Some of our fellow travelers had already left for the airport when we arrived at the breakfast room, while others had flights  that would leave after ours. Many  were returning to their homes. One had gone to Santorini before our tour started, while others  were going there or to Crete today. Those options had not occurred to us. Before returning home, we went to Paris to visit our friends Jose-Maria and Agnès, who live there.

At the airport, everyone taking our flight was ushered into a large waiting room. When the flight was called, everyone got on line at once.

It is fair to say that I know very little French, and Nick knows less. Somehow my brain shifted into French gear, and I began explaining, in French, how to attach my new Foldie carry-on (I recommend it!)  to my suitcase.

Laura, a daughter of Jose-Maria and Agnès, greeted us at her parents’ flat. I first met Laura when she was twelve years old, and now two of her  chidren are older than that. When they moved in, Jose-Maria and Agnès converted two flats into one. Now that their children are on  their own, they have converted the one flat into two again, with one available for rental. The rental  has two  bedrooms, a living room,  a complete kitchen, and a bathroom, all designed and decorated by Agnès. C’est magnifique! We would be there on our own until our hosts returned from their travels.

Having had no lunch, we were very hungry. Jose-Maria had suggested a few restaurants that we might like, but they did not open until much later. We went for  walk and came upon an Argentine bistro that was open. Although beef was their specialty, Nick ordered a Palermo salad (arugula, sun dried tomatoes and avocado) while I enjoyed gnocchi with a creamy pumpkin sauce and wonderful French bread. Satisfied but exhausted, we went to bed at 8 PM and awoke at 5:30 AM the next morning.

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