Weekend Recap...

[rebecca_in_blue]

Nakeisha and I left early Sunday morning to catch the train into Amiens. We had just gotten aboard when we met another assistant on her way to Amiens, Molly, from Missouri. She overheard us speaking in English and came over and sat next to us. She will be teaching at a middle school in Villers-Cotterets but living in Soissons, a nearby town. She was extremely cool and helpful. She changed onto the same train as us in Paris, and she knew much more about French train system; we probably would have gotten lost without her. We arrived in Amiens around three in the afternoon. Molly had reserved a room in a different hotel than Nakeisha and me, but they were only a block apart. After we all checked in, we met back up to find the center was the meeting was going to be held.

Molly had a map of Amiens and the address of the center, which we were able to find pretty easily. Then we spent the rest of the afternoon walking around Amiens, which was fantastic. The Somme River runs through Amiens, and so do several of its tribunaries, so there were bridges, canals, and rivers everywhere, which made it very picturesque. It was a lot like I imagine Venice to be like. We also saw the massive Notre Dame Cathedral. We walked all around it, but we didn't go inside. (I've never felt comfortable in houses of worship – my Catholic education is probably to blame – and I think there was some sort of service going on, anyway.) But the cathedral! There was so much sculpture with so much detail that I could have stared at it for hours.

We also visited the park in Amiens, which was beautiful. The Somme ran through it, and there was also a lake, with a snake sculpture in its center, full of ducks and geese and a little babbling stream where some French kids actually managed to catch a few fish. I used up the rest of the film on one of my disposable cameras taking pictures there. As we were leaving back to our hotels, I got an incredible view of the cathedral from a distance, set against the clouds. In short, the afternoon was exactly why I came to France.

That night in my hotel room wasn't so great. My room was nice and comfortable, but the sore throat that I had been fighting all day had gotten worse. It felt like it was on fire, but it also hurt to swallow, so drinking didn't really make it better. I had a lot of trouble sleeping. We woke up early the next day because the meeting started at nine and lasted all day. It was helpful but involved a lot of boring paperwork and Power Point presentations, so I'll spare you the details.

Molly was also taking the same trains back to Villers-Cotterets as Nakeisha and me, so we all travelled back together. They managed to sleep on the train, but I didn't. We finally back around nine Monday night. Nakeisha and I walked to the school from the train station, and as soon as I got in my room again, I found a box from Mom waiting for me. My iPod, my CDs, two Shirley Temple DVDs, candy – it was like Christmas!

Today I finally started observing classes. I was nervous, but I think it went well. The teacher had me introduce myself to her class, so I told them my name and where I was from. A few of them seemed interested when they heard that my city in Louisiana had a French name, and I tried to explain to them why it was called Baton Rouge, but I think I spoke too fast for them to follow. The teacher had to draw a red stick on the board with chalk, which was rather phallic-looking. They spent the rest of the class going over phonetics; French pronounces all syllables the same, so they had to learn how to stress syllables.

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

YEAH TO THE EXPERIENCED WORLD TRAVELER! IT SOUNDS SO BEAUTIFUL, I HAVE SEEN A FEW THINGS MYSELF THAT I COULD HAVE SAT AND STARED AT FOR HOURS. SO GLAD YOU'VE MADE SOME FRIENDS AFTER THIS EXPERIENCE TOGETHER YOU WILL BE BONDED FOREVER, LIKE WAR BUDDIES. WE ARE WELL HERE, THE HUMIDITY IS LOW SO IT IS VERY PLEASANT EVEN IF IT HITS THE 90'S DURING THE DAY. EVA HAS ALOT OF HOMEWORK. BUT SHE HAS FINALLY MEMORIZED ALL HER MULTIPLICATION TABLES, DIVIDING TWO DIGIT NUMBERS INTO THREE AND FOUR DIGIT NUMBERS YOU HAVE NO CHOICE. I AM SO SICK OF THE AMERICAN INDIANS, THIS IS MY 4TH TIME WITH THIS, ALL THE DIFFERENT TRIBES AND CUSTOMS, THEY STAY ON THEM FOR WEEKS. BOY THAT SOUNDS RACIST! THEY NEVER GO OVER THE FIRST WORLD WAR DO THEY OR THE SPANISH AMERICAN WAR, HECK I DON'T EVEN THINK I GOT INTO THE SECOND WORLD WAR, I HAD TO READ ABOUT ALL THOSE ON MY OWN, WHY DON'T THEY BREAK AMERICAN HISTORY INTO SECTIONS SO MAYBE OUR GRANDKIDS WILL KNOW ABOUT VIETNAM. BUT EVERYBODY KNOWS ABOUT ALL THE INDIAN TRIBES. IT'S LATE I AM TIRED. SO GLAD YOU ARE WELL, HOPE YOUR THROAT GETS BETTER, WARM SALT WATER REALLY HELPS TO GARGLE, ALSO MY FRIEND RHONDA SAID SHE USED LISTERINE ANTISEPTIC TO GARGLE WAY BACK IN HER THROAT, SHE HAD A HORRIBLE SORE THROAT WHILE THEY WERE ON VACATION, SHE SAID SHE GARGLED 3 TIMES A DAY AND IT TOOK A DAY AND A HALF AND IT WAS ALL GONE. JUST THOUGHT. TAKE CARE I LOVE YOU, AUNT CONNIE

[rebecca-in-blue.livejournal.com]

Hi, Aunt Connie! I sent a little postcard to you guys, but it will come in a package to 9th Street (not to your house), so someone will have to hand-deliver it to you. My sore throat is better but I still have a nagging cough. I think there was a teacher at my high school who taught from the history books in reverse, which is a pretty good idea if you think about it. The latest I ever got in history class was the 1980s, and that was in a high school class that only covered from 1945 to the present! At that rate it should be around 2050 before students study September 11.

[(Anonymous)]

Yay, Boo! I'm glad you got your package, and that your trip to Amiens went so well. It sounds like a beautiful place. I don't think it's that far from V-C, is it? So maybe you can go again some time for a day trip. By the by, I thought Notre Dame was in Paris. Is there more than one? There probably is.

Sorry I was so out of it when you called Monday, I was sleeping since it was my day off. Ah, bliss! I'm off Saturday, YOUR BIRTHDAY!!, so I'll call you then. Don't be (too) nervous about teaching, I know you will do wonderfully!

[(Anonymous)]

Oh, that was me, Sara. Sorry about that.

[rebecca-in-blue.livejournal.com]

Oh, that was me, Sara.

Yeah, I didn't know that, because a lot of other people call me Boo. And from what I remember from art history class, there are, like, a hella Notre-Dames in Paris. Didn't David Sedaris say once that France has more cathedrals than it knows what to do with, or something like that?

[babygoose85.livejournal.com]

I read all of it I swear, I must really still be immature because all I could think about was what you said about Baton Rouge and it looking phallic. Oh goodness, well in case you don't go look at my lj I'll tell you over here. I found out today/yesterday since it's past midnight, that I'm having a little girl. Really exciting. I wish I could of traveled, but I don't really have any discernible skills, at anything.

[rebecca-in-blue.livejournal.com]

Really exciting! I'm so happy for you! I think having a baby is something I'd like to do someday, although right now I doubt that I will.

[babygoose85.livejournal.com]

Well that's good, I would at least wait until you're back in the US though!!! :o)