Carte Postale de St-Étienne

(An air raid siren just went off. Given that World War II ended sixty-five years ago and that when I looked out the window none of the passers-by were running for cover or otherwise noticeably alarmed, I’m going to assume it is what fire trucks sound like in France.)

The post card above is a photograph of my street circa 1900. This post card is going to my grandmother in Québec City as today is her birthday. Bonne fête grand-maman!

To bring everyone up to speed, I left Paris for St-É last Monday. Thus I was already in St-É when I embarked on the electrical tape odyssey. I have been settling in nicely since moving into my flat October 1. In the interim, I stayed in a residence-hotel the first night and a hostel the next three. I began working at the lycée on Monday.

The weather has been very changeable. It was overcast when I arrived and it has been cloudy with some rain showers most of the days since I’ve arrived in France. The temperature has varied from about 10°C to 26°C last Sunday--we are experiencing an Indian Summer!

I haven’t been very diligent in taking photos of the town, but I promise they are coming soon!

A few facts about St-É:

• The city is named after Saint Stephen (Étienne in French) and the residents are called stéphanois

• The city was renamed Armeville during the French Revolution as one of the city’s industries was arms manufacturing