And so it begins----Chocolate land, Pizza land, Paris land

Bonjour from Saint-Mandé!

Knowing that this experience will be such a special, unique one for our family, I have decided to take an hour per week to write about it (missionary style). I have limited myself to one hour in hopes that I can keep it up and not get too bogged down in the details. I am hoping that by sending it out to others, that also will help me be accountable and follow through. Alors, souhaitez-moi bonne chance (wish me luck!)

Our journey began with Benjin and I sleeping on our living room floor (which was still slightly damp from having spent all day cleaning the carpets), using towels as makeshift blankets because all we owned was packed up in our basement. We woke up early (in part because of the alarm and in part because of the less than ideal sleeping situation), packed up our towels, swept the kitchen floor and loaded our boys into the car. Our cute neighbors Jane and Chris came out to the street to wave and wish us a “bon voyage” as we bid adieu to 2584 Willow Park for the year.

We drove to my dad’s house in Virginia in two separate cars. Benjin and I took turns with the boys (who did remarkably well on the drive. Our weekend in Virginia was filled with cousin time (Cyrus and Lev), paddleboarding/kayaking at a local lake and visiting Grandma Schill’s grave. Pip and Pawpaw’s house was too fun and it was hard to leave, but Monday morning (after helping dismantle the front porch) we loaded up and drove to DC. After a quick stop at Nandos with the Spjuts, we arrived at Dulles Airport and the fun really began. Everyone was fully loaded with bags including Gideon who showed potential for a top notch valle service with his suitcase dragging abilities. We felt so lucky to have my dad and his extra pair of hands there to help.

We checked in with Aer Lingus (I have to take a moment to sing their praises! They gave us everything we asked for ---- extra checked bags, spots next to each other, extra leg room, a sleeping bassinet for Pierce… all for free. They only thing they didn’t have was bag tags, but those they just told us to steal from Ethiopian air, next door. They were super professional and super kind). Anyway, after running into some friends from my dad’s stake in Virginia (who were also on our flight), we got on the plane. Gideon was SOOO excited. All in all the flight went well. The first hour was tough for pierce, who screamed a good chunk of that, but from then on out, it was smooth sailing. We made it to Dublin and had a couple hours to bask in the beauty of the Irish accent before our final leg (on which everyone slept).

Arriving in Paris, we grabbed our bags and managed to tetras them all in the back on my dad’s rental car. Then the Facer family of 4 set out on the metro for Saint Mande. Gideon was kept interested by getting a fruit snack at each of the stops and we met a nice guy who practiced his English with us and asked us why Americans all make fun of people from Ohio. We just laughed and said we had never heard that. We got off at our stop and as we were walking up to our address, we saw my dad waving driving next to us. It was so nice to know that we were on the right track and we really were about to be home.

We went into our new apartment and our landlord showed us around. It was about what we had expected. Small and quirky in some areas, but so lovely and perfect in others! We went out for dinner that night at a local little restaurant and celebrated with the classic Orangina and steak frites.

That night was pretty horrific (poor Pierce really struggled with jetlag). He could not get to sleep and the rest of us were exhausted, but once again Papa Schill came to the rescue and drove pierce around the local chateau at 3 in the morning to help him fall asleep. But, it all became better when we woke up the next morning and walked to a local boulangerie to buy some croissants, pain au chocolat and Chausson au pomme for breakfast. Saint Mande is everything I hoped it would be. Walking the streets feels magical. The flowers, the cafes, the gardens, the old classic French architecture, the Bois, everything is just the epitome of some of the best of what Paris has to offer (in my book).

Our first full day in Paris was full of running errands (grocery shopping at carrefour/buying a high chair, unpacking, and having my dad give us a driving tour of Paris. We ended at the Temple, which was especially fun because my mom served in Versailles where the temple is. So, we got to hear about some of her mission stories and think about her tracting in that area. Pierce was especially passionate about the Christus statue and the fountain where he desperately wanted to go swimming. Then we zipped home to pack for our next big adventure.

Early the next morning we all hopped in the car to start our tour of the French, Swiss and Italian countryside. Our first day we drove to Switzerland (or as grandpa rightly named it, “chocolate land”.) Along the way we stopped at the Cailler chocolate factory (which is a place my dad and I had gone 9 years earlier when my family had done a crazy road trip all over Europe. I honestly had never expected to be back, but it is one of the coolest factory tours ever, so… why not!) We took the tour and ended in the chocolate tasting room where everyone got to eat as much chocolate as they wanted (except for pierce, who we limited to a few small morsels). It was glorious! From there we made our way to Lake Geneva where we got out and looked at an old castle on the water. It was seriously just magical. We walked along and found a small cove with a little beach that faced the fortress. We stripped our boys down to their skivvies and let them play in the sand and water. I have rarely seen Gideon so gleeful. He was just DELIGHTED: jumping and swimming and flopping around like a crazy man, high on the splendor of chocolate land! From there we drove up to a little Swiss chalet high in the alps at the base of a ski run. We took our baguettes, cheese and gazpacho down to the coolest community gazebo, I have ever seen, where a bunch of families were having a big party. They had music, food, decorations, kids running around playing soccer, etc. We tried to ask the kids what the party was for and they all just said (in French), “it’s a party for everyone that we do every year!” After trying and failing to clarify who it was really for and why they did it every ear, we just gave up and enjoyed the ambiance. Pierce put on a dance show to the Swiss music (with the help of grandpa) and Gideon ran around hoping to make friends with the other kids, but being a little nervous. We went to bed and found Cailler chocolates on our pillows).

We woke up to an amazing Swiss breakfast with our fellow ski lodge dwellers and set off for Pizza land. We drove up the St. Bernard pass and kept our eyes peeled for pictures of St. Bernard dogs. We ultimately determined to brave the actual pass rather than taking the tunnel option and winded our way through the mountains playing chicken with the cars going the opposite direction. But, we were rewarded with a terrific view at the top and an epic way to cross into Italy. We caught glimpses of what we believe was the old roman road that lead that same way through the alps. We then drove down into Italy and after getting a major finger wag from an irritated italian driver, found a fabulous little pizza place to stop for lunch. I think Gideon was a little disappointed that the pizza was not like little Caesars, but the rest of us were over the moon and gorged ourselves. My personal favorite was the gorgonzola pear pizza. Yum! From there we drove to an italian beach which we had all to ourselves. Again the boys were just over the moon to be out of the car and playing in the water and sand. Grandpa taught Gideon about jumping the waves and pierce became obsessed with the little sand whole that Benjin dug for him. On our way back to the hotel we found a perfect gelato place where the server would not allow my dad to order lemon, because that was too plain and you could get that anywhere. She kept saying, “yes, lemon is good, it’s ok, but I cannot let you get lemon in Italy!” You could tell she was very proud of her product and her people. It was awesome.

The following day we drove through Monaco (getting out to check out all the amazing cars, yachts and casinos.) Gideon and Benjin were especially fans. Then we drove on to Cannes where we got out to swim at a gorgeous rocky beach. The red rocks and deep blue water were spectacular. Gideon loved finding a huge crab hiding the rocks and feeling the “green slippery slime” on the rocks. Pierce was a huge fan of plopping rocks into the water over and over again. After that beach we tried out the beach right by our hotel for a more sandy option. Then we hurried back to the hotel to wash up and head to Natalie’s house. Natalie was a lady that my dad taught on his mission when he was fresh out of the MTC. She took us to see her mom (who was in her 90’s and still climbing the stairs to her apartment). While chatting with her Benjin took the boys outside to play soccer with some boys from Cape Verde. They taught Benjin and Gideon how to say, “Le ballon.” Then we went to Natalie’s house and ate a delicious dinner. We talked about their strong faith as well as their tremendous struggles. Then next morning we went to church with them. It was fast Sunday and there were 4 missionaries/former missionaries who all bore their testimonies. One of them said it was her last Sunday as a missionary before returning home to Austria. One finished 6 months ago and was back with his parents. One had served there 15 years ago and was now living in France as a refugee from Ukraine and one was my dad who had served there 39 years ago. It was so amazing to think about how much the area had been influenced by the sacrifices of these missionaries, but even more it was remarkable to see how much the missionaries themselves had been changed by the opportunity they had to serve in Cannes.

Leaving the church we drove to Lyon (through terrible traffic), reading lots of the chapter book (search for delicious) to pass the time). In Lyon we went to Annie’s house for dinner. She was a lady that my dad taught in his final area of his mission. In classic French style, she fed us a multi-course meal with crackers and juice followed by bread and charcuterie board, then lasagna, and then a cheese board and finally crème anglaise. It was a lot of food and a lot of French, but also a lot of fun. Annie was so good at being patient with my poor French and taking the time to let me try without making me feel like she felt sorry for me. I was so grateful! We got to hear all about how her kids are doing and chat with her husband and son (who had just finished a service mission).

The final day we toured Lyon and drove back to Paris by way of Fontainebleau (where my family lived when I was Pierce’s age. Again it was just magical to tour the gorgeous chateau, but also to walk the streets and have my dad point out the pharmacy store where he and my mom would buy medicine for me as a little baby, or where they bought their turkey for thanksgiving dinner, the school my sister attended, the carousel that we rode and the house we lived in. We finished with an amazing dinner at an outdoor café and let Gideon and Pierce ride that same carousel.

The next morning, we walked with grandpa to what we think will be Gideon’s school and then we took him to his car. Just before heading out to the airport, he gave me a fathers blessing. What a way to end our crazy week. As Benjin said, it felt a lot like when you parents leave you after having a baby. When you question whether you can really figure out how to be a parent all by yourself.

There we were on standing on the edge of the street, our little family, with no car, VERY limited French, unsure of what we had gotten ourselves into. BUT, just like my parents in Fontainebleau, or Natalie/Annie when they joined the church, or those missionaries when they showed up in Caines, we are here for a reason. We are here to learn, to serve, to admire God’s creations and the creations of God’s children. I hope and pray that when we look back on this moment, we will be overwhelmingly grateful that we didn’t just run back to our comfort zone and hide. Come what may and love it!!

Love,

La famillie Facer