Near Bordeaux

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Pat (Patrice) met us at the train station, and he carried my bike up and down several stairs, very helpful! Plus, he had a bike carrier on the car, so we made it easily from train station to their home.

A pleasant Sunday afternoon: Celene and Pat invited their good friend Jean Michel (from Africa) to join us for lunch...and the conversation was lively, with a mixture of French and English. Soon, the next door neighbors came over, and we felt as though we were back in our own place, or even Susie's place in Forest Hills. They have been friends with Jean Michel for so long, they call him their grandson!

Celene is a working mom, and she will be visiting NYC soon as part of the delegation to promote the region to travel agents and press agents. Pat manages the three kids (Maya 7, Timothe 5 and Cesar 2+). The state provides a subsidy to a parent who stays home for the first year or so, isn't that helpful to the family? They recently enlarged the second floor of their home, adding four bedrooms, toilet, and bathroom. They didn't want to waste downstair floor space, so they installed a circular iron stair case. Interesting climb.

Every evening, we enjoyed pastisse (anise flavored) with water, although they told us that some people prefer ricard (sp?) with water. We will have to try that someplace.

We went with Celene into Bordeaux where she works, and she helped us get tickets to a 2-hour wine education. We learned why Bordeaux wines are so special and how to taste the freshly opened bottle of wine. Later we returned to the wine school to sit sipping wine and updating our emails until it was time to take the commuter boat home for dinner.

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