Let's have a party!

I threw a Christmas Eve party this year!  Listening to Christmas Carols, baking cookies, stringing lights, really made the season bright.  All we were missing was a little snow outside and some mistletoe.

Adoorable decorations

We had to be a bit creative on where to put the lights,
since our christmas tree (made of paper) was only 2 feet tall!

With Farhan, Naveed, and Arafat.

With Shazzad

An East-West fusion of snacks: homemade cookies,
cheese from France, and doi bora.

We are the first customers of Trina's new cake business.
She warns us that frosty will melt if not kept in cool temperatures.
We leave him in an air conditioned room until we're ready
cut the cake!!

Merry Christmas to all, and to all, a goodnight!

The art of proposing

On November 10^th, it was hard to get out of bed.  The weather forecast for Paris was overcast and grim.  It was mainly the call of the pain au chocolat that finally got me up.  And the prospect of another fun day in Paris with Shazzad and Dorothee, of course.

Who knew that museums could be so fun?

 We had about 13 hours until Shazzad had to catch his bus back to Amsterdam.  We were thinking about going to Versailles, but the weather was intimidating.  Finally Shazzad spoke up and said he’d really like to go to the Louvre.  “At least to see the Mona Lisa,” he said.  “If you want I can just drop you off.”  I say.  I think most museums can be covered in under an hour, but Shazzad spent 6 hours in the Metropolitan Museum of Art last fall, only to emerge bemoaning the fact that he didn’t have enough time.  In Paris, as in New York, I can find ways to enjoy the time on my own.  But his face falls.  “Do you want me to go with you?” I ask.  He brightens.  I am slightly surprised but also flattered.  That settles it. A few coffees and croissants later, off we went.  I was wearing three layers of shirts under my fleece jacket, plus a big woolly scarf.  This girl’s blood has thinned.