Au revoir Strasbourg!

I leave for the airport in ten minutes, but I just wanted to make one last post from France. As you may or may not be aware, there are many trips I made and pictures I have taken still waiting to make their debut on this blog. So I plan to keep updating the blog with pictures and stories from my trips over the next few weeks. So check back in! Until then, here's one last pic from France. Ok, make that two! My French doggie, Eliott, and a view from a hilltop surrounded by vineyards.

Of Cars, Trams, and Trains

or
A Trip to Nancy

But first, a side-note. Happy Mother's Day to the most amazing mother ever. She works hard and self-sacrifically to make sure the household runs smoothly, and she still had time to homeschool five children at once, and now to keep up on all the details of our lives away from home. She is truly a wonderful example of a godly, wise, and loving woman. And besides all that, she's just plain beautiful! I am so thankful God gave me her as my mother. I love you, Mom, and I can't wait to see you soon!

(And as a bonus, you get to see my handsome father, too!)

This weekend I went to visit my uncle and his family in Nancy. So Friday afternoon I left my French class early to catch the tram which goes to the train station. I arrived just in time for the doors to close in my face, so I had to wait for the next one, seven minutes later. Thus, I arrived at the train station with about five minutes to buy my ticket and get on the train. First attempt to buy ticket from the machine - unsuccessful. I failed to remove my bank card from the machine fast enough causing it to be mightily displeased with me and cancel the transaction. Second attempt to buy ticket from the machine - successful. But it was now 12:18 and my train left at 12:19. I grabbed my ticket and started to run, my heavy backpack bouncing unwieldely on my back. I ran up the steps to the track and jumped on the first train that presented itself to my view. Happily for me, it was indeed the train to Nancy! As I sank into a seat, the train pulled out of the station.

So the last time I visited Nancy in March, my aunt offered to teach me how to drive stick shift, but at the time I didn't have my driver's license with me, so we decided to wait until next time. When my aunt picked me up from the train station this time, she mentioned the subject again and said she would take me to Cora (the equivalent of Walmart) after it closed Friday night and let me drive in the parking lot. Well, the happenings of the rest of the day caused that plan to fall through. So Saturday morning, Tante Elia says, oh, I know! There's a nice quiet road near here - I'll just take you there. So off we go in the car and presently she pulls off the road just before a stoplight. Time to switch! I walk around the car halfway terrified. I hadn't driven in 4 months. My mom had showed me how it worked and let me drive around in a little parking lot and on a driveway when she visited back in February, but that had been 2 months ago. So I sat down, buckled up, scootched the seat forward, put the car in 1st, and....oh joy! successfully pulled onto the road and turned the corner without killing the engine! woohoo! We made it to our destination, a nursery to buy mulch, and then we headed back. I navigated four gears without major (note "major" not "no") problems until we arrived at a stoplight, where I dutifully stopped. Attempts to start again were not very successful, though we did eventually get going, turned the corner, and had to stop again. And I again killed the engine. And again. Happily, though, the last time I had to stop, I managed to start again successfully! And now I can drive stick shift. Which makes me very pleased with myself. :-) I'm glad my aunt was courageous enough to take me out!

Saturday night, my aunt, uncle, and the two youngest boys escort me back to the train station with about 20 minutes to spare. I buy my ticket and sit down to wait for the track of departure to be posted. After just a few minutes, it appears, so I gather up things and head down the stairs. Arriving at the track, I am preparing to enter the train when a woman appears at the top of the steps onto the track (you have to go down and then back up again) and asks, "Is this the train for Strasbourg?" Me: "Um, yes, I think so. That's what the screen right there says." I climb aboard and pick a seat in the empty train and settle in. A few minutes later, a 14 year - old boy comes past with his grandmother and pauses to say, "Excuse me, madam, is this the train for Strasbourg?" Me: "Um, yes, I think so. It says so on the screen out there." Presently, a woman comes and sits across the aisle from me. I idlely watch her settle in. She looks up, sees me, and then asks, "This is the train for Strasbourg, right?" Me: "Yes, I think so." So what I want to know is, is there something about me that says, "I am a human train time table. Please ask me where this train goes." Or in my coral shirt and denim skirt, do I somehow resemble the SNCF conductors, who wear purple and grey? Happily for all of us, at the end of an hour and a half, the train arrived in Strasbourg.

I arrived home to find Eliott all by his lonesome and mightily sorry for himself. I was busy brushing my teeth when Françoise got back, female friend in tow. Awkward, yes? "This is Mary, who is brushing her teeth," laughed Françoise. "Bonsoir," I mumble. "Well, I'm going to take Eliott for a walk now," says Françoise. "I already walked him," I endeavour to articulate. "You walked him already? Thank you so much!" responds Françoise. And then hugs me...me with my mouth full of toothpaste and a toothbrush sticking out the side. Well done, Mary! Way to look like an intelligent, graceful, well-adjusted American student.

If you need me, I'll be busy digging a hole in the ground.

My first solo dinner invitation!

So while I am here I am attending a presbyterian church, St. Paul's. It has bells, in a bell tower, which are rung long and loud at service time, and were chimed particularly long and loud on Easter morning, along with all the other bells in town. It was glorious. I was never beyond the sound of bells during my walk from house to church on Easter morning. Also, St. Paul's has not one, but two organs, both of which are used in the course of Sunday morning service. I have not taken pictures, because the church is only open for services, and I am not taking my camera to service. But here is their website with some pictures. Unfortunately, the virtual tour link is not yet up and running. http://stpaul-stbg.com/

While we have a glorious building, the theology of the church is slightly different from my own. Most notably, suffice it to say that there are female elders and that last Sunday we had a female substitute pastor. However, it was the best church I could find, so I appreciate the good and overlook the less than good.

One of the female elders, Mme. Chenigance, who is probably closer to 70 than 60, has been taking special interest in me, making sure to greet me every Sunday and being oh so warm and welcoming. She reminds me a little of Tante Elia, whom I am going to visit tomorrow! So Mme. Chenigance invited me to eat lunch with her and her husband this past Sunday. And I said, yes.

After the service, she drove me to their delightfully classic French farmhouse, built in the 1840s and situated in a little village 7 kilometers outside of Strasbourg. Now, it just so happened that May 1 was the French Labour Day, which meant that no buses or trams were running, which meant that Mme. Chenigance would have to drive me back again. I had a delightful afternoon with the Chenigances and one of their sons and his family. We had classic French meal - main course, cheese course, dessert course (homemade black currant sorbet topped with real whipped cream - deeeliceeeous!!), and coffee with chocolate course! We sat in the large typical French garden in the sunshine and talked. Mme. Chenigance and I (M Chenigance had broken his leg and could not accompany us) went for a pleasant meander around a hill outside the village. I talked with M Chenigance in the garden, while Mme. Chenigance went to the flea market taking place in the village with one of her daughters who lives behind them. Four of their 6 children live across the road behind their house. I met three of them. I also sightread for M Chenigance the first movement of a Mozart sonata, which I had slight acquaintance with.  (And yes, I did just end a sentence with a preposition.) And then Mme. Chenigance proposed to drive me home.

When I entered my room, I was quite surprised to observe that it was 6:20. I had been there almost 6 hours!

I'm off tomorrow to visit my uncle for the weekend. I am excited to see them again! And have access to a piano.

Bon week-end!

Winter in Strasbourg

Two months ago there was a light snow that stuck for about a day, so I went out and took pictures of Strasbourg with snow. A couple of Sundays ago I went and took a bunch of pictures of flowers at Parc de l'Orangerie, five minutes from my house. So here's a little of winter for your enjoyment. Spring when I return!

This is the view from my window. Rue Berlioz across the way. And I, in case I haven't mentioned it before, live on Rue Beethoven. :-)

Um, I believe that's my church, St. Paul's, behind the trees.

This is next to the river, l'Ille, looking in the direction of the cathedral, though you can't see it.

 This is from the same spot, but looking the other way. That church is definitely my church. This is looking back the way I walked from my appartment.

This is much later - I wandered through several streets, not thinking to take pictures, just enjoying the wandering and knowing which direction I still wanted to head. Since I didn't have much of a sense of direction when I got here, that is a huge accomplishment for me.

This is in an area called Petite France, which looks more German than the rest of the city and is fairly touristry. Not many tourists today, though! This is a bridge with a guard tower. One way down the river was industrial and ugly. The other way looked back the way I came. I froze my hands trying to get these shots just the way I wanted them.

This is looking down the river the direction I came from.

A little wandering later into Petite France, this is a typical house from that area. German-looking, isn't it?

Now I am approaching a dam, in a pretty quiet area, at the time. This wall, covered with snow, between me and the river fascinated me. So I took several photos, experimenting with different foci. Froze my hands, again.

This is where I was standing to take those pictures. I love little gateways going who knows where.

I think I liked the ivy climbing this house.

 And finally, water rushing through the dam. It was a little scary on that cold, overcast day, standing on a rickety wooden bridge watching that water rush out. But, you'll be glad to know, the bridge did not collapse and on a sunny day, it's not scary anymore.

Hopefully, when I get back from spring break travels I can get out and take pictures of Strasbourg with green trees. I'm heading off to Nice, then Florence! I'll be back Saturday. I'm here for Easter morning church service, and then I'm off to Prague for a week! yay for cheap tickets to less-touristry cities! :-)

A bientôt!

Mardi! (Tuesday!)

This is the corner of my desk right now:

The card - well, that came from Mommy about a month ago along with stickers for my keyboard, so I can see where things are in the French layout. It's a pen sketch of Yellow Narcissus in her room. Every time Françoise comes in and straightens my room, I have to fish out of the little pile of papers on my desk and re-erect it in its place.

The lamb with the goofy smile - that's from Françoise. She found it at the market down the street on Saturday and gave it to me to remember Easter in France. I've decided to class him in the category of appealingly ridiculous. I'm thinking of naming him Stanley, but I'm open to suggestions!

Saturday was delightful - sunny, but not too hot or too cold. I went for a picnic in the park nearby with Amelia. Françoise lent us a blanket and a cloth hamper to carry stuff in and we stopped at the market first, buying plums, olives, cheese, bread, and a little meat. We had ice cream bars afterwards and then stayed there for about 5 hours altogether, including a little stroll at the end. To make up for being out all day Saturday, I was a hermit on Sunday, except for church and a little stroll with Sam. She had to take pictures with a paper cutout of a girl around Strasbourg for the school project of a girl back in PA. So I was the photographer. We celebrated with gelato afterwards. And no, I don't eat icecream or gelato every day.

Tonight is the first of two Strasbourg university orchestra performances. We're playing Copland - Billy the Kid, Dvorak - New World Symphony (mvts. 1 & 2), and Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue. We're not the best orchestra ever, but I'm beginning to get excited about these concerts. The rehearsal with the soloist went fairly well last night. It was somewhat amusing as he is German and doesn't speak French. So he would stand up behind the piano and talk energetically and passionately about something he wanted to happen, and then our conductor, Corinna - who is also German, but speaks French, would have to translate. The second one is tomorrow evening - 5 euro admission, if you want to come!

Bonne journée!

Friday!!!

It's Friday and today is full of good things. First, despite the dire forecasts that today would be mostly cloudy, the sun is only slightly obscured by fluffy white clouds and I was actually rather warm after my walk home in the sun. Second, for lunch I heated a fresh croissant with camembert and ham (from Tuesday market) in the microwave. It was delicious, even if the cheese did make a little mess. Third, I get to gloat over the fact that it's currently below freezing back in Springfield with snow expected tonight, while it is 65 degrees here. Fourth, I saw the hugest tulips ever today, but I didn't have my camera with me. :-( They were about the size of teacups in a pinkish-red color. And finally, I am filled with the expectation of a delightful day tomorrow! We're taking a BCA fieldtrip to Mulhouse and Thann, including a possible picnic. In Mulhouse we will revel in cars at the car museum and then in Thann we will hike up to a ruined castle/vineyard, which is where the picnic might take place.

In the meantime I will attempt to work on my paper due on Wednesday without letting it obscure the joy of today.

And as a final addendum, I wish to say that if you have any objections to my spelling or my grammar, I do not wish to hear them. It's very difficult to switch back and forth from English grammar and spelling to French. ok? ok.

A bientôt!

New words!

I forgot to mention in the previous post two cool new words that I learned today.

1) Feignant!! which means, loafer!!! or in more modern terms, lazy bones!!!

2) époustouflant = breathtaking

C'est tout!