La campagne

Today I woke up and hurried down to the metro to descend down to Dourdan and Breuillet to see where it was I was supposed to be teaching. I grabbed the free paper, "20 minutes," on my way and read this surprising cover: Menace Sur L'Europe.

Since I've arrived, France has been on a high alert and the anti-terrorist organization known as Vigipirate is in full force. There is a strong threat of a terrorist attack according to all the leading nations of the world--and its especially alarming in France.

So, to add to the stress and drama of trying to get situated I've got terrorist threats in the back of my mind.

I got off of the RER-C line at the second to last exit (about an hour out of Paris) to meet with Pascal Siriex who is a facilitator of mine. He was charged with taking me around to all the schools today and getting me situated. We drove around the countryside in the rain and visited three schools that seemed to be situated in the garden of Eden. The French countryside, anywhere in France, is breathtaking. La Directrice (principal) of the first school even had to stop for a second in le jardin to note that it was paradise.

The children were adorable, and very well behaved from what I could tell. I only spent a few minutes with them really. If all goes according to plan I'll be working with them on English as we do various activities such as: gardening, biking, soccer, singing and so forth. Its like play time with a bunch of French kids!

It rained the whole morning but it was so beautiful that I didn't mine. Between going to the schools I was able to talk to Pascal about current affairs in France such as the retirement debacle, unemployment, and terrorism. He was a very simple and charming man. He used to teach middle school aged kids for twenty years before passing some rigorous tests to get an administrative post where he is now. He takes care of sporting events, field trips, and people like me. It seems like a pretty nice deal.

After returning to Paris, I wandered my quartier (Paris 13ème) and looked in on some Asian markets and stores. I got a tartine à trois fromages at a café and read for a while and just milled about. I enjoy having nothing to do in Paris. Too bad this first couple of weeks has been filled with so much uncertainty and stress, or I might be able to say that I've had a good time so far.