On Sunday there was an event called Transhumance des chèvres sur les collines which roughly translates to the seasonal movement of the goats on the hills. Every year a farmer named Philippe Moustache brings his goats from his farm on one end of Besançon, to the fort of Planoise on the other end of Besançon to herd for the season. The event started at 9:30 am from his farm and you would walk with him and his goats all the way to the fort, a lovely 11 km or 6.8 mile walk. Once at the fort, there would be free shuttles back to either his farm or the train station.
          I have a bad leg, so Jeremy and I opted to take the tram as far as it would take us and walk the rest of the way, bringing it down to a 2 mile walk. What we didn't know was that this walk was not on pavement, it was a hiking trail. Now mind you I'm wearing boots, as in the decorative kind, not the hiking kind, a light sweater, a scarf, a heavy coat, and an umbrella as it was raining off and on. I was not prepared for a hike. As I started sweating through my layers, poor Jeremy quickly became a pack mule.
          We were only a third of the way there when I started thinking I might not be able to make it, but what were we to do? We were climbing the whole time so the way back was a steep, slippery decline. My leg actually does better with ascension than descension, so we pushed onward. I think I would have done a lot better were there benches or rocks to rest on. The trees were covered in sopping wet moss so I couldn't lean against them, either.
          We finally reach a sign that says we're half way there. I am now started to make goals for myself, like "Okay, I'll reach that tree and stop" or "Just to that bend in the road". We should be reaching our destination soon. I'm thirsty (we hadn't brought water), wet, my bad leg hurts, and the rest of me aches because, let's face it, I'm no athlete so even without a bum leg a 2 mile hike is good exercise, when we spot another post mark. We still have 0.6 km to go, or a little over a third of a mile. My heart drops, we had felt so much closer than that! I felt so defeated. Jeremy walked ahead a little bit to check something out and lo and behold! Another post saying we were actually only 0.1 km away!
          With that encouraging news, I plod onward, thinking about the cute goats, water, goat cheese, music, and whether farmer Moustache has an impressive mustache. The path brings us to the back of the fort, so we head 'round front to find . . . an empty parking lot and a closed off fort. They must have cancelled due to inclement weather which we wouldn't have known since we didn't go to the original meet-up at the farm. No goats, no goat cheese and goat meat, no music, and no mustachioed farmer. This also means no shuttle back and more walking to do.
          The outside of the fort looked pretty neat, except for the fact that people treat the empty moat as a trash bin, and the view of the city was amazing. After absorbing it all in for about 5 mins, we looked to our left and saw a huge storm coming our way and had to book it. We opted for a longer 2.5 mile walk that would keep us on asphalt and a steady, slow decline and my leg actually held up fairly well on that all things considered.
          At the end of the day it wasn't fun, but it was definitely worth it. That was the most I have been able to walk in almost 2 years and being able to accomplish it, though poorly, made me feel really good about myself and hopeful for a future when my disability doesn't define me.

          Yesterday was French Labor Day. Jeremy had off work and we were planning on going to a yard sale by the mall. Little did we know that Labor Day is taken seriously here! Everything is closed! This includes the tram or bus we would need to get to the mall, so that idea quickly went out the door. The grocery store, post office, bank, everything was closed. Considering the grocery store is within eye sight from the apartment, I typically shop almost daily just picking up what I need for dinner that night; our cupboards are pretty bare. Not anticipating a store closure, I hadn't shopped in advance. I had enough to scrap together pasta with peas and broccoli with a béchamel sauce but considering I've been cooking pretty elaborate meals lately, it was a little depressing!
          May 1st is also the day to give close friends and family, typically females, lily of the valleys as a token of appreciation or to express affection. It started in 1561 when King Charles IX was presented with them on May 1st. He liked them very much and decided he would give them the the ladies of his court each year. Now on May 1st, they are allowed to be sold tax free.
          While it may also be called May day, it is not the same as the May day that takes place in Great Britain and Italy. That May day is a celebration of spring, involving dancing, typically around a ribboned mayppole. France's May day is simply just for campaigning and celebrating worker's rights, and handing out lily of the valleys.
          There are three other national holidays this month, WWII victory day, Ascension day, and Whit Monday, which means not a single week in May is a full work week.

          Saturday we went to Jardiland, which is a huge garden depot. They sell all kinds of plants, outdoor furniture, and even fish, chickens, ducks, and pocket pets. My basil plant didn't make it so we needed to get a new one, and I wanted to pick up some carnivorous plants for indoors. Once there I also ended up picking up more chives because mine are apparently the thin stemmed variety and I wanted the bigger ones I'm used to.
          Why do I need carnivorous plants, you ask? Because the concept of window and door screens for some reason hasn't appealed to the French. No one has screens, no one. Our friends from Canada noticed the same thing and made their own. So everyday I open the doors to the balcony to cool the house down, because another thing most French people haven't gotten behind is air conditioning, and within 30 minutes there are at least 6 flies in the house. The most I've counted are 11. There are also these little tiny bugs kind of like really small moths, a little bigger than a gnat, but their wings aren't as fragile as a moth and there are literally thousands that hang out outside my kitchen window.
          With no air conditioning, you'd think the French have screens but they just don't. Some apartments keep their curtains closed but I feel like that defeats the purpose of opening your doors to catch a breeze. So we got a Venus Flytrap, a Sundew, and a Sarracenia. If they do their jobs right, they're gonna grow big and strong in no time!
          On our way back to our apartment, I ran into Jeremy's coworker. She told me there was a Spring Festival being held in Revolution square just around the corner. The Spring Festival is when the gardeners of the area come and sell their plants, mainly herbs and vegetables. There are also booths selling local wines, honeys, and jams. It's a shame we got the chives and basil from Jardiland when this was happening right around the corner!