back "home" for the weekend

Friday morning, I got up bright and early to head to Chauny. I can't express how good it felt stepping off the train and once again walking the streets of my lovely town. Yes, it's still "my" town. I dropped my stuff off with the assistant I was staying with and headed to the lycee armed with Rice Krispies Treats.

I happened to peer into the cantine as I walked onto the campus. Seeing C., I decided to stop in there first. He saw me through the window, broke into a huge grin, and started waving wildly. We both pushed through groups of students to finally be reunited. I couldn't have asked for a warmer welcome! The proviseur also greeted me warmly as did another surveillant who started at the very end of last year. C. and I were able to chat some without having to really worry about him "working" (he just had to keep the peace in the cantine), and he kept commenting on how happy he was to see me. He was so sweet. He also mentioned that he wished we had kept a journal of all the memories we had shared together. Aww! Guess I could go through my blog and do just that though... When he went out for a smoke, I chatted some with the girl surveillant, and she was so friendly! I could see us being friends. Too bad she started so late last year.

Heading into the school, I stopped at the office to see A. He was beyond thrilled as well (and I'm assuming it wasn't just because of the Rice Krispies Treats). We chatted some before I headed to a class to see some of the students. Boy was that a welcome like no other! I just sort of sat in and chatted with them a bit. After, I caught up some with Claude and some of the other teachers which was nice. Not wanting to leave, I decided to go help with a class. One girl commented on how much she loved and missed my accent! Others asked why they didn't have the new assistant. Claude said that they were too rowdy, and that the new guy doesn't know how to handle them like I do.

I stopped by the office on the way out to see A. and C. one more time. C. said he would call me on Saturday once he was awake (not when he woke up, but when he was awake). I replied saying that I'd see him when I returned in November then. He pretended to be offended but then agreed (which was true in the end). I ran into a bunch of other people from the lycee as I was leaving which was also a nice little surprise.

Finally, it was time for the return to La Rotonde! Oh, how I missed that place. I took advantage of the warm weather and sat outside. Wonderful! That night, I joined the other assistants for dinner and an introduction to Cuba. Ah, that bar will never not be shady.

Saturday, I enjoyed lunch at La Rotonde before heading off. The server remembered my normal order. When I said that I was no longer in Chauny but in the North, he said that he knew because he asked around when I didn't return after "la rentree". Love that place!

It was so nice being in Chauny again. I really felt like I was home. It was nice seeing the people I know and didn't know. It's strange how many people were just so familiar to me by the time I left even if I had no idea who they were.

I spent the rest of the day and most of Sunday in St. Quentin visiting my friend Erika. We enjoyed the sunshine and did some window shopping and soaking up the sun on a cafe terrace. We also joined some other assistants at a cool Irish pub for a free concert. Good times. I definitely enjoyed it.

It felt so great being back in Picardie. I'm now missing things that I wasn't missing before. Like the accent. Since it had been so long since I was there, I didn't hear the difference between the Chauny and St. Quentin accents and the Valenciennes accent until now. Once I arrived back home in Valenciennes, I realized how far away from home this place actually feels. I love my job here. It's not better or worse from the lycee, just different. However, Val still doesn't quite feel like home.