Pretending To Be In Paris

Le Tour Eiffel

And so another Bastille Day was celebrated with my fellow francophile friend, Pat, at BRASSERIE by Niche in St. Louis.  Pat traditionally awards me with a Bastille Day gift; this year it was a Gourmet cookbook featuring the flavors of Paris.  I love to cook, but truth be told, I prefer going to a good restaurant and being waited upon!  After a nice little cocktail of tequila, cassis, lime and bitters, I craved the  mussels and frites.  Hearty portions necessitated un sac de chien at the end of the meal when I could eat no more.  The serveur should have attached a leash to the sac because I immediately forgot it until halfway home and had to loop around, half-looped, to retrieve it.  Never mind, it was worth the effort.  I always enjoy leftovers to recall a memorable evening! 

Bastille Day 2011

 Happy Bastille Day  tout le monde!  Perhaps next year we can all be in Paris together!

Le Quatorze Juillet

Zut alors!  Missed being in Paris again for Bastille Day! Without a doubt, it is the biggest party in the world, tho' Carnival in Rio and Mardi Gras in New Orleans surely are contenders.  I had to make do here in St. Louis with celebrating with a dear friend and fellow francophile. Pat gave me a wonderful gift, which will be my next bedside book, "Paris to the Moon" by Adam Gopnik.  It is about living in France, his dream since he was 8 years old.  For some reason, I too, from as far back as I can recall, was always obsessed with all things French.  Must have something to do with beauty, culture and lifestyle for starters!

You can't have a military parade without an air show, and what an air show!  Along the Champs-Elysees, the Patrouille de France burst out of the clouds, streaming the national flag behind them.

                                      

Lastly, a magnificent fireworks display lit up the Eifel Tower.  Well, maybe next year I'll be one of the revelers.  It's dawn to dusk excitement.  Happy Bastille Day to you all!