My co-worker and I had quite a busy week – so busy that the time we spent trying to set up a daily agenda went for naught as we constantly had to adapt our meeting schedule as unexpected changes and conflicting meetings came up. It pays to be flexible when working with many different people in a short time frame.
At the end of the first day, we were taken to dinner along with the team we were working with. My co-worker could not read any French, and while my reading ability is a long way from fluent, it is usually passable in reading a menu. However, while summarizing the choices for my co-worker, one of the French managers laughingly warned me to not summarize the menu too much because I might skip over a key element in the dish – either in an ingredient or in the way it was prepared. This was a lesson I learned the hard way a week later.
I was on my own for dinner and stopped at a place I had dined at before that I seemed to recall had good veal. So I sat down and looked over the menu, scanning for key words to indicate what the dish was. I should have scanned more words a bit more closely. My first course, the appetizer, included what I thought it had – smoked salmon, but also included a healthy portion of tuna tartar – raw tuna. Things went from unexpected to unbelievable. My main course was veal, but once again I had missed a key word. Instead of a nice serving of breaded or grilled veal, I had tete d’veau: “Calf’s Head!” The cheese plate and dessert were neither what I thought I had ordered, but turned out to be very pleasant and tasty surprises. And after the main course surprise, I needed something tasty and filling. Lesson learned, mon ami!
Sometimes, struggling with the language or pronunciation can be a good dice-breaker and entertaining. One café that I have enjoyed many times has a particularly good salad that I order each time. And I never can pronounce it correctly. I have had the same waiter each visit and he is always trying to help me pronounce the salad the correct way. It is an enjoyable exercise. I like the friendliness as well as the food at this café. One evening after we paid the bill and left, walking back through the rain to the hotel, we heard someone calling after us. Turning around, we saw the owner running down the street toward us. She had accidently overcharged us by 4 Euros and was trying to return it to us. I can’t remember that ever happening anywhere else I have eaten before – anywhere!
Lunches during the work week are on the plant property. This being a hazardous work location we need to wear protective shoes, coats, hard hats and eye protection while transversing the grounds. In some areas you either have to wear a gas detector or be with someone who has one. However, once in the lunch room all of the protective equipment comes off and the result is a visual disconnect. Imagine a petite young woman, light hair, pretty face, and colorful sweater. Now picture this same woman blending right in among her male co-workers in a sea of heavy blue overcoats, protective pants, heavy steel-toed shoes, white hard hat, and safety goggles. Safety is the great equalizer of appearances. Here I am in my safety helmet and goggles (visitors get blue).
Unlike the November 2009 trip, we elected to get our own car. It has its advantages. But knowing some French, and paying attention to the maps or GPS is important. While leaving the airport the day we arrived, I exited too soon off of the main highway. The exit signs “said” it was the way to go, but I had driven this route before and should have known better. It worked out OK and we had a quick tour through the Paris suburb of Neuilly. The next day, the main road we were driving on was closed and so I had to manage the detour route and all detour signs were in French, of course. All I had to do was keep the Channel on my right. One morning, I took a different route to the plant because it was a little quicker, and so that my co-worker could have a change of scenery. But the drawbridge was up for a passing barge. We got the change of scenery, but it was not quicker. And finally on the day I was returning to the airport, I misread the exit sign (and again I should have known better as I had driven this route many times), and could NOT get back to the main road. I spent the next ½ hour circling the airport on the service roads that are there for airport employees and access to the surrounding support facilities. Go ahead. Smile. I got lost. It wasn’t funny at the time.
It was an interesting two weeks – and learning to see the bigger picture in the language, following directions, and appearances.
It was very cold and wet during the first week, and the forecast for the weekend included chances of snow.
I’ll write more later about my mid-trip weekend and how well this chance played out.
Pictures of the trip are at http://scottshots4.shutterfly.com/479
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