Spontaneous fun!

 My friend Christine, from Scotland, decided spur-the-moment to come visit me in Albertville last week. This time last year, we were together in Peru, so we've now shared adventures together in three countries. It turns out that spontaneous fun and friendship was providentially ordained for both of us last week. It's been a more stressful time here lately, and thus it was a blessing to seize the opportunity to explore the area more and share life with Christine.

 Sarah and Kathryn joined us for a hike up to Mercury (about 2 hours away) on Sunday after church. You may remember an early blog post from my time in France about this hike (here). Unfortunately, though my French has improved since then, my directional awareness has not, and thus, once again, we got lost. And being that it was February and snowy, there weren't many people on the roads to ask directions! But we took the long way and eventually arrived - to be greeted by the below view. Mount Blanc is the snow capped peak just above my head.

 The singles (plus guests) enjoy dinner together every other Tuesday. This time it was Kathryn and my turn to cook. Christine graciously and cheerfully helped. We decided on a Chinese New Year's theme (but without snakes :)) and thus Kathryn expertly led the cooking process (as I've never made Chinese food before).

 Making scallion pancakes

With only a couple minor mishaps, we succeeded in creating egg drop soup, scallion pancakes, beef and broccoli stir fry, and rice. The beef we purchased at the butchery was actually beef bourguignon - probably not what Chinese chefs would use, but a nice French twist. I think my Chinese brother-in-law would be proud! And our guests seemed to enjoy the feast, too. 

While I was in class, Christine explored some new hiking trails around Albertville and discovered the start of an interesting hike to Fort du Mont. We followed the trail on Wednesday and ended up hiking for 7 hours! We ascended about 2500 feet in the course of the hike - it was quite steep! At first it was a nice hike through the woods:

But then it got progressively more snowy:

And the view got more and more majestic:

 Until finally we arrived at Fort du Mont

 This fort was built between 1871 and 1881 to protect France from a feared Italian invasion. It remained occupied by the French military until after World War 2. 

Drawbridge entrance and gate behind us

 I left my signature at the Fort :)

 

 Like I said, the ascent was very steep and snowy - which made the descent a bit tricky. We creatively decided on alternate modes of descent besides walking. Christine demonstrating above. 

What a spectacular day! I'm so thankful for adventurous and caring friends from around the world! 

Recent Extracurricular Activities

Sorry for the delay in blog posting. I'm still here studying French and am thankful for those tracking with me through these experiences! I wanted to share a few recent pictures of out-of-the-classroom experiences:

 Learning to drive manual in the snow! My teammates tell me this will prepare me for driving in mud in Burundi. Some of you may be unaware of this, but most cars in Africa (and France - and probably in much of the world) are not automatic. I have somehow missed learning this important skill of driving manual until now - one of the reasons I didn't drive at all for 2 years in Kenya - so I'm taking the opportunity to learn in a more controlled road situation in France. Thankfully I have a very patient teacher (who is actually a pilot!) and we both survived the first lesson - as did her car's transmission!

 Slippery roads for my first lesson

 That same snowy Wednesday, Kathryn and I (read her blog post here for a bit of an introduction on her and her perspective of our team) visited the nursing home. I continue to visit there every week and it's always a surprise as to what will transpire - birthday celebrations, chatting with residents, memory games, etc. This particular week, we attended a presentation for nursing home staff and community guests on the topic of palliative care. It was quite fascinating to listen to the perspectives and recommendations on this topic in French. My medical vocabulary still has a ways to go, but I appreciated the opportunity to learn new words and to listen to the different French perspective on this important topic. I appreciated the assistance of a kind nurse after the seminar who helped explain to me in simpler French some of the things I missed - especially when the debate got heated and people were speaking faster!

 View from the nursing home

 Valentine's Day party with the McCropder kids. I love getting to spend time with these 7 unique and adorable individuals. The four of us adults hosted the kids for a few hours so the parents could enjoy a Valentine's lunch date. We decorated sugar cookies and made valentines' cards and even had a scavenger hunt. Even with a 4:7 adult:kid ratio, though, it's a lot of chaos - especially with all the sugar! But fun for all involved and I continue to enjoy watching the kids grow and develop. They're all improving in their French, too! (See blog post here.)

 The winter school field trip to the mountains! What an opportunity to enjoy skiing in the beautiful creation all around us!

La Chandeleur

One thing I love about living overseas is learning about new holidays and cultural traditions. I don't think I realized just how different French culture would be from American culture but I am learning the new cultural differences and expectations in various ways. I was surprised last night when watching a movie that the two characters didn't greet each other in the way I expected - by a kiss on the cheek (French: faire la bise - pronounced "beeze"). I certainly still haven't mastered the "bise" - it's actually quite complicated as to who initiates, which direction to go first, getting the cheeks to touch but just slightly, etc. But I am getting more used to expecting it when being greeted by the French to the point that I actually noticed its absence in the movie (which was not a French movie). But that's just one example of cultural differences. 

I enjoyed learning about a new holiday yesterday (February 2). This holiday has been replaced by Groundhog Day in the U.S. - important holiday that that is. :) The French call Feb 2 La Chandeleur (Candlemas in English). This traditionally is a Christian holiday celebrating the presentation of Jesus at the temple 40 days after His birth. Now it seems to be a celebration of the lengthening days as winter ends and thus it is a day to eat crêpes as crêpes are round like the sun. At least that's what Wikipedia told me. :) I was excited to receive an invitation to enjoy official French crêpes at the home of one of our French teachers - and really, no excuse is needed to enjoy crêpes and friends! 

 Delicious! 

Anne let me try to make one round of crêpes. It wasn't as easy as she made it look! My crêpes were not round like the sun but were more amoeba shaped. Hmm, maybe I can master the art of making crêpes in the next few months here in France. I certainly don't need to wait until February 2 to try again! 

Family in France, finale in Paris

My parents graciously watched Sam and Emma in Albertville and sent the rest of us off to Paris for New Year's. This was my first visit to Paris, and it did not disappoint! I especially enjoyed exploring with my sisters and brothers-in-law.

Arrival in Paris on the TGV

 First view of the Eiffel Tower 

 Juxtaposition of worlds :)

 The Louvre

 The Arc de Triomphe 

 Delicious "réveillon!" - traditional French New Year's Eve dinner 

Midnight at the Eiffel Tower - Bienvenue 2013!

 Sacré-Cœur 

 On New Year's Day, Lauren and Wei Chi departed :( and Mom and Dad brought Sam and Emma to Paris :) They loved the high speed train! 

 Sunset on the Seine River 

 Fun adventures with my parents after the others departed 

  Including more juxtapositions of worlds - rhino at the Musée d'Orsay - Africa and France! 

And this picture I found inside the museum - peaceful memories of another adventure 

I enjoyed a few extra days of sharing life together with my mom. She even attended French class with me! I don't think we'd been in a classroom together since she taught me in 10th grade. I appreciated getting her expert perspective on my learning style and how to best maximize this experience. The above picture was from one last adventure before her trip back home - a day in Geneva. Neither of us were sure we would actually arrive there as we got on the wrong train (good French practice to get us back on track), but we ended up enjoying a fun day exploring the city. The above picture is from the Reformation Wall. 

Thanks, family, for making the journey. Next Pfister family international adventure: Burundi! 

Family in France, part deux

After Christmas in Meribel, I welcomed my family to my new home in Albertville for a couple days (with an overnight in nearby Annecy). For months I had been looking forward to showing them the sights and sounds of my new life here. I love that my family makes such an effort to experience and understand my life - unusual as it may be. Even Sam began learning some of the French words for things while they were here. The days here passed quickly but we still squeezed in lots of fun and sightseeing, French cheese and pastries, and even games with some of my teammates. The juxtaposition of worlds is important to me as I sometimes feel like I live a fragmented life - here and there. Bringing my family into this world makes some of the paradoxes of missionary life more understandable to both them and me - as well as deepening our relationships despite the distance.

Train station in Albertville 

Sisters and Emma overlooking Albertville from Conflans (medieval village)  

Lauren, Leslie and I 

 Castle in Annecy

The original Pfisters! :)

Sunset in Albertville 

Family in France finale in Paris, coming soon....

Family in France, part 1

It was indeed a Joyeux Noël here as I was privileged to celebrate the holidays with my family. That is no small feat as there are now 9 of us in my "immediate" family. And four of them didn't previously own passports. And two of them are toddlers who weren't quite sure whether they were going to France or Africa or Arkansas - or why they needed to sit still on multiple flights for many hours. But they made it! It was a joyful reunion in the Lyon airport after phase one of the planes, trains, and automobiles commenced.

Next stop on the agenda of fun was Meribel, France pour faire du ski! This included Christmas in the mountains - one last white Christmas for me for a while.

 Our family loves Christmas traditions - Christmas Eve pajamas, ornaments, and It's a Wonderful Life; Christmas morning running down the stairs in our pjs and sausage & egg soufflé, playing games, etc. We added a Bûche de Noël this year (on the table above) and some other fun French treats and meals. I loved the opportunity to re-live old memories and traditions and make new ones with my amazing family - like Sam and Emma performing hand motions to "Away in a Manger" for us on Christmas morning.

 Even four year old Sam tried skiing for the first time this year. In his words, he skied "faster than a trash truck drives on the highway"!

 Sam and Emma are so much fun! I loved reconnecting with them and experiencing their "joie de vivre" while they were here with me in France.

Au revoir, Méribel! C'était merveilleux!

Family in France, part 2 coming soon: Albertville and Annecy...