Late November, Cricri and me were invited by our roommates to their family's Thanksgiving. It was very kind of them to invite us to share that American tradition. Their house is within the off base housing community attached to Camp Pendleton near Los Angeles. As we were packing Jojo announced that we would take the train for us to enjoy the scenery. "Its ten hours for 350 miles."
"No high speed trains in the US!"
The train was slow, but we enjoyed it, we had a compartment for ourselves with superb sea views.
"It sure was more scenic than the Paris-Marseille train!" Food was as poor as on French trains, and that made us laugh. We did sleep a few hours.
At the Los Angeles train station, they both ran to hug a tall uniformed man. We recognized the full dress uniform of a colonel of the Marines with eagles on his shoulders. They introduced him as their father, and he warmly greeted us. I noticed a few UN and Nato ribbons also adorning Papa's number one. Right behind him we noticed another marine wearing fatigues. He was obviously an orderly, and offered to help us with our backpacks.
Outside the station a minibus was waiting, and it was over an hour's drive till Camp Pendleton and its off base housing community. Their father told that he had to attend an official function before collecting us, it explained his full dress uniform.
We discovered their house, and it looked very much like ours. I guessed that most modern suburban houses now look similar. The differences were their two car garage when ours was meant for a single car plus bicycle, and their front lawn was opened when ours was enclosed with a small wooden rail.
Their mother welcomed us with opened arms for warm hugs, and told that we would share the spare bedroom. Jojo and Tanka had us discover their rooms, and cupboards to find more relaxed skirts.
We changed and joined their parents for lunch. Their father had changed into civies, and we helped our friends set up the table. Cricri stopped in front of an old photograph on a commode, and mouthed a surprise oh!Together we shrilly exclaimed. "Its Papa, and I see yours as well!"
Their dad joined us. "That was taken in Koweit. Who are your fathers?" We pointed them.
"Ah! Foreign Legion lieutenants Montfort and Marigny, but how come you have different names?"
I explained. "I go by the name of Amaury, since I was bullied when a little girl for being an aristo, but my full name is actually Amaury de Galard de Montfort."
Cricri added. "Samo, it isn't only Lambert, its Lambert d'Hubertville de Marigny"
Jojo and Tanka teased. "You're both princesses and have castles!"
I laughed. "Hardly! Our fathers are second born, they have no claim to the family's title."
Cricri laughed the more. "And no castles as well."
I explained that there's plenty of aristos in the French military.
They had another question. "But how come your dads were in the Legion? Isn't it reserved for foreigners?"
Cricri answered that. "The officers of the Légion aren't légionnaires, they don't wear the white kepi. They are volunteer officers detached from regular French arm forces."
We had lunch, and their father told that it was the picture of the "club of the lieutenants". After lunch he told us to zoom our dads, and connected the big screen telly to a laptop. It was fun till Cricri's father told him to tan her bum if she's misbehaving. Tanka and Jojo laughed, when they saw me pull a face for papa having seconded that!
Liliane (Lili), Christiane (Cricri), Jolene (Jojo), and Tanka Rae (Tanka)
To be continued...
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