Conversation

The café associatif lunch today was classic moules frites. Due to a few technical issues the arrangement was a little atypical. First, aperos and chat, for about an hour. Then mussels, deliciously simmered with white wine, onion, masses of garlic (so much that we could smell it from inside the house) and a little chilli. Long pause; then some chips which we dunked in the cooled juices of the mussels. Another long pause ... then ice cream. Then, more mussels! Followed some time later by more hot freshly cooked chips which we could not refuse. So lunch took a while, but E kept us entertained. At 91 years young and long widowed, I've never seen her with any other expression than twinkling eyes and a happy smile. "You smile even when you're talking about something sad!" said F, and it's true. She sets a great example of how to grow old gracefully.

Extra: another attendee who got neither mussels nor chips, but didn't seem to mind.