unlike Europe, ours are spotlessly clean even in the largest of shopping malls.
carolA - You DON'T want to show your kids a Turkish toilet believe me.
We do have them, but unlike Europe, ours are spotlessly clean even in the largest of shopping malls.
Apr 13th, 2005, 11:07 AM
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Carol,
Mom so wished she had had the camera with her when she went, but as the designated photographer of our trip (I am the only one who can see without glasses), it was with me, Sharon, and all our drinks at the table.
Cafe Quebec was near the Monoprix on the Left Bank. I am sure the Monoprix bathroom will be mentioned soon by Sharon...she had an adventure there. She is the writer of the group...I can only do witty comebacks!
Let's face it...with the 3 of us, we had some sort of adventure every day! That's the fun of getting out of your comfort zone (of course we cause a lot of trouble in Tennessee, too).
Amy
Mom so wished she had had the camera with her when she went, but as the designated photographer of our trip (I am the only one who can see without glasses), it was with me, Sharon, and all our drinks at the table.
Cafe Quebec was near the Monoprix on the Left Bank. I am sure the Monoprix bathroom will be mentioned soon by Sharon...she had an adventure there. She is the writer of the group...I can only do witty comebacks!
Let's face it...with the 3 of us, we had some sort of adventure every day! That's the fun of getting out of your comfort zone (of course we cause a lot of trouble in Tennessee, too).
Amy
Apr 13th, 2005, 11:09 AM
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Well Dang! I was hoping for the impressions/synopsis of fashion!
Honestly, I am reading but watching in my head. Great little movie there.
Of course, I happened to have liked the movie "Rhinestone" so I guess I'm not a good judge.
Honestly, I am reading but watching in my head. Great little movie there.
Of course, I happened to have liked the movie "Rhinestone" so I guess I'm not a good judge.
Apr 13th, 2005, 12:15 PM
#52
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Saturday in Paris: March 19th – the saga continues;
We get up and have our usual at Le Petite Cardinal. By this time Saundra has made friends with the butcher shop man that we pass on the way to breakfast and he keeps waving at us with sausages in his hands. Saundra has developed an unusual way of communicating now. It includes a little bit of French, a little Italian, some Spanish and I believe some Klingon. This is all accompanied by much flailing of arms and waving of hands and intense eye contact. We like to call her "The Great Communicator" with all due respect to President Reagan.
We take the Metro (Saints be praised) to Place Madeleine and go to Arche so Amy can buy some purple gladiator type sandals (they came with a matching switch) and low and behold, they actually have shoes that fit my feet too! I buy two pairs. Saundra wanted a pair similar to mine but they didn't have her size. Her feet are quite unusual in that the width equals the length but that's another story. Hey Wilmaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
We decide to stop at Laduree for hot chocolate because after all, we hadn't eaten in an hour or so. 22 euros for 3 pots of hot chocolate and 3 mini-macaroons. The waitress got a big kick out of the fact that Saundra wanted hot chocolate and a chocolate macaroon. I told Saundra that the chocolate famine had been called off but she just wouldn't believe me.
Then went to Maille for mustard and Fauchon for little presents to take back to people. I bought the little pink cardboard purses with chocolates in them for people at work and they were quite the hit. Also wanted to buy some Fleur de Sel and when I asked one of the staff which was the best, his reply was "they all taste the same to me". Gee, salty? For that attitude I could have gotten it at Walmart.
Saundra wanted to go to the Louvre so we walked that way and found Le Soufflé on the way. Now this may seem touristy but my research partner loved it and urged me to try it. It was great and they were so nice to us. By now, I was audibly sniffing and sneezing my way through Paris but had stopped at my favorite pharmacy again that morning and gotten a new supply of meds: try Fervex for a cold. Saundra got some chewable aspirins which she also loved. The staff was very solicitous and I enjoyed them fawning over me while I did my best impression of the Lady of the Camellias.
Here's what we had: one asparagus soufflé, one ham and cheese soufflé, one foie gras soufflé, one glass of wine, one Kir Royale, tap water, two chocolate soufflés and one Grand Marnier soufflé. The latter was for me and the waiter kept pouring it on telling me it would do my cold good. By the time we left, I was feeling no pain. Lovely bathroom there as well. The whole meal cost 87 euros.
We strolled through the Tuilleries and dropped Saundra off at the Louvre since I was ready for a nap. After her visit, they had to move the Mona Lisa – must have been the asparagus.
Amy and I stopped at a fabric shop called Patchworks de Rouvray where she purchased a set of "fat quarters" in beautiful French fabric to make a quilt. Perhaps for my coffin? I tell you that girl is trying to kill me. She has her eye on my Barbie collection.
Went back to hotel for a toes up (rest – I've been reading too much Barbara Pym) and a quick turn under the oxygen tent. I think Amy was doing research on behavior modification while I rested. Then she went to pick up Saundra and I had the pleasure of going to Les Editeurs to meet fellow Fodorites Indytravel and Dave-in-Paris. We ended up talking for about 3 hours (these guys are great). Isn't it wonderful that we could all recognize ourselves as fellow Americans? And not one of us was wearing big white sneakers or warm-up suits. I was however wearing Le Clip. I now figure that I have to think of it as dollar cost averaging instead of feeling sick every time I think of what I paid for the stupid thing. But the most fun was meeting these guys in person. They are outstandingly handsome, witty and debonair. Marry me.
Still sick so I went back to the hotel only to find that Heather and her mother are NO SHOWS! And we don't know what's happened to them. Madame at the hotel was very upset and none of us know anything about what's happened to them.
You'll have to stay tuned to find out the continuing adventures of Heather and Raynell and the Tennessee Trio of Terror or "Dante's Inferno: the sequel".
We get up and have our usual at Le Petite Cardinal. By this time Saundra has made friends with the butcher shop man that we pass on the way to breakfast and he keeps waving at us with sausages in his hands. Saundra has developed an unusual way of communicating now. It includes a little bit of French, a little Italian, some Spanish and I believe some Klingon. This is all accompanied by much flailing of arms and waving of hands and intense eye contact. We like to call her "The Great Communicator" with all due respect to President Reagan.
We take the Metro (Saints be praised) to Place Madeleine and go to Arche so Amy can buy some purple gladiator type sandals (they came with a matching switch) and low and behold, they actually have shoes that fit my feet too! I buy two pairs. Saundra wanted a pair similar to mine but they didn't have her size. Her feet are quite unusual in that the width equals the length but that's another story. Hey Wilmaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
We decide to stop at Laduree for hot chocolate because after all, we hadn't eaten in an hour or so. 22 euros for 3 pots of hot chocolate and 3 mini-macaroons. The waitress got a big kick out of the fact that Saundra wanted hot chocolate and a chocolate macaroon. I told Saundra that the chocolate famine had been called off but she just wouldn't believe me.
Then went to Maille for mustard and Fauchon for little presents to take back to people. I bought the little pink cardboard purses with chocolates in them for people at work and they were quite the hit. Also wanted to buy some Fleur de Sel and when I asked one of the staff which was the best, his reply was "they all taste the same to me". Gee, salty? For that attitude I could have gotten it at Walmart.
Saundra wanted to go to the Louvre so we walked that way and found Le Soufflé on the way. Now this may seem touristy but my research partner loved it and urged me to try it. It was great and they were so nice to us. By now, I was audibly sniffing and sneezing my way through Paris but had stopped at my favorite pharmacy again that morning and gotten a new supply of meds: try Fervex for a cold. Saundra got some chewable aspirins which she also loved. The staff was very solicitous and I enjoyed them fawning over me while I did my best impression of the Lady of the Camellias.
Here's what we had: one asparagus soufflé, one ham and cheese soufflé, one foie gras soufflé, one glass of wine, one Kir Royale, tap water, two chocolate soufflés and one Grand Marnier soufflé. The latter was for me and the waiter kept pouring it on telling me it would do my cold good. By the time we left, I was feeling no pain. Lovely bathroom there as well. The whole meal cost 87 euros.
We strolled through the Tuilleries and dropped Saundra off at the Louvre since I was ready for a nap. After her visit, they had to move the Mona Lisa – must have been the asparagus.
Amy and I stopped at a fabric shop called Patchworks de Rouvray where she purchased a set of "fat quarters" in beautiful French fabric to make a quilt. Perhaps for my coffin? I tell you that girl is trying to kill me. She has her eye on my Barbie collection.
Went back to hotel for a toes up (rest – I've been reading too much Barbara Pym) and a quick turn under the oxygen tent. I think Amy was doing research on behavior modification while I rested. Then she went to pick up Saundra and I had the pleasure of going to Les Editeurs to meet fellow Fodorites Indytravel and Dave-in-Paris. We ended up talking for about 3 hours (these guys are great). Isn't it wonderful that we could all recognize ourselves as fellow Americans? And not one of us was wearing big white sneakers or warm-up suits. I was however wearing Le Clip. I now figure that I have to think of it as dollar cost averaging instead of feeling sick every time I think of what I paid for the stupid thing. But the most fun was meeting these guys in person. They are outstandingly handsome, witty and debonair. Marry me.
Still sick so I went back to the hotel only to find that Heather and her mother are NO SHOWS! And we don't know what's happened to them. Madame at the hotel was very upset and none of us know anything about what's happened to them.
You'll have to stay tuned to find out the continuing adventures of Heather and Raynell and the Tennessee Trio of Terror or "Dante's Inferno: the sequel".
Apr 13th, 2005, 12:34 PM
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I was wondering if I'd get an honorable mention and I end up with a marriage proposal! 
I'm not really that handsome, witty or debonair. I just know what to say when a woman's loopy on cold pills.
I'm not really that handsome, witty or debonair. I just know what to say when a woman's loopy on cold pills.
Apr 13th, 2005, 12:35 PM
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Sharon, this has to be the funniest trip report I've ever read. Certainly the most plain-spoken, too! I've been laughing through the whole thing (because it's so true, so true). Isn't IndyTravel nice? You'll have to get in line, though: yours is not the first marriage proposal he's had on Fodors!
Apr 13th, 2005, 12:56 PM
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Great report Sharon,
For another Turkish Style toilet, near Metro Abesses, see
Ira’s Mother’s Trip to Paris
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34497442
>..wanted to buy some Fleur de Sel and when I asked one of the staff which was the best, his reply was "they all taste the same to me". Gee, salty?<
The important thing about all of the very expensive table salts is that they contain dirt, which you don't get in the plain stuff.
For another Turkish Style toilet, near Metro Abesses, see
Ira’s Mother’s Trip to Paris
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34497442
>..wanted to buy some Fleur de Sel and when I asked one of the staff which was the best, his reply was "they all taste the same to me". Gee, salty?<
The important thing about all of the very expensive table salts is that they contain dirt, which you don't get in the plain stuff.
Apr 13th, 2005, 01:16 PM
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There are turkist toilets in the ladies' room at Charles DeGaulle airport; believe me, I was taken aback until I discovered there were others with real toilets.
And back off, Saundra, Franck at Dehillerin is mine... I knew he was such a flirt.
I have mail ordered from the fabric/quilt shop and hope to get there in person next trip (the end of this month).
We did French for a Day three years ago, but it was a different owner. We also did the Poiline bakery basement - what fun. Your cold did not need all that flour in the air.
Love your posts. It's getting me through my work day today.
And back off, Saundra, Franck at Dehillerin is mine... I knew he was such a flirt.
I have mail ordered from the fabric/quilt shop and hope to get there in person next trip (the end of this month).
We did French for a Day three years ago, but it was a different owner. We also did the Poiline bakery basement - what fun. Your cold did not need all that flour in the air.
Love your posts. It's getting me through my work day today.
