Not everything is on the menu

Anniversary day for Darien and me. 29, I think.

We were woken early, to the last hurrahs of drunks in the street and the sound of cars being towed. We had to pack and get to the American Cathedral for a service. I'm not saying who, but someone confused it with the American Church, three quarters of a kilometer away. Fortunately, it was not me, which is all I really care about. We barely had enough time to ferry our luggage back over the Seine before rehearsal began. I went foraging for food for the two and left it in the room where they were practicing, not knowing if they would get a break to be able to eat it before the service. I wandered off to a cafe, where I ordered breakfast in poor French. This is a much tonier area of town than we had been in before, so the prices reflect it.

The service started at 11 AM. Antonia was featured in the first piece, and I didn't detect any unintended solos otherwise. Other than the grandeur of the building itself, I would be hard-pressed to say were not in the United States. The service was all in English and the visiting pastor was from Beverly Hills. I guess he was on mission work.

With a wink and a nod, we got on the bus -- we were there, but not there, and so our job was to remain quiet. We were on our way to Chartres. The first leg took about a half hour. We stopped at a massive Shell station to get the bus gas and us food -- prepackaged in plastic. I would preferred to hold off another hour until we arrived in Chartres. There are two buses. For some inexplicable reason, one of the choristers got on the bus, checked in, and then got off. She was very surprised that she was not on the bus when it left, but was also very fortunate to be able to hitch a ride on ours.

Chartres, with its leaping spires, makes a very dramatic view rising from the wheat plains. The town is almost too perfect in how tidy it is, in its parks and gardens, and in it well maintained roads and houses. We left the choristers at their hotel and walked to Le Parvis where we are staying. It is directly across from the cathedral. We are on the upper floor, up three flights. The hotel is only recently opened has been beautifully renovated. Our room is in the gabled roof with old massive timbers exposed in the ceiling and tile on the floor. I asked the proprietress and she said they have been open two years. They bought it for their son, who wanted to run a restaurant, but had not money.

We strolled around and ate French macaroons, which definitely aren't like what we would buy in a U.S. market. We walked around the cathedral and invited a couple of the choristers to dine with us. I had bread, salami, and cheese; Darien and Antonia ate a salad with seafood. I slipped Darien's anniversary gift to the young waitress and asked her to bring it to with with her meal. It was a painted Icelandic five kroner coin on  gold chain. I think I acquitted myself on this one. They all ran off to rehearse and left me holding the bill and guarding the remnants of the table.

2 verre 10cl rose 4e
2 salade oceane 19e
1 plateau francais 9e50
2 expresso 3e40
1 cafe along creme 3e10

I wrote, sipped cafe creme, then went to the cathedral. It smelled musty, damp, old. The stones are pitted and the columns look n the verge of decay, but a decay that will last thousands of years. The entire front facade is practically obscured by scaffolding. The stained glass is mostly dark, with tiny mosaic pieces filtering the light.

As usual, the choir found numerous reasons to be critical of their performance, but the crowd loved it. One American wanted to know if the American ambassador had been informed of the presence of St. James on French soil. No? Well, she would take care of it for them. Antonia did some nice solo work, and even the natives were appreciative.

We sat outside at Le Parvis with some other choristers, drinking red wine and beer late into the night -- or what passes for late in Chartres. The front of the cathedral was illuminated with a light show and music, a mix of the elegant and the tacky. Darien bought another bottle for us to take to our room. Antonia had a sudden urge to sleep elsewhere on our anniversary, so she took herself off to the choristers' hotel to bunk with a couple of women. My five kroner investment paid off.