Today I took the train to Paris for the Thanksgiving holiday. I unfortunately don’t actually get any days off since it’s not a holiday in Switzerland, but the thought of working while my friends and family are back in the U.S. celebrating one of my favorite holidays was definitely not appealing.
Fortunately for me, the Ryans had planned a trip to Paris for the holiday and graciously invited me to join. Given that our families spent Thanksgiving together in Yosemite for the first 14 years of my life, this actually is serving as a nice Thanksgiving reunion of sorts.
I arrived at the Gare de Lyon train station in Paris around mid-day. The four hour train from Lausanne is a scenic one and takes you through the French countryside with the most notable stop along the way in Dijon. After arriving, I proceeded to the hotel to drop off my stuff before meeting up with the Ryans for an afternoon walk around Le Marais.
(As a hotel-related aside, there are two items that merit further mention. First, I’m staying in a hotel that my parents stayed in nearly 35 years ago…purely by coincidence. Second, what is the deal with French hand showers that don’t have shower curtains? Is it that hard to mount the showerhead above head level and provide a curtain? Awkwardly washing oneself with one hand while holding the showerhead in the other and unintentionally spraying water all over the bathroom is suboptimal.)
For dinner we ate at the restaurant of Cercle d’Union Interallié. As can be seen from the pictures, the décor was very fancy and made me feel like I’d been transported back in time a century or so. The photos were taken outside the dining room where we ate, but you get the idea.
As for the food, I thought it was great. The most memorable aspect was the cheese, which they served after dinner and carted around under a glass cover. The cover served an important purpose -- once it was removed, the smell felt like a punch in the face (pungent is an understatement). It was very good, though, and the cheese guru did a good job of providing selections appropriate for everyone’s individual tastes.
And before I forget, also worth noting was Tim’s pre-dinner drink. I can’t recall what it was, but when it looks like this does it really matter? Needless to say, he received some thoughtful comments from the peanut gallery…
Fortunately for me, the Ryans had planned a trip to Paris for the holiday and graciously invited me to join. Given that our families spent Thanksgiving together in Yosemite for the first 14 years of my life, this actually is serving as a nice Thanksgiving reunion of sorts.
(As a hotel-related aside, there are two items that merit further mention. First, I’m staying in a hotel that my parents stayed in nearly 35 years ago…purely by coincidence. Second, what is the deal with French hand showers that don’t have shower curtains? Is it that hard to mount the showerhead above head level and provide a curtain? Awkwardly washing oneself with one hand while holding the showerhead in the other and unintentionally spraying water all over the bathroom is suboptimal.)
For dinner we ate at the restaurant of Cercle d’Union Interallié. As can be seen from the pictures, the décor was very fancy and made me feel like I’d been transported back in time a century or so. The photos were taken outside the dining room where we ate, but you get the idea.
As for the food, I thought it was great. The most memorable aspect was the cheese, which they served after dinner and carted around under a glass cover. The cover served an important purpose -- once it was removed, the smell felt like a punch in the face (pungent is an understatement). It was very good, though, and the cheese guru did a good job of providing selections appropriate for everyone’s individual tastes.
And before I forget, also worth noting was Tim’s pre-dinner drink. I can’t recall what it was, but when it looks like this does it really matter? Needless to say, he received some thoughtful comments from the peanut gallery…
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