On a slightly more personal note

[kaberett]

(1) I thought Easyjet had somehow, inexplicably, through considerable application of effort, lost the clothes guards off my wheelchair -- to the extent that I actually did the lost baggage form-filling. I then went to have one last forlorn look at the baggage carousel, stood up temporarily, and they... clattered??? out of the back of my chair??? I have NO IDEA HOW but it's much less grim than I expected.

(2) To my mild surprise, I am just about managing competent interactions in French, to the extent that I'm having to interpolate a lot and very sheepishly ask people to repeat themselves more slowly. This includes "explaining that my clothes guards vanished", "enquiring politely about having a place in a restaurant for dinner", and "explaining what the fuck we're even doing" as polite smalltalk to the airport assistance.

(3) I have spent a lot of today either asleep (in a cozy slopy-ceiling nest) or sitting on a sofa watching snow fall on the Alps and reading short fiction. I have done some physio. It is all very pleasant.

Comments

[alexseanchai]

♥

[jesse_the_k]

French!

Your multiple talents continue to astound.

[kaberett]

Third and subsequent languages are easier! I'm already English second (if dominant) language, so. :-) I had French in school from age 11 to age 16, and have periodically brushed up on it a little through general living-in-Europe/work reasons/Duolingo. (My other grandparents are v keen on it, as well.)

[birke]

Nice!

[highlyeccentric]

Where are you? (Francophone + Alps = around here somewhere?)

[kaberett]

Flew into Geneva on Saturday and promptly departed for Morzine; will be coming back through Geneva on Saturday next but going preeeeeetty much straight to the airport (& I have done 0 of the logistic organisation), so no chance for meeting up :-( I had considered asking but I think it just doesn't work out this time, grump grump.

[cesy]

Ooh, I liked Morzine.

[kaberett]

I am mostly sitting in the gite, as discussed, but have so far been tolerably impressed by a raspberry-pistachio macaron adventure :-)

[highlyeccentric]

Oh, I completely understand that (and am ded of thesis myself), but if you were somewhere I knew I would give you location recs! Alas, i have never been to Morzine.

[kaberett]

<3

[divulge]

You’re awesome <3

[vass]

I'm glad you're having a pleasant time and didn't lose your clothes-guards, and very impressed at your French.

[kaberett]

♥

[oracne]

Snow! On the mountains!

[cesy]

Yay snow and mountains and sofa and cozy!

[davidgillon]

Enjoy La Belle France! I vote for observing the snowfall from the close-proximity of a roaring fire over a glass of something warming. Mildly jealous, but brrrr!

Glad you found the clothes guards. If you've got the J3 fitted, then no idea how they managed that. If you've got a fabric back on the dance chair, then had they managed to tuck them inside the back somehow? I could just about see that working if it's one of those ones that doubles over the tensioning straps.

(2) To my mild surprise, I am just about managing competent interactions in French

"Pardonnez mois, monsieur; le Sleazy-Jet avez perdu les garde-vetements de ma fauteille-roulant!"

BTDT. Had a holiday in Haut-Alpes in 2001-ish. Pre-holiday thoughts: "Well, Jon lives in Belgium, and Kim and Jo have both been holidaying in France since they were kids, no need to brush up." Get there to find Jon speaks really good Flemish, and bugger-all French, while Kim and Jo never bothered learning. Muggins is nominated translator. We're there to fly gliders, the instructor looks like he should be on a tractor with a gitane hanging from his lip, and speaks zero English...

After a couple of days they called in a couple of club members who did speak English (passable in one case, excellent in the other), but in the meantime I discovered panic is a really good driver for recalling vocabulary (or making it up).

[silveradept]

Huzzah for being able to navigate a Francophone vacation.