Bonjour, tout le monde. Another week has begun, (only the second?!), and things aren't even close to settling!
Yesterday, Gerard and Sybille brought me to their friend's picnic in the countryside, about an hour outside of Paris. I thought to myself, "Oh, you know, it'll be a quaint get-together, outdoor eating, very intimate." How wrong I was.... After driving 130 kilometers per hour (about 80 miles per hour) the entire way in Gerard's small FIAT, blasting triumphant classical music, we arrived at an enormous stone house, where we subsequently walked around to the backyard to find easily 150 guests. My heart was beating out of my chest - I just moved in, and I have to talk to ALL these people?! Are you guys insane?!! Lucky for me, nice people like Gerard and Sybille are friends with other nice people. Everyone, I truly mean everyone, was incredibly patient, engaging, and seemed sincerely excited that I was there. And if I may say, I think I held my own pretty well. I even met some people who had been to Connecticut, and one woman whose daughter lives in Larchmont, (why would anyone from Paris move there, I ask?).
It's times like those that you make the quite obvious realization that there are so many people in this world that are both wonderful and interesting, so many that it's unfathomable that we'd meet all of them in our lifetime. It was a lovely conglomerate of the French, the Germans, the British, even a few Americans, and so on the list can go. For those with whom I engaged in deep conversation, I learned their histories, the stories of how they met their husbands or wives, their passions, and their admirable love for their friends - all of whom had gathered for a beautiful picnic at a beautiful home in the beautiful countryside. Although I was extremely exhausted by the end of the day, having spent a straight 11-12 hours speaking and listening to French, I felt fulfilled. I might even venture to say that I felt a little bit wiser. If nothing else, my fluency improved greatly, even if by the time we left at 11pm I could only mindlessly mumble "Uh... uh... comment dit-on.... comment dit-on.... uh, je ne sais pas" in response to anyone's question... but maybe it was all the red wine.
Important side note: It was brought my attention, (even though I already knew), by my friend Zak that I should have more pictures on this blog. I must admit, friends, that while I brought both my camera and my camera charger, I did not remember to bring the cord that connects my camera to my computer. I'm sure I can buy it somewhere, but it doesn't matter enough to me. So, I apologize for the lack of photos, but they will most certainly be posted when I get home in December. It'll be like when you get a belated birthday present in the mail about 3 months too late and you remember how awesome your birthday was! Just like that.
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