excursion no. 2

Today my french class returned to the mountains for yet another 'excursion.' This one, however, was even better than the first.

We were a small group, I think fifteen people, and the route was higher in the mountains, with more scenic views and cooler temperatures.

The trip as led by professors of french three (my class) and french five (many of my friends' class). The high point, really, was watching the cows chase the professors.

As we were picnicking for lunch a herd of cows came over to drink from the water fountain. We watched and listened to the cows amble over to us. Each cow has a bell attached to its neck about the size of a very large grapefruit, and they produce an incessant clattering as the cows eat the grass.

Anyway, professors a and b are sitting on the ground eating their picnics when a cow tries to come over for a lick. A firm push on the head is about all they need to be dissuaded--they are gentle and easily scared creatures.

It was a fun walk with a diverse group of people. The professors are both way into literature and the arts. I can easily talk to either one about classical music--they both have a special kind of love for it that I do, but as listeners, not participants. I don't come across people like this often in the U.S. I talked to one of the professors for a while about chamber music, and he asked me about my favorite composers for the quartet (I said Beethoven, particularly the late quartets) he agreed, but said for me Schubert is really it. "Of course," I said.