Monday: Lindsey and I were one of the few people to stay behind after the Normandy tour. We checked out of our hostel at 10 am and had a few hours to kill before our train back to Paris. We walked around the town with a few other Abbey-ians and eventually arrived to Paris around 3 pm. Lindsey and I had to decide where we were going to stay the night, since the airport we needed to fly out of early the next morning was an hour away from Paris. We found a cheap hotel 3 miles from the airport and so we had to take a shuttle to Beauvais. The shuttle was awful. 60 people in a bus with no airconditioning. Hot and smelly. Yuck. Beauvais airport is the size of my high school so we had to wait about 20 minutes for a taxi. We arrived to our motel a while later and grabbed some dinner at a diner next door and hit the sack- we had to be up at 5 am.
Tuesday: We arrived to Beauvais airport early and had to wait in several lines for Dublin. A huge school tour group of about 40 fifteen year olds were on the same flight as me. I misread my checked bag weight limit and thought I could carry on 50 kgs of luggage…. Boy was I wrong. It was in fact 15 kg. There was no post service to ship a bag home or anything and I would have had to pay 120 euro (200 dollars) everytime I flew (which was 3 more times). Long story short, I had to say goodbye to: 2 pairs of jeans, 2 shirts, my blowdryer, a bag full of brand-new beauty products and about 4 books. I was definitely not in a good mood at all. Luckily though, I feel asleep straight through the plane ride. As soon as we landed, I was in a good mood. I think it was because of the Irish. I freakin’ love the Irish people. As soon as we went through customs and all that, we were outside waiting for our bus and the weather was SO cold. It was snowing too… Nice. We had a nice 25 minute drive through Dublin and we arrived at our hostel a while later which the help of a nice Irish local to pointed us the right direction. When we walked in, the 2 male receptionists (which one looked like an elf, no joke) offered us a warm towel to dry off with and a shot of vodka. I accepted the towel. The hostel was AWESOME. Young people, lots of information, warm 3 story building facing the river and funny signs and posters everywhere. They told us a good place for lunch was the Brazen Head Pub, which is the oldest pub in Dublin. It was a block over and it was really good! I had a bowl of chowder and Irish soda bread. After a long nap, Lindsey and I walked around the city and found a good pub to go to for dinner. We ended up at an Italian place that offered a free bottle of wine with dinner- couldn’t refuse. After that, we found a local pub and I had my first Guinness. It was a lot better then what I expected!! We hung out there for a while and then headed back home for a good night’s sleep!
Wednesday: Woke up and showered and walked around Dublin some more. We stopped by some churches and looked in the local stores. We had a quick lunch and then went to some vintage stores. We were really cold and tired again so we were lucky enough to find a cinema that was playing Alice in Wonderland! We had been wanting to see it for so long and in france, most of the cinemas were playing it only in French. The movie was awesome! After that, we went to the shopping district and did a little shopping (window shopping for me). We went back to the hostel to pack up our bags and warmed up some more and then went to an American diner down the street for a cheap and quick bite. Vanilla malts and a cheeseburger later, we were in bed by 8pm because we had to be up at 3 am to catch the shuttle to the airport to leave for London.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
"Ma Vie en Normandy"
Saturday: Train ride to Normandy!!! This was my favorite part of the first week. I LOVED Normandy. Saturday was a slow day, just unpacked and had dinner at a cafe.Sunday: Sunday was the most important day of the whole week for me. We were up early and toured all the beaches from WW2 and went to Pointe du Hoc. We saw German miliary weapons and saw craters in the ground 15 feet deep from 60 years ago. Omaha Beach was very cool. I saw and understood how the Americans had to climb over this massive hill. I don't understand how they did it. The weather was shitty and it made the day even more emotional. Dr. Mackaman lead the tour and he told us so much about D-day. I learned so much.
The turning point of my trip occurred at the American Cemetery mainly for some reasons I won't post online. However, one thing that Dr. Mackaman asked us to do was to find a solider and thank him. I decided that I wanted to find a private from Texas, because chances are was that he would be around my age. The solider I chose was Charles L. Kestler, Jr. I bought him a metro ticket to Paris to thank him for giving me the chance to be able to come here. It was the emotional I had ever been on this trip and probably will be. Another thing that was important was the Dooley Brothers from Texas too and seeing Theodore Roosevelt's son's cross. The cemetery was beautiful and it was so nice to be back on American soil for a hour. All the plants (included the grass) was grown in the US, so it was oddly familiar and comforting.
That night we went back to our cute little hostel and CRASHED! Physically and emotionally exhausted we all were! A quick dinner made by our hostel and a shower later, we were back into bed because Spring Break was about to start!!!
More tomorrow :)
"Ma Vie en Paris"
Wow. It's been nearly a month since I've last updated this blog. It feels like a near eternity. I've decided that I'm going to update the next few blogs of each city I visited with the pictures included so this blog isn't long!
My first week of my vacation was Paris, Versailles, Normandy and its beaches. We arrived to Paris by bus on Saturday afternoon. We were extremely lucky to have our own hotel rooms, it made everyone more sane and a hot shower to yourself was the best treat. Saturday basically consisted of checking in, un-packing sort of thing. After that, we went on a couple hour walk around the Latin Quarter, which was the neighborhood we were staying in. We grabbed some dinner and had to hurry home because we were seeing a Oriental Cabaret. The cabaret was DREADFUL. Very very high school production, but we all had a good laugh about it afterwards. Bedtime was early because we had a long day Sunday.
Sunday: Hopped on the RER (a metro line) and toured Versailles. It was beautiful!! The lines were long and it was SO crowded, but we had a GREAT time. We had lunch in Versailles and rode the train back to the city. My friends and I took a long, needed nap afterwards. After that, we had a quick pizza in the Latin Quarter and went to a little market to get some soap and shampoo sort of thing.
Monday: Day 1 of our 3 walking tours. I was with Dr. Mackaman, who is the director of the Abbey Program and he's a genius of French History. He has a PhD and all that good stuff, so I knew this French Revolution walk I was going on would be amazing. We walked EVERYWHERE!!!! The Panthenon, Notre Dame, lots of churches, some park that I don't remember the name of and the area around the Louvre. It was a great walk!! We walked from 10 am to about 5 am. Needless to say, my friends and I took it easy that night. We ate McDonalds, which was a huge treat and hung out at the hotel with our friends and some of our professors.
Tuesday: Another walk with Dr. Mackaman. The walk was about modern France and post-revolution. We went to a museum and saw the infamous "thinker" statute. We also saw the Eiffel Tower!! It was my first time to see it, and it was AMAZING. The weather was a perfect 74 degrees and Alexis and I ate lunch underneath it. The walk ended early for us, so we had a great afternoon to wander around the city. We went back to the Notre Dame and did a little shopping and had a cup of coffee. I loved the Notre Dame so much! Alexis treated me to a pedicure for my birthday and we had a lame pedicure a block down from our hotel, so we had to walk back with those little flip flops because we had boots on. It was so funny! After a shower, we all headed out to see the Eiffel Tower "sparkle" and to get some dinner. Long story, a taxi cab ride back 2 hours later, we ate dinner close to our hotel. Saw the tower sparkle 3 miles from it. LOL.
Wednesday: Our free day!! Slept in a little, and had a picnic in the Luxembourg Gardens. We read and had a great sunny afternoon. Katie and I then went to H&M, which is one of my favorite stores! That night, a bunch of girls and I went to a bar in the Latin Quarter by the river called the "Le Who" Bar. It still to this day is my favorite place in Paris. It was a live-music bar sort type of thing. The duo that played that night sang all of our american favorites from U2 to Oasis. Needless to say, after a few glasses of wine, we were all singing along with the band and had the best time.
Thursday: I went on a walk with my French professor. The walk was through the immigrant part of Paris. It was SO cool. We went through the Chinese, Muslim, Indian, Spanish and Korean neighborhoods in Paris. The weather was very rainy and we went to this cool discount department store and I got some cheap beauty products that I needed badly! That night, almost everyone from the Abbey came back to Le Who Bar. The wine was flowing and the music was loud and it was a GREAT night again.
Friday: Louvre day. Went in for a while, but didn't stay too long because it was SO crowded, and for those of you who know me know that I HATE crowds! LOL. We had a lunch and I went with Alexis to get her tattoo and then we took a metro up to see the Moulin Rouge. We didn't realize that the Moulin Rouge was in a bad part of town, so we took a taxi home. It was so fun, that taxi ride!! That night, we ate gyros in front of the Notre Dame for dinner and spent another night at Le Who. We arrived back to the hotel pretty late at night since it was our last night in Paris. :(
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
"Ma Vie en France"
I find myself not wanting to leave France at all while I'm in my classes. I wonder why, too. It's a room with several long wooden tables and chairs, tile floors, one white-board and three windows with wooden shutters that overlook the town of Pontlevoy, France. In the mornings and early afternoons, the sun shines so brightly. When the weather is warmer than usual, our teachers open the windows and let the clean, French air go deep into our lungs.
Yesterday was probably our first warm day since we've been here for just over a month. The 55 degree sunny weather instantly puts everyone in a great mood. The professors are more energized, we're more intruiged to learn and everyone in town seems to be going for an afternoon walk.
Its an amazing energy that I haven't seen elsewhere. I spent part of the afternoon hanging out with other Abbey-ians in the gardens, which are located in the "backyards" of the Abbey. It was just warm enough to not have to wear a jacket.
We're all also so excited for our upcoming Paris/Normandy week and our 2 week spring break. We leave for Paris this Saturday by bus. This is the first year they're getting us hotel rooms instead of hostels (HALLELUJAH!). Our days will be spent with small groups of 7 and an assigned professor to give their own walking tour that corresponds with their classes. As a treat, the program is taking us on a boat cruise on our last night there. HOW COOL IS THAT!! We are also spending two days in Normandy. We're seeing the American cemetery and Omaha Beach (I'm most excited for this). One day will also be spent in Versailles.
Tuesday, March 31, Lindsey and I are jetting off from Paris to Dublin, Ireland. We're staying in a hostel downtown. After two nights, we're leaving April 1st early in the morning for a quick flight to London. We're staying 3 nights. We're meeting up with my good friend Alexis' parents and gonna do all those touristy things. Of course I signed up for the Official Beatles Tour. Easter Sunday, we're flying to Rome and staying there for 5 nights. We're staying on a river, near the Vatican. On that Wednesday, we're going hear the Pope say mass. I think we may do a day trip to Florence because we're there for so long!
Finally, on our last weekend, were going to the coast of Italy and staying in an area called the Cinque Terre. Hopefully it'll be warm, cause we're right on the beach. Sangria and gnocchi are complentary. We're renting out a cheap apartment for six of us! After an afternoon in Pisa, we arrive back to Paris on April the 11.
It's going to be amazing, long, tiring, nerve wracking, stressful and downright everything I hope and more. I look forward to trying to navigate the London Tube, drinking local beer with the Irish, trying authentic Italian food, getting lost in Rome and meeting up with my friends for a relaxing weekend trip on the beaches in Italy.
It'll be funny to re-read this blog entry after I come back. Will I be exhausted, stinky and sunburned, yet accomplished and full of stories to tell? Or will I look back wondering why I did this or why I didn't see that? Either way, it's an experience I'll never be able to experience again.
I'll never again in my life be a young 20 year old with a backpack, a few friends and basically a empty wallet. When I come back, I know I'll either be older with my own family or husband. Maybe my parents and I will go. Or maybe I'll go again by myself on a work trip? Either way, this trip is pretty freakin' insane and I cannot wait to let you all know how it goes.
See y'all in a few weeks! :)
Yesterday was probably our first warm day since we've been here for just over a month. The 55 degree sunny weather instantly puts everyone in a great mood. The professors are more energized, we're more intruiged to learn and everyone in town seems to be going for an afternoon walk.
Its an amazing energy that I haven't seen elsewhere. I spent part of the afternoon hanging out with other Abbey-ians in the gardens, which are located in the "backyards" of the Abbey. It was just warm enough to not have to wear a jacket.
We're all also so excited for our upcoming Paris/Normandy week and our 2 week spring break. We leave for Paris this Saturday by bus. This is the first year they're getting us hotel rooms instead of hostels (HALLELUJAH!). Our days will be spent with small groups of 7 and an assigned professor to give their own walking tour that corresponds with their classes. As a treat, the program is taking us on a boat cruise on our last night there. HOW COOL IS THAT!! We are also spending two days in Normandy. We're seeing the American cemetery and Omaha Beach (I'm most excited for this). One day will also be spent in Versailles.
Tuesday, March 31, Lindsey and I are jetting off from Paris to Dublin, Ireland. We're staying in a hostel downtown. After two nights, we're leaving April 1st early in the morning for a quick flight to London. We're staying 3 nights. We're meeting up with my good friend Alexis' parents and gonna do all those touristy things. Of course I signed up for the Official Beatles Tour. Easter Sunday, we're flying to Rome and staying there for 5 nights. We're staying on a river, near the Vatican. On that Wednesday, we're going hear the Pope say mass. I think we may do a day trip to Florence because we're there for so long!
Finally, on our last weekend, were going to the coast of Italy and staying in an area called the Cinque Terre. Hopefully it'll be warm, cause we're right on the beach. Sangria and gnocchi are complentary. We're renting out a cheap apartment for six of us! After an afternoon in Pisa, we arrive back to Paris on April the 11.
It's going to be amazing, long, tiring, nerve wracking, stressful and downright everything I hope and more. I look forward to trying to navigate the London Tube, drinking local beer with the Irish, trying authentic Italian food, getting lost in Rome and meeting up with my friends for a relaxing weekend trip on the beaches in Italy.
It'll be funny to re-read this blog entry after I come back. Will I be exhausted, stinky and sunburned, yet accomplished and full of stories to tell? Or will I look back wondering why I did this or why I didn't see that? Either way, it's an experience I'll never be able to experience again.
I'll never again in my life be a young 20 year old with a backpack, a few friends and basically a empty wallet. When I come back, I know I'll either be older with my own family or husband. Maybe my parents and I will go. Or maybe I'll go again by myself on a work trip? Either way, this trip is pretty freakin' insane and I cannot wait to let you all know how it goes.
See y'all in a few weeks! :)
Monday, March 8, 2010
"When in Belgium"
There is nothing more than I love than Belgium!! I guessed something extremely different, and was more than happy then what I was expecting.
On Thursday, Alexis, Katie, Lindsey and I hopped on a train with some other Abbey-ians and arrived in Paris around 9:30 pm. We had to take the metro to arrive to our hostel which was located in North Paris in the Pig Alley District. We checked into our hostel, which was basically a hole in the wall, but did what it needed to do: let us sleep! We found a little burger joint and had a quick dinner there. It was the best burger I've ever had! LOL. We then arrived back home and hit the sack before midnight.
Friday morning, we woke up at 5:30 am to arrive to Gare Nord. We again had to take the metro, which I love, and we got to the station with about 30 minutes to kill. Several espressos later, we were seated and on our way to Belgium. Alexis and I had seats by each other we dozed off and slept for the whole hour train ride. When we arrived in Brussels, we had to catch another train to Brugge, which was where our hostel was. Luckily for us, our Eurostar ticket allowed us to use any Belgian train! We saved about 50 bucks!
Another train ride later, we arrived in the lovely town of Brugge. Brugge is a town about an hour north of Brussels and is so cute!! We caught a bus to the Markt, which is sort of like the town square of Brugge. Alexis took charge and led us to what she thought was our street where our hostel was. 45 minutes later, we realized that we were no where close to where we needed to be! I laugh at it now. There was me, holding a HUGE fold out map, Alexis, standing on a street corner trying to decide what street we were on, and Katie and Lindsey who were trying to stay warm. A old German man passed us and asked if we needed help and luckily for us, he spoke perfect English. He showed us that we were about a mile and a half in the other direction. Alexis was not allowed to navagate any more and the whole experience was so funny!
We finally arrived to our hostel (which only would have been a 5 minute walk) and immediately set out to find some lunch. We were famished! Down the street from our hostel was a little cafe owned by an extremely nice woman. Juliette's served breakfast and lunch and we all had a great lunch there. We found out then that water was not free in Brugge, and for the rest of the trip, water was at least 30% of our meal price!
We went shopping after that and of course, I found yet another H&M. I only bought a cardigan Mom! Brugge has lots of little shops and we spent the rest of the afternoon doing just that. We went back to our hostel around 5pm and took a well needed power nap. We were SO tired. We then got up and found a little restaurant that was located in the Markt. It was incredible. Sort of pricey, but well worth it. 3 courses for about 20 euro (tax, tip and beverage included). I had this cheese appetizer, lasagna and mouse for dessert. Katie went after the famous mussels and Alexis and Lindsey had some chicken thing. It was a great dinner and we all had a great conversation! After that, we found this street which is famous for its bars and its nightlife. We went to two bars and had a great time. We again called it early and were asleep by 12 am.
Saturday we slept in a little, grabbed a cheap lunch and headed out to see the historical Brugge. We went to several little souvenir shops, took pictures all around the city and took an amazing boat tour through all the canals. Our tour guide was a hoot: he looked just like Chef Boyardee. He spoke perfect English, which was a plus. Most of the people there spoke great English and were by are the nicest people I've met on my trip so far. Katie, Alexis and Lindsey are chocolate fanatics and we stopped at several chocolate stores. They all spent so much on Belgian chocolate. I sampled a bit, it was really good! We went back to our hostel for another nap and went out for a quick dinner again. Not as good as Friday night, but we went to a little bakery and sampled of course a Belgian waffle. We went to bed again early because we had to be at the train station by 7 am.
Yesterday was basically full of travel. We arrived back to Brussels and had about a 3 hour layover before our train to Paris arrived. We met another american student there so that was pretty cool. She was from Philly and was studying in London (which I positively cannot wait to see). After we arrived back to Paris, we were fortunate enough to catch the train back to Montrichard with 2 minutes to spare!! About Abbey-ians were on that train so we were all happy to see one another there. We arrived back to campus around 8:30 that night and I got to talk to my family on skype for the first time since I've been in Europe. It was AWESOME.
I'm so tired from this past weekend, but it was amazing. I love Belgium and I certainly want to go back soon!! We leave for Paris in one week! We stay there for one week, and then we are off for 14 days on our own! I'm a little nervous, but I am SO excited!! :)
On Thursday, Alexis, Katie, Lindsey and I hopped on a train with some other Abbey-ians and arrived in Paris around 9:30 pm. We had to take the metro to arrive to our hostel which was located in North Paris in the Pig Alley District. We checked into our hostel, which was basically a hole in the wall, but did what it needed to do: let us sleep! We found a little burger joint and had a quick dinner there. It was the best burger I've ever had! LOL. We then arrived back home and hit the sack before midnight.
Friday morning, we woke up at 5:30 am to arrive to Gare Nord. We again had to take the metro, which I love, and we got to the station with about 30 minutes to kill. Several espressos later, we were seated and on our way to Belgium. Alexis and I had seats by each other we dozed off and slept for the whole hour train ride. When we arrived in Brussels, we had to catch another train to Brugge, which was where our hostel was. Luckily for us, our Eurostar ticket allowed us to use any Belgian train! We saved about 50 bucks!
Another train ride later, we arrived in the lovely town of Brugge. Brugge is a town about an hour north of Brussels and is so cute!! We caught a bus to the Markt, which is sort of like the town square of Brugge. Alexis took charge and led us to what she thought was our street where our hostel was. 45 minutes later, we realized that we were no where close to where we needed to be! I laugh at it now. There was me, holding a HUGE fold out map, Alexis, standing on a street corner trying to decide what street we were on, and Katie and Lindsey who were trying to stay warm. A old German man passed us and asked if we needed help and luckily for us, he spoke perfect English. He showed us that we were about a mile and a half in the other direction. Alexis was not allowed to navagate any more and the whole experience was so funny!
We finally arrived to our hostel (which only would have been a 5 minute walk) and immediately set out to find some lunch. We were famished! Down the street from our hostel was a little cafe owned by an extremely nice woman. Juliette's served breakfast and lunch and we all had a great lunch there. We found out then that water was not free in Brugge, and for the rest of the trip, water was at least 30% of our meal price!
We went shopping after that and of course, I found yet another H&M. I only bought a cardigan Mom! Brugge has lots of little shops and we spent the rest of the afternoon doing just that. We went back to our hostel around 5pm and took a well needed power nap. We were SO tired. We then got up and found a little restaurant that was located in the Markt. It was incredible. Sort of pricey, but well worth it. 3 courses for about 20 euro (tax, tip and beverage included). I had this cheese appetizer, lasagna and mouse for dessert. Katie went after the famous mussels and Alexis and Lindsey had some chicken thing. It was a great dinner and we all had a great conversation! After that, we found this street which is famous for its bars and its nightlife. We went to two bars and had a great time. We again called it early and were asleep by 12 am.
Saturday we slept in a little, grabbed a cheap lunch and headed out to see the historical Brugge. We went to several little souvenir shops, took pictures all around the city and took an amazing boat tour through all the canals. Our tour guide was a hoot: he looked just like Chef Boyardee. He spoke perfect English, which was a plus. Most of the people there spoke great English and were by are the nicest people I've met on my trip so far. Katie, Alexis and Lindsey are chocolate fanatics and we stopped at several chocolate stores. They all spent so much on Belgian chocolate. I sampled a bit, it was really good! We went back to our hostel for another nap and went out for a quick dinner again. Not as good as Friday night, but we went to a little bakery and sampled of course a Belgian waffle. We went to bed again early because we had to be at the train station by 7 am.
Yesterday was basically full of travel. We arrived back to Brussels and had about a 3 hour layover before our train to Paris arrived. We met another american student there so that was pretty cool. She was from Philly and was studying in London (which I positively cannot wait to see). After we arrived back to Paris, we were fortunate enough to catch the train back to Montrichard with 2 minutes to spare!! About Abbey-ians were on that train so we were all happy to see one another there. We arrived back to campus around 8:30 that night and I got to talk to my family on skype for the first time since I've been in Europe. It was AWESOME.
I'm so tired from this past weekend, but it was amazing. I love Belgium and I certainly want to go back soon!! We leave for Paris in one week! We stay there for one week, and then we are off for 14 days on our own! I'm a little nervous, but I am SO excited!! :)
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
"Il n'y a qu'un bonheur dans la vie, c'est d'aimer et d'être aimé."
For those of you who aren't fluent in French, the quote above means "There is only one happiness in life, to love and to be loved".
It's a Wednesday night, and it's about 8:30 and we're all watching a movie in a theatre type room called "The Flying Buttress". It's a Wednesday tradition where the Abbey plays movies that may be mandatory for certain students in certain classes, but for the most part, we all like to watch them. Today is a movie called the Enemy of the State... Not exactly my cup of tea, but last week we watched a movie called "La Vie en Rose", which is a movie about the life and death of Edith Piaf. It was probably one of the best movies I've ever seen. My friends and I are now obsessed with the movie and Piaf.
Speaking of traditions, there's a tradition that my friend Alexis and I sort of started/continued. Tuesday nights here in Pontlevoy is now a themed party night at the bar across the street. Last week was called "A Black and White Affair" and last night we hosted one called "Tacky Tuesday". They both have been very successful and last night was by far one of the most fun nights here in France so far. Alexis and I came up with a playlist and gave it to the bar owner, Julien and everyone loved it! Julien decorates the bar too, and all of our local friends come out too. Next week is probably going to be pajamas or dress all in one color.. We don't have a lot of options. Not many of us packed costumes lol.
This weekend Alexis, Katie, Lindsey and I are going to Brussels and Bruges. We're leaving tomorrow night to arrive in Paris and we're staying in a little hostel by the train station so we can catch a 7 am train to Belgium. It's pricey, but I gotta start traveling outside of the Loire Valley! We're planning on staying in a little hostel and we're visiting trenches from WW1. It's going to be a BLAST.
I am especially excited for our Paris Week!! We found out today that we're staying in a hotel downtown. I'm most excited for Normandy Beach though. Being a history buff, it's going to be amazing visiting Omaha and the American Cemetery. Lindsey and I will leave from Paris the following day to Dublin. After two nights, we're off to London and I get to meet Alexis's parents and see Katie as well. Lindsey and I then arrive in Rome on Easter Sunday and staying in this little all women's hostel near the Vatican. It's going to be amazing.
The part I'm most excited about is after Rome, Lindsey, Alexis, Katie, Shelby, Tori and I are all meeting in the Italian Rivera called Cinque Terre for two nights. We rented out a 2 bedroom apartment and we will be 100 yards from the beach!!! Tell me how cool that is going to be!!!!!!
When we get back, it'll be my 21st birthday and we'll definitely stay in town during that weekend. I'm not totally sure where I will be traveling after that, but I want to see either Poland or see Venice. It's all just so expensive!!!
I adore my friends here and I'm so thankful to be waking up in a castle every morning in the heart of France. Send me letters and packages :)
It's a Wednesday night, and it's about 8:30 and we're all watching a movie in a theatre type room called "The Flying Buttress". It's a Wednesday tradition where the Abbey plays movies that may be mandatory for certain students in certain classes, but for the most part, we all like to watch them. Today is a movie called the Enemy of the State... Not exactly my cup of tea, but last week we watched a movie called "La Vie en Rose", which is a movie about the life and death of Edith Piaf. It was probably one of the best movies I've ever seen. My friends and I are now obsessed with the movie and Piaf.
Speaking of traditions, there's a tradition that my friend Alexis and I sort of started/continued. Tuesday nights here in Pontlevoy is now a themed party night at the bar across the street. Last week was called "A Black and White Affair" and last night we hosted one called "Tacky Tuesday". They both have been very successful and last night was by far one of the most fun nights here in France so far. Alexis and I came up with a playlist and gave it to the bar owner, Julien and everyone loved it! Julien decorates the bar too, and all of our local friends come out too. Next week is probably going to be pajamas or dress all in one color.. We don't have a lot of options. Not many of us packed costumes lol.
This weekend Alexis, Katie, Lindsey and I are going to Brussels and Bruges. We're leaving tomorrow night to arrive in Paris and we're staying in a little hostel by the train station so we can catch a 7 am train to Belgium. It's pricey, but I gotta start traveling outside of the Loire Valley! We're planning on staying in a little hostel and we're visiting trenches from WW1. It's going to be a BLAST.
I am especially excited for our Paris Week!! We found out today that we're staying in a hotel downtown. I'm most excited for Normandy Beach though. Being a history buff, it's going to be amazing visiting Omaha and the American Cemetery. Lindsey and I will leave from Paris the following day to Dublin. After two nights, we're off to London and I get to meet Alexis's parents and see Katie as well. Lindsey and I then arrive in Rome on Easter Sunday and staying in this little all women's hostel near the Vatican. It's going to be amazing.
The part I'm most excited about is after Rome, Lindsey, Alexis, Katie, Shelby, Tori and I are all meeting in the Italian Rivera called Cinque Terre for two nights. We rented out a 2 bedroom apartment and we will be 100 yards from the beach!!! Tell me how cool that is going to be!!!!!!
When we get back, it'll be my 21st birthday and we'll definitely stay in town during that weekend. I'm not totally sure where I will be traveling after that, but I want to see either Poland or see Venice. It's all just so expensive!!!
I adore my friends here and I'm so thankful to be waking up in a castle every morning in the heart of France. Send me letters and packages :)
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
"France is delighted at this new opportunity to show the world that when one has the will one can succeed in joining who have been brought closer"
Quick blog today, I'll be busy for the rest of the afternoon!!
Yesterday was a good day. I booked 75% of my spring break! Here's my plan so far:
March 30-31: Fly into Dublin.
April 1-4: Fly into London.
April 4-7: Fly into Rome
April 7-9: Train to Venice (Not booked yet!)
April 9-10: Either Paris or Amsterdam (Not booked yet!)
It was very stressful to find the cheapest rates and the safest, yet cheap hostels. I did manage to find the best deals! I HOPE!
Some friends and I decided last week that we wanted to host parties every Tuesday at the local pub, Le Commerce. We have made friends with the owner/bartender and he loved the idea. So, we decided that the first party would be called a Black and White Affair. We thought it would be fun to get out and attempt to look cute.. Nothing too special.
When we arrived to Le Commerce last night, Julian *the owner*, had full on decorated the bar. Pearls, lace, strobe lights, fabrics, all in black and white. He invited the locals, and they even dressed up! It was so AWESOME. He asked one of us the day before to make a playlist on our Ipod, so he hooked it up on to the main speakers. It was a legit party and we all had so much fun. Some of our teachers even came. Next week is Tacky Tuesday!
Tonight we all have to watch a foreign film. It's going to be in a special, locked room in the Abbey called the Flying Buttress. Can't wait. I have to write a small paper about it too.
If any of you have any suggestions of what to see or what NOT to see while I'm in any of my locations during spring break, please let me know in the comment box!
Audie :)
Yesterday was a good day. I booked 75% of my spring break! Here's my plan so far:
March 30-31: Fly into Dublin.
April 1-4: Fly into London.
April 4-7: Fly into Rome
April 7-9: Train to Venice (Not booked yet!)
April 9-10: Either Paris or Amsterdam (Not booked yet!)
It was very stressful to find the cheapest rates and the safest, yet cheap hostels. I did manage to find the best deals! I HOPE!
Some friends and I decided last week that we wanted to host parties every Tuesday at the local pub, Le Commerce. We have made friends with the owner/bartender and he loved the idea. So, we decided that the first party would be called a Black and White Affair. We thought it would be fun to get out and attempt to look cute.. Nothing too special.
When we arrived to Le Commerce last night, Julian *the owner*, had full on decorated the bar. Pearls, lace, strobe lights, fabrics, all in black and white. He invited the locals, and they even dressed up! It was so AWESOME. He asked one of us the day before to make a playlist on our Ipod, so he hooked it up on to the main speakers. It was a legit party and we all had so much fun. Some of our teachers even came. Next week is Tacky Tuesday!
Tonight we all have to watch a foreign film. It's going to be in a special, locked room in the Abbey called the Flying Buttress. Can't wait. I have to write a small paper about it too.
If any of you have any suggestions of what to see or what NOT to see while I'm in any of my locations during spring break, please let me know in the comment box!
Audie :)
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
"If you are lucky enough to have lived in France as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, France is a feast"
I am VERY overdue on my blogging from this weekend!!! I have been busy (not an excuse) but I now have the time!
Friday: We all woke up from a fun night beforehand at Le Commerce. Our entire student body was visiting Tours, France and the cheateau de Chenonceau. A group of friends and I were planning on staying the night in Tours since we already had our transportation paid for. We all arrived at the Montrichard ( a neighboring town) train station around 9:00 and our 10 minute train ride to Chenonceau was over before we knew it!
Chenonceau is absolutely beautiful! It is a beautiful property and we had a blast taking pictures, walking through the HUGE gardens and we walked to this little town and had some coffee to kill time before our next train arrived at 1:30. It was a beautiful day in general, the sun was shining and the weather was a good 45 degrees or so, so it was all just lovely.
After some lunch, all 50 of us jumped on board to Tours. Tours is FABULOUS. I had no idea that it was so "downtown-ish". The first thing we all did was visit the Musee des Beaux-Arts. It is a 3 story art muesum in downtown Tours. It held a lot of famous paintings that I don't even know who made them.. Should have looked!Next door was this AMAZING cathedral (I don't remember the name!) that is currently being renovated, but still, it was beautiful. We got to walk all around inside and it has this huge organ that was pretty cool too.
We then checked into our little hotel that was last updated in 1970 probably. However, it was right on the main square area so it was a convienent location. By this time, it was close to four and we were all exhausted so we sort of cat napped and got ready to wander the city again. We wanted to see our Professor's art gallery that he had in Tours. Lindsey and I never made it so we people watched and walked around for a bit. We all met up for this Vietnamese cafe that was pretty good.. Or so I thought.
The plan was that night was to go to this American bar where a lot of students and tourists went to. As I was getting ready, however, I started feeling those shrimp dumplings make an encore. And then the migraine started. I'm not even surprised it happened. I didn't have any advil so I tried to make the best of it, so I ended up staying home while the others went out. I didn't mind, I was up all night the night before so I enjoyed getting a good night's sleep for once!!
The next day basically consisted of shopping, lunch and people watching. I found a H&M so I was PRETTY excited. Bought a black cardigan and sunglasses. We walked around the streets and a lot of my friends bought a LOT of stuff. I didnt (which is good!). After lunch, some more walking around Tours, I decided that I wanted to sit at a cafe, open a book and people watch. So I did. And I had a damn good time doing so.
And this is where the weekend turned on us.
We were given a train ticket back on Friday from one of our campus leaders. We all assumed that there was a train Saturday night at the same time from Friday.
Boy were we wrong.
Another group that we went with calls my group (Lindsey, Erik, Ashley and I) and says that the last train to Montrichard was no longer. They had caught the last one.
LONG story short, 130 euro cab ride later, we arrived to Montrichard. After an attempt to walk home (mind you, it was 9:30 pm), we gave up and called a professor to come get us. He found it very funny and did not mind coming to pick us up. We spent the rest of our night nursing our wounds with a little white wine and going to bed!
Sunday was a day of LAZINESS. And it was great. Napped, did homework, planned our weekends, etc. It was great.
It was a good first weekend, learned a lot of lessons that I won't be forgetting anytime soon.
Lessons learnt:
1. Check the train schedules. Don't assume.
2. If you do spend close to 200 dollars on a cab, find the humor in it.
3. French sandwiches are a thousand times better than American ones.
I'll blog later on this week!
Friday: We all woke up from a fun night beforehand at Le Commerce. Our entire student body was visiting Tours, France and the cheateau de Chenonceau. A group of friends and I were planning on staying the night in Tours since we already had our transportation paid for. We all arrived at the Montrichard ( a neighboring town) train station around 9:00 and our 10 minute train ride to Chenonceau was over before we knew it!
Chenonceau is absolutely beautiful! It is a beautiful property and we had a blast taking pictures, walking through the HUGE gardens and we walked to this little town and had some coffee to kill time before our next train arrived at 1:30. It was a beautiful day in general, the sun was shining and the weather was a good 45 degrees or so, so it was all just lovely.
After some lunch, all 50 of us jumped on board to Tours. Tours is FABULOUS. I had no idea that it was so "downtown-ish". The first thing we all did was visit the Musee des Beaux-Arts. It is a 3 story art muesum in downtown Tours. It held a lot of famous paintings that I don't even know who made them.. Should have looked!Next door was this AMAZING cathedral (I don't remember the name!) that is currently being renovated, but still, it was beautiful. We got to walk all around inside and it has this huge organ that was pretty cool too.
We then checked into our little hotel that was last updated in 1970 probably. However, it was right on the main square area so it was a convienent location. By this time, it was close to four and we were all exhausted so we sort of cat napped and got ready to wander the city again. We wanted to see our Professor's art gallery that he had in Tours. Lindsey and I never made it so we people watched and walked around for a bit. We all met up for this Vietnamese cafe that was pretty good.. Or so I thought.
The plan was that night was to go to this American bar where a lot of students and tourists went to. As I was getting ready, however, I started feeling those shrimp dumplings make an encore. And then the migraine started. I'm not even surprised it happened. I didn't have any advil so I tried to make the best of it, so I ended up staying home while the others went out. I didn't mind, I was up all night the night before so I enjoyed getting a good night's sleep for once!!
The next day basically consisted of shopping, lunch and people watching. I found a H&M so I was PRETTY excited. Bought a black cardigan and sunglasses. We walked around the streets and a lot of my friends bought a LOT of stuff. I didnt (which is good!). After lunch, some more walking around Tours, I decided that I wanted to sit at a cafe, open a book and people watch. So I did. And I had a damn good time doing so.
And this is where the weekend turned on us.
We were given a train ticket back on Friday from one of our campus leaders. We all assumed that there was a train Saturday night at the same time from Friday.
Boy were we wrong.
Another group that we went with calls my group (Lindsey, Erik, Ashley and I) and says that the last train to Montrichard was no longer. They had caught the last one.
LONG story short, 130 euro cab ride later, we arrived to Montrichard. After an attempt to walk home (mind you, it was 9:30 pm), we gave up and called a professor to come get us. He found it very funny and did not mind coming to pick us up. We spent the rest of our night nursing our wounds with a little white wine and going to bed!
Sunday was a day of LAZINESS. And it was great. Napped, did homework, planned our weekends, etc. It was great.
It was a good first weekend, learned a lot of lessons that I won't be forgetting anytime soon.
Lessons learnt:
1. Check the train schedules. Don't assume.
2. If you do spend close to 200 dollars on a cab, find the humor in it.
3. French sandwiches are a thousand times better than American ones.
I'll blog later on this week!
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
"Mardi Gras"
I have lots of extra free time today so I figured I would go ahead and post an extra post. :)
So last night, two really cool things happened. First, we had our last (thank god) orientation meeting for school. They aren't bad or anything, they are just later in the evening and we're all so tired by then. Poor us. After a quick meeting, we were told that we would be having our initiation ceremony sort of thing. We got to go to the actual Abbey around 8pm when it was all dark and quiet. So so quiet. It was almost a bit creepy, but mostly really nice! Dr. Macaman said a few things about the history of the place and things about us finding out who we are as people, that sort of thing. It was VERY cool. We all each held a lit candle. It was cold, but it was nice.
And at last, we were all finally true Abbey-ians. Of course, what better way to celebrate anything in life than to go to a little bar called Le Commerce? The big group of us, which was about 55 or so, walked across the street and had our own little Mardi Gras party to kick off the semester in the right way!
It was very very fun. We all dressed up and wore beads and masks. Took tons of pictures. Drank a couple glasses of this strawberry infused beer that the locals drink. It was so yummy. My favorite thing of the night though, was seeing our professors (there's about 8 of them) all hanging out with us at the tavern. I talked to a few of them. One offered to buy a round of wine. It was so cool to talk to them as a person or a mentor, rather than the person who eventually grades you at the end of the semester. My French teacher was talking to us about a French bourbon, her kids, our French, our lives. Not one teacher in my life has EVER talked to me about what I want to do when when I'm older or what my favorite book is. My 80 year old da Vinci professor, who's so interesting and SO nice was drinking a beer and eating a banana. He is so funny sometimes.
So the night eventually wrapped up and we all came back to the dorms and all hung out for a while. I went to bed pretty late cause I couldn't sleep.
I had classes this morning. French is getting easier and easier. Thank god! Lunch was good, we had fish and this salad with capers, tomatoes, vinegar and this cabbage stuff. Not bad. Very French.
Right now I'm just in my dorm doing some homework and doing some laundry. The weather is very foggy and damp and cold right now, so I probably won't go walk around today. I'm tired too!!
Can't wait for this weekend!!!
So last night, two really cool things happened. First, we had our last (thank god) orientation meeting for school. They aren't bad or anything, they are just later in the evening and we're all so tired by then. Poor us. After a quick meeting, we were told that we would be having our initiation ceremony sort of thing. We got to go to the actual Abbey around 8pm when it was all dark and quiet. So so quiet. It was almost a bit creepy, but mostly really nice! Dr. Macaman said a few things about the history of the place and things about us finding out who we are as people, that sort of thing. It was VERY cool. We all each held a lit candle. It was cold, but it was nice.
And at last, we were all finally true Abbey-ians. Of course, what better way to celebrate anything in life than to go to a little bar called Le Commerce? The big group of us, which was about 55 or so, walked across the street and had our own little Mardi Gras party to kick off the semester in the right way!
It was very very fun. We all dressed up and wore beads and masks. Took tons of pictures. Drank a couple glasses of this strawberry infused beer that the locals drink. It was so yummy. My favorite thing of the night though, was seeing our professors (there's about 8 of them) all hanging out with us at the tavern. I talked to a few of them. One offered to buy a round of wine. It was so cool to talk to them as a person or a mentor, rather than the person who eventually grades you at the end of the semester. My French teacher was talking to us about a French bourbon, her kids, our French, our lives. Not one teacher in my life has EVER talked to me about what I want to do when when I'm older or what my favorite book is. My 80 year old da Vinci professor, who's so interesting and SO nice was drinking a beer and eating a banana. He is so funny sometimes.
So the night eventually wrapped up and we all came back to the dorms and all hung out for a while. I went to bed pretty late cause I couldn't sleep.
I had classes this morning. French is getting easier and easier. Thank god! Lunch was good, we had fish and this salad with capers, tomatoes, vinegar and this cabbage stuff. Not bad. Very French.
Right now I'm just in my dorm doing some homework and doing some laundry. The weather is very foggy and damp and cold right now, so I probably won't go walk around today. I'm tired too!!
Can't wait for this weekend!!!
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
"Oh France, How I Love You"
Wow. So these past two days have been SO long and full of things to do. I absolutely adore France beyond words. Top three reasons:
1. The people. Even the ones who stare endlessly at my American self. The ones in this small town I am living in are absolutely amazing. I love that they try to help us speak our French. I love how they love that we are here. I love how they dress. The dress with simplicity and comfort and it's a way of expressing themselves, rather than pleasing others. The women mostly do this. My French teacher, who is about 30 or so, is my favorite example. I'll hopefully show pictures to prove my point later. Nonetheless, the French are very used to tradition and I love how they live their days in this small town of a 1000 people.
2. The landscape and the architecture. Since I am in a town so far from Paris and Tours, we all see a lot of the land in the horizon. The buildings are beautiful to me and the land has hundreds of trees that have been there for hundreds of years. The Abbey campus has a carefully landscaped property that has tons of shrubs and gardens and a little creek that flows through the back. The building itself has tons of history and the arcs throughout the building are divine. In the town of Pontlevoy, the houses are one story with flat fronts, lots of long windows and most have a gate too. I'll elaborate on my point too, after I get back from Paris so I can take pictures. :)
3. The history. In Fort Worth, where I'm from, the oldest building I can think of was made in the late 1800's. In America, the oldest standing house today couldn't be more than 200 years old. The Abbey has been here since 1034. 1034. It blows my mind. My friend Erik and I were talking about the history of this building and all the people who have sat where I am, walked the property like I did and who's born and died here. The French history has lots and lots of glorious moments and horrific ones too obviously. I don't know that much about the whole country itself, but my World Lit class is there for me to understand it. I started it today actually.
Yesterday:
Woke up around 8 because I had class at nine. It's so nice to have a class that's one floor under me. Erik, Lindsey had a cup of coffee beforehand. It was yummy coffee.. Cheap too. We then went to French 2 and my teacher is a French born citizen. She's fluent in English but I don't always understand what she is saying. She is a very VERY nice professor. She is about 30 or so, married with kids and she is going to live in New Zealand after this semester is over. French 2 will be a bit of a challenge but I'm sure it'll all go well.
I then had a two hour break. I pretty much facebooked and attempted at unpacking. We eat lunch everyday around 2 at Le Commerce. Lunch was SOO good. We had mashed potatoes and beef bourguignon. I've never had it before and I'm pretty sure nothing in the world tastes better than it.
After that, I had my first da Vinci class. Our teacher is probably half of the reason why I took the class. His name is Terence Netter. He's a 80 year old man with the heart of a 20 year old and looks like a 60 year old. He's German born, a French Citizen. He was a priest in the early 60's and left to marry his wife, and they are still together today. He's a renowned visual artist as has several galleries aross the globe, one being in Tours. Go to his website at www.terencenetter.com. He has taught all over too. Georgetown was one. He's brilliant and open to any questions we have for him. He has so many stories to tell and knows everything about Leonardo da Vinci. I'm SOOOO excited for this class.
After that class, we all kinda just hung around the campus and went and got a Coke from like a general type store. We had dinner that night (CHEESEBURGERS!) and had a meeting about traveling and some of the things that we're doing this semester. I had a horrible headache by then (go figure) and pretty much went to sleep as soon as we were done that night.
This morning consisted of my French class, which was better than yesterday, and my World Civ class. My professor in that class is so awesome too. She's a 25 year old woman from Toronto has her doctorate's in something that I don't remember. She dresses so well. I love it. Scarves, long pencil skirts, lots of grey and black and wears the cutest dark rimmed glasses. She's incredibly smart and is currently writing a book about women's objects from the beginning of British history. Crazy cool.
We just had lunch about an hour or so. I've been cleaning my room and finally finished unpacking. We're going to go to the grocery store later on.
I'm excited about this weekend. The whole staff and student body are going to Tours. We're seeing Clos Luce, which is the house (well, mansion) that da Vinci lived the last three years of his life. Some of his own original inventions are still there. How freakin' exciting. We're also visiting some famous chateaus and Professor Netter's art gallery there. Some friends and I are also staying an extra night to see the city another day. We all need to buy somethings we can't get here and going to visit an asian restuarant there. YUM. It's going to be so fun!!
I still can't believe I'm here. I'm going to be incredibly sad when I leave this place. Love and miss you all that read this :)
1. The people. Even the ones who stare endlessly at my American self. The ones in this small town I am living in are absolutely amazing. I love that they try to help us speak our French. I love how they love that we are here. I love how they dress. The dress with simplicity and comfort and it's a way of expressing themselves, rather than pleasing others. The women mostly do this. My French teacher, who is about 30 or so, is my favorite example. I'll hopefully show pictures to prove my point later. Nonetheless, the French are very used to tradition and I love how they live their days in this small town of a 1000 people.
2. The landscape and the architecture. Since I am in a town so far from Paris and Tours, we all see a lot of the land in the horizon. The buildings are beautiful to me and the land has hundreds of trees that have been there for hundreds of years. The Abbey campus has a carefully landscaped property that has tons of shrubs and gardens and a little creek that flows through the back. The building itself has tons of history and the arcs throughout the building are divine. In the town of Pontlevoy, the houses are one story with flat fronts, lots of long windows and most have a gate too. I'll elaborate on my point too, after I get back from Paris so I can take pictures. :)
3. The history. In Fort Worth, where I'm from, the oldest building I can think of was made in the late 1800's. In America, the oldest standing house today couldn't be more than 200 years old. The Abbey has been here since 1034. 1034. It blows my mind. My friend Erik and I were talking about the history of this building and all the people who have sat where I am, walked the property like I did and who's born and died here. The French history has lots and lots of glorious moments and horrific ones too obviously. I don't know that much about the whole country itself, but my World Lit class is there for me to understand it. I started it today actually.
Yesterday:
Woke up around 8 because I had class at nine. It's so nice to have a class that's one floor under me. Erik, Lindsey had a cup of coffee beforehand. It was yummy coffee.. Cheap too. We then went to French 2 and my teacher is a French born citizen. She's fluent in English but I don't always understand what she is saying. She is a very VERY nice professor. She is about 30 or so, married with kids and she is going to live in New Zealand after this semester is over. French 2 will be a bit of a challenge but I'm sure it'll all go well.
I then had a two hour break. I pretty much facebooked and attempted at unpacking. We eat lunch everyday around 2 at Le Commerce. Lunch was SOO good. We had mashed potatoes and beef bourguignon. I've never had it before and I'm pretty sure nothing in the world tastes better than it.
After that, I had my first da Vinci class. Our teacher is probably half of the reason why I took the class. His name is Terence Netter. He's a 80 year old man with the heart of a 20 year old and looks like a 60 year old. He's German born, a French Citizen. He was a priest in the early 60's and left to marry his wife, and they are still together today. He's a renowned visual artist as has several galleries aross the globe, one being in Tours. Go to his website at www.terencenetter.com. He has taught all over too. Georgetown was one. He's brilliant and open to any questions we have for him. He has so many stories to tell and knows everything about Leonardo da Vinci. I'm SOOOO excited for this class.
After that class, we all kinda just hung around the campus and went and got a Coke from like a general type store. We had dinner that night (CHEESEBURGERS!) and had a meeting about traveling and some of the things that we're doing this semester. I had a horrible headache by then (go figure) and pretty much went to sleep as soon as we were done that night.
This morning consisted of my French class, which was better than yesterday, and my World Civ class. My professor in that class is so awesome too. She's a 25 year old woman from Toronto has her doctorate's in something that I don't remember. She dresses so well. I love it. Scarves, long pencil skirts, lots of grey and black and wears the cutest dark rimmed glasses. She's incredibly smart and is currently writing a book about women's objects from the beginning of British history. Crazy cool.
We just had lunch about an hour or so. I've been cleaning my room and finally finished unpacking. We're going to go to the grocery store later on.
I'm excited about this weekend. The whole staff and student body are going to Tours. We're seeing Clos Luce, which is the house (well, mansion) that da Vinci lived the last three years of his life. Some of his own original inventions are still there. How freakin' exciting. We're also visiting some famous chateaus and Professor Netter's art gallery there. Some friends and I are also staying an extra night to see the city another day. We all need to buy somethings we can't get here and going to visit an asian restuarant there. YUM. It's going to be so fun!!
I still can't believe I'm here. I'm going to be incredibly sad when I leave this place. Love and miss you all that read this :)
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Days 1 and 2 of France.
Bonjour all!!
I have finally arrived to the lovely country of France. It has been so beautiful- everything from the buildings to the people. I have been planning this trip since June, so you can only imagine how ready I was to finally arrive yesterday.
On Feb. 12, Lindsey and I met up with our families at the DFW airport. Security went very smoothly, no lines or anything. We grabbed a couple of drinks and chilled for a while, since we arrived at 2pm and our flight didn't leave till 5 (which was delayed till about 7:15). We eventually made it to our gate and Erik and Ashley were there. We all had met one other time beforehand. We were all so excited and just talked and were extremely anxious to get on the huge plane.
When we finally got on board, we all found our seats. Lindsey and I sat next to each other and Erik and Ashley both had their own rows. Little did we know, we wished that we didn't sit by each other. The flight crew were really nice. Our flight was 9.5 hours and we were awake for 98% of it! We were SO uncomfortable after 2 hours. We would get SO hot, and then cold. We would be comfortable and barely asleep and then the captain would get on the intercom. My long legs were not going to have it. They needed space and I sure as heck did not have any. It's funny now. NOT THEN!
After a longggggggggg night, breakfast was being served and we were getting ready to land. I gulped down coffee and a diet coke cause I KNEW it would be a long time before I would be drinking anything else for a while. Customs was really easy and quick. Took 5 minutes. All of our luggage was there too. Thank god. We were all convinced that the bus that was getting us was leaving at noon and we arrived shortly after that. Thankfully it was there and unfortunately was not leaving until 4 pm, which meant we had lots of time to kill. We just walked around the airport and tried to used to the fact that all of the Frenchpeople kept looking at us like we were wearing the American flag on our backs.
Finally the bus arrived and we all practially ran on. By then, Jacelyn and Amanda (two other people from my school) had arrived. We all sat in the back of the bus and got ready for our 3.5 hour ride to the campus in Pontlevoy. I feel asleep as soon as we left the airport, thinking I would wake up in time to see the campus. HOWEVER, strange sounds kept waking me up and sure enough our bus driver had decided to take us on a mini bus tour of Paris. Um, hello thanks people for waking me up!! I woke up and saw the beautiful Effiel Tower looking at me, so talk about a culture shock. It was SO huge. The city itself is absolutely beautiful. We didn't see much of it, but what we saw was divine. We'll be spending a week there in about a month or so. We were all just so thankful to have gotten the oppertunity because the others didn't.
After we got out of the city traffic, we had about a 2.5 hour drive. Slept about half of that and we all in the back of the bus just joked around and took in the French landscape. We then FINALLY arrived around 8pm. I had to haul up my 100 pound suitcases up of three flights of stairs. We immediately went to dinner. Le Commerce is where we eat and there's also a local bar there too. We all ate our dinner, which was spaghetti, and met some more students and a few professors. After that, we went back up to our rooms and attempted to unpack and shower and all that good stuff. I then practially dive bombed into bed and was sound asleep by about 11:45.
This morning we woke up around 9 am and got ready. We had a mini tour of Pontlevoy at 10. We went straight to the grocery store, which was so cute. I bought some coffee and bottled water and oranges. We brought our stuff back and then went around the campus and the town and took tons of pictures. We talked to a few locals and attempted speaking French a bit. I'll get there sometime.
Exhausted from the cold, we came back to our rooms and I went on the internet for a bit. An hour or so, Erik, Lindsey and I grabbed a bottle of champange and went to the common room. Some more people met us there and we all played a game of uno (LOL) and got to know each other a bit more. Most of the students are from Southern Mississippi University. All really nice people. We're going to have a great time here. Right now, I'm just killing time until my orientation at 6pm.
I can't believe I'm finally here!! I have loved every minute of it and I know I'm going to miss the hell out of it when I'm gone. Erik and I joked about getting married here. Separately of course, but still, how fun would that be!
I'm so tired right now..Still adjusting to the time difference.
More later! :)
I have finally arrived to the lovely country of France. It has been so beautiful- everything from the buildings to the people. I have been planning this trip since June, so you can only imagine how ready I was to finally arrive yesterday.
On Feb. 12, Lindsey and I met up with our families at the DFW airport. Security went very smoothly, no lines or anything. We grabbed a couple of drinks and chilled for a while, since we arrived at 2pm and our flight didn't leave till 5 (which was delayed till about 7:15). We eventually made it to our gate and Erik and Ashley were there. We all had met one other time beforehand. We were all so excited and just talked and were extremely anxious to get on the huge plane.
When we finally got on board, we all found our seats. Lindsey and I sat next to each other and Erik and Ashley both had their own rows. Little did we know, we wished that we didn't sit by each other. The flight crew were really nice. Our flight was 9.5 hours and we were awake for 98% of it! We were SO uncomfortable after 2 hours. We would get SO hot, and then cold. We would be comfortable and barely asleep and then the captain would get on the intercom. My long legs were not going to have it. They needed space and I sure as heck did not have any. It's funny now. NOT THEN!
After a longggggggggg night, breakfast was being served and we were getting ready to land. I gulped down coffee and a diet coke cause I KNEW it would be a long time before I would be drinking anything else for a while. Customs was really easy and quick. Took 5 minutes. All of our luggage was there too. Thank god. We were all convinced that the bus that was getting us was leaving at noon and we arrived shortly after that. Thankfully it was there and unfortunately was not leaving until 4 pm, which meant we had lots of time to kill. We just walked around the airport and tried to used to the fact that all of the Frenchpeople kept looking at us like we were wearing the American flag on our backs.
Finally the bus arrived and we all practially ran on. By then, Jacelyn and Amanda (two other people from my school) had arrived. We all sat in the back of the bus and got ready for our 3.5 hour ride to the campus in Pontlevoy. I feel asleep as soon as we left the airport, thinking I would wake up in time to see the campus. HOWEVER, strange sounds kept waking me up and sure enough our bus driver had decided to take us on a mini bus tour of Paris. Um, hello thanks people for waking me up!! I woke up and saw the beautiful Effiel Tower looking at me, so talk about a culture shock. It was SO huge. The city itself is absolutely beautiful. We didn't see much of it, but what we saw was divine. We'll be spending a week there in about a month or so. We were all just so thankful to have gotten the oppertunity because the others didn't.
After we got out of the city traffic, we had about a 2.5 hour drive. Slept about half of that and we all in the back of the bus just joked around and took in the French landscape. We then FINALLY arrived around 8pm. I had to haul up my 100 pound suitcases up of three flights of stairs. We immediately went to dinner. Le Commerce is where we eat and there's also a local bar there too. We all ate our dinner, which was spaghetti, and met some more students and a few professors. After that, we went back up to our rooms and attempted to unpack and shower and all that good stuff. I then practially dive bombed into bed and was sound asleep by about 11:45.
This morning we woke up around 9 am and got ready. We had a mini tour of Pontlevoy at 10. We went straight to the grocery store, which was so cute. I bought some coffee and bottled water and oranges. We brought our stuff back and then went around the campus and the town and took tons of pictures. We talked to a few locals and attempted speaking French a bit. I'll get there sometime.
Exhausted from the cold, we came back to our rooms and I went on the internet for a bit. An hour or so, Erik, Lindsey and I grabbed a bottle of champange and went to the common room. Some more people met us there and we all played a game of uno (LOL) and got to know each other a bit more. Most of the students are from Southern Mississippi University. All really nice people. We're going to have a great time here. Right now, I'm just killing time until my orientation at 6pm.
I can't believe I'm finally here!! I have loved every minute of it and I know I'm going to miss the hell out of it when I'm gone. Erik and I joked about getting married here. Separately of course, but still, how fun would that be!
I'm so tired right now..Still adjusting to the time difference.
More later! :)
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