Leaving Paris July 2

July 2 – Wednesday

Wednesday is the market day and of course there was a wonderful market in our quarter. A run was in order first and then we had to pack so there really wasn't time for much shopping. But, let's back up to the run.

First of all, you will not see many runners in Paris. We did see a few runners the evening before but on Wednesday morning, there were only two older ladies on the streets of Paris.  Guess who?   I'm sure were were breaking every law in France to be dressed in shorts, running top and pink shoes.  Fortunately, we were near a cemetery and there was a quiet street beside it so we thought that was a good place to run. Of course, we did have to navigate thru some other busy streets to get there!  We decided maybe we could try running in the cemetery as well since it was quiet, there was no objection from the inhabitants and it had beautiful trees. We were able to sneak thru unobserved the first round but as we came to the exit on the second round, we were stopped by the gendarme who informed us that running was not permitted. He did not make any comments on our attire but we can read eyes pretty well!

We had a pretty good run despite the circumstances and walked back thru the farmer's market. We then had to get everything back into our suitcases to head to the train station that would take us to La Rochelle. It all fit and then I made a quick trip to the market for some fruit for the train. I would have liked to buy more but there was no room in the inn! (Thank heaven's).  These pineapples were the size of your fist.

I did tell Anne to pack light for our trip to France and to use a small suitcase but it went on deaf ears. So, it was a challenge to get her huge 50 pound suitcase onto the train along with her 20 pound carry on. Having traveled to Europe before I was a bit wiser having a much smaller manageable case. I still packed more than I wanted as we were warned to pack some warm clothes at the last minute. The evening can be quite cool. But we succeeded in boarding and got settled in.  The train to the Villa where we would spend the summer is the fast train called TGV.  It is so awesome. We loved every minute of the 3 hour trip watching the countryside go by and practicing more french and eating our picnic lunch. I feel pretty comfortable with French until it gets fast or new words.  It's the sayings and the every day expressions you search for...like “good catch”, table runner or poached egg. Our vocabulary increases each day. I feel my comprehension is about 75%.

We found our stop and had to ask for assistance to get the luggage off the train. After everyone had left the station, there we stood with no one to greet us!