Meeting Friends in Grenoble!

Meeting friends and family on the trip has been a lot of fun, and it was no exception while in Grenoble, France. We know the Gervais/Kowalski family, Laura, Kim, and Denis, from school and had the opportunity to meet with them. They have a house in Coulliere, France where they were visiting while we were staying in Divonne les Bains. Their travels had taken them to Uzes and Sete which brought us closer together. My mom and Kim agreed through email to meet in the city of Grenoble.

It was fantastic when the family came into the information centre where we were meeting.  It made us feel really happy to see familiar faces from home.  We sat in a nearby park for about an hour to talk about how everyone was doing and things that were going on at home. Laura told us how she was finding grade 7 and what was going on with the other students, classes, and teachers. We also talked about books since we both love to read, and the last book in one of our favourite series “The Heroes of Olympus” called “The Blood of Olympus” by Rick Riordan had recently been released.

Then we went around the city on a self-guided walking tour. We saw many sights while on our walk.  We saw the Place Victor Hugo, which was hosting the Milleisme, a wine and music festival whose tents and signs we saw advertising the occasion.

There was the Jardin de Ville park, which was commisioned by the Duke of Lesdiguieres.  It was opened to the public in 1719 and today serves as a place for picnicing.

The Place Saint Andre is full of historical reminders, like the statue in the middle of the square of the famous French knight Bayard “the good knight”, the old courthouse that was functioning until 2002, and “La Table Ronde” cafe which opened in 1739 and is one of the oldest cafes in France.

The old courthouse

La Table Ronde Cafe

Bayard the knight

We visited the Place Sainte Claire with it’s markets that reminded us of the St. Lawrence market back in Toronto.  It is named after a convent that was destroyed during the French Revolution.  The facade of the building has a fountain that is decorated with a dolphin surrounded by sun beams and roses over top which represents the people of power in the Middle Ages: the dauphin, the consuls, and the clergy.

The La Valette water tower, or the dolphin fountain, has statues of little cherubs riding dolphins which was a symbol of the dauphine region.  It was installed in 1826 on the site of a medieval grain market and the guillotine that was used twice during the French Revolution.

In the Place Notre Dame stands the Fountain of the Three Orders.  It was built in 1888 and is there to remind people how the French came together to start the French Revolution.  Around the fountain are the values of the Republic: equality, liberty, fraternity, and justice.  The square is watched over by the four tritons.

Before the Gervais/Kowalski family left Canada, Laura received letters from some of our classmates to give to us, which Zoe and I really appreciated.  The letters reminded us of home and made us feel good. We also really enjoyed being caught up with all the “happenings” back at school and hearing how class was going. I think my parents also liked being able to talk with other adults for a change!

It was a fun day in Grenoble with the Gervais/Kowalski family and I am excited to see who else we may meet on the road.  Hint, hint…. let us know when you’re coming to meet us! 🙂