ah, oui, les français

I'm totally validated once again in my talking to strangers. Last Monday I was walking after having lunch with Eric when I overheard two guys speaking in French and looking lost. So I asked them (en français) if they were lost and when learning they were looking for food I offered to take them for cevapcici since it was on my way anyway. Away we went, chatting to the restaurant and while they ate the glory that is cevap. Turns out they are half of a quartet, Quatuor Ebene, playing here as part of BEMUS (Belgrade World music festival). They said could give me tickets for concert the following night (which was classical) and they were playing jazz the night after in Movie Bar. Since my current existence has lots of free time, I was ready, willing, and able to go listen to gorgeous music.

Gorgeous it was. I took Uros (lots of others couldn't make it) and we sat in quite good seats left for us with a guard, listening to a dynamic program. You could feel the music and it was lovely beyond my expectations. Afterwards we found Raphael and Pierre and ended up going with them, the other two in the group and some French embassy types to dinner at this little French restaurant near the hall. Pierre and Uros got into an thick exchange of music and films, it was a meeting of like-minds that one rarely sees. Raphael joined in later a bit, also some people from French Cultural Center discussing politics and the region for over the past 30 years, drinking wine and generally enjoying. We laid plans to hang out the next day and play tourist guide, leaving with the general well-being that eating and music bring.

Wednesday afternoon after an impulse buy of jeans (woohoo!) Uros and I met Raphael (Pierre needed to rest so opted out) and walked up to St. Sava to look at the grandeur of the temple, then have a coffee and chat before strolling back down to center. Found out that the group will be touring in the US this coming March and will be in the Pacific NW (also Boston, NYC, Oklahoma City) so I'll try to see them there. And then we always have Paris - I love having new people to visit in places that I already love (as many of you know). That night we went to see the jazz set with Uros's friend Marko and afterwards ended up having drinks, singing along with the piano and jazz standards until 2 a.m. Then some of us went (after dropping off instruments at their hotel) for rakija at Triangle bar (it's always open, down near Julia's faculty). It was just a thrilling kind of fun that one gets from talking with people who are interesting and interested in similar things (art's big, also language). We got some burek after the drinks and hung out some more - Uros and I were walking home at 6 a.m. completely content with life. He (thankfully) had lessons at 1, I wasn't working at all so no real worries there. Promises to keep in touch were exchanged, now to see if those promises sustain (I've become cynical about such things, especially in recent weeks).

This whole French connection (and oh, wasn't it grand to be speaking French again) once again showed me things I love about my life here in Belgrade, but also that the upcoming transitions will be helped because I talk to, oh, basically anyone. This week I also got to meet Uros's sister (finally!), we all had lunch. I met some of Dragana's journalist friends, have been baking a bunch, and listening to lots of music way loud in Uros's flat. Packing will begin tomorrow... yes. Tomorrow. Thankfully the highs are high enough they can carry me through the next few days and the parts of the past month that have been less than stellar.