The Roquefort stands alone

Sylvie called. She wanted to know where we were. I told her that we were at the chateau. She hadn't read my earlier email about taking the bus. She thought we were still at Pierrefonds. I told her we were in Compiegne. She said supper would be at 7:00 p.m. She would pick us up at the hotel.

We needed to get back to the hotel to clean up a bit before Sylvie picked us up. We left the gardens. On our way back to the hotel, we stopped to explore a church. I can't remember now whether it was Eglise St. Jacques, or Eglise St. Antoine. We enjoyed the little detour, and following the directions from the Great and Terrible Google, we found our way back to the hotel. We had covered a lot of miles from Versailles to Compiegne to Pierrefonds, and back to Compiegne, but the best part of the day was yet to come.

Sylvie had prepared a superb meal. She presented us with crab cakes and salad. We devoured that, enjoying every bite, and she raised the stakes with a very tasty and filling rice and chicken dish. My wife expressed some surprise that another dish was added to the table. I informed her that the traditional French meal would be served in courses. The rice and chicken was the main course, so once we made our way through that delicious dish, we would be on the downhill side. I can't remember if we had anything between the chicken and the cheese. I do remember drinking some sweet and refreshing juice...and a lot of it. I had to turn away the Roquefort, not being a fan of bread mold in any form. I did enjoy the mild brie, Camenbert, and some other cheese whose name I forget. The dessert was simply unforgettable...or it would've been, except that I can't remember what it was. What it was, was delicious.

The best part of the evening was the company, and the conversation. Gerard and Sylvie and their family, of which only Mathieu and Francois were able to attend, had been wonderful friends when I had lived in Compiegne years before. They were still wonderful folks. They all spoke a little English. Mathieu and Francois spoke English quite well. They translated for my wife while we conversed in French. One topic of conversation was the problem with the phone numbers that Sylvie had given me...both of the numbers had contained what looked to me like 6's...they were actually 4's. Missed it by that much.

After the dinner, we continued to visit until quite late. Sylvie began to drive us home...then I remembered that we didn't get pictures of us together. We went back to the house...Mathieu had already left, but we got pictures of all the rest of us.

After the long day, the hotel bed was truly welcome.