A Field Trip to the French Countryside

I thought I was a field trip kind of person...but I'm actually the worst because I hate running on other people's schedules, not being able to pee when I want to, and standing around listening to stuff when I'd rather wander off by myself and take pictures of rotting logs. BUT when I saw the flyer at my French language school for a day trip to Giverny, Normandy, and some serious chateau-viewing, I signed up--and convinced my friend Kacy to as well.

We met up at 7am on Saturday morning. That is to say, I was the only one there on time, and everyone else strolled in around 7:45am. I'm learning that time is very flexible for French people--especially when it's an early Saturday morning. It was an odd group, old and young, mostly awkward, about 15 in all. I thought Kacy and I would meet a ton of people, but we ended up becoming buddy buddy with a lovely girl from Nottingham, England named Annabelle. Everyone else was weird in that "smelly freshman in a dorm" kind of way.

We hopped on a huge bus (I secretly love them, as you are high up on the road and can see everything) and traveled about an hour out of Paris. It was really nice to get away from the city, and see it from a different angle. To be honest, it looks kind of industrial and shitty when you drive into it.

Though it was cold and damp, Giverny was a magical place. Monet's gardens were exquisite, and his house gets 5 out of 5 cuteness points. It was a rambling old cottage painted pink with green shutters. Inside, the paint schemes were like one delicious pastel ice cream color after another. His kitchen, decorated with copper pots and blue mosaic tile, was a country girl's dream. The more I live in this big city, the more I long for the countryside. It's just so much more relaxing and tranquil. I hate waking up to the sound of construction, people yelling, motorbikes speeding, sirens going off. I have such cliche dreams about having a country cottage with a husband and a couple of pugs. No more big cities after this.

After that we went to a tiny town in Normandy, which was the picturesque small French village. We bought some amazing French Neufchâtel cheese from an old lady in the market. It's similar to Camembert, but more earthy. It's usually made in the shape of hearts. I also bought a la chouquette (a delicate fluff ball of pastry) and decided I would rather stay in the village than go back to Paris. There is something so appealing to me about having one patisserie, one boulangerie, and one farmer's market. You get to know everyone by name, and you never have to walk far. My ideal!

Back in the bus to a ruined old castle that to be honest was not that interesting. Oh, I should also mention the entire tour was conducted in French. Guess how much I got out of it? Maybe twenty words. The woman would babble in French, and I would turn to Kacy and say, "So, this castle is really old, it used to have three stories, and there were flowers somewhere."

Kind of annoying to pay money for a tour and not get anything out of it, but I should have known, as it IS a French language school. We all sat down in an underground portion of the castle and lunched on baguettes, super stinky Camembert, hard-boiled eggs, and cider. The best part was the apple tart and hot coffee they served afterward.

The next chateau was more impressive as it was still standing and filled with relics. The Normandy fashion back in the day was really unusual. Large capes, super tall bonnets, and huge jewelry. My favorite part were the ancient "toys" for children back then. One consisted of a wooden runner you stuck the kid in and forced them to run up and down a span of three feet for hours. Ah, the good ole days! I truly believe children should be "seen and not heard." When are we gonna go back to the pioneer days of child-rearing when kids actually worked?

We picked some apples from the tree, bid adieu to the countryside, and I promptly fell asleep on the bus. Again, I love having a busy day and then getting home in time for dinner, hot tea, and reading. Much more preferable than going out in the evening.