Well, I certainly hope this is the last time that I will be
tempted to complain about spending so much time alone. Still, I’m going to try
very hard to make this as “un-complaining” as possible. First positive thing,
since last Sunday, there hasn’t been a big enough cloud in the sky to even
threaten a drop of rain. It has been sunny and breezy and beautiful all week
and weekend long, so that is a definite plus. As you know, by Friday, everyone
that I know in Montpellier (a whopping 4 people) was out of town and I was left
to make the most of this foreign and enchanting (not so little) town all on my
own. There is some benefit to having the days all to myself: there is certainly
no one to complain of being bored or hungry or tired and no one to argue with
about what I should do next or where I should go next. And being the stubborn
and insistent individual that I am, there is always some benefit to that. However,
I am also someone who measures the value of a moment by how much it
strengthened an existing relationship of mine or whether or not it caused a new
relationship to bloom. That’s not to say that I don’t think my time here has
not been valuable, it most certainly has, however, I think the memories would
be more valuable if I was making them alongside someone else. Yet, since this
is something I cannot change now, I digress.
Friday:
By the end of Thursday, I had finished most of the work that
I was given so I didn’t have much to take care of on Friday. By noon, I was
ready to go adventuring and so I headed off to the zoo which is conveniently
located five bus stops away from where I live (and one past where I work).
Montpellier’s zoo is the only free zoo that I know of besides Saint Louis zoo.
That is about the only similarity they share, however. The zoo consisted of
five different paths that I could follow, but I didn’t quite understand which
one took me where and I also could not really follow what the signs were trying
to tell me. So I decided to just wander around until I stumbled upon some
animals. Unlike the zoos I’ve been to in the U.S., this zoo consisted of a few
paved paths and many more unpaved paths
that were frequently sided on both sides by a dense row of trees and often
extended for quite some time with nothing but forest on both sides and no
animals enclosures to be seen. Then suddenly there would be a break in the
trees and some random animal exhibit would be to one side and the path would
split into two or three different ways and I would be forced to make a completely
uneducated decision as to which path was best to take because, quite frankly, I
didn’t know where any of them was going to lead me. I should have bought a few
baguettes before arriving so that I could have left myself a trail of crumbs.
I still enjoyed just strolling around in the pretty greenery
and breathing the fresh, warm air. Eventually I stumbled across a map in the
middle of giraffes and zebras exhibit and somewhat figured out the method to
the madness so that I could at least tell where I had already been and in what
general direction I wanted to head next. There really were not an extraordinary
amount of animals, but they were so spread out that it took me quite a while to
find them all. The zoo did seem to reinvent their natural habitats quite well
though which I appreciated, even if it meant that I could only catch a few
glimpses of the gazelles because they were in an enclosure with very tall
grass. I wandered until I was tired, slightly sunburnt, and definitely
dehydrated which ended up being on the better part of two hours and then headed
back to the bus stop.
Instead of going home though (since it was only about 3 O’clock) I decided to head into the city
center to see what was going on, but when I got to the city center, I decided
to keep going until I ended up back and Antigone where Marion had taken me on
my first full day here. It was much prettier this time around because it was
not windy, rainy, and cold. Instead it was extremely bright, rather warm, and
breezy when I could find a shady area. Antigone is a very, very beautiful, ornate
business/residential district that I believe is a bit on the newer side. The
walk from the tram station/mall area to the river (a straight shot) is kind of majestic.
The gigantic walk way is surrounded on both sides by huge rosy colored
buildings; some apartments, some offices, the bottom floor of which are almost all
shops, restaurants, or cafes. There are a few archways throughout the walk that
give me the sensation of being in ancient Greece. The walk ends at a large
river with a beautiful view of even more beautiful buildings lining the other
side along with the option to sit and eat at any number of riverside cafes and
restaurants. I took some nice pictures and then decided to head back toward the
center of the walk where there were more places to sit and eat.
I chose a little restaurant with outdoor seating named “La
Grange aux Crêpes” and attempted to ask the man inside if I should sit anywhere
outside, but forgot the word for “to sit” in French and ended up asking in
English. Fortunately he understood and indicated that I should. Outside there
were no more than ten small tables with chairs arranged under a nice little
awning that offered some welcomed shade (my sunburn was getting pretty intense
by this point). My “waiter” (the man I spoke with inside and also the owner of
the restaurant) came out with my menu. He was a short, plump, jolly old man
with a big belly and a smile and laugh to match. We exchanged a few short words
in French and he even had the patience to listen to me order in French. And I,
to my shock and surprise, understood what he was saying to me as well! I
ordered one of their “galettes” which was somewhat like a savory crêpe and
every bit as tasty J
along with a cider! I finished off the whole thing (it was pretty big) since I
hadn’t eaten since nine or so that morning. When he came back and asked if I
was finished, he picked up the plate and looked underneath as if I may have hiding
some of my food underneath..haha..like I would ever do anything but eat every
last bit of a crêpe!!!
Then as I was sitting there just relaxing and enjoying my
people watching, he came back out and began making small talk with me (in
French). And to my shock and surprise once again, I was able to not only
understand, but I was also able to respond.
And so began the absolute NUMBER
ONE highlight of my ENTIRE first week!!!! We chatted for ten or so minutes in
French and he went back in. Then a few minutes later he came back out again and
gave a little business card with a small map on the back to show their location
(I had said I would recommend the restaurant to any of my friends). He
explained the setup of the buildings to me as well—the area is arranged so that
it looks like a key if you are up in the sky looking down on it. When I told
him that I loved the food and would definitely be coming back, he went back
inside and came out with a “fidelity card” that will get me a free crêpe if I
eat there six more times—not at all out of the question! And then, he sat down at one of the tables at we
chatted some more. After a while, his son (probably in his 30s came out) and
joined in the conversation and eventually his wife (also the cook) came out and
joined in too. Since I was the only one left at the restaurant and technically
lunch serving hours were over, they all sat down and we talked (ALL IN
FRENCH!!) for over an hour.
They were soooo friendly, and the husband and wife
were absolutely hilarious. They would bicker and joke and poke fun at each
other and I absolutely loved it. We talked about Montpellier, where they were
from in the North of France, the United States, my studies and my research, and
even me being homesick. I honestly think it was the most I have enjoyed myself
since I’ve been here. They were all so patient when I was speaking and couldn’t
think of a word and they were able to speak slow enough that I could understand—It
is still very hard for me to understand French when it is spoken at their
normal pace. And for the first time I wasn’t nervous or self-conscious about
not being able to speak fluent French. I could tell that they didn’t really
understand any English and that they thoroughly appreciated any attempts that I
made at speaking French. It was such a fun and encouraging experience and not
one that I will ever forget. As I said at the beginning, my most valuable
memories are the ones in which I’m forming or strengthening relationships with
others!!!
I honestly don’t remember what I did for the rest of that
day. I’m pretty sure it just consisted of going home and making dinner—my new
version of bruschetta which I actually enjoy quite a lot,—talking to my mom on
the phone, and reading a book. Unfortunately I don’t feel comfortable going out
to bars or anything after dark by myself yet. Those are the scenarios that
always play out really badly in my head so I don’t frequently dare take a
chance to see how they might actually go.
Saturday I had the temporary delight of finding out that a
girl that I went to grade school with is actually in Montpellier right now as
well. I got in touch with her on facebook and she said that she and her friends
were going to the beach a little later on and I could meet them and go with
her. Since I was getting ready to head into the grocery store to pick up some
food, she said she would meet me at the McDonalds in the city center in about
an hour. Which would have been the perfect amount of time had I been heading to
the correct McDonalds, or if I hadn’t gotten lost on the way to the wrong
McDonalds, but considering both of those things did, in fact, happen, I ended
up getting to the wrong McDonalds 45 minutes late after they had already left
for the beach L Since
we were communicating only over facebook, we needed wifi to keep in touch, and
since I did not have wifi while I was lost, and she did not have wifi after she
left for the beach, I was left to spend the rest of the day, once again, on my
own in the city center. The good news is, now I know that she is in Montpellier
for the next month and a half, and should be able to meet up with her and her
friends from time to time...yay for company!
Fortunately Saturday there was a big festival going on in
the city center, and I was able to walk around and look at different booths of
all of Montpellier’s different sister cities—one of them being Louisville!! It
was quite comforting to see pictures of Louisville’s skyline, and Churchill
Downs, and Mint Juleps, and the Louisville Cardinal and so on and so on. I
walked around the festival for a while and ate some food from one of the
stands, and then I decided to go back towards the area I had gotten lost in
earlier, because I had seen some pretty buildings, but I hadn’t been able to
enjoy them due to my frenzied rush to find the incorrect McDonalds. I walked
and walked and walked for pretty much the entire day. Into random alleys with
adorable little shops and cafes. Around the city center where there were various
dance groups and musicians performing. Through the festival’s tents and crowds.
Past large pristine churches and historic buildings. Under the Arc de Triomphe
glimmering gold in the sun. Up to the ancient aquaduct spanning well out of my
view into the gigantic hills in the distance. And then, I walked back. I
probably could have taken a bus or a tram back to the city center, but I
figured there was really nothing better for me to do once I was back, so I
decided to enjoy the sights that came with walking.
Before I headed back home, I stopped in the grocery to buy
myself a bottle of wine. I may not have any body to keep me company, but I
figured a nice bottle would be better than no company at all ;) I bought a wine
that was made in the region and actually bears the same name as the road I live
on—Pic Saint Loup—just to be as “festive” as possible. And then I returned home
to make myself some dinner, drink myself some wine, and read myself a book. It’s
sort of ironic that all school year long, all I wish for is one weekend where I
can do exactly what I just explained, but once I’m doing it, it’s not nearly as
enjoyable as I would have imagined. Although, I do think that if I were to add
in one other individual that I was even remotely fond of, my outlook would be
quite different. Claire and Peter arrived late Saturday night and, being
exhausted from a day of travel, went off to bed fairly quickly.
Today there was really nothing of significance to report
other than that I read an entire book and watched wayyy to many youtube videos.
Oh, but I did get to facetime my family and wish my dad a Happy Father’s Day “face
to face”!! That was absolutely great, despite the fact that it made me
sickeningly homesick. I thought hearing their voices on the phone was bad…seeing
their faces is even worse. I know that things will get better, because they
always do. Every trip has been the same. I am homesick beyond almost any consolation
for the first few days; the first week or so I am lonely and unhappy, but at
least I am able to get myself out and moving as a distraction; usually through
the second week, going home early doesn’t sound so terrible, and I start to
make a calendar to count down the days; then somewhere in the third week,
things start looking up and I start really getting used to everything; and by
the end, I find it hard to say goodbye to the places and people I’ve grown to
know and love. I know this from the start, and I tell myself this every day.
But patience has never EVER been my strong suit, and so the first two weeks are
still absolute torture.
Hopefully with work starting again tomorrow and Claire and
Peter being back home for some extended amount of time, and my connection with
another girl in town, though, things will start to come together for me soon!!
My fingers are crossed!
“Nothing ever goes away until it hastaught us what we need to know.” –Pema Chodron
Aucun commentaire:
Enregistrer un commentaire