Volunteers’ Day Out in La Rochelle

Volunteers’ Day Out in La Rochelle

On Wednesday, Paul and all the volunteers went on an adventure to La Rochelle, where Francofolies took place only a few days ago. On the way, they stopped at Pons for breakfast and a cup of coffee before going into La Rochelle. They spent the morning browsing the outdoor and indoor markets in the city, as well as walking along the port and taking photos.

Group photo in Pons on the way to La Rochelle

Group photo in Pons on the way to La Rochelle

For lunch, volunteers either went out on their own or ate with the group along the Port des Minimes. Afterwards, they went off into their own directions to shop, have a coffee, or tour the beautiful cathedrals.

La Rochelle is lined with shops suited to everyone’s taste, with designer brands from Paris in addition to chain stores and privately owned boutiques. Some volunteers also headed down to the beach, where a slight breeze cut through the sunny weather.

Port de Minimes at La Rochelle

Port de Minimes at La Rochelle

Beautiful city of La Rochelle

Beautiful city of La Rochelle

After a long day of fun, Paul brought the volunteers to Le Relais, a truckers’ stop for food and rest in Barbezieux. There, everyone had a filling dinner before heading home. All in all, the volunteers greatly enjoyed a midweek outing in La Rochelle.

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Fun La Giraudière-themed French Activities!

La Giraudière-themed French Activities

For today’s blog, we have some fun French activities for a change! Francophiles will have fun with this – some of the activities are La Giraudière-themed!

Part 1 – Crossword

crossword-XSn3Y1LoEd

Didn’t get some of the answers? No worries, here’s the key:

crossword-THqQZcdfIV

Part 2 – Riddles and Jokes

À La Giraudière, jeudi vient avant dimanche, mais où dimanche vient-il avant jeudi ?

Réponse: le dictionnaire

Un clown dit à son médecin :
– Docteur, je me sens drôle …

Part 3 – Interesting French expressions.

Those untranslatable, uniquely French sayings…

  1. Ever slept through the whole morning? In France one says <<dormir la grasse matinée>>
  2. If you miss a rendez-vous, you would use the expression <<poser un lapin>>
  3. It’s perhaps rare in France, but terrible wine is <<vin à faire danser les chèvres>> (wine that makes goats dance)

Part 4 – Hangman

Click this link to play a quick game of hangman! Hint – it’s related to La Giraudière 🙂

http://www.hangmanwords.com/play/custom-YnJvc3NhY2Fpcw==

Hope you enjoyed these French activities, until next time!

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Cheering on the Bleus in Brossac

Cheering on the Bleus in Brossac

Tuesday evening was an especially exciting one in France with the victory of the Bleus, and volunteers at La Giraudière definitely didn’t miss out on the excitement in Brossac.

The Bleus, the French football team, was playing against Belgium in the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup, and the game ended in a French victory with a score of 1-0. France will play against either England or Croatia in Sunday’s finals.

Volunteers at La Giraudière headed down to the clubhouse in Brossac to watch the France vs Belgium game last night, and the atmosphere was lively and intense at the same time.

The clubhouse in Brossac

The clubhouse in Brossac

Everyone in Brossac (minus the Belgians, perhaps!) will be cheering on France this weekend, and we have our fingers crossed that the Bleus will win the 2018 World Cup.

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Volunteers’ Arrivals and Departures at La Giraudière in France

Volunteers’ Arrivals and Departures at La Giraudière in France

With the sun smiling down at La Giraudière in France this week, we’ve been happy to welcome four new volunteers.

Justin and Stephanie, who are from Canada, joined us Sunday evening. Both pharmacists, the couple is taking a year off to travel the world. They have traveled far and wide, from Sri Lanka to Italy, and now to France. Since they have been here, Justin and Stephanie have spent their first day at work outdoors, clearing the path of twigs scattered by last week’s windstorm.

Volunteers gardening

Stephanie and Justin gardening

Jean and Helen also joined us from Australia to volunteer at La Giraudière. Jean is a retired accountant, but is opening a café with her daughter, and Helen has her own business selling handcrafted soaps. On the first workday this week, Helen has been helping Viv with the housekeeping. Meanwhile, Jean, who worked hard in the garden this morning, is lending a hand to Christine in accounting. Both Jean and Helen hope to improve their French while they are here.

Our new volunteer Helen

Our new volunteer Helen

Our new volunteer Jean

Our new volunteer Jean

This morning, we also sadly had to say goodbye to longtime volunteer Linda, who was an amazing housekeeper (in addition to other things) during her six-week stay. She enjoyed interacting with different personalities, as well as improving standards of maintenance for the rooms. After a tour around other parts of France, Linda will go back home to Denmark.

Volunteer with certificate

Linda with her volunteer certificate

We’re excited to work with our new volunteers, and hope those who have departed will come back to France.

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La Giraudière Takes a Hit from Violent Storm in Brossac

La Giraudière Takes a Hit from Violent Storm in Brossac

On Wednesday evening, a whirlwind of destruction blew into La Giraudière as a violent storm hit Brossac and the whole of southwest France. Furious winds at a speed of 160km/hr blew into town just before dinner, making trees sway and windows rattle. Soon after, we heard the rumble of thunder, and rain began to fall in torrents.

Just half an hour later, the sky cleared up, but the damage from the unexpected storm had already been done. Outside in the garden, plants were blown over; and some roses clung onto their stems for dear life. A tree was even blown down across the road, but thankfully our neighbor farmer M. Philippe Condemine cleared the tree with his tractor.

The worst of the storm’s wrath, however, saw itself manifested inside the house. Water that had been driven through windows and doors flooded the floors of some apartments, and even worse, upstairs in one apartment, the wind had put enough pressure on the bedroom wall to cause it to explode. Cracks split through the wall, even revealing some of the brickwork inside. We’re looking to get the wall repaired in the coming week.

Cracks in the wall from the violent storm

Cracks in the wall from the violent storm

Another thunderstorm is forecast for today, but we hope that the weather will clear up here at La Giraudière in the following days, with some sun to replace the stormy weather in Brossac.

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