Kristian and Lilian have been out of town this week. I haven’t really done anything interesting on my own, because I’m working on a freelance job. Between that and having sole charge of walking Lumi, I’ve been stupid busy.
I did take some time to have a mini picnic on Wednesday, when the weather was particularly nice. I stopped at one of my favorite cafés and bought a sandwich and an iced tea. Then, Lumi and I wandered down to the (Rhône) river together. There are quite a few different seating areas along the bank. We sat on one that’s got tiered seating and some nice shade.
Lumi enjoyed the fresh air as much as I did, but I do believe she would like to register a complaint that I did not share my sandwich with her.
France does have some hostile architecture (and, sadly, there are quite a few folks sleeping in tents here in Lyon). But, generally speaking, there are a lot more public places here where you are expressly invited to sit and relax.
I had to work on Saturday, but I got enough done that I was comfortable taking a couple of hours at the end of the day. Lumi and I walked to Parc Blandan and hung out under a tree. She would like me to register a further complaint that I did not share my praline brioche with her.
Sorry, Lumi, but I’m the only person picking up your poo this week.
Parc Blandan isn’t as shmancy as the Tete d’Or, but it’s got a decent grassy area and lots of good people watching. I had a blanket and my kobo (and a praline brioche), what else do you need?
Today, I went to a knitting and movie event out in the ‘burbs called “Jurassic Pâques” (Pâques is the French word for Easter). Everyone brought a knitting project, they kept the movie theater lights on low, and we all watched Jurassic Park together. I figured that with an A+ pun for a name, it had to be my kind of people. And I figured right! I had a lovely conversation with a fellow knitter.
The one thing I didn’t figure on was that the movie was dubbed into French. In hindsight, it makes perfect sense… who wants to read subtitles when you’re trying to knit and watch at the same time?
This is how I now know that “Life finds a way” is translated as “La vie trouve son chemin.”
They say that a good way to practice another language is to read or watch something you already know. It turns out, action movies work great for this! The dialogue is pretty simple, and you don’t need to understand every word to know that “dinosaur go chomp chomp.”
I did, however, miss the chaotic energy of Jeff Goldblum’s weird laugh.
Kristian and Lilian get back later tonight. I can’t wait to see my family!
