A Perfectly Stupendous Birthday Surprise

Little did I know that my birthday was going to be a mind-blowing surprise!  I literally had zero idea, absolutely not even a tiny hint!   I was totally taken off guard and astonished!

All I knew was that I had made plans to attend noon Mass,  take in something beautiful to see and then get ready for dinner out that night.

Birthday and holidays after losing my son are all tattered bittersweet affairs framed with a fringe of grief.  An inescapable reality that I try to not dwell on and instead try to refocus on the moment and the blessings I have encountered another year.

Aimee said she was unable to get off work for the day, being it was August when most of the other nurses were on vacation.

A little after 10 in the morning she suddenly reappeared bearing a huge bouquet of flowers in her arms.   The florist helped her chose this beautiful artistic bouquet that to my eyes visibly evoked the spirited and ever romantic soul that I am.

After announcing that she suddenly and miraculously had gotten the day off,  she decided we were going out for a birthday surprise but she refused to even give me a clue!

She informed me that it was imperative that we leave by 1:30 pm.  I asked a few questions regarding what type of clothing might be the most appropriate, to get an idea of where we were going.  All I could get out of her was “comfortable”.

Intrigued, My first thoughts were that of the art exhibit of Van Gogh at the Ateliers des Lumieres or some other art show. Seeing that she appeared to be studying the plan de Paris, I offered to help out figure which metro or bus to take if she would only tell me approximately the area.

“No”, no way you going try to get me to tell you”!  Oh well, she sounded pretty adamant that wherever we were going for this surprise birthday. would remain her secret only!

She fixed a lunch of tomatoes from our balcony garden with mozzarella, basil and avocados, which further quelled any idea of a food theme adventure.

About ten minutes before we had to leave, the doorbell rang.  Who could it be, the concierge Madame Matilda?  As I opened the door there stood good friend Liz grinning from ear to ear with a big bouquet of yellow roses!

I was wondering why I had not heard from her earlier as she usually calls to wish me a happy birthday, so was astonished and happy to see her at the door.

Heavens, what a wonderful coincidence I thought, yet Aimée gently reminded her that unfortunately, we had to leave in exactly 10 minutes!

I asked if Liz could come along where ever we were going and Aimée grimaced replying that she wasn’t sure, which I thought was rather strange and unlike her.  Surely there would be room for at least one other person whatever this big event would be!

Aimée just shrugged her shoulders saying, “well, I really don’t know, but she could come at least for the ride” Ride, not the metro or bus?

Hmm, certainly we must be going to see a château somewhere in Ile de France, as neither of us dares drives into Paris.  For us, Paris driving is a scary zoo of too many aggressive drivers, too many jaywalkers, bicyclists, and motos darting back and forth lanes alongside of electric scooters you have to also watch out for!

Even getting out of the city is stressful enough, so if it’s a weekday, I let Aimée take the wheels.  I only have the nerves to drive out on Sundays when things are a little calmer.

Instead of turning onto the peripherique that circles around Paris as we usually do leaving the city, she strangely headed direct south towards Montrouge, Malakoff  and Clamart.

Maybe its going to be visiting Rodin’s house in Clamart, a cute hilly suburb that sits high above the Parisian basin with a splendid park?

As she continued to drive pass Clamart and I saw signs pointing towards Versailles, but why didn’t she take the autoroute to get there like we usually do?

Before long we entered the roundabout on the edge of Saint Cyr L’Ecole and went through the main drag of this small town noted for it being the place where France’s prestigious military academy was once located.

The last time we were there was to pick blackberries alongside the road, and there is a popular pick your own fruit and vegetable farm that attracts city slickers looking for a country experience.

Things got really weird when she turned off onto some tiny winding roads headed towards some fields.  By this time I was definitely flummoxed.

As we passed by a small fenced field full of discarded old airplane fuselages, cockpits and parts, I was really confused.  I remarked, “Well, what a coincidence Liz just happened to show up and just in time for this!”

Liz is a former pilot, flight instructor and flight attendant, and RN, amongst other things.  The plot certainly thickened at that point.  Certainly, she must be in on my birthday surprise!

Suddenly an air traffic control tower appeared and some runways.    Seeing the runway, I was really feeling nervous and pronounced that I hoped this wasn’t going to be a ride in a glider plane as I had already done that,  nor even a hot air balloon ride.  And definitely not any skydiving initiation!

By that time I was feeling even more nervous as we drove up to the Aeroclub de Versailles.  Monsieur Arnold greeted us and asked if I had ever been up in a light plane before.

I replied yes, but only with my father or brother piloting.  My father was a pilot in the US Air Force during his military service who loved to fly and eventually bought a Beechcraft for personal and business use later on in his life.

My brother was at one time a commercial pilot for small companies.  So I grew up in an aviation loving family, but I never had any desire myself for piloting an aircraft.

Additionally, I was cautioned to never get into any light aircraft unless you know the pilot’s flight time and qualifications. At this point though it looked like a done deal!

We were going up for a ride!  And no, I wasn’t going to embarrass M. Arnold asking him his qualifications even though it certainly was on my mind!

 

 

 

 

Sitted in front with one of the two flap controllers between my legs, I was warned to be sure not to block them, which I assure you, I was very mindful not to do!  The pretty red and white four seater plane was a Robin, made in the Burgundy region of France.

Aimée and Liz were giggling in the back taking videos.  M. Arnold did have pretty blue eyes and did all his preflight checklists and visual inspection, instilling some confidence.

Before he started the propellor, we all put on our earphones so as to hear the air traffic controllers guide M. Arnold here and there.

 

 

 

I white knuckled the take off as the plane sped down the short runway that led onto a grassy field before we took off into the bright blue sky.

Whew!  That was the first take off for me from a grass runway, which surprising wasn’t really all that bumpy!  Once in the air, my nervousness gave way to the magical enthrallment of being up in the air with the horizon of Paris beyond.

Flying above the majestic Grand Canal of Château de Versailles was a magnificent sight to see, as well as the Petite Trianon, the weekend residence of Marie Antoinette.

I thought of Le Notre’s exquisite master landscaping around these palaces and that neither he nor the king ever had the delight of seeing Versailles from my viewpoint miles above.

The Seine wound snake like below us dotted with islands here and there and suddenly it felt so surreal and even unreal. Though obviously, I have flown in and out of Paris many times on travels, this was different in scope.

I felt suspended in another time frame and space as in a long meditation.  Memories of my father started to flood in and those of my brother too, and for a few brief instants I remembered the innocence trust I had flying with them.

 

Whatever discomfort or nervousness now gave way to a growing thirst as the sun felt burning on my skin and how I wished I had taken some water up with me to drink on the ride.

Before long the small runway came back into view, and again to my utter surprise, it looked like we were going to land on that grassy field!

A little more white knuckling as M. Arnold landed with nary a bump on the grass field and smoothly glided back onto the paved runway to a stop.

Safe and sound I felt exuberant and giddy with delight, catching M. Arnold off guard with a huge hug and a grand Merci for the safe flight!

 

 

Of course, the biggest thanks went to my beloved Aimée for this over the top unbelievably stupendous birthday surprise!  Definitely this is one birthday that will never fade into the oblivion of past birthdays, however lovely each one has been.

We stopped in the beautiful gardens of Versailles for some cold refreshments while I bombarded both of them with hundreds of questions.  I wanted to know exactly how Aimée pulled off this master plan with the help of Liz.

It was soon late afternoon even though the sun hung high and hot above Versailles.   Knowing the heavy traffic ahead I mentioned we should leave to make it back in time for dinner reservations.

We arrived home with only an hour to spare to get dressed again and take the metro to reach Quai de la Tournelle.  I had chosen Vent d’Amore, a small yet chic restaurant known for their Brittany styled seafood.

Not far from the famous Tour d’Argent , it too looked out towards Notre Dame.   The tall statue of the patron saint of Paris, Saint Geneviève presided over the Seine and I silently gave thanks again for all of her help in establishing my life here in Paris.

I loved the cosy candlelight white napkin ambience that has become a rarity these days in Parisian dining in most places except the 3 starred ones.  I always eat with candlelight and despise bright overhead lighting found in many restaurants these days.

With a flute of Champagne to sip on, I enjoyed studying the small but well chosen wine list.  Sancerre La Poussie would go wonderful with the whole tasting menu of the chef.

Amuse bouche of marinated mussels came first with the tiny grey shrimp from the Britany coast.

 

First entree(French first course) was a carpaccio of the tenderest of raw tuna simply nestled in olive oil with confit de tomates.  Deliciously fresh and inviting!

The second entree was pure succulence!  Translucent langoustines in a sublime sauce of cream and truffles that melted in my mouth.  Beyond exquisite and worthy of a triple stared restaurant.  Bravo chef!

 

The filet of Saint Pierre in a spicy carrot sauce was good but a hard act to follow the langoustines.

Desserts were a peach sabayon and millefeuilles of raspberries and lemon cream, both suberb!

Walking back along the Quai towards Saint Michel, always brings back many memories of my first few years here living in the quartier where I walked all over the neighbourhood with my little dachshund, Potiron.

 

 

 

 

 

Birthdays,  come and go and some are spectacular and some are rather ordinary.   Surprise birthdays a rare indeed for me, and this one was a over the rainbow one for sure! I am grateful for all of them and all the blessings in my life, but this one as the French say was la cerise sur le gateau!

Thanks to Aimée and her perfectly fabulous birthday surprise; this one will go to the top of the list of ones to be remembered!