Category Archives: Travel Photos

It’s Saturday and I’m going to head south tomorrow . . .

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Hi Friends,

A week (or so) has passed since my last posting. Oh, what fun I’ve had! My girlfriend (whose wonderful apartment I’ve been enjoying) and I took a 3-day, 2-night jungle river rafting trip on the River Kwai. It felt so good to get out of the city and onto the water.
We were picked up in a luxurious mini-van promptly(!) at 6 a.m. at a hotel close-by. Soon after, we, and fellow passengers, were taken to the heart of the city by the Grand Palace where we met other tourists who also sprouted from mini-vans. We were then collected into a large tour bus for our journey to the west.
The pictures which follow will tell the tale . . .
Also, I haven’t forgotten that I owe you shots from Wat Arun. They will hopefully follow shortly. I ended up going into town this past Wednesday (to go to the German Botschaft and ask about a visa which will allow me to stay in Germany longer than 3-months next year . . . more on that to come later) and taking a public transportation boat again. It was as much fun as the previous times, but this time, there was BLUE sky! So you’ll notice some boat/river/Wat Arun shots with blue sky and some without; now you’ll understand why.
From the title you can see that I’m leaving Bangkok tomorrow. I’m heading south to the area called Krabi; it’s a little east of Phuket. I decided to go there because it sounds interested and a little less developed or touristy than Phuket; I’ll let you know how I like it. When you google the area and look at a map, you’ll see that there are lots of beaches. I’m literally going to stay in 4 different hotels over 7-nights: 1 for 2 nights in Ao Nang, 1 for 2 nights on Railay beach (supposed to be a rock climbers’ beach), 1 for 2-nights on Koh (island) Phi Phi, and then lastly, I’m spending a night at a hotel called the Aloha Inn—seemed like a good idea. It’s in the little town area and should be a fun place to be before I then head out for Chiang Mai . . . but I’m getting ahead of myself . . . For now, it’s time to post some shots.
Aloha Everyone! Hope you’re having a good summer and enjoying the company of friends and family.
-sj
The River Kwai
Picking up where we left off long ago
Time to board the long boat
The pink Barbie bag cracked me up.
It felt so good to be on the water!
It looked a lot like Kaua‘i.
Then we began to see the critters
of all shapes
and sizes!

Photos galore from Bangkok . . .

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Enroute to yoga . . .
School kids heading home . . .
I learned that they just keep adding wires without removing the older/non-used ones!
The ice man rolleth.
Kindof like at home . . .
Flower market . . . alas, to late to buy anything.
Those wonderful hot peppers!
Ze canal
Ze crêperie
Nice barista
Refreshing iced cocoa!  : )
Wires at 3 p.m.
Outside the reclining Buddha’s pad at Wat Pho
Ze little Buddha
Coins for rows and rows of jars
One of the jars
Check out his toes!
Reclining Buddha at Wat Pho from inside
Beautiful fruit! Mangosteen, rambutan, and mountain apples.
The docks move UP and DOWN constantly!
The protector of the temple
Rama at the National Museum’s temple
Tourist takes a tuk tuk.
This guy was focused!

Shots from Wat Arun to follow . . .

Been decompressing and/or Happy early 4th of July . . .

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Dear Friends,

In the past week I’ve been decompressing.
“Decompressing? What do you mean by that?”
Well, kind of like a diver, who’s been under high pressure, has to slowly return to the “top,” I too have been rising step-by-step, a few feet at a time, heading to that place called “normalcy.”
“What the heck is *normalcy?”
I have no clue. But I can feel that I’m just about there. I think it’ll hit me upside the head when my friend for over 30-years shows up this evening at her own doorstep. (Remember, I’ve been crashing at her beautiful Bangkok pad while she’s been slaving away at her demanding job in Singapore.) She’s practically a sister (even though it’s been almost 9-years since I last saw her in the flesh). Anyone who backpacks across Europe together and uses each other’s feet as pillows while sleeping on a train (in order to save the cost of a hostel so that there’d be money for food) is family. And family has a way of bringing you back into “normalcy.” Yeah, you get it now. I can see it on your faces. (don’t ask me how, but I can) : )
So what have been the decompression stages? (oh, that rings just too, too similarly to “and what are the lesson plan stages?”)
Well, first there was celebrating with friends. You saw the shot of me with my renegade certificate. You saw the glow of relief on my face. Here’s another shot from a birthday party the following day with my new ex-pat friends.
The beautiful blonde woman’s husband was celebrating his 50th.

Yeah, pretty cool “Miami/Bangkok Vice” bday cake.
And somewhere in there was: watching movies. What movies? I have no idea. That wasn’t really the point now was it?
And lots of meditating. “Meditating?” Yes, meditating. If that word makes you uncomfortable, just plug in “praying” instead. And if that makes you uncomfortable, just plug in “sitting or lying quietly and giving thanks.” ‘Cause I gave lots of thanks that the intensive course was over and that I passed. And yes, of course I gave thanks for plenty more than that . . . but that was the first item which bubbled up to the top.
And then there was shopping. Yes, shopping. I went to the huge and legendary Chatuchak market at the end of the BTS line. I didn’t follow the advice of the guidebooks and go early. It was about 1 p.m. on Sunday when I arrived. “It’ll be too hot and crowded!” all the guidebooks state with such confidence. It didn’t deter me one bit from having fun.
My first stop was at a massage place just by the art area. For 150 BHT (remember, a dollar is worth about 30 BHT) I had a foot and leg massage; it was heavenly. And I sat right next to the fan, so the temperature was pleasant.
I had a rough sketch of a shopping list imprinted in my head: rubber slippers, a skirt that goes past my knees (for when I teach in Cambodia, it’s one of their rules), and white clothes for Kundalini yoga.
(which btw are currently pink and hopefully less so as they wash again with lots of bleach added! Being the tomboy that I am, I threw in my fav red t-shirt I got for my birthday from my big sis–it says on it: “Not all who wander are lost.” Tolkien said that apparently; yeah, I like it too. I’ve had the shirt for over 6-months. I didn’t think it’d do its thing! But it did, not too heavily, but still. You’re supposed to wear white when you do Kundalini yoga. Is slightly not white but slightly pink okay? I’ll let you know what I find out.)
Somehow I managed to maneuver my way through that massive, massive market and return to my “starting point,” find the route to the BTS and head on back home. It was a grand day.
“What’d I see at the market?”
You name it. And I’m serious. Fine art to cheesy crap. (Literally, this woman was throwing down these amazing plastic things, which would almost immediately reconstitute themselves into their original shape. And yes, one of them was, um excuse me, crap!)
There was clothing of every style, shape, color . . . things for dogs, puppies, lots and lots of puppies, yes, live puppies . . . beads, jewelry, food booths . . . musicians, a boy bouncing a soccer ball almost non-stop on his head, knees and feet . . . this is your chance to plug in a n y t h i n g . . . I betcha it was there!
And then came the yoga (in the then white clothes). I managed to go several times this past week; it was very, very enjoyable. It’s nice to have met some more people who live here. “Where are they from?” you ask. The teacher is originally from Canada, several ladies are Thai, one lady moved here from Korea, another from the U.S., another from France, and one lady is passing through who is from Austria. She graciously offered to put me up if I visit Vienna; sounds like a wonderful gesture, doesn’t it?!
This was followed by hanging at the pool with other CELTA trainee women. We had a lovely afternoon flipping through stacks of English language women’s magazines, which were in the apartment when my new friend moved in. We visited and ate lychee, chips and rambutan—followed by lunch at a local Thai place.
About this time I decided to take my role as a tourist much more seriously and go explore Bangkok! Wednesday I headed first to the Jim Thompson museum followed by a stroll along the adjacent canal. (That was how one used to enter Mr.-former-CIA-agent-turned-entrepreneur-who-single-handedly-brought-Thailand’s-sinking-silk-market-back-to-life’s home during its hey day. Boats still travel along the canal at amazingly HIGH speeds!)
Then I went on a search for a jewelry shop that would fix my turquoise/citrine bracelet that I had broken (for the 2nd time!). A new friend and savvy shopper told me to just keep walking down the same street where the school is and I’d find a place; I did. They gave me their card and the receipt showing the deposit I made, but I also took a picture of the store and street signs . . . just in case. One way or another, I’ll find my way back to this very same store! (BKK is really, really big, if you haven’t been here before, but yes, of course it has street names and numbers like anywhere else . . . ).
Then I hopped in a tuk tuk and got taken, uh, I mean I driven around town.
First stop was a “friend’s” store, second stop was the Golden Buddha.
The third stop was another “friend’s” store, and the fourth stop was the pier, where I hopped on a boat (which runs like a bus going from stop to stop).
***This was the highlight of my non-school portion of the trip thus far! I paid 19 BHT (remember $1-30BHT) for a “round-trip” ticket, i.e. I got on where the BTS stop is and went to the end of the line and back for 19 BHT (it’s normally all of 14 for a “normal” ride one-way).
From 5 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. I sat, listened to music and enjoyed being on the water. It is so very, very healing to be on the water—even if it is full of trash and is “chocolate.” It was still very soothing. I did have to hop off at the “first” end (along with a large group of Chinese kids who rode both ways as well) and get on another boat for the return trip. We had so much fun watching a storm come in, complete with thunder and lightning. Fortunately we didn’t get too wet before the side-walls were lowered.
You could see through them, but I chose to stand in the back where I had an even more clear view as the rain continued to fall and the sky slowly darkened. It was sooo much fun. A group of kids from Germany happened to stand next to me, and being the responsible people that they are, they kindly told me the names of some of the wat (temples) along the way.
Yesterday I continued to take my role as tourist seriously and headed to the National Museum for one of the two English speaking tours of the week. It was interesting . . . my Mom’s code word for alright . . . a way to be polite in her genteel Southern style.
The kind tour guide from Brooklyn certainly loved to talk and had lots of stories. On the tour I also met a young Swedish gal who’s heading to Burma for a month where she’s working on her master’s thesis on the Karen people. Now that was really interesting.
Next, I went wandering past the Grand Palace (just wasn’t up for another tour) and made my way to pier #8 and the ferry across the Chao Phraya River to Wat Arun. This was another big-time highlight for me. It was so much fun climbing the steep stairs on the outside of the temple up and up to two different levels. There’s ceramic all around the temple that I was told by a friend was part of the ballast added to ships (which were returning home empty after having shipped other items to China). You can read all about this temple here: http://www.watarun.org/index_en.html. I took a zillion pictures here, so I’ll do a post with just pictures from there.
I followed that with a delightful lunch at a local dive right on the water and adjacent to the ferry; the food was very good. I heard lots of different languages while I ate (besides Thai). I met South Africans and heard Scandinavians.
Then I wandered through the flower market where I was obviously too late for purchasing flowers. It was still intriguing to look at though. The sheer number of stalls and wares sold throughout Bangkok is mind boggling, well, at least for this Kaua‘i-girl, it is.
From there I managed to find the pier by the Memorial Bridge and head on back by boat to the BTS (skytrain) stop and home.
As I’ve done my meandering through this charmingly chaotic city over the past 5-weeks, I’ve stopped and snapped a shot whenever something caught my interest. What interests me (really interests me) isn’t exactly the type of shots that they want to show you in guidebooks. Also, I’ve noticed that with all the pollution here (i.e. lack of blue sky and unobstructed sunshine) that it’s more of a challenge to take a picture that isn’t swallowed up into a harsh lack of contrast. I’ve done my best to include only pictures that I imagine will have a semblance of appeal for you. Some were very obviously taken just for me; those are the ones that you’ll shake your head over and say, “What the?”
Next to follow will be loads and loads of pictures . . .
Best wishes for a great Fourth of July weekend! To my friends kayaking to Miloli‘i, I wish I was there also. If you feel me in the breeze, stop and say hello! In the body, I’m heading to the River Kwai with my gal pal; we’re taking a jungle raft adventure trip (even staying on a floating raft for the 2-nights). Should be fun; I hear it’s beautiful! Looking forward to breathing some none city air : )
Aloha All!
sj
* per the dictionary in my computer: Normalcy has been criticized as an uneducated alternative to normality, but actually is a common American usage and can be taken as standard: : we are anticipating a return to normalcy.

So much has happened . . . !

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But there’s just not time now to write about it all. I completed my third of eight practice teaching sessions this afternoon. Today’s was definitely the best. : ) I turned in my first written assignment this past Monday and am looking at a 13-page document that is the second written assignment; it’s due this Friday.

A rhythm to the school day has slowly emerged. Eighteen people are in the group. Morning sessions run from 9 a.m. to 12:40 p.m. with one of the three teachers presenting information regarding lesson plans, language systems, etc. They somehow manage to do it in an interesting way. Generally, they’re using the teaching methods that they want us to use.

Then, every afternoon around 1:45 p.m. the students begin to arrive. They come from all parts of the world: Thailand, Japan, Pakistan, Somalia, you name it! The 18 split up into three groups of 6. Two groups are currently teaching students at the intermediate level; one group is teaching more elementary level students. Next week we’ll switch so that we all have an opportunity to experience both levels. We’re each teaching two 40-minute classes per week (the first three weeks). The fourth and last week we’ll each teach two 60-minute classes. (I’m down to teach on the last day, Friday the 24th. Talk about coming down to the wire!)

So, that’s the deal pickle. I’m enjoying it, but I’ll admit that when we came across the sentence, “She’s looking forward to the end of the course” in one of our exercises the other day*, I had to chuckle to myself and say, “Well, yes, I too am enjoying it, but I’m also looking forward to the end of it.” What’s the saying? It’s not the destination; it’s the journey? Fortunately, this girl IS enjoying the journey.

Love to you all. Below are some shots of Bangkok life, which the school accurately calls “the charming chaos of your new environment.”

Aloha,

SJ

*We were making CCQs (concept checking questions) to see if they students understand the meaning of the underlined portion. This statement’s CCQs were: “Will she be happy when it is finished?” (Yes), “Is the course finished?” (No), “Does she often think about the end of the course?” (Yes is the “official” answer, but from where I’m sitting, there’s not time to think about anything but the course! : )

The dog days of Bangkok

Do you see what I see?

Found a park about 10-minutes away (by foot) from where I’m staying. : )

Soccer-like Volleyball (really fun to watch!)

A nice place to hang-out

Plenty to look at . . .

There are construction sites everywhere!

View from Sky train when enroute to school one day

Thank God for flowers !

First day in Bangkok or a study in electric lines

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Aloha my Friends in all parts of the world,

Happily, I can say that I arrived in Bangkok safe and sound. Met by a friend at 2 in the morning is surely something to be celebrated. Who’s the friend? The husband of a former college buddy, who I met while studying in Bonn, Germany. Her work is in Singapore at the moment, but we’ll meet up as soon as possible.

They’re generously putting me up while I study here for a month and are letting me use their home as “base-camp” during my subsequent travels. Yes, my sister told me already, and I agree; I’m a very lucky girl.

Their spacious apartment has beautiful views of the city,

and, perhaps best of all, a swimming pool ! : ) I already checked it out today, swimming lap after lap working out those sitting-on-a-plane-for-hours-and-hours and jet-lag cob webs. I think it worked because I seem to be fairly well “switched over.” Okay, you just wait and see, I can hear some of you experienced travelers saying. Perhaps, but for the moment, it feels like I made my first date-line crossing all in one piece.

I’ve pretty much been just taking it easy today, unpacking and getting used to the fact that I’m far, far away from my Kaua‘i home. But I did venture out for lunch and managed to snap a few shots of this area. Not sure how often I’ll actually add to my glob once school starts, so for now, this gives you an idea of what it looks like here. Enjoy!

lunch place

Veggie curry & papaya salad at table 10

Yum! (though I don’t think you would have liked it Mark)

Mango sorbet from another place down the road . . . Delicious!

Lots of vendors like this with assorted food items

Scooters galore! That’s the sky train above; I’ll be exploring that soon.

Now comes the study of electric lines . . .

stay pau for now : )
Ricardo, Anglica & Hugo--the 3 Brazilians. I LOVE this shot!

Random shots of Lyon from my six-week stay in January and February 2009

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Lyon is such a beautiful (and to quote from my high school friend, Brenda : ) VIBRANT city.
Here are some random shots from my six-week stay there in 2009.
Enjoy!
Au revoir Lyon!

Six weeks of School in Lyon have come and gone . . .

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date:  Fri, Feb 20, 2009
subject:  J’ai fini l’école ! ! ! pour maintenent . . .
Hi Everyone,
Alors, its vendredi the 20th and I’ve finished school . . . at least for now.
It’s 2:30 pm and we’ve all made a date to meet at Pub Johnny Walsh, très francaise don’t you think? We met there last week and it’s a good hang.
Moi, Jonathan and Monika
at Pub Johnny Walsh the previous week
There was a rock band playing and I recorded just a bit simply because the lead was singing a Jack Johnson song  . . . .
Alors, highlights of school this week?
A game. Well, we just finished my last classing playing the game “Taboo.” (I had asked Marion the other day if we could.) As Jan knows, I love to play games . . . and it’s so fun to play a game and learn French at the same time.  Only bizarre thing is that a LOT of the words are American, as in internet, Mickey, etc.  I think I explained this one already . . . you say things to get the person to guess the word(s), but you can’t say certain words . . for example, I said terroiste for World Trade Towers and got buzzed!
Here we’re playing “Battle Ships.”
Cookies.  Jan sent the most delicious cookies!!!! Merci beaucoup!  A thank you card is on the way.  Many students wrote a short note in their native language.  Have fun figuring it out Jan  . . . and Katie . . . and Logan! They arrived Monday and I shared them with the school Tuesday at our “coffee” break at 10:30 am; I also gave Madame a bag.  They ALL said Merci Beaucoup!!! C’était delicieux!
Bowling.  David, a 21 year old Swiss “boy” who is at least 6’4 inches and quite handsome, and I won . . . with the whopping score of 106!! Yahoo!!
Les champions !
I was the last to bowl and it worked out perfectly . . . I remember very clearly Dad telling me to not beat boys in sports . . . and I replied, “You gotta be kiding???”  But in this instance it was absolutely perfect, especially since I’m old enough to be ALL of their mothers (expect Jean-Laurent’s, I suppose . . .)  It was lots of fun because us girls hung out on one side and the petite little Columbian girl who wasn’t going to go because she had never played before came and had a good time.
Da kids !
(I told her that I promised it would be a kick . . . she got a strike once and we all hooted and hollered for her! She’s the cute gal sitting behind the lovely lady in red.)  A good time was had by all.
BTW, there were several Brad Pitt sightings at the bowling alley while we were waiting for our turn to bowl.

The music . . . oh my goodness.  Did I ever have so much fun last night! I went to hear “Ginkgoa.” They have a website that’s simply their name, I think.  I haven’t had a chance to check it out.  I want to write an email simply about the music I heard in Lyon, but I don’t have the time right now.  Suffice it to say that last night’s music felt like being in a David Lynch film.  Red velvet draped over the cellist’s and guitar player’s chair . . . pink lights on stage, purplish flowers on the singer’s mic stand.
It  was also alot like what I imagine it would have been like to go to a club in France in the 1930’s for 1940’s. I bought their CD  . . . and shot a little rogue video (which I did EACH time I heard music; granted it’s always been dark and you’re seeing the tops of people’s heads, but at least it’s sumthin.)
 Ginkgoa in action !
Le musée.  The same one I mentioned last week but this time I went with the school group.  I ditched them on the first floor and hightailed it up the third floor to see an exhibit just of this one young woman’s art.  Sorry, but I don’t have her name on me right now . . . M. something,

WoW! I loved her style. Not everyone else did, but I did. (though many did too . . .)  Essentially she creates lots of figures of different sizes so you have the feeling of Liliputainism . . . with lots of bright colors and whimsical, fantasic settings.  Things inside of things, people inside of people.  Lots of people flowing together like tiny minnows . . . lots of globs of paint that up close look like a glob, but far away you see the 2 specks are now eyes on the little female character, dog, whatever.  Some really tiny paintings, but mostly very LARGE paintings.  I really dug her work (though not all, there were three or four that were dark and depressing.)
Now that takes some balls !

Two other musées.  The Roman . . . learned how Lyon was formed, you’ll have to look at the photos to learn . . . I took a few clandestine photos . . . also read about the PIERRE Scize.  A Pierre is a stone . . . and to think that I had the grand luck to be placed in a beautiful apartment with part of THE pierre scize in ma chambre!!!

Musée Gallo Romain . . . from Wikipedia: 
“Lyon was founded on the Fourvière hill as a Roman colony in 43 BC by Munatius Plancus, a lieutenant of Caesar, on the site of a Gaulish hill-fort settlement called Lug[o]dunon, from the Celtic god Lugus (‘Light’, cognate with Old Irish Lugh, Modern Irish Lú) and dúnon  (hill-fort). Lyon was first named Lugdunum meaning the “hill of lights” or “the hill of crows”. Lug was equated by the Romans to Mercury.”

The museum about the war (THE) war and the resistance which was based in Lyon.
There was a special exhibit with lots of old letters that soldiers who were in a stalag wrote to their sweetie back home.  One was especially sweet . . . and it was really bizarre . . . in this one little letter the author used at least 10 specific things that I learned since I’ve been in Lyon . . . needless to say, it made me feel very good to be able to read it (fairly) easily.
 Sculpting.  I’ll have to explain this one later . . .
That’s Emmanuel the teacher . . . my work in progress is the small one on the table . . . can you spot it?
Went on another bike ride on Sunday.  It was FAB.  Really, really clear but cold. I had a grand time tooling around and STILL discovering new areas, new plazas and grandes rues à Lyon.
 Now THAT’s a playground !
 I couldn’t believe that I had never “happened” upon this place before — Place des Jacobins, that is!
This I didn’t “happen” upon. I read about it and that it was too . . . well, something NOT to miss!
Kindof cool . . . kindof weird . . . 
I’m not exactly a “cat” person.
School is out for moi . . . I received a certificate stating that I participted for 6 weeks in the “intensive” (25 lessons a week) version. Jean-Laurent wrote that I have a “slight” (léger) accent anglophone and that I can talk easily without hesitation (yep, this girl can blab!). Marion wrote that I have a good basis for continuing to learn. That I can write easily and without a lot of major errors, °BUT I still have problems with comprehension (when the people parler). Yep, I do. She recommends that I continue to practice and do things like watch films, listen to the radio, read (in French) and talk French (with people who speak French . . . though I’m sure Rocket Girl would be game to participate!).
 Prof Marion’s classroom
She also told me that she recommends I take another course at some point (after I’ve continued to practice, study, etc.) to make sure I’m on track with the grammar, etc. I’ve really enjoyed being in Marion’s class. She’s a nerd like me and loves getting into the heart of difficult grammar points. We did some stuff this week that she promises us most French people don’t know . . . that most of it is really just recognized in the written form (because it’s darn tricky), but I think I was really starting to grasp the different points.
Right now my head, my brain feels like it weighs about two metric tons. It is completely and utterly F U L L . . . it’s exactly why I wanted to stay in France two more weeks after taking a course . . . to give myself some time for it all to filter down into my gut . . . (and hopefully stay for good and not pass on out!!!).  I look forward to reviewing all or at least part of what I’ve studied . . . and see how much I’ve really learned . . .
Alors, to all of you I now say au revoir.  Tonight it’s dinner with Madame, her two sons, the elder son’s wife and little nine month old baby.
Madame’s family . . . all very nice. And very French.
I read a really good memoir recently by Sarah Turnbull (a native Australian) called Almost French. In it she described how she often dined with French people (and with her husband, who is completely French) and she would be COMPLETELY ignored. Really, completely. As if she were NOT there. People would look right through her. As time went by she apparently became more and more visible. Her premise (in my humble opinion) is that the French are shy. 
Unlike Americans, they are not accustomed to meeting new people and immediately opening up completely, without reservation (like Americans tend to do).
Well, I experienced exactly what she was talking about that evening. An amazing phenomena. Really.
Then it’s off to da kine for a pint (or two) and some general joviality . . . but first I plan to look for a couple of galleries I missed as I weave my way home. And I reckon I should get back to the flat early enough to pack so that tomorrow there’s no stress. My train departs Part-Dieu at 10:30 a.m. about and I arrive in Annecy two or so hours later.
Ciao for now brown cow, love you all!!!
Susan
°It’s kind of bizarre. When I was learning German, there was a moment when I essentially heard a “click” and all of a sudden I could understand German. Granted, there were (and still are!) a lot of words to learn . . . but I could follow the conversation relatively easily. BUT to speak was really difficult.
It’s the complete opposite for me now with French. Most of the time I can speak fairly easily . . . and yes, I get caught up LOTs of time, but . . .  but to understand the  people parler-ing . . . wow, c’est vraiment dificile! Alors, I think I’m going to start at THIS very moment expecting to be easy . . . I’ll keep you posted.
bisous!
Ricardo; David; Marion, la Prof; Janine, Hugo et moi.
Au revoir !

Big news pour moi (And, this is a LONG one ! )

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date:  Fri, Feb 6, 2009
subject:  the end of the 4th week . . . a LONG one!!!!

Greetings to you All from rainy, and I do mean RAINY!, Lyon.
It’s Friday afternoon on the 6th of February and I have now completed 4 weeks à l’école suisse de langues.
Sigh. Wow, where has the time gone?  . . . time to take a pause. My grand café crème décaféiné has just arrived!
Back to the topic at hand–time. In all honesty, it feels like I’ve been here for 3 months or more. My life has settled into a pleasant routine and life on Kaua‘i seems far, far away (yes, I know it really IS far away!):
• 6 a.m. – Get up on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays to go for a 30 minute jog along la Saône.
This I’ve done for 2 weeks now. After diving into the shopping frenzy–who could resist all the SOLDES signs everywhere?–and finding some absolutely fabulous and fun lingerie (yes, lingerie-and again, who could resist buying FRENCH lingerie on SALE in France!!!!) and noticing that my muscle tone was practically non-existent after being in Tennessee for almost 2 months and in France for 2+ weeks, or so, I decided to start an exercise program. Hence the early time to me lève!
I’ve been thoroughly enjoying jogging along la Saône. It’s quiet and dark. I’m alone with the dozen or so poor souls who are waiting at the various bus stops I pass. I get to see the top secret things like the vélo man stocking the stations with red and grey bikes, the road cleaning guys who (I think) are hosing down dog poop, and the dog walkers who loyally treat their canine pals to an early morning stroll. For 4 times now (but who’s counting,) I’ve seen Fido, Emma and Yanda’s younger sister taking a stroll and early morning pee. How that warms the heart of a dog lover like me!
• 7:10 ish – Shower in the incredible shower along an authentic rock wall with artistically placed adjoining stone.
Though I had to pass on washing my hair this morn. Yesterday as I waited and waited for the water to turn warm, I decided to just wash the “necessary” parts when lo and behold the water turned warm for an instant. I then proceeded to VERY quickly wash my hair. I had just about made it when it turned cold again.
Right about then Madame knocked on the door and said, “Susan, ATTTENTION the heat isn’t working!”
“I know,” I replied.
Ends up the heating throughout the entire apartment wasn’t working. The repair man was supposed to come by this afternoon, but when I stuck my head in around 3:30 p.m. there was no sign he had arrived. Alors, I might just have greasy hair for the weekend . . . ca va.
• 7:30 ish – Make tea and prep my lunch.
Oh my goodness!!! did I ever find the most wonderful camembert this week!!! It’s made from sheep milk. Tones, I bought the last one they had early this morn. It went off in the mail around 13h. . . . I’m sure you’re already waiting with bated breath!!!

Fix my muesli . . . though the other morning Madame was out of muesli and j’avais très faim!  So I boiled an egg and then picked up a croissant on the way to school . . I wasn’t about to eat that horrible white bread . . .

• 8 ish or so – Depart for school.
• 8:30 ish to 8:50 ish Arrive.
Depends on how I feel that morning, sometimes it’s nice just to wander a bit.
Something pleasant: a beautiful morning in Lyon
Something not so pleasant
• 9 to 12:30 – Class (with the half hour break, which starts at 10:30)
Today was Marion’s 29th birthday so besides the croissant we were treated to each Friday, we had some gâteau au chocolat that Marion made this morning and a bit of wine she brought. It was all very nice.
 
We also didn’t return to class after the break but rather stayed in the petite cafeteria to play a game, loup-gour (not sure if I have that completely right—I didn’t, it’s loup garou or werewolf in French. It’s essentially a game where 3 people are werewolves, 1 is the sorcerer, and the rest are villagers; we’re given cards which determine which part we play; it’s all TOP secret. Alors, BOTH times they voted me DEAD in the first round!!!!  Either they really like me or really hate me. I’m not going to think too hard on that one . . . both times they did not find nary a one werewolf, though BOTH times I guessed 2 of the 3. They thought I was a werewolf because . . . well, I’m not exactly sure why . . . maybe you can figure that one out for me!
• 12:30 to 13:30 – Lunch break
I chose to eat in the cafeteria (in name only, it’s simply a room for dining or hanging out in; it’s up to you to provide your own lunch) each day this week; though today I spent a good bit of the time sending off a very important package! Seems Jean-Laurent likes camembert too so I shared some with him today. (I very discreetly knocked on the door of the teachers and officer workers’ space, it’s a real no-no I think to bother them, but the times I’ve frapped on the door they haven’t minded (again, I think!) because I had a treat to share.) BTW Tones, Jean-Laurent thought it was a most excellent fromage too!
Lunch has been really fun this week hanging out with the other students. In fact, this week has been my favorite so far. It was the most “steady”. This one woman who had a big heart but was incredibly fragile and was here week numbers 2 and 3 for me, fortunately left on Monday. Without going into any detail, I’ll just say that I was very nice to her, patient, kind, listened to her stories etc. SOME! . . . but I’m very glad she left . . . nuff said. Though Torun is gone and she and I had three really fun evenings together . . .

Moi et Torun
• 13:30 to 14:15 – Conversation class
Today’s activity was a little “test” regarding what’s proper when you go to a collègue’s house for dinner. (someone who you work with but don’t know real well, not a buddy).
Here’s what I learned: taking your shoes off is considering SHOCKING and a real no-no (okay my Kaua‘i buddies, we’d flunk out right away!); you should arrive 15 minutes after the time you’ve been invited, NEVER early, and not longer than 30 minutes after; NEVER go into the kitchen, another real no-no (it might be a complete mess! and probably is); bring an ODD number of flowers as a gift (as in an odd number, not strange flowers Dan!), and they should be wrapped in pretty paper; don’t start eating until the hostess does . . . I think that was the most of it. So fortunately Marion has saved us all from committing some major faux pas!!!
• 14:15 à 15h00 – Two days a week I do an extra session with Jean-Laurent on the computer/internet for gratuit. I’ve always gotten something out of these sessions.  Sometimes it’s simply reviewing the basics, as in the present tense verbs.
• 15h00 – Each Mercredi there is a DVD to watch all together in a class room if you want.
The first one (L’Auberge espagnole) was GREAT! I definitely recommend that you watch it. It’s about a group of foreign students studying in Madrid; they’re sharing an appartement. The second film was also very good (Odette Toulemonde). It’s about a lady (qui s’appelle Odette) who adores an author, she travels to see him and have her book autographed . . . it’s a very fun story, especially for women. Then we saw (Un balle en plein coeur). It’s a very good but very sad movie about two friends in Sarajevo who have to choose different sides during the war in the 1990’s. Tony and I had already seen this one. And this past Wednesday we saw (Le coeur les hommes). It was okay. It was very difficult to understand and there were nary a subtitle. Believe me, we ALL needed subtitles!
• 15h00 – Each Thursday there’s an excursion.
I’ve been to the musée about the frères Lumière who are from Lyon. We toured their family home (a beautiful 3, or was it 4?, story home with incredibly high ceilings, and magnificent broad staircase, large rooms . . . I especially liked the “Florida” room, which they called their room for winter. There were all kinds of old film cameras to took out and lots of old movies rolling in each display room. Needless to say, it was very interesting.
One week we walked to the Parc de la Tête d’Or. I’ve been back to this park several times. It’s quite large with wide wandering boulevards and smaller meandering paths through the gardens, animal park, etc. and around the lake.
Stefan, Hugo, moi et Marie
If you want to see the video to match this shot, go to youtube. Search for l’amour Lyon. Bear in mind that this video was a hit with teenage boys.
Another week we went ice skating. I think that was my favorite by far in terms of an activity. Jean-Laurent accompanied about 6 of us. It was loads of fun, though not necessarily for Ricardo (the 26 year old Brazilian who works in advertising) who fell many, many times. Though by the end he was doing very well.
He actually showed us his bruise the next week at the rip-roaring party that Friday night in the students’ apt. It WAS rather large!!! And this was more than a week later!
 A drawing of how this area of Lyon appeared in 1550
Another week we week to see the Greco-Roman musem but got shut down because of the teachers’ strike. And then yesterday we went to the Museum of Tissues. There was a special exhibition of paper dresses, models made for making designs. They were extraordinary. There must have been at least 50 of them. They filled two large rooms bordered with displays of ancient tapestry (some we saw were from the 3rd century!! VERY old).  All the dresses were very colorful and formal, long gowns to be worn to a fancy ball, I think.
We also saw the standard display in this incredible 4-story home which was built around 1750 for a very wealthy family. They occupied the 3 bottom floors and rented out the top (where their kitchen also was).  It was similar to the Lumière’s home–large chambres, high, high ceilings and a beautiful wide staircase. The design was of a square with the private courtyard in the center.
And then once a week there is an outing (if you want) for a dinner.  I’ve already bored you with the many details of the two restaurants I went to with the group (the first week it was for fondue, and I’ve had fondue en Suisse and really didn’t care for it), so I won’t venture there again. BUT, I will tell out about this past Wednesday evening. A small group of us women (6 to be exact, 4 Suisse (one of Turkish origin and one of Albanian origin), 1 Irish young lady and moi, ages? 19, 19, 19, 35, 19, 48 in that order–I’m really enjoying hanging out with such young people!) decided to find a less expensive restaurant. Two of the four Swiss chose an Italian restaurant. It was perfect.
Two of us had a pizza (moi-champignon, fromage avec un oef, I loved eating an egg on a pizza! Janine-quatre fromage),
the others had pasta . . . carbonara and I’m not sure what else.
Our waiter was an absolutely adorable man of about 60; he kindly took a photo of us . . . with EACH camera! Très adorable.
AND when I talked about the food I forgot to mention a couple of things.
1) Madame prepared a lentil dish one evening with sausages. It was very good. Apparently it’s a native dish where her parents live.
2) Last Friday I joined 3 other ladies for Gambas à GoGo.
Essentially it’s a heaping mess of all the shrimp you can eat with pommes frites (very good Dan, but I’ve yet to go to kebab place and eat frites . . . I think that’s where they also rock.)
The restaurant was an Irish Pub the German gal who now lives in Ireland with her Irish husband had chosen. The restaurant portion was in the basement. It was a really cool cave with stone archways with boxing paraphernalia hanging all over the place. We essentially closed the place down. Fortunately there was no school the next day . . .
And then I’ve searched out music . . . I had actually thought today as I was walking to school that today’s subject line would read “la musique” and Char had even put in such a request . . . alors, that will have to wait for a later date.

And another petit sujet is le sculpture . . .
To close I have BIG news to give . . . I’ve been speaking a bit more, well . . . I think I’ve been using a bit more complicated sentence structure AND I did better on the test today . . . . so . . . Marion has invited me to join the more advanced class next week ! ! ! I could sense a great deal of hesitation on her part. She said if it was just conversation, no problem, but she’s worried that they may speak too quickly for me to understand. Alors, I told her, “Je voudrais essayer.” So, try I will!! I think most of you know that I like a challenge now and then . . . and they made it clear that if I’m completely lost, I can always return to Jean-Laurent’s class. So, I shall give it all I’ve got and see where I land. Personally, I think it will do me good to be around people who speak fast (with a teacher in the room, the only catch is that the Swiss can be very hard to understand with their accent). I told Tony last night that the biggest problem I’ve had is understanding the French when they’re together because they talk SO VERY quickly. One-on-one isn’t so bad because they hear right off that I’m an Anglophile, and they then speak more clearly and slowly . . . Alors, je vais voir!
So, now I shall venture forth into the POURING rain!! and work my way back home. On my way to this very chic café (which I had noticed on other promenades) I meandered past some very cool art galleries and shops.  BJ, I got a couple of cards for you . . .
These shoes move . . . or talk, if you will !
These shoes fly . . . more or less !
 And these shoes are a little stuck in a rut . . .
AND the agenda for tonight is BLUES at a club qui s’appelle L’Absinthe. Tony recommends I order an absinthe!
 They were good; the girl was especially good !
Last night was BACH! And last week was bluegrass! So you see, there’s quite a bit on the agenda for “la musique à Lyon.”
Un bon weekend! Have a blast at the yacht club opening Tones! I look forward to being able to check out some photos next week!
So, for now, au revior mes amies!!!
Susan

The first vélo weekend

1 Reply
 Fred from Brésil

date:  Mon, Jan 26, 2009

subject:  Highlight of the weekend: faire du vélo!
Hi Everyone,
I hear through the grapevine that you are enjoying my emails, alors, I will continue  . . . .
After trying to rent one of the groovy red and industrial silver bikes which can be seen throughout Lyon at many, many stations but NOT succeeding, I decided to approach a bike shop to see if they rented bikes. The very kind lady instructed me to go two doors down where another kind lady searched on the internet for me. She found 2 places in Lyon that rent bikes and she then proceeded to give me fliers with their addresses (one of the shops refurbishes bikes from Holland . . . Tony and I can attest to the fact that approximately 62,584 bikes are pulled from the canals around Amsterdam each year. We actually witnessed a huge machine dredging the canal and pulling out bikes 11 years ago on our retirement trip!)
When I got back to the pad and joined la Madame for a verre (our almost daily routine of sharing a glass of something before dinner, this usually takes place around 7 or 8 or 9 pm), I asked her if she knew anything about these shops. Non, non, she replied. She then proceeded to get on the phone and call the VÉLO office of Lyon and ask if there was a way around having to have a special European credit card (their cards seem to have some special power in this little golden patch underneath the number). Non, non, they told her.
After we sat there a minute she said (as if she had just had the most extraordinary idea ever, which it was after all !), Oh, but of course (in French of course) you can use MY vélo.
Oh wow, really, may I?
I knew she had a vélo because she had told me so; but there was no way that I was going to ask if I could use it (when I asked her if I could please possibly borrow a knife to take to school to cut my cheese–no, no, not like you think!–she said Non; but did offer up the tiniest swiss army knife known to man . . . . but I digress–and to digress even further, I splurged and spent 2 euros today on a knife and spoon for lunch  . . . Alas, I shall return the tiny da kine without ever even trying to slice into a creamy camembert . . . I think my nice new red handled and stainless silver knife with a pretty edelweiss flower at the joint shall do just fine, merci beaucoup!).
Where was I?
Oh, so she offered me her vélo for the weekend! Yahoo! Was I every excited. She gave me the key to the cave in the basement AND the key to the bike lock. This one came with a very stern look about not loosing it since it’s the only one she has. I won’t loose it, I promise; I told her. She was too tired that evening to show me where the bike was (a fellow teacher hurt an ankle and she had to work with 31 rather than 24 6 to 7 year olds 2 days in a row and she was wiped out!) but she promised to later.
As it turned out, we never had the tour since I HAD to leave Friday evening early (8:30 p.m.) for a party and that meant we had to have dinner VERY early (which probably caused her much stress–we usually eat anywhere between 8 and 10 p.m.). Alors, one mention of the party–it was a blast. Imagine going back in time to when you were between 19 and 21 years old and you’re away from home and there’s a party in an apartment for 4 to 8 foreign exchange students.

Need I say more? Michele, I know that you remember what that’s like! (for those of you who want to know what other nationalities were represented at the party . . . Danemark, Argentine, Ireland, Brazil, Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, Japan, England . . . I think that about covers it.)

So the next morning I managed to get up bright and early and leave the apt. at 10 a.m. The first step was finding the vélo. Right across from “one of the world’s smallest elevators” ® is a black metal door. Open it with la Madame’s bright silver key and you’ve gained admittance into the past.

As soon as you step down one measly step you’ve entered the world of WWII and what it must have been like to hide during an air raid. I don’t know if there were air raids in Lyon, but I’m sure there must have been plenty of hiding. Down the narrow circular staircase and voila! There’s Madame’s blue funky, old vélo.

It was perfect! (for those of you with enquiring minds, there were maybe 5 other bikes down there in a space the size of our guest bedroom and our main bathroom.  What else was down there? A mattress or two (for real!) and several buckets full of something. It’s not a uniform space but rather a narrow chamber that twists around a bit.)

Okay, as you can imagine, it was a bit tricky getting the bike back up the stairs and somehow opening the door.
But I did without too much trouble . . . . but I will jump forward and tell you that the return that afternoon was a bit like a skit with Laurel & Hardy. I did much better the next day.
Saturday I took a pleasant spin across la Saône into the main part of Lyon, then across le Rhone to ride along its side on the wonderfully wide and diverse bike path. I more or less went to the end (before it branched off and took a turn into the industrial section) taking photos along the way. One highlight was watching one of two dirty-white horses roll in a field.
Seems he had a bit of an itch.

They weren’t tied up but they did have bits in their mouths. As I began to head back, the rain began to fall. It wasn’t that hard and I did have my trusty gortex jacket with me and nice Northface backpack complete with yellow rain cover, so like the girlscout I never was, I was quite prepared. (Thanks again for the great backpack Mom and Dad! I still talk to Dad on occasion and he makes appearances now and then.)

BUT, since it was approaching lunch time, I decided to find a restaurant . . . . and I did find the perfect place. I was having a hankering for a warm meal (after a week of cold sandwiches, albeit with wonderful French cheese). Le Restauant a la Maison de Lucy, or something like that, was perfect. I went for the 13euro50 deal of a main course and dessert with coffee. They served a piece of classically roasted chicken (the thigh and leg) with champignons, a side salad, warm penne pasta and a glob of some wonderfully warm cream something or other. (That’s exactly how the waiter described it when I asked.) Of course this was accompanied with a half bottle of red wine and some tap water. I took my time and enjoyed every bite. I did take a picture of the place setting since it was so beautiful . . . the shot has a nice misty look to it since I dropped the camera on the first day (So sorry Tony! It was really cold and slipped out of my hand!) The camera still works well, it just doesn’t close its nice little cover when I turn it off.

Hence the mist on the lens when I pulled it out of the backpack, now inside a warm room . . . you get the drift you fellow nerds who know what it’s like to walk into a warm house after being outside in the cold!

Okay, lunch was great. The waiter instructed me to choose a dessert. I stood up and gave the board a quick glance. There was crème brûlée, which I adore, but since I OD’d on them a few years back, I have to approach them quite carefully. Towards the bottom was something or other with chocolate. When the gentle waiter returned, I quickly thought how to say the name of that which I had immediately proceeded to forget. Alors, je voudrais le dessert avec chocolat, s’il vous plait. Le ???///095§ ? Oh oui, bien sûr!
Guess what I got? The kid’s dessert which was 3 waffle pieces, covered (and I do mean COVERED) in nutella with a large blob of whipped cream on the side. Well, for those of you who have never tasted nutella, imagine a creamy, thick chocolate goo with a hint of hazelnut. Voila! That’s it. Europe’s answer to peanut butter.
I proceeded to eat the whole darn thing. And was it ever good. Sometimes it pays to be the clueless American; you get to eat the kid’s dessert and not be embarrassed!
Which may be why the next day’s bike ride was over 6 hours long; I was trying to work off the nutella!
To close out Saturday, after lunch I found a place to get my haircut. After I carefully told the one guy (seemed like the owner, a man from Peru who looks like a native Peruvian, who speaks Japonais) who washed my hair that I didn’t want more layers, I was sat down with another guy (there were only 2 men working there) who proceeded to give me the MOST layered haircut I’ve ever had. Oh well, Ca va.  I really, really needed a hair cut, and it’s a good 6 weeks until I’ll be home, so it’ll grow out. Though the classically French man sitting next to me did manage to drool. Oh oui, ca va, ca va! I think that guy really wanted (or needed) a date . . .
After the haircut I jumped back on the bike for several laps around the lake at park Tete d’Or. I never did manage to find the head of gold but I did make one old man’s day as he waved at me go past several times.
I think he was enjoying being out in the rain as much as I was (which was a LOT, as those of you who know me know, I like to ride a bike like a kid . . . and it had been almost 3 months since I’d been on a bike . . . need I say more?).

The next day I awoke to an incredibly clear (for Lyon) day. The sky was actually blue and it didn’t rain at all the entire day; and the pollution was negligible.

Sunday I proceeded again in the same direction, took a quick spin around the lake at Tete d’Or and then set off for parts unknown. This took me to a street faire with lots of cheap junk . . . really, nothing that drew my eyes expect for a pile of romance books in French.
giratoire = roundabout
La Madame had mentioned a lake called Mirabel. All I knew was that it was east of Lyon. I headed East and went as far as a town called Mayzieu. My route took me along a bike path, which follows the Tram #3 through an industrial section,
down main thoroughfares, into the country and along a country road, past a prison (well, they’ve got to have prisons too!), past many schools and recreation areas, past a few high falutin neighborhoods (which honestly have that look of mainland USA), past a campground with thousands of little campers and then the little train station for Mayzieu.
Along the way I had been looking at the maps next to the bus stops and knew to look for rue Victor Hugo. This was my ticket to the other side of a lake called Grand Large (really, that’s its name! kind of like lake big big).
Now I was in the magic of riding along a lake. There were families on bikes, people on the lake rowing, dogs running free not on a leash (one came by to say hey, he was really sweet but stinky like Rocket Girl).
le crayon in the distance
some cool looking communal gardens
I then worked my way back to town and somehow magically back to parc tete d’or where I could grab a bite. It was now 3 p.m. and I was hungry. I went for the incredibly healthy but tasty choice of crêpe au sucre and grande café crème followed by the ubiquitous sandwich jambon.

(Okay, okay, what about the fine French cuisine you ask? It was 3 p.m. already and I just wanted to hang in the park on a bench in the sun. Okay?)

The return took me back down le Rhone
simple pleasures
to the far south side of town where I then crossed back over to the “island” and managed to find a pleasantly quiet road.
One side note–despite the large population of this city (for the accurate amount explore wikipedia s’il vous plait . . . just looked and got this #: 472,305) I managed to find MANY places empty of people. Just what this Kaua‘i girl needed. Not to wander too far though from my purpose for being here, I did listen to a French radio program twice on my iPod, some French dialogue stuff, some French music (Samedi Soir by what’s his name), some Jacque Brels stuff along with Zap Mama . . . the immersion continues.
To backtrack, the highlight of Saturday afternoon was listening to an incredible (and attractive) Brasillian woman play classic guitar.

I found a listing in the journal for a free concert at 5 p.m. at Le Salon de Music on rue Saint George, not far from chez moi. A fellow °student joined me . . . it’s quite a long story but suffice it to say that people are the same everywhere and this student (she) hadn’t been invited to the gathering the night before. Not as a slight I think, but just because the guys didn’t think to invite her. She reminds them of their mothers I found out later. I also found out later that she’s all of 40 years old . . . needless to say, me with my 48 somehow fit in. Okay Mom. Here’s your confirmation that I haven’t yet grown up. (°I invited her to join me . . .)
So, on that note, seems like a good time to close.  It’s 4:36 p.m. and my books (for studying) are calling.
Ciao and bisous mes amis,
Susan

The school: Ecole Suisse de Langues aka ESL

1 Reply
date:  Mon, Jan 19, 2009
subject:  l’école
Bonjour mes amis,
Alors, je dois quelque chose à vous dire de l’école. After all, I’ve been here a week now, so I reckon it’s time to talk about the school: ESL, Ecole (Shouldn’t there be an accent over the capital e? Well, I would think so too; but there’s not one at their website; so I’m going with their version.) Suisse de Langues. For those of you who like to play with google map or google earth, the address is 6, Quai Jules Courmont, 69002 Lyon. It is located on le Rhone.  To get here (today I’m using their ordi because I can. Most of the students are gone and there isn’t a line waiting to use da kine.) I walk out the door of the apt. building (after going down the narrow flight of steps of course!), take a right, cross the river Saône which is on the LEFT on any one of the many bridge.

(Lesson of the day:  il y a le pont–regular bridge for cars and pedestrians and la passerelle–foot bridge only. When I asked la Madame if a person is allowed to ride their bike over a passerelle, she said, “Non, mais ouis, mais non.” So, it’s not allowed, but people do it anyway : )

After crossing a bridge I am now in the “main” section of Lyon. The most direct way to the school is to walk down la Saône until I reach rue Grenette, take a left, go till the road on the river (le Rhone) take a right and the school is just a little bit down on the right. I did that for the first few days until I began to feel a little bolder. Now I go any which a way because it’s hard to get lost with so many tall landmarks. First of all there’s le Crayon

(It’s this tall building in the middle of no other tall buildings with a cap on it like a pencil, hence le crayon, which in French is . . . . . you guessed it, a pencil. It’s also over the main train station called Gare-Part Dieu. La Madame told me that there is a cool bar on top of it. Anyone want to come over and check it out with me?)

Secondly, there’s le Fourvière, a beautiful cathedral on the hill on top of the “old” town (also easy to reach from where I’m staying. That’s another cool thing about Madame’s apt., it’s in such a good location.)

The locals call it an elephant lying on its back–it’s four legs are sticking straight up in the air! It’s a church dedicated to Jesus’ brother, Joseph. When I look on the map it’s official name is Basilique Notre-Dame de Fourvière.

Not far from the elephant en respos is the tour (or tower) de Lyon. It’s what greets me after I’ve climbed at least a thousand steps. (No, I haven’t counted them, but our teacher made us count them when we descended from another part of the hill. And for those who can’t sleep without knowing the answer, there were 248 on that particular set of steps.)

The tour really does look like THE tour in Paris. It’s just a LOT smaller, AND you’re not allowed to climb it. It’s a tower for communi-cation; I see lots of satellite dishes on it, that kind of thing.

Okay, so it’s easy to find your way around so long as you can get a sightline with one of the big landmarks. That is unless the pollution is so bad. And let me tell you, it IS bad here.

The few times I’ve looked at the weather report it was at the WORSE mark on the list! Yep, pour mes amis à Kaua‘i, lucky we live Hawaii.

To get in the school you have to push a button at the main entrance to the building (unless you come early like I have a few times and the workers are still cleaning up). It’s a lot like everywhere else in the world–except Kaua‘i and maybe Tennessee–where there are buildings with lots of offices and such in them. After getting buzzed in, you climb the dark and very broad stairway up to the 2nd floor (or first étage en francais). There is another buzzer there for getting in . . . unless you’re a student like me and they show you a secret buzzer to push for entry.
The school’s in a classic old building with high ceilings. There are peut-être 6 or 7 classrooms, all have pretty French (no, really) doors, complete with glass panels. The classrooms face the road on 2 sides so if you wanted to daydream you could look at some shops on the groundfloor and appartements en haut.
Here’s the routine of the day:
8:30 a.m. The school opens. You can come in and use the ordi, which are in the entry hallway, 3 on one side of the entry door, 2 on the other.
Dominique from Switzerland
They’re chest high, so you have to stand and step in close sometimes when someone need to pass by. You could also go hang out in the common room at the end of the hallway if you wanted to (or go to your classroom and start studying/working already if you’re a complete nerd! I’ve only done that once, and that was at 8:45, so I don’t think that counts.)
9:00 a.m. School begins. There are essentially two classes. I’m in the more elementary one (of course!). There are only 6 students in our class. Yes, I’m the only Americaine. Here’s the breakdown of the rest: one guy from Brésil who works in advertising, a young man de Suisse who works in construction, a lady from Finland who is essentially an aide worker who will be going to Kenya, a German woman who lives in Ireland with her Irish husband, and a woman from Nigeria who has 2 children who were born in Tampa (elle est très belle!)  Our teacher s’appelle Jean-Laurent.  He is a very handsome young man who is studying to get his doctorate in French (he later decided to nix that plan since he doesn’t need the degree to do what he’s already doing and enjoys) as learned by foreigners (comme moi).  He was born on a tiny island close to Marrakesh called La Reunion.  He is of African decent.  We’re all learning French for different reasons, some like me simplement pour plaisir, some for le travaille.  Those are the ones who need French in their work.
Jean-Laurent is a very good teacher.
Torun from Finland and Jean-Laurent
He’s incredibly encouraging and positive.  Also, he speaks very clearly; and, as those of you who have ever tried to understand native French speakers know, that is très, très important!  At the start of each day he writes les objectifs on the board.  We generally start each class with some discussion.  What are some of the topics you ask?  I’ll look in my notebook for today’s sujets. (sujets, the plural of sujet, which is . . . yep, you guessed right, simply subject in French . . . so MANY of our English words come from French ! )
1) Le devéloppement durable est-il à la mode chez vous?
No, it’s not a question of how many scoops of ice cream you want, but whether it’s fashionable to have/use self-sustaining products.  Katy, I told them how the biggest hotel on the island is now using solar panels.  Très cool! they replied.
2) Que pensez-vous du salarie des patrons?
Since I’m my own boss, or rather sometimes I am, sometimes Tony is, I just told them the on-going joke that Tony and I have that he hopes I’m embezzling.  They laughed.  But then the discussion moved on to Bill Gates.  I had to say that yes, people like that do make a crazy amount of money; but at least Bill Gates and his wife are incredibly généreux.  Oui, oui, Jean-Laurent nodded.
After our discussion (trust me, we are talking like first or MAYBE second graders!) Jean-Laurent pulls out some xerox copies for our lessons for the week.  There is generally a theme for each week.  Last week it was asking questions, present subjonctif, passé recent (venir de + infinitif), etc.  This week it looks like it will be comparisons (for nouns, adj., les adverbes, etc.).  We go around the table taking turns reading out loud and then we work on the exercises.  Sometimes le prof gives us each different little supplements to do on our own time.  I was quite happy last week Tuesday (my 2nd day) when he gave me a difficult worksheet to take home on the difference between passè composè et imparfait.  Passè composè is really pretty easy, mais imparfait, non!  I was quite happy when I managed to use imparfait once in a REAL conversation with la Madame. (okay, okay, you all know I’m a nerd . . . )  We were talking about my dear husband, that he was playing his gig at Trees Lounge while I was sleeping . . . . that’s. . .

(Oops! I hit SEND by mistake!)

p.s. The school is now called Alpadia.