Author: dickinson_france Page 14 of 15

Dear readers,

In this first issue of La Une in 2012-2013, the students share their first impressions of their time spent in France. This month proved to be very rich for the new arrivals: they started their courses in their respective French universities, they began their volunteer work in different places, they explored the city and the region on their own and with the Dickinson in France team, and they discovered a part of French and Midi-Pyrénées culture. In this edition, you will find:

– photos of their orientation as well as of their trip to Conques and Gaillac ;

– stories of their travels and of their personal discoveries.

Enjoy !

Anna Ciriani Dean

Conques gave me a new perspective on France. Before coming to France, I knew it for a country famous for its food and old architecture, but I knew very little about its religious history. This weekend I learned about a different side of French history, but what touched me the most was the feeling of spirituality that the pilgrims on the Road to Santiago de Compostela search for. The pilgrims we met were mostly people who wanted to travel and meet new people, or people who wanted to take some time to reflect on their lives. There isn’t just one kind of person who takes this road. A lot of different nationalities and regions of France were present during our meal at the hostel. For instance, an old woman from Japan and another from Germany each decided to take the road alone. The Japanese woman was doing it for her sick son and she explained that at each stop, she met people that gave her the strength to continue. It’s a pure environment. For me, it was a shocking revelation, especially for women. I would love to travel alone, but it’s an idea that my family has strongly warned me not to do. However, I feel like the same risks don’t apply to this space ; in fact, everyone I talked to said that the road is very pleasant alone because they can take the time to do exactly what they want to do. But what surprised me the most was seeing “real” history continue today. For centuries, millions of pilgrims have taken this road; it’s a lasting tradition. It’s incredible, and in these moments you understand that the world is bigger than you. For me, spirituality always meant a relationship with God. On the contrary, this weekend I discovered that spirituality isn’t necessarily religious. Spirituality is something you can simply find with people or travelling on your own, like the pilgrims. It’s defined by you; it’s an idea that gives me new confidence. One day, I also hope to take the Road and to enjoy the beautiful view as well as the diversity of the people walking with me.

The first week of orientation, the students participated in a workshop with the artist Mathias Poisson, a visual artist and choreographer whose work deals with perceptions of space and who helped the students understand the meaning of being blind. Here are some photos.

« La Faim des Haricots » is a small restaurant that is hidden by its surrounding buildings, but whose brightly-colored sign immediately attracts the eye. It’s on rue du Puits Vert in Toulouse. Its interior isn’t very big, but the tables are organized in a way that allows lots of people to eat there at once. The tables are mostly on the ground floor, but you can eat outside as well as on a mezzanine. But be careful! The ceiling is fairly low, as my friend, who’s a bit taller than me, discovered when she aloofly bumped her head. The atmosphere is friendly and relaxed. The food is vegetarian, and you can try a variety of dishes. It reminds me a bit of the cafeteria at Dickinson College because it’s an all-you-can-eat buffet. I’ve been there twice now and I know the menu very well. There are vegetable tarts similar to quiches, soups, a main course, and various desserts. Each table gets a basket of bread, but when I went with other American students, we got a second serving of bread. Low prices are also a good quality of the restaurant. You can eat a lot for less than 11 or 12 Euros. “La Faim des Haricots” is similar yet different from the Dickinson cafeteria because everyone talks at the same time and its very loud, but not quite as loud as Dickinson. Some people are bothered by the noise, but I find it comforting. Of course, I don’t really miss the cafeteria that much, but a bit of familiarity is reassuring when you’re in a different country for the first time like me. The restaurant suited me well. I had two good experiences at “La Faim des Haricots” and I’d love to go back again.

A few weeks ago, I got a phone call from my grandmother’s best friend, whom I’d never met before. She’s French and lives in the United States, but she came back to France to visit her sister in Paris. My grandmother had told her I was in Toulouse, so she called me to ask if I wanted to visit her in Paris over the weekend. She offered to pay for my train ticket and she wanted to take me to the theatre Saturday night. How could I refuse?

After a six-hour train ride, a walk through an outdoor market and a visit to Sacré Coeur, the Arc du Triomphe and the Champs-Elysées, my new “aunt” took me to the Théâtre de l’Atelier. The theatre isn’t too far from a bigger, more well-known theatre called the Opera Garnier, which is a sacred temple of art whose majesty lifts the spirit even just with its outside appearance…but I refused to visit it earlier in the day.

Why? Theaters are my favorite places. The space, the shadows, the silence…all of these qualities bring about unequalled peaceful and magical qualities. But after the end of my artistic career, once I had definitely left these places, entering a theatre became extremely painful. But in Paris, I sat in the second balcony of a small theatre, watching a play called “The Father”. The play tells the story of an old man who is losing his memory and of how his daughter takes care of him. As the story unfolds, you discover that it’s told from the father’s point of view, as the events do not happen chronologically.

I was afraid to go to this play because the theatre reminds me of something I miss and also because the play was in French. It’s true that I cried for a moment at the beginning, when the stage first lit up. But afterwards, the story enveloped me and I forgot that it was in French. The words weren’t too difficult, maybe because the magic of the theatre and the universal language of the arts are always comprehensible.

My second full weekend in Toulouse, my hosts invited me to come with them to the Lot, an area of the Midi-Pyrénées region north of Montauban. The family has shared a house there with another family for the past few years, and they rent it to other people when they aren’t using it. We left early Saturday morning to take advantage of the great weather, 30°C and sunny, according to the forecast. What more could you want?

After an hour and a half on the road, we arrived in la Garnède, a group of country houses in a valley of the Midi-Pyrénées region. When I got out of the car, I was immediately reminded of the French countryside: peace and quiet, beautiful nature, and an incredible view. First we had lunch and then we went for a walk to gather blackberries, figs and plums. Unfortunately, the South of France had a very dry summer and most of the fruit wasn’t very good. We spent the rest of the day relaxing by the pool, but because of how cold the temperature was, only the bravest of us went for a dip. At the late afternoon, two families joined us for dinner and we prepared a good, simple meal together, followed by cheese, an orange cake and a chocolate cake.

The next day, we woke up bright and early, right after sunrise. For breakfast, I tried chestnut cream, good spread on bread or mixed with fresh cheese, for the first time. It reminded me of Nutella and of the South-American specialty, dulce de leche. Although chestnut cream is not a regional specialty, I liked it a lot and I bought a jar when I got back to Toulouse. After breakfast, we went for another walk, but this time we got lost in a field for a long time and didn’t know how to get back home. Thankfully, my host had her iPhone with her and thanks to the practical GoogleMaps app, we were able to get our bearings and find our way home again. Once we got back to la Garnède, the families and I prepared lunch together. We sat at the table all afternoon and once we had digested everything, some of us swam a bit more before leaving for Toulouse.

This weekend in the countryside was very relaxed and I took advantage of the peacefulness and of the beautiful weather. These two days also allowed me to visit a part of the Midi-Pyrénées that is completely different from the city, where I spend most of my time. I also got to meet my hosts’ friends, whom I didn’t know yet and whom I’m sure I’ll see fairly often throughout the semester.

Last weekend I was lucky: my aunt and uncle were in Nizas visiting friends. Nizas is only two hours away from Toulouse by train. Because it would have been too difficult for them to come here, I decided to go to their little vacation village.

Nizas is as beautiful as it is small: it has a population of only 600! During my walk around the village with my aunt, I had the chance to admire the beautiful vineyards and the old castle walls. We spent a long time talking to my family and to their English friends, who have travelled around the world. The next day, we went to Pezenas, a city on the coast. We explored charming shops and stopped to listen to a musician singing Edith Piaf songs.

Finally, I took the train to come back to Toulouse. My train connections were long enough that I was able to explore some small cities in the Languedoc: in particular, Agde and Narbonne. It was an excellent weekend and I’m looking forward to more opportunities to travel this semester.