by David McGuffin | Feb 15, 2008 | David's Journal
After lunch we walked back to the bus, gathered up everyone, and headed out of town. Originally our plans were to take the motorway back to Paris and then head south, but the trucker’s strike changed all that. Instead, we took a small two-lane road heading southeast through the countryside. This, being my first experience off the beaten path in France, was an eye-opening journey. We traveled through miles and miles of wheat fields south of Chartres that reminded me very much of those I’d seen in Oklahoma and Kansas.
As we neared the area of Burgundy, the fields turned to mountains with evergreens at their tops. The valleys were filled with grapevines stretching from one small village to the next. Somewhere around Dijon we stopped for a break and many of us purchased little jars of their famous mustard. No “grey poupon” here, just well seasoned mustard laced with that famous white wine.
Dijon gave me a different perspective on France, its people, and its culture. Until this time I’ve only visited Paris, and I soon learned that was not the best representation of the country. Here in Dijon we got off the bus in the town center and walked down the main street peeking in shops and checking out the mustard, olives, culinary items, and wine. I picked up on a different dialect and with it a different attitude for the local folks. They were different than the Parisians.
Yes, I know, the local people we interacted with were shopkeepers who ultimately were there to sell us tourists some of their stuff…but they were nice about it. They weren’t like the Parisian shopkeepers who spoke English in a haughty and curt voice. Here in Dijon they spoke very little English but seemed to go out of their way to help us with our shopping. Between our silly “sign language,” the two or three words we knew in French, and their limited English vocabulary, we all had a great time buying bread, cheese, mustard, and wine.
Later we sat down at a cafe and were presented a menu entirely in French. There was no “tourist” menu as there had been in Paris. Charlotte saw a pile of french fries loaded with ketchup at a nearby table and set out to find them on the menu. After all the pitiful food we’d had on this trip, fries looked really good to me too. So here we were, sitting at this cute little French cafe in Dijon’s town center trying to figure out what the French word for FRENCH fries was!
Well, we couldn’t locate it on the menu, so finally when the waitress came over to get our order she pointed at the table and plate of fries. The waitress laughing said, “ahhh, french fries…pommes frites!, avec ketchup?” Not quite getting the translation but hearing “ketchup” Charlotte knew she had hit pay-dirt and voiced a confident oui, oui, s’il vous plaît!
So goes the story of how we got our first order of FRENCH fries in Dijon, France!
by David McGuffin | Jan 17, 2008 | David's Journal
“June 9 cont….
After all the traffic associated with the strike we finally made it to Chartres, albeit two hours late. Chartres is a wonderful little town. Although the town is centuries old, it is tidy, clean, and well maintained. The town’s main attraction is the cathedral of Chartres (Notre Dame de Chartres) . Built in the Gothic style during the 12th and 13th centuries, it is well known for its vast collection of stained glass. This is truly the most stained glass I’ve ever seen in one place. I thought St. Chappelle in Paris was beautiful, but here in Chartres, there’s just so much more! Equally impressive is the alter and the walls surrounding it that has a carved granite screen depicting the life of St. Mark. This was beautiful and we took time to study each panel recalling the associated Biblical account.
After spending about an hour in and around the cathedral, we took some time to explore the town center. Charlotte and I stopped at a little take-a-way place and picked up ham and cheese baguettes. Then we wandered around until we found a park, grabbed a bench, and enjoyed our lunch.
by David McGuffin | Jan 11, 2008 | David's Journal
June 9, 1997
This is our last few hours in Paris. I am sitting here finishing my breakfast and thinking that today we are going to travel to Chartres and then on to Colmar in the Alsace region of France. All seems to be going OK this morning, no complaints from the kids and Jason appears to be fine, and no one else is “ill” either.
Later…
While traveling to Chartres we encountered a trucker’s strike on the highway from Paris. This caused us a delay of two hours getting to Chartres. Apparently this strike was a protest of working conditions for truckers and also having something to do with Spanish drivers too. I am not sure of the details but I’ve never seen so many trucks blocking an interstate highway! I cannot imaging this happening in the United States!
We sat at a complete stand still for at least an hour. But we all were entertained! The truckers were making the most of the situation by breaking out their lounge chairs and having parties alongside the highway in the emergency breakdown lanes. We were especially appalled to see many of them, after one too many glasses of wine, non-chalantly relieving themselves along the side of the road. You should have heard the girls in the bus squeal with indignation!
January 2008 Reflections: I did some research about this strike in 1997. Apparently the newly elected Prime Minister Lionel Jospin caused a big upset during this time and it all came to a head in November 1997. I believe the “strike” we encountered was only a sample of what France and the EU was to see in November of that same year. So…Europe is full of surprises and you never know what’s going to be thrown at you. The key, then and now, is to make the most of the situation.
-David
by David McGuffin | Jan 6, 2008 | David's Journal
“June 8, 1997…
After the concert we packed up and had some free time (3 hours) to visit Paris on our own. Some went to the Orsay Museum and others to the Cluny. I went to St. Chappelle with Charlotte and Aunt Hilda. After the concert we had to make a switch of adults watching Jason. Charlotte was with Jason and mom left the concert and went to relieve her. It seems that on Charlotte’s return Métro ride to meet me at St. Michael, she was approached by a guy who harassed her the entire journey. When she got to me she was pretty upset. My lesson here is to never again let anyone ride public transportation alone!!
St. Chapelle is a magnificent church located just around the corner from Notre Dame. It is known for its beautiful stained-glass windows and richly painted stonework. Unlike most other churches dating from the middle ages, St. Chapelle still has its interior arches and stonework painted just as it was 900 years ago. Visiting here is well worth the time and a’Museum Pass’ made it easy and thrifty too.
After St. Chapelle we had planned to visit the Orsay, but there just wasn’t enough time. Instead we found a café, ordered bread, cheese, wine, and Orangina and relaxed. It was a good way to while away an hour.
We met for dinner at SALLAMBO’S, a place specializing in Northern African cuisine. Here we had couscous, (a ground-up type of meal which I’ve never had before), chicken, vegetables, and tomato soup. It was OK, but not something I would PAY to eat again. Most of the kids did not even touch their meals.
After dinner we met our bus and headed to the ‘Bateaux Mouches’ Siene River Cruise boat. We spent an hour and a half cruising the river with about 300 Japanese people who were all intent on posing for photographs. I had a little fun with them…once we noticed the Japaneese group was shooting photos of almost anything that ‘looked important’ a few of us started pointing and saying ‘look!’ and holding our cameras up as if we were taking a photograph. Invariably, the entire group of 60 Japaneese tourists would leave their side of the boat and run to our side to take a photo of our ‘sight.’ Yes, I know it was mean, but it was fun too!
We arrive back at the hotel by 10:15 p.m. Jason was feeling better. After the long day, Charlotte and I had no trouble falling asleep.”
REFLECTIONS: January 2008
That about wraps up our Paris experience with my band group in 1997. Even though I was a veteran Europe traveler and veteran band director, I still had some things to learn.
Teacher, Band director, and students:
Remember Jason? In my journal I made note of him being sick and how we re-arranged our schedules to “nurse” him. Well as it turned out, Jason had ventured out and had too much beer on that second night in Paris. I found out this morsel of information years later and was embarrassed that I had catered to his antics. Had I known then what I know now, all that shuffling of adults to care for him would not have happened. The alchol policy that the students, their parents, and I had agreed to was that beer or wine was allowed at dinner, while we were together, as a group. No other time was acceptable.
Educators realize the degree to which we put our reputation on the line when we take our students on any trip, whether it be to Europe, New York, or even Disney World. It’s a 24-7 supervision responsibility. Going to Europe complicates matters (especially in 1997) with different age limits on alcohol and tobacco use than in the USA. I admit I got “snowed” where Jason was concerned and learned a valuable lesson. Trust no one and “stick to my gun” with whatever rule I begin with. Now-a-days I’m a lot wiser because of this experience.
As far as traveling is concerned…I learned a lot as I was planning this tour for my group. It was here I began to realize that I was putting in a lot more time and effort on research than my tour “organizer” was doing. Essentially I told the company where I wanted to visit, what I wanted to do, and how I wanted to do it. This was a great learning experience for me when it finally came to planning and leading my own tours.
Oh well, live and learn….it looks like in the next episode we are off the Chartres!
by David McGuffin | Jan 4, 2008 | David's Journal
“June 8, 1997 (continued)…
Vincent helped Sarah find the bus in the huge parking lot and she got her moneybelt and ticket and was able to actually go in a nd see the “Hall of Mirrors” and other rooms.
We returned from Versailles at about 11:30 a.m. and had some free time around the Luxembourg Gardens for lunch. I accompanied Charlotte and Mom to the Métro station so they could go back to the hotel and relieve Michael of Jason (the kid who was sick).
On the way back to Luxembourgh Gardens I bought a grilled chicken sandwich, Coke Lite, and brownie for 35F at a place called ‘LA CROISSANTERIE’ a chain-type place on rue St. Michel. Currently I am eating and enjoying the pleasant sights, scenes, and sounds of the Luxembourg Gardens. A nice shady park with plenty of benches and pathways for enjoying a Sunday afternoon. We are due to assemble for our concert in 15 minutes…it wil be tough if Jason does not show because he plays the bari sax…’se la vie’…we are in Paris.
Well the concert was a success. I could not have asked for a more enthuisatic group of performers or more importantly, a more enegertic audience. I think there were over 300 people in attendance – people who actually arranged their afternoon plans to include a band concert in the Luxembourgh Gardens. I have never experienced anything like this before!!
Musically speaking it was an excellent concert. The kids played with enthusiasm and energy Having Devon, Keith, and Carey as leads really helped our sound and energy. Everyone were pretty strong players and even Jessie did a great job on the tuba. So Jason being sick did not hurt us too much at all. The audience consisted of mostly retired people, kids, and young families. They had come to the bandstand with listening and enjoying a band concert in mind, not to have it serve only as background music.
Little kids were dancing to the ‘Big Band’ stuff as well as some older adults. It was the most enjoyable concert that I have ever experienced. I just wished we had prepared more literature! Our band played three encores including ‘The Stars and Stripes Forever.’ WOW!!!”
REFLECTIONS January 1997:
Being a band director has allowed me to lead and be a part of many concerts in my time. But as I mentioned back in 1997, this concert in Luxembourgh Gardens was outstanding. Our band was not all that great. The music was fine, but it was the enthuiasm of the audience that created the sparkle, the mood, the ambiance. I’ve been back to concerts in the Luxembourgh Gardens on a Sunday afternoon many times since 1997 and have always found the audience to be wonderfully receptive. Go see for yourself the next time you’re in Paris.
by David McGuffin | Jan 2, 2008 | David's Journal
I’m chronicling my first “Big Group Band Trip” to Europe in 1997 and trying to draw some comparisons to the Europe travel experience of today. Continuing my journal entry…..
“June 8, 2007
We were awakened by the alarm at 6:20 a.m. Four hours of sleep didn’t quite cut it! At breakfast I found that Jason was sick and had been throwing up for hours. Everyone else seemed fine. We had breakfast in the hotel’s basement restaurant and then met to go to Versailles, the palace home of Louis XIV and others.
Mike (a parent) volunteered to stay back at the hotel with Jason (the sick kid) while we went to Versailles. Our bus arrived and soon we were on our way to Versailles. After about twenty minutes Sally realized she had left her Paris Museum Pass at the hotel…so, we turned around and went back to get it.
Even with the delays we still made it to Versailles by 9:00 a.m. We did not have to wait too long in the entry line. The adults who had Museum Passes walked right in without any wait. Lisa, our guide, took the students and got them in without too much of a wait either.
Versailles is a magnificent place, but it reminds me of the other palaces I’ve seen around Europe. Just like the Doges Palace, the Pitti Palace, and Schönbrunn; Versailles is filled with oppulence and the over indulgences of the rich and royals. If you’ve seen one rich rulers palace you’ve seen them all. Regular admission is 35F, we paid 70F for our Paris Museum Pass so we’ve got to “see” at least one other sight back in Paris to make it worth the cost.
Sarah left her passport and moneybelt on the bus. Ughhh…how many times do I have to say it. “
-David
