after the rain

SARLAT

Just returned from Sarlat, hometown of Leo's friend, Gaetan.  We got to stay with his family and enjoy the paysage; landscape, if you will. It's real French country and I am surprised how much green there was everywhere. It was so refreshing! and then it began to rain. I love the rain, but after breathing the same cold air in a train for 3 hours and being outside in the rain, I got a little sick. grrrrrrrrrrrrr. I hate when you feel so weak that you just collapse on a bed- arms heavy, head is plastered to your pillow- ick. Ok Im going to stop talking about being sick. Being well is so much better! (think healthy thoughts, think healthy thoughts... I feel light as a feather and quick as lightening, strong as an ox... and a smile on my face. haha)

 

Gypsy band playing in a town square.

Sarlat is such a cute little town- so old! We walked around at night and I felt like I was walking around the set of Beauty and the Beast. Yes, I know it's animated, but I have a good imagination and a song in my head (bonjour! bonjour bonjour bonjour! there goes the baker with his tray like always, the same old bread and rolls to sell) and it used to be my favorite movie as a kid. I still have my Beast stuffed animal.

  

I found Chef Boyardee... In France!

::clears throat:: back to sarlat- the streets are built on hills, so the exercise reminded me a lot of San Francisco if it weren't for the hundreds and hundred year-old ground; so much history...I love that about Europe. These towns have been around for centuries and are still in tact. My mind is boggled by it. Then the next day we traveled to a castle- le Chateau de Commarque. Archeologists have been working since the late 70s to dig it up and restore this castle that was built in the 12th century. That's like... 900+ years, if my math is correct. Kind of puts things in perspective. Here's some more perspective for you:

 

 and with that (the photos, i mean)... I will end with a word from the Townsfolk:

Look there she goes a girl who's strange but special

A most peculiar mad'moiselle

It's a pity and a sin

She doesn't quite fit in

'Cause she really is a funny girl

A beauty but a funny girl

She really is a funny girl

That Belle

hehe.

French life, thus far

The first of the blog entries...

It's now three weeks for me living in Bordeaux; my brain has been soaking up lots and I think i've absorbed enough now to pour it out and into my little Mac. Seeing friends from my last visit and making new ones, attending parties and chill fests; enjoying it all... even the hard parts. As marvelous as it is being in France and experiencing it all first hand, there are the hard times too. I wouldn't be true to myself if I didn't mention the tough times, too. You have to take the bad with the good and love it all. When this is all said and done, I'm not certain if the outcome will be what I expect (luckily, I don't really have expectations), but at least it's progress, at least I am LIVING; and oh! I am having so much fun living.

So first off- big challenge for me- being able to communicate with others and let them know who I am. Not as easy as it

 sounds when you can't speak the same language so well. It's important to me to know who I am and portray/represent/depict that. I want to make friends and I want to be unde

rstood.  Challenge #1. 

Another- I am in a country known for its culture, art, creativity, individuality... I want to be a part of that! So, at the moment, I am challenging myself creatively too, trying to make time and just draw, paint, create, destruct, construct...  Challenge #2,3,etc. 

Even though I'm not in school this semester, I have homework and I am studying several subjects.  French, art, interpersonal communication, writing, computer science... ahh! 

Leo and I just returned from Spain and southern France. It was a fantastic trip with his family and I got to visit wonderful beaches, swim in the Mediterranean(!! the 3rd sea for me), go to museums, see beautiful art, landscapes, fall in love with Dali and Herbin...

Dali's home in Port Lligat.

   

 

We went to a little town called Ceret; the history behind it is so cool. So many painters and artists have come to this city because of the light and inspiration it has. Every corner I turned there were new surprises- a beautiful Place with a fountain umbrellaed by huge trees. 

So much light coming in. It was just nice to sit and enjoy it all. Honestly, all I really could do was sit because it was so darn hot. Thank goodness for the fountain.

Did I forget to mention the food?? Forgive me... Well, if my face doesn't tell you enough, I love gazpacho, I love the food. 

And we all love a little clowning around, of course.