February 9, 2021

Tuesday

It was going to be a long day of travel. We had about 6 hours on three different trains to get from Valence to Lourdes. The first train left the Valence station at 9:25. Alli and I headed out about 45 minutes before, thinking we would have plenty of time to get there on the bus. We took the 14 and found ourselves suddenly ejected on the side of the highway when the driver declared that it was the end of the route. We learned that the 14 does not go all the way to the TGV station everyday. When we asked for help, the driver waved his hand and said “go straight, get off.”

We searched the walking route and Maps told us that it would take 30 minutes to get there. It was already 9, we were going to be late. We asked our friends to call an Uber became neither of us had the app. Of course, the car that we ordered suddenly said it would be there in 20 minutes (still making us late). Jenni found the number of the taxi company, so we called. Alli struggled with them and then it was my turn. Finally, we got one ordered. We stood shivering outside the Harley Davison store while we waited. The car arrived and after a 4 minute drive we were finally at the station- we missed the train by 10 minutes. We realized that the walk was shorter than maps predicted and we could’ve made it if we hustled.

The next train would not arrive until 1:30, all there was to do was wait. Our friends would arrive before us in Lourdes and would check the group into the Airbnb-phew. We got breakfast from the Paul boulangerie in the station and settled in. We got to experience the antics of a screaming little girl, watch a few drug deals, and enjoy a lunch from Paul later in the day.

At 1:30, we at last boarded our train. The trip was full of tension because the train sat for 30 minutes on the tracks, eating up all of our time for a transfer. We were unsure that we would make our next connection and worried that we would be stuck in some random city for the night. Thankfully, the connection at Narbonne was delayed. We got on without a problem.

The third train was absolutely exhausting. It was two exhausting hours. We got into Lourdes after curfew and had to walk to the Airbnb in the rain.

When we arrived, Maggie and Jenni had dinner waiting for us. They picked up Indian food from a local restaurant. We enjoyed wine and chips as we hung out later in the evening. We listened to music and talked until it was time for bed. I’m still amazed by how great it feels to speak English with someone in the same room as me! I finally feel like I have a community here.