Whoosh - the week in review

It's all speeding by now, it seems. As they disappear, each week takes on added importance. So many events and gatherings, even the scheduled weekly appointments are laden with the knowledge of an upcoming finality. Bien profiter, bien profiter, bien profiter!

Last Monday was a holiday which would normally mean beach time, but it rained so we caught up on organizing the apt. and packing some stuff. Tuesdays are always busy for Lisa as she has her own French class in the morning and an arts class in the afternoon.


Irie and her friend Abel spend lunch together each Monday or Tuesday, switching homes, this week they were at Abel's. Since their teacher was absent we let them have the afternoon off and I took them to the beach with Irie playing in the water and sand while Abel goaded me into playing paddle ball for hours. He was calling himself "Rafal Nadal" as the French Open was midway, me reminding him en français that Nadal lost, but still, Abel is pretty good at it.

Already Weds., no school, but Irie sails from 9-12, so we usually show up about 10:30 on the beach to watch, have lunch, and swim. Then we need to get back home for my french lesson (with Pascale)
and Irie's piano lesson (with Elisabeth). She has her first-ever recital this Sat. playing a song called "Got the Blues."

Thurs. mornings Lisa is off to yoga/exercise/hula, and Irie went to Abbie's for lunch so Lisa and I had the whole afternoon to ourselves so guess what we did? That's right we went to the beach.


Friday, already the end of the week! 4 weeks left. I went to Lisa's hula class in the afternoon to videotape. Her class has grown and they have now learned 4 dances I believe. They are so beautiful and graceful, working so hard with this dance style and language that is so foreign to them. I am not normally present for these classes and it makes my heart burst seeing Lisa in her element, à l'aise and beaming with pride. Here they are doing Honomuni which Lisa choreographed.

Saturday, June 6, D-Day. We took special interest in the proceedings on TV (see last blog post) with the Obamas arriving. We read in the news the next day that they hit Paris like a storm: getting a private tour of Notre Dame, Pompidou, and then having dinner somewhere near the Eiffel Tower. There were cheering throngs of people everywhere they went, they are probably even more popular here than back home. We were going to take Irie to the Aqualand water park here in Fréjus but realized that they don't open for 2 more weeks - just one more thing to squeeze in. The winds had really picked up, so we took Irie and Abbie to the beach (oooh, big surprise :)) and had some fun in the big waves. Irie has become a strong swimmer and just can't get enough of the water. Fighting these waves caught up with her as she came home exhausted and fell asleep quickly (which is rare). There was also, amazingly enough considering the winds and waves, a regatta happening further out in the bay.

Sunday, another bright sunny morning, and the winds had died down. Lisa was on a mission to bien profiter from the big Sunday market while I went to the beach to play volleyball with Édouard and his cast of players who show up every Sat. and Sun. mornings to play. There are multiple players who used to play in professional leagues here in France so I just try not to make a fool of myself. Great exercise! And a warm sea to cool off in, then home to get ready for our next fête. It was Mother's Day here in France and we were invited by our friends Kurt, Stéphanie and Charlie
to an informal gathering with them and other friends who we hadn't met before. We still aren't exactly sure of the connections, but everyone met up at a private domain up in the hills with 3 pools, tennis and basketball courts, and a restaurant. We swam, I played pétanque for the first time, and we had a very nice meal. It was dusk (at 9:45) as we left for home.

Onward to another full week ahead...