I can't believe it's already my last week in Europe. In exactly one week I will be back home enjoying the comforts of my couch, my shower and my bed. Not to mention my husband. I am ready for it. It's been a great summer, but I'm tired and homesick. I'm over Europe.
Don't get me wrong, though, Europe has been awesome. I have had a wonderful time, and I've met some cool people and seen some cool things. As the ever-observant Cooper says in the movie "Eurotrip," - "They've got really old stuff here." I've got some great pictures and some good memories. I couldn't ask for more.
On top of that I got 8 credits - all of which apply towards my specification of International Law, so that's pretty cool. I took some interesting classes and some not so interesting.
This past weekend was pretty cool too. We drove to Narbonne - a southern beach in France, and swam in the Mediterranean Sea. The drive was beautiful - we passed all sorts of vineyards, and sunflower fields, and saw really old buildings. At the beach there was a Sunny Delight promotion going on - they were releasing two new tropical flavors, so they were giving out free samples. But even better, there was a DJ at the beach spinning some good music. After every song he would extol the virtues of Sunny Delight. Sometimes he would freestyle and rap about it - "Sunny Delight, everything gonna be alright!" It was great.
The beach was beautiful and the sand was so soft. The water was fantastic - nice and warm and extra salty which made it easy to float in. The only complaint I had was the wind. It was so freaking windy. When I got home that night I washed my hair twice to get all the sand out of it. It took 6 q-tips to get the sand out of my ears that night. The next day it took another two q-tips per ear. But it was worth it.
After the beach we drove to Carcasonne. There is a really old, really big castle there. There were a lot of cool shops and things to look at there. There was a torture museum and a jousting show. It was pretty cool. Then we took the scenic route home and drove past even more vineyards and sunflower fields. We stopped at one sunflower field and took some pictures. Freaking sweet. But we only used someone else's camera, so I've got to get the pics from him.
The plan for the week is to live cheap. I've got some food to eat in my room. There are a couple events this week that will include free food, so that's cool. On Wednesday we're taking a field trip to the Pyrenees mountains. I think the trip also includes a visit to a cheese factory and a mohair factory. So that should be interesting - and random. Thursday is my Human Rights final and my last IP class. That means we'll be going out for our big final bash on Thursday night, which should be fun - I think I'll get really dressed up - cuz why not? That leaves Friday for packing.
My plane leaves here for London on Friday evening. I will be staying in London for the weekend, and my trip home to LAX is on Monday, August 3. I'm not sure what I'll do in London this weekend. I heard there's a legal tour that I can do, but it may only be available on weekdays. I think I'll just walk around and maybe find a park to hang out in, eat in pubs and just chill. It will be nice.
I don't feel especially clever or witty right now, so I think I'm going to end this. Here's to Europe!
Monday, July 27, 2009
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Baguettes
Ode to French food:
J'aime pain au chocolate.
A lot.
Un Sandwich au baguette
Is the best yet.
Quiche Lorraine
Is nowhere near plain.
Beacoup de choses sont délicieux et savourex.
A propos de rien do I say "eh."
Chere nourriture Francaise, Je t'adore.
Je veux more.
Alright, enough silliness. You get the idea. I am eating and eating and eating here. I can't help it. Yet somehow every time I put on a pair of pants, they feel bigger. My belt has run out of holes to use. My bras are too big. It's kind of awesome. I have been running here and there and doing some other exercising, but besides those there are two reason I think I am losing weight.
First, I walk everywhere. I probably walk 2-3 miles a day, and on weekends it's more like 5 or 6 miles a day. But more importantly, I think it's the quality of the food I'm eating. I may be eating a lot of bread and cheese and butter (in the form of croissants), but the stuff I'm eating is fresh - no preservatives. All ingredients are fresh, never frozen or put in a can. I'm eating a lot of fruit and the stuff I'm eating is simple. There's not a lot of salt or fat. But somehow it tastes fantastic.
I remember feeling this way last time I came to France too. Things I normally didn't like I was eating on a daily basis - like cantaloupe. I love it here. In the US it's bland and watery. I have discovered that the stuff here is a little different, and isn't shipped to the US, because it wouldn't make the trip. So that explains that. But also in France I like cheeses I don't normally eat, and I eat fruits and vegetables I don't normally love.
I'm not going to sit here and claim that everything I'm eating is perfect. The pain au chocolate is divine, and I eat it every few days. I have also eaten at McDonald's here. It's really good - it tastes like real meat here! But the fries taste the same. Plus there are these kabob places that sell shwarma that are divine. But on the whole, I'm eating healthy and wholesome. And cheaply - that's the main thing I love. I am going to try to eat this way in the US when I get back, but I'm not sure I can. I'm not sure Vons sells the same type of yummy baguettes.
As far as what I've been up to besides eating, there hasn't been a whole lot. I took last weekend pretty easy. I had a paper due on Monday for my music law class, so I worked on that. We went to a public swimming pool on Sunday because it was super hot. When we got there, the boys couldn't go in the pool, because there is a rule that boys have to wear tight bathing suits. Trunks and board shorts are not allowed. So if they want to go back, they have to buy tight European bathing suits. I felt bad. The other rule is that anyone who wants to go in has to wear a swim cap. It's kind of irritating, but I understand that rule at least. It felt nice to get in the water. I may go back this weekend.
Monday night there was a big potluck dinner at Professor Peeler's place. It was great. There was so much good food. A group of us pitched in and made enchiladas - Mexican food in France. They were a hit.
Tuesday (yesterday) was Bastille Day - the French equivalent of the 4th of July. Nothing was open - including school, so we had classes in Professor Peeler's living room. Luckily there were plenty of leftovers from the potluck (but no enchiladas), so we ate lunch there. Then we took naps in preparation for the evening's activities. We got up and went to Debbie and Dale's apartment to have a little celebration, because it was Debbie's birthday yesterday. Then we grabbed some food on the way to meet one of our French classmates who had the scoop on the evening's festivities.
She took us to a bar that looked like a pirate ship inside. It was decorated with pirate flags, stuffed parrots, nets, shells and various other nautical items. They were playing Bob Marley and they sold a bunch of different rums. You could get rum in any flavor you could think of. Instead of getting a shot of rum, I pitched in with a couple and we got a bottle of some delicious rum concoction. I think it was rum, mango juice and cinnamon - those were the main flavors anyway. It was delicious.
After the bar, we made our way to the city center where there was a huge concert going on. We got there just in time to see the fireworks. It was really cool. There were sooo many people there. Miraculously we ran into Professor Peeler and some friends there. The fireworks were pretty good. I posted the last minute or so of them down below. The grand finale was pretty good, but nothing like the grand finale in Rock Springs, Wyoming. You think I'm being funny, but I'm not. Rock Springs has a really good fireworks show.
Today after class we had a tour and lecture at the Labor Court here in Toulouse. It was full of fun facts like this: there is no at-will employment in France. Every job has a monthly salary and an employment contract. Fascinating. The guy who spoke to us was really nice, and I managed to appear interested the whole time.
Tomorrow we're taking a 2 hour bus ride to some medieval city, and we'll get the chance to take a boat ride on an underground lake. I'm really looking forward to that. My camera battery is charging.
Teresa is making her famous fried rice tonight. I can't wait. For now I think I'll finish reading my book (my pleasure book - do you really think I'm reading for class?), and then it will be supper time. And I bet home-made fried rice in France will taste better than it would in the US - I could lie and say it's because of the ingredients, but really it's just because I'm in France. Everything tastes better in France.
J'aime pain au chocolate.
A lot.
Un Sandwich au baguette
Is the best yet.
Quiche Lorraine
Is nowhere near plain.
Beacoup de choses sont délicieux et savourex.
A propos de rien do I say "eh."
Chere nourriture Francaise, Je t'adore.
Je veux more.
Alright, enough silliness. You get the idea. I am eating and eating and eating here. I can't help it. Yet somehow every time I put on a pair of pants, they feel bigger. My belt has run out of holes to use. My bras are too big. It's kind of awesome. I have been running here and there and doing some other exercising, but besides those there are two reason I think I am losing weight.
First, I walk everywhere. I probably walk 2-3 miles a day, and on weekends it's more like 5 or 6 miles a day. But more importantly, I think it's the quality of the food I'm eating. I may be eating a lot of bread and cheese and butter (in the form of croissants), but the stuff I'm eating is fresh - no preservatives. All ingredients are fresh, never frozen or put in a can. I'm eating a lot of fruit and the stuff I'm eating is simple. There's not a lot of salt or fat. But somehow it tastes fantastic.
I remember feeling this way last time I came to France too. Things I normally didn't like I was eating on a daily basis - like cantaloupe. I love it here. In the US it's bland and watery. I have discovered that the stuff here is a little different, and isn't shipped to the US, because it wouldn't make the trip. So that explains that. But also in France I like cheeses I don't normally eat, and I eat fruits and vegetables I don't normally love.
I'm not going to sit here and claim that everything I'm eating is perfect. The pain au chocolate is divine, and I eat it every few days. I have also eaten at McDonald's here. It's really good - it tastes like real meat here! But the fries taste the same. Plus there are these kabob places that sell shwarma that are divine. But on the whole, I'm eating healthy and wholesome. And cheaply - that's the main thing I love. I am going to try to eat this way in the US when I get back, but I'm not sure I can. I'm not sure Vons sells the same type of yummy baguettes.
As far as what I've been up to besides eating, there hasn't been a whole lot. I took last weekend pretty easy. I had a paper due on Monday for my music law class, so I worked on that. We went to a public swimming pool on Sunday because it was super hot. When we got there, the boys couldn't go in the pool, because there is a rule that boys have to wear tight bathing suits. Trunks and board shorts are not allowed. So if they want to go back, they have to buy tight European bathing suits. I felt bad. The other rule is that anyone who wants to go in has to wear a swim cap. It's kind of irritating, but I understand that rule at least. It felt nice to get in the water. I may go back this weekend.
Monday night there was a big potluck dinner at Professor Peeler's place. It was great. There was so much good food. A group of us pitched in and made enchiladas - Mexican food in France. They were a hit.
Tuesday (yesterday) was Bastille Day - the French equivalent of the 4th of July. Nothing was open - including school, so we had classes in Professor Peeler's living room. Luckily there were plenty of leftovers from the potluck (but no enchiladas), so we ate lunch there. Then we took naps in preparation for the evening's activities. We got up and went to Debbie and Dale's apartment to have a little celebration, because it was Debbie's birthday yesterday. Then we grabbed some food on the way to meet one of our French classmates who had the scoop on the evening's festivities.
She took us to a bar that looked like a pirate ship inside. It was decorated with pirate flags, stuffed parrots, nets, shells and various other nautical items. They were playing Bob Marley and they sold a bunch of different rums. You could get rum in any flavor you could think of. Instead of getting a shot of rum, I pitched in with a couple and we got a bottle of some delicious rum concoction. I think it was rum, mango juice and cinnamon - those were the main flavors anyway. It was delicious.
After the bar, we made our way to the city center where there was a huge concert going on. We got there just in time to see the fireworks. It was really cool. There were sooo many people there. Miraculously we ran into Professor Peeler and some friends there. The fireworks were pretty good. I posted the last minute or so of them down below. The grand finale was pretty good, but nothing like the grand finale in Rock Springs, Wyoming. You think I'm being funny, but I'm not. Rock Springs has a really good fireworks show.
Today after class we had a tour and lecture at the Labor Court here in Toulouse. It was full of fun facts like this: there is no at-will employment in France. Every job has a monthly salary and an employment contract. Fascinating. The guy who spoke to us was really nice, and I managed to appear interested the whole time.
Tomorrow we're taking a 2 hour bus ride to some medieval city, and we'll get the chance to take a boat ride on an underground lake. I'm really looking forward to that. My camera battery is charging.
Teresa is making her famous fried rice tonight. I can't wait. For now I think I'll finish reading my book (my pleasure book - do you really think I'm reading for class?), and then it will be supper time. And I bet home-made fried rice in France will taste better than it would in the US - I could lie and say it's because of the ingredients, but really it's just because I'm in France. Everything tastes better in France.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Just France
Get it? It's like the Lady Ga Ga song - "Just Dance," only I switched "Dance" with "France." I think Europe has made me funnier.
I'm having a pretty good time here in France. The language is coming back to me in full force, and I can have actual conversations now - not just order something at a restaurant or pay for something at the store.
Everyone's here now and classes have started. Having been here a week before everyone, I am one of a couple designated tour guides, so I've lead some expeditions to the electronics store and the housewares store. I've also introduced everyone possible to the glorious pastry world of France - specifically to Pain au Chocolate. Yes, it deserves to be capitalized. I could probably write an entire long blog about Pain au Chocolate. Maybe I will someday.
Classes here are much more serious and require a lot more attention and preparation than my classes in Spain. Which kind of sucks because I have a bunch of papers to write for my Spain classes, and they're all due within the next week.
It's kind of a weird juxtaposition. Everyone who is new to Europe is all excited and ready to go out partying every night. I've been here for almost 6 weeks (already!) and I'm mellow. I just want to hang out. I'm over the novelty of it. And I'm feeling a little stressed out by how much work this is turning out to be. In addition to all that, I'm homesick. I miss my husband. I miss my bed and my things. I miss US grocery stores. I miss Target.
Having said all of that, I am also really enjoying France. This is where I wanted to come most. I love Toulouse - it's a beautiful city. I didn't know until I'd been here a few days, but Toulouse is nicknamed "La Ville en Rose." It means "The Pink City." At night when the sun is setting, the entire sky is pink. The color in the bricks used around here mixed with normal sunset conditions makes the entire sky this dark pink that is so amazing. The architecture is amazing, and there are several really really old churches nearby. I think our school building was built in the 1600s. My school is older than the United States.
I love going out into the town and hearing people speak the language. I love that so many people sit in the park. In US parks there are a couple of benches here and there. Here the sidewalks in the parks are lined with benches. People love to just go relax and sit outside and enjoy the fresh air (even if it is sweltering), and the company of friends. No one is in a hurry - they want to enjoy life as much as possible. Americans want to enjoy life too - we just need to be stimulated constantly. Our enjoyment is in fast rides and extreme sports. When "relaxing," we need to be watching TV, online and listening to music all at once. The French don't need all of that.
Now, having said that, don't think I'm going back to the US and canceling my cable - no way! I'm losing it here without TV. I don't know what's happening in my favorite shows, I don't know what new shows are out, and I don't know what movies are out this summer. (I do know that Harry Potter is coming out in a week or so.)
All in all, I'm having a great time in France. I miss my husband and I miss my home, but I am soaking up France - much more so than Spain. Spain was pretty and interesting, but I didn't love Spanish culture or the Spanish atmosphere the way I love France. I may be predisposed to think that way because I speak French, and have been here before, but that's the way it is.
Bon Soir!
I'm having a pretty good time here in France. The language is coming back to me in full force, and I can have actual conversations now - not just order something at a restaurant or pay for something at the store.
Everyone's here now and classes have started. Having been here a week before everyone, I am one of a couple designated tour guides, so I've lead some expeditions to the electronics store and the housewares store. I've also introduced everyone possible to the glorious pastry world of France - specifically to Pain au Chocolate. Yes, it deserves to be capitalized. I could probably write an entire long blog about Pain au Chocolate. Maybe I will someday.
Classes here are much more serious and require a lot more attention and preparation than my classes in Spain. Which kind of sucks because I have a bunch of papers to write for my Spain classes, and they're all due within the next week.
It's kind of a weird juxtaposition. Everyone who is new to Europe is all excited and ready to go out partying every night. I've been here for almost 6 weeks (already!) and I'm mellow. I just want to hang out. I'm over the novelty of it. And I'm feeling a little stressed out by how much work this is turning out to be. In addition to all that, I'm homesick. I miss my husband. I miss my bed and my things. I miss US grocery stores. I miss Target.
Having said all of that, I am also really enjoying France. This is where I wanted to come most. I love Toulouse - it's a beautiful city. I didn't know until I'd been here a few days, but Toulouse is nicknamed "La Ville en Rose." It means "The Pink City." At night when the sun is setting, the entire sky is pink. The color in the bricks used around here mixed with normal sunset conditions makes the entire sky this dark pink that is so amazing. The architecture is amazing, and there are several really really old churches nearby. I think our school building was built in the 1600s. My school is older than the United States.
I love going out into the town and hearing people speak the language. I love that so many people sit in the park. In US parks there are a couple of benches here and there. Here the sidewalks in the parks are lined with benches. People love to just go relax and sit outside and enjoy the fresh air (even if it is sweltering), and the company of friends. No one is in a hurry - they want to enjoy life as much as possible. Americans want to enjoy life too - we just need to be stimulated constantly. Our enjoyment is in fast rides and extreme sports. When "relaxing," we need to be watching TV, online and listening to music all at once. The French don't need all of that.
Now, having said that, don't think I'm going back to the US and canceling my cable - no way! I'm losing it here without TV. I don't know what's happening in my favorite shows, I don't know what new shows are out, and I don't know what movies are out this summer. (I do know that Harry Potter is coming out in a week or so.)
All in all, I'm having a great time in France. I miss my husband and I miss my home, but I am soaking up France - much more so than Spain. Spain was pretty and interesting, but I didn't love Spanish culture or the Spanish atmosphere the way I love France. I may be predisposed to think that way because I speak French, and have been here before, but that's the way it is.
Bon Soir!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)