I walked from the train station to Madame Lamy's, all the while getting more and more butterflies in my stomach! I finally arrived at Rue Massenet and soon found myself knocking on the door ("frappe, frappe, frappe!") of my new home -- Madame Lamy greeted me. She was a 75 year old widow who sported red lipstick and was impeccably dressed in a gray wool skirt, a freshly pressed white blouse, high heels, and a silk scarf. I would soon learn that she was a classical pianist and that she taught lessons in Paris.
Madame Lamy showed me to my room and I unpacked. She then called me down to dinner serving my new favorite meal -- cheese soufflé! No words can describe how delicious this was! After dinner, Madame invited me to watch TV with her in the salon. This became a nightly routine. She would watch TV, discuss politics, read a bit of Le Figaro and smoke a long thin cigar on one of those holders -- you know, like the one Cruella de Ville used in 101 Dalmations! She was quite interesting and to me, so very, very French. Of course, in the beginning, I could hardly understand anything she said because she spoke so quickly in French, but that went away with time and I grew to really appreciate my conversations with her.
25 comments:
I think that you were very lucky that you and Madame Lamy seemed to get along, or else it would have been an extremely long year! I like how you put the pictures on, because it really helps visualizing your life in France.
I think your room is tres charment! I bet it was a great comfort after such an emotionally tolling journey to find a nice woman with a comfortable bed and a meal for you in France. Did she ever give you piano lessons?
I wish my name was Giles... reminds me of a fish. Madame Lamy seems like she would be a very nice woman, much like my great grandmother who also was a great pianist (now in a home with alzheimer's). Also that house looks very homey and comfortable. It sounds like you were very lucky to have her as host.
Sally, I learned how to use my scanner today so that I could share these photos with you -- glad you enjoyed them!
Hannah, cheese soufflé is EXTREME comfort food! And no, I never took lessons from her...I wasn't good enough!
Ben (or should I call you "Giles"?), how interesting that your grandmother was a great pianist! I am sorry that she has Alzheimer's. My grandfather had that disease, too. And you're right, the house was very "homey" and Mme Lamy was a wonderful lady!
Madame Lamy seems like a very nice person, my grandmother is French and she cooks very good food. The house you were staying in looked very comfortable.
Well, first off I have to say that I have always wanted to walk off a plane or bus or any transportation vehicle and see my name on sign, or be holding a sign to find someone else. That is kind of one of my life goals for later on in life ha-ha. Anyways I think that Madame Lamy must have been someone great to spend a whole year with and like Sally said, it was good you two got along, she must have been very fun. Your home must have been very cozy and nice. I have never heard of cheese soufflé, but if you like it it must have been great.
Zac, your grandmother is French and is also a great cook? Good to know! Wonder if she makes cheese soufflé?! And Hailey, I will be happy to hold a sign with your name on it sometime before the end of the year! What a fun goal you have for yourself! And yes, I had never heard of cheese soufflé, either, but wow...it's GREAT!
That seems like it would be really fun. But maybe a little scary at first when you could barley understand her but it seemed like it would really be fun!
Madame Lamy sounds like a really nice person, like a kind grandmother. The house looks really nice too.
Madame Lamy seems really cool! I never had cheese soufflé when I was in France, but it sounds really good. Your room and house are very nice too.
-Hannah C.
It' so cool to be able to hear your memories about going to France. Everything sounds so, well, French. When I imagined living in another country and going to school there, I always thought of it as living with a family with kids. I guess it didn't really occur to me that someone could be staying with just one other person. She sounds very interesting!
The house is beautiful! It looks like it came right out of a movie!
Madame Lamy seems like a really fun person to stay with. Was she like a parent, or grandmother figure to you?
Okay so first off what is cheese soufflé like? It sounds pretty good, you should bring some in one day. Also it's good that Madame Lamy was nice because it would be awful to try to settle somewhere with a mean host. I love the pictures of your room, it looks really cute, and the flowers are pretty. Do you have more pictures?
I really like the home it's very,very old fashioned which is why I like it and I love the room it's looks really interesting and as elsa said it does look like it came from an old fashioned movie. To me Sceaux sounds like a very interesting little suburb in Paris, it's like a little place that is just filled with adventure that awaits you. And Mme Lamy seems really nice, when I read the description about her I immediately thought she was a little old fragile lady with a wooden cane, but no she's the exact opposite of what I thought, she's spontaneous. It sounds like you had a lot of fun in Sceaux with Mme Lamy, I hope I come across something like that in my life. Au revoir pour maitenant.
When you said that you stayed with a french window, I automatically pictured Madame Lamy- before I ever read on! You were so lucky that you were able to spend time with someone who obviously enjoyed your company while you were there. I would hate to be in a foreign country and have to come home to somebody who didn't like me. Did Madame Lamy teach you any piano? Because I know you are very musical.
Au revoir!
My great grandmother is very french, the pictures that you posted on this blog remind me of my great grandmothers house! She doesn't live in Paris though, she lives here in South Portland! But she did live in Paris for part of her life. It seems that you had a good time there.
I'm upset to say that I don't personally know anyone in my family that's French or has been to France, so I don't know how good French cooks cook, haha. You must have felt like a movie star when you saw that person hold up that sign for you. It's funny, whenever you think of someone going to another country you haven't been to, and thinking how different it must look. It doesn't look that different from houses in the country.
The house is so beautiful! Madame Lamy sounds like such a nice person! I can't even imagine how miserable you would have been if it was someone you didn't like!
Thats a lot like what happened when I went to Colorado. I was going to stay in my Aunt and Uncles house and my cousin picked us up. Although without a sign, she recognized us from pictures and took us there so it was a lot like the same thing
The pictures of the house and your room are so cool, my mom has lots of pictures like that, they look like vintage, I like them. Also Madame Lamy sounds very nice, shes sounds like someone from an old movie, a sophisticated french women. When I try to picture her I think of someone who would be in Gilmore Girls (:
Was most of the food you tried in France nice? Cheese Soufflé sounds good but I have never had it. Did you try snails?
I would LOVE to be part of a family like that! I have always wanted to learn piano, and just seeing the french culture would be amazing. I also love how vintage the pictures are, I would absolutly LOVE to be there!
I would love to stay there if i was staying in Paris as long as you did because its a home and probably made you feel more at home and reminded you of your home, i just love places like that its much better then a hotel if your staying there that long. Its a good thing you got along with Madame Lamy because that really wouldn't help you much if you didn't like each other its hard enough being really far away from home!
^ that second one from michaela was actually from me ... nicole sorry
I think that your new home was sounded really, well, homey! I also didn't expect it to look like an ordinary American house, which sounds very stereotypical, but living in a different country it seems strange that they are also still so alike to us. I also think that Madame Lamy was a very hip person and that she seemed to be one of those older people that gets along well with younger generations. This must have helped a lot when you stayed with her!
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