Vacation Recap: Part II ('What We Ate')

And now, Part II of my vacation recap: a selection of our food. To be clear, I don't eat like this every day or even often and there are plenty of unpictured packed salad lunches that we had too. I like to take pictures of yummy food because this way I don't forget eating it and can go back and see the photos and think, "Wow, that was a really good indulgence." Plus, food is a big part of vacation/new experiences, why forget it?! This trip was Jon's first time in France, a country and culture that means so much to me and about which I've chosen to focus my life's work (aka teaching)... SO, it was really important to me that he get a chance to really get an authentic experience. That said, France is renowned for it's food, so taste and try food we did. With the exception of pain-au-chocolat (we had it 2x), Jon and I never indulged in the same thing twice and more often than not split all of our desserts.

After that disclaimer, I will admit that I see (even if we walked and biked a lot) exactly how/why I gained 2 kilos, so, I'm going to share the rest of this vacation with you and promptly jump back on my healthy eating bandwagon! Enjoy!

Day 1: Ginette and Marcel's for tartines

Planchette with brie, dried sausage, pâté and pickles

Tartine with ham and mushrooms

Lemon meringue tarte to share for dessert!

Day 2:

No photos... Just picnicked with the students on the field trip. Got wine and shared a dessert that night.

Day 3: Picnic on Ile-de-la-Barthelasse

Hit up the market for some nibbly bits... had a very LIGHT dinner after!

2€ wine? Yes, please.

Sharing a mango/strawberry sorbet

Day 4: Montpellier

Jon's first experience with French pastry... very authentic with McDonald's coffee...

Garlicky steak and fries at Entrecôte in Montpel... Not healthy, but sooo good.

4 macaroons to share. Here are salted caramel and lemon.

Day 5: Isle-sur-la-Sorgue

Jon's first Madeleine at the market... I had a bite.

We also bought some cheese and dried sausage (bull and duck meat) for later picnics

Day 6: Lazy morning pancakes before our hike to Villeneuve

One thing I really missed was boyfriend's pancakes, so he tried to make them for me... Sadly, without baking powder they're really just thick crêpes. How French.

Day 7: Picnicked at the Pont-du-Gard

Sharing 2 crêpes after a day in the sun: nutella (not pictured) and a goat cheese one with fig jam. Om nom nom.

Kept making Jon try new breads here... with the tomme and goat/sheep mix cheese we got at the market in Isle-sur-la-Sorgue

Day 8: Wandering around Avignon, then dinner at Amy's

Sharing desserts after risotto at Amy's

Day 9: Picnicking after a bike ride around Ile-de-la-Barthelasse

Post-biking fro yo. I won with a caramel banana combo while Jon opted for nutella

Day 10: Lazy last day in Avignon

Our nice dinner out for Helen's last night... We shared a starter (foie gras w/ fig jam)

Then I got the duck with honey and goat cheese

And we shared a 'moelleux au chocolat' for dessert

Day 11: Wandering around Paris

Picnic by the Eiffel Tower

Day 12: Easter in Paris

Easter falafel with a bunch of salads in Le Marais

Largely unimpressive dinner in Paris's touristy district... Though Jon was happy to have tried snails.

And frog legs

Day 13: Saying goodbye. :(

One last pain au chocolat together before sending Jon through security

Vacation Recap: Part I (aka 'What We Did')

I'm back. Vacation was amazing. Definitely two of the best weeks of my life to date. That said, I'm up 1.5 kilos and have only run 1x since April 13th, but I'm too happy and optimistic to be bothered. Now, time to get back on track for the sprint to the finish (i.e. moving home on June 22nd).

That said, so many fun things happened while I was gone that I didn't know how to show you with out uploading thousands of photos. What I decided to do was break it into a photo-a-day recap with one post of 'what we did' and another of 'what we ate.' In practice, there were too many things for one a day, but I did try to limit the posting! Enjoy today's part! Check back in for my post about making Jon take in and taste French food! Can't wait to catch up on your blogs!

Day 1:

Picked Jon up at the train station and promptly introduced him to all my friends for dinner

Day 2:

"Bring Your Boyfriend to Work" Day (took him on a school field trip to Maubec)

Day 3:

Tour of Avignon!

Day 4:

Montpellier with some friends... and helped host a "frat" party

(apparently to Brits, red solo cups are just things that appear in US TV shows and movies... so we taught them flip cup and pong...)

Wearing my first ever OSU teeshirt... a super nice prize from Jon when get got here!

Day 5:

Visiting the market in Isle-sur-la-Sorgue and being invited to a typical Provençal lunch at the home of one of the teachers I work with

(Isle is a canal-based city where they've channeled the Sorgue to run through it... pretty!)

Day 6:

Walked over 6 miles (round trip) to Villeneuve-lez-Avignon to check out the Fort Saint-André (then had 'Mexican' food night with my friends!)

Day 7:

Got a 3€ per person round trip bus ticket to go check out the Pont-du-Gard and bask in the sun. Beaching by a Roman aqueduct built in 50 AD? Not too shabby!

Day 8:

Souvenir shopping and picnicking in Avignon

(Our standard lunch fare for the week: salad with a scoop of white bean tuna salad on it, apple, yogurt)

Day 9:

Bike tour around Ile-de-la-Barthelasse

Day 10:

Jon discovers wine in a box in France AND we went out to dinner to say goodbye to Helen

Day 11:

Paris! Put our own lock on a bridge and picnicked at the Eiffel Tower! (sorry these photos aren't as good... Jon hasn't posted his DSLR ones yet!)

Day 12:

Checked out an invasion (and Sacre Coeur) in Montmartre and walked miles to the Army Museum

Day 13:

Dropped Jon off at CDG and took my train back to Avignon. The town cried because I didn't bring him home with me.

Friend Makin' Monday: Today I...

If you've taken part in FMM then you know the rules. If you're new, please take a moment to answer this week's question on your own blog then add your link in the comments section of this post so we can all see your FMM questions and answers. The idea is to connect with other awesome bloggers so take a moment to post your own FMM post and comment on a couple of other posts. Now it's time for this week's topic!

FMM: Today I....

Today I felt... sad that Jon was leaving and flying back to the States, but happy about our amazing vacation spent together here in France

Today I saw... two of my fabulous girlfriends here in Avignon who helped me be in a cheerful mood ce soir!

Today I ate... a pain-au-chocolat with Jon at the airport

Today I kissed... my boyfriend goodbye for the next 2 months. Several times.

Today I bought... a postcard of the Eiffel Tower at the Paris Gare de Lyon.

Today I heard... a little French boy scream the whole train ride from Paris to Avignon.

Today I lost... nothing that I'm aware of...

Today I decided... to make the most of my remaining 8 weeks here and to get back on track after splurging food-wise on vacation!

Today I need... to sleep. I'm exhausted after such an amazing vacation and weekend in Paris!

Today I wish...I could have sent someone back to the States in Jon's place! Having him with me in France was too much fun!

Now it's your turn to share your answers! Don't forget to come back and leave a link in the comments! And have a happy Monday!