F Train to Paris

In which a Jewish family from Brooklyn moves to Paris, France for two years of work, school, and adventures.

As we crammed our baggage and then ourselves into the taxi, the driver asked, "Vous partez au soleil?"  ("Are you headed for the sun?") An interesting guess, considering this winter vacation is called "La Semaine du Ski," and virtually everyone we know was headed for the slopes. But he was right; we had decided to skip the Alps and vacation instead in southern Spain, where the weather would be warmer than frigid Paris. We weren't planning to lie on the beach--it wouldn't be warm enough for that--but simply to do some sightseeing in the sun.

We flew to Seville, and as we left the terminal and walked toward the rental car lot, the bright sun reawakened us from the winter doldrums. We drove to Granada to spend a few days there, planning to return to Seville later in the week. It was a wonderful week, full of history, cathedrals and mosques, palaces, moorish architecture, and tapas.

Our first meal in Spain was consumed at a roadside restaurant  where it was sunny enough to eat outdoors. The menu was almost completely incomprehensible, and our guide books with menu translations were buried deep in the trunk of the rental car. We managed to order some olives, cheese, and plates of fried salt cod with salad. It was a successful and delicious meal as well as a taste of things to come--because we are kosher, we are severely limited in a country where the cuisine seems to be built around ham and shellfish. With the addition of gazpacho and tortillas (the ubiquitous spanish potato omelets), we would be eating olives, cheese, and fried fish all week. But on that first day, it was new and exciting.

Aside from the stress of driving into strange cities and trying to find hotels located on pedestrian streets (and let me just say that I'm lucky my family is still speaking to me after two rounds of this), the trip went smoothly. Our hotels in Granada and Seville were lovely and well located. The kids were, for the most part, interested and agreeable. I will tell you all about it, but not tonight. It's midnight, and I'm going to sleep.

posted by: pariskleinmans at 22:03 | link | comments (4) |

Comments:

#1  04 March 2005 - 07:28

 

Oh, I can't wait to hear more. I want additional stories of of sun and warm weather and non-French food.

Jason

Anonymous

#2  04 March 2005 - 09:00

 

Gald to hear it's warm down there, I'm off to Barcelona next week! (and madly trying to remember some of those spanish night class lessons, lol ;) )

Nathalie

Anonymous

#3  04 March 2005 - 09:26

 

Nathalie, have a great time and check out all those fantastic Gaudi buildings. But be prepared for hearing Catalan instead of Spanish--it's very disconcerting.

Jason, I'm hoping to post a long entry on Spain later this weekend, and I won't leave out the meals! Walking around in the snow yesterday, I kept thinking of the sun in Seville...

pariskleinmans

#4  04 March 2005 - 13:33

 

Sounds like you had a good time in the South. Being warm sounds really good at this point. It is interesting that everyone skis during this vacation. Why not find sun? Looking forward to the details of the trip.

Anonymous

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