I bought mussels at the marche on Saturday, and got a 3-minute crash course on how to cook them from the poissonier (the man selling fish). I also bought creme fraiche and beurre straight from the farm, and lots of fresh tomatoes. So Sunday, I made a balsamic vinaigrette for the tomatoes, and I cooked moules, with a sauce of white wine, onions, and creme fraiche. Mmmm, c'etait bon! That afternoon, I made a Tarte Tatin (pear tarte) with pears from Jacqueline & Philippe's garden. French cuisine is growing on me!
Tuesday morning we took Brandon to his elementary school, met the principal and got to see his classroom and the afterschool care: Maison d'Enfants et de la Jeunesse. First grade is called Cours Preparatoire, second is Cours Elementaire 1, and third is Cours Elementaire 2. He will be the only English speaking student in the school of 200 students, unlike the large ELD population of South Pasadena and Arcadia!
Tuesday afternoon, I made my way to my high school, Lycee du Val de Saone in Trevoux, about 30 km away from Chatillon. The roads in this sparsley populated area are very different from the freeways of the San Gabriel Valley... Even with printed directions from Mappy.fr, the French equivalent of Google maps, one is not sure whether one is headed in the right direction on the right road until one has either gotten terribly lost (and knows it) or until one arrives and is terribly relieved! I am glad that I had my first attempt at getting to school BEFORE the first day of school, although I was still stressed since I had a meeting with the Proviseur (principal) and didn't want to be late! Monsieur CHEVROLAT and his staff made me feel very welcome, and I got to meet all of the administrators and most of the support staff. Teachers of course, were nowhere to be found (as they were savoring their last days of summer). I received a tour of the Lycee, and I am certain that I will feel at home there in a matter of days (or weeks)!
Maryline and I have been spending quite a lot of time still emailing back and forth about all sorts of things, from questions like "where are the staples in your office?" to "how do I change channels on the TV"? It is amazing how many little things there are to adjust to, but things are really starting to fall into place.
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