"The cat understands English and French. He listens to neither."

I dislike cats. I'm a dog person. I miss my furry faced, dirty, little rat dog who doesn't shed or climb on furniture.

I'm only complaining because Taz just ran into my room.

Anyway! Today, we visited the open air market here in Orléans. Most cities/villages/towns/etc in France have them. Local vendors sell their goods at these markets (think farmer's market, but much much larger). Catherine kindly joined us this morning to act as translator should the need arise. Justin and I both learned a lot of French this morning that will be useful when we shop for food. At the market, you could easily find fresh fish, pork, horse, beef, lamb, rabbit, duck, free-range chickens, and almost any other edible animal. The vendors also sold fresh, local-made cheese (the joys of pasteurization not being mandatory here), and they sold ever vegetable you could ever imagine (some of which I had never even heard of). Almost everything was local, and everything was organic. They also had a large assortment of flowers for sale (the tulips were so pretty!). Justin and I bought radishes, eggs, apples, brie, chèvre, mushrooms (they grow wild on the outskirts of the city), olives, hummus, and roasted chicken. We'll get more next weekend now that we know enough to shop with people who can't speak any English (maybe I'll get Tulips before Easter! lol!).

Interesting note: Justin and I are constantly mistaken for being English. No one has guessed American yet when we attempt French. We haven't decided if it's a compliment or not...

After the market, we had a baguette and brie with some red wine for lunch. We both intended on only taking a 30 minute nap after lunch, but we ended up sleeping all afternoon instead (we're still adjusting to the time difference. We should swear off naps completely, but it's so hard!). We had roasted chicken with a green salad and red wine for supper (we adhere to the tradition of drinking wine with meals. It has just become another beverage to us now like tea or water). I got a little cabin fever, so we ventured out to see Orléans at night. The city is rather quiet after 9, but we found a few restaurants still open (France does NOT do the "open 24 hours" thing). We stopped at a small Italian restaurant and ordered a coffee and dessert. I had tiramisu, and Justin had a crème brûlée. They were the best we've ever had! I wish the United States would take a lesson from France when it comes to food......

Justin is making crepes for me tomorrow morning. I can't wait!

It's late, and I'm tired!

Bonsoir toute le monde!