Sorry once again for the horrendous lack of posts. I haven't written anything in the past month, which I'm rather embarrassed about. So, I will attempt to make up for it with a nice, healthy update on my life abroad.
Here are the highlights:
1. Hannah's Visit
My good friend and once-roommate Hannah came to visit me about a month ago. Her visit consisted of a lot of girl time punctuated with delicious culinary adventures and coffee runs (for Hannah). I met her in Paris where we wandered the streets seeking out delicious nibbles, such as the spicy, bulging falafels from the Rue des Rosiers and the cafe gourmand (coffee/tea plus some kind of dessert--cheesecake for Hannah, pecan pie for a South-homesick me) we found in the Latin Quarter. We also went walking up and down the Rue Mouffetard, my favorite street from when I lived in Paris over two years ago.
In Blois, Hannah visited a couple of my classes, much to the thorough excitement of my students who took advantage of Hannah's lack of French skills to practice their English ones. She also attended my choir concert at a nursing home with my choir. We went shopping and Hannah talked me into buying a fabulous purse and a very useful suitcase (currently in use here in England) and then went out for a really nice meal at a fancy restaurant. We got the 30-euro "Discovery Menu" that allowed us to choose four mouth-watering, carefully-plated courses of whatever we wanted on the menu. I've been dreaming of going all-out for a meal in France for awhile, so this was quite the treat! Both os us waddled out of the restaurant with food babies and a serious appreciation for French culinary skill.
Hannah was also here on Easter, so we arranged a pot luck Easter dinner with the Brits and our new Belgian friends that included a lot of pasta and a rum-soaked chocolate Easter cake. Lest you think all we did was eat, we did visit a castle (Chenonceau) and take a fine tour of Blois, despite the rain. An excellent visit!
2. Tony's Visit
My old friend Tony from my days in the CHS Marching Band is currently studying abroad in Germany and decided to swing over to France for a long-weekend with me. I also met him in Paris, and we took a less-culinary and more-touristy approach to Paris. We rendez-vous-ed at Notre Dame Cathedral, power-walked to the Louvre via Pont Neuf, spent a fabulous 2.5 hours running around the Louvre seeing all the major works (for free!! yay being young in Europe!), then shot over to the Eiffel Tower, snapped some photos, then headed back to the Latin Quarter for a luxurious dinner at Pizza Roma, one my old haunts from my month in Paris (nothing has changed), and finally to the train station to catch the last train to Blois.
We spent that sunny Sunday walking all over Blois. Tony set out to castles by himself on Monday and Tuesday, and we had two nice meals out, one with Nancy and the primary school teachers the Brits and I have met with once a month for English conversation since October--so fun! We also hit up some of the shops in Blois where Tony secured very blue, very European shorts, and I got Tony hooked on Downton Abbey, the French language, and life in France in general. Such a wonderful visit!
3. Final Days as a Language Assistant
After Tony left, I only had two days left as a language assistant. My kids at Ecole Buhler surprised me with a stack of carefully-crafted drawings and notes thanking me for teaching them English. I also helped out in the special education classroom making REAL American chocolate chip cookies. Lots of special memories made!
At Ecole Foch, I also received many notes and drawings from my students. I now know what it is to be a movie star as my CM2 students swarmed me demanding my autograph on notebooks, pencil cases, bits of paper, and even a couple of arms ("I'm never washing this arm again!") The teachers also teamed up and got me a huge French cookbook, full of beautiful images, tips, and classically French recipes. I was so surprised I nearly cried. I was so lucky to work with such a lovely group of colleagues who took the time to get to know me! Also, was really feeling the love for my students, whom, though they drove me nuts most of the time, have inspired me to pursue a career in teaching.
Thursday was my last practice with my choir--an unexpected and sad ending to a wonderful experience with a great group of women. That night the Brits and I attended an epic-fail free dance (dressed to the nines only to stand in the corner playing highschooler or university student). Then Suzie, my British bffl, showed up that Friday to have a nice meal out (best one so far in France) and a proper sleepover. I also went out Saturday night with my new friend Tahar who treated me to a 4-hour sit-sip-and-chat French-style on an outside patio (weather finally wonderful).
4. Week without the Brits
Harriet and Amy headed down to Nice and Monaco for the week, and I stayed behind frantically completing my online course and filling out an obscene number of job applications for jobs in France for next year (with the help of Francois's flawless CV-editing and Tahar's diligent help editing my cover letters) and jobs as a nanny this summer in Minneapolis. I also had a number of social engagements, including:
Monday: Cafe sit with Caroline, a current English teacher who gave me tons of advice for becoming a teacher in France myself. It turns out she was also the French language assistant at Macalester College in St. Paul for the past two years and we have friends in common. We followed up our 6-hour chat with a trip to the cinema to see a French romantic comedy.
Tuesday: Lunch with Ariane, one of my favorite teachers from Ecole Foch. We dined outside on the patio with her boyfriend, then drive to the Chateau de Chaumont, a little-known jewel of the Loire Valley, and toured the castle and gardens and pushed around her 6-month-old son in his stroller.
Wednesday: Lunch with Josee, one of my favorite teachers from Ecole Buhler, and her friend. We had delicious Indian food and macarons in the garden and chatted for three hours, then went for a walk along the Loire in the blazing sun. Then dinner with our new Belgian friends, Jessica and Veerle, on the patio of a nice restaurant in Blois.
Friday: Lunch with Charly and Edwige. Edwige proved her culinary mastery as usual with a lovely lunch of roast chicken, ratatouille, potatoes, goat's cheese, wine, and cherry clafoutis cake. We chatted about life in the garden, read the paper, did research on various plants and the history of Blois before I had to return home to have dinner with Francois.
5. Last Days with Harriet and Amy in Blois and Harriet's Birthday
The Brits got back late Friday night. Suzie showed up Monday morning. We all ordered pizza and watched Bring It On (made fun of American high school experiences) and The Bachelorette (made fun of Americans in general) in honor of Harriet's birthday, then ended up chatting with Felipe, Cristian, and John, international students at the engineering school. A fun evening. We got up late and had a nice lunch outside complete with luscious chocolate cake and creme brulee for Harriet's birthday, then Suzie headed home and the Brits and I shared our last evening all together, which consisted of a lot of frantic packing and reminiscing. Had a nice cuppa with Amy at 1 AM, our last one together for awhile.
Amy walked Harriet, all of Harriet's luggage, and I to the station at 6:30 AM on Wednesday. We said goodbye to Amy, then caught the 6:57 AM to Paris. After I received the third-degree from the British border control (suspicious American that I am), Harriet and I got on the Chunnel (never actually called the Chunnel by Brits, rather the "Channel Tunnel") and shot under the Channel to England. After 6 hours of train travel, Harriet's mum picked us up at the station and took us to their lovely home where I now sit writing this blog post.
Harriet's family is absolutely amazing, very welcoming and helpful. Harriet has three siblings, ages 19, 16, and 10, so the only child in me is quite enjoying watching the sibling relationships unfold. British food-wise, so far, I have had squash (British drink syrup that you add water to), cheddar, butter, and cucumber sandwiches, crumpets and lemon curd, coleslaw with British cheddar in it, real English butter, and lots of TEA! Proper fish and chips are promised for tomorrow's dinner and we're having a Saturday luncheon of Chinese food and birthday cake at Harriet's grandparents' (I'm the first American her grandparents have ever met). Harriet and I spent today shopping at a real British mall. I embarrassed her terribly by snapping photos of all the shops I've heard her and Amy talk about for the past eight months. We both spent a healthy 20 pounds each on new clothes. No luck finding a real grown-up "purse" (they mean wallet) for me, but I know I will find one eventually! Tonight's festivities should involve a movie lounging in Harriet's huge bed, I think. Harriet's nearly done emptying all her suitcases, so it's time for me to sign off and be social again.
I'm off to London on Sunday and will be joined by my friend Ali on Tuesday evening. Harriet is meeting us in London to see The Phantom of the Opera on Thursday, and Suzie is coming in on Saturday for the London Eye and the London Dungeons experience. Otherwise, I've got my guide book and LOTS of ideas of things to do and places to see. Top: Shakespeare's Globe Theater, various British history museums, literary walk though Bloomsbury, lots of parks, and a beer in a British pub. So. Excited. Catch you all up when I get back for my final week in France (!), unless for some ungodly reason I am bored in London and have enough time to post something this next week.
Cheers!
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