Day 22 - dimanche

20 fevrier 2011

It was another rainy day in Nice. My plans to go to one of the nearby festivals with a friend from school did not materialize, but that was just as well since watching a parade of flowers or citrus can’t be much fun in the rain. Since I had gone to Mass last evening, I had the morning free. I took this time to study – mostly attempting to translate the church bulletin and other pamphlets that I have accumulated.

Michele suggested that I might go to the Matisse museum. This sounded like a good way to spend the afternoon. So after lunch, I made a trip down to Place Masséna to catch the no. 15 bus. The area was abuzz with Carnaval. I found the bus stop, but no no. 15 came. When I checked the bus schedule, it indicated that that bus did not stop here on Sundays. (If I had known to walk to the next bus shelter, I would have found it, but I did not venture there.) I studied the schedule with my umbrella open. Bus no. 17 goes out that way. I had seen that bus earlier, and the schedule said it would come at 2:35. When it was 2:50 and it had not come, I checked the schedules of the other buses that were coming by. The no. 22 had just left and it went to the museum, too. At this point, having stood for an hour at the bus stop, I decided to abandon the idea and head back towards home.

I stopped in a few clothing stores to see what was being offered. There are lots of pretty things for young people. I must keep in mind that if I get anything, it must be something I would wear to work, otherwise it might just hang in the closet all year.

As the day was damp and chilly, I decided to stop somewhere for coffee and a treat. On Sundays, most of the shops are closed, so I was quite close to home before I found anything where I could sit down for a bite. The pastisserie where I stopped is not far from the school. I ordered a café crème and a slice of the chocolate-almond torte. This really was a treat for two, but I managed to put it all neatly away. Then I could feel the sugar surge, because the coffee needed 4 lumps of sugar, too. (Aye-aye-aye.)

Since there is a small grocery store just across the street from the pastry shop, I made a list of things to get for the week. As small as the shop was, it had quite a nice selection of things for quick-cooked meals. Still no peanut butter, but I found out that the word for “peanut” is “arachide.”

It was good to get back home. Though I was disappointed that it was such an uneventful day, it was good to have gotten out of the house for a little while.

This evening I returned to “reading” the latest copy of the local free paper. The articles are just short enough that I can make my way through them without spending too much time at it. However, the dictionary is a necessity for even the shortest blurb.

There is so much to learn. I am happy that I now recognize more of the verb forms, and my reading vocabulary is rapidly growing. I continue to struggle with being able to listen and understand the locals. My brain seems to shut down. This can only get better with time, so I will try to be patient.

Have a good week, Dear Reader.