Paris. C'est fantastique!

Even in August, with hordes of tourists, we loved Paris.

At Chateau Vaux-le-Vicomte

We walked until our hearty ultrarunner legs nearly fell off.

We ate cheese, pastries, baguettes, tartines, omelets, ice cream, falafel, French toast made by a real Frenchman, and pretty much anything that was set before us. We drank wine at every meal but breakfast (I'm pretty sure we never drank wine with breakfast).

Cheese. Not the stuff we get here in America,
REALLY FREAKING GOOD CHEESE.

The weather was a refreshing, welcome change from the heat and humidity we left behind. The first few days, it was so cool I was wishing for more than my lightweight sweater. It was like Fall, but with long days -- the sun didn't set til nearly 9:30 p.m. Quite possibly, the best of all possible worlds!

Jardin du Luxembourg. Love the way the French inter-plant flowers.

As luck would have it, my cousin Pam knows the city like the back of her hand and has created a website with perfect sight-seeing walks. Want to stroll around tasting French gourmet cuisine as you go? She has a free app for your smartphone: 7 La Semain du Gout. If you're lucky enough to be traveling to Paris, check it out!

This trip was special because I got to spend time with my parents, brothers, sisters-in-law and niece, as well as my cousins. My cousins used to spend a month or so each summer with us in Kansas, so it was like old times (except nobody tied anyone to a broomstick or locked them in the neighbors' dog kennel).

Another highlight: we got to watch our beloved alma mater, the Kansas Jayhawks, play basketball against a French team. Sadly we witnessed their first ever international loss, but it was a great game.

I'll leave you with a few more photos from the trip. Be forewarned, they may cause sensations of hunger, wanderlust and Francophilia.