Living in France

BONJOUR EVERYONE!!! Let me first apologize for not getting on my blog sooner and giving you updates. Each of you are so special to me and I LOVE reading your comments and receiving your E-mails. It is interesting how precious people you love, become even more meaningful while you are away. I am holding onto your relationships and cherish any comments you add to my life while here.



There have been so many of you asking some of the same questions of me, that I wanted to share them on the blog.



Living in Agen is such a wonderful experience in so many ways. The town of Agen is smaller than the two surrounding it on the train route, Bordeaux and Toulouse. I'm located in between these two cities. Agen is about the size of Greenville and yet, has such "old charm" in the structures and architecture of the buildings. It is an older city, famous for two things "prunes and froi gras (duck)". I'm eating the prunes but haven't tried their delicacy. I heard about the froi gras on the way here by people who live in Paris and will definitely try this before I leave.



Contrary to what I thought, not many people speak English and even the younger generation who are supposedly taught this in school do not even try to "make English (their words)" when I ask them to speak it. The few I've met here who do speak English are more than willing to talk to me.



Michel, Kyoko, Marina and I went to Bordeaux last Saturday and the feel and vibe of that city was much more exuberant. Kyoko even says herself that she dresses more conservatively in Agen and if you wear expensive things here, they are offended by it, thinking you are trying to flaunt your worth. Says they have issues with showing you have money here. I told her they need to get over it LOL.



Yesterday, Marina and I walked into town and experienced the market. It was predominantly vegetables of every sort, things I've never seen before, such as black things that looked like sweet potatoes. I have no clue what these are for and couldn't find anyone who spoke English to explain. Bread, cheese, meats, nuts, flowers were also in abundance. It was a beautiful sight and listening to the French as they traded with each other, was an experience in itself.

Rugby is HUGE here in the European nations and I was awakened by 5:00 a.m. this morning with loud and partying French outside my apartment. Rugby field is only two blocks away. If I could have spoken French to tell them to go away and leave the property, I would have.

Marina and I went into town for her to watch a Rugby match yesterday afternoon in an Irish pub. I drank Cider and found it very appealing. Took a book and was reading while she watched the game. We met this gent from France named Pierre. Pierre was an eccentric older man who realized we spoke English quickly and joined our table. After speaking to him for awhile, he started relaying stories, one after the other, about famous people he knew in London in the 1960's to 1971. He told us stories about John Lennon and he being best of buds,walking down the streets every day together, getting on a bus, going to the top floor of the bus and exchanging each other's money made from the previous day. When I asked him why they did this, he simply explained "we were bored" LOL. He says it was a wild time during the 60's and everything he told us, Marina was able to confirm as far as the area in which he lived and what it was like during that time frame. He lived in the Kensington area, where Princess Di lived just before she died. He knew Princess Margaret and said he did some photography for her. He said he knew he was going to die if he didn't get out of there and decided to leave. Found himself a German wife and lived in Germany for the last 15 years. Came home just a week ago to France and found a great place in the City. He kept calling me "crazy wonderful" LOL. Marina told him I really was crazy ROFL. This didn't deter the old man. He was struggling with his English, and kept repeating himself and when he'd tire of trying to "make English", he would revert to French and we would look at him with blank faces asking for English again. We believe he did too many drugs during that time in his life LOL. Marina is great to have around, as she dated a Frenchman and can at least get around and speak it some.

The following things I am going to share with you are not my opinions of the French, but from their own words. I do not know these things personally, so please do not misinterpret judgment from me in any way. They do not like to work LOL. They only work a 35 hour work week for salaried employees. They are not service oriented and life is about them first. They eat bread everday of the week and it is not uncommon to see them walking around town with baguettes as long as 3' or so in their hands or under their arms. They do, however, bathe regularly LOL. I had heard they didn't and that is not true. They said that is true around the Louis XIV, XV and XVI periods of time. Marina says that even in England during that time, they didn't bathe regularly. They eat anything that moves, including horse, which is very dark when I saw it in the grocery store. The French sit at check out counters, from the grocery stores to the places like Lowe's and Home Depot. They are not particularly friendly and hardly smile in these posts.

When in class one day last week, Michel was drawing on the board, the Country of France and was showing us where the marbles we were studying, are extracted. When he mentioned the north of France, he called them barbarians LOL. Knowing, this is where Marina is from and we all laughed. When I then asked, "I've heard you guys don't like America, you don't like England, who else don't you like?" They laughed and said "we don't even like the French" LOL.

There is great fun among us in class and Marina shared with me yesterday that the day I arrived in class, there was immediate unity being formed. That until I arrived, the French were like "no English" and not particularly interested in finding out about English or our ways either. Each day, until Thursday of last week, you go into class and are greeted by the French with "bonjour" and you kiss the air on the sides of the cheeks of them. Bridgette learned about American hugs from Michel and decided she prefers them to the French ways. SO, we are now hugging each other each day. So much for leaving France in the way Marina and I found it ROFL.

I got into trouble this past week in the grocery store. I thought I was doing them a favor by picking up lettuce leaves and paying for them. I was away from Kyoko a little distance and could only see by the ladies reaction, when I took the lettuce leaves to be weighed, that I had offended her. I called Kyoko over and she relayed that this is not acceptable. People take lettuce leaves to feed their turtles and rabbits and that they didn't appreciate me taking the leaves off the lettuce bunches LOL. I told Kyoko to say to her to please pardon me, that I didn't take them off the bunches, but was in fact, thinking I was doing them a favor by taking the ones that had fallen off.

I also was exposed to something unusual at a tasting. I picked up a toothpick and ate the piece of meat. Was something I'd never tasted before, only to find out I had tasted tongue. The tongue of what, I have NO clue. It was, however, tasteful, but I don't think it's something I'll purchase.

Kyoko, Michel and I go to the grocery store each Tuesday and Friday evenings after class. I enjoy this experience and am learning alot from being with them. They have milk, not kept in the refrigerator sections that only has to be refrigerated when opened. They have the most cheese and sausages I've ever seen and I have to admit to you that some of the sausages look inedible. I am sampling some of the already prepared foods and find them to be very good. I ate a dinner the other evening consisting of onions and eggplant, with a tomatoe with toasted cheese on top. Delish!!! It is odd in that you can take one of almost anything you want. If you want one bottle of water, you open the package and take only one. You don't have to purchase the entire of most things in the store, just take as you wish.

On the other days of the week, Marina and I look like little kids walking home each day with our backpacks on. She likes to go by another grocery store on the way home, as it is a habit with her to get fresh food each day to prepare. So, we track to the grocery store and then home, which is only about a 20 minute walk each day. To get some exercise, we walk around town some in the evenings. She tells me of a park nearby where a game I know Tom has played is being played by alot of older gentlemen. I can't remember the name of this game, but it's a big steel like ball being rolled. She says they are serious about this game and wants to play with them, but knows they would think she was intruding.

There are bakeries all over town, even in the neighborhoods. Their bread, most cases, only lasts for one day, therefore, each day, they are in the bakery getting fresh bread and pastries. We have one just a block away from our school and it was quite an experience while there. I loved it. I could get used to this fresh bread and chocolate croissants.

They enjoy "apperative", which is a pre-meal drink to help the digestive system. I was invited while in the home of Michel and Kyoko this past Sunday to their neighbors home for this. I was almost in tears at the entire scene unfolding in front of me, realizing I'm in France and experiencing it the French way. The home they live in is over 500 years old. The ambiance I felt and warmth from these people were very touching. The walls consists of more than two feet thick of mortar and stone. The inside decor was stunning, as she either made the window treatments and pillows herself, or hired some of them. She is a seamstress and when she found out what I can do, there was a special affinity between the two of us. She presented us with nuts, some kind of wavers and then a fig pie. Their pies are not the traditional ones we see in America, but are flat like pizza's. It was awesome. I am breathing in these moments and seeing the beauty in them.

I have to end this post by talking to you about my precious husband. The pain I feel from being away from him is so harsh at times. I live knowing I will be with him at Christmas and that gets me by. He's been so precious to send me care packages and we are both so thankful for skype where we can see each other and share what is going on in our lives. I don't know if I could bear this time without this. He was so cute the other evening before he left for his whirlwind tour around the world. He literally took the laptop around the house with the webcam, trying to find a specific piece of jewelry and a beam compass I needed LOL. While he was looking for the compass in the Guest Bedroom closet, my little Sophie jumped on the bed and was near the computer. When I spoke to her, she came closer and was looking directly at my picture being projected onto the laptop. She could hear my voice and see me, but lost interest in a couple of minutes while Tom was still searching LOL. She turned her back to me and I saw the cute little butt with three little "cow licks" on it. At least I got to see her.

Tom is currently in Australia and is on a sightseeing tour today at the Blue Mountains (famous in Australia). He's in Sydney and they are speaking to him about taking an assignment there. We will know more as the week progresses. Being this far away from him is much more painful than when he was in Greenville. He's having a good time seeing Sydney though and will start his meetings tomorrow. He's giving me an account by account view while I'm on line blogging and just said the koala bears are much larger than he thought and are very cute and the kangaroos are much smaller than he thought. He took a six hour tour yesterday of the city and surrounding areas of where he's staying. He's in a hotel looking directly over the bay and the famous Sydney Opera House.

Please take care of yourselves, write when you can, find something to relish in this life each day and breathe in the moments. They pass much too quickly. Know you are loved - Tammy