City Too Noisy? The Countryside is Within Reach!

I love living in the city, but sometimes it can become a bit noisy and tiring… and that means… Time for a quick escape to the countryside! Even one day will do. Luckily, a train ride brings me from Paris to my calmer destination in an hour (just the time to check what's going on on Twitter). Once I've arrived, however, I put the smartphone aside and focus on a day of relaxation.

It's amazing that such a short distance separates the big city from villages with only a few thousand inhabitants. Since France is a relatively small country, I suppose it's logical that you don't have to go very far for a change of scenery.

Our weekend jaunt took us to Coulommiers, home to the eponymous cheese. Although it isn't a tiny village, it certainly falls into the category of countryside! Our friends C. and B. delighted us with a lovely lunch (yummy, homemade wild blueberry tarts for dessert, see photo) by the wood-burning stove.

The hens pecking away outside (you can get a glimpse of them in the other photo above) provided entertainment for our daughter. And she was especially impressed with the freshly laid eggs… a lot different from the carton we buy at the grocery store down the street.    

An afternoon that made us forget all of the things on our "to do" list, the frenetic pace of the past few months and the promise of the same in the months to come and the daily stress of subways and crowds.

And then, a quick train ride, and we are back to our reality. But we are different than we were just a few hours ago. With us, we bring a hint of the peaceful calm found in the countryside.