goodbye

Okay, mes amis, I believe this is my last post. I leave for Dublin tomorrow to tour with Bruce and the choir of St. Philip's. (6 days in Dublin at St. Patrick's, a week in London at Westmininster, and back to DC on August 6.) This blog was just for Paris, so... adieu. I've had tons o' fun writing and hearing back from you, and I'm so glad that I've been able to share my experiences from the past 8 months with you.

In that spirit:

THE LAST FEW DAYS have been a wonderful end to my Parisian life. Saturday was pretty much shot to hell, as I slept from 7am until noon, recovering from Harry Potter. In the afternoon Harry and I bummed around, went shopping (well, he went shopping; I stood in line for every to get tax rebates), and enjoyed the sun. I babysat that night for an AmCath family and got to see what would happen if I, like the mother of the family, who's from Oklahoma, marry a Frenchman. (Hint: it involves a three bedroom apartment with crown moulding in the 16th. Not bad.) On Sunday morning, Harry surprised me with an incredible breakfast of champagne, raspberries and cream, eggs, bacon, and hash browns. We somehow managed to join some of the AmCath kids at lunch a bit later to say gooodbye. Needless to say, we didn't eat much, but it was great to see everyone. Afterwards we headed to the Luxembourg Gardens to eat ice cream and read in the sun. We were going to metro home, but decided to get off a couple stops early and try out the new Vélibs that are stationed all over the city. (NY Times article on the Vélibs here, if you have Times Select.) It was a blast! The first thirty minutes are free once you've bought a 1€ card, so we rode around for half an hour, dropping our bikes off near my house. Harry then left to see some friends; I met up with them a few hours later, and we all went for drinks at the top of the Montparnasse Tower. The restaurant seemed to think that the view permitted them to charge 15€ for a gin and tonic, which is a leeeetle steep, but the sights were stunning. It was bizarre to look out over the city and realize that I may never live here again. Bizarre, and sad. To cheer me up, Harry and I vélibed home (walking would have taken 15 minutes, buut biking was so much more fun!) We raced nearly to Invalides and back - he won, obviously. In my defense, though, I was wearing a dress!

Today will be packing, cleaning the apartment, running errands, meeting Harry and our friend Ludo for lunch, and grabbing a quick drink with Laura. I'll be off to the airport at 11pm tomorrow morning, and it will be goodbye apartment, goodbye friends, goodbye Harry, and goodbye Paris.