Bonjour. Haha.
I am typing this in the garden (jardin) of the house I am staying at; there is a cloth covered table and four small wooden folding chairs along with a bench and a few plants on the cobblestone veranda; tree branches stretch over the table (pear, maybe?) hung with a sting of multicolor bulbs that are very pleasant to sit under at night. Last night as we were eating dinner, a hedgehog trundled out from the plants at the bass of the tree. Rather than lunge for a bb gun, Sylvie surveyed it over her wine glass and said to me, "C'est un hérisson, tu sais." So there is a new vocab word: hérisson means hedgehog, and a new concept: we don't chase animals out of the garden. I hope I see the hérisson this morning, but it might be solely nocturnal.
Last night on a post-dinner walk with Sylvie--who is the mother in the household I am staying with--I also saw two rabbits or so and more birds than my father could chase away. There are two house cats as well, Farine and Kimono. Kimono is shy but slinks by me occasionally and just 'happens' to rub my leg. Super subtle, Kimono. Farine (which means flour) thinks she's a princess and according to Clara--the daughter, who is my age--Farine is an unfaithful jerk who fawns over all the exchange program students that stay here.
My program starts this evening! I am going to have dinner with all the exchange students in the program and then stay over at the university or something. Which is sad, because I am already strongly attached to my bed here; I sleep in a tiny garret at the top of the house and it is very small and very comfortable. It's all in shades of light blue with just enough shelves for my clothes and a tiny desk to work at. The bed takes up most of the room which is how I like it. All I do in my room usually is sleep and dress anyway.
My French has improved rapidly, by necessity--Sylvie doesn't speak English, and Clara a little but prefers French. Laurent, Clara's stepfather, does speak English, but I haven't met him yet. His music collection takes up most of every spare shelf in the house, AND he cooks! I am eager to meet him.
Speaking of cooking, I know Manini wants a description of the food I eat (probably other people do too). So far it's been simple stuff, but of the best quality. Last night I had bread toasted with thick slices of brie served over salad with a vinaigrette and a glass of a nice, sharp-ish Syrah. Before I went to bed I had a beer (don't remember which, but it was pretty good, Hanah would like it) and some tea. I am sad that my Kona coffee is running out so fast, but it's very good. I had it with breakfast today, which was just some toasted bread and blueberry jam, and yogurt with strawberries 'préparés' which means the strawberries were cooked thoroughly into a syrup. It was very, very good. I have to remember the salad idea for dinner for roommates in SB, though I'll switch to lemon juice & olive oil, and find something other than cheese for Nicole.
I am typing this in the garden (jardin) of the house I am staying at; there is a cloth covered table and four small wooden folding chairs along with a bench and a few plants on the cobblestone veranda; tree branches stretch over the table (pear, maybe?) hung with a sting of multicolor bulbs that are very pleasant to sit under at night. Last night as we were eating dinner, a hedgehog trundled out from the plants at the bass of the tree. Rather than lunge for a bb gun, Sylvie surveyed it over her wine glass and said to me, "C'est un hérisson, tu sais." So there is a new vocab word: hérisson means hedgehog, and a new concept: we don't chase animals out of the garden. I hope I see the hérisson this morning, but it might be solely nocturnal.
Last night on a post-dinner walk with Sylvie--who is the mother in the household I am staying with--I also saw two rabbits or so and more birds than my father could chase away. There are two house cats as well, Farine and Kimono. Kimono is shy but slinks by me occasionally and just 'happens' to rub my leg. Super subtle, Kimono. Farine (which means flour) thinks she's a princess and according to Clara--the daughter, who is my age--Farine is an unfaithful jerk who fawns over all the exchange program students that stay here.
My program starts this evening! I am going to have dinner with all the exchange students in the program and then stay over at the university or something. Which is sad, because I am already strongly attached to my bed here; I sleep in a tiny garret at the top of the house and it is very small and very comfortable. It's all in shades of light blue with just enough shelves for my clothes and a tiny desk to work at. The bed takes up most of the room which is how I like it. All I do in my room usually is sleep and dress anyway.
My French has improved rapidly, by necessity--Sylvie doesn't speak English, and Clara a little but prefers French. Laurent, Clara's stepfather, does speak English, but I haven't met him yet. His music collection takes up most of every spare shelf in the house, AND he cooks! I am eager to meet him.
Speaking of cooking, I know Manini wants a description of the food I eat (probably other people do too). So far it's been simple stuff, but of the best quality. Last night I had bread toasted with thick slices of brie served over salad with a vinaigrette and a glass of a nice, sharp-ish Syrah. Before I went to bed I had a beer (don't remember which, but it was pretty good, Hanah would like it) and some tea. I am sad that my Kona coffee is running out so fast, but it's very good. I had it with breakfast today, which was just some toasted bread and blueberry jam, and yogurt with strawberries 'préparés' which means the strawberries were cooked thoroughly into a syrup. It was very, very good. I have to remember the salad idea for dinner for roommates in SB, though I'll switch to lemon juice & olive oil, and find something other than cheese for Nicole.
Beer!
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