So this year I had decided I would stay in France during the holidays. I figured it would be more practical to save money on the plane ticket and a year away from home in the grand scheme of things isn't all that bad. Don't get me wrong, I've really missed my friends and family and thinking of everyone at home being together during Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's is hard at times. The upside is that I know I'm really loved and missed and that makes it a bit easier. Plus, having Internet, phone, and texting abilities helps to stay connected with everyone. A lot of my friends and co-workers here DID go home for the holidays and I found myself semi-alone in Rouen. A friend of mine generously invited me to spend the holiday in Paris and I accepted. I had planned on taking the train to Paris on Christmas Eve and had everything pretty much packed and ready to go. Only thing is, I thought of a woman named, Marie-Therese, who I recently became friends with and the fact that she would be all alone in Rouen on Christmas Eve. I met Marie-Therese in the yarn store she owns here in Rouen a few months ago and have become friends with her. She's a lovely lady who is a very skilled knitter and who's taught me a few new knitting patterns. She's never been married and doesn't have any kids. She's estranged from her only brother and is very much alone. When I thought of someone being even more alone than me during the holidays, I made up my mind to stay in Rouen and to invite Marie-Therese to dinner. We found a restaurant that had a special Christmas Eve Dinner menu and got all dressed up to go. The food was delicious and we had a wonderful time. I was very glad to have decided to stay, especially when on our way home we stumbled onto midnight mass at the Rouen Cathedral. I told Marie-Therese it would be interesting to go and we walked in just in time for the service which was really beautiful and serene. The cathedral is massive and it was filled to the brim with people. As I sat there, I wondered how many people had done the same thing in the past and how they must have froze! It was really cold and even though they had heaters no one took off their coats, scarfs, and gloves. The service lasted for about an hour and it was very beautiful. There was a choir and trumpeters that accompanied the organ player. I especially like the part where everyone shakes hands with everyone around them. As I sat there and listened, I felt my grandmother's presence so strongly within me and I was moved to tears. I really miss her and it was wonderful to feel her so close to me at that precious moment.
Here are some pictures of me, Marie-Therese, and our Christmas dinner!
The menu included hors d'oeuvres, an apple sorbet to cleanse the palate in between courses, and coffee/tea with cookies. It was really delicious and I quite enjoyed it, although, I was REALLY full afterward!
Foie Gras with caramelized onions and pears. Really delicious!
Duck stuffed with chestnuts, mushrooms, and little potato cakes. Another hit.
Cheese and salad plate. Cheeses: Goat cheese, Camembert, and Pont l'Eveque.
Dessert was a Christmas Log which is a traditional French Christmas dessert. This one was a house-made chocolate one with raspberry mousse filling and a custard sauce.
This is a really bad picture but I felt really disrespectful taking a picture in the house of God! This was the best I could do with no flash. Of course, it doesn't do it justice but it gives you an idea.
And there you have it, a quiet yet pleasant Christmas Eve in the company of a lovely lady, and the citizens of Rouen. I came home and spoke to some of you on the phone and on Skype. For those of you I didn't get a chance to talk to, I missed you and thought of you. Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas wherever you may have been and that you were surrounded by your loved ones as well as the spirit of our Lord baby Jesus!! Villalobos, out!!
One of my favorite things to do these days is to go to the market on the weekend. I call Sunday, Chicken Sunday, since I love to buy a roasted chicken and some vegetables to make a salad for lunch. The market is only two small blocks away and even though they have it on other days of the week, it's best to go on the weekend since ALL of the vendors show up. Typically on a Sunday morning, I'll get up, get ready, grab my market bag, and head out the door. They close the street that leads up to the plaza where the market is set up and you can walk down the middle which somehow still feels a bit strange. All of the shops, cafes, bakeries, and restaurants are open during the morning on Sundays which isn't typical but they get a lot of business since there are tons of people that come to the market.
I have a routine that I've adopted when going to the market. I start out at the farthest section which is the flea market where you can find antiques, old postcards, and used books. I then move through the swap meet part of it that has newer items and clothing stands. I end up in the food section where I'll buy some vegetables, bread, cheese, a roasted chicken, or some Moroccan style couscous or Spanish paella. Lastly, I'll buy a bouquet of flowers for my apartment that will usually last till the following Sunday.
All in all, it's a leisurely Sunday stroll where I can take in all of the sights and enjoy the hustle and bustle of the market. I've bought a few books, some vases, old postcards, and even a cute pair of earrings in the past couple of months, not to mention the yummy roasted chicken. Hurray for Chicken Sunday!!
So,Wednesday evening I had dinner plans with a bunch of girlfriends and had planned to meet them at a Crêperie at 9pm. As I was getting ready, I heard the sounds of horns honking on the street which isn't always very unusual given that my two windows face onto a main street. Only thing is, the honking continued and I thought it was a bit excessive but promptly forgot about it and continued to get dressed. Once I left my apartment though, it quickly became clear that there were some rowdy people drving around honking their horns. I briefly wondered what was going on but again, I didn't think much about it. I walked down to the metro and waited a surprising amount of time for the next metro bus. That's when I began to wonder in earnest about what in the world was going on. When I got on the bus, I put on my headphones, as I usually do, to deter any unwanted conversations. As we rolled down the street I began to hear a noise that I knew wasn't coming from my headphones. "What is that?", I wondered. I took out my headphones and was instantly assaulted with the deafening noise of honking horns and shouting voices. Uh oh. What's going on?! I had a moment of panic and looked out the window since the bus was now at a complete standstill at the intersection of a busy street. I saw a two lines of cars going in both directions and they were all stopped. People were hanging out of their car windows and more people were dancing and cheering on the street. Many of them were waving flags in the air as well as chanting and singing. I recognized the flag as the Algerian flag. Okay. Really. What the HELL is going on? I was reassured by the fact that no one on the bus seemed to be in the least bit worried. Some people were actually looking out of the window and smiling. Once my bus reached my stop, I got off and walked down the main street in the center of town. Same thing here: cars were slowly cruising down the street with people hanging out of the windows, cheering, and waving the Algerian flag in the air. Hmmmm. Soccer. It HAS to be about soccer. At this point I'm no longer worried. As a matter of fact, I'm thoroughly enjoying the spectacle. I even have goose bumps as I take in the joy and excitement of the crowds. The police officers were calmly directly traffic and telling the people hanging out of their car windows to get back inside. I thought it was interesting that they weren't doing anything to stop the celebration. They were just ensuring no one got hurt in the process. All in all, a very interesting experience and a nice lesson in cultural habits. Oh and by the way, I later learned Algeria had qualified for the World Cup for the first time in 23 years. Damn good reason for a celebration!!
PS. Dinner was amazing! There were seven of us and it was nice to indulge in a bit of "girl talk". Plus, the crêpes were REALLY delicious.
One of my goals during my year abroad was to do more creative/personal enrichment activities. I wanted to take a cooking class and a mosaic art class, for example. Well, a few weeks ago I finally got around to looking for a mosaic art class here in Rouen and I came across a very talented local artist on the internet, Onurb Ohn. I called Onurb and got a really good vibe from him and decided to take his class. Plus, I talked my friend, Ray, into taking them with me. We have class every Friday for two hours and I've really enjoyed working on my first project. Since I'm a perfectionist, this class has helped me let go of the need to have things be perfect. As my mosaic art teacher says, "Imperfection equals perfection!". This is sort of the motto of the class and I keep repeating it over and over. Believe me, it helps, especially when you feel like your project looks like what a fifth grader would do in art class!!
Here are some pictures of my project. I'm working on this for my sister, by the way. Hope you like it, Aracelly!
Week One was an introduction to the course and the preparing of the base with cement and tulle.
I can't believe it's been more than a month since last I wrote on here. My first month in my apartment has been a whirlwind. In the past month, I've settled into my little apartment, started teaching at the University of Rouen, made some great friends, and have become better acquainted with the beautiful city of Rouen. Unfortunately not all has been a bed of roses. The cold humid weather of the Normandy region finally caught up with me and knocked me on my butt for more than a week. The good news? My bout with the flu has not turned me off to living in Rouen. I've been very happy and excited to be here and that continues to be the case, no matter how sick I've been! Many of you have requested more blog posts and pictures and I finally feel up to the task, so here you go!
I now have a lot more free time on my hands and can now do all of those things I didn't have time to do these past few years: read, crochet, cook, watch movies, etc., etc. I've even started taking a mosaic art class. I wanted to crochet a doily to put under my little TV only once it was done, it turned out too small so I decided to show it off under my new vase from the flea market. I'm now in the process of making another one for the TV.
One thing I wanted to do more of while living in France was to cook. I was even more inspired to take up this habit when I read My Life in France by Julia Child. I've yet to sign up for a cooking class but I've bought a few recipe magazines and have tried a few dishes in the past few weeks, most notably, a pasta gratin (a baked pasta dish with bell peppers, mushrooms, zucchini, and cheese). I had bought the ingredients to make a Quiche Lorraine a while ago and yesterday I finally made it. I have to say even though the recipe was surprisingly easy, I am still very impressed with myself! My little oven isn't the greatest and I have a very limited kitchen but it still came out great. Plus, my friend, Perry, came over for dinner so I didn't have to eat it alone!
One thing that is hard to explain to most people back home is the living conditions in France when one is a student or a lowly "lecteur". There's also the fact that you are only living in this space for a year. If you are lucky enough to find a furnished apartment, as I did, the comfort level is a bit higher. Although I didn't have to buy any furniture, I DID make two "big" purchases: a new box spring for the bed and a small sofa bed. The box spring I bought because the old one didn't really fit the bed and it was much too old. The bed sank in and it was wreaking havoc on my back. The sofa I bought simply because my apartment didn't feel like "home" to me without a sofa. There was really nowhere to sit and relax and I figured it was worth the price.
I believe I posted a description of my apartment on here before so I'll just post some pictures now.
The Entry Way
The main room that is separated into a bedroom and a living area.
The tiny bathroom.
The separate kitchen.
My landlord brought me all of these dishes!
These pictures allow you to see what I see from my windows.
All in all, I'm very happy with my little apartment. It's cozy and very well situated. There are four bakeries on my street, a grocery store, two pharmacies, a cheese shop, fish shop, and best of all, the market in the plaza at the end of the street.
At the beginning of the month, I was invited to a potluck brunch at Matt and Ruth's place. Matt is one of my co-workers and Ruth is his wife. I actually know Matt from Long Beach since he's from California and we met in the MA program at CSULB and were co-workers there as well. We had been told to bring a limerick to share and I have to admit I was a bit lost having never written a limerick in my life! The only limerick I'd ever heard was one recited by Hugh Grant in Bridget Jone's Diary and it had been a vulgar one at that. I looked up some examples online and then just did the best I could. Brunch turned out to be a blast. We ate tons and then played a hilarious game of charades and then a game of Scrabble. Here are some pictures from that day, as well as some of the limericks:
Colleen and Ray, two of my co-workers and now friends. Very lovely girls!
A lot of yummy food!
A limerick written by Ruth for me. If you can't read it, it says:
Just a little update to let everyone know I'm alive and well in the city of Rouen. I know it's been a while since last I wrote. I have now moved into my new apartment and I still don't have phone/internet service. It's been a hectic couple of weeks and I was really glad to have been able to move into my own place. Unfortunately, the person who lived there before was not a very clean person and I've been cleaning ever since I moved in with no end in sight. The place is really tiny but since it's just me, it's perfect. I have a kitchen that is separate with a big regfigerator (not big for American standards but given the fact that when I was in France last time and had a tiny dorm room fridge, this one is HUGE!), a bathroom, and a room that has the bedroom and living area combined with two big windows. It faces right onto the street in a bustling street in the heart of Rouen. The area is great and everything is accessible on foot. I will be posting some pictures just as soon as I have things in order. So far, my landlord is very nice and has continued to bring me things I need. Just yesterday I mentioned the apartment didn't have very many plates and only a few pieces of silverware. A half hour later, he came by with a box FULL of silverware and three bags of dishes. Needless to say, if I want to operate a bar at my place, I have enough wine, champagne, and other cocktail glasses to do so!
Well, that's about it for now. I've also started teaching this week and so far things have gone well. Unless you consider showing up for my 2nd class 20 minutes late because I though it was at 12:30 and it was actually at 12:00 instead, a bad thing which I don't considering it could have been much worse. All of my students patiently sat there and waited for me! Bless their hearts.
I hope all of you are well and as soon as I can, I will be posting pictures along with my blogs about the French supermarket and the city of Rouen.
I decided to take a walk today and was just going to stay in the near vicinity of St Léger du Bourg-Denis but once I was on the road, I decided to go into town instead. I got off the bus at a plaza called St. Marc which is very close to my new place and walked down the street where I will be living towards the city hall gardens located right around the corner. I had brought my book along and was hoping I could find a nice place to sit and read for a few hours. I stopped into a bakery and bought a bottle of water and a brownie to enjoy while reading. I found a lovely spot under a droopy tree and settled in for a little while. The brownie was not the best I've had but it was much enjoyed. Afterward, I went to an English bookshop that is also very near to my new apartment and I bought two books for 3 euros each. After a while I got cold in the shade but as soon as I sat in the sun, I was much too hot! Argh! Only thing is, who can complain when life's this good at the moment?
This morning I had a meeting with my new landlord in front of my new apartment to give him copies of a few things he'd asked for like my work contract and passport. Emilie drove us into town a little earlier so that I could withdraw some money at the bank and go to the post office to get a sort of money order for Monsieur Hache (Mr. Ax) since she advised me it wouldn't be a good idea to pay in cash. Since we were a bit early for our meeting, we walked around my new neighborhood which is really lovely. Right behind my street there are a bunch of little streets that are strictly for pedestrians and they are lined with quaint little restaurants and shops as well as a little stream that runs right through the street. I found a landrymat about a block from where I'll be living which is really convenient and discovered a bakery on the same street a few doors down from mine. M. Hache kept us waiting for an hour and we were quite annoyed although he was pleasant and apologetic once he finally showed up. As he explained everything the apartment had to offer I mentioned the fact that there was no couch in the apartment and he said it wasn't a problem, that in fact he had one available that doubled as a small bed and he would be happy to have it installed before I moved in. Yeah!! One less thing I now have to buy! He also offered to have the internet/cable/and phone service installed so that I needn't deal with the hassle of doing it myself. Super! All in all, I was very happy with our meeting even though, in the end, I couldn't pay him since he didn't have a receipt on hand.
After our meeting with M. Hache, Emilie and I walked around the center of town looking for a place to eat. We were in the mood for a sandwich and I wanted some fries. I remembered seeing a little place on Monday that looked good and was reasonably priced so we went there. Emilie had a Kebab (a sort of Gyro, that's VERY good) and I had un Poulet Frites (a chicken sandwich with fries). Lunch was delicious. Afterward, I wanted to walk around and look for a yarn store but Emilie needed to go home. I decided to stay behind and take the bus later. I walked around and checked out a stationary store since I'm looking for a new agenda/calendar. Too many to choose from, will have to decide later. Then I walked to L'Office du Tourisme (you can guess) and asked about a book on the city of Rouen with all the practical information one needs when visiting/living here. I was told the book comes out next week. Ok. Pas de problème, I'll come back later. I also asked about a possible yarn store in the area and was directed to Phildar a little store that has a small yarn selection. I was pretty happy to find it but a bit disappointed to find there aren't very many yarn stores in the area. The US definitely outshines France in the knitting/crochet accessories/yarn department. Big Time!!
Here's a picture of the yarn at Phildar
Here are a few other pictures from my walk through the heart of Rouen. More to come later!
This is what I see when getting off the bus coming back to Emilie's house. Can you imgaine living here?! I can.
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