Madeline

Today was our last Sunday in Ambialet, meaning that it was the last time I'll have contact with the villagers until I next return to Southern France. I am sorry to report that Pere [Fr.] Jeamme had a minor stroke earlier this week, so there was nobody to perform Mass this morning. When I first introduced myself to Pere Jeamme back in September, he somehow repeated my name as Madeline. I've earned a couple nicknames that have stuck over the years...I answer to Mel most frequently (it always catches on without my even telling people to call me that) and smile when Alek calls me Mellie, but Madeline seems a bit further off. To this day, I'm not sure how the man derived "Madeline" from Melanie, but it was a nickname I gladly adopted considering how cute I think the cartoon is.


Nevertheless, it's a very sad thing to say hello to such a sweet someone one week and then just seven days later know that they're in poor health. Though we greatly missed Pere Jeamme today, Peter and Margaret did a lovely job in leading the small congregation in a little Sunday service of our own. The townspeople took turns with today's readings and we were still able to sing the hymns we learned on Friday. As a farewell to the villagers, Saint Francis students sang "Canticle of the Sun" and "On Eagles Wings." Dr. Woods, Dr. Lynch and Debbie watched on from the audience as we gave our little performance, making me feel like they were my older sister and parents at the 5th grade choral concert! It was certainly a special morning and something I'll miss in a week from now for sure.


A group shot of today's congregation on the front steps of the church.

Peter & Margaret

The group just returned from our very last choir practice with Peter and Margaret...it was such a bittersweet afternoon. Peter and Margaret are a British couple who live directly down the mountain from Le Prieure. They decided to retire in France about ten years ago; they keep busy by working for a bike company, guiding tourists with the best routes around the Pyrenee Mountains.

Every Friday afternoon in Ambialet, Peter and Margaret have invited the Saint Francis students to their home for choir practice. Margaret does an excellent job of teaching us the hymns for the upcoming Sunday Mass (which has greatly improved my French) while Peter plays the guitar. After we do our best singing all the French hymns, Peter and Margaret treat us to a traditional English afternoon tea (I've since decided that Earl Grey+a splash of milk is my favorite).

If I had to pick one thing that I've enjoyed most about living in Ambialet, it's probably having been given the opportunity to get to know such a darling couple. Peter and Margaret have always happily welcomed our group into their home--even when we were complete strangers. I greatly admire their kindness and think that the world would be such a better place if there were more people living in it like Peter and Margaret.

Rendre Grace (Give Thanks)

I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving! We had our very own celebration here in Ambialet...the group was happily joined by almost everyone who we have grown close to since our arrival. If you take a look at this short clip, you'll be quickly introduced to most of the people who were in attendance. Present were people from five different countries altogether; France, England, Russia, Canada, and America were all represented last night! For some of our guests, this was their first Thanksgiving, and a very special one it was indeed.

Our feast was prepared by the oh-so-talented Bernard and included turkey with a sweet apricot and white raisin stuffing, corn, salad, cranberry sauce (courtesy of Mrs. Roche who had it shipped here from the States just for the occasion), French bread, 10 variations of cheese, pumpkin pie, and lots of vin.

Dinner was followed by music and merriment in the stone room, which was historically the place where the friars in the Middle Ages ate their dinners in total silence. One might say that we broke that tradition of silence with the help of Peter, who led the singing with his guitar playing. (We were all pretty excited when Shane decided to join in too).

The holiday, while certainly much different from my typical Thanksgiving back home, was undeniably a memorable one. My life has been so blessed by the people I was surrounded by last night that I really couldn't imagine a better way to celebrate our time together.

The Fete

Cheers to the beginning of another week in Southern France! It's hard to believe how fast the weekend went by. I didn't make it to Albi on Saturday like originally planned, but that was all for the better. While having our tea and biscuits with Peter and Margaret on Friday afternoon, the students were invited to join them in the quaint town of Sainte Michel for a "fete," or town festival!

It was explained to the group that each village holds a fete at least once a year, normally during the summertime when it's warm outside. It was obvious that Peter and Margaret are fete veterans because they even brought their own silverware to use instead of the plastic cutlery given to everyone else. There was a band, food with recipes that Saint Michel has been making since the beginning of time, and plenty of vin de table. I can only imagine how much fun it would be to spend every summer fete-hopping!


The picture above is one with my aligot and I. Aligot (pronouced: "ally-go") is an infamous potato and cheese concoction that has been served in Southern France for hundreds of years. Each town has their own special recipe, which was originally fed to pilgrims passing through the area. The people began cheering and clapping when the aligot was brought out; I learned that it is certainly not a food for the faint of heart.

Have a happy first -fall weekend.

Hello my loves. Any exciting plans for the weekend? Today, some of the group will be visiting the English couple, Peter and Margaret, who lives right on down the mountain for tea and biscuits; tomorrow we head back to Albi for some serious exploration!

If you have a minute or two, watch this video of us driving through one of the two extremely narrow [and somewhat terrifying] tunnels you must take in order to reach Albi...it's quite the ride!

P.S. To my favorite girls in Loretto, PA: I hope the Annual Ebensburg Potato Festival is a blast! Please eat some French fries for me.