Storming the castle

Sylvie dropped us off in Pierrefonds near the chateau. She gave me her cellphone and home phone numbers so that we could call her to come and pick us up when we were done. I told her that we could take the bus back; she said to call and she would come and get us. 

A seafood restaurant, a boulangerie, and a few other establishments lined one side of the square below the chateau. 

We chose the boulangerie after looking at the seafood prices. We didn't feel like seafood, anyway; or rather, we didn't feel like eating seafood. I wanted my wife to experience France the way that I had years ago...eating at little shops instead of McDonalds. A cute girl ran the boulangerie; she had short blonde hair and green or blue eyes...I'm pretty sure it was one or the other, rather than one of each. We looked around while a couple other people in the small shop, which was completely open on one side, got their orders and left. 

We decided to split a ham and cheese panini which came with a drink and a chocolate eclair. I got a pomme cassis frambroise; my wife got a bottle of water. While we were waiting for the panini to heat, a man came in saying, "Messiers, 'dames," the traditional French greeting when entering a shop. He was short (about my size--there are lots of people my size in France), and had graying hair; he wore a blue, long-sleeved shirt that buttoned up the front. Like the girl behind the counter, he was cheerful and polite. 

We ate our lunch on a bench beneath a tree at the end of the square closest to the chateau. "Delicious" describes the panini, and its texture was very pleasant. The pomme cassis framboise delighted my tastebuds. I had forgotten that unique sweet taste. We enjoyed the eclair for dessert. 

A long walkway circled around the chateau, climbing toward the entrance. Just before the entrance, we found a bunch of children eating lunch on the grass...and my wife wanted a picture of them.

We passed the guard who examined my wife's bag; we crossed the drawbridge, went under the portcullis and into the courtyard. Our Paris Museum passes gained us entrance free of charge. 

I won't bore you with the details about the castle...except to say that walking those cool corridors and climbing the stone stairways, exploring historic rooms and artifacts, from high hallways to the deep, dark foundations of the pile brought back sweet memories of a day long ago; at the same time it etched upon my heart new and better memories shared with the precious companion who made me believe that the dream could become real.