France [A Summary]

Yesterday, while walking past the 15^th century cathedral, I realized that there are some things I will never understand about France.  Everyone seems to know instinctively know where to drive in the unmarked intersections around the cathedral and nearby square.  The French also can eat exorbitant amounts of bread without gaining so much as a tenth of a kilo.  Supermarkets contain at least one entire isle dedicated to yogurt.  It is perfectly acceptable for girls to wear shorts in the dead of winter if they are wearing tights, yet the moment I start wearing my Birkenstocks people gape at me on the bus and other teachers ask me how cold my feet are at school.  

Acceptable

Unacceptable

While all of these are aspects I will never understand, they also happen to be the exact things I love about France.  Firstly, I get to start stories with “while walking past the 15^th century cathedral.”  Without the French appreciation of bread, I could not experience my favorite smell of baking bread while walking past the three bakeries on my 10-minute walk to work.  I would also have never known that so many different types of yogurt exist and that my favorite yogurt is not, in fact, raspberry-flavored Yoplait Whips but is La Mousse au Fromage Blanc sur Fruits. 

For those of you who know me well, and even those who only know me a bit, you know I am a list-maker.  I love lists.  Just the act of making a list makes me feel like I have accomplished something.  I have been keeping a list this year of things I miss about the U.S. and things I will miss about France.  Here it is.

Things I miss about the U.S.:

                Family and friends, of course.  But it’s odd that I miss certain people more than I thought I would.

                The gym.  I went to get a gym membership at the beginning.  360 Euros for a gym with much less equipment than in the U.S. for 6 months.  Yeah… no.

                The boys.  Some French boys are good looking.  Some have better style than me.  Most just have really skinny legs.

                Mexican food. I never realized how much Mexican food I ate.  The spices are just not the same here.

                Nature.  Hiking through the woods. Mountains next to the sea. Kayaking.  Outdoors.

Other places can be beautiful.
Nothing beats home.

 Things I will miss about France:

                My students.  I know that most of my students were just happy to see me because it meant that they had a game day instead of a class day.  Some of them were just happy to not have their regular teacher.  But I really am going to miss these kids.

                My families/rugby team.  I saw one family every Wednesday and one family every Friday.  And my rugby team was constantly helpful and understanding.

The bakery.  I eat way too much bread here.  If I didn’t walk so much I would have gained more weight than I did.

The cheese.  I love cheese. It’s so cheap here.  I’m going to miss chevre and comte the most.

The proximity to other countries.  I went to England for the weekend.  Germany for the weekend.  I also love how close I was to countries that spoke other languages.

Public transportation.  I could go anywhere by walking/bus/tram/train.  It’s getting better in the US, but it’s still not this good.

Just one of many great groups of students

Things I will not miss about France:

                 Men's Jeans.  I don't know why they feel the need to bedazzle Men's clothing, but jeans constantly have patterns on the pockets or fake jewels.

                 Cat calls.  In the US, you are rarely harassed on the street for the simple fact of being a woman. 

                 The idea of Men's and Women's sports.  Yes, in the US there are sports that are mostly played by  men and others that are mostly female.  Contrary to France, people are never astonished if a woman plays a predominately male sport.  When I told people that I broke my ankle playing rugby, I cannot tell you how many times people just nodded and said, "That's why women shouldn't play a man's sport."  Frustrating.

Maybe a tad bit exaggerated,
yet so much more ironic that it's me who's not supposed to play rugby.

Distracted

Whenever I say that word, 'distracted,' I think of one scene in It Takes Two. If you've ever seen the film, you know which part I'm talking about.  If you haven't, then you should really watch it.  It's a great film which exhibits exceptional acting talent and an imaginative plot. Really a must-see.

The aforementioned must-see

 I have been distracted the past couple of weeks and therefore have missed too many bloggable activities.  First, and foremost, I no longer sport my cleanly and fashionable cast around the streets of Nantes.  Since the day my cast was removed, literally to the day, the sun has shone.  I like to think it's because of me.  (But in all actuality it probably has something to do with density differences in the atmosphere.)

The first order of business sans cast was to start planning trips.  My first trip was to Tours.  Courtesy of couchsurfing.com and my handy-dandy Eurail pass, I visited my old friend Kamil and a new friend named Cecile.  My first night in Tours, I went out with Kamil and a German friend of his.  I like Germans.  This one talked a lot.

The sink in my room at the hostel.
We became close.

The next day, Cecile took me around town.  I saw the town of Tours.  It just so happened that it was Carnival the weekend that I was in Tours so I got to see all the people dressed up.  That night, Cecile took me to her house and we had a wonderful, typical French dinner and I got my own room. (With my own shower with a door that closes.) 

My apartments shower
with a door that does not close
because it has completely broken off.

  The next day, I had told my ex-roommate that I would love to go see my ex-landlord's play.  But, Cecile had a day filled with Chateauxs in mind, so I opted to tour castles instead of returning to Nantes.  That same day Cecile also skyped with her daughter and her family in Bordeaux.  The adorable, and oh-so-convincing Esteban asked me if I would come to Bordeaux to visit him.  So, my next train adventure was decided. Bordeaux it was.

So this weekend, early on Friday, I left for Bordeaux.  It was at least 75 degrees all weekend.  I stayed with the beautiful family of Sandrine, Phillipe, Esteban, and Ruben.  Bordeaux is a beautiful city, one I wish I had spent more time in.  I'll be back one day.

Sandrine had suggested that I visit a tower that has a beautiful view of the city.  Sandrine and I took the kids to the market in the morning and then I was left downtown to explore.  I found a Monoprix and bought a well-balanced lunch.  I took that lunch and ate between the Cathedral and this other tall building.

The 2 Euro man looked just like this.
Before sitting to eat he asked me for 2 Euros for the bus.
I sit while he asks and receives from someone else.
He comes and asks me again for 2 Euros.

Once I finished with lunch, I decided to find the tourism office for a map so that I could find the tower Sandrine had told me about.  Successful, with map in hand, I began my search for the tower.  While discovering much of Bordeaux on the way, I finally found the tower.  It just so happened to be the same tower I ate lunch by. It also happened to be closed.  It closed 30 minutes before I got there. Story of my life.

That night I had yet another wonderful French meal.  At the dinner table Sandrine asked Esteban what he thought about me.  He simply replied, "Elle est belle."  There's something about hearing a complement from a child.  Adults can give you complements all day long, but when a child compliments you, now that is a different story.  I hope I stay in touch with that family for the rest of my life.

Sunday morning I left Bordeaux at 7:55 so that I could be in Nantes in time to go to Jean-Marie's last showing of the play.  The train rolls into Nantes 15 minutes late.  The trams are all messed up because of the Nantes marathon.  I walk to the tram but I missed the bus to the theater by 2 minutes.  I had two options: Give up or walk it out.  I wasn't giving up.  I walked.  I walked for 2.5 hours with my ukulele in one hand, bag over my shoulder, and backpack on my back.  I get to the theater about 15 minutes late. I ask the people outside if the play has already started.  They look confused and inform me that there is an orchestra playing but no play.  I must have gotten the theater mixed up with the theater he had performed at when I was in Tours.  Awesome.

C'est la vie.  Life is like that.  Some things work out.  Some things don't.  I hope that this week goes as planned.  Thanks to my Eurail pass, I will be discovering Germany [again] this coming Friday.  It should be a good trip filled with people I haven't seen for years and family friends.  It'll be a good opportunity to use the German I've been learning.

  

I'll be catching up on my blog this week.  I started a list a while back about what I miss from home and what I will miss about France.  I'll be sure to include that in my next post.