Bonsoir!

It's been a few days, I know. Failure on my part. I've been busy, and tired, and doing a lot. But that's not an excuse, so here I am again. I was in Normandy this weekend. Nothing much happened, except I went to a chateau, with a moat, which was pretty cool. The inside of the chateau wasn't as ornate as previously expected, but it was very cool to see. The preservationists kept most of it intact, and there is a library inside that has books from the 18th and 19th centuries. Very very old...I'm surprised they haven't crumbled.

Last night, Marie's very international family came over for dinner/dessert/etc. Her brother Tom lives in Ankara, Turkey, and works for the US Government doing something with finance, I believe, but I could have that detail wrong. He served in the Peace Corps in Mali and then as a director of the programs in Senegal in the mid and late nineties. We had great conversations and I plan on keeping touch with him. His wife, Francisca, is Senegalese. She speaks great French and great English and was very sweet. It was nice to see how involved they are with their nieces and nephews.

Her sister, husband, and three daughters came later for dessert. They were returning to Maryland today after having spent a year in Paris. The girls were close in age to their cousins...I think 12, 9, and 6. The oldest, Juliette, rides, so we had some common ground there. The younger two were much more shy, but they were quite nice as well.

That's all for now!