We have now reached the point where a whole year had transpired between our trip! I can hardly believe it; time has flown by! It's bittersweet, but genuinely fills me with excitement for any other adventurous adventures up ahead.
I'm sure you didn't come here to read my nostalgic scribblings, you're here for the blog! So here go the final two days of our Paris section of our Europe trip.
Sunday rolled around, and we got ready for our weekend meeting. That's honestly one of the beauties of being one of Jehovah's Witnesses; no matter where you go, you'll more than likely find a congregation and receive the same spiritual food you would at your home congregation. The Kingdom Hall we went to was not very far, fortunately, and we arrived with plenty of time to associate and then enjoy the program. Our French hosts were nice enough to help us out and translate comments so that way we could participate in the Watchtower study.
Post meeting, we wanted to grab a quick bite, so we began hunting for a local Chinese buffet. Alas, when we arrived it was closed!! Armelle's brother suggested McDonald's, much to our American chagrin. With much persuasion, they told us that it tasted different from the U.S. counterpart.
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| SO MUCH BETTER THAN BACK HOME |
THEY WERE RIGHT. (I will go into more detail in the upcoming Nom-Noms of Paris post)
We did not have truly solid plans for Sunday, but that flexibility allowed us to do a spontaneous picnic in front of Les Invalides, a wartime collection of museums and monuments dating back to the late 1670s. We got a few friends together and spent a lovely time on the greens in very Parisian fashion.
Amongst all of this, however, was a small hiccup. We had plans the following day to visit the French Bethel branch in Louviers but needed to figure out how to get our whole group to travel that almost 2 hour distance. We opted to send me Sunday night by train to another sister's house up north (technically closer to Bethel). Despite having lived in New York State most of my life, this was my first truly alone train ride. Needless to say, I was a bundle of excitement and nerves, but I made it safe and sound to my destination.
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| *crying on the inside* |
Monday morning rolled around and we were on route to the lovely Bethel Branch. One fun fact: it's a goal of mine to visit every single Bethel Branch in the world. Going to this branch, along with the Italy Branch some time afterwards, would scratch off two of the (if I remember correctly) 90 that I still need to visit.
If you're familiar with any of the U.S. Branch facilities, you'll recall that all of them are quite large, sporting over 1000 Bethelites per facility easily. It was a very pleasant surprise to then be able to tour a more intimate complex with our wonderful guide Ben. We even were able to have lunch there!
After a nice hearty lunch that involved getting soaked by a shaken bottle of French sparkling lemonade, we wrapped up the tour and commenced riding back to the heart of Paris for our last dinner with friends.
HOWEVER.
I had my own plan that I needed to accomplish pre-dinner, that Sara was co-conspirator with me for. While the boys got ready for dinner, I prepared for....A HAIRCUT. A DRASTIC haircut.
Once the glorious deed was done, we went to what I'd describe as easily as the most fashionably Parisian couple's apartment. The wonderful pair presented us with a full French cheese board, followed by homemade ratatouille and very strong coffee. It was an encouraging wrap up to another phenomenal day.
Wow this was surprisingly less bitter than sweet to write. Now that we're at the year point, all of the great memories are flooding back. I thought that the nostalgia would sadden me but QUITE the opposite. Thank you all for following along with the first portion of this Parisian epic! Next stop, Italia!!! Until the next time,
Love,
The Adventurous A.
If you're familiar with any of the U.S. Branch facilities, you'll recall that all of them are quite large, sporting over 1000 Bethelites per facility easily. It was a very pleasant surprise to then be able to tour a more intimate complex with our wonderful guide Ben. We even were able to have lunch there!
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| Can't go to a Bethel and NOT take a picture with Caleb and Sophia |
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| Another fun fact: Louvier has a whole display dedicated to the French Witnesses who suffered in concentration camps during WWII. I highly recommend visiting |
After a nice hearty lunch that involved getting soaked by a shaken bottle of French sparkling lemonade, we wrapped up the tour and commenced riding back to the heart of Paris for our last dinner with friends.
HOWEVER.
I had my own plan that I needed to accomplish pre-dinner, that Sara was co-conspirator with me for. While the boys got ready for dinner, I prepared for....A HAIRCUT. A DRASTIC haircut.
 |
| I will give the whole story in the following Blog Nugget before we start the Italy series. For now, enjoy this sneak peek from behind. |
Once the glorious deed was done, we went to what I'd describe as easily as the most fashionably Parisian couple's apartment. The wonderful pair presented us with a full French cheese board, followed by homemade ratatouille and very strong coffee. It was an encouraging wrap up to another phenomenal day.
Wow this was surprisingly less bitter than sweet to write. Now that we're at the year point, all of the great memories are flooding back. I thought that the nostalgia would sadden me but QUITE the opposite. Thank you all for following along with the first portion of this Parisian epic! Next stop, Italia!!! Until the next time,
Love,
The Adventurous A.
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