Halloween and Toussaint

Halloween in France is a bit (well a lot) different than what I've experienced in Canada...to give you an idea read the article here http://french.about.com/library/bl-halloweeninfrance.htm

I saw a few trick o' treaters today and some kids came up into the apartment complex after supper. I have to confess that I pretended I wasn't home when they rang, partly because I didn't have any candy and partly because they were loud, rude and banging on my door. Ah well, call me the Grinch of Halloween.

Tomorrow, November 1st is a national holiday in France called Toussaint, or All Saints. A public holiday all over France, it's traditional to visit grave sites of lost loved ones , usually with a gift of chrysanthemums to place on the grave. I've seen some flower shops full of these chrysanthemums, in all colours, arranged in big pots. SO here's a heads up...not a good idea to buy mums as a gift for someone or to have as a house plant, because here, it's seen as a reminder of death and graveyards. Not exactly the thing you want to show up with at a housewarming party or a baby shower or something. Anyways, Toussaint is a catch-all day for all the saints who don't have their own feast day. And it's a public holiday...so no work tomorrow! Yay!

Wild Weekend

Almost locked in a city park, no electricity at the apartment for over 2 hours, and no phone for the entire weekend. That's how my weekend was. I started my walk home a bit later than usual on Friday, and as I was walking through the park I heard a whistle. I just thought that someone was playing soccer so I just ignored it. Until I got closer to the gate and realized that it was closed and locked. Then I saw a guard walking towards me, asking me "Didn't you hear me? The gates are closed now." He was nice about it and unlocked the gate...and the 2 other gates that I had to pass through. It was kind of funny in the end, especially when he tried to practice his English with me and I was struggling with my French. I giggled the rest of the way home, imagining myself spending the weekend in a city park, having been locked inside.

But it didn't end there...Saturday, as I was innocently doing a load of laundry, pow! No electricity. Nowhere in the apartment. So I waited for a 1/2 hour or so, hoping it would come back on. Then I went across the hall to my neighbours, but they weren't home. So I started to freak out a bit. I tried looking at the fuse box but nothing seemed wrong. It was getting dark and I knew I needed to do something or I'd be spending the rest of the weekend without power. So I went downstairs to the another neighbour but they weren't home. Then I realized it was a long weekend and likely half the building was away, including my friends down the street that I was thinking of walking over to. At this point I was nearing panic, then I remembered meeting another lady upstairs so I rang her doorbell and thankfully she was home. She was very kind and even came down to my place to look at the fuse box which was what caused the problem. She showed me how to reset it and everything worked fine from there. We had a short chat and things (or so I thought) went back to normal.

Until Sunday morning, when I go to phone my friends to ask what time they were picking me up for church. Except there's no dial tone, no nothing...on both phones. I unplug, replug, put in new batteries, etc etc. Still nothing. By now it's late and I still haven't been able to talk to my friends about the ride I need so I turn my laptop on and try calling them through Skype, which works. They've been trying to call me all weekend so apparently my phone hasn't been working for a while. I did eventually get it back on line and am trying to figure out the cause so it doesn't happen again. So there you go...almost trapped in a city park, almost spent the weekend without electricity and phone. Maybe this is normal? How was your weekend?

Bus #41

What an adventure! A friend and I set out this afternoon to get downtown to visit a coworker. We looked at the website for the bus and metro and discovered that (with the strike) the metro would be closing at 1pm. So that meant that we needed to take the bus. But not many bus lines were running so after about 10 minutes of pouring over the bus line map and the website we were pretty proud of ourselves that we found one bus line that was still running in the general direction of our friend's apartement.
So, we set out, walked to the nearest #41 bus stop and waited. And waited. And waited. 25 mins later, as now a small group of us are waiting impatiently, a passerby stops to tell us that the buses have all stopped, until 4pm. Great! So Karen and I look at our city map, our watch and decide the only thing to do is to...walk. Downtown. All the way downtown. Over an hour later, after many a map checking stop, and getting lost a few times, we arrived at our destination.
We had a great meeting, maybe too much so, because before we knew it, it was 6 pm. Rush hour was just about over and we HAD to get a bus out of downtown or we would have to walk all the way back home. In the dark. Not a good idea. So we rushed out of the apartement, looking for our #41 bus stop that would (hopefully) take us back home (or close to it).
Well, with the strike, everything has changed with the bus lines. There are no "normal" runs. All the buses running out of the downtown area are now based in one area near the shopping center "Centre Bourse". After running around (literally) reading various bus maps, asking various people, we finally figured things out and stood in line to get on the second last bus going our way. 25 minutes of waiting, our bus driver now pulls out, with a bus load of unhappy people. No one likes the new arrangements, everyone is sick of the strike. But at least we are moving and hey, the bus was free. Yep, we didn't have to pay because the city has hired tourist buses to do these special runs so we got to sit in comfort. For a half hour bus ride. In rush hour traffic. With a driver that, so it seemed, was just as unhappy as the rest of us.
Since the city has hired these extra bus drivers and another bus company to do these runs, the police were called in to do security, in case any of the striking workers wanted to cause trouble (or riot, as it has happened in the past). So as we sat on the bus waiting for it to pull out of the station, we counted 5 police vans, 3 police motorcycles and about 30 officers wandering around. Whew.
By the time I got back to where we started our journey, it was too dark and too late to continue walking home so I had to call a neighbor to come and get me and drive me home. I arrived just in time to watch the 8 pm news. There was an article about the strike in Marseille, how the city has hired buses, and it showed the chaos that we just experienced, except with a lot more people--all wanting to get on the same bus. Which is when the police got involved by helping with crowd control. Madness! I tell you, I'm not likely to go downtown anytime soon again until they sort out this strike. Yet another adventure for a small town girl in a city without public transportation.

Random Thought For The Day

The saying "Act your age and not your shoe size" wouldn't work here in Europe. Because clothing and shoe sizes are different then North American sizes. For instance, a size 7 North American shoe would be 37.5 in Europe.

So if I was acting immature (a rare occurrence, I'm sure!) and you said "Oh Jen! Act your age and not your shoe size!" it just wouldn't work because I'm 30 years old and my European shoe size is 37.5. Hmmm...something to ponder on.

This random thought has been brought to you by Jen's wandering brain cells on her way to work.

A Surprise Visit

Its a small world. I had lunch today with someone I met 4 years ago. She and I used to work for the same company and she's now living in Europe. She's in Marseille visiting friends so we got together to catch up. It was really encouraging for me. For one, she validated my concerns and frustrations about learning French. She listened and encouraged and gave me some helpful tips on how to continue. She also said that it is normal to feel like you'll never be fluent, that you'll never get the language. She's now learning her 3rd language and says its such a slow and painful process for her--like its been feeling for me. It felt good to hear her feedback of how she is learnt languages. We both laughed and agreed that neither of us are gifted in language learning. And yet here we are...learning, slowly but surely. I'm thankful that we were able to get together, laugh at ourselves and realize in the end...all that matters is that we continue, day by day, to do what God asked us to do. Learn a foreign language and live in a foreign culture. And not take ourselves too seriously.

New Way To Work

I've found a new way to walk to work! There is a new park that the city has created and it just opened this month. Its about 25 minute walk, lots of green grass, rose bushes, cedar trees, a modern looking water fountain (filled with green slime now but I assume they're still working on it) and benches to sit on. It cuts through an old neighbourhood with old style homes, some I'm sure used to be old villas or farmhouses. It's so nice to be able to hear birds singing instead of horns honking. To smell green grass instead of exhaust fumes. And to not worry about getting run over by cars because I only have to cross the street 3 times now! I've walked it a few times and already am seeing some familiar faces so I hope to start saying "Bonjour" to a few people and get brave enough to start conversations. I'm also looking at getting a bike so I can save time on my way to work, especially if the weather is nasty, which it is today...looks like it could rain.

I'm really happy about this discovery because I'm a small town girl stuck in a big city. I was really needing to "get back to nature", see some flowers, green grass, etc. It's one big thing I've been praying for...that God would somehow give me opportunities to enjoy nature, even in the midst of Marseille. I can see how He's already answering that prayer!

Home Sweet Apartement

Here's a view from my 3rd floor balconey... 

Do Not Worry

Been taking advantage of this extra time on my hands (see below entry) to meditate on a few things. Like what I've been reading in "The Divine Conspiracy" by Dallas Willard. It's about getting back to focus on the Kingdom of God, not on our small selves, our troubles. But really walking in faith with Jesus, that He will take care of us despite our temporary troubles and weakness. It's been a good reminder for me that God is in control and that I need to be continually focused on Him, on His Kingdom. I need to let go of my worries and trust in God's provision. Trusting that He will provide me with finances for this year, for new friends and a 'family' in Marseille, for the ability to continue to learn French, etc etc.

Here are some quotes from "The Divine Conspiracy":
"Because we have the option, in reliance upon Jesus, of having abudant treasure in the realm of the heavens, Jesus gives us another of his 'therefores'. 'Therefore, don't be anxious for your physical existence, concerning what you will have to eat or drink, or how you will clothe your body' (Matthew 6:25). Life is not about food, he continues to say, nor the body about clothes. It is about a place in God's immortal kingdom now.
Jesus reminds us to look at living things around us in nature. In particular he refers us to birds and wildflowers. What is most relevant about the birds is that they do not 'lay up treasures upon earth'. They receive from their world, under God, daily food for daily needs. When we watch them we are reminded of the phrase in the Lord's Prayer. 'Give us today the food we need for today.'
Our feathered friends do not seem to worry about the physical supports of their life, such as food and water and shelter. They simply seek it as they need it and take what they find. And that is how we should be. Having our treasures in heaven frees us to live simply in the present so far as our vital needs are concerned.
In Matthew 10, Jesus is teaching about freedom from fear of physical death: 'Do not fear those who kill the body, but are unable to kill the soul'. For most people, perhaps, the thing they most treasure is staying alive on earth. As a result they live their entire lives in bondage to fear of physical death (Hebrews 2:15).
Two sparrows are sold for a 'penny', the smallest coin then in circulation. Yet God is watching over every one of them. And he watches you so closely that He knows how many hairs are on your head at any given moment. 'Don't be afraid, you are of greater value than several sparrows'. (Matthew 10:31) 'How much more valuable you are than birds.' (Luke 12:24)"

Well, I need to continually be reminded that God does indeed care for me and will indeed supply my needs. The birds singing outside my window should remind me of these truths every morning!

I'm Sick!

Well, I'm sick. I mean more than mentally. Seriously, this is the 4th day and counting that I've had the flu. At least that's what I'm calling it. Virus, infection, flu...it's all the same. I feel achy, tired, have no energy, headaches, dizziness, gas, cramps, nausea, the light hurts my eyes, and I have a fever. I keep waiting for it to go away. I haven't been taking anything beside Tylenol to keep the fever down; it seems to help take away some of the achiness too. Drinking lots, sleeping lots, reading and watching movies and doing exciting things like working on my financial budget (which I haven't updated since June!).
I've Watched:
Alexander
Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason
2 episodes of "Corner Gas--Season 1"
2 episodes of CSI Las Vegas
1 episode of Alias
2 episodes of "French in Action" a learning French video series
I've read "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" (in French, to help with my vocab and grammar). It's actually entertaining and I don't even realize that I'm studying French. I'm also reading "The Divine Conspiracy" by Dallas Willard; very deep, so I have to take it in slowly in order to savor it.
I haven't left the house since Monday evening, 4 days ago. I feel like hermit but everytime I think I have enough energy to go for a walk, etc, my fever goes up, or I feel worse. My only contact with the outside world has been a few phone calls from coworkers here, a skype call to my parents, msn with friends and family, and a neighbour brought some groceries over for me today. It's been a really long time since I've been this sick for so long. I'm trying to be patient! At first I kind of enjoyed having some time to relax and read and watch movies. But now I'm just bored and want to get back to real life.

That's French "pain"

Here are some interesting/funny expressions using the French word for bread..."le pain".

une planche à pain: bread board; (informal) flat-chested woman

bon comme (du) bon pain: good like good bread (extremely good)

long comme un jour sans pain: (informal) long like a day without bread=interminable

pour un morceau de pain: (informal) for a piece of bread=cheap

avoir du pain sur la planche: literally: to have a bread on the cutting board; (informal) to have a lot to do, have a lot on one's plate, have one's work cut out

avoir peur de manquer de pain: literally: to be worried about not having enough bread =(informal) to be worried about the future

avoir son pain cuit: literally to have your bread cooked=to be rich; to be condemned

enlever à qqun le pain de la bouche: literally: to take someone's bread from their mouth=to deprive someone

faire perdre le goût du pain à qqun: literally: to lost the taste for bread=(informal) to do someone in, to kill

gagner son pain: literally: to win your bread=to make a living

manger un pain trempé de larmes: literally: to eat bread soaked with tears=to pay a lot for
something

mettre un pain à qqun: literally: take give a bread to someone=(informal) to punch/sock someone

mettre qqun au pain sec: literally: to give someone dry bread=to punish someone by giving them only bread to eat

Ça ne mange pas de pain: literally: that doesn't eat bread=(informal) It's not expensive, It's not important

Il ne vaut pas le pain qu'il mange: literally: He's not worth the bread he eats. = (informal) He is lazy.

Transit Strike Continues

Well, the transit strike continued after "Black Tuesday". The buses, tramway and metro in Marseille haven't been running for a week now. It hasn't affected me much as I walk to and from work. I did however want to get to a language school today and the only way to do that is via metro/bus. So I didn't go. I'm hoping this strike will sort itself out soon. But maybe not, the ferry workers have been on strike for weeks now. I'm hoping the weather stays nice so I can continue to walk, otherwise it will be a loooong cold walk in the rain.
And the traffic is just insane! It's worth your life to cross the street because everyone is in a mad rush to beat the rest of the traffic home. Always an adventure! I've found sometimes it's safer to cross on a redlight then a green...you don't have to worry about cars coming around the corner afer you. At least I don't have to worry about getting hit by a bus! They're aren't any!

What I'm Thankful For

I spent Thanksgiving with friends that live down the street. She made a huge turkey supper for us, complete with stuffing, sweet potatoe, homemade pies, etc. I ate so much! It was great to be with friends on a night that I missed my family and felt homesick. Last year, we were all together for Thanksgiving at my parents place. It was good to taste cranberry sauce (you can't get it here--it was imported in a suitcase from Canada!). And you can't buy a whole turkey here, so we cooked 2 legs and a breast. It all looks/tastes the same once you carve it, eh? Which was my job--and yes, I did sample as I carved.
We have a family tradition of going around the table, taking turns saying one thing that we're thankful for. So I'll list some things here, to make up for missing out on that tradition this year...
1) I'm thankful that I got to share Canadian thanksgiving with good friends!
2) I'm thankful that the weather has been so beautiful here in Marseille, sun shining, bright blue sky, no wind and the leaves are starting to turn.
3) I'm thankful I can still keep in touch with family via email, phone, msn etc. Technology is wonderful!
Thanksgiving day reminds me of a Psalm from the Bible that I like: "Give thanks to the Lord of lords: His love endures forever." from Psalm 136. I found out that "give thanks to the Lord, His love endures forvever" is one of the most repeated phrases in the Psalms. Hmmm, perhaps God wants us to remember that He is THE provider, and the One and Only that deserves our praise.
4) I'm thankful for all God has given me, taught me and helped me through. He is faithful!

This Weekend

Things I Enjoyed This Weekend
*the crescent moon shining in my family room window
*watching the movie "A Shark's Tale"
*eating Swiss Chocolate (courtesy of a Swiss group visiting our church)
*eating brussel sprouts and chocolate icecream (not together, don't be gross!)
*having a traditional Dutch lunch with friends, leisurly eating at 3:30pm and lounging in the living room for hours after
*the sound of church bells ringing as I walked to church
*the lack of traffic on Sunday morning--I could cross the street without fearing for my life
*talking on msn with few of my nieces and a nephew

Things I Did NOT Enjoy This Weekend
*shopping at the grocery store on Saturday morning, possibly the worst time to shop, too many people and too little space (and me--too little patience)
*getting woken up at 7am on Sunday morning by someone taking the garbage out
*the smell of burning leaves and branches wafting through my open windows (cough, cough, hack, hack)
*having trouble with my AOL internet connection
*still feeling tired and headachey from the flu that I had this week

Black Tuesday

Today is "Black Tuesday" or "Mardi Noir" in France. A nation wide strike of the post office, Air France, the metro, train and bus systems, the ferry, highway toll booth workers, and some school teachers and hospital workers. Basically its a mass protest against planned state pension reforms. I don't understand it all (who does?!) but if you want to read the BBC version here's the link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4305456.stm or http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/5-13-2003-40261.asp for exactly what who was effected by the strike.

I only saw one bus today in Marseille when I usually see a dozen on my walk to work. Surprisingly, the traffic seemed to be less than normal. I think a lot of people just stayed home or walked because they assumed the traffic would be crazy because the buses wouldn't be running. Funny thing about this strike is that its been public knowledge for at least a week; giving people time to make other travel arrangements, etc. And it didn't effect we one bit, because my main mode of transport is my feet. They never go on strike...but they do complain every now and then.

Blue day turned bright

Today was a blue day. You know, one of those days when nothing goes right, you feel like an idiot, and you just want to crawl under a rock. When you feel sad, blue and want to find a quiet corner to cry and/or eat a whole chocolate bar in one sitting. Yeah, that was today. I'm still adjusting to working in my new office. There's so much to learn and I feel like I don't quite fit in yet. Don't get me wrong though, my coworkers are very friendly and helpful...its just that I don't know the inside jokes, the history, and the "way things work". YET. I've only been here 3 weeks so I have to give myself a break.
Today was especially frustrating and hard. Last week I ordered a bunch of office supplies and when they arrived, the order was doubled. So I had to ask my supervisor to phone them and ask them if we could return the other half. Then I found out that I ordered some things that weren't in "my department", things that needed to be "OK'd" before ordering. Then someone else told me that I should have bought some of the things at another place because it would have been cheaper. Yeah, so I didn't feel real encouraged. I know they were meaning well, trying to help but by the end of the day I felt like I couldn't do anything right. Then I took my turn answering the phone, which turned out to be a nightmare in itself. I kept hanging up on people, not knowing how to transfer calls, and then the batteries died on the portable. Lovely! After getting 3 people to show me how to use the system, I think I have it down now.
But the day did end on a bright note, a couple coworkers shared a joke with me (in French), and I understood it and had a comeback of my own. Then I went to a Tabac, a magazine/card store to buy a metro pass. He didn't have any but I ended up having a little conver with him and he gave me directions to the nearest shop that had passes. He even gave me a bag to carry my stuff because my other bag was full.
And yes, I did buy a chocolate bar, eating some of it on the way home (a very un-French thing to do--they never eat while walking/driving). Mmm, nothing like a dose of dark chccolate to sooth the senses. And its high in magnesium, what ever that does for you...I just got 44% of my daily intake.

Church

Today is Sunday and I went to church with friends from the office. They picked me up and we drove 25 mins to the church. The service started at 10am and ended after 12. There were a lot of "foreigners", some from Canada, US, UK, Indonesia, Korea, North Africa, etc. We sang one song in 6 different languages! It was a great reminder that we are all brothers and sisters in Christ, that we are all united by our love for God. It also reminded me of some passages from the Bible that talk about what it will be like in heaven...all tribes, nations, languages worshipping the Lord together.
I was also encouraged to keep learning French. I had some good conversations (with some very patient French people!). And I also chatted with a couple guys from Indonensia. They were both sharing with me their difficulties learning French and fitting into the culture here. One of them has a wife and children back in Indonesia (he's here in university). At least I'm not learning a whole new alphabet along with learning a new language! We were able to encourage each other to continue our studies and we also laughed a bit at ourselves. Always good to keep yourself humble!
We had a potluck after church and wow, did I eat well! (J'ai bien mangé!) There were chips and dips before lunch, salads and hot dishes plus cheese platters for the main meal. Then dessert and coffee. The main dishes were everything from pasta, chicken stews, pototoe cheese casserole, rice casserole and so much more! Yes, they did serve wine, along with Coke, juice, and water.
I've noticed that we take more time to enjoy our meals here, also to spend time with each other in fellowship and getting to know one another. For instance, I left the house at 9:30am and just got back at 3pm. Life is just as busy here as it was in Canada but somehow we seem to make more time for relationships, friends and family. That's one thing I definetly enjoy about France! OH, and their love of cuisine, of course!