A Town of Books

Bécherel is a small town in the Brittany region of France, just outside of Rennes. It is called the "Village of Books" as it has around 16 bookstores and very few inhabitants.

As you can imagine, a town devoted to books is a little bit of heaven for Melissa and I. 

We did a bit of exploring before visiting the bookstores. 

We saw some pretty sights...

...and some interesting sights.

We were looking for the center of town. 

Find the cathedral, and you find the center.

Bécherel is such a cute town. 

Each librarie is unique.

Walking into one is like walking into Target for three reasons:

1. You immediately feel overwhelmed.

2. You want to buy everything.

3. You think you've only spent 10 minutes inside, but an hour later you leave!

I wasn't sure if I was allowed to take pictures, so while the owners were outside, and with Melissa standing guard, I quickly snapped a couple.

This quaint little place was a bookstore and a café. 

At one point in our outing, I had to go to the bathroom really bad! 

We finally found one and guess what was inside? 

Right above the books was painted an emergency contact number! 

The French think of everything!

After using the bathroom, I was terribly hungry. Bécherel may have an overabundance of bookshops, but they only have a couple of places to get food: a grocery store, a bar, and a local crêperie. We chose the crêperie, but once we arrived, we were told only dessert crêpes were being served. Bummer!

 Well okay, I guess I'll eat it if that's all they're serving! 

I thought I had ordered pears with my crêpe, but apparantly I ordered pear ice-cream. Gross! The rest was delicious, though. As we sat there, sipping on our cidre and eating our 4:00 lunch, I told Melissa a wonderful tale that had taken place in Bécherel years ago. It's a story of a milkmaid, a handsome peasant, and an equally fine-looking man of wealth. (As you know, in every great story there is always a love triangle...sometimes even a love rectangle!) I'll let you imagine the rest. After all, that's the best part!

This is where we dined!

We had a great time in Bécherel and were so happy discovering a new little village. Nothing beats spending hours perusing through old books in crowded, musty, tiny bookstores. 

a long walk for two cafés with significant history

One of the evenings in Paris, Mom and Melissa accompanied me in the search of two cafés: Les Deux Magots and Café de Flore. 

I promise, the people were not staged. It's just the Parisian way of sitting at cafés: side-by-side facing the street, watching people pass by.

I heard about these two places while studying French and English literature in college, and had wanted to visit them ever since. It took us a little while to find them, and though we were all very weary from walking, I was glad we had made the effort. Both places are expensive, so we didn't go in, but I took my pictures with quiet satisfaction and marveled at how these two little places were frequented by the leading philosophers and writers of the 20th century--people who forever shaped/warped the worldview of millions of others. 

Any guesses to whom I may be referring?

No? 

Then just read the street sign.

Existentialism is so dark and depressing, but I think eavesdropping on conversation between Sartre and Beauvoir would have been fascinating.

You know who else drank at these two cafés? 

Here's a hint: he drank a lot exorbitantly at both.

He's an author.

He's known for writing short simple sentences.

He led a very depressed life.

He went through four wives.

He committed suicide.

Answer: Ernest Hemingway. 

These two famous cafés are in the Latin Quarter, which is probably my favorite section of Paris. It is here that restaurants overflow into streets and take over old cobblestone alleys. 

It is here where philosophers, writers, and painters, who are still studied today, lived and worked. 

Walking Through Monet's Gardens

(Millie, this post is for you. I thought about you often as I walked around and told Mom, "She would LOVE it here!")

One of the days I was in Paris with my mom and sister, we took a little trip northwest of Paris to a town called Giverny where impressionist painter Claude Monet lived and worked. Monet has always been one of my all-time favorite painters and I was excited to walk through his famous gardens. 

We had a "picnic" on the bus on the way over. (Sophie, Jérémie, don't those piggies look good?!) Thanks, Mom, for the quality picture! :)

The first thing we did when we arrived in Giverny was to visit Claude Monet himself. Handsome guy, eh?

The second thing we did was celebrate Monet's talent by eating some delicious French chocolate!

That's my I-love-chocolate-and-am-so-hungry-please-hurry-up-and-take-the-picture face!

But look! We're able to take normal pictures, too!

After saying hello to Monet, and having a little dessert, it was off to see his house and gardens. I had accidently changed my camera setting to fish bowl (when would anyone ever use that feature on purpose?) and so the first few pictures I took look rather interesting!

There were so many flowers!

In the background of this picture is Monet's house.

The lily pond/water garden was my favorite part.

I love it when the line of reflection is blurred!

It was so easy to see where Monet got his inspiration. The place was magical!

By the end of our visit, we were so thankful we hadn't worn shoes like this:

Mom, Melissa, and I all thought that if you're ever in the area, a visit to Monet's house and gardens is totally worth it!