Europe 2014 - Troyes Medieval Market Square

Back in 2011, when our daughter Allison was 15, she got this amazing opportunity to go to France for three weeks in an exchange program.  Many of our friends and co-workers thought we were crazy for allowing this, but there was no way we were going to pass it up.  There was an orientation meeting, some paperwork, and off she went!

Don't know how they were chosen, but Allison was assigned to a solid, stable family that worked hard to provide the best experience possible for their American visitor.  There was a girl about her age that showed her some of the things young people like, a younger sister, and parents that weren't fuddy-duddies (seen at the right of the frame, next to Chenjean).  She spent a day or two in Paris, got time out in the country visiting the grandparents, and even went to a sleep-over with her friend.

The place where this family lived was named Troyes (pronounced "twa"), a town that has been inhabited under the same name since the year 330.  In fact, the troy ounce system for gold and silver gets its name from this place, which in the day served as a crossroads between larger trading cities.

And in the "old town", at the center of the city, they've done a good job of preserving the history by prohibiting the replacement of its structures.  Therefore the scene above looks now as it did almost 450 years ago (except the furniture and things like the security camera at the upper right).  The wood in the half-timbered structures, in fact, is the same wood that framed those same buildings in medieval days.  This is the source of its charm, and a major draw for tourists like us.

The reason we were there, three years later, was because we thought it a good idea to stop and visit this family while we were in the area.  Allison did the communicating and made the arrangements for us to spend a night on our way from Lucerne, Switzerland to Paris.  Almost didn't get there, though, due to a transportation strike that left us stranded in Lyon.  Fortunately, the father of this family did not mind at all driving three hours to pick us up.

Turns out it was a real highlight of the trip because, instead of hotels, trains and such, we were able to enjoy France with a real French family, tooling around in their family car and eating home-cooked meals in their kitchen.  Awesome opportunity.  Awesome time.

Naturally I went crazy with the camera, reigning myself in at times so as not to disengage myself entirely from my own family and from the French family that was so hospitable.  The age and the charm of this place made it a fantastic place to visit and photograph - not to mention getting to know such good citizens.  I will never forget it, and would love to go back some day.