So we woke up rather early Saturday for the Maison de Retraite (Nursing Home). I was a bit worried about going because I wasn't sure if Karine would be too happy :O.
Anyway, we were home alone that morning as Eric, my host-parents and Auror were out and about doing something. All I knew was that Eric was going to take us to the market in Soissons at 10:15.
At first we had a bit of a false alarm. We thought that Eric was 20 minutes early and I wasn't ready (hm...had a bit of a "stop" in my program...ahem...). It turned out it was just the flower delivery woman...
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The Market was choc-o-block when we arrived! And we had to squeeze through the crowd rather quickly as we only had 20 minutes or so to find me a pair of flats for the Maison de Retraite and Aurore's communion.
The third shoe stall - and the messiest - was where I finally found those shoes :D. Imagine the relief! I didn't want to go to either of the events in thongs or converse!
Marine and I stopped and said hi to Dalida who was there with her brother before making our way to the Hairdressers.
It was down a little side-steet in a rather madest little shop.
We were early and placed our bags etc in the cupboard...We were happy to have a sit down as it was too hot to be walking around, even if it was only 11:50 or so :S.
I changed into my new shoes, and Marine and I looked through the hair colour and hairstyle books...But we chose to go with Alxis, the hair expert's advice instead :). A fringe for me and Blond Cendre streaks for Marine...Although she found the colour a bit grey, so the hairdresser suggested something different.
While Marine was getting foiled, the young assistant didn't really know what to do with me so she ended up washing my hair or 45 minutes, at least three times! Although, I wasn't complaining :) 45 minute head massage...mmmm :)
So a woman finally got me in a chair and out of the sink. She asked me what I wanted done and I tried to explain to her in my best French possible what i wanted done (ehe, wouldn't want to muck that one up! haha). She seemed to understand, which was good :D. Although she told me she was going to straighten my hair with the new GHD hair straightener (best straightener I've ever seen! :O), however, she ended up doing me hair like a mother in the 1950s :S.
When Marine was done, she wasn't too happy with the colour as she thought it was white :S. I thought it looked rather angelic...:)
After we paid we hurried off to a bakery to buy some lunch. I got this sandwich thing with a tonne of mayo and Marine got an apparently "tasteless" cheese, chicken and tomato panini, which I quite liked.
As we walked to the Maison de Retraite (we were working off the directions that the hairdressers had given us as neither of us were all that sure of where we were going otherwise).
We found A maison de retrait and were 40 minutes in advance, so we waited outside and tried to convince ourselves that our haircuts suited ourselves. It didn't really work...ahem...
At about 20 minutes to two, we decided we would go inside the maison. We rang the doorbell but no one answered. It was then that we asked a passerby whether it was the right maison...hehe, noooope...another ten minutes up the road, we were told. Thank goodness we were early!
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When we arrived at the RIGHT maison, we waited outside in the hot sun a bit (by this time, my new shoes had started to give me blisters :S) before a woman came and opened the gate for us.
We were the first ones there and were told that we could sit at one of the tables by the piano although I was busting and found myself to the bathroom instead.
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We waited at the table for some time before Floriane's mum entered. WE said hello and she told us how there were sixor so people from our singing group waiting at the locked gate.
After they were entered, we awaited Karine and helped her unpack her car.
Alexs arrived afterwards (he was excited to see our new haircuts) and convinced us that yes, they had done a good job.
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Luckily Karine didn't really mind that I was there. I was just an extra person to dance and sway along behind the singers.
During one of the performances, there was an old woman who became fixed on me and came over to dance. She seemed to like the idea that I didn't know what to do with her and laughed at me, then she took out her fake teeth adn tried to hand them to me...It was at this point that Karine, Alexis, Natacha AND Marine started laughing, and then, when she chucked them on the floor, the nurses started too...hm, interesting that...
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After the Maison de Retraite, we helped pack up and then ate mini-pain-au-chocolats and drank orange juice which had been provided as a thank you to us.
When everything was done, Alexis, Natacha, Marine and I waited for Marine's mum outside. When Marine told us that we would have to wait 20ish minutes for her mum to pick us up because Aurore had to be dropped off at home first, we decided to walk home...I don't think any of us thought about the distance before doing so :S.
It was hot and we started walking in the shade...then Alexis realised that he had forgotten his bag...sooooo...all the way back we walked...:P
So, with the bag in hand and making sure that everyone had EVERYTHING we were on our way again. Alexis mainly questioned me about life in Australia and we complained to Marine and Natacha about the distance and why we couldn't walk in the shade...oh and how our feet were getting sunburnt. Although I don't think they heard us as they were too far ahead :S.
After an hour and a half of walking in the 32 degree heat without any shade and my bag on my head as a hat...I had blisters on blisters and my feet were bright red. Natacha called her dad and asked if he could come and get us...he said yes :D hehe.
Although, it turned out it was her mum...and she wasn't too happy...especially waiting for Alexis and I to catch up...whoops...:|
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When we returned home, I rushed to the bathroom and washed the blood off my feet (I had a blister that had formed and popped in the centre of another burst blister).
The four of us continued upstairs after drinking some much appreciated glasses of water. Alexis showed me his artwork which he had put on his phone to send to his host-family in Australia - he surprised me with his copy of Picasso! It was amazing!
Aurore joined us afterwards - laughing and showing probably a bit TOO much interest in Alexis (haha, too bad he was already scared of her...:O).
Before Alexis left, he and I quickly went through the Australian school requirements and filled out his part of the school form.
Oh! And I got him to try iSnack too! He's officially the first person in France who has like it so far. I evn prepared the bin and a glass of water for him...
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That night we ate outside again with Eric. Marine's mum tried to convince me yet again that my haircut suited me...I must say, I was feeling a lot better about it :).
My host parents laughed about the message that I sent them at the hairdressers too. I had stuffed up my french a little and said, "I am finished" (dead) instead of "I have finished"...haha...whoops.
"Je suis fini! Marine est encore dans la chaise qui donne chaud a la tete"
"I am finished! Marine is still in the chair that heats the head" haha, didn't know the name of the chair, okay! :P
My host-dad said that he wasn't going to forgot that one anytime soon as it sounded like I was dead and Marine was being tortured in some sort of electric chair.
That night after dinner...Marine and I discovered some things...:O
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: : Sunday : :
LA COMMUNION D'AURORE
Despite going to sleep past midnight the night before, we were all up at 7.30-8.00am to get ready for the Communion.
By the time I had gotten up, early as it may have been, Eric had already left (he wasn't able to go to the actual communion :( ).
I had breakfast and then hopped in the shower with my new dress still on the hanger and hanging off the doorhandle.
After I got ready, I prepared my bag and got ready to leave...although we had a little last minute rush to try and find bandaids for my four massive blisters from the day before :S.
I ended up putting them on in the car as my host-dad was yelling at us all to hurry up...not that we were by any means late, but because a massive thunderstorm was brewing and then rain was getting heavier by the second.
When we arrived in the Soissons, he stopped the car outside the cathedrale and I got out and sprinted (very painfully) to the front door as there was now thunder and lightening to go along with the heavy rain (we say people absolutely drenched in the street! Their clothers were like extra layers of tight, colourful skin!), falling into a puddle on the way and completely wetting the bandaids.
The Mass was...interesting. Let's just say that for the majority of it, my head of off in space...however, what I did take in from it was that instead of ready psalms and saying, "amen" it was all sung...
I was rather thankful when my host-dad got Marine and I out of the service early to collect the baguettes and the croqu'en bouche from the bakery. The rain had stopped and Marine and I my host-dad laughed at my attempts to walk in my shoes :S. My host-dad teased me and told Marine not to walk too fast when she wasn't even moving, or else I would get left behind :P.
So with everything in the car, and the cake next to me in the back (and the three of us worrying it would fall and break...we underestimated the strength of caramel!), we made our way home where we waited an extra hour than we thought we would before everyone arrived at the house after the mass.
With appetisers out, Aurore and I danced around the room, ballroom style while we waited for Marine to get the music working.
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We ended up eating from 1:30 - 7:00pm :O No dinner that night :S, haha.
Marine also sang L'aigle Noi yet again for the family.
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I went to bed rather early that night - 10:30 or so :).
Aurore's communion presents:
Mini laptop (like mine)
Gameboy DS (with puppy game)
Dolphin earrings
Bracelet
Necklace
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