Day Three – Orquevaux!

After a good night’s sleep in my hotel room, I gathered my luggage and taxied to the Gare de L’est train station to catch the 1:21 train to Chaumont. We were told to wait near Paul’s Cafe, as the trains to Chaumont would be at the nearby gates. Slowly, the residents traveling on the train begin to assemble. It was very hot in the train station (just like everywhere in Paris), and thus a bit uncomfortable, but it didn’t seem to dampen anyone’s spirits. We spent some time getting to know each other as we waited for the announcement. Near 1pm, we learned our train was on platform nine. By then, there were 24 of us!

The ride was a quiet and gentle one, and there were three other residents in my carriage: Sharon from Toronto, Sommer from Australia, and Anandi from Virginia. There was some chatting, but mostly we sat in silence. That was the energy in the car, and I think we all responded to it. There were only two stops–after nearly two hours we stopped in Saint Dizier. Forty minutes later, we arrived in Chaumont.

We did have a rather special traveler with us:

We arrived in Chaumont, greeted by staff members from the Chateau. They did a roll call, tagged our luggage, organized our bags into a trailer, and herded all 24 of us into three minivans.

The Chateau staff organizing us for the trip to Orquevaux.

We then headed to Orquevaux for the 45-minute ride to the chateau. It was very exciting to see it from the road–we had all seen it countless times on the website. But here it was in real life!

We were greeted with champagne, cheese and charcuterie. Warmly welcomed by the staff, we were given a brief orientation, but the employees were careful not to overload us with too much information. It had been a hot day; we had been traveling and many of us were jet-lagged. After the initial welcome, the employees took us to our rooms; we would be shown our studios and salons tomorrow. Lea led us upstairs (and we discovered our luggage had already been brought up) and directed us each to our rooms. I was elated to discover mine:

After settling in and unpacking, we headed back downstairs for dinner: vegetarian shepherd’s pie, with potatoes, green beans, salad and chocolate mousse for dessert. The dinner was delicious and we spent time connecting even more. After dinner, I took a walk with Emory, a writer and English teacher from Brooklyn, and by all accounts a first-class dude. We encountered many of the animal residents of Orquevaux.

All in all, it was a full day! I am excited about the creative energy brought by my fellow residents (there are over 25 of us) along with the inspiration from this beautiful place. And I am so grateful for the time to create. I cannot wait to discover what awaits us all the next three weeks.