Comment dire au revoir à Paris? 29 mai 2015

How do you say goodbye to Paris? 

Having your life companion with you as you prepare to leave softens the transition.  Sharing moments and scenes of the 11è with Roy…mundane moments like yesterday, stopping in the charcuterie shop on the way home, at 6:30 pm, lining up with our French neighbors, resisting the already roasted chicken, because we can get that at home in Pittsburgh next week, and choosing instead the chipolatas aux herbes with some dried (but not too dry) saucisson et some goat cheese, too, with a baguette of course.

 

I have only shed tears once recently, well, maybe twice if you count the time yesterday at the Edith Piaf exhibit at the Bibliothèque Nationale in the karaoke room when an older French woman was singing along to Hymne a l’Amour with her life companion looking over her shoulder…“je renierais ma patrie, je renierais mes amis,…”  "I'll renounce my country, I'll renounce my friends"  for you! Dieu! So moving! The scene heightened my emotions at the end of three joyful and productive months in the city of light and love. These are the moments I will remember.

The other tearful time came when I was saying goodbye on Tuesday to Sylvie, one of the women who has welcomed me so warmly in the Goutte d’Or in the 18è. As I let her know, she is an inspiration to me, working with immigrant children and families to improve their quality of life in Paris. She and I also shared life experiences of transnational and transracial marriages in our past lives, with all their joys and challenges.

Leave taking with old friends certainly helps in processing this transition. Last Wednesday, we took the RER A from Paris out to the suburbs to see Annick, the daughter of one of my dear friends in Abidjan, her husband Ivan, and their three darling children. They took us out to lunch for delicious pizza (with a little rosé). I have known Annick since she was four years old and now she is a beautiful young woman with her own family who still addresses me as "Tantie." Tonight, my old friends Elaine and Andy from Abidjan days came over and after a drink in my apartment in the 11è, we headed to Waly Fay, the Senegalese resto for thiebou dieune; they are now friends of Roy's as well.

Today, I did my final two research interviews and said au revoir to my colleagues and friends at my little school in Paris. They have been so hospitable and kind in opening their classroom doors and hearts to me, and I have learned so much about the complexities of the education of immigrant children in France from them, with still more to learn. The principal told me that it has been beneficial to them to have me around, that they have begun to discuss certain questions that I have raised about culturally relevant teaching.

Tomorrow Roy and I will walk the streets of Paris, soaking in its sights, smells, rhythm, joie de vivre. One day more until au revoir, or à bientôt...

Review of Septime, 11e, Paris: 26 mai 2015

Our reservation was for 8:00 pm and we were seated immediately. The only option at Septime is the seven course chef’s menu for 65 Euro per person. In summary, we felt there were great entrees, good mains, good service, ending with a strange transitional (?) dessert.

The zucchini with lightly cooked rhubarb was served with soft goat cheese under it, and was good. The soup dish, my personal favorite, was exquisite, with green beans presented in a bowl with some herbs (mint and chives, for example) that the server then covered with a tasty light fish broth that had been infused with herbs. The white asparagus and fish course was delightful. My one complaint regarding the food was that the chicken was rather rubbery, but tasted good.

As for drinks, I had a glass of rosé that grew on me, followed later by a glass of Chablis that was lovely. My husband enjoyed his Deck-Donahue Beaupres Spring Pale made in Montreuil. Be aware that the small bottle of tap water costs 4.5 Euro which we felt was excessive.

The servers patiently explained components of the various dishes, often trying in English, although at times, the code-switching made it more difficult than if they had consistently used French.  (I speak French and my husband is learning.) One issue, no matter which language, is that we had probably 6 different servers throughout the evening, which made service seem disorganized.

The meal seemed to start strongly but we were truly disappointed when the first dessert-y course was brought to the table. Here is the excerpt of our conversation at that point:

The server, placing plates on our table: C’est une mousse aux petits pois avec des fraises et des petites pousses de petits pois.
Roy: Did she just say peas?

Me: She did…

This, to say the least, was a strange dish. The pea mousse was sweetened and came with sweet strawberries. I wanted to love it! Although the color combination was quite nice, I kept hoping the aftertaste of peas would leave my mouth. It wasn’t pleasant. David Lebovitz, if you are listening, please explain! Help me understand! We engaged one of the servers in a conversation about this dish, still doubting that peas were implicated in a dessert. She confirmed it and explained that it was meant to serve as a transition from the last main dish to the sweeter boule of ice cream at the end. J’aurais pu m’en passer, merci! Overall, the experience at Septime was good, but quirky.

Attendez, one last comment: the noise level is difficult, due to terrible acoustics with the cement walls. We suggest adding some acoustic tile to ameliorate this.