Clermont-Ferrand

The next day, we were set to leave Paris.  Tessa posed in front of one of our windows where she had spent so much time watching the street scene below.  I just love these tall, old fashioned windows, especially since we didn't have air conditioning. 

We headed to the train station without realizing that we had left our stroller at the hotel.  Oh well, we meant for it to be a disposable stroller anyways.  The only problem was that Lil' Pink, one of Tessa's favorite stuffed animals was in the stroller basket.  Other than that trauma, the train trip to Clermont-Ferrand was pleasant.  Ryan loves traveling by train and I agree with him.  The seats are large and recline and there is plenty of leg room.  Plus the gentle swaying of the train is perfect for taking a nap.  Our hotel in Clermont-Ferrand was more like a condo with a small kitchen and table area.  The extra space was nice, as was the air conditioning.  Ryan started work on Monday and so Tessa and I entertained ourselves around town.  Our first adventure was finding and mastering the Laundromat.  Once that task was accomplished, we were able to do fun things like shop.  I love this beret and scarf set and would have bought it for Tessa but she didn't want it.     

Tessa and I took it easy while Ryan worked.  We would sleep late and then have breakfast before setting out to see the town.  One day, while shopping, we stopped at McDonald's for lunch.  This was inevitable at some point.  I think it's funny that McDonald's serves sparkling water, but otherwise, it's pretty much the same. 

Most French people walk everywhere, and we did too for the most part.  But we also used the public tram.  It was cheap and easy, with a stop right in front of our hotel.  Tessa thought it was great.  She also loved that we went to bakeries and ice cream shops each day.  The food is so good!  One place we discovered had huge chocolate beignets, absolutely delicious.   

There are many public gardens in Clermont-Ferrand.  We wandered around and Tessa played on the playgrounds.

The largest cathedral in town is made from volcanic rock so it is black.  It's quite striking and unlike any other cathedral we had seen.  It was being renovated and Tessa was not at all disappointed to be unable to tour it. 

Ryan had a grueling schedule of work and social events but most nights he was able to join us for dinner.  We managed the hours without him just fine even though my French is terrible.  I seem to have forgotten everything I once knew!  We were fussed at in a couple of stores for actually touching and playing with the merchandise.  Heaven forbid we play with a toy in a toy store, what was I thinking?!  French culture is very different but everyone was actually quite nice about it, especially since I at least remembered how to say I was sorry.  A few other oddities, there are no grocery bags, you need to bring your own.  Thankfully I knew this one and had bags from the Michelin care packages that were in our room when we arrived.  You also are responsible for weighing fruits and veggies yourself and telling the cashier the weight.  That was a new one for me.  And I know our servers thought I was odd ordering a litre of sparkling water for just the two of us.  The French don't drink nearly as much water as we do.  If I could have the wine, maybe I wouldn't be drinking so much water either!  The other thing we noticed is that the French have a very different temperature tolerance than we do.  Maybe it's because I'm pregnant and prone to being hot, or maybe it's because I grew up in Texas where we ran the air conditioner 24/7, 365 but I definitely prefer it cooler than the French.  Each day the maid would reset our a/c, I'm sure assuming we didn't mean to have it set on the coldest temperature.  People walked about in multiple layers even though it was beautiful with temps in the 70s.  And poor Ryan, at work they turned off the a/c for the year.  Some things are just different but we laugh about it because what else can you do?