La Toulousaine

10-25-09
Well, I’m on my way to see Toulouse today! My first vacation (Toussaint) since arriving and starting work here in France. I’ve successfully finished my 1st months of teaching high/middle school, and thus far i’m happy with how things are going.
I expect to do mostly touring/taking pictures today and saving shopping for another time. I’m only there for the day, so I’m going to get the most out of it and see what I can in the 5-6 hours i’ll be there.
Amy is in Bordeaux with her parents for the week. She offered to have me visit a little with the three of them, but I wouldn’t be going until later in the week (Wednesday and Thursday I’ll be in Agen working with Peter, a British colleague of mine). Also, my pay advance is expected to come sometime this week, so having that money available would be ideal before travelling again.
It’s very foggy/misty this morning, hopefully it’ll clear up by the time I arrive in Toulouse! I never wrote about Noelle, the librarian who works at ecole Marcel Pagnol with Amy. She is a sweet lady who had us over for Sunday lunch two weekends ago at her house in Aiguillon. It was a bit of a special occasion for her as her son was in town from Mont-de-Marsan, along with his 4 roommates. They were all very sweet and welcoming (and my age!) and they invited us back to their place later on in the coming months. It sounds like they’re planning a trip to the Pyrenees too- how exciting!
The only other people my age that I’ve met so far are the ones i’ve been working with in Agen. The students are part of a business school called Sud Management, and they’ve all chosen to continue their studies after lycee in order to find a job as a manager, business-person, director, P.R. manager, you name it. Apparently, it is becoming rarer for French students to go to a University after high school- most just end up working right away. What my job is at the school is to assist them in projects, especially with their english (right now they’re working on fundraisers to raise money for a trip to England- last week I heard their ideas and suggested my own for a few groups that haven’t decided yet). It’ll be nice to work around students closer to my age instead of just younger ones!
It looks like the mist is already starting to life. The blue skies are a nice change from the past couple wet, grey days we’ve been having.
Yesterday I walked around Agen a bit and took pictures. There is always something I haven’t seen there before, like last night when I happened upon an old Catholic church called Paroisse Sante-Foy. Mass had just started (3 minutes after the hour) so I hopped on in the pews and took a seat. What a nice surprise- the choir consisted of two younger men singing in harmony, one playing his guitar and the other holding an adorable baby. There were a few volunteer cantors who took part of the ensemble, mostly younger teens. After hearing a few gorgeous songs, I decided i’d try and get some information on joining a church choir in Agen. It turns out there are 4 choirs to choose from, and one of them (thankfully) doesn’t meet too late at night, so it looks like I’d be able to take the train to the rehearsals. I just have to find the church first! (There are tons in Agen- I’m not sure the number exactly but enough to get them easily confused.)
I went to Tonneins again on Saturday to find some info about the theatre and dance workshops they offer at the centre culturel. I’m going into the office tomorrow morning to get prices and see if I can attend the first class for free to get a good idea of how it’s run. The classes aren’t cheap (over 200 Euro if you don’t live in Tonneins) but it might be completely worth it. Aside from working 3 jobs, anything leisurely to occupy my time will be a big relied.

~later~
So I’m now back at the gare, waiting for my train to take me home. I had a great time, did tons of walking all around Centre Ville, and what made everything better- I got my advance! :) So, thanks to that big perk of the day, I treated myself to a long-waited for (and badly needed) haircut. I learned a lot of necessary beauty vocabulary right then and there, while awkwardly trying to explain in Franglais what I wanted done to my hair. Split ends, face frame, hair dye and bangs aren’t all words I use on a day-to-day basis.
I decided to hold off on buying the perishable food gifts until Christmastime when Michelle visits, and she can save me the cost of shipping everything over to the U.S. by packing the gifts in her bag. I think the recipients would rather have fresher items, too!
I noticed in the office du Tourisme that the region seemed to boast about their violets. They had violet-scented everything in the gift shop, which I’m sure smelled great (I was more looking for event information and such). I have a bunch of calendars with events and shows going on here so I can plan a longer stay later in the year, with an actual itinerary to go with it!
I’m on the train now. My legs are only a bit sore from all the walking (I wore my usual favorite boots). I probably could’ve gone with my running shoes and been better off. Oh, well!
I’m on one of those compartment trains where you have 8 seats (4 facing each other) and you can close the door. It definitely feels more old-style in comparison with the modern trains with toilets that probably flush. (Mine on the way here did not.) And of course, after I used the bathroom and sat back in my seat, the cute guy in front of me went right in after me. He probably thinks I’m a sick individual who doesn’t flush. I swear it wasn’t my fault!!
Anywho, I should sleep well tonight. Although I should probably try and have a real dinner (last night I wasn’t too terribly hungry after getting home from Agen- so I sort of went to bed with a rumbly tumbly. But not tonight!)