Travel Details
Last summer when we visited the US, we took the train to Paris, stayed overnight in Paris, flew out the next day(two flights), picked up a rental car and drove the last 20 minutes or so to our destination.
We recently returned to the US and handled the trip differently. This time we took the train again to Paris, and stayed overnight. Instead of taking two flights, we took only one flight to JFK, rented a car and drove the last portion of the trip-- a 3.5 hour road trip. It all went pretty smoothly. The weather was agreeable and the timing worked out well. As an extra plus, we had a good night's sleep in Paris. (Also included were various taxi rides and a shuttle or two.)
Here are a couple of shots out the train window.
Our return trip didn't go as smoothly. The drive back to New York City, returning the rental car and arriving at the airport went well. At the airport we had to wait to check in because the desk wasn't open yet. Originally we were going to take the train back from Paris, but we checked on the cost and and decided to add a second flight back from Paris instead of taking the train.
Once the airline desk opened, we checked in, did security, etc., and waited to board the plane. Once onboard, the plane pushed back from the gate and sat. At first we thought it was just waiting for clearance to get in the queue for take-off. That was not the case. Eventually, an announcement was made that we were returning to the "parking position" [aka the gate] but we would stay on the plane. Only one of the HVAC systems was working and they aren't allowed to fly across the Atlantic Ocean without a functional backup. Soooo... we waited.
Some passengers immediately got upset but most were OK, at first. As time passed, an announcement was made that passengers could leave the plane. What?? They meant people could deplane and rebook themselves but it apparently applied to folks with carry-on luggage only. If you had checked baggage, you couldn't do this. One gentleman seated near us left the plane and returned a couple of times unsure if he should keep waiting or go ahead and rebook himself. A few others took this option. At one repeat of the earlier announcement of the possibility to deplane, all of a sudden most passengers started to leave. They had misunderstood the announcement and thought it was mandatory. Once it was explained, most sat back down. There were announcements when the technicians arrived, etc., but no updates as to when we might actually be leaving. This was a little frustrating.
Eventually, we did take off, minus some passengers-- 3.5 hours late We arrived in Paris at 8:47 am, 2 minutes after our connecting flight had departed. Harumpf!!!!!
There was another connecting flight mid-day, but they said that one was full so we were rebooked on the "next" flight at 8:55 pm. We had a 12 hours wait at the airport. Boo hoo. (B- note, the original layover for the train would have been 7 hours.)
We finally did board the connection to Clermont and it turned out we were seated in the exit row. The agent hadn't asked us about this when assigning the seats. I suppose he thought we looked capable. Depending on the situation we would either open the exit door or block it. Sounds simple, right? Here is a photo of the emergency instructions, in case you are interested.
Covid regulations
When heading to the US, we were still required to get a negative Covid test within 1 day of our flight. This added to the stress and complexity of our trip. For example, we went to the pharmacy for an antigen test, walked home, and got in the car and drove to a lab for a PCR test. As we were leaving the lab, we received the negative antigen results. We got home, inhaled lunch, grabbed our taxi and headed to the train station. (No test was currently required to return to France.)
On our outbound trip, proof of being vaccinated was still required for all forms of public transportation, however, no one asked for proof of same on the train. Then and still now, the only place masks are still required in France is in airports, on planes, and trams, buses, in train stations, bus stations, etc.-- any public transportation spaces. Despite the requirement, many folks weren't wearing masks in the airports. In the lounges (especially on the return flight because we were there so long) we observed folks sitting without masks, chatting with friends/family/co-workers or using phones or computers for 3-4 hours. No, they were not eating/drinking, just choosing to not follow the rules. We even witnessed airline lounge staff not wearing masks. We wore our masks at all times! We did not want to bring something to family in the US. To us, it appeared there was zero effort by any official person to get more folks to actually put on a mask/or adjust their mask properly. Passengers on our flights did wear masks most of the time, except during the delay on the return flight. At that time some passengers took off their masks. One man in particular likely felt he couldn't yell loud enough with his mask on properly.
An event
During our visit with family there was a baby shower for our niece and nephew who are expecting their first baby. Both men and women attended the shower. I assume that's more common now than it used to be. We helped prep a little during the first 2 days of our visit before the shower. Sis did a great job with the food, or should I say FOOD! There were 2- 8 foot tables!
There were some games. One was particularly funny to watch. Little plastic baby dolls were frozen in ice cubes. Each attendee was given one of these ice cubes. The winner was the first person to get the baby doll out of the ice cube and yell, "my water broke." The idea was to put your ice cube in your drink and wait for it to melt. Some folks put the ice cube in their hands to melt it faster, some put the ice cube in their mouth. If you need to plan a baby shower, this game was funny to watch!
Winter
Scenes from March 9, upstate New York:
A great day to stay inside with a warm cup of tea but we had errands to do.
We did get a chance to have a lovely but brief visit with B's brother and our sister-in-law. Always a great source for new interesting finds, they introduced us to a new grain -- fonio. It is apparently a type of millet, gluten-free, and has a rich, nutty flavor and texture like couscous. Yum!
Spring
On our return to France on March 24, Spring had arrived! We had a couple of days in the upper 50s, then into the 60s, then 3 days above 70. It was wonderful.
Photos taken March 26. Trees blooming and even leafing out. Shrubs blooming, forsythia in bloom along with daffodils. Unfortunately, allergy season has also arrived!
Winter returns
All of the sudden we had 3 days in a row with lows near or below 32 with light snow daily. I don't remember seeing snow on 3 consecutive days last winter. The snow wasn't really sticking much on this day but it snowed like this all day.
Overnight it was colder so some snow accumulated.
Of course, up in the mountains they had more snow. We went for a walk despite the weather and were heading back down the hill to the apartment and we took this photo to catch Puy-de-dome ( the mountain in the distance) covered in snow. As an aside, on the left of this photo you can see the old Hotel Dieu building. It is being turned into a library. They have added wood to all of the windows on the entire building during re-construction for some reason.
Spring returns
Yes, Spring did return but the temperatures weren't quite as warm.
This set of photos were taken on a walk through Jardin Lecoq on April 5. Some trees were already leafed out. Some were barely started.
New fruit and veggie shop
While we were away a small fruit and veggie shop opened within an easy walk.
Construction Update
They seem to have parts of the basement parking finished. At least we think it's the basement parking.
Soda taste test
Have you heard about the new Coke flavor called Starlight?
