Thursday 1/5: Coloring and Lemon Fanta.

Maria and hauled ourselves out of bed in time for my first class of the day…at 10:45am. We ended up talking until late last night, so we were really tired this morning…not to mention that Maria still has a lot of jetlag!

The first class (with the 8-9yr olds) went really well! I had them practice asking Maria lots of “What’s your favorite ____?” questions. Some of them got really funny: “What is your least favorite letter?” or “What is your least favorite name?” I enjoyed watching her try to come up with answers…

We took a nap during lunch break and, since it was really windy and rainy, we borrowed the Volvo to drive to the other school. Automatic cars are so much easier!

Both classes went okay, but the students forgot a lot over the break. It’s exhausting to think that all I’ve worked on with the little kids so far is “What’s your name?” “How old are you?” and the numbers…and they still have trouble replying! Frustrating for me.

It’s been interesting that every class so far has been pretty much certain that Maria is my sister. I probably should have just said that she is, but they were rather impressed that we have been friends since I was 3 years old.

After we’d finished the classes, we stopped at the supermarket to pick up some food for lunch (goat cheese to go on our baguette, rice pudding, and lemon fanta… our classic snack from the last time we were in France!) and some things that Catherine needed.

This afternoon we just hung out, doing a lot of coloring with a new set of epic markers that we bought at the store. They are so cool—first you color with one of the dark markers and then you can draw over the top of it with the lighter colors and they SHOW UP! We may have spent several hours working on pictures…

Photo: The colors are even cooler with 3D glasses!!!

Tonight Maria and I chatted with Catherine and helped her make dinner. It’s so fun hanging out with the two of them—I hope someday Catherine (and family) will be able to visit Corvallis!

Wednesday 1/4: Gaufre-it!!

Today we took the train to St. Jean de Luz (Alison got on in Bayonne), where we wandered and enjoyed the beautiful weather! It hasn't been very nice lately, so we were grateful for the sun and blue skies. When we arrived, we toured the church (Maria had actually been to St. Jean de Luz during our trip 2 1/2 years ago) and then strolled down the little cobblestone streets.

Photo: COOKIE!!

Photo: The beautiful coastline!

We headed to the beach and walked on the path that follows the coastline. It led all the way up a hill to a beautiful lookout over the ocean. It was a nice walk and once we’d made it to the top of the hill, we had a great view looking back at the town.

For lunch we tried to find a pizzeria, but they all seemed to be closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays…bizarre! So, we ended up getting sandwiches instead! Cheap and yummy! Of course Maria and I gave into temptation and split a “gaufre” (waffle) that was covered in chocolate and piles of whipped cream. We tried valiantly to finish it, but ended up throwing away the last little bit as we were both too full! (And, not surprisingly, Maria managed to do exactly what Candice did…plop a big drop of whipped cream on the ground, making it look like a giant bird had just passed over)

Photos: Gaufre eating...

Photo: And we couldn't finish it... what failures. :(

We wandered some more and then sat on the wall looking out at the beach. It was a bit chilly, but sitting in the sun was lovely. We got to the train station about a half an hour too early because I mis-read the train schedule. So, Maria and I entertained ourselves by playing catch with two bouncy balls and Alison entertained herself by watching us try not to lose the bouncy balls or hit anyone with them…

The train stopped in Bayonne (where Alison had to get off to catch her bus to Capbreton), so I decided to show Maria the town. However, we only had 29 minutes until the train left for Tyrosse. So, we booked it across the bridge, quickly stopped to pick up a “gâteau Basque” to take home for later, spent one minute in the cathedral, walked down a few of the cute streets, then hurried back across the bridge, saying goodbye to Alison (who was waiting for her bus).

Photo: Lightening-quick visit of Bayonne!

We hurried up to the ticket machine and it was the SLOWEST THING EVER! As we were stuffing the money in to pay for the tickets, the train pulled out of the station…leaving us behind. Bummer.

So, we had to wait an hour and 20 minutes until the next train…since we were tired of walking around and there wasn’t really anything in particular that I wanted Maria to see in Bayonne, we decided to just stay at the station. We ended up buying a can of orange Fanta and a can of Orangina, which we split and compared. The Orangina was better than the orange Fanta, but not better than lemon Fanta. Because that is the top. ;) We played cards and talked until our train arrived and we headed home.

Tonight we rested until it was time for dinner and then watched “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” in my room after dinner. I’m pretty exhausted, but it was such a fun day!

(Photos courtesy of Alison!)

Tuesday 1/3: Showing off Tyrosse…

Since Maria was really tired from traveling (for 26 hours!), I slipped out quietly this morning to go teach my first class and left her sleeping. My class went really well—we reviewed the questions and vocab that we had learned before the break and then I taught them the question: “What is your favorite ______?” They enjoyed thinking of different things they could ask, such as: favorite number, favorite color, favorite animal, etc.

When I got home at 11:30am, I woke Maria up (who was so surprised that it was so late) and we headed over to the school about an hour later. I wanted her to meet all the teachers, so we brought our lunch over there. She did awesome with speaking French—very impressive as it’s been quite a while since she’s spoken it!

After lunch I had three more classes and Maria came along. They practiced asking her questions (in the younger classes it was mostly “What is your name?” “How old are you?” and in the older classes it was more interesting) and she pretended to not speak French. In the older class I had, I read the story “The Gingerbread Man” and then we did some worksheets. It was their teacher’s idea, which was nice because I didn’t have to plan anything!

After we’d finished, we came home to have tea. Margot got home and met Maria and soon afterwards, Ralf arrived. We chatted for a bit before Maria and I took Dunja on a walk in the woods. I really enjoyed showing off the beautiful woods—and, of course, my monkeybars! When we got home, we dropped off Dunja and continued through town so that Maria could have a tour. It’s not very big, so we managed to get back just as the sun was setting.

When Catherine got home, I introduced Maria and then we helped her make dinner. We felt bad heading upstairs right after dinner, so we ended up watching a TV show that was about some French families who tried to go a week without electricity. It was rather ridiculous, but we at least were “sociable” before heading to bed, where we chatted until late late late!!

Monday 1/2: MARIA ARRIVES!!

We had to get up “early” this morning (9am) so that we could have some breakfast before I drove Alison home. Yes, you read that correctly: I DROVE Alison home! I managed to drive all the way to Capbreton in the stick shift! I did stall a few times on the way there, but it went pretty well…until we got just outside her apartment. I stalled out just as I was about to turn the corner. I re-started and stalled again almost immediately…in the center of the intersection (a small one). It was then that several cars came up behind me. I waved them by, and then some showed up across the street. So, I waved those by as well. Of course, a police car pulled up to the stop sign across the street. I immediately gave them a big smile and waved them by as well…and they just turned and drove off! YES! I still can’t believe I did that! But, I made it back to Tyrosse with no major issues!

I finished cleaning the house, bought some baguettes so that my host family would have some when they got home, and headed to the train station to go to Bordeaux to pick up Maria!

The train was packed. They obviously just kept selling tickets, even though the seats were already taken. So, when I got on, there were people standing in the areas between the cars and several of us headed into the car and just stood in the aisle. At each stop on the way to Bordeaux, more people would try to get on, but we were literally squashed in! It was insane. I spent a lot of the ride sitting on the floor in the aisle, reading “The Princess Bride.”

When I got to Bordeaux (2 hours later), I had to wait for the shuttle bus to the airport. While waiting, I spotted a trio of Mormons! So, naturally, I had to listen to “The Book of Mormon” on my iPod all the way to the airport… :)

Maria’s flight was late and when it arrived, she still had to get her baggage and it was super bizarre because the baggage claim was behind a glass wall. We could see each other, but we could only wave and make faces while she waited…for about 20 minutes! Her bag was the second to last one that came out. Wow.

After a huge hug, we ran to the shuttle bus that was supposed to have left 5 minutes before and managed to get a ride back to the train station. We had a long wait for our train to get back to Tyrosse (in addition, it was late), but it gave us lots of time to catch up! It was almost weird how un-weird it was to be hanging out. It’s been over 3 months since we’ve been together, but it was just like normal!

Our train stopped in Dax, but since it was late, we had missed the last connecting train to Tyrosse. After calling Catherine (who didn’t answer), we asked a guy at the station, who told us there were taxis taking everyone to Tyrosse. We hoped that we wouldn’t have to pay and just hopped in! As we watched the price tick up and up, we kept exchanging glances…I only had 27 euros and the final price was 60 euros! Luckily, the taxi driver informed us when we arrived in Tyrosse that SNCF (the train service) was paying because it was their mistake! So, he dropped us in front of my house!

My host family was asleep when we got here, so Maria will just have to meet them tomorrow. I’m so happy to have Maria here!!!!!!!!!

Sunday 1/1/12: And it’s 2012!

I woke up at 7:00am so I could “attend” my family’s New Year’s party! It was fun to say hi to all the neighbors who were there, even though I didn’t “stay” long. It was funny to talk to them while they were still in 2011! Haha!

I went back to sleep until late… Alison and I had scones for breakfast and then she headed up to re-pack her bags (she had brought me lots of delicious presents from Scotland…lemon curd, clotted cream, black beans!!!, chocolate chips, etc. and they had been—of course—at the bottom of her bag!).

Around noon, Louis arrived to pick up Boogie. YES! YES! YESSSS!! I was literally grinning when she left. I am SO sick of that animal! But, SHE’S GONE!

I spent most of the afternoon cleaning the house and doing loads of laundry. It was pretty sunny, so I was able to dry them outside! We took Dunja for a long walk in the woods—it’s so lovely to be rid of Boogie! :p

This evening we both skyped for a while and after dinner we watched “A Knight’s Tale.” I can’t believe that Maria is coming TOMORROW!!! :)

Saturday 12/31: A Hoppin’ New Year’s Eve in France…

Having stayed up rather late last night, Alison and I slept in this morning. After feeding the cat, walking the dogs (and dealing with Boogie, who chewed up part of Ralf’s shoe), and having some breakfast, I settled down to read the 3^rd Hunger Games book! Alison watched some stuff on her computer and I read—for hours—until we had to go to the store.

I drove the stick shift and we got all the yummy things we wanted for the next few days. I had a little bit of trouble backing out of the parking spot (it was really squeezed in between two cars), but we made it home safe and sound. We quickly found our way back to the couch and I soon finished my book! What a great trilogy! I would definitely recommend The Hunger Games. :)

I got to skype with Phillip tonight (it’s been aaaages) and we made plans for me to say hi (via skype) during the New Year’s party at my house in Corvallis. I’ll just get up early tomorrow to make an appearance.

Tonight we made spaghetti for dinner (and we bought a baguette at the store, but discovered that it was terrible and one should always go directly to a boulangerie!) and enjoyed some lemon Fanta as well. I am increasingly fond of lemon Fanta, which is significantly better here than in the US (less sugary, more refreshing). I drank it sometimes when I was in Angers, but I hadn’t had any yet this trip. So, I was pretty excited!

Since I’m sick and Alison is tired (she was traveling all day yesterday)—and there’s really nothing to do in Tyrosse, we had a very quiet New Year’s Eve… We watched “Robin Hood: Men in Tights” and ate rice pudding! The movie somehow managed to end at exactly midnight and we wished each other a “Happy New Year!” I (very stupidly) spent the last 30 seconds of 2011 furiously trying to find the live viewing of the ball dropping in Times Square, only to be informed by Alison that it was only 3pm in New York City. I attribute my momentary insanity to being sick…

All in all, a good night. I’m glad I could share it with Alison!

Friday 12/30: Stir Fry, 3D Butterflies, and Online Quizzes

Last night my body felt really tired, but my mind was for some reason really awake…so I stayed up reading the 2^nd Hunger Games book, finishing it around 3:30am! I still couldn’t go to sleep until 4:30am!

I woke up at 10am because I could hear Boogie walking around outside my door…upstairs…where she’s NOT SUPPOSED TO BE! Aargh. I got up and opened my door, and she immediately scurried downstairs. Sigh. I let them outside and went back upstairs and slept until 12:30pm. Then I went over to feed the cat and then made myself some breakfast.

I had a restful day, just trying to get better. I listened to music while doing a puzzle and then colored in my 3D butterfly coloring book (both activities sent to me by the Hommeses). Good times!

Tonight I made myself a big stir fry with TOFU and veggies! Yum! It’s been ages since I’ve had tofu! I ate more than I probably should have, but it was just so delicious.

Alison arrived tonight around 9pm and we did a bigger puzzle together before hanging out doing ridiculous online quizzes for way too long. It was good to have someone here again, though, and we laughed so hard together! That’s the weird thing about spending a lot of time alone—I become laugh-deprived!