Paris Journal 2008
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We’re going to Germany tomorrow for the weekend to visit Arnold and Mareen, so there will be a brief break in this Paris Journal after today. Last night, we met Maddy and Jim at L’Épopée, as planned (see restaurant recommendations). The proprietors, Monsieur and Madame Cargouet, were nowhere to be seen. In their place, a young couple was running the resto. The young man looks very much like he could be the Cargouet’s son. Normally, this restaurant is closed in August. We were delighted that it is open, and that most of our favorite dishes are still on the menu. The chef must be the same as always, but somehow he is now freer to use more spice. The curry sauce that comes with the shrimp ravioli starter course packed some real power. I love this dish, and now I love it even more. There is now more shrimp in each ravioli, too. That makes up somewhat for the increase in prices on the new menu. Three of us had the ravioli to start. Jim had some pretty wonderful looking escargot, sprinkled with nuts (perhaps almonds?). I ordered the ray, thinking that it would be as before, a nice delicate, thin sheet of fish. But this must have been something approaching a manta ray. Well, not quite. Anyway, it was much thicker than any ray I’ve eaten before – and it was too much fish for me to finish. The preparation was the same – a nice butter sauce with capers and delicate little white potatoes and vegetables. Tom and Maddy had perfect noisettes d’agneau (lamb) and vegetables. Tom said it was some of the best lamb he’s ever had. Jim ordered a rare steak. Jim and I could not manage dessert, but Tom and Maddy each had one of those tasty, thin tarte de pommes. It was a nice dinner. Afterwards, we all amused ourselves by showing this apartment to Jim and Maddy. Maddy’s reaction was exactly what we expected. Like most people who’ve seen both places, she seems to prefer the apartment over in the 6th. This apartment is nice and charming, don’t misunderstand. But it is quirky and it takes a lot of work to keep it clean and comfortable. And we have to be creative in order to find enough space for our things. We learned about a new quirk this morning. We both happened to be awake at 5:30AM this morning (very unusual) when a dramatic thunderstorm hit. (The storm was not unlike what hits Sanibel on almost any given Summer afternoon. Living with so much rain, we are in the habit of looking for leaks when it rains heavily.) Rain pounded against the three sets of French doors/windows facing the balcony.
Tom was the first one to notice water pooling in front of the dining room French doors. That window leaks the most. The one in the living room leaks over to the left side of it. And the one in the bedroom leaks right in the middle.
We mopped up all the water with towels right away and I moved two cardboard boxes and books stacked in the corner of the living room away from the window and water. I also moved a power strip that was sitting on the bedroom floor where the water was coming in. (It is there for the fan in the bedroom.) After the rain, we went back to bed and slept soundly until 9:30!
Today, the rain is predicted to be lighter, but we are around to keep an eye on the situation as we get ready to leave tomorrow. The longer range forecast calls for only light rain, so I think things will be fine while we are away. We'll keep an eye on the weather for the rest of the month and will try to be home to deal with this if heavy rain is predicted.
The change in weather that came with the rain was welcome. We've had some 90 degree F days this summer, and yesterday was one of them. Whew. |
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Yet another view of Notre Dame from the Six Huit on the
Seine.
You can have your favorite items of clothing copied at
this shop in the 6th arrondissement. Considering the devalued dollar, these
prices are steep! |
