Entre Les Murs

Auvers-sur-Oise

While noting that French children are, like British kids, far more presentable at dinner parties than their North American counterparts, I would still prefer to do without. Their presence places a limit on the quality of conversation. Depth is limited because the parents always have a little of their attention elsewhere, and breadth is curtailed because every few minutes the little ones need attention (and if they don't, somebody has to get up and find out why).

Friends of Janet's , T & D, have taken a summer place in a small town called Auvers-sur-Oise, which is famous as the place where Van Gogh spent his last days, and where he is buried. They invited us to come out for dinner yesterday, so we took a train around three and were there in just over an hour. We were joined by two other couples (possessed of the aforementioned charming and well-behaved children), one French and one French-Canadian.

The conversation, when the French couple arrived, was about half in English and half in French. I could follow the French about half of the time, so was able to participate in about 75% of the conversation in all - and honestly, at most dinner parties, who bothers to do better? But I'm bound to admit that the children's leavening effect on the conversation worked to my advantage. Had we delved into complex questions of French politics and culture, I might not have done so well.

posted 8.8.05