Over the Hill and Through the Woods, to Grandmother's House We Go?

So yesterday morning, Patrik and Marie invited me to go somewhere with them and do something, but I couldn't really understand. I had slept in until like noon yesterday and then got around. I went downstairs and Patrik begged me to eat something at THAT moment, so I popped some grapes in my mouth and he asked if I wanted to eat breakfast or lunch, casually gazing at the clock. I said lunch, so he went back to work carving meat off a chicken. I went upstairs and came down a little while later, and we ate at the little table behind the house, in the garden. And Patrik and Marie talked amongst themselves, with me sitting in the middle. And just listening.

For dessert, we had strawberries, which are surprisingly fresh, with maple syrup on top of them. It's funny really, we were told to bring something for our parents, and maple syrup was what I brought....we eat it here more often than I do at home...Patrik just loves it, eats it by the spoonful. Anyways, they said we were going to leave in a couple minutes, and I just shrugged and said okay.

Then the conversation changed to the types of shoes I have, and was I sure I wanted to wear my sneakers. At this point, I am thoroughly confused, and wondering just what I agreed to....

....so we get in the car, after arguing with them about shoes, then finally putting my flip flops in the trunk. And Patrik turns around, asks me if I know Led Zeppelin, then blares the music for miles, with all the windows down.

We drive for about an hour and we get to this place that's gorgeous, we're out of the city, and the trees are starting to change, there are not really houses anymore, just trees, and Patriks turns left onto this beaten path and continues speeding.

So he pulls up to the edge of some of these trees, and goes, alright we're here. I look around, there are no other cars in sight, no people, not anything. And he says let's go! And I am thinking "go where?" So we get out, Marie hands me a water bottle, which I thank her for, then throw back into the car. Patrik hands me a bag, and at this point, I am really confused.

So we walk into the woods, Patrik staring at the ground and kicking leaves out of the way, Marie going off and coming back with a stick....what is happening?

I finally get up the nerve and say, "Wait, what are we doing?" And Marie says, with a huge smile "We are looking for mushrooms." And in my head, I remembered what they said, and suddenly it made sense. I guess they thought it was going to be muddy, thus the change of shoes because afterward, they wanted to take me to Chinon.

We spent an hour searching for mushrooms, we never did find anything. Patrik was really into it, he would crouch down and move ferns and look, turn over logs, and Marie and I just walked at a leisurely pace behind him, just talking. That morning she had asked me what I like to do on the weekend, and I had just shrugged awkwardly. But here, in this stress-free environment, I felt open to her. I told her how much I love to scrapbook, what I use to do so, how there is really nothing to do in BG or Geneva for that matter, so we don't really do all that much, but we make our own fun.

At this point, she tells me that she loves to paint, and actually made the mosiac table in the living room. There is apparently a craft store outside of Tours that she would love to take me to, she loves going there, and welcomes the idea of having someone to go with her. She told me that she could get me a book for my birthday, and asked me if I would like that, I told her she didn't have to get me anything, but she insisted.

During this conversation , I had been weaving a halo out of wildflowers I had picked, she told me that I was very crafty, and I thanked her. We got in the car and headed off to Chinon, and if there was ever the time to have my camera with me, that was it! But I had left it, and my purse back at the house, since they told me to wear good shoes, I guess I had imagined hiking?

Anyways, this village was gorgeous, and Marie knew so much about it, she would tug on my hand and pull me into little crevices to look at the framework, tell me to peak my head through gates to try and peak, and she was like full of life, picking leaves from trees, breaking them, and getting them to me to smell. We walked like this for a while, her telling me about the city, about Joan of Arc's escapades in the city...

As we walked past a window we heard English, and Marie pulled me over, and stood with me right below the window, eavesdropping. Then we ran over to Patrik and laughed. He asked what the person had been talking about, and I said that he was telling a story about (in reality he was talking about being arrested), but I didn't know the word for that, so I imitated handcuffs and made the "wee--ooh" noise that the police cars make here. And they laughed.

Then Patrik read a sign, while Marie and I walked down by the river, just listening to the leaves crack under our feet, no need for talking. We stopped at a little cafe for our drinks of choice, then headed home. I fell asleep on the drive.

When we got back, I went upstairs to work on the huge amount of homework I had, and when I came down Patrik had made these beautiful salads, normally we just have lettuce, but last night, it was lettuce, hard boiled egg, chicken, some weird spice, tomatoes, a kind of cheese,and the dressing we usually have. After dinner, Marie decided that I was going to make the crepes, which is hilarious because I don't even cook at home....but she read me the recipe and I added the ingredients, and it was kind of fun. Then she taught me to cook it the way her grandma taught her, and I flipped it, and yeah. It was pretty good (with the syrup, of course). Marie read the label and said "What is 'French toast', you know, out of curiosity?" And I laughed because really there is nothing "French" about French toast, and attempted to explain it with little to no success.

Then she asked if I knew a movie that was playing that night, and I looked and it was When Harry Met Sally, in French! But I still had a lot of homework to do so I turned it down.

At the party on Saturday, I learned something very important about Marie- her civil, outward appearance exists with her friends even. And yesterday, I saw a completely different, more open side of her.

We are going somewhere again today, though who knows where? She speaks so fast...

...we had our actual teacher today. And wow, is she a bundle of ecstatic energy. Like whoa, but that is a story for a different time and place, as is, I have to get home early today for the mysterious outing.

Hope you enjoy~
S