French holiday continued.

And so there I was, suitcaseless in Aigre. And you know, it's not just the clothes. For example, I had just spent far too much money on a moisturiser and a pore reducing cream - as you do! I doubt that Air France would have believed how much they cost!

Anyway, after a day just sifting round and recovering, on January 2nd we drove to Geant in Angouleme to buy me some clothes. Geant is a bit like Kmart, or Target. I did manage to get a few things, some of which I will certainly wear again and some I quite possibly won't! It was a bit of a pain not knowing if and when my suitcase would turn up, as that had a bearing on what to buy. But anyway, I got some things to wear and that was most important! The next day John and I visited friends so that I could a) check my emails and the status of my luggage and b) use Todd's sewing machine to hem my new track pants! In fact Todd did them for me which was very kind.
On the Monday we went to Cognac, the first time I had been there. Being Monday, just about everything was shut, but we did find a good warm place to have a coffee when our efforts to walk by the river were thwarted by the severe cold!

And on the Tuesday, at 1/4 to 4 in the afternoon, exactly 5 days since my arrival in France, my suitcase turned up! Yay!! I am assuming that it stayed a little longer holidaying in Osaka, but I really don't know its movements as no-one told me. But we were reunited. Yessssss!
The next day we woke to a beautiful white carpet of snow which to me was just magic and something I've never really experienced before. There was snow around for days and I just loved it. Magic!

Socially we caught up with some of the friends I had made in Poitiers, including a night staying with Guy and Kiki.
We seemed to eat and drink an awful lot! It was really good! I also did an afternoon teaching with my friend Claudine at a college in Civray. The kids were lovely and I really enjoyed it. Imagine classes of just 24 students!!!

And when we weren't gallivanting around we did the village thing and walked up to the shops each day to buy the baguette (and the cakes!!) Surprisingly, Aigre has 3 gift shops, so I did my fair share of browsing. And just a little bit of buying. :-) We'd round off each morning with a coffee at the local brasserie.
It was all very pleasant.

And so that was that. The weather became milder, and so the roads were OK to drive to Angouleme to catch the train early in the morning of the 18th. And so I did just that. It's good being able to get the train right to the airport. The Air France flight to Narita/Tokyo was just great - I had 3 seats to myself! A day at the airport wasn't ideal, but the internet cafe was good and I also took part in a Tea Ceremony and did some torn paper art. Not very creative I have to say - the pieces were already cut out, and the lady in charge practically forced my hand to glue the bits on in the right place!

And then good old Air New Zealand back home. The plane was actually totally full and it felt a bit uncomfortable really.
So, another French experience. I would love to go every year - perhaps I should look into house swapping or something like that. My year in France has changed my life really. Not in a dramatic way, but significantly all the same. I just want to keep on being part of the place for as long as I can, and as long as I can afford to.
Anyway, the photos almost speak for themselves. The picture at the top was taken from Claudine's classroom at the College in Civray - it was a beautiful sight! And the Aigre Town Hall. Then there's me with Guy and John, and John and me eating. And drinking. This time with Claudine and Francois! And the local Aigre bar/cafe.
So... school starts again next week for the teachers. As usual, it will be just in time for the real summer to begin. I didn't miss much good weather while I was away, from all accounts.
Talk later. A bientot!