Fantastic weekend, challenging essay

So in a valiant effort to continue putting off working on my essay which is due tomorrow, I am going to update my blog about all of the fun I had this weekend gallivanting around Paris. I was out Thursday and Friday, but this weekend I did less touristy things and took advantage of some more intellectual things... aka Museums. Thursday night was very chill, I hung out in a cafe with some friends and spent the evening people watching and chatting about all of the plans that everybody has for the upcoming semester.



We also talked a lot about school, and the fun things we have learned so far. I guess that makes us a little bit nerdy, but I do that at home anyway, so I can't be counted as too much of a nerd, right? But for example I have learned a lot of random gossip and fact about former french presidents and their uncanny habits of having several mistresses. Like Francois Mitterand who had a wife and two sons, but also had a mistress who founded the Musee d'Orsay or some such wild thing with whom he also had a daughter. Our prof told us that he loved his daughter way more than his sons because she was brilliant and his sons were not going to be people of interest. This would never go over in the United States. Ever. But we also learned about the lovely life of Jaques Chirac. He was the most recent president who is now really old... but he was know for his ability to eat as much as ten men, without blinking. He would go and visit the large agricultural meeting every year where the farmers from all over the country would come to show off their produce, and instead of shaking some hands and leaving after an hour, he would stay for 8 or 9 hours and eat something or drink something at every station... and no one could figure out how he could do it with out getting sick or in fact incredibly drunk since a lot of farmers had wine and cider and he would taste all of them... He also was quite a womanizer but that is another topic of conversation. Let's just say he could put JFK or Bill Clinton to shame...



But then on Friday I slept in, and went and had lunch with Matt before we went to the Museum at the Centre Pompidou. They have a collection of modern art there from 1905-1960 which was very neat, and currently an exhibit of feminist art as well. I was mostly interested in the permanent collection since I had studied a lot of the paintings we saw there in one or both of my modern art classes with Mac, and it is always much better to go and see paintings in person. It is wonderful to be in the city where so many of those artists that I have learned so much about and really love, lived and worked and painted during the 20th century... but that could just be me nerding out again. We got to go for free... but only because we pretended to be European citizens because if you are a European citizen under 26 you get to go for free... and we looked very convincingly french... or something, and just said we lived in Paris. And it was free. See Uncle Denny, I really am a Moberg, even if in this case I didn't drive to Timbuktu to get a free sandwich. I still like to keep things cheap!

Then in the evening I cooked dinner and then my friends and I went on what was supposed to be a wild adventure to discover Batofar... which turned out to be a lot of walking and not so exciting. We had to pay a 13Euro cover to get in... which we decided was absurd. Plus it was really cold on the boat, and none of us really wanted to spend the evening freezing... so we left. Maybe we will go back when it is warm and one of us wins the french lottery... do they have a french lottery? But we settled for the French version of a British pub (very random) and spent the evening just talking over the really loud music. However, we talked too much and for too long... because I missed the last metro at 1:15am and began the rather long trek back across the city on foot. Of course in an effort to look cute (ah the price of beauty) I had worn heels which made the walk seem much longer... until we stumbled across the night bus which takes people home all night long. That was an excellent find, but in running to catch the bus I twisted my ankle, which was really annoying. But finally after much more of an adventure than I was planning on, I arrived home... only to realize that I had forgotten my keys! I had to call Marie at almost 3am and ask her to let me in... luckily she wasn't upset, she understands that these things happen... but I was very embarrassed!



The next day (Saturday) I spent the afternoon at the L'Institute du Monde Arabe at their special exhibit of Islamic art. It was absolutely fascinating, and I can't wait to tell Mac and Anne all about it! It is a magnificent collection of art and objects from all over the Islamic world from as far back as the 8th century... absolutely fantastic! Then I Matt and I met up with some of his friends from high school who are studying at Versailles, and we met the worlds funniest and cutest old bar tender and the woman who ran the bar... and let me tell you that the French version of the Moberg disease (where you must talk compulsively to all people everywhere) was out in full form. It was a good evening, and we had yummy donuts too. (beingets!) It was a very fun night, and good to meet some new friends, french and American!



Then this morning, I ventured across town to the American church in Paris which Jerry Burns had told me all about. They have a very nice contemporary service at 1:30, and we met Pastor Herr afterwords and he was very nice indeed. He knows that I am here for a french experience, and he encouraged going to lots of different churches, but he said that I had a home there and if I needed anything everyone there would be willing to help... which is simply nice to know. I also ran into another DePauw alum Mike Beeman who is getting his masters here in Paris... it certainly is a small world!


But now I am slaving away on my essay for tomorrow... which actually has a plan and a structure and doesn't have to be that long... So wish me luck and bon courage! I will disperse some pics throughout this post from the adventure (or misadventure of batofar)!

A bientot!

Not Julia Child yet...

So I just cooked myself some dinner... and let's just say I am def no Julia child yet... but learning to live and cook on my own in a different country with different grocery stores and stuff like that has been quite interesting that is for sure. I am a pro at cooking noodles... and rice... and crepes actually. But so far that is adventurous as I have gotten... I am always taking suggestions of easy cheap things to cook if anyone has any suggestions! To explain some of the pics below... the one all the way at the bottom is a pic of some people working hard at IFE... the next one up is a picture of the building i am living in. If you can see the room with the colorful curtains that one is mine! Then the next one is my little neighbor hood and the other two are Sacre Coeur and the view from the steps. So there. I will put up more with this post of La Defense and some other things.

But last weekend was a blur... on Friday night I went out to an Australian bar called Cafe OZ with my new friends... which was really fun, and I got to know them better. They are all really fun, good people and I can't wait to spend the rest of the semester getting to know them. In fact in a little while I think we might go have dessert at a cafe or something. But I am not sure yet. Tomorrow starts the first of our three day weekends which is awesome! We also have plans to go to some discotech on a boat tomorrow... which I promise to write about after the fact.



Last Sunday was an interesting day as well. Matt and I tried to go to the library. Which doesn't sound all that hard right? Well what I learned from the experience was don't assume that you know how things work in a different country. They are liable to be very different, and even if you ask people to explain them to you, they leave out major details that they think are so obvious that they don't need to explain them. (Ie...where are the books?) But one can't just go into an library and ask... "where are the books" because you will look like an idiot. Even though that is really exactly what I needed to do. Needless to say I didn't want to pay 3.30 euro to try and figure out what it meant when the side said that the rooms were full, and I did not have documents proving that I was a Doctorate student. So in two words our attempt to go to the library can best be summed up by: Epic Fail.

But later I decided that is why they invented the internet right? Anyway I asked about it at IFE on Monday and they explained it all. Now I know what to do if I want to go to the library. And if you want to know... just ask :) But it was a good lesson in realizing that sometimes when you are someplace different you have to relearn how to do things that at home are so easy, if just because they are different. Anyway I took it as a life lesson, what else was there to do? And I got a really good crepe with sugar out of the deal from a stand near the library, which almost made the whole ordeal worthwhile.

I can't believe how quickly this week flew by at IFE. My classes are good, and anyone who has been following me on Twitter knows that I had an expose this week which I did today. But I will get to that in a minute. As far as my classes go, This week and last week were about the development of the Modern french state, which was right up my ally. Even though 3.5 hours in the morning is a long time to spend in class all in french, it def improved my listen comprehension, and I really enjoyed it. My prof was great, and very willing to answer any questions that we had. Today was our last day with him, we have a new prof on Monday, which will be fine, but I really liked him.



Now about my expose... first of all my prof in the afternoon has really loosened up. I like him much more now. Yesterday, wednesday, I tried to explain the concept of it being 'hump'day. Which led to a 15 minute discussion which was hilarious. Needless to say, the concept doesn't translate very well! But it was funny! But I had an expose on the memory of colonization in french society... which is exactly what I came here to study and understand. Thus my research that I did was really cool and interesting. There is this strange silence surrounding the whole thing, and a large debate about what will be taught in schools to kids. But the most interesting thing to me, is the fact that France is the only European country that does not have a museum to commemorate their colonial exploits. They have not done a a very good job incorporating the memory of colonization into their history, nor have the done a very good job incorporating their citizens who are the children of people who immigrated from the colonies. I am really glad I did this project, even though it was large and kinda scary! But I gave the presentation today, and it went much better than I though it would, even though I was kind of rambling on about colonialism at points. But in the end he only corrected me on two grammar points and I have other presentations to give, so if this one didn't go super well that is ok.

Next weekend I am off to visit Mac and Anne which I can't wait for! I am going to see their wonderful kids and spend a weekend in the country! I just can't wait. Ok now I am going to upload some pic with this post too, and i might have to do one more to get the last of the pics up.



So the pics are of the arch at La Defense... and of the Efiel tower, since I have to prove that I am really in France! I will write again this weekend about the boating discotech experience, and I will try not to get a week behind again! I resolved to write 2-3 times a week, and I want to keep up with it!

A bientot!

some pics from last weekend

So last weekend I went toursisty exploring and saw lots of things all in one day... Sacre Coeur, La Defense and the Trocodero and other things. It was a long day of subway hopping... but sadly it was kinda cloudy, so some of the pics are kind of gray. I am going to upload them while I cook dinner, then when they are done, I will write a nice long entry regaling the world with the events of the past week! Anyway it might only let me upload a few at at time... if so the rest will be in the next post!

just a regular day

So I continue to be frustrated with my speaking abilities in french... and every part of the day takes a lot more effort sometimes... but I understand almost everything my professors say which is good...and very helpful. But it takes a lot more concentration than I am used to at school at home. For instance today my professor of practical french knowledge (who I was sure hated us today for like 10 minutes... but then I called him out which was funny and he got all flustered, I'll explain in a minute) said something along the lines of (in reference to elections) "il est elu chaque six ans" and I thought that he said "il est elu chaque saison." If you speak french at all you would understand that there is a rather subtle difference between the way these two phrases sound... the first meaning "he was elected every 6 years" and the other meaning "he was elected every season." It took me a while to understand what he was really saying, and I got frustrated with myself because I should have known better. But overall my listening comprehension is improving by leaps and bounds each day which is really great. Also I am learning about french history and french politics (and the difference between prices in French and American cigarettes... random, but there has been a ban on smoking in public places like cafes and stuff for 2 years which makes eating inside in a cafe much more pleasant!) The french are none too shy to talk about all the crap that has happened and how they are on their 5th republic since 1789 which is all very interesting to know. So if you have a question... ask, cause I probs know. Good lord.

But this afternoon, my prof who is kind of a prick (thomas, but not thomas roman) was describing elections in france. There are two different types and one which is direct and then they have a run off, and he was saying that the race would be between Mr. A and Mr. B and Mr. C and Mr. D and Mr. E, and I quickly pointed out that there could be a Mrs. in the mix. It was very funny to see this pretentious french prof/journalist get all confused and try to make up for his rather silly mistake... but he did smile and laugh and I felt kind of proud of myself for being able to make him smile, and to bring him down a notch or so to our levels. It was funny I promise, and not disrespectful (don't worry mom!) But that is something that is very different in France, which is that relationships between profs and students are much more formal and distanced. That has not been my experience at DPU at all (and I guess it could be like this at large universities in the USA it is hard to say) like that, and my profs are very interested in getting to know me personally, for the most part. But not here, so sometimes I have to try to turn down my personality a little bit... but don't worry I am doing fine and understanding a lot more.

The perfect example of my close relations with my professors at DPU is proven by the fact that in 2 weeks I am going to take a train and spend the weekend with Anne Harris and Mac and their three children in Bretange. I can't wait to see them, and their kids. They are my art history profs at DPU who are spending this semester in France and they want me to come visit. I can't wait for that!

A toute a l'heure!

Challenges

Ok… so I am in bed ready to go to sleep before 10:30pm. And I don’t think that Jet lag really has anything to do with it. Today was an absolutely exhausting day. Class this morning was good, and I am glad that I am interested in history and things like that because otherwise the 3.5 hour class in the morning could possibly be very painful… but I find what we are studying to be very interesting which is very helpful. Then this afternoon I had class again with journalist Thomas which was fine, but he does not seem to be very nice or friendly or really like to teach at all… which I find to be a bit strange, but whatever I suppose.
However the really interesting thing that happened this afternoon was that I went and met the woman who is going to be the supervisor for my internship at L’institute du Monde Arabe. For some reason I thought that this meeting between the two of us and Thomas from IFE (not my prof) was supposed to happen on the 20th of Feb… But rather it was January instead. So I was a little surprised when this was what I was doing this afternoon, but I had worn nice clothes so that was a good thing. I was a little nervous but that is to be expected I guess. Needless to say it was a very taxing hour. I spent the entire meeting working harder than I think I have ever worked before to try to understand every word she was saying and what it might mean for me in the next few months. She told me that there is lots of work to be done; I just have to be approved by the administration of the museum. Thomas does not seem to think that this is a problem and everything should come together in the next few weeks.
However, as I rode the bus back to IFE today, and I watched the city go by, I began to feel very nervous/scared about my internship. I know that I am a hard worker and that I can be a real asset to the museum and to anyone that I work for… but that one hour of time that I spent there today was absolutely exhausting. The past days have been good for my French but I feel like I have also spent a good amount of time being frustrated because there are so many times where I want to say something but it just can’t come out right… Or I am trying to get someone to understand me properly and my pronunciation fails me completely. It is very difficult. Even class that would normally not be that hard is made ten times harder because I have to focus on each word that is said to glean the meaning of the sentences. It is really hard work, and it is far more exhausting for my brain to try to do that than I think it is for me to do hours and hours of homework.
So today riding back to IFE on the bus I felt scared and tired of being in an environment that is constantly challenging me… and I thought about how much longer I am going to spend in this difficult and challenging environment… and I felt homesick for the first time. I didn’t feel miserable at all or anything… but when you are tired and things are hard/challenging, nothing sounds better than going home. I know that things will get easier as I find my routine better and adjust to the French language and things like that, but today was very hard. I came home and cooked some pasta which was cheap and good… but now, before 11:00 I am ready for bed, which is very much unlike me. But that is ok…each day presents new challenges and I just keep thinking that each day I get a little better at French. My listening comprehension has def improved already… and my speaking will get there too I just know it. But it takes more than 5 days, and since I still have 5 months here I have every faith that it will get easier. J’espere.
Bonne Nuit.

exploring

Salut!

It is Tuesday and I have been here since Friday. Sometimes it feels like just minutes have passed since I stepped off the plane and other times it feels like years. On Saturday Marie helped me get a phone, which was great because she and I need to keep in touch about somethings... like the other random woman who lives here who appeared tonight and did not have a key so I had to let her in... ok weird, but whatever. Marie is wonderful. She is a comedienne... so I am not sure what she does all day, but she is also studying to become a theater professor which is cool. On Sunday (I slept forever! Jet lag is a really really weird thing!) and then she went to the library to study. That evening she and her mom and I went to see a movie (it was actually in English it was Bright Star a BBC movie about the life of John Keats I highly recommend it!)But then we walked back to her apartment most of the way and just talked about things and got to know each other a little better which was very nice. She is very patient with my french and corrects me when I need it, and tries very hard to understand me when I am making no sense. I couldn't have asked for a better situation. The majority of kids doing IFE live in foyers which are kind of like dorms. I could have done that but I am so glad to have Marie. I come and go as I please like the other students who live in the foyer but I have someone to talk to and help me learn faster, and to answer all my questions and to have dinner with and all of those things. It is really great. You have seen the pics of my room, which is really nice, and to top off all of my good luck I found a working straightener tonight on the rue de saite michel so I don't have to look like a crazy person at IFE tomorrow!

I mostly spent the weekend walking around the city and exploring and resting up for IFE. I took some random pics which I posted yesterday.

IFE is not at all far from where Marie lives (and me too now!) but she it is a 20 minute walk to the metro in the mornings so I have to leave about 45 minutes early so that I wont be late. But don't worry I plan on stopping at the boulangerie (bread and pastry shop) to buy a cheap and yummy breakfast everyday. The woman who owns it already recognizes me and calls me by a little pet name which is funny! But in the mornings I brave the rush hour traffic on the Metro (which is really easy to navigate and get around on... I only have gotten on a train going in the wrong direction once!) Which makes me feel very grown up (like I am going to work or something not at all like at DPU) and I ride a few stops down, get off and walk to IFE. There I have one class in the morning with a very nice, funny and very french professor about the history of the French state and French politics. Then I have an hour and a half for lunch (which I already packed my lunch for tomorrow, aren't you proud mom?) I am having a yogurt and bread and cheese and chips and an apple. maybe some nutella for dessert... we shall see. Then in the afternoon i have a class which has the homework... several presentations and a paper over the next 5 weeks. The professor for that class is a young journalist who writes for Le Monde (a french newspaper) but he is much more serious and talks a lot faster which makes him difficult to understand sometimes... but I guess I will just get better at french quicker if that is the case. At least I hope so.

I have even made some new friends... Laura, Sarah, Ryan, Matt (my friends) and I all went out to lunch on Monday and had a glass of wine together after class on Tuesday... and we are all going to go on an adventure to a discotheque on Friday night... which I will be very interested to see how it goes. It is weird because starting this program is kinda like starting a DePauw 2 years ago... we all want to be friends cause all of us are pretty much alone here. It is funny and a little strange, but we all get along well and understand the french each one speaks so that is good. It is weird to think that my program has only been going for 2 days... and tomorrow it is back to the books. I know that the next 5 weeks are going to be a challenge and then my internship is probably going to be a different kind of a challenge after that... but I am doing well and hopefully going to continue to learn quickly. But I have to get up early tomorrow, which if you know me at all you know that is not going to be an easy thing to do... but I will! I'll write again soon!

Bonne Nuit!

more later...

So now I am very tired, and I will write more tomorrow about my first days in Paris... I have not officially visited anything too touristy... but I have some pictures that I have taken of some good city scenes... and the arc d'triomphe... so here are the pics and I will write more tomorrow.

A day of never have I evers

So, I have flown across the ocean, dragged two absurd suitcases, my back pack and a very shiny purse across Paris, flagged down five taxi’s (four of which were unable to pick me up… but I talked to all of the drivers… I speak French one thing is for sure) found the nicest taxi driver in the world who saved my very tired butt, and came into a lovely apartment. The point of that sentence simply is to say: I made it. The flights were fine, not a single hitch. Except our landing was really weird, it was so foggy that everyone thought we were still coming down through the clouds when in reality we were touching down on the ground. It was crazy.

Then I got hit on by the customs guy, found my suitcases, changed some money, and after already having been awake and traveling for almost 18 hours I set out on the across the city to venture to find 21bis rue de l’aoutte. It turned out to be one the most taxing three hours of my life… I thought I would arrive around 12:00pm but I didn’t make here until 2. As described before I dragged a ton of stuff through the RER and the metro, looking like a fool… but I did it without too much trouble… until I emerged from the subway and needed to hail a cab. I have never hailed a cab before in my life. So why not start in Paris right? I was told by the first driver that “ce n’est pas trop loin” (It’s not far at all!) so I tried to walk, asked a million people for directions (ok 4, but anyone who tries to tell you that Parisians are unfriendly and unhelpful simply has not been lost on the street corner with two bags and a bleeding thumb. Everyone I talked to was very nice and very helpful (even if their directions turned out to be completely wrong) and I finally stood on the same corner where I started, and found the nicest cab driver in the city, who promptly delivered me to Marie’s apartment. And for the record it was way too far to walk with 2 suitcases thank you very much Mr. It’s not that far.

One really cool thing though was that right when I came up from the Metro, and I had no idea where I was, or which way to go or how to hail a cab, was that right down the middle of the busy street I was on, I could see L’tour Effiel through all of the fog and mist. I knew then that I was here, and all of this is real, and I felt very good about having made it this far. I may not have known exactly where to go or what to do… but I knew I was in Paris, right where I have been wanting be since I was about seven years old. That was a very exhilarating feeling.

Marie was not here when I got here, but she left me so many notes and keys and candy that I felt right at home. And my life will be much easier now that I don’t have to drag 2 suitcases all over the world, just a very shiny purse. But I got all settled in, tried to battle with the internet (only to find out from Marie that it is getting fixed tonight) and got all unpacked. Then I took a little nap until Marie came home. She is absolutely wonderful. She is young and pretty and nice, and very excited to have me here. She is going to help me find a cell phone tomorrow, and then I am going to go exploring. So anyway, long story short: I made it with only a minor trauma to my thumb, and a tired back.

Marie and I are currently speaking a funny mix of English and French… mostly French unless I don’t understand, but sometimes she can’t help me in English either, so it will be interesting to see how my French improves! I can’t wait. I am feeling good at the moment… tired but hopefully a good night’s sleep tonight will get me on the fast track to being adjusted to the time difference and exploring tomorrow will be good.

I was feeling very emotional this afternoon when I was by myself and feeling very unconnected from the world, but now I am feeling relieved that Marie is so nice and sweet, and that I have a nice bed to sleep in (the pics are of my room) and that I made it here safely. I have talked to everyone in my family except my mom, but I am sure that I will get a hold of her soon. I had a decent journey today… although I realized afterwards that I did a lot of this that you are not supposed to do.

1) I wandered around looking lost and forgotten trying to figure out my life, making me a good target for thieves, but I was lucky.

2) I also had my driver’s license and my passport ad all my money and credit cards in the same place, which was not a good life decision, simply because I was wandering around looking lost and forlorn and I could have lost everything. I should have at least put my passport in my backpack! I feel so stupid! But nothing bad came of it, and I guess now I will be more aware in the future.

3) I would not recommend to anyone to bring two suitcases. Unless someone is coming to collect you directly from the airport… travel lighter than I did! I am sure that I will be glad to have a lot of the things that I brought with me at one point or another, but good lord they almost pushed me down an escalator, made my thumb bleed profusely and made my travels across the city much more tiresome! Once again, I did it without any thing horrible happening, but if I were making recommendations to people for the future, I would not suggest this! Consolidate!

So yeah, the pics are of my room here, and I will post some more as they come. But I am alive and well, and looking forward to the future days of exploring and of IFE starting. So here I go. Bon Courage.

musing

So I am laying in my bed for the last time for a while... and it doesn't seem quite real that after tonight, I won't be back here until June. It won't even be like when I am at school, where I come home for a weekend here or there, and I could come home anytime I wanted to just because. For the next few months I will have to make my home in Paris with Marie, and learn to be flexible, and hope that my french improves quickly!

I am going to miss home... and my home at DPU. I will miss everyone at AXO and the CSL (Daryl, a shout out to you) and I will miss Ty, and my mom and mirandy and my Grandma, but probably not Skeeter Bug the devil Dog. It is just weird to think about how all the normal things in my life that I see everyday, won't be there for a while. I am so excited for all the fun things that I am going to do and see, and all my friends that I will meet up with, but now all of that seems sort of strangely surreal.

But I put a bunch of stuff into two suitcases (not going to lie, I am probably bringing WAY too many shoes. Good lord I have a lot of shoes.) But I just keep thinking... what if I need this, and what will I wear with that? I just don't know exactly what to expect, which I guess is kind of what makes everything a little scary. The off campus study people told us what to expect... kind of a U shaped experience (if you want to know more about that look it up on the dpu website) But it is good to know to expect ups and downs and to know before I leave that things will be fun, and hard all at the same time. When I was packing stuff I realized how many half filled journals I have... and I am really glad that I have decided to keep this blog. It will be a lot faster and easier for me to type my thoughts, and maybe it wont be half filled like my journals, and I can keep it nicely updated for myself and for anyone at home who might care at all. I will try to keep pics coming so everyone can see what I am up to (for !who don't use facebook MOM).

My flight out of Cincinnati leaves at 3:52 and my flight to Paris leaves at 9pm... Wish me luck, and safe travels, and no obnoxious delays! so Friday morning I will be in France... and next time I update this it will be from my room in Sainte-Mande!

A bientot!

still figuring out blogging...

ok well, while i figure out how to post pics, everyone can see some fun pics taken with my awesome new camera that my mom gave me for christmas of the fun we had at Christine's house on New Year's Eve.

the night before the night before

So the past few days have been filled errands, good byes and skype practice sessions (with my mom, where upstairs represents France and downstairs is home). The past few days have also been filled with strange but also good emotions. Am I nervous? Yes. Am I excited? Yes. Right now it is all a mix of nerves and excitement, and I am trying to keep straight in my head everything there is to do. Normally I am a big list maker... but so far I have only made one list, and it was far from complete and I forgot to do have the stuff on it anyway. I also forgot to go to my lunch date with Mark Fellows today... sorry Mark, I am glad dinner worked out though.

I heard from Marie yesterday, and she seems excited to meet me, which is comforting and it gives me a friendly face to look forward to! Right now I think the thing I am most worried about is lugging two huge suitcases across the city from the airport to where she lives! That could be quite the trek, but I simply think that a cab will be way too expensive. Plus that will be a good way to help myself get accustomed to living in the city right? Because let's face it. The move from rural Greencastle IN to Paris France could not be a bigger change- french culture shock or not, I am going to have urban life shock I think! That will be cool I know, but still a big change for me.

I think all of the laundry is done now, and most of my friends are either already abroad or back at school, so I will soon join them. I have had a wonderful break with my family. Mirandy and I have gotten along really well, and my mom too. We have had so many nice dinners together, just the three of us, and with family friends. I have missed getting to see Mamaw a lot, but know that mom and Mamaw might come visit is cool. It is also weird to think that our family will all be together at the same time less in the next year (especially if Mirandy spends the summer in TX) and so all the time we have now is really important to enjoy. I have really had an awesome break, and I am sad to see it pass by so quickly, but now on to bigger things, much farther away from home.

I have dreamed since I was 7 years old (and first became interested in things having to do with France and French) of studying abroad for a semester in college: and here it is. On thursday I will jump on a plane and go into the exciting (and borderline terrifying) unknown. I can do it, I know I can. Nerves or no nerves I am on my way!

(also I can't wait to look back in 6 months and think about how nervous I was...)