After arriving in Arles, France we were told about an amazing 2000 year old Roman aqueduct just a 45 minute drive away. We thought it sounded like a perfect day trip and we were not disappointed! The aqueduct is massive and really shows the engineering skills of the Romans. If you find yourself in the South of France, don’t miss this one!
Sydney’s Corner: Arles Street Markets
All about the Market
If you are in Arles, France and want to know a good place to eat, go to the Wednesday and Saturday Street Market. I like the Saturday street market. It is bigger than the Wednesday Market. They have food on both days. On the Saturday Market, they have animals for sale. On Wednesdays, they have lots of toys and food.
All about Cheese
In Paris there is scary cheese. At the market in Arles there is even scarier cheese. There is green cheese and red cheese and moldy cheese and cheese with blue dots on it. The scarier the better! I like all kinds of cheese. My favorite cheese is the green cheese. In the green cheese there is pesto.
The history of cheese is cool. Do you know how cheese started? I will tell you. There was a guy that was traveling with milk in an animal stomach. It curdled and turned into cheese. He called it cheese. Cheese started about 4000 BC. In France and Italy they have 400 different types of cheese and in Britain they have 700 different cheese types. Did you know you can make cheese from reindeer, yak, cow, sheep, goat and buffalo milk. You can pretty much make cheese from any animal that produces milk. I think that yak cheese would taste good.
All About Animals
At the market there were animals. There are geese, ducks, chickens and bunnies. One of the chickens laid an egg. There are mostly brown bunnies but there was one black bunny. The bunnies are really friendly. I think a human has never really petted the bunnies because they are curious. The bunnies are meant for food, but you can buy them as a pet. The farmer was also clipping a duck’s wing. I will tell you how they clip the wings. First they spread the duck’s wing out and then they get a pair of scissors. They clip of the ends of the duck’s feather. It does not hurt even though the duck does not like it.
Now you know all about the market in Arles, France.
Christmas in Paris
Christmas season in the United States assaults all your senses. From Christmas lights, bell ringers, Christmas music, crowds of people shopping, shopping, and shopping some more, you just can’t escape it. It’s a wonderful time of year, but is also so commercialized and over-the-top that it seems ridiculous. Yet, we can’t resist the impulse to fight the crowds at the malls and buy presents for people so we don’t feel guilty. More is better. At least, that is what the advertisements lead us to believe.
Having just spent the entire month of December in Paris we now have a new appreciation for Christmas. When we first imagined Christmas in Paris we pictured it similar to the United States, but in French and perhaps with a bit more style. When we arrived in Paris on December 1st we were shocked to not see any Christmas decorations. In the United States, Christmas decorations go up in stores the day after Halloween. But during our one-month stay in Paris we learned something. In Paris, Christmas is simple. There is no Black Friday, no bell ringers, and no Christmas music. The decorations are simple, yet elegant, and don’t go up until a week or two before Christmas. There are no mass crowds in the malls with shopping carts overflowing with merchandise. Yes, people do buy presents, but not to the extent that we do in the United States. To be honest, it was really refreshing. It was simple.
So what do the Parisians do to celebrate Christmas? They do what everyone should do during the holiday season; they have fun! Christmas in Paris is like a carnival. Amusement rides, carousels, and ice-skating rinks are setup for family fun. A few Christmas markets pop up around town where you can buy handcrafts or treats like cotton candy (barbe a papa) for the kids and hot wine for the adults.
Christmas in Paris is also all about the food. A couple of weeks before Christmas you start to see decorations go up in the shop windows. The French bakeries, or pâtisseries, decorate their windows and display cases with Yule log shaped cakes, called Buche de Noel. Chocolatiers decorate their windows with freshly made chocolate Santa Claus’ and other Christmas themed treats. Instead of cheap plastic decorations, Parisians decorate with lots of edible decorations that are truly pieces of art. Another popular Christmas food in Paris is oysters. Fresh oysters are everywhere, from markets to restaurants; they really seem to be the Christmas food of choice. It’s hard to imagine oysters being a traditional Christmas food, but it actually stems from a 17th century royal edict. At that time, the number of oysters in France were decreasing so they made a law banning the eating of oysters except for those months that had an ‘r’ in the name. Voila, oysters in décembre.
For those that need their fix of Christmas music in English, the American Church gets together one evening a few nights before Christmas to go caroling. During our stay there we needed such a fix and decided to go. We met with the other carolers inside the church and enjoyed hot drinks and cookies before venturing out to the busy Metro where we sang Jingle Bells to the delight of the passengers and then walked up the busy Avenue des Champs-Élysées singing an assortment of Christmas songs in English. Although we do not consider ourselves good singers, just being around like-minded people who needed a good dose of Christmas Music in English and wanting to share it with others was a lot of fun.
On Christmas Eve the city of Paris is feels like any other day, with the exception of more church bells calling people to Christmas Eve Mass. We had considered going to Christmas Eve service at Notre Dame, but after witnessing the setting up of stadium-sized bleachers outside the church, we knew it would be a zoo. Since we were visiting Paris with our 8-year old daughter we were hoping to find something to do that she would tolerate. When we went caroling with the American Church they had mentioned that they had a family-friendly Christmas Eve service and we decided to go to that one. The service was indeed very family-friendly and ended with everyone lighting glow sticks and singing Silent Night. Afterwards, the reception was very nice with hot wine and snacks.
Christmas Day in Paris feels like a ghost town. The streets are deserted, the stores are closed, and it is eerily quiet. That is unless you go down to the Eiffel Tower, which happens to be one of the very few things open on Christmas Day. Thinking that the crowds might be less on Christmas and we could actually go to the top without waiting in long lines, we made the journey to the tower. We were surprised to find it the busiest we had seen it in the 3 weeks that we had been in Paris. Everyone else had the same idea and the place was packed with people at the base of the tower as well as across the river at the Christmas Market.
If you are looking to spend Christmas in Paris, you won’t be disappointed. The escape from the craziness of the American Christmas was a relief and we really enjoyed our time there. We have always had big Christmases in the United States with lots of presents and way too much food. After our Christmas in Paris, we now see that it is not about gluttony. Christmas in Paris is about the simple joys of life: enjoying good food in moderation and spending quality time with family. In the future, we will celebrate Christmas differently. We will celebrate Christmas simply with good food and with family, the way it should be.
Sydney’s Corner: Eiffel Tower
Everything about the Eiffel Tower that you ever wanted to know
The history of the Eiffel Tower is so weird. The Eiffel tower was built for the world expo in 1889. If the Eiffel tower did not win there would be a giant guillotine. The tower won in first place and the guillotine won in second place. If the guillotine won it would be like “It is okay.” I think the guillotine would not be here today if it won. One time a person hated it so he ate lunch on it so he would not have to see it. People used to think it was haunted. One time, a guy jumped off it with a parachute that he made and died. This is amazing what you are about to hear. It took 3 years to paint the Mona Lisa and 2 years to build the Eiffel tower. But the Mona Lisa is 36 inches and the Eiffel Tower is 1,063 feet. It was the tallest building in that time.
I think Eiffel Tower is awesome. I climbed to the second floor and then waited in a really long elevator line to go to the top. You can take the elevator all the way to the top. The stairs only lead to the second floor. Then you have to take the elevator the rest of the way. The first floor view is okay. The second floor is like wow. The top is like WOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW! You can see all of Paris. It was REALLY windy at the top.
Facts about the Eiffel Tower
- The Eiffel tower was built to stand only for a little while. But they put a radio tower on the top and the Parisians said “YES, LETS KEEP IT.”
- They use the tower for stuff like advertisements, for fireworks launchpad and a radio tower.
- It takes 60 ton of paint to paint the Eiffel Tower.
- They paint the Eiffel Tower every 7 years.
- There are 720 steps to the 2nd floor.
- There is a post office at the bottom. If you want to climb the Eiffel Tower, you should bring a postcard. They will stamp it.
Photo of the Week: Heavy Metal Parisians
After nearly a month of the typical Paris fashions something different really jumps out at you. In Paris, everyone looks the same. Black wool coats, tight pants, skirt with tights and boots, and everything in dark or drab colors. They seriously look like clones after awhile. So, when we were walking through the park in front of the Eiffel Tower and came across this motley group that looked like they were right out of my 1980’s high school, I had to stop and take a photo. The back of their jackets had giant patches displaying heavy metal bands such as Metallica, Slayer, Judas Priest, and others. I really wanted a shot of the back of them with the backs of their jackets showing, but did not want to shoot from afar without their permission. So, I walked up to them and pointed to the camera and asked, “Photo?” while pointing at them. They turned around from their huddle and looked at me curiously. I was not sure if they were going to beat me up or give me the photo I wanted. They did not speak English and I did not speak French, but they quickly grasped what I wanted and posed for a photo. I got the camera ready and then did something to make the shot more dynamic. I gave them the international sign of heavy metal, “the horns.” After that, they did what you see here and what I feel is a great shot. This is NOT your typical Paris!
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