Xena’s Story: Paris Part 2

Lucy: So Xena, it seems that your story character Xe has a new friend. What are they going to do? You can’t just leave the story there.

Xena: They’re going to have grand adventures, and another friend is joining them. In the meantime, I made a new page for my blog that has the whole story book up to here, with no silly interuption of Mommy grooming or you doing other stuff. Here’s what happens next.

PARIS REUNION

When last we met, Xe had just met a lovely French poodle named Gigi. They quickly became fast friends. Gigi offered to show Xe more sites in her home town, so Xe extended her stay at the Air B&B for an extra night. The next morning over café au lait, the little schnauzer regaled her hosts with stories of both her day in Paris as well as her adventures with her BCFF (Best Cat Friend Forever), Tye. Xe and Gigi had just returned to the Air B&B to prepare for anther fun day together when Xe got a text.

“It’s Tye!” Xe exclaimed. “She’s’ on her carpet, hovering over Sacré-Cœur. Let’s go!”

Gigi already knew who Tye was from their long talks the evening before. The pair ran as fast as they could to the stairs to the summit and on up to the butte Montmartre, the highest point in the city. They only stopped once to catch their breath before reaching the basilica.

“There she is! Here I am, Tye! Down here!” Xe hopped up and down and waved frantically with excitement.

Making a smooth four-point landing, Tye had barely hopped off her carpet when she felt Xe’s arms around herwith a big schnauzer hug. They grabbed paws and danced in a hoppy circle with excitement. Tye, in her fancy French beret, suddenly stopped as she saw another dog approach.

Gigi, who had been holding back, shyly approached the happy pair.

“This is my new friend, Gigi,” explained Xe when she finally stopped hopping. I just know you two will become good friends too. She has offered to be my – and now our – tour guide in Paris.”

“Meow, meow, meow! A friend of Xe’s is a friend of mine,” smiled Tye.

“Je suis heureux de vous rencontrer,” responded Gigi.

Tye turned to Xe, and whispered, “Uh, did she just swear at me?”

Gigi, who had very good hearing, said, “No, no, mon amie, that was ma langue français. I will speak your language, English, if you like.”

Having come to that agreement, Gigi offered – in English – to take them to the famous horse racetack, the Hippodrome de Longchamp Moulin. She explained that it is a lesser-know attraction where the locals enjoy losing their money. After paying their 2€  each to enter, they found the best seats, right in front of the track.

Xe, very confident in her running abilities, stated, “You see those horses? They could run faster if they didn’t have men on their backs. I bet I could even beat them in a race right now.”
“Ah, but you could not beat me.” The little poodle said this with such confidence that Xe couldn’t help but challenge her to a race.
As soon as the horses began leaving the track the three friends ran out onto the racecourse to settle who was fastest. Tye decided to let the race be between Xexe and Gigi, taking on the role of “starter.”

“Xe! Stop! You’re running the wrong way!” Tye called out as Tye tried to get her turned around.
“Wee!” exclaimed Gigi. “C’est fantastique! Je vole, je cours si vite!” (I’m flying, I run so fast!)

(A little later) “Wow, quelle fun?” Gigi exclaimed. “I have never before been in a race and I have never before been tossed out of a venue. Vous deux savez comment le vivre.” (You two know how to live it up.)

“I thought you said you would speak English so I could understand you,” complained Tye.
“Je suis désolé, er, I mean, I am sorry,” answered Gigi. “My English is actually very good. I just forget, since I was helping Xéxé practice her French. Now, let’s keep exploring.”

“Here is the Musée Picasso. It is a ‘must see.'” This time, instead of paying the admittance fee, the trio slipped in the dock door as the museum was receiving a delivery– something Gigi would never have done by herself.

“How strange all these paintings and statues look,” mused Xe. “That Picasso dude must have had a really warped mind to come up with all of this. Hey, Gigi, we never got to finish our race. Wanna’ try to catch me?” Xe started running with Gigi close behind. Several statues wobbled, almost tipping over. They stopped and listened at the sound of approaching footsteps.

Tye, oblivious to imminent company, was still thinking about what to do with the big-nosed man in front of her. “Hmm, this doesn’t make a very good scratching post. Maybe I’ll leap onto his head and take a bite out of that huge schnozzle.”

“Hey! You three, what are you doing in there?” a guard asked as he approached. Gigi quickly translated the guard’s French.
“Nothing,” they all said in unison, with wide eyes and ready to flee.
“Sortez!” He gave them all a stern look while Gigi told Tye and Xe that they were being thrown out of the museum.
The friends ran for the nearest exit, trying not to do any damage on their way. They got outside and stopped at the bottom of the stairs, woofing and meowing in laughter.
“That is two times – deux fois – we have been thrown out of somewhere! How fun!” laughed Gigi. “Let us find our next adventure.”

As they travelled through Paris, they came to the pool of water in front of the Louvre. Xe quickly got out her ball and jumped in to cool down.

“Wee! Wait for me!” yelled Gigi. “I have always wanted to do this, but never before had the nerve.” The little French and German-American dogs played ball in the water until – once again – they got thrown out. Tye, not too fond of swimming, watched from the side, and clapped her paws and laughed as they they climbed out of the water. “Here, we will cool you off too,” woofed Gigi as she and Xe shook the water from their hair. “It is getting late,” said Gigi, “and I must go home before Maman wonders what has happened to me. She worries too much.”
“Come on, Tye, we can stay at my Air B&B tonight,” said Xe. “You will like our hosts, and I am sure they will let me stay another night. I have a nice room and big bed we can share. Help me remember to text Mommy to let her know I am OK. She worries about me, too, even though I am a big girl now.”

“Oh, that reminds me,” meowed Tye, “I promised to te xt Sho when I found you in Paris, and, with all the excitement, I forgot! I’d better do that too.”

And so, another fun day in Paris ended, with plans to meet up the next day.

Xena’s Story: Paris

“I made it here to the City of Lights before dark,” thought Xe as her magic flying carpet hovered close to the iconic Eiffel Tower. “La Ville–Lumière,” she thought to herself. “Yes, I must start using the French I learned for when I got a chance to come here.”

“I’m sure glad I tied my suitcase to my collar,” she continued to muse. “There was quite a bit of turbulance over Turkey. All those big birds must have stirred up the air something fierce. Speaking of turkeys, my tummy’s starting to rumble. “Swirl,” Xe said to her carpet, that she had named Swirl, “take me to a cafe to get something to eat, please.” Xe had been taught well, and carried her manners over even to her flying carpet.

“It’s really late for my supper, but I remember that Parisians eat later than we do at home. Hmm, this place looks busy. I bet they have good food. I think I’ll ask if they serve steak tartare — two of my favorite foods in one dish. I love that the restaurants in beautiful Paris allow dogs to dine with the peeps. I might have to ask for some help with the menu if they don’t have what I want.”

As Xe walked into the patio area, a nearby couple stopped her and – with a lovely British accent – the lady asked if she was with anyone. With only a slight hesitation, she admitted that she was in town by herself, doing some sightseeing. At that, the couple smiled and invited her to dine with them, even offering it to be their treat. Of course, Xe thought they were going to share their food treats with her, and was only mildly disappointed when she realized at the end of the meal that they meant they would pay her bill. She did indeed dine on raw ground meat and egg, while often wiping her beard so as to not appear uncivilized. Not wanting to offend anyone, she accepted a very small glass of red wine and spoke as much French as she could remember. Mostly though, Xe lapped a lot of water after her long flight from Tyeland.

That night, Xe slept soundly in a quiet little B&B that her Mommy had booked for her. Her hosts were ex-pats from the U.S. and were excited to hear about her life in Tennessee. When she fell asleep in the man’s lap, he gently carried her to a quiet little room of her own and tucked her into a soft bed where, with a full tumy, she snoozed away the night.

Xe snoozed soundly until the dawn light peeked through the window.

Waking refreshed and ready to see the sights, Xe thanked her wonderful hosts with much tail wagging and promises to give them rave reviews on the Air B&B site. Off went the brave little schnauzer to visit the icon of Paris that she had spotted from the sky the previous evening: the Eiffel Tower.

On the way, Xe wondered about all the people playing in the Seine. Since the day proved to be heating up quickly, she decided to grab her ball from her little rucksack and jump in the water.

She swam up to a man who was all alone and asked, “Vux-tu jouer au ballon?” When he looked at her puzzled, she realized he was also American, so she said, “Do you want to play ball?” He readily agreed, tossing it only a short way. After many swims to retrieve the ball, Xe decided that although she was having fun, she didn’t want to wear herself out in the water. There was so much more to do and see in the City of Lights! She bade him adieu and swam to shore – with her ball.

She soon reached the boulevard around the Eiffel Tower, where she stopped to eat a bit of brunch. All that swimming had made her famished.

Xe bowed her head and gave thanks for her safe trip to Paris, for her new friends, for her Mommy, and for her food. While her eyes were closed, a French Poodle came up to her to see what she was “looking at.”

“Qu’est ce que tu regardes?” inquired the poodle.
Startled, Xe jumped and barely stopped a growl before the poodle could hear it. She covered her reaction by asking the dog’s name. “Comment t’appelles-tu?”
“Je m’appelle Gigi,” she replied in a soft voice. “Et tu?”
“Je m’appelle Xexe,” Xe smiled.
“Gigi et XeXe!” they both exclaimed, and thus began a new friendship.