A Warm Day of Shopping

Pages From Jan's Travel Journal:  Saturday, June 10 2017

Since it was weekend, we slept late. In fact, Janey was still asleep when Desmond and I went out for coffee. We walked over to the French Coffee shop, where I breakfasted on a trio of mini beignets - chocolate, apple,and raspberry. We relaxed in the square while listening to the bluesy notes of a saxophone, drifting down from an apartment window. 

When we were able to rouse Janey, the three of us headed into town to a thrift shop. There, we had fun buying lots baby clothes for Chris and Mathilde's unborn son. All of the items were of excellent quality. I also picked out two tops for myself. Janey is at that awkward in-between stage and was unable to find anything she liked (that fit) in either the children's or the women's section. Des got several great shirts and some jeans. 

The thrift shop is on this pretty street
 in Orleans, France.

At home, we snacked for lunch on sausage, cheese, chips, cashews. And we heard good news from Craig! He had received his passport and would be arriving on Monday! That really gave a boost to our spirits.

That afternoon, the three of us took the long tram ride to Auchan, where we picked up some new pillows and a few other things for the house. We were very hot and tired by then. What could be better than a stop at Autour de la Terre? We each enjoyed a glass of iced green tea as we lingered in the cool, calm interior of the tearoom.

The calm interior of Autour de la Terre.

In the evening, Desmond made noodle bowls for supper. The soup was delightful, full of grilled zucchini, spinach, lardons, kimchi, sesame oil, and curry paste. Yum! We ended the day with a game of Racko. The weather forecast was for a 90 degree day on Sunday, so we made plans to go to the Arab market in morning and stay in the rest of the day, cleaning house and preparing for Craig's arrival. 

Tasty and colorful noodle bowls
 made a wonderful meal.

A Disappointed Trio

Pages From Jan's Travel Journal: Thursday, June 8 2017


I awoke at 7:30 with the sun in my eyes. I loved having the window open at night to allow the cool air to circulate, but I wasn't quite ready to get up! I rolled over and tried to go back to sleep, but then the construction noise began and there was just no way. I'm not exactly sure what the workers were doing in the square, but it certainly made a lot of racket!

Des had the day off and we made plans to visit a flea market in a neighboring town. Desmond had been there before and described it to me, so I was looking forward to finding some bargains. We had a quick breakfast of chocolate chip brioche, which was very good. After checking the website to be sure the flea market was open, we rode the tram to the other side of town and then we boarded a bus for the long ride to the warehouse where the market was held. Poor Janey had motion sickness, but once we arrived at the bus stop, she began to perk up and was soon skipping along quite happily.

There was quite a bit of traffic on the road which the sidewalk bordered, and we noticed many cars and some pedestrians that were headed in the same direction as the three of us. After a ten minute walk, we reached the flea market and were soon disappointed to discover that they were closed while preparing for a big sale over the weekend! Well, that would have a nice thing to put on their website! We turned away and trudged in the heat back to the bus stop.

Walking to the bus stop after an unsuccessful journey.

Janey tried not to complain as her motion sickness returned. She sat quietly, slumped next to me, and I felt bad for her. Des and I decided to stop at the pharmacy on the way home to purchase some medicine for Janey. When we reached Orléans, we treated ourselves to tea at Autour de la Terre. Janey fell in love with the place, as we knew she would. This lovely little tearoom is a peaceful oasis near the cathedral. Actually, it's not so little. There is a cozy front room, a sunroom, and a garden. Each area is charming in its own way. Janey took her time choosing a tea while she paged through the menu/sketchbook. Sadly, none of us had a pen or pencil for her to sketch with.

Janey's tea was served in a lovely iron teapot. Des had chosen hot chocolate. The shop has offerings of coffee, tea, and chocolate from around the world, and I know how wonderful their coffee is, but I chose an iced green tea that was delicious and very refreshing. We promised my granddaughter that we would return another day so that she could add a drawing to the sketchbook.

This tea room is a pleasant place to linger.

Des and Janey at Autour de la Terre, Orleans France.

On the way home, we purchased ice cream cones and ate them as we walked slowly along the beautiful streets near the Loire. That evening, we treated ourselves to Chez Ming for dinner. It was a fun meal and we all enjoyed the food and the conversation. 

Can you spot the kitty?
We saw this on the way to the restaurant.

A beautiful view of the Loire and Orleans, France.