Holiday Volunteering and La Giraudière Volunteers Arrive and Depart

After spending three weeks on a holiday volunteering the La Giraudiere Volunteers arrive and volunteers depart. Even on a quiet weekend, La Giraudière is a busy as a hen house on Easter. There are markets in town and car boots in the village (that’s a flea market to our American friends; so named because people sell items out of their car trunks (boots.)

Sal enjoys a concert with La Giraudiere friends before he departs

One can wander to points north and west, Bordeaux or the west coast, or stick close to home and swim in Etang Valliersfollowed by a terrific meal at Quay Sud.

A good book and a nap is also a welcome distraction; there is no more perfect spot than under a shady tree facing a field of tournesols (sunflowers).  All this and more happens on a typical La Giraudière weekend.

This past weekend saw us wishing a fond farewell to Sal who came to us from Northern Ireland. In the evening we all met for a delicious meal over looking Etang Valliers.  Despite the reality of having to say goodbye to a new friend, the mood at the dinner was kept lighthearted.  Sal is not one to look backwards besides there was still a concert to attend.  The Latin rhythms of the band added to the revelry.  After Sal left in the morning, La Giraudière was hit with a sensational thunderstorm

Volunteers bid adieu to Matthew at Cafe St. Bernard

(or l’orage as the locals call it) that knocked out our internet and threw us back to The Stone Age – or at least to the 1980s.  We all wondered if Sal’s flight to Bordeaux took off or canceled but we couldn’t dwell on it as we had a new arrival to welcome and bid a fond adieu to another.

Richard arrived from Hungary as Matthew was packing his bags for home in The United Kingdom.  After spending a year studying in Toulouse and a month at La Giraudière, Matthew still wanted to extend his stay in France but family beckoned.

Another dinner, this one everyone’s favorite, Cafe St. Bernard in the center of the village of Brossac, again found us toasting a fellow volunteer with a local vintage.  The highlight of the evening however was the trivia contest that followed. Matthew was in his element, able to show off his expansive wealth of General Knowledge. He left home with not only fond memories of a his time in France but with a trivia victory under his belt.

Meanwhile Richard had precious little time to experience being the new kid on the block.  Tina from Austria

New volunteer Richard proves to be quite adept at petanque

was scheduled to arrive the next day.  A secondary student,  Richard was hoping to work on his English and French.  He certainly became proficient in all the forms of hello and goodbye in both languages.   He was also introduced to the French game of petanque in Brossac and despite being a novice, walked away with two victories against more seasoned players.  Tina arrived the next morning with a near flawless American accent.  A native German speaker, she is conversant in English and anxious to learn French.  Despite, living in Belgium for five years, she says, with a giggle, that she didn’t learn any French there. Of course, as an American I’ve heard that all before.

A European says she doesn’t speak the local European language and then perfectly orders a meal while discussing options with the server.What they really mean is they couldn’t pass a second level exam in the subject.