The Tannaci’s in Paris, Take 2

My sister and her family moved to Saudi Arabia (yes, you read that correctly) in the beginning of September which makes them just a 6 hour flight from us with a 2 hour time difference. Much closer than when they were in California! The quick summary of their situation and the reason they are in Saudi Arabia is that John, my sister’s husband, got a great job opportunity with KAUST, the science and technology university there. They live within what’s essentially a compound right there at the university. Inside the compound, for lack of a better word, is a school, hospital, grocery store, restaurants, etc. To me it sounds like a small city of its own. From what they have told me, their plan is to be there anywhere from 1-4 years. And yes, it’s very different there!

Now that they are closer to us, it’s not as big of a deal for them to just hop on over to Paris to visit us. In early October, shortly after they arrived in Saudi Arabia, they had a week holiday and so decided to come to Paris for a visit. And at the same time John's grandma and brother came out from California to meet up with them as well. If you recall, they had already visited us a year and a half earlier and so now it was their second time here.


Since both our families have grown by one since their last visit, they rented an apartment just a 5 minute walk from ours, which ended up working out perfectly. They arrived late on the Saturday night so Sunday they were ready to start the day. We started with mass at Notre Dame and then headed to the Tuileries Gardens where the girls enjoyed the playground, carousel and even trampoline there. I must say, after living here for almost 2 and a half years and being in those gardens numerous times, I never knew any of that existed. It’s heaven for little kids and I can’t wait to take Josephine there when she’s just a little bit older.

The next day we were off to the Jardin d’Acclimatation, a favorite from the last time they visited. I took the day off so that Josephine and I could join them. Once again, there were hardly any people there although this time it was at least 15 degrees warmer. The girls had a great time riding the rides and playing on the playground. And with an obligatory stop at the Angelina’s cafe for some hot chocolate, we capped off a great day.

They were on their own for their last day in Paris and we met up with them after work for what else, but wine, cheese, baguette and then some dinner.

We had a wonderful visit. I finally got to meet Isabella (who is just 5 months younger than Josephine) and loved that Josephine could hang out with some of her cousins. We can’t wait for them to come back….especially now that they are so close!!

A Visit from Christian and Julie

It's been a while since we've had visitors, especially after having such a steady stream of them. And then Christian and Julie reached out saying that they were planning a vacation and Paris was a stop on their itinerary. We were of course excited to have them here!

They arrived on a Saturday at the end of September and since both of them had already been to Paris, we stayed close to home exploring within our neighborhood. We got a babysitter that night and actually had an adult night out with dinner and drinks. Sunday brought amazing weather so what better way to enjoy it but head to Jardin de Tuileries to picnic with wine, baguette and cheese. 

And before we knew it, they were off and heading toward the South of France to continue with their vacation. We had a great time hanging out. I've said it before but it's always nice to see people from home.