William's Tuesday

Tuesday morning was cool and gray when we woke up. We bundled up and made our way to the farmers' market that they have twice a week underneath the aqueduct. There were probably about fifty stands lining the walkway, selling everything from clothing and soaps to cheese and vegetables. Everything looked and smelled pretty good. I think the language barrier kept us from being too adventurous with our taste testing but we definitely feasted with our eyes. Kaitlyn picked up a bunch of fruits and vegetables for herself, then we figured we needed to get a pumpkin for our planned Halloween party on Thursday. Then, on the way home, we did what we did every single time we passed the boulangerie, grabbed another baguette. They were too good to pass up! I also realized I'm a sucker for the pain au chocolat and coffee combo. I walked Kaitlyn halfway to class again and then sat down on a bench on campus, feeling awfully European bundled up in my sweater, eating my croissant and sipping on my coffee.

I had another few hours to myself before I had to meet up with Kaitlyn for lunch so I figured I'd get myself lost and wander around the city some more. I felt like I had become pretty familiar with the historic district so I decided to venture beyond that. I was a little disappointed to find that things seemed pretty dirty and run down, at least in this neighborhood I found myself in. Maybe it was just the gloomy weather though and I'd have a different opinion if the sun was shining. Regardless, I was able to make my way back to the historic area and made it home seconds before Kaitlyn arrived. 

Sandwiches are so much better when they are made with great bread, and we had some REALLY great bread. They were nothing fancy but boy were they good. Lunchtime conversation consisted of Halloween party planning, Friday and Saturday day trip itineraries, and compiling a short shopping list of things Kaitlyn needed from town. My shopping list required me to stop at two stores so I had to talk to two different people. I took the easy way out and used the self-checkout at the grocery store, but I was forced to have human interaction at the 2-Euro store. Fortunately, I was only getting one thing and I knew exactly what it cost (2-euros) so even though I didn't understand a word she said, we were able to complete the transaction without a problem. I was disappointed in myself for chickening out at the grocery store and I was determined to make up for it. I successfully picked up a bottle of wine from the wine store and a baguette at the boulangerie and met Kaitlyn at home for dinner. I was proud of myself for being able to almost communicate with the last two storekeepers. Kaitlyn prepared some of the veggies we bought that morning and had some pasta with pesto sauce to go with it. She's a good cook! We were pretty tired by that point and nobody wanted to go out so we just hung out and started watching a movie before we fell soundly asleep.