Sunday: Pancakes à la Natalie!

Upon rising, I discovered Ralf and Margot watching a rugby match (Italy v. Ireland) on TV. I joined them and enjoyed trying to figure out what was going on. I think I get the general idea (if you have the ball, you book it towards the other end of the field and if it appears that you’re going to be tackled, you toss the ball backwards to a teammate) and I look forward to going to a real game in Tyrosse. They have a pro team and everyone around here is really into it.

When Catherine got up, we headed into the kitchen to attempt the pancakes. I had failed to make it clear that I needed whole-wheat flour, so we ended up using white (not a big deal). The curious mixture of the yogurt/cheese and milk seemed to work rather well and the pancakes cooked perfectly! While I was standing by the stove cooking them, Catherine was constantly yelling at the kids, who kept coming in to get more bread and jam (or nutella) for breakfast. They were very skeptical of pancakes and claimed that they didn’t like them. The maple syrup really weirded them out. In the end, when we all sat down to eat, they all loved the pancakes! Of course, they ate them with nutella instead of syrup, but who cares? Next time I’m supposed to make a double batch. J

This afternoon we went to the beach (it’s still super hot here)to cool off. There were even more people than last time! Families, couples, surfers, sunbathers (some with their tops on, a few without)--just lots of people enjoying the sun and waves.

Photo: Look down the beach, the little blobs in the background are ALL people!!!

I got in touch with the English assistant at the high school in Tyrosse (who is living in the seaside town of Capbreton, where we went to swim) and she came down to hang out.

Her name is Alison and she’s from Scotland! It was really nice to hang out with someone who is in pretty much the same situation and compare experiences. Unfortunately she forgot her bathing suit in Scotland, so we just waded in the water and talked. I didn’t get much swimming in (sadly), but I got a nice sunburn! I’m not a tomato, but I definitely got a lot of sun today.

Photo: Alison relaxing at the beach

When we got back to the house, I relaxed in my room and listened to music. It felt really nice to be in a dark, cool room. After dinner I watched the news with the family, then took my shower (I might have had a bit of sand in my hair…), and am heading to bed early. This week I have my orientation (on Weds), but Monday and Tuesday I am supposed to be at the school all day. Probably a good idea to start off with a good night’s sleep! And hopefully the internet will be fixed tomorrow!!!!

Saturday 10/1: Want to Make Friends? Cook for Them.

Ah, sleeping is wonderful. I feel like I appreciate it even more here because my brain has the time to rest completely. Of course, sometimes I dream in French… I slept until 10:30am today, then (after breakfast…which included a croissant!) I helped Catherine with the laundry. In France, people typically don’t own (or don’t often use) a dryer. Everything is hung to dry outside, or—during the winter —inside. It saves a lot of electricity (and money!) and is better for the environment. Also, the laundry smells really fresh when it’s dry!

In the early afternoon I went to a German grocery store with Catherine and Margot in search of the ever-elusive buttermilk. Truly, people hear don’t use it. Most have never even heard of it! We ended up buying something that is between yogurt and cheese, but I’m not exactly sure what it is! I’ll mix it with milk and try using it in the place of buttermilk when I make pancakes tomorrow morning… we’ll see!!

After lunch, I showed Margot and Catherine how to make bread dough (my family’s traditional Italian recipe). They were enthralled because I they don’t make bread very often (if ever!), since it is so easy to buy fresh bread nearby. It is normal here for people to walk down to the boulangerie and buy a fresh baguette (or two) every morning. And, since it’s not expensive, there’s really no need to make your own bread!

I was, however, making “savory” (bread filled with cheese, broccoli, and cauliflower), so it was essential to make it from scratch. After we let the bread rise, I put together the first savory and Catherine made the second.

She was very impressed with the idea and is planning to copy down my recipe. The oven wasn’t working on the bottom, so we had to flip over the loaves so they would cook all the way through. But, in the end, we succeeded!

As soon as the savories came out of the oven, the whole family (and I) piled into the car and headed for Hossegor. It’s a town on the beach that is well known for its surfing competitions.

We arrived in time to see the gorgeous sunset—it was absolutely amazing watching thesun slip down into the ocean. I played catch with Margot, Lucas, and Hugo (with a rugby ball…they showed me how to throw like a rugby player. I don’t think I’m quite a pro yet…), then Catherine’s sister arrived with her family. Chantal and her husband, Philippe, have three children: Jeanne (13 yrs old), Pierre (11 yrs old), and Claire (7 yrs old).

We had a picnic on the beach and everyone liked the savories. Catherine (who, while looking through the dvds I’d brought, discovered that I was an extra in Twilight) had fun announcing to everyone that they have an “American movie star” living at their house. She’s decided to tell everyone so that she can start charging for autographs. ;)

Around 8:45pm we headed to a beachside restaurant to have ice cream. It was a real sit-down place with ice cream sundaes! Unfortunately, because the weather has been so beautiful—and it’s a weekend, the restaurant was packed. And there weren’t very many waiters… so, we waited 1 1/2 hours for our ice cream! At least we had lots of time to sit around and chat. And the ice cream was really good (when it finally arrived)—I could barely finish mine! I definitely eat less sugar here, so a huge sundae was pretty intense. Catherine and Ralf are super generous and paid for my ice cream (8.40€!!).

Tomorrow: I attempt to wow the family with pancakes made with “yogurtcheesemilk”….. on va voir!

Friday 9/31: Exploring Tyrosse…

Today my host father had a day off from work, so I accompanied him to the market. It’s not very big, but there is plenty of fresh fruit and veggies, cheeses, meats, breads and pastries, honey, jam, etc. There are also stalls that sell clothing, furniture, and even mattresses. Yes, mattresses. Don’t ask. Among other items, Ralf bought 2 cucumbers, one head of lettuce, and 8 normal-sized tomatoes from a local farmer for 4.50€--which is about $6! Not bad at all.

Photo: The bull-fighting arena at the end of my street

After we returned from the market, Ralf was planning to take the dog for a walk in the woods nearby. As I was anxious to find a nice place to go running, I joined him on the walk. It’s really beautiful and plenty big to go for a nice, long run. It was also a good break because we spoke English the whole time, which allowed me to find out more about Ralf and also about the area. One thing I learned is that although there is a lot of farmland surrounding Tyrosse, there are not many farms with animals. There are a few, but mostly it’s corn and some farms of (weirdly enough) kiwis!

At lunchtime, I headed over to the school and discovered that Pablo, the assistant from Argentina had arrived! Today was his first day at the school, so he was a little lost (just like I was). Bruno asked me to take him down to the bank so he could open an account and get a phone. I spent an hour helping him get everything figured out. He seems really nice, but I didn’t really get to talk with him too much because most of the time we were at the bank. His accent makes it a little bit hard for me to understand. The funniest part about the bank experience was when the lady who was setting up the account (who also set up mine and is really, really nice) was entering his personal information into the computer. She was reading off his passport and she asked if he was born in Soltero. Pablo had to explain that “Soltero” means “Single”…as in, not married. It was pretty hilarious.

This afternoon I relaxed for a while, then I went grocery shopping with Catherine. I want to go back by myself because there were so many interesting things to look at, but I didn’t want to hold her up. We had a fun time trying to find buttermilk…no one had heard of it! They were so confused when we tried to explain—apparently it doesn’t exist here. We’re on the hunt for a substitute so I can make pancakes for the family.

This evening we had apératifs with the new neighbors from across the street. They are a young couple with a 3-yr old son (who is adorable and very well behaved). It was very challenging for me to try to pay attention to two conversations simultaneously! They were interesting conversations, though, ranging from pregnancy to rice cakes. But, after 2 1/2 hours, I had a headache and my brain was starting to shut off. When they went home at 10pm, I was so ready to slip up to my room and enjoy the silence.

Thursday 9/30: Battling Homesickness with Pizza and ‘Ghost’

Photo: My bedroom!

I spent the day at school, observing more classes. In the morning I sat in on Bruno’s class of 7-8 year olds. It started out with music class, which was somewhat hilarious—not the most beautiful sound I’ve ever heard… :p That was followed by a grammar lesson, but I spent the time helping a little Turkish boy who doesn’t speak French. Some of the time he used a computer program that taught French, some of the time he was supposed to make sentences with little pieces of paper that had words on them. It was interesting having me (who doesn’t know perfect French, or have a real French accent) helping him learn French! But, we had fun!

I brought a sack lunch to school, so I ate with the other teachers in the staff room. They are all really welcoming and I am starting to remember most of their names! Next time I’m going to bring more to eat, because a yogurt, a pear, and a piece of baguette isn’t really enough…

During the afternoon, I accompanied Margot’s class to the same big building that I ended up in the evening that I arrived. They were there to learn pelote, a traditional game in this area, which is played with a hard ball and either some sort of paddle or a bare hand. The ball is about the size of a tennis ball (that’s what the kids were using) and it is hit against a wall and the opponent has one bounce before they have to hit it back against the wall again. That’s all they learned during their first session, but I’m sure it’s a little more complicated. It was incredibly warm inside the building and I was getting really sleepy and bored. I think pelote would be more interesting to watch if it was being played by people who actually knew how.

I had tea with Catherine in the afternoon and a little later I hung out with Ralf and Margot while Catherine was at a city council meeting (she’s on the city council).

For dinner, we ordered pizzas! Yep, they have more than one pizza restaurant that will even deliver! I had a pizza with mushrooms, much to the surprise of Catherine who reminded me that I informed her that the only thing I didn’t like was mushrooms. I had to explain that for some reason I only like them on pizza…and I have no idea why. Oh well! Here each person gets their own pizza (they are super thin), which is pretty cool. That made it easy, since I am the only vegetarian. I was happy to discover that they just cut the pizza in quarters and pick it up, instead of eating it the normal French way with a knife and fork. I feel very dyslexic when attempting to eat pizza with a knife and fork…

After dinner, Catherine, Ralf, and I watched the American film, GHOST. They had the dvd and Catherine wanted to see it and I was definitely up for watching a movie in English! I liked it (Whoopi Goldberg was hilarious!!) and I really feel like Patrick Swayze looks like Neil Patrick Harris… maybe it’s just me.

It’s nice living with the Bergfelds. They are very good about including me, which definitely helps with the homesickness.

Wednesday 9/29: My first visit to the plage!

Since there’s no school on Wednesdays, I was able to sleep in this morning! It’s been difficult for me to fall asleep at night, so I haven’t slept many hours in the last few days. That’s why it was lovely to wake up at 10am and have a leisurely morning.

As soon as I was up, Margot came in to hang out. She brought some German candy (pretty much the same as a KitKat bar) to share and she wanted to play more speed. Noticing the few pictures I had put up in my room (of my family&friends…and my drawings of giraffes), she asked me a bunch of questions about who was who. And, of course, if I liked giraffes (um, how did she guess??).

After breakfast (at which I ate some peanut butter!…thanks to Ralf), Margot and I walked down to the post office so I could buy some stamps for the post office. A lady tried to help me avoid standing in the line by showing me a machine where you can weigh the item you want to mail and say where you want to send it, and it will sell you a stamp for the correct amount. Unfortunately, it was essential to have coins, not paper money. So, I had to put a 20€ bill (that was the smallest I had) into a change machine and receive a huge pile of coins. And, since the lady was still helping me, she only told themachine to give me two stamps (for the letters I had there), so I didn’t end up getting any for future letters. Oh well! On the bright side, if anyone attacks me I can knock them out with my purse full of coins!

Upon returning home, Margot and I had a little picture taking competition…she had her iPod and I had my camera. We were both trying to take each other’s picture without having our own taken. Rather amusing pictures came from that session… Then we spent some time in my room working on putting together the puzzle (with a secret message written on the back, thanks to Maria) and playing speed.

After a small lunch, Catherine’s sister, Chantal, picked us up so we could all go to the plage (beach). Her daughter, Claire, is sevenand will (I think) be another one of my students. She’s adorable. It was only a short drive away (8 miles) to the coast, where we happily parked on an empty bit of sidewalk (ah, parking is much more fun in France!) and walked 2 minutes to the beach.

Unlike the Oregon coast, the beach here is sunny and hot, covered in people (most with their tops on), and the water is a lovely temperature. One doesn’t have to be numb to stay in for more than a few minutes.

As soon as we’d chosen a spot to lay out our towels, we all headed for the water. So wonderful!! The waves weren’t too big, but they were big enough to ride on the boogie boards we’d brought. Margot and I rode waves for a good hour and a half before I headed back to my towel to relax for a while. Of course—also unlike the Oregon coast—I didn’t sit there shivering for the rest of the time, but got too warm and headed back into the water.

When we got home (around 4:30pm), we had tea and a Madeline (a delicious mini cake) out in the side yard. We’ve done this every day and I think it’s lovely to sit in the shade and talk about what we’ve done during the day, or just relax and sip tea. Margot headed off to her first handball lesson (or practice…I’m not sure exactly) and I went to work with Catherine so I could use the computer. The internet hasn’t been working at the house, so I wanted to check my email. After she had finished what she needed to do at work, we headed to the store to pick up some vegetables for dinner.

Before preparing dinner, Catherine, Ralf, and I sat down for an apératif (a drink and some snacks: roasted peanuts and some chips). It’s wonderful how much time here we spend sitting together talking. I don’t know if it’s normal, or just because I’m here…but I hope it lasts! Then I helped Catherine make an omelet with onions, sweet peppers, and goat cheese, a salad with tomatoes, and we also ate fresh bread. Another delicious dinner chez les Bergfelds! We ate dinner inside tonight so we could listen to the news on TV. I didn’t catch too much, but some of it I understood!

This evening I watched some TV with Catherine (a show that follows interns in hospitals and documents what they have to do and how they learn what they need to learn to become doctors), but I’m tired from the sun and all the swimming, so I’m going to head to bed early.

Word of the day: “Boire un verre” (literally: Drink a glass) = to swallow a bunch of salt water

Tuesday 9/28: Children are awesome.

This morning I woke up early so I could be ready to go to school at 8:20am. After a small breakfast, Margot and I walked the 100m to school. I spent the first 45 minutes watching the 10-11yr-olds in their PE class. They are training for a race, so they were required to run around the schoolyard (a specific distance) as many times as possible in 3 minutes. They then had a 45 sec break before they did it again for 3 mins. This happened three times before they switched with their partner, who was sitting on the side counting their laps. Pretty good work out! And everyone ran the whole time, even if they were going slowly—no one complained or tried to sit out. I’m not sure if that’s normal in the US…

At 9:15am I headed to the bank with Bruno to set up my account—that worked out (thank goodness), but unfortunately the phone I’d brought needed a new SIM card. Due to the fact that it hadn’t been used since the last time I was in France (2.5 yrs ago), the number had been re-assigned and I’d need to go to the next town over to get a new SIM card. Ugh. We decided that it would be easier to just set up a different account through the bank (which is right in town, not somewhere else), so I returned to the bank to figure that out. It took a long time to get it sorted, but the new SIM card will arrive on Thursday and then I will be able to use my phone. (30 mins/month for 10€)

The front door of the school is locked during lunchtime, so I was unable to get back in when I’d finished my bank adventures. So, I returned to the house and rested for a bit before taking a little stroll through town. Everything (even the grocery stores and boulangeries) is closed from 12-1:30pm at the very least. It can be inconvenient, but it’s awesome that everyone takes the time to eat a good lunch and have a rest. C’est belle, la sieste! ;)

I sat in on Margot’s class (another group of 10-11yr olds) all afternoon while they did their French grammar, Reading, and Poetry recitation. I don’t recall ever having to memorize and recite poems during elementary school! But it was pretty cute to see them each stand up and (nervously) say the poem. I’d forgotten how incredibly cute and funny little kids are. Just sitting in the corner watching them…..a little blonde girl, staring vaguely at the teacher while using the end of a pencil to twist the skin in her armpit, a little boy in the front who seems to be unable to keep his stuff off the floor (no matter how often the teacher nags him), another little boy who had to ask when my birthday was so that I would return the question and he could tell me that his was next Monday, the same boy who, later on when the teacher was out of the room, came over to show me how he could put his foot behind his head (and could I do that??), which sparked three more kids sitting on the floor in front of me, showing off their various flexibility skills…etc.

After school, I had tea with Catherine and Margot (who doesn’t drink tea, but ate her snack outside with us) and talked a little in English so Catherine could practice before work. When she left, I headed upstairs where I promptly ended up sprawled across my bed, asleep. It was a lovely 45-minute nap (which could have been longer), but I decided to try out the backyard swimming pool. Unfortunately it was already 6:30pm, so the air was cooling down. I only stayed in for 5 minutes before deciding that I’d rather swim on a hot afternoon. I went running instead (wowing Margot with my “5-fingers” running shoes) and, since I haven’t been shown the woods, ran through the town. At the very end of the run, I found some woods…but I was too tired to go very far. Next time I’ll head there directly!

We had a big dinner of pasta with homemade gorgonzola sauce—I was absolutely stuffed by the end! Once dinner was cleaned up, Catherine and Ralf started trying to figure out the problem with the internet (it stopped working this morning) and Margot invited me to come up to her room. She then produced a game which had been made by her German grandfather (involving a large wooden box and a bunch of pegs), which we played several times. I got out my cards and we exchanged card tricks for a while. She was very impressed with my shuffling skills. ;) I also taught her “speed,” which she loved. We hung out for at least an hour, playing games and eventually just talking about anything and everything. She’s a cute kid—she sorta reminds me of a 10-yr-old Ramona Quimby (in both looks and personality). At school she is constantly running around and normally plays sports with the boys. I think I’m going to get along well with her.

As I was getting ready for bed, Catherine came in to say goodnight and ended up hanging out, reading my day-to-day Zits comics. It’s kind-of nice that she understands English (and lived in Ireland and England for a while) because she can identify better with the stories I tell her. She’s excited for me to make pancakes this weekend, whereas the others aren’t sure if they really like them…

Monday 9/27: First visit to the school and meeting my host family!

It was lovely (and much needed) getting to sleep in late today. When I headed downstairs around 10am, Florence (the wife of Bruno, the director) had breakfast all set out for me. We chatted a little before she had to leave for work and she told me to make myself at home. I spent the 30 minutes I had before Bruno got home checking my email and battling the French keyboard (some of the letters are switched, but not all. Very confusing!).

Photo: View from my bedroom window at Bruno's house

After eating lunch with Bruno, I accompanied him to the school for the afternoon. When I arrived it was still lunchtime, so many of the teachers (all female!) were in the staffroom. What a great group of people! They are super relaxed and very friendly and welcoming! Several gave me their numbers immediately in case I wanted to go out for a drink, have a ride to the ocean, or just needed any help. When the bell rang, they all disappeared to their classrooms and Bruno gave me a tour of the school. I was introduced to some of the classes (some of the students promptly yell out “Hello! Hello!”) and all of the teachers. Turns out I will only be helping in the classes from 7 yrs old – 11 yrs old, not the 5-6 yr olds.

I got to sit in on Claude’s class (she is one of the English teachers, but she is also a normal teacher for one class of 10-11 yr olds) while she finished the Geography lesson. Then it was time for English! I got to help out a little—mostly just answering over and over: “Where are you from?” “I am from Oregon.” “Where do you live? “I live in Corvallis” “How old are you?” “I am 22.” They are still at the point where they are practicing the alphabet…and they are the highest class! So, I am interested to see what the youngest ones are learning in English… As soon as the bell rang (they had a 15-min recess after English), a crowd of little girls rushed up to pepper me with questions in French. Yup, it’s not so easy to understand 5 little voices all talking at once in a foreign language… The most important question was: “Who is your favorite (girl) singer?????” Which, of course, I had no real answer as I don’t listen to popular music. Luckily they followed that question with “Do you have a pet?” and they were interested to discover that I had owned a goat. Of course they all (at the same time) proceeded to tell me what sorts of pets they had. I’m getting really good at smiling and nodding.

At the end of the school day, I was picked up by Catherine—my host mother. She (and her husband, Ralf) live about 4 houses from the school and they have three kids: Hugo and Lucas, who are twin 15-yr-old boys, and Margot, who is a 10-yr-old girl.

Photo: The house where I'm living! The room with the balcony is mine!!

Catherine and Ralf both speak French, German (Ralf is from Germany) and English. Catherine walked me back to the house and showed me my (lovely!) bedroom and also her collection of over 300 books in English! She prefers to read in English, so she has read a lot of books! I forgot to say that they have a really cute dog and a cat, who isn’t super friendly. And an in-ground swimming pool!

Photo: The very sweet dog

I spent the rest of the afternoon drinking tea and chatting with Ralf and Catherine (in mostly French, but a little English so they could practice). Catherine teaches English to adults, so she loves having someone to speak English with. I explained how my last host family was more like renting a room and they assured me that I should hang out with them and help out when I can. It’s so much more comfortable here because I am a part of the family! Oh, and—unlike my last host family—I am allowed to go barefoot! :)

Normally the twins go to a boarding school during the week, but they came home this evening because there is a teachers’ strike going on tomorrow. Even though their school is private (an typically private schools don’t go on strike) they are going on strike. So, we had dinner with the whole family, outside on the patio. I kept up pretty well with the conversation and dinner was delicious (vegetarian quiche, salad with tomatoes and vinaigrette, with a piece of traditional cake and vanilla ice cream—and some of the marionberry jam I brought from Oregon).

I sat outside to chat for a while after dinner, but around 10:30pm I headed upstairs to my room. Even though I am getting a lot better at speaking French, it does get tiring and by late evening I’m ready for a break! I know that it’ll get easier—I can already tell that I am improving!

School Schedule:

Classes are Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri 8:30am-11:30am, 1:30pm-4:30pm

Talk about an awesome schedule! Only 4 days of class/wk and a 2-hour lunch break! Some of the kids go home to eat, but most stay and eat in the cafeteria.