40 THINGS – A Day in the Life of a Marseilles (person, aka – Student, Grand Mere

40 Things – – – – – – – A DAY IN THE LIFE…….in MARSEILLE……………….

1. RUSH to get out the little apartment door to the car towards La Gineste down the mountain into Marseille
2. hop out of le voiture, kiss hubby, cross at Rue Paradis (across from favorite Pharmacy)
3. get into class 3 minutes late
4. speak French for 2 hours
5. Take a break at PAUL,  eat sandwich David made for me (& the girls say, ‘OH HOW SWEET is YOUR husband!!!!”     🙂
6. Back to class – speak French another 2 hours
7. Class is over!!!
8. Forget our Expresso, as Paul’s tables are inside – the vent is too much  –  go to Perrier to the metro – walking with teacher – say goodbye to her, she goes one way we go another
9. Say to my friends, “That was the HARDEST class EVER!!!
10.   look across the tracks and see my teacher standing there, hearing every word.
11.   Take metro to Vieux Port
12.   Find an optometrist for Teresa ‘s reading glasses
13.   She finds them.   They are only 95 euros
14.   sigh
15.   find a place to eat
16. We “settle in”, coats off, bags thrown over extra chair and then told it’s “drinks only” – have to go across the plaza for “mange” .  We do, but not before looking for my L’Artisan Parfumeur next to L’Opera
17. in the meantime find my favorite La Droguerie (knitting shop from Paris) and think I’ve died and gone to heaven.  Ah….but do I still know how to KNIT!?!?!
18. Found the place to eat a ( very pas cher )  pizza……and tested the waiter on “tres difficille cocktail” and lo and behold……….he actually did a fantastic job.  It went like this:
19. “I would like vodka, with 3 green olives, un peu vin blanc, (because they don’t have American VERMOUTH) and un petit glace (a little ice)
20. Ahhhh, he says, “An American Martini?”  Yes, we can do, with vermouth.  I said “Not your vermouth.  You don’t have vermouth.  You only have ‘Martini and Rossi” (stuff) – and that is not acceptable. “   No problem he says.  I can do it.    Then he says, ‘Ah, but we only have noir olives (black) and I say, “Black is fine.”
21. 5 seconds later he comes from the “CAVE” with a bucket full of GREEN olives – and says, “I have green olives for you!!”
22. God, I really love the French
23.   He serves me my first “American Martini”  (in 14 months)- – absolutely perfect to the core – and I tell him – that it is just that – and that I will come back to his establishment to try this again.  It was indeed – a PERFECT American Martini……..(shaken, not stirred!! ) ha ha ha
24. Pay for a lovely very inexpensive meal, and martini and head for BUS 41S
25. It’s gone.    Actually, it’s “fini” for the evening.  I’m not going anywhere.  (this woman told me it was “done” – “fini”)
26. Thank her and go to VIEUX PORT METRO after kissing Teresa goodbye 3 times on the cheek.  (It’s THREE times in the South of France!)
27. get the Castelane stop
28. Get off at Castelane and change for Pont du Prado
29. Miss  the Pont du Prado metro by 2 seconds.  Next one  ?  —-   11 minutes
30. ooy vey!   Call Esti and talk, and that takes a lovely 10 minutes
31. get on next metro
32. get off metro at ROND PONT du PRADO
33. walk towards exit.  Drunk man by exit yelling  AAAARRRRRGGGGGGG
34. 2 young men with pick ax in their hand yelling back at him AAAARRRGGGGG
35. This does not intimidate me, and I just about hit them with my backpack and say “STOP IT” – LEAVE THE MAN ALONE” – when I decide to not do that
36. As I swish past them and glance behind to see if the “pick axe “ is going anywhere I see that it is a harassing concert only – and that these boys have nothing better to do on a Monday late evening.
37. Get to Rond Point Prado and pass the “Sandwich truck”.  The lone sandwich clerk greets me with a huge smile and says “ C’est froit c’est soir – vous marche tres vite”      – then I say, ““Oui, tres vite,  bien sur!!”   And  I just smile so big as I past because this is just the nicest thing – to be greeted by this hard working sandwich maker in a truck -late at night –  and I say “THANK YOU GOD for people like this”    You know, he did not have to say a THING when I past by………..and it was just so refreshing to see his smile and to hear his happy words…………
38. Go to bus stop for 19 to David’s ecole – “British Council”
39. Bus stop 19 has “fini’ for c’est soir – finished for the evening
40. I walk the long walk along PRADO to the British Council in the freezing cold and wind and find my way- no problem, thank God for “les toilettes” inside, and my husband on the other side…..finished teaching!