French la Vie

 

 

The flight from California to France was uneventful. Which in fact means it went very well, safe and sound. Someone asked the other day in the comment section, "If I could sleep on the plane?" Let me say this: I can sleep anywhere at anytime. Falling asleep and staying asleep is one of my greatest talents. I sat between two people, one had a baby on her lap. Even with the baby crying sometimes, pulling my hair, giggling, pointing with wonder at every little thing I had an amazing uneventful sleep-full flight.

 

 

 

 

 

Voila, is a very assuming word to have in one's French pocket. It is as handy as: 

Merci – Thank you,

or

Bonjour – Hello

and 

Combien – How much,

and equal to

Ca-va – Which can be used for nearly everything under the sun:

It means "Here, or There it is", but also can be used as, "Duh" or , "Yes, you got it", or simply as a filler word such as the word OK.

Other than Ca-va you gotta keep, "Voila" in your pocket.

I grabbed a magazine from the pocket in front of me on the plane and viola, I realized that I had more English words in my head than French. Every time I go home (about once a year) I find out the new "trendy" words. Some in the past have been "24/7," "Bar None", "As if", "Not", "A-Ha moment", or more currently, "Selfie", "Photobomb", "My peps",  or expressions like, "Been there, done that", or "Make it pop". It is funny how certain "buzzwords" come in and claim the new popular "Trendy" words for the year. 

The new trendy words for adults seemed to be:

Sustainability, gulten free, locally sourced… seemed being a vegetarian needed an uplift or words to explain some of its values, as a friend noted to me, "These new trend words seem to note the evident." Eaten healthy has trendy words to define itself. 

 

 

 

 

It is the surreal moment coming home after being home. The flight period, the change of hours, the saying goodbye and saying hello, the culture-language-family thing.

The awareness of how far away yet not far away,

The click in my head that I am not longer here or there,

The oui, the merci, the pardon French words that slip out yes, thank you, excuse me.

Surreal the time, distance, in the air, two worlds… amazes me.

 

 

 

Seeing an ad for Laduree's macarons in a French magazine on the airplane. Good bye chocolate chips… Realizing I forgot to buy some. Oh no.

 

 

 

There it was the play of the French and English words.

Teasing me about being in between two worlds, "Viola!"

The next ad was for Mariage et Freres Christmas Cake tea.

Christmas Cake?

Buche de Noel?

I guess you could say Mariage et Freres ad was, "Making it Pop!"

Addresses in Paris for some utterly devine Buche de Noel Cakes:

Gateaux Thoumieux

Francois Pralus

Delmontel

 

 

 

 

We are going to spend Christmas in Paris. Red and Green are not traditional Christmas colors in France, like they are for Christmas in the States.

Sacha asked, "If we are having Christmas in Paris are you going to put up a tree?"

The Christmas spirit soars in Sacha, he added, "…and one at home too?"

I didn't daresay, "Pink?" He might be half French, but… Christmas is Willows.

(Christmas in Paris: What to do?)

 

 

 

 

 

While the baby on the plane played with my hair, I flipped through the pages of the magazine taking random photos, it entertained both of us. The baby was a doll. Ten and a half hours of cuteness, off and on sleep, and magazines. Not bad. 

 

 

 

 

Fin – The end.

and there you have it my random post about my flight back.

Voila.