Happy Birthday Olga. Of course if I said that in a crowed room in Moscow, half the woman would stand up and say thank you. However in Charles Town, I do believe there is only one.
Departing Nice was very difficult. We had tried to cram as much stuff in on the morning of our departure and by the time we got into our taxi at 11 am we were exhausted. We had run/walked along the coast and then stopped for a quick but delicious coffee. We got back to the hotel and started to pack and clean up before our 10 am coffee meeting with Roberto and Maria. We failed to realize how long it would take us to pack, since we purchased far too many things in France and getting them all safe and sound into our bags was a logistical nightmare. We did it; everything arrived in good shape and each of our checked bags weighed forty-four pounds. However we now have Chablis, Ricard, Vecchia, Cassis, herbs, mustards, cookies, and sausages - enough for a two-day feast of France.
We had a fantastic time with Robert and Mary and it was so nice of them to come all the way down from Milan for just a quick visit. We did manage to squeeze in three meals, two snacks and more than a few bottles of wine. On Saturday we went to a restaurant they know called Olivier, which as the name suggests, features lots of olives and olive oils in their dishes. In fact every dish comes with special olive oil that is supposed to compliment the food. We had lots of dishes and lots of olive oil, all of which was delicious. There were dishes made with avocados, apples, fresh tomatoes, eggplant, rabbit, sausages, pastas, lentils, and the list goes on and on. Very earthy, very Mediterranean. As we were walking home from this restaurant the skies opened up and the rain came with a vengeance. Luckily, you are never more than five steps from bar or café so we were able to nip into a bar/restaurant for a little nightcap and we watched in amazement as families and friends arrived at 10:45 to have dinner! What a city!
Our flights home were on time and comfortable. We were on Air France for both flights and since we had a bit more time to make connections, we were actually able to walk to the gate in Paris instead of running. The sun was shining brightly as we sat in the Air France Business Lounge overlooking the Med sipping our glasses of Champagne, having just made it in time for them to count as “elevenies.” The shuttle flight to Paris was smooth and packed, but AF still managed to distribute wines, juices, coffee and smiles during the seventy-minute flight. We walked to the AF club in terminal 2E and had time for Champagne before getting onto the plane to Moscow. This was another packed plane and we had been assigned seats 7 D/E. When we got on the plane I noticed that the curtain that usually separates Business Class from Coach was all the way back at row 12. I thought perhaps they would move it closer to the front but that is where it stayed. I looked at our boarding passes and noticed the word Premium where it normally says Coach. I don’t know how this happened, I suspect it was the winning smile that Cindy gave the gentleman who checked us in in Nice, but there we were.
It appears that AF has a three-class cabin on their long intra Europe-flights, which is really weird. All of the seats on the Airbus 320 have exactly the same amount of space, 32 inches of pitch, the distance between seats. So what AF does is block the middle seat for Business Class travelers, which last night was rows 1-6. Starting in Row 7 and going back to row 12 was Premium, which is still three/three seating, but we get the same food, wine and service as Business Class. We were thrilled as they came by and handed us menus and cold cloth towels, and then served us on china with real glassware and silverware. They came by with ice cold Champagne, white wine and two choices of red, as well as a tasty dinner with fresh rolls. It was a lovely service and certainly did much to make the four-hour flight more enjoyable. I’ve posted the menu for those that care.
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| AF Menu |
We landed on time at 9:35 pm and the first thing we noticed was SNOW. Oh how I hate snow. It took a very long time to get through customs and immigration and by the time we found Cindy’s driver it was 10:15. We had to walk through the snow and slush to get to the bus. I was wearing my dancing shoe loafers with leather soles so that I could get though security quickly, but as it turns out, you don’t need to take your shoes off so I should have had on my sturdy walking shoes with rubber soles for the walk to the bus. The snow looked very pretty on the pine trees but it was cold and the snow does not improve the quality of the Russian drivers. Despite all that we still made it home by 11 pm and managed to unpack, have a quick nightcap and head to bed. Cindy had a very early meeting this morning so she only got about five hours sleep. However, she said that those who had taken the early morning flights from Nice were held up in traffic for hours yesterday afternoon so I guess it all worked out ok.
Today, it being a Monday, was laundry day so while the first load dried and the second washed, I went out to clean Cindy’s car. It appears that there was rain before the snow since the car was caked in a sheet of ice. I must say, standing there in the cold grey with wet cotton gloves, hammering away at ice and covered with the snow from the roof all I could think about was the Flower Market in Nice, with the colors, fragrances and the delicate beauty of the flower petals. It is never wise to trade brilliant blue skies, soft thyme-scented breezes and a golden sun for a cold grey sky and freezing winds that only brought the scent of boiling cabbage.
I did a little shopping for dinner tonight. Tomorrow I brave the traffic and go shopping for the week at Auchan. I also need to get a case and a half of Chardonnays from around the world for my wine class on Saturday afternoon. We have about twenty people signed up and it should be great fun.
On a lighter note, here are some videos regarding TSA and the ‘enhanced’ security for the holidays. Glad we are staying in Moscow! Best wishes, Cindy and Wm.
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