While we were there, a guy walked past the back door. I heard him start to walk by, and just after my mind registered that he was there, I realized he was talking/yelling at a girl who was also back there. For the first four or five seconds after he started talking, I was really taken aback by the fact he was speaking in English instead of French.

It was completely strange, and made me realize that I guess I was more entrenched in French culture and language while I was there than I thought.

Honestly, though, it shocked me how easily I adaped to speaking in French, thinking in French, reading in French. Even the first night we were there, when I was completely jet lagged and exhausted, I was able to communicate on a purely automatic level in the language. I barely had to think about what I was saying…I didn’t have to think it in English and then translate it into French…it was just there, in my head, in French.

Weird. And extremely exhilirating.

I guess part of the ability to merge with the language sprung out of the knowledge that I was it, that I was the one everyone was relying on to figure things out. That responsibility motivated me to be much more bold than I would have been otherwise, I think. And that’s a good thing: I know my French improved a great deal while I was there, largely because I gained a lot of confidence in speaking it and reading it.

Not to be a total braggart, but I had several people, many of whom were native French speakers, and some of whom were complete strangers, tell me I spoke French very well. That is a huge compliment coming from a French person. I even had one French woman think I WAS French.

All that simply rekindles my desire to continue to grow in my knowlege of the language. I know that while I do speak it well, there is so much I need to learn in the way of vocabulary, idomatic elements, and finesse. I’m hoping I can find people here in Seattle with whom I can talk and learn from. There’s a cafe in the U-District that does language conversation nights, and Wednesdays are for French. I am going to go, maybe this week or the next. I really miss hearing the language since I’ve been back.

Anyway, while I was in Paris the last weekend before we came home, I wound up being by myself a lot, which I enjoyed. There’s something about being alone in a big city that gives me a sense of…I”m not sure how to describe it. Maybe it’s a sense of freedom and independence and, well, possibility, a feeling that the world is a really big place and I am just one small cog in it, and that anything could happen and I could go anywhere and do anything.

It was rainy that weekend, and cold, which was a welcome change for me since it had been extremely hot the whole time we were there. On Sunday, I got up and went to mass at Notre Dame with a few of the girls on the trip. (That was an amazing experience in itself.) The girls I had gone to church with went their own way after the service, and I went to do a few errands (relating to my duties as the French speaker on the trip). After that, I had the rest of the day by myself, since I had no way of getting in touch with any of the students.

I had wanted to do some last-minute shopping, so I left our hotel on the Ile St. Louis and walked across the Seine to catch the Metro Ligne 1 up to the Champs Elysees. I was standing in the train, near the door, as the train stopped at one of the stations; I don’t remember which one — maybe Franklin D. Roosevelt. As the loudspeaker sounded the tone that indicates the doors are closing, I recall looking out the door at the station, seeing the artwork on the walls, the advertisements, the people — the entire scenario — and feeling completely a part of the culture, and feeling like I could live there forever.

I wish I could describe it better. It was such a surreal and wonderful moment and something I’ll remember my entire life.

I don’t know the answers to those questions right now. I’m exhausted (my flight from Heathrow to Seattle was canceled and I was re-routed through Atlanta, which added about 7 hours onto the day), jet-lagged, and I have a ton of stuff to get done today before I start my new job tomorrow.

For now, I’ll just say that it was wonderful. I loved being in France, and as happy as I am to be back home in Seattle, I have to admit that I miss France today. I miss the buildings, the language, the pain au chocolat…

I guess I’ll just content myself with the thought that I will be back, hopefully sooner rather than later, and I’ll leave you with one of many great photos.

I will try to add some more soon — Brett has 2 more CDs full of photos at home with him…so we’ll try to put them on as soon as possible.

Sorry I’ve been bad about updating recently…not much access to the internet. I will try to be better and I am trying to remember and write down stories to share later.

Gotta run — someone else is waiting for the internet!

I am sorry I haven’t posted much. Access to the internet has not been easy to get…and it is expensive when I do get on line.

Also; I haven’t been able to upload photos to the internet either because of the programs here, but Brett went home yesterday and he will upload about 200 photos to Flickr or Shutterfly. I’ll post a link when he does.

There are lots of stories to tell but not a lot of time to type them. We’ve visited lots of places: Mont St. Michel, Giverny, Rouen, the DDay beaches, Versailles, and lots of other towns nearby. It’s great!!

We leave Honfleur (in Normandy) tomorrow for the town in Provence. I am looking forward to it…the change of scene will be nice, even though I love it here in Honfleur.

Brett and I went to Paris on Wednesday. It was great! I will definitely post more about it and post some photos too.

I hope that I will have better access to the Internet once we are in Provence, so I can stay in touch better.

I have to get back to the house for lunch now…but I will try to post again soon!

All of that is to say that I feel like I’ve been so busy just living life the past few weeks that I haven’t really updated much. There’s a lot I want to say, but I haven’t found the time to sit down and write about it.

Anyway…I suppose that will come soon, once we’re back from France and I’m working my permanent job.

Speaking of France, we leave THIS WEEK!!! I’m so excited. After some drama with our passports (which, $284 later, is now resolved), we are now getting ready to go. I leave on Wednesday evening, and Brett leaves Thursday morning. We’ll be there just in time for Bastille Day, which it looks like we’ll be spending in Deauville, a resort town on the Normandy coast. Fun!

I am so looking forward to having Brett experience French culture. He’s never been out of the country, with the exception of a few trips to Vancouver and Victoria, British Columbia, so this will be a whole new world for him, one I know he’ll love.

I know I’m looking forward to sharing certain experiences with him: walking through cities, buildings, and churches built when North America hadn’t yet been discovered, eating pastries (tarte au citron is my favorite; I know he’ll love the pain au chocolat) and drinking thick, syrupy espresso, swimming in La Manche (The English Channel), exploring Mont St. Michel, and visiting Paris.

It’s going to be great.

But for now, I need to get busy with doing laundry and figuring out what to pack, which is kind of a daunting task. I haven’t given it much thought, which is out of character for me…usually, I plan ahead for weeks with regard to packing. This time, though, I just haven’t really thought much about it. I guess I need to get on that.

I should wrap this up — Brett’s sisters, Rachel and Amy, are on their way up to visit for the weekend. They should be here any minute. I’m looking forward to spending some time with them; with the exception of last weekend, we hadn’t seen either of them in nearly a year. So it should be a good time, hanging out with them this weekend.

Anyway — watch this space while I’m in France. I’ll do my best to post more regularly while I’m there, with photos and written descriptions…

So — a bientot, mes amis! La prochaine fois que j’ecrire ici, je serais en france!

Anyway, another amazing part about this is that Brett is more than welcome to come for the first half. Brett has never been out of the country, to anywhere but Canada. I really, really, really want him to be able to come.

We realized that we have enough airmiles for a plane ticket, too, thanks to our Alaska Airlines credit card, and the multiple flights back to the Pacific Northwest over the past few years. Again — another blessing.

Oh, and did I mention that we would be there together over our third wedding anniversary?

Yeah. So perfect.

Except we can’t get a reservation using airmiles to save our lives. AUGH!!!

The explanation the airline people are giving me makes sense, I guess, but that doesn’t make it any easier to deal with.

Apparently what’s happened is that the airlines release a set number of mileage plan tickets for each flight 330 days before that flight. And apparently there are people just waiting to pounce on said tickets.

People like us, who wait until (*gasp*) three months before the trip, are apparently out of luck.

I’ve called repeatedly, as the reservation agents have suggested, in case anything changes. And things have changed, every time I’ve called. The first time, there was nothing within three days of the dates we wanted him to leave and come back. The second time, we could get him there, but not home, and this time, tonight, there was NOTHING either way.

So, here is where the plea comes in.

I really, really, really, really want Brett to be able to come. (I know I said that before but it’s the truth.) He’s never eaten a real tarte au citron, or walked through a European marketplace, or seen a 14th century cathedral, or been to see the Louvre, or any of that. I want him to experience that, and I want to experience that with him!

If any of you readers have any advice about this, about how to get him a ticket using airmiles (we absolutely cannot afford to pay for a ticket outright; they’re running around $1200 right now), or if you have any connections with either Alaska Airlines (who our miles are through) or any of its European partner airlines…please! HELP! Any good advice you can give would be welcome…and in lieu of advice, your prayers, good thoughts, and lots of crossed fingers that we’ll be able to get him a ticket would be awesome, too.

– Big things are happening in my life, exciting things. (NO, I am NOT pregnant, which is what several people have thought.) I can’t really share specifics here yet, but I will as soon as I can. Probably about 3 weeks or so.

– It’s been really cool to be in touch with some old friends through MySpace. Hearing from people I had lost touch with has made me happy.

– I have been reading a TON. Like a book every other day. I don’t know why but it’s great. I just read a really good Lord Peter Wimsey book — Have His Carcase. Loved it. It’s one of my favorite Lord Peter stories.

– Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday. Maybe I’ll go to the service at the Episcopal Cathedral if they have one in the evening, since Brett’s going to be in class.

That’s it. I have to get back to writing my last story of the day but I felt like I needed a break and I felt guilty for not updating in a long time…

I’ll leave you with a photo I took last week in Portland of the sunset over Back Bay. It was so beautiful.