Salut!
Barely 24 hours ago, I was getting on the plane. After 11 hours of travel and a two jet-lagged days, I realizing I'm here and beginning to adjust.
First day realizations:
1. I know absolutely no French. I mean, I know a few words, but cannot follow a regular paced french conversation.
2. The atmosphere is distinct. From the cosmetic look of roads/cars/ buildings to the standard french greeting of a kiss (bisoux) on each cheek, to the architecture, and even the way of having a conversation. It's just French.
3. My mind always wants to compare. And I need to resist this urge. Comparison itself isn't bad, but I don't want to only be interested in French culture to juxtapose it with American culture. I am interested in learning about the French mindset, and turning everything into "France vs. America" conversations tend to stay on the surface level, or veer them into conversations about my life in America. So, I've made the resolution to stop inserting the phrase "In America we..." into conversations, and hope my mind will follow suit and stop automatically comparing. I'll keep you posted on how this goes.
4. France people sit and eat and talk. We visited two homes yesterday and both invited us to sit and talk, and gave us food and drink. So delicious! We ate fresh strawberries and raspberries from the garden--so refreashing after a night of travel! And even though Mike and I were too tired and too inexperienced in French to add much to the conversation, we sat and ate, and watched them talk. There's something about people taking in another language that's just mesmerizing.
So far today has been a cloudy, rainy, lazy day. Mike and I worked on a project for Thierry and ate and then I played with Silas, his 8 month old son. I am still wrapping my mind around the fact that I'm here, and figuring out how to respond. This is all very overwhelming, but I'm praying I'll get the hang of it soon!
That's a lot of thinking, too much for today. Time for a nap? I think so. But first, a few pictures!
The view outside my window. A very cloudy day, you can barely see the mountains.
Thierry outside his house.A plus!
