I had a really wonderful first weekend in France! I'm pretty sure it's all going to be really wonderful :) On Friday night I had dinner with friends then went out to a bar and had a nice conversation with some other American girls who were from Michigan and Washington. Each Saturday morning there is a big market in the middle of Angers, so I went there with a few other ND students. We walked among all the fruits and vegetables first. There were a ton of clementines for sale! I guess they're pretty popular here. Then we went down the corridor of meat, fish, cheese and bread stands. The smell was incredible, and I mean in a good way. I myself like the smell of fresh fish and cooking meat. There was at least one eel for sale and some live shrimp. There were some people with dogs there, and I was surprised that the dogs didn't go crazy with all the scents wafting through the air. There was also another long line of booths that were selling clothes, accessories, and flowers. On the whole, the market was really interesting and fun.
I went to my first mass in France on Saturday evening. It was at the parish of St. Joseph, which has what appears to be a legit Gothic-era church, not just Gothic style like you see in the US. I haven't found info to confirm, but it appears to be very old, and it is very beautiful. The brilliant pipe organ was playing before mass, and the music surrounding me in the cold, stony building led me to reflect on the profound, lasting love of the liturgy that will remain infinitely longer than the beauty of the church. A bishop said the mass, and he talked about using facebook to make profound connections in part of his homily, as well as saying that we are the salt of the world together, among other things. I could also interpret the epistle and the Gospel, but most of the rest I couldn't understand specifically. I think I'm going to try to find a French missal.
On Sunday I had an incredible day with my host family, their friends, and my fellow ND student Kaitlin. On the first Sunday of every month (since ten years ago), my host family goes on a hike in the countryside with a group of friends, and stops in the middle for a big picnic. They are hardcore, with walking sticks and hiking boots. Last Sunday we walked in vineyards near the village of Martigné-Briand. We parked the car in the village near the church and chateau. These two buildings were so picturesque: there were doves flying back and forth between the eaves and the crevices left by 500 years of wear and tear, and later the church bell started ringing. The entire town was very charming. As we walked through the vineyards, we saw a windmill, and one of men, François, explained to me a few different types of windmill that one finds in France. For much of the walk, Kaitlin and I spoke with Jerôme, who has a daughter who is going to high school in Gladstone, MO right now, and will be visiting her in Kansas City this May. He is working on his English, so we practiced with him some, and, through the whole day, we got a lot of French practice.
It's pretty hard to describe exactly how awesome the picnic was. I was sitting at a petite table. In a vineyard in France. Next to a beautiful town. Under the shining sun. Eating and drinking a French feast. Surrounded by joyful people who were loving life. I'm telling you it doesn't get much better than that. We started with champagne as it was the 50th birthday of one of the men in the group (you say "chin, chin" when you toast). Among other things, we ate pâté de cochon (pig), smoked pig, routilles de poulet (not sure about the spelling on that one), andouille, tomatoes, mayo/carrot/celery salad, chocolate, and king's cake. The woman who was crowned queen got lots of kisses. Everyone was just having a lot of fun. All of the food was accompanied by baguette and red wine (côtes-du-rhône), of course. We finished it off with coffee, then rum with local spices. I was so full after that. During the meal, Jerôme offered this quip, or something like it: you know, in France, eating is like a religion. I am definitely a believer :) I don't know if I mentioned it before, but all the meals I've had with my family have been just as delicious, if not as large and extravagant.
Well, after that we had to walk some of the food off, so we continued. As we moved back toward town, we walked past a corral that held four gorgeous, enormous draft horses. I thought the day couldn't get better, but I was wrong:) We pet the horses, then made our way back to the town. Something I forgot to mention about the village is that it has been the subject of national news stories because the town council voted to cut down the 150-year-old Sequoia that is in the cemetery. They voted to do this because the roots are damaging the graves. Some of the villagers have been protesting the removal of the tree. All in all, I would say that the activity Sunday with the AREUH (Association de Randonneurs Extraordinaires, Urbains, et Huereux; one of them made buttons with the acronym) was probably one of the best ways to enjoy France.
Next post: classes!
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