Mardi. Tuesday.

This morning I realized that I have more bananas than days left. It’s weird how one counts down the days, whether it’s for Christmas when you’re little, or the last day of school when you’re a teen — or departing a favorite city as a grown woman. Personally, I always went by the expiration date on milk containers — that’s how I knew my birthday was approaching!

At any rate, I have 4 bananas left.

Yesterday, I bought my last bouquet of flowers, as well, and asked the man to trim them for me. They always ask if they’re a gift, or for you and votre maison. I chose roses in a color I would describe as peaches and pinks. Exquisite!

At twilight last evening, I enjoyed a glass of champagne at a café near l’Alliance Française in a restaurant I’d eaten at once with my friend Irene when I first arrived. I may have eaten there twice. At any rate, it’s on a sleepy side street, but there were plenty of passers-by, and after a long while, a friend of mine happened by! She joined me and we were both so happy to see each other in person before I left. We chatted for more than an hour, catching up and remembering our adventures. Finally, it was time to part and we hugged and lingered as we stretched out our good-byes, holding hands till the last moment. Serendipity!

As I walked home I decided to stop at my corner café for a bite. I just go from one cafe to another! (This is where I had my first French meal, way back in January.) It was late, and the place was quiet. I had my choice of tables. I ordered onion soup because the waiter told me it was delicious and home-made. I enjoyed every last bit of it, sopping up the final bit with my bread., washing it down with a nice dry red wine. Heaven.

Then I ordered a tarte tatin, which I learned in school was a must-try French specialty. The waiter was delighted. He served it with a smile and some crème fraîche. Yum. We had a nice, long conversation since I was the only diner in that section. I shared with him that these were my final days here and that I’d had my first official French meal there upon arrival. He asked me what I’d had. I said, I ordered an omelette and I was afraid to speak. Now, look at me chatting confidently with the staff! We laughed. Un autre bon moment.

I started to think about how far I’ve come on this journey. It was a good measure to realize how comfortable I’ve become chatting with locals and how I had to really THINK about that first day, being neevous.

Today…

Ce matin, je suis allé au magasin de chocolat dans ma rue, et j’ai acheté une boite de chocolats pour un cadeaux.

The chocolates are beautiful, and spell out “MERCI” amidst the luscious cubes of dark and milk delights. I plan to give them to the young women in the Cultural Office at Alliance Française tomorrow. I wrote a long thank you letter en français, bien sûr!

In the letter, I thanked all of my teachers by name, and overall thanked everyone for sharing Paris, its history, culture, art, and language with me. I told them the experience surpassed my expectations, and also thanked them for showing me how to ride the Métro! My heart is full.

Then I rode the Métro over to the Cité stop (at 0 Kilomètres) to meet my friends, Lisa, Harry, and Emily. We took a wonderful tour that began in front of la Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris, and ended with a self-guided tour underneath the Grande Dame, where they’ve unearthed quite the archaeological dig dating back to like 53 b.c., if I remember correctly.

Or…Why Paris looks like Paris

Afterwards, we hung out at a café, enjoying some lunch and/or pastries and beverages.

My friends had a tour scheduled for la Conciergie, but I opted out — having done and loved it.

I also wanted to check out a painter whose work I admired along the Left Bank. We had stopped there the other day, and I helped my friend(s) make the purchases by being a translater, etc. Beautiful watercolors. I hoped I could find him again, having not written down the name of the cross street.

I found him near Pont Neuf!

I quickly looked at the work he had posted and told him I definitely wanted to buy 2, possibly 4 of his pieces. He was delighted in a sweet way. His prices were more than fair, and I took off my sunglasses, looked him in the eyes and said, I’m not trying to bargain, I’m an artist. He said, “Ah, Je me souviens de toi maintenant — tu comprends!” then, he hugged me – a decidedly un-French thing to do, but it was wonderful! I told him the pieces I wanted, and then asked where the nearest “distributeur automatique” was. He told me, and I proceeded down the long Rue Dauphine.

The other day he had told me he was there every day, depending on the weather, and I told him I would be back. I kept my promise.

All the artists ask/post « No Photos Please » for obvious reasons. I would have loved to share his work with all of you, but of course, I respected his situation and didn’t take photos. Let me just explain he gets A LOT out of one sheet of D’Arches Aquarelle papier!!! He had lovely narrow vertical pieces, shallow horizontal cityscapes, etc. His work was meticulous and also charming.

When I came back, he said he wanted a coffee (Had I known, I’d have bought him one!), and said he’d be right back. So, I watched his stuff for him. Lol! When he came back, I told him the pieces I wanted and why. I told him how much I admired his work and what great treasures/memories they would be for me.

I chose the following four subjects:

• Les Deux Magots Café
• Le Musée du Louvre avec la Pyramide (I.M. Pei)
• Shakespeare & Co.
• Le Palais Garnier

All four pieces are beautifully rendered, and I am so happy to have them, and will treasure them always — as they were all places I loved visiting. I asked if he would do one more thing for me: pose for a selfie with me! He did, and held up one of his pieces in between us. We shared a warm and gracious good-bye.

Then I walked toward home, stopping to enjoy une coupe de champagne (surprise!) at a favorite café because these are my last days after all. As if I need an excuse.

I’m scheduled to see a friend for lunch tomorrow, and maybe another for a drink later. But then, I really have to pack. After I bought the chocolates earlier, I stopped in the local pharmacie to check on Covid test availability. I need to have a test before I return to the U.S. (There’s irony there, but I’ll leave it at that)

I am making the most of my last week, that’s for sure! I think I used my last Métro ticket this morning, so I’ll need to buy a few more for tomorrow and Thursday, depending on where I’m going. My guess is, I’ll spend part of my last day at le musée d’Orsay. From there, it’ll be all about packing, crying, and arranging a taxi for early Friday morning.

As my adventure nears its end, I have to say I don’t think I missed much. I’ve had adventures, tons of intensive (!) school work and homework, food to die for, daily champagne and bread, friends from around the world, cultural experiences I would never have had without the school, and so many laughs, missteps, and plenty of proud moments, too. I even took Holy Communion at Sacré-Cœur! It’s been a dream come true.