Le Noel

Christmas this year was quite different from normal. It began with midnight mass at Notre Dame, where as Chris and I put it was like a roller coaster line but for God. Luckily we found seats during the "pre-show"; a video about Jesus' birth and Gregorian songs with instruments. There was a pole blocking my view but the scent of the holy water as the priest entered quickly filled the cathedral. It was interesting hearing "and also with you" in French "et avec vous aussi". We wondered if they would have enough body of Christ to go around because people were huddled in the hallways gripping the bars like they were in prison, but most of the people didn't go up for Communion. Afterwords the enormous organ sounded and everyone exited, some, like us, trying to find a way home at 1:30am. After a few hours of sleep it was off on a train to Reims to see Geoffroy and his family. I had no idea they were having 27 family members over for Christmas dinner, and they even included us in the present giving. The food was delicious; smoked salmon, foie gras, lamb I think, potatoes, pommes duchesses, and yummy pastries...and never a moment without wine or champagne. It was nice to catch up with Geoffroy after he spent a year in Australia and we had some hearty laughs watching "The Umbilical Brothers". The next day we went to a champagne cave built in what was once the abbey of a church where monks made wine. And we saw the famous cathedral where every king of France was crowned, before heading off to continue our journey in my city (which actually would begin the next day seeing as we got back after midnight). Favorite memories: me-"Two es mon numéro préferé" Victor-"moi?", thinking my joke about the bottle turners' wife wouldn't be understood in French (I don't have a secret language anymore), calling Geoffroy's uncle mademoiselle, bisous attaque by Jo's cousin, Jo wanting to drive on the wrong side of the road, Chris-"café s'il vous plait?", Chris trying to shut the bathroom door and getting confused by coffee in a bowl, trying to translate a dirty joke for Geoffroy's family, Chris' reaction to goat cheese, walking itno a pole in the street while trying to take a picture in Reims.