Lorelai and Rory arrive back home after a month long backpacking trip across Europe, and apparently, the van ride home took too long. When the van leaves, Lorelai makes some reference to how the long van ride is compared to being arounnd French boys and a soccer match, and almost simultaneously, Babette, their next door neighbor, runs out frantically making sure that the two Gilmore girls were ok. It is made apparent that their trip was extended unexpectedly, not according to the itinerary that Rory left with Babette (without Lorelai knowing and they don't specify why their trip took longer). Babette panicked and called all the consulates trying to find the girls, afraid that they had been kidnapped. But now, she is relieved and invites herself into their house wanting to hear about everything that happened in the house. Outside, Lorelai confronts Rory about why she left an itinerary with Babette, and Rory just thought it would be nice for someone to know where they were. Some one liner bantering goes on between the two as they follow Babette into the house, and they soon find their way to the kitchen table. Only about fifteen seconds goes by before Lorelai signals to Rory to pretend to yawn as a hint for Babette to leave. She gets the hint, and leaves. Lorelai follows Rory to her room as Rory rejoices in her room, seeing her closet full of clothes hung up. Lorelai departs to take a shower, leaving Rory to "make out" with her socks in her drawer. Opening Credits.

New season means new scenes in the opening credits, yay. Dean and Jess are missing, I guess those story lines are over!

Lorelai is calling all the consulates to inform that they are indeed ok, and their kidnaping was a false alarm. Rory is separating the gifts that they had brought back from Europe for their friends and there are a lot of gifts to be given out. They wonder out loud whether they really do like that many people. They also try to figure out how to carry all the gifts around to distribute, since they don't have tote bags like every other girl, they must result to something else.

Now they are walking around town with the same backpacks that they wore trekking across Europe, slightly embarassed. Rory wants to stop by Luke's because she is starving, and Lorelai brings up the subject of Luke, whether he actually went on the cruise with his girlfriend Nicole. Rory asks why he wouldn't go on the cruise and Lorelai makes up some dumb excuses. Rory said she hopes he did go on that cruise, because he really seems to like Nicole, Lorelai just dismisses that comment. They then walk by Taylor's new soda shop, and inside, it is Luke yelling at Taylor, as usual. The problem this time is Taylor built a window in place of the wall separating Luke's diner and the soda shop, allowing all of Taylor's customers to be able to look inside the diner. This infuriates Luke, he soon loses it and starts to make a mess inside the soda shop. Suddenly it comes to Lorelai's attention that they forgot to bring back a gift for Luke, nothing seemed right for Luke and they should have just gotten him that bullfighter's uniform. Lorelai gets the bright idea of just purchasing something around town and pretend its from Europe, Rory adamantly disapproves.

Next stop, Sukie's. She runs out to greet the two, with Jackson following behind making sure they don't twist "baby" (Sukie is pregnant). They go inside where Lorelai gets a better look at pregnant Sukie, touching her belly. Lorelai beckons Rory to come over to touch the belly also, but she refuses. "She's chicken", says Lorelai. Chicken of what?? That's what I want to know. Now to the sex of the baby, Sukie knows, but Jackson wants to play it old fashioned and wants to be surprised. He even sports a button saying "I don't want to know the sex of my baby". Lorelai is still dying to know, but Rory is on Jackson's side. She even gets a button. So Jackson has more than one button made. Sukie and Lorelai go outside, and in the shed are baby items...all blue. It's a boy!

Lorelai took a jar of jam from Jackson's pantry and dresses it up with French decoration to give to Luke. She even thinks of an elaborate story for the maker of the jam, who is an orphan and illiterate. Rory knows it will never work, but Lorelai still proceeds. They separate, Rory going to visit Lane, her best friend, and Lorelai to Luke's, to deliver the faux French Jam.

In Luke's diner now, Lorelai makes small talk with Luke. Here we find out why they spend a few extra days in Europe. Lorelai found out from a few English girls that Bono is at his hotel in Ireland, so they decide to stalk him, unsuccessfully. Lorelai gives himt he jam, but he knows its fake, and she comes clean. The subject of the cruise is also brought up, and Luke tries his best to change the subject.

Now there is this whole Ice Cream Queen ordeal. Rory walks by Kirk, who is putting up posters with Rory's picture as the Ice Cream Queen for Taylor's Soda Shop. She appears upset as she tears down the poster and heads straight for the soda shop. She confronts him to why he named her the Ice Cream Queen without her permission. He just figured she'd be delighted to do it since she is always first in line for all the other town's events. She tells him that she doesn't have time because she has to get ready for Yale, and that he should have asked her first. He is upset, saying Yale has changed her and that she now belongs to the Ivy Leagues. Rory is bothered by that comment, but Lorelai comforts her by saying Taylor is just messing with her mind.

Rory opens a letter from Yale and is shocked to find out that she mistakingly wrote down the wrong orientation date, thinking she still had one week before the move in date, when in reality, its in three days. This ruins their plans for the last week they had to spend together, and there is so much to do to get ready. She needs to buy more supplies. Since they still had so much shopping to do, Lorelai offers to go separately so that they can cover more ground faster. They also have to go to their weekly Friday night dinners at Lorelai's parents house, but Lorelai decides she shouldn't go so that she can shop some more.

At Rory's grandparent's house, she delivers their gifts. When her grandma finds out that Lorelai is not coming for dinner, she becomes visibly upset. As punishment, she tries to keep Rory at their house by prolonging dinner, cooking dish by dish after they completed one. She also brought out ballroom dancing videos for them to watch all night.

Meanwhile, back at Lorelai's house at Stars Hollow, Luke is helping Lorelai move Rory's stuff onto a truck, in preparation for the move in day. There, Lorelai finally weasles out of Luke what actually happened on the cruice. Turns out, Luke and Nicole got hitched after seeing everyone else happy in love on the cruise. Lorelai is shocked and seems to be disappointed, but then Luke tells her they came to their senses and are getting a divorce. After Luke leaves, Lorelai receives a frantic call from Rory, begging to be saved from her grandmother's house. Lorelai agrees to stop by the house, knowing that her mom is upset that she failed to show up for dinner.

When Lorelai shows up, her mom tries to act like nothing is wrong, but they eventually get into an argument. Lorelai wants to spend the last night with her daughter before she has to move in, and her mom thinks she's just trying to get out of the dinner. Cut back to Lorelai's house, she and Rory are sitting on the couch watching the ballroom dancing videos, and as the camera pans for a wide shot, you see Lorelai's mom asleep on the couch with them.

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