In the place where I am not

I know. It's March and I'm still writing about the holidays. I traveled almost every weekend during January and February (Valencia, Sierra Nevada, London, Venice!!) which took up my weekend blogging time. Did that sound like complaining? I'm not complaining, just making excuses.

So the last stop on my holiday adventure was Toulouse and Bordeaux, France. My friend, Audrey, is from Toulouse. I met her in Madrid while she worked at a graphic design internship. Back in December I wasn't sure where I wanted to go after New Years in Belgium and Audrey graciously invited me to come visit her and her parents in Salechan, a small village of 200 people in the Pyrenees Mountains. Audrey picked me up from the airport. We had lunch (quiche and salad) and walked around Toulouse for a bit before taking the train to Salechan. This is the view from Audrey's house.

 As soon as I arrived, Audrey's parents were hosting the guests staying at their Bed & Breakfast. There was a fire blazing and a table overflowing with tapas and wine. Both of Audrey's parents are from Spain, but grew up in France. So all the food we ate was a mixture of Spanish and French cuisine. Needless to say, the food was impeccable. 

 This is where I stayed for the 3 days I was in Salechan. Every morning there was coffee, juice, bread, and jam waiting for me at the kitchen table. 

 One day it was raining, so Audrey and I sat by the fire, drinking tea, eating truffles, and reading books. As my mom always says when we go to the beach, I wish I could bottle up that moment of being so cozy and relaxed. 

 That night we went to have dinner with Audrey's friends from high school. She told me about her friendships, and we talked about how people can be exactly the same yet different. 

 For dinner we cooked meat, cheese, and veggies on a grill called a raclette. 

The next day we went to Marie Cecile's house for lunch. Marie is a family friend of Audrey's and she also owns a Bed & Breakfast. 

 We talked about Airbnb, French cuisine,  renovating houses, and church. Marie made pumpkin soup with crème fraîche and fish eggs.

 Followed by grilled goose pate. And for dessert, of course, coffee and chocolate mousse crepes.

 My last night in Salechan, we went to see the movie The Lunchbox. Audrey had to translate most of the movie for me. Audrey and her family were the kindest and most gracious people I have ever met. They made me feel so welcomed and comfortable and provided me with everything I could possibly need before I even thought to ask. 

The next day I headed to St. Andre de Cubzac just outside of Bordeaux, to stay with Audrey's grandmother, Armonia, for a few days. Audrey packed me a lunch for the train ride and her Aunt picked me up from the station. I stayed with Armonia for 3 days. Armonia grew up in Salamanca, Spain and also lived in Barcelona. She moved to France in 1958.  I practiced Spanish with Armonia, but sometimes she would switch to French which made for some interesting conversations. Again, I ate the most delicious food with Armonia. One night we talked at the kitchen table while dinner was in the oven. We were so engrossed in the conversation, about Franco, learning a new language, and losing those you love, that we didn't realize the lasagna was burning until the smoke detector went off! There were plumes of smoke coming out of the oven. We opened every window and door and burst into uncontrollable laughter. 

The next day I went into the city. Bordeaux is about a twenty minute train ride from where Armonia lives. The weather was perfect for wandering around and exploring. Below is the Opera House.

There's a river that runs through the city. I walked across the bridge, ate macaroons, drank Bordeaux wine,  and went to a museum.

 I took the train back to St. Andre de Cubzac and couldn't remember how to get back to Armonia's house. I asked several people for help, but they only spoke French. I finally found a map of the city and was able to get directions by pointing to where I needed to go. 

The next day, Armonia and I went on a walk around the city. She told me this was the route her and her husband took everyday as long as the weather was nice. She's lived here for forty years.

 When we returned to her house, we had cheese and wine. Armonia told me there are precisely 589 different types of cheese in France. While I was at Armonia's house, I didn't have wifi and I had run out of minutes on my phone. I was completely cut off from the outside world, and I liked it. 

I liked it so much in fact that when I returned to Madrid, I started thinking that next year I might want to teach in a small pueblo in Spain. I didn't feel like I was missing out on anything and I didn't worry about keeping up with social media. Although I ended up deciding to reapply to teach in Madrid, I realized (again) that I need to occasionally remove myself from the hustle and bustle of the city. It's only in those quite, peaceful environments that I'm really able to cut through all the diversions and distractions to clearly see what matters. And I don't need to be so afraid of this feeling, what Charles Baudelaire described as, "Il me semble que je serais toujours bien la ou je ne suis pas. In other words, "It seems to me that I will always be happy in the place where I am not." 


What I've been listening to:

Body Music by Alunageorge

Voices by Phantogram

Post Tropical by James Vincent McMarrow