After a great flight with Ryanair (currently offering the best deals (often for $29.99 Euro or less, one way, some extra charges apply) for flying within Europe, however only to selected smaller airports) from Lübeck to Marseille, and after navigating – all in French! - a shuttle bus, a train (TGV- France’s high speed train) and a cab, Martin arrived chez the ‘townhome’ of Mme Danielle Eboly in Avignon. The room is small (about the size of four queen size beds, even though there only is one…), but comfortable, with my own mini fridge, ¾ size bathroom (separated by curtain from the rest of the room), a wardrobe and a small desk. I have my own entrance and so also quite a bit of privacy. In the mornings I go down the very narrow, spiral steps, through the yard, past my favorite fig tree, and into Madame’s kitchen for breakfast. She, retired and living alone (besides the various foreign students she hosts), joins me and entertains me with her thoughts for the day, about the world, languages, French politics and current issues – all in French.
The first day of classes was a bit overwhelming . I am wondering why I am doing this; our little family has had such a great trip and time together; it’s very strange to all of a sudden be alone here in Avignon. Language wise, I understand a lot, most of what is being talked about, even if not all, but my speaking skills are truly minimal. I have the basics down for being a tourist, but beyond that I seem to have lost whatever vocabulary and grammar I once might have had, since my last efforts at studying French were 23 years ago. The staff at the school (CEILA) is very nice; the atmosphere is informal and family-like; the other students (mostly in their 20s) are mostly personable. All the students – there are only about six right now - are focused only on speaking French, even during breaks and after class. So, I am mostly quiet, taking in the conversations of others, smiling and nodding, making various facial expressions of surprise, agreement or disagreement, and often sharing a puzzled look. What surprised me, even as I started looking up some words in the dictionary in the days before my voyage to France, was that I automatically shift into thinking in English when figuring out how to express/translate something in French. For the first five weeks of our European stay, I processed everything in German and it’s confusing to all of a sudden have English popping up as the dominant language. At night, it takes me some time to process random French words or expressions before going to sleep.
I talked to Lisa on the phone – all seems well with the clan. Christian and Carl are going to school with Solveig/Marit and Olaf respectively the first couple of days of this week. The Haines family arrived in Schönwalde this evening after their visit in Münster.
The first day of classes was a bit overwhelming . I am wondering why I am doing this; our little family has had such a great trip and time together; it’s very strange to all of a sudden be alone here in Avignon. Language wise, I understand a lot, most of what is being talked about, even if not all, but my speaking skills are truly minimal. I have the basics down for being a tourist, but beyond that I seem to have lost whatever vocabulary and grammar I once might have had, since my last efforts at studying French were 23 years ago. The staff at the school (CEILA) is very nice; the atmosphere is informal and family-like; the other students (mostly in their 20s) are mostly personable. All the students – there are only about six right now - are focused only on speaking French, even during breaks and after class. So, I am mostly quiet, taking in the conversations of others, smiling and nodding, making various facial expressions of surprise, agreement or disagreement, and often sharing a puzzled look. What surprised me, even as I started looking up some words in the dictionary in the days before my voyage to France, was that I automatically shift into thinking in English when figuring out how to express/translate something in French. For the first five weeks of our European stay, I processed everything in German and it’s confusing to all of a sudden have English popping up as the dominant language. At night, it takes me some time to process random French words or expressions before going to sleep.
I talked to Lisa on the phone – all seems well with the clan. Christian and Carl are going to school with Solveig/Marit and Olaf respectively the first couple of days of this week. The Haines family arrived in Schönwalde this evening after their visit in Münster.
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