{"id":2550,"date":"2013-09-17T13:35:22","date_gmt":"2013-09-17T13:35:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lagiraudiere.com\/blog\/?p=2550"},"modified":"2013-09-17T13:35:22","modified_gmt":"2013-09-17T13:35:22","slug":"another-fun-filled-weekend-for-the-volunteer-group","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lagiraudiere.com\/blog\/another-fun-filled-weekend-for-the-volunteer-group\/","title":{"rendered":"Fun-Filled Weekend for the Volunteer Group"},"content":{"rendered":"

Another Wonderful Weekend for the Volunteer Group at La Giraudiere<\/h1>\n
\"Volunteer<\/a>

The Autumn Volunteer Group at Karyssa’s birthday dinner<\/p><\/div>\n

Our Autumn Volunteer Group spent another lovely (albeit rainy) weekend here in Charente. \u00a0Our weekend\u00a0festivities began\u00a0last Thursday afternoon, which just so happened to be my\u00a023rd<\/sup>birthday.\u00a0 And what a great place to spend a birthday!\u00a0 During our lunch break my fellow volunteers surprised me with a homemade cake, card, and wildflower bouquet.\u00a0 Later that night, Peggy made a delicious enchilada dinner, Dan provided some excellent wine, and Paul was ready with a box of chocolates. \u00a0We enjoyed a nice, cozy evening of sitting around the kitchen table, sharing pictures and stories about each of our homes.\u00a0 That\u2019s been one of the highlights of my time here at La Giraudiere: getting to know people from all over the world.\u00a0 It\u2019s been\u00a0interesting to compare differences between our cultures, but also to discover how just how much we all have in common.<\/p>\n

\"Cheese<\/a>

Cheese plate at Poirier Gaston<\/p><\/div>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 On Friday we wanted to have one last big volunteer group outing before Dan and Grace departed over the weekend.\u00a0 So we choose to return to our favorite local restaurant, Restaurant Poirier Gaston. The five course meal was just as delicious (and long) as we remembered. That afternoon, the guys went off to the afternoon game of p\u00e9tanque.\u00a0 It was quite the momentous occasion, as it was Steven\u2019s first time and Dan\u2019s last time playing\u00a0p\u00e9tanque here in Brossac. \u00a0Friday night was quite eventful: we were invited to a surprise birthday party\/welcome home party for a young French woman who\u00a0recently returned from doing humanitarian work<\/p>\n

\"Birthday<\/a>

Betty’s surprise birthday party<\/p><\/div>\n

in Cameroon. \u00a0The soir\u00e9e was held in the Salle des Fetes of the nearby village of Passirac (every village has some kind of Salle des Fetes, basically a public hall that residents of the town can rent out for a big party or event). \u00a0There was a big crowd there, made up of people of all different ages. \u00a0We successfully surprised Betty, the birthday girl, and then the party got started.\u00a0 Plates were loaded with food, glasses were filled to the brim with drinks, and (most importantly)…a disco ball was found and installed. \u00a0LG was well represented on the dance floor. We showed off all kinds of great dance moves while the French mostly looked on politely. \u00a0 It was a late night (later for some of us than others) and we all had a delightful time. \u00a0I was\u00a0amazed yet again at how the local community welcoming and inclusive the local community is.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Saturday morning we were forced to say farewell to Dan, our New<\/p>\n

\"Steven<\/a>

Steven at the monolithic church in Aubterre<\/p><\/div>\n

Zealander. \u00a0Dan is just about the most gentleman-ly man you could ever hope to meet, and we were all very sad to see him go. \u00a0When Paul dropped Dan off at the train station he also dropped \u00a0Peggy and Jimi off at Chalais to spend a few hours running errands in town. They decided to attempt an impressive 14 km trek on foot all the way back.\u00a0 Their journey took about four hours but led them past some really beautiful countryside. \u00a0In the afternoon,\u00a0Katie was kind enough to drive several of us to Aubterre.\u00a0 We found a restaurant and enjoyed a very French (a.k.a. long) meal of steak frites.\u00a0 After lunch, Steven, Katie, and Liat explored the town, checking out the subterranean church (and taking plenty of pictures along the way). \u00a0Grace and I, already having done an Aubterre trip the week before, enjoyed a cup of coffee and a pleasant chat in the lovely main square of the town. That evening was a bit chilly and rainy so we had a group movie night and watched\u00a0The Bucket List<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 We had to say another sad goodbye on Sunday morning, this time to Grace, who decided to spend a few days on the western coast of France before returning to her native Ireland. \u00a0Her enthusiasm, optimism, and kindness will be missed! \u00a0Afterwards a group of us set off to Barbezieux to attend a brocante.\u00a0 There is truly an art to French flea markets.\u00a0 Row after row of tables are laid out with wares, ranging from complete junk to genuine antiques. \u00a0Toys, vases, paintings, books, records, utensils, glasses, knick knacks, purses, chairs, scarves, dolls, tools, farm equipment, postcards, and pretty much anything else you could think. \u00a0After a half an hour of wandering, everything started to look awfully<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

F\u00eate de Patrimoine in Berneuil<\/p><\/div>\n

similar. \u00a0There were also several food stands there, including a giant pastry cart selling croissants, tarts, and meringues as big as your head.\u00a0 (I choose to indulge in my first crepe since I\u2019ve been in France.\u00a0 Probably the best 2 Euros I\u2019ve spent so far). That afternoon, Cordula went on an organized “bee walk” through some nearby woods. \u00a0Although the cold weather kept most of the bees away, she did get to see some great scenery and interesting natural finds. \u00a0Steven and Paul attended a \u201cF\u00eate de Patrimoine\u201d<\/a>in Berneuil, which was a big celebration of the heritage of the village. Similar festivities, aimed at promoting the<\/p>\n

\"Niko<\/a>

Niko cooking a delicious meal<\/p><\/div>\n

cultural\u00a0legacy of each region, take place all throughout France. \u00a0People dressed in traditional garb demonstrated games, daily activities such as washing, and art that hearken back to the village’s past.\u00a0 Liat and I, meanwhile, ventured off to Les Antilles de Jonzac, an aquatic center in Charente-Maritime. \u00a0There was a large heated indoor pool and sauna, which proved to be a very relaxing way to spend the day. \u00a0That night, we had a fantastic dinner back at La Giraudi\u00e9re with the whole volunteer group as well as several of our French friends: Niko, Aymeric, Arnaud, Johnny, and Elvis. \u00a0Niko and Aymeric kindly offered to be the chefs for the night and cooked pasta carbonara for all 14 of us.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Monday was market day, so it was off to Chalais for the village market and to do the grocery shopping for the week. \u00a0Cordula ventured into a British teashop and discovered a French conversation group at a local \u00a0 for French learners to get together and practice. \u00a0She’s looking forward to the opportunity to improve her French. \u00a0The rest of us had a mostly quiet day at home, finished off by stew and cornbread, courtesy of Katie.<\/p>\n

\"Chalais<\/a>

Cheese vendor at the Chalais market<\/p><\/div>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It was truly a great weekend\u2026and, unfortunately, my last weekend here in Brossac!\u00a0 I\u2019m leaving this Friday, and I’m already getting a little depressed at the thought of saying goodbye.\u00a0 The past five weeks have gone by much faster than I expected. \u00a0I couldn\u2019t imagine a better French experience spent with nicer people. \u00a0La Giraudiere<\/a>\u00a0has a very special kind of magic, and I’m so glad I got to be a part of it for awhile!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Another Wonderful Weekend for the Volunteer Group at La Giraudiere Our Autumn Volunteer Group spent another lovely (albeit rainy) weekend here in Charente. \u00a0Our weekend\u00a0festivities began\u00a0last Thursday afternoon, which just so happened to be my\u00a023rdbirthday.\u00a0 And what a great place … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2550","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lagiraudiere.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2550","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lagiraudiere.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lagiraudiere.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lagiraudiere.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lagiraudiere.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2550"}],"version-history":[{"count":24,"href":"https:\/\/www.lagiraudiere.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2550\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2584,"href":"https:\/\/www.lagiraudiere.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2550\/revisions\/2584"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lagiraudiere.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2550"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lagiraudiere.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2550"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lagiraudiere.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2550"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}