Weekend in Compiegne and Noyon

Trip Start Sep 25, 2008

Trip End Ongoing

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Flag of France Compiègne, Île-de-France, France
Saturday, January 17, 2009

This weekend Jason and I went to visit another assistant, my friend Suzanne. Suzanne lives in a town called Noyon, which is a town of about 15,000 people. She is fairly close to a larger town called Compiegne, so Jason and I planned to spend the day there and meet up with Suzanne for dinner. Then we would spend the night in Noyon. So Jason and I took the train, which was a little over an hour ride to Compiegne. We had no map, thus commenced wandering. We found an old destroyed tower that had something to do with Joan of Arc. Compiegne also has a fair amount of shopping, so we did a little shopping as well. Right now in France they are having big sales on everything. They are allowed to have these sales twice a year to clear out all of last year's fashions. The sales go on for about a month, and things get progressively cheaper. Unfortunately we didn't find much. The stores were packed though, since it was Saturday. We saw a protest in front of city hall, something to do with Gaza and Israel. After wandering a bit more we went to the Chateau. There is a huge forest and park behind it, so it was often used as a hunting lodge for past kings. A couple Louis' stayed there for hunting, as well as Charles X, and Napoleon's I and III. Many of the rooms were decorated with historical furnishings and costumes. There were also some huge tapestries. I think the bedrooms were the most impressive though. The beds had curtains and statues on them that went all they way up to the high ceilings. The library was also nice. The park behind the chateau was giant. There was a wide path among the trees as far as you could see. We tried walking around a bit, but pretty much everything was dead, and the paths were all muddy. I would like to go back and visit in the spring.

After the chateau we wandered a bit more; looking for a restaurant. We settled on a place called the le Bouchon. It was in this pretty old looking building that seemed to be on a slight lean. We met up with Suzanne, but had to wait a half an hour until the restaurant actually started serving food. Overall the food was really good. It was all traditional French fare. The restaurant was also a wine bar, and they did something interesting with how they served the wine. When you asked for a glass they poured you a glass, but also left the bottle at your table. When you wanted more wine, you poured it for yourself, and at the end they charge you for how many glasses you drank. Pretty clever, and I'm sure it has lead to many people drinking a whole bottle of wine instead of just a glass or two. We couldn't figure out what they did with all the half empty bottles though. Some tables with just 2 people had 3 bottles of wine on them. And they seemed to open a new bottle for every person that ordered. I guess it will forever remain a mystery. We got a prix fixe menu, so we each got an appetizer, entree, and dessert. Suzanne and Jason both got the cassoulet, which is something he has been wanting to try for quite some time, and he was satisfied. I got a fried leg of duck, and it was tender and savory.

During dinner, Suzanne told us about a bowling alley in Compiegne she has been trying to get the other assistants to go to. I suggested we go check it out. Since she had a car we drove to the bowling alley, which proved a little tricky to find, but we made it. When we got there the place was of course packed. Not only did they have bowling, but they also had a go-kart track, lazer tag, and pool. It was also pretty expensive, so we passed, and headed back to Noyon.

On Sunday, Suzanne had planned a tea party and invited assistants from Compiegne over to her place. There is only one other assistant who lives in Noyon. So Jason and I helped her prepare the food. We made tea sandwiches and cookies. We were still in the process of making the cookies when everyone arrived. About 8 people showed up, and it was nice to meet other assistants from a different town. We all hung out and talked, ate snacks and whatnot. At 5 Suzanne drove Jason and I to the train station and we headed back to Laon. Overall a nice weekend visiting Suzanne.