Travels and Happenings in Europe

I am HOME

2009-06-26T12:41:00.002+02:00

so i landed in ATL airport at 7:55 June 25th. my trip is over!

I will try and give a couple more blogs to wrap everything up. I need to tell you guys about how things went with my family coming over to visit for the last couple weeks. that will come soon. but for right now. I want to see all of you in Person.

FIN

2009-06-12T22:09:00.004+02:00

Well, it all ended with a crepe on Cours Mirabeau.... but more about my last day in Aix later. let me rewind it a couple weeks and catch you guys up on a few things.

So, staying at that vineyard definitely was awesome! it has made it into my top 8 experiences here. I mean everything we could see from their front porch was part of their vineyard. 7km long! and they produce over a million litres of wine per season. Our time there started with a great meal at the auberge. by law this type of restaurant has to produce 80% of everything served on site (chickens, vegetables, wine...) and it was so good. After this long meal we got a private 2,5 hour tour of the vineyard. With us was the owner and the 2 chief field managers. we learned all sorts of cool stuff from all the types of wild flowers that were in bloom to how they can control the amount of grapes the vines produce. For dinner we had some great chicken curry, and to finish the night we watch the final match of the euro cup (Manchester vs. Barcelone) the next day we woke up and rode bikes out to the other side of the vineyard and went swimming for a while. then lunch and back into St. Maximin. Int the village there is a huge church. and in the church they have got the sarcophagus of Mary Magdalene. so that was really cool to see.

We did make it up the mountain the next day, and we came down to relax in my friend's pool for the afternoon. later that weekend we went to cassis and the beach there was quite amazing (as always). and my friend finally headed out for Switzerland on Monday

so over the next we i just hung out with friends and did some fun pool chilling. and then last weekend i went to Martigues on my own for a day trip. There is a huge sandy beach outside of the ville. it was such a great site to see. and after 3 hours on the beach i went back to the ville and discovered it. there is so much history there. and the museums are free and very cool! i loved it. great day trip, and i would recommend it to anyone.

on Sunday we had a huge goodbye party for the pastor of the church here. i got there early to help set up and cook chicken for 100 guests. it turned into quite the blow out. and i was able to say goodbye to a lot of people as well. it was bitter sweet (like this whole last week). It has been a string of little get togethers and goodbyes. I keep telling myself that i will see these great people again, but i know it won't be soon for all of them who are staying in France. the ones who are coming to America might be more possible to visit. And i have had to say goodbye too ll the places here and the lifestyle which i love. this place has truly changed me. I climbed up St. Victoire on Wednesday and i spent the night at the top to do some reflecting and clearing out my mind. It was such a good experience. there were actually a group of french people up there that i get to connect with. It was a great way to say thanks for all i have been given here. And i woke up early and hiked down a new way. It was all great!

Today was my last official day of my Experience here (the next 10 days will be 'vacation' with my family here). So i ended it all with a big day of packing cleaning, having a few conversations in french, and then i got a sandwich with the first friend i made here. and i went to a movie with a couple of my newest friends made here. what a way to close the circle on my time here. we also had crepes on the cours while live jazz was playing in the background. I have loved it all! no regrets with my choice to come here for a year. I will see you guys Stateside soon!!!

Hey again.

2009-05-27T09:40:00.002+02:00

Hey. so i am 21 years old now! i am officially legal to have a drink all over the entire, big world. lol. I had a lot of fun last night. but let me back it up a few days...

I finished up my exams last week. Accounting was quite the tough one. We shall see what happens. it took me the whole 2 hours to finish up. but i think it was passable. And then i had the oral exam with my Droit Constitutionnel prof. That turned out to be a nightmare. I studied the last 250 years of french governmental history and the differences in their constitutions (they have had many). So i show up for the test feeling good, right. the teacher asks me 2 short questions about the present french government, and then a dozen about the US government. what the heck. I haven't taken US govn since 8th grade. So half of my answers were "je ne sais pas", and then he would tell me what i should have said, followed by my reply of "oui, je sais". lol. so needless to say i don't anticipate the highest marks there. but that's ok. i made straight A's last semester, so it should all balance out in the GPA.

So on thursday i went back to Gorges du Verdon. It was quite a different experience. I rented a Kayak. The river was calm in this area with a huge lake at the entrance to the cliffs. And these cliffs were indescribable. the water was a chilling 8 degrees still, but this time i had NO wetsuit. I still couldn't resist doing a little cliff diving tho. it was a great time in the wild. on our way back we stopped at a cool village in the cliffs that is famous for pottery and their amazing view of the countryside. After that we drove into the heart of the lavande country. We stopped at a local lavande farm and got to learn more about the whole process from some of the family owners. Apparently we were about 4 weeks too early to see the bloom. you know the classic purple covered fields of france. Right now poppy flowers are in full bloom. and the fields look fiery red.

Saturday was my big VIP day in Cannes. The film festival came to a close last weekend. My friend Thierry had been at the festival all week and was leaving just as i was arriving. So... he gave me 2 of his VIP passes to use. A girl i met up with on the bus and I decided to make it a day together. We had a great time. I am talking private beach, open bar, free Puyricard chocolates, private dock, and comfy seats with good looking people all around. It was 10 times better than what the average person would get. Awesome. And we also got to go into the Carlton hotel and chill in that lounge for a while. We watched the red carpet for a bit, but i didn't recognize anyone, and there were like a million people there to watch. And we ended the night with a little movie premier out on the beach. You got to be envious of this day. lol. It was one of my french dreams come into reality.

I forgot about friday. ha. I went and played some Laser tag with my friends. I got 1st place all three rounds. so bring it on!

Ok, monday was my birthday. i had a ton of fun. a friends from GSU came into town that day, and he is staying with me for a week or so. And we went out to an underground discotheque, and then hung out in the park with frenchies til about 3am. It was a great day, and thanks to all of you who sent out birthday wishes. I am 21 now, legal worldwide!

Today (wed), we are going to one of my friend's vineyards. hopefully do some wine tasting, swimming, possible horseback riding, and who knows. We will be staying there overnight. should be a lot of fun, and just a cool experience. Then friday we hope to climb the mountain, and go for a swim at a friends house out in the country. It's going to be a good last few weeks here in France!

Keeping busy

2009-05-17T20:14:00.004+02:00

So... i know that i start a lot of these with "sorry it has been so long". but it only gets harder to sit down and find the time as the year is winding down. Yes i am starting to feel the end draw near. And i don't want to leaver here. so if everyone i know could just get on a plane and move to France, that would be great. haha. Well, anyways i have just got a month left!

So i have kept busy. I had 2 exams last week, and i have got 2 more this week. so cross those fingers, because they (just like the classes) are going to be in 100 percent French. I have got accounting in the morning. ouch. So this is me procrastinating (those of you who know me, know that procrastination is my favorite part of studying). But it should all work out in the end

On friday i went to a big end of the year bash with a lot of my friends. We had good drinks, good burgers from the grill, a fire, swimming, Wii, and so much more. It really was great to have a big shebang with a lot of people that are leaving this week. Oh and around midnight we all went out and did the ziplines at this house. imagine flying into a pitch black forest. It was awesome. you just have to watch out for that tree at the end of the line.

Saturday started out early. I got hooked up with some people who are moving teusday and need some help getting the house ready. so i went out to their place in Puyricard, and they set me to work. They had a pool, that really looked like a pond when i arrived. There were 2 inches of leaves covering the bottom. It was not pretty but with 5 hours of hard work... It was clean and clear. And it felt great to actually make some money for the first time in 10 months! I can't wait til this summer. I have got to find a job in Georgia (anybody know of one?) After work i got cleaned up and headed out to a tailgate. You heard me. I tailgated at an American football match here in Aix. Our team is #2 in all of france. The playoffs start in a couple weeks. Anyways, i made such a good mixed grill. mmm. and then The Argonauts (name of our team) crushed the opponents. 43-6 at the half. And there were some really good plays. Get this, the audience does the "braves tomahawk" here. It made me feel right at home.

Today, Sunday has been awesome so far. 5 friends and I went out to Les Gorges du Verdon to go RAFTING. The 2 hour drive out there at 8 in the morning was beautiful. We pass some great scenery; mountains, plains, little villages. once we got into the national park area the views only got better. It is impossible to describe, but i will try a bit. This is pretty much the french equivalent to the grand canyon. very different but all the same magnificent. We came around one of the cliffs and in front of us laid a huge valley covered in a cloud. It was something to see. Well, we got down to the raftin place, paid (signed 0 consent forms, they didn't even ask our names. only in France). And then we got suited up in some wetsuits (very necessary. the water was like 8 degrees Celsius). And we hit the water. It was a smooth trip down the Verdon, but there were some cool rapids. after we went through the biggest one of the day, the guide and us got the raft over to the side and we climbed a rock. this was followed by all of us taking turns jumping into the beast. what a rush! just got to not get thrown into the rocky cliffs to the left. ha. well the rest of the trip went with no problems. we had a splash fight, flipped the boat once, and did some swimming. It was great! i would suggest it to all

Well, i guess it is time for me to get back to my studies. Wish me luck. I hope all of you are doing great and having a good summer where you are.

Grandparents came for a visit

2009-05-01T13:27:00.004+02:00

Well, Papa Don and Jojo (my grandparents) came to see me last week. We sure did have a lot of fun. I have been sleeping for the past few days just trying to recuperate from all the things we did together. So i will try and give you guys the short version of how things went down.

... I didn't even recognize them when they got off the bus Thursday afternoon. But i guess they figured out who i was pretty quick, and they ran over and gave me a good hug. After this, we put our things up in the apartment we rented for the week (awesome place by the way), and then we hit the sunny streets of Aix. Of course the first thing we wanted to do was sit at a café on Cours Mirabeau, have some wine and some french food. And that is exactly what we did with the exception of Don ordering a beer (he wasn't too keen on wine until later in the trip...) So we had a nice 2 hour meal and watched the Aixoise culture walk by in front of us. And then we headed up the street a little ways and into a cathedral. It was cool to show them something that was Built starting in the 5th century. Man, the USA is so young. After visiting some neat places in town, we got pizza (very french) and headed to the apt to call it a night.

Well, friday we hit the ground running. We woke up and went to the famous street markets of Aix. We got zucchini and fresh Parmesan cheese for dinner. Then we went and saw my school (it is celebrating its 600 anniversary this year). And for our afternoon we planned to go into Marseilles, so we got some senior discount bus passes and went on our way (for just 1 euro). We started Marseilles with a 2.5 hour lunch right on the vieux port. It was nice to relax before we started the miles of walking that i had planned. We wound up seeing 3 cathedrals, all completely different styles and really cool. One of them was on top of a huge hill and overlooked the entire city (2nd largest city in France) and also the Mediterranean Sea (where you can see the famous Chateau d'If where the Count of Monté Christo was held). From here we walked down the hill and back thru time once more to a Gothic style cathedral which got its beginnings from the 200s! But everyday does come to a close and so we watched the sun start setting over the city from the train station and then we caught a bus and got to see it finish setting over the Provence countryside. It was very beautiful. Finally we got back to the appt and started cooking a tasty pasta dinner that lasted til 11pm. Oh, i forgot Jojo had a French guy hitting on her while Don and I were in a store. We came out and he was telling her how much he wanted to marry her!

Saturday was also a busy day. We started the morning with buying a fresh baguette and catching the bus for Mont Saint Victoire. We hiked up thru the olive fields and once we got above the tree line we felt the full force of the Mistral (20mph winds of Provence). It made it really difficult to stay on the side of this huge mountain. So once we got to the halfway point, we found a shrub and ate lunch behind it and out of the wind. The views were amazing. We got down and were back in town by 1pm. Then i had to shower and head into town to help set up for the wine tasting we were going to that night. So i helped Hilary set up and then we went out to the meeting spot to get Jojo and Don and also 7 other people. But the other people never showed up. So we wound up getting a Private tasting of 5 wines! It was awesome, and to all our surprise Don enjoyed himself and was even asking for extra tastes. After all our questions were answered and our noses were a bit redder we thanked Hil and went up stairs to Have a great Italian dinner (and Hil let us have a bottle to finish with our dinner, 2003 Pinot Noir). And man was dinner tasty, and the service and atmosphere was top class at Pasta Cozy. After dinner we went to a rooftop party in the middle of the city. We got to meet some french friends of mine and get a great view of the city at night. And Jojo got to practice her "bisou", the french cheek kiss. It was yet again another great and full day.

We were happy to wake up to a rainy day on Sunday. Rest was definitely in need. So we just took it slow all day. Jojo read her Jane Eyre book and Don and i sat and talked for a few hours until we found a formula one race on TV. After the race we went out and saw my new dorm room (Awesome!) and we picked up some sandwiches to bring back for dinner. We had dinner, watch a movie (About Schmidt), and then we went to sleep.

on Monday we woke up in a rush ( I called the bus station and found out that we only had 20 mins til we had to leave on the bus). Arrived in Cassis by 9am and it was earlier than most of the town had woken up. We ate crepes in the park (Nutella, chocolat, and honey nut). After eating, we hiked the first of the calanques and learned some cool history of the area while we got some breathtaking views of cliffs and the Mediterranean. As we came back to town we saw a woman laying out Nude (finally a real french experience. lol). Then the sun popped out and we had charwarmas for lunch in downtown. Went and saw the light house where I left the grandparents for an hour (don took a nap, and jojo watched a guy swimming and hoped he was also nude). And they saw kids taking sail boat lessons, while I took a nap on the beach. Then I stepped in the freezing waters of the Med Sea. So, we took the bus back and while we were waiting for our transfer bus in Aubagne jojo got pooped on by a pigeon. lol. but we made it. We saw where Cezanne died, and the old Aix pony express. For dinner we grabbed 2 pizzas from Pizza Capri (3 fromage and chirizo). I helped some tourists get a cab for the airport. we ate dinner and Don and I stayed up again (every night talking til 12am, until don's alarm would go off).

And the last day finally was upon us. But we still had big plans! There was a tour of a local chocolat factory in Puyricard, just 15 mins north of town. So we took the bus there, and actually got dropped off at the wrong place. I had to get my friend that works at the factory to come and pick us up for the rest of the way. Ah, so we arrived a bit late, but it was just in time for the actual tour. We had to go thru a "clean" room and wash up before we put on hairnets. the tour was really cool. We were on the floor walking in between all the different stations for all the processes that the candies go thru. And my friend came and did part of the tour with us (he is a manager there and gave us a few cool extra background stories). We got to sample a lot of the chocolat and we saw some of the trade secrets. mmmm. Well after we had had our fill we went back into town. We got packed up and then grabbed some charwarmas for lunch (i swear these are the best sandwiches). And before the bus left we even had time to stop by a museum and look at some photography. So, I said my final goodbyes to my loving grandparents and waved them off as the bus drove away.

We sure did have a lot of fun.

Provence, how i love thee...

2009-04-22T20:07:00.006+02:00

Well i have been having a great last couple of weeks.

I went on an excursion to Avignon. This was a lot of fun! We arrived at the old walled city at about 10am. Started out walking up a stone spiral staircase that was inside of a tower until we reached the top of the city wall. Then we walked on the top of the walls and up a hill to the highest point in the town. We got some great views of the city, the many cathedrals, the Pont(bridge) d'Avignon, and the Rhone river. And then we made our way over to a huge "place" where we could see the palace des Papes (the Pope moved to this city for a couple hundred years back in the 14 century). He built a fortress right in the middle of the town. pretty cool stuff. I had been here in 2006, so i did not pay to go inside with the rest of the group. Instead i just wandered the streets and got myself lost. I found a lot of cool things as i went. Passed a group of folk singers, saw a wedding in progress thru open cathedral doors, found a secret garden. I also stumbled into a crazy art gallery where i was given a glass of Rosé (don't worry it was already noon, perfect time for a chilled glass of wine in Provence). And i chatted it up with the artist for a little while. and then i got to find a big market to walk thru. The town was so cool. And i ate the biggest charwarma of my life! mmmm.

After Avignon we all took the bus to Pont du Garde. one of the most famous monuments in France. It is an old Roman Aqueduct they helped carry water 500km. It was really neat to visit this place again (i had went in 2006). I did a little hiking around the Pont and crossed to both sides. I even took a little nap. This place is a must see if you make it down to Provence.

So the excursion was awesome!

Just yesterday I went to "Les Calanques"=best hiking in my life! these are white stone finger shaped cliffs that span the 20km between Cassis and Marseilles. the water is the bluest that the Mediterranean has to offer. and the views are just spectacular. I will never forget this hike. and i have got to go back soon! When we stopped for lunch in En Veau, i looked around and i could not believe the place that i get to eat. It doesn't even compare to any experience i have had in Georgia. Oh yeah, and at lunch time, we got to see the French rescue team run some helicopter exercises right in front of us for like 20 mins. they were lowering people onto cliffs and then they would leave and come back and rescue them. It was pretty entertaining. Man, that was a great hike.

So... I also finally got to move into a new and renovated dorm! It feels like a 5 star hotel compared to that last place. I have got my own fridge, toilette and shower. Plus hardwood floors and an amazing view of the french countryside. you wouldn't believe what i get to wake up to.

So i have had a busy week so far. and my grandparents (Jojo and Papa Don) are supposed to be arriving tomorrow! cross your fingers that they can get on the plane (they are coming standby). But i have got a lot of fun things planned for us. If they get here, we will be going to a wine tasting, touring a chocolate factory, visiting Marseilles, and climb the famous Mont Saint Victoire. Of course we will be doing a lot of relaxing at cafés and checking out all the cool/historic places in Aix. So if you want to do all this stuff too, then get your butt out here!

Alright, that should keep you fascinated and jealous for a little while. I will try to post again soon. I hope your lives are all going well!

It is vacation time!

2009-04-08T13:32:00.003+02:00

Man i am loving it here!

So the french schooling system makes no sense at all. I finished with all my classes last week and the exams are not until the first couple weeks of May. This means that i have got some free time on my hands. I guess you saw the pictures i put up instead of a story for my last blog. sorry. i was rushed that day. But as you can see, I went to a Wine and Chocolate tasting, went to the movies (3 times), watched the Tour d'Aix (bike race, and saw a crash), and spring arrived with a Harley on the Cours Mirabeau.

My fun has not stopped there! I have been going to the parks around town a lot lately (the weather here has been great for the most part, although it is cloudy today). I have hiked Mont St. Victoire a couple more times, and i have got a post Easter trip planned with the church here. Speaking of Easter, I went to a big pic-nick/egg hunt last Saturday. That was a lot of fun. Afterwards the university students grilled out at an apartment on the south side of town.

And then on Sunday Carnival hit the streets of Aix! It was completely crazy here. The opposite of what you think of when you think French village life. There was confetti and silly string covering all corners of the street (and all over everybody). The little kids were dressed up in crazy costumes, and a lot of the adults too. There were more people in the streets than i have ever seen. And then the bands and floats came down the cours. It was all followed by a group of about 200 people all dancing in unison. The atmosphere couldn't have been more jubilant. There is still confetti all over the place.

And then on Monday, I climbed Victoire in the morning, hung out in the park during the afternoon, and went to a rooftop BBQ at dusk. What a great time that was. To be right in the middle of town and on a rooftop terrace. seeing the clock towers and cathedral steeples lit up at night. Drinking wine and eating shish kabobs with friends.

Well i am not quite sure all that lies ahead of my these last 3 months, but i am ready for it!

march madness

2009-03-31T13:42:00.000+02:00

Spring is officially here!

2009-03-17T16:25:00.008+01:00

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

I am sorry it has been a couple weeks since my last post. I didn't do too much worth while since then. I climbed the mountain here twice. And the second time was definitely the most fun i have had On Mont Saint Victoire in the 8 or 9 times i have climbed it. I went up the difficile (difficult path) which involves a little bit of rock climbing. Then just chilled at the top with the friend that went with me. After we woke up from a mountain top nap we went and hiked the ridge line for a mile and then decided to bushwhack our way down to a village we saw. This seemed like it would be easy as pie. But oh no, it was not. took about 3 hours to get down and to this village (Vauvenguardes). We ran into cliffs and walls of bushes and trees. But we pushed thru and finally made it back to flat land! It was great. And we still had time to check out the village before the bus left for Aix.

(the way up)

(the way down)

Other than this. I went into Marseilles again and had a charwarma by the Mediterranean Sea. Got lots of rest. Finished Harry potter number 5. I just started number 6 today!

I went to my friends 41st birthday party on Saturday. It was a blast. We started with a little petanque tournament and some grenadine. My team made it to the finals. And then once more people showed up and night fell. we lit up the grill and started opening up the bottles of wine. There must have been 50 people at this house out in Tholonet (about 15 mins drive from Aix) Great atmosphere and great food. And then at about 11 some friends from Tunisia came over with there drums and put on a show for like an hour and a half. so things got loud and crazy for those of us still there. Oh, yeah the birthday boy is a huge cigar guy, and someone gave him a box of cubans. So I got to try a Cuban (don't worry, they are legal here). And then as the night really wound down I got to talking to a guy there about a possible job opportunity here. So cross your fingers for that. But yeah i got a ride home from a french guy at the end of the night. It was a good time, and i am sure we will have a few more outings there. Especially when they open up the pool!

So i also got thrown into a petanque group that meets every week. And so i went and had some fun this Sunday with them. I schooled a couple old french guys, always fun to do. We played 3 rounds. And now i am so hooked on this game. It is the French equivalent to Bacci, i guess. But since i do not have my Koob game here, this is a great replacement, and classic french. i will have to buy a set and bring home to share. (maybe we will get a game going at the Backyard BBQ?)

well that should just about catch you up. I have only got 3 more weeks of school here, so right now i am trying to plan my 2 months free time (french schools make no sense). I will try and keep you updated on that. And if anyone wants to come for a visit, just let me know and we can start figuring it out. I already have Jojo and Don, Mark and Angie, and my household coming over. But i got plenty of time for you too.

Have a great week everybody. I know i will in this 60 degree sunny park weather!

Spring time is here

2009-02-27T17:20:00.004+01:00

Hey everyone!

So i am still having a great time here in southern France. The sun is out and we have gotten a couple of 50 degree days already. I just finished my last class of the week, and now i have got a vacation week. Since i have last talked with you I have climbed the mountain 2 times, met a few french people in my new classes, and started to really understand my new classes also. I still have not recieved any of my grades from fall term, but i am registered for classes at GSU this coming up Fall. I think i did fairly well tho. Oh, the trip to Cassis was great. It really is a beautiful little coastal town. There are a lot of vineyards there and i hope to tour some of them soon. unfortunately i am having to postpone the hiking trip until more people have got time to go, But i still have got high hopes of completing this feet before i leave.

I also got my first haircut since being in france! and i went to an american football game not too long ago. I also went and watch OM (the soccer team in Marseilles) play against Twente. We lost. Oh and the fair is in town for a few weeks.

So durring this vacation period i have finally dicided that i am going to explore the Bouches de Rhone rgion of France (this is where i live). I would like to see a village a day. here is the bus route, just to give you an idea of what i am talking about. http://www.lepilote.com/img/_info/CG_PlanReseau2008.pdf so hopefully it will be a lot of fun!

So do you have any questions for me about life here in France?

Another week in south France

2009-02-11T18:28:00.003+01:00

so this week i have been keeping busy. Sunday night some friends and i went to a gelato place right on cours Mirabeau. this place it awesome and i will definitely take you there if you come and visit.

On Monday i went to an underground dance club with a group of friends (i was the only American in the crowd). That was so much fun. we danced to all sorts of music (not country of course) and drank and talked til about 2am.

On Tuesday i had a friend turn 26 here. Her name is Loni. There were 16 of us that went out to celebrate at this new Italian restaurant in town. we were there for over 3 hours having our meal. mmmm it was so good too. I had the duck in a honey sauce. you would die for this food. Another place i will take you.

And tonight, Wednesday i am going to a wine tasting in town. Its me and like 20 other people (maybe 3 of us will be guys. i like those odds. lol), six types of wine, and a whole lot of fun. I can't wait. It was a great time the last one i did in the fall, so i have got high hopes for this one. My friend Hilary runs this tasting business, and she is a great person.

This weekend i am planning on going to Cassis, a small coastal village about 45 minutes away from here. It is supposed to be really beautiful. I will be checking ou the site there and also meeting with someone at the tourist info building to discuss my upcoming trip in march. I am going to hike from Cassis to Marseilles along the coast with some buddies of mine. We are planning to take 2 days one night to complete the 25k journey. It should be a great time. Look up the Calanques if you want to get a glimpse of some of the breathtaking views that are in store for me.

well, that is it for now. i got to get heading to that wine tasting. I will try and update you again next week.

The Semester is underway

2009-02-06T12:23:00.004+01:00

So i have been in my new classes at my new school for a couple of weeks now. It is going great. My classes are generally britty big (all are taught in theater size rooms, the teachers have to use microphones, and i sit in the middle of at leaste 100 french kids). It is about as opposite as it can get from the school i was in last semester. But i understand a good bit of what is being taught. Actually in some of my classes i think i understand a little better than the french kids, and yes everything is taught in French. A couple of my teachers pass out some note sheets to help us, one uses powerpoint, and then a couple of them just sit on the stage and talk for 2 hours (and we are expected to sit quietly, understqnd, and take notes at lightning speed), but the french kids have a lot of trouble in these class as well. So you might be wondering what i am taking this semester: French constitutional law 2h, Market Economics 5h, Accounting of entreprises 5h and Demography 3h. It is proving to be a good size load. But i am welcoming the challenge

I am still staying in contact with my friends from last semester. In fact i want to a party with some of them the other day. Also, my grades are starting to come in, and it looks like i did pretty well (lots of 15's or higher).

um interesting story. So i am currently looking for work here in Aix (i will be looking for a job when i get back to america too, if you know of any). The only thing i have found so far was to help a doctorate student with her research study. So i called her up and set up an appointment. She is doing a study on how people from different mother maguages apprend the french language. So i met her at the hospital in town to get tested. Sh e proceeded to hook all sorts of electrodes to my face and then an electrode cap on my head. She hooked all of these up to a big computer. She thyen left the room and i had the test. For the test i starred at a copmuter screen (blinking was not allowed, as it would interfer with the signal from my brain) and i watcher sentences in french go by very fast word by word. at the end of each sentence i had to push a button saying weather it was correct gramatically and comprehension wise. The whole process took two hours, and boy was i tired after it ( i had stayed awake til 4am the night before watching the SuperBowl, but that is another story). So she told me the results. I am average in my knowledge of weather words are correctly written in feminine or masculine form. And my common sense and comprehension is a little above average. So all good news. I took my 15 euos and was on my way.

Well that's all for now, let me know if you have got any questions.

Le fete de Saint Marcel

2009-01-27T17:24:00.005+01:00

the pictures say it all.

this is literally the craziest festival i have ever been to. Every year, all the people of the town dress up in these traditional Provencal clothing and parade around town. They dance, sing, jump, shoot muzzle loaders, and carry the bust of Saint Marcel down all the streets of the town. And every 4 years they slaughter a cow and parade it around town as well. This was my lucky year. So you are probably wandering just as much as i was, What is the point of this celebration? well the the story is pretty hazy at best. but i will try and tell it.

A few hundred years ago... when all the plagues and pests were hitting Europe pretty hard and killing a lot of people, there was one man who found the answer. This was a man who was walking down the road one day and saw a vision of Saint Marcel. The saint told him that if the people of his village ate the Tripe (cow intestines and stomach lining. gross, and previously always discarded as trash) then they would be safe. So the man told this to the village of Barjols and believe it or not the town prospered and was spared from the coming plague. Crazy. I know.

Well. we went, we saw, we jumped, we sang, we did not eat tripe, and we left. It was awesome. Definitely the kinda thing that tourists never hear about. I am glad to not be a tourist. I live here, and thus i sometimes here about these crazy events. I hope to find a couple more before i leave.

We made it to Paris

2009-01-26T15:59:00.007+01:00

So we landed in Paris on the morning of New Years Eve! We had to take a train from the airport into town. On the train we met a cute french girl and an American girl. And the french girl is actually related to President Sarkozy! crazy!!! and she helped us find the right metro to get to our hotel, and she also had some pretty good stories. So we got off the metro and found our hotel like right outside the front doors of the station. We actually got our own room and shower and toilette. It was a real hotel. great way to end the trip and relax. So it is New Year's Eve, and their is no way that we are just going to sit in the hotel. Good thing i had friends in Paris. We met up with a guy named Nizar (friend from school, and the ambassador from Libya's son). We find the rest of our group (about 15 people) at the Arc de Triumph. From here we start drinking and walking towards the Eiffle tower for the big party. We get pretty good spots a little ways away and have the most perfect view for the countdown. There are thousands of french people around us. It was so great. Cinq, Quatre, Trois, Deux, Un, Bonne Anée!!!! it got crazy. Everyone cheering and happy. and then after a while there, we started the long walk back to the hotel and partied and met french people all along the 3 hour journey. It was truly a blast, and thus we woke up at 2pm the next day.

So for the rest of the trip we just took it easy and explored as many sites as we could (both durring the day and at night). This city is just magical really. I have been here before and i was still in Awe of so many things. So we saw: Sacre Coeur, Montmartre, Moulin Rouge, Galleries Lafayette, Bastille, Les Invalids, Arc de Triumph, Eiffle Tower, Mars parc, Champs de Essays, Louvre, Jim Morrison, Versailles, Sorbone, Parthenon, Statue of Liberty, Notre Dame, and so much more. And we ate some really good food along the way including my favorite; charwarmas (kinda like a Gyros, it's Lamb meat in a sandwich with fries and sauce. Awesome!) almost everyday.

So we spent a lot of time just walking around and exploring the city. All types of weather fell upon us except for rain. We got the sunny days, the cloudy ones and then the snow came one morning and covered the city. It was amazing being able to see this city in so many different lights. We also learned how to use the metro pretty efficiently after a day or two. It became second nature to take line 5 towards Place d'Italy and get off at Republique and catch line 8 towards Balard and get off at Concord. that is just one example, but it is fairly easy to get around the city if you know how to use the underground city. and that is exactly what it felt like when on the metro, you were in a whole other city. Sometimes the subway trains would surface and go thru Paris and give you some great views too. Like when we went to Versailles. This city which is not too far from Paris is owner to the Palace of King Louis XIV which is seated on a massive garden enriched estate. I would suggest this 10euro trip to anybody who has got an extra half day to fill in Paris. You get to see some incredible artwork, and be bewildered by the size and grandeur of the lifestyles that the former kings had lived.

The Louvre as expected was amazing. I feel like we saw the whole thing in half a day. We just kept moving. Everything from the infamous Mona Lisa to the Sphinx, to Aphrodite was before us. This museum is massive, and i would say to most it could easily deserve an entire day, but be ready to do a lot of walking. There are some other museums in town that i would have liked to check out, but we just didn't have any money left by the time we were in Paris. So we went to the largest cemetery in town to search for some of the greats. We got to the map and starred at it for a while along with 20 other tourists. I overheard a couple of cute french girls talking about going to see Jim Morrison, so i barged in on their conversation and invited us along. So all four of us started the journey to the other side of the grave yard. we passed some great looking tombs; fancy, new, shiny, old, big and small. I also was able to make some pretty good conversation with them (and i threw matt a couple bones, since he doesn't know french yet). we had a great time wondering the cemetery and yes we did find the great musician. As the day came to an end we left the graves and the girls and went wondering the town, like most nights.

So i will wrap up the Paris trip now. Matt left, and i still had one more day before i had my flight to get back to school. Some how my reservation for the last night was lost (go figure). so i had to hassle with the clerk, in french, to lower the price and let me stay, as opposed to sleeping on the streets. I got it down to 30 euros from 55. That was doable. so i got another nights sleep in the warm and then the next morning i woke up to more snow. And this time it was snowing hard. I caught my train to Beauvais (50 miles north) and we headed straight into the "little blizzard" as Aunt Angie would say. lol. The first problem was that the last bus shuttle that connects the train station in town to the airport had already left. And i am now out of cash. So what is a college kid to do? Write up a sign on notebook paper that says airport and go stand on the side of the road with his thumb out. Back Pack on, snow falling and a big smile. It took 40 minutes or so to get a ride. I was grateful! A nice lady finally pulled over, she said she lived by the airport and it wouldn't be a problem to take me. She said she remembered being my age. But she was from Antilles (some of the french claimed islands). I thanked her and was on my way. I sat in the airport for 5 hours waiting for my flight. And durring that time the runway froze! the 3 flights scheduled before mine were all canceled! big scare for a minute, but luckily my plane was able to land, and then take us to Marseilles. I little late due to de-icing the wings, we landed in MRS airport and i just had time to catch the last bus into Aix en Provence. I got home at 1:30am after traveling for 14hours (it would have been 4 if i had just gotten the train ticket. lol) I had fun, and now my trip was over. Time to go back to class. But then a snow storm hit Aix and classes were canceled for the next 3 days. so i was able to take a relaxation vacation from my vacation.

so that does it for that. I was safe and had a great time. And if you want to see more pictures then click the photobucket link on the right column. And PLEASE leave any comments or questions for me

London

2009-01-18T09:17:00.008+01:00

ok, so i will try and keep this one a bit shorter. even tho London was more fun than Amsterdam. Part 3 of the Euro Trip and Matt and I are still having a blast

So we arrived in London at like midnight and on the completely wrong side of town. So the first task was figuring out transportation and quick. a lot of the bus lines were closing for the night and so was the tube. But no worries, i talked with a bunch of english people and we got it all sorted out and made it to the hostel by 1am. So we slept in the first morning and then decided it would be a great idea to walk into town instead of spending money on a bus pass. We walked for and hour and a half until we got to Tower Bridge. Long walk, but it was great to see everything by foot. You get more detail than you would just riding by on a bus. So on this day we saw; Tower Bridge, London Bridge, the Tower of London, the Bank of England, the Swiss RE Tower, and a whole bunch of other really cool buildings and monuments. Outside of the Tower of London they had a huge ice rink, and we must have stayed and watched people wipe out flat on their butts for half an hour. Literally within a minute somebody would have their arms flying in the air and then, thud. we laughed so hard. But alas we did not come all the way to London to see people fall down. We kept just wandering the city and exploring. This place is way bigger than i thought it was. So after we walked for a good few hours, we walked back to the hostel in Southeast London.

This Hostel was definitely the best out of the 3 we were in. I mean the beds were nothing special, but the sense of community that we got there was amazing. sometimes we would come back to the hostel just to chat with the people from all over the world. we were the only americans there, and everyone else was from about 10 different countries. We got exposed to a lot of different cultures. We heard so many interesting stories and really learned a lot from them. but i got to say there was a tv in the room, and boy does british television stink (so does most all of french, but we will get to that later)

So over the next couple days we kept being tourists and toured the city. we bought a bus pass for the city double deckers and also one for the Big Bus Company (tour bus). this allowed us to see Millennium bridge, Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Big Ben and the houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Marble Arch, Hyde Park, Madame Toussards, and many other places. It was really neat, we could hope on and off the buses as we pleased for 48 hours. When on the bus we would get cool info told to us about what we were seeing. i would suggest it, but only if you are going to wake up early and get the full use of your 2 days. We checked out some other places in more detail like; the V and A museum, Shakespear's Globe Theater, and the Tate Modern (interesting art in here, and the word art is debatable) The museums in england are free to the public, fyi.

overall, i really enjoyed London, and i cannot wait to go back and see all the things that i missed. it definitely takes some time to see it all.

Christmas Vacation - Amsterdam

2009-01-13T18:12:00.004+01:00

So. I think I have got some time to write now, the internet hasn’t been working that well lately.
This town has been crazy the last few days. We got 8 inches of snow. All the roads iced over and the shops closed. School also closed, for 3 days! There were many snowball fights, and people were out taking pictures all over town. I think this place only gets snow one time per year, if that (and has not seen a snow like the one we had since 1987! So… Now most of the snow has melted and things are starting to return to normal. I have got a lot of exams this week, some of which had review sessions last week that are now nonexistent. Oh well, wish me luck!

So my Christmas vacation was pretty awesome! My good friend Matt flew on over, and we toured Europe a little. So I already wrote about what we did the first couple days in Aix en Provence. So let me pick you up where the plane landed in Eindhoven.
So we got off the plane and had to walk down steps onto the runway and then into the terminal. Every plane we took was like this. None of them had connecting walkways into the building. Small time compared to ATL. Lol. Now we are in Eindhoven which is an hour and a half away from Amsterdam by train. And we had this assumption that everyone speaks English in the Netherlands, but this is not completely true (the signs are definitely not in English). But we did luck up and meet two 20 year old native girls who spoke our language. We buddied up with them to get to the train station and they helped us learn a few things in Dutch. They also showed us the right train to Amsterdam, very helpful. But sadly they were going to Rotterdam. So we had to say our goodbyes. Amsterdam here we come!

Our hostel is called “The Flying Pig, Uptown”. We got there at about midnight and had to go downstairs to the Bar to check in. We got all that taken care of and put our stuff in the room (4 sets of bunk beds, and 5 sleeping people). So we wanted to hit the town the first night so we went exploring a bit in the area of Leidsplein . We saw our first coffee shop, “The Bulldog”. It is pretty crazy what they can sell legally in this country. Lol. We also found ourselves a good charwarma place. We ordered a couple with the sauce Blanche and fries, and headed back to the hostel. We ate them downstairs in the chill out room, and starting meeting the other backpackers. There were people from all over the US and the world. Even met a couple French girls. So, we talked with these people for a couple hours and found out some cool stuff to do while we were going to be in Amsterdam. So we now had a plan, but we also wound up sleeping in everyday. The first day we walked all around the city and tried to find this Free Tour that we had heard about. It was supposed to be really good. But we could not find where they were meeting for the life of us, so we just kept exploring the town and got a good feel for the layout.

We were able to visit the Anne Frank house in Amsterdam. That was a really good experience to get to see and feel the history. We climbed the secret stairway and got to walk in the room they hid in for so many years. I am so glad that we got this chance. Also we visited a cathedral and a really interesting square. Begijnhof is a square that is completely surrounded by building, and you would not know it was there if you didn’t see a small doorway that led into it. Luckily I got pretty good eyesight. But it was interesting being in the middle of all these buildings. And a lot of them were not exactly standing straight up; I think something about all the water had to do with that.

So we finally found the tour on the last day and we stayed with it for about 30 minutes until we decided it was way too cheesy and ditched. So we hit the red-light district for a bit. Lol. You can find any type of girl, or man, you might want. But don’t worry we didn’t waste any money there. I can’t believe that this is a legal profession here. The girls pay a lot of money to rent out these windows, so in tern the clients have to pay at least 50 Euros for just about anything. And we definitely didn’t come with that kinda cash.

So we ended our trip with a nice walk thru Vondel Park. Just relaxed and took in the scenery and people. After this we went to this place called FEBO. it is a store where the walls are all like vending machines, but for hot portable foods that are made fresh and cheap. so we ate, and then it was off to Schiphol Airport to leave for London!!!

I made it thru the vacation

2009-01-06T14:25:00.004+01:00

so i got to see a lot of stuff over the last two weeks!!! i spent Christmas in Amsterdam! Then a whole week in London! And then New Years in front of Le Tour d'Eiffel! It was all amazing, an i will give you the full details soon. I saw everything you could imagine seeing in these big cities. and i met a lot of really cool people from around the world. I still was using my french on a daily basis, and i think i might be on the way to becoming bilingual! finally.

well i hope all you have had a great vacation too.

the start of vacation!

2008-12-22T23:40:00.002+01:00

i will catch you up on the last couple week soon! well after new years. lol

Sunday: Matt arrives at gare routier. Bags did not make it to France! So we walk to the appt and drop off his one carry on, I let him borrow some pants (he had to get all dressed up for the first class flight over here). And then I introduced him to Pastis. 2 good glasses, and then it was out to hit the town by 1:30. We got lost right off the bat. And then matt’s bladder was on the fritz over here. He went and pissed on some French guys mail box. Ok so we find the city. And I show him around teaching him a bit of the history, and a little French as well. we go all over town and to the cathedral. This rendered matt speechless. I fell bad that I am already “used” to all this stuff and take it all for granted. How magnificent it all really is. So we check out the rest of town and then at 5:30 we head for the x mas church service, with ICCP. It is vin chaud and story and carol night apparently. So we got a couple glasses of wine. Matt fell asleep for most of the story time part. It was hilarious watching him drift in and out against his will. After church we came back to the appt to chill and have some wine. We got caught up on each other’s life. And then it was off to the bulldog to watch the falcon’s game! It was 17 to 7 when we left. And we had a beer and a half each. So we debated hitting up a club, but actually the couple I wanted to go to were not open for some reason. So we just came back to the appt to crash. (I think matt was definitely ready to lay down, long day, and I kept him moving. Gotta fight off that jet lag) I found hime sleeping on the toilette. Lol! Passed out.

monday: we checked out the town. bought some meat and cheese at the open air market and a couple baguettes. we took the bus to Mont Saint Victoire and climbed it, half way was all Matt could handle. It was an amazing day. the weather is so nice right now in the south of France. 52 degrees and not a cloud in the sky. so after the mountain we came back to the appt to get washed up and rest a bit. at 6:30 we went to dinner with some french friends of mine. got to see french life first hand. and pick the brains of a real Aixois (the name for someone from Aix). it was great to get a good understanding on the views of french people on society, life, politics, and the world. a great dinner too. thanks kimberly (she is the french guy's georgian wife) i think Matt really enjoyed himself. i did too. so far this trip is awesome.

on teusday we are going to explor marseille a little bit and see some more cathedrals and the Mediterranean Sea. it is a great city (second largest in france) and then we leave for Amsterdam at 7pm. we will be in amsterdam for 3 nights (including x mas!) and then we fly to London for 5 nights. and then on the 31st we move to Paris for another 4/5 nights!!!!!!! should be freaking awesome. i can not wait! wish us luck, and i will try and stay in touch.

MERRY CHRISTMAS and A HAPPY NEW YEAR!

the conclusion to thanksgiving week, finally

2008-12-21T11:11:00.010+01:00

so the week of thanksgiving i went to a french catholic church on tuesday and got to see what there mass was like for the youth program. interesting to say the least. a lot of sitting and standing and having to say the right words at the right time. i was hopelessly lost. lol. well it was fun tho. and after the mass we all went downstairs into "la cave" (french word for basement) and had a huge thanksgiving dinner. it was probably like 80 students, and we spoke french and ate for about 2 hours. it was really good practice for me. so this was thanksgiving number two.

wednesday went by normally until about 3 am. i was online skyping someone and i noticed a sneaky looking guy outside my window. and i have never seen a person out my window before, much less at 3am. he was heading for a garage that was attached to the rear side of my building, i had never noticed it before. so i watched him, and then he took out a crowbar and started prying at the door. i was astonished, was i really watching a burglary. well i couldn't just be idle, and watch. so i opened my window and yelled at the guy (he was about 200 feet away) and he turned and looked at the building and then wheeled around and took off running. now, i do not know what was in that garage, but i know it was safe for at least one more night. this definitely got my adrenaline going and it was a little while before i went to bed.

So friday i had my 8am class, woohoo, so much fun. after class i ran my errands and then went back to the dorms for a little bit. some of the asian students in my class said they wanted to cook me a dinner that night. i was excited, and had no idea what to expect. so when night came i started the 25 minute walk across town to their dorm, and boy was it worth it. they had about ten traditional chinese dishes out on the table. 2 different types of pork, rice, noodles, spinach, spicy salad, huge turkey wings, sweet rolls with meat in the middle, soup, more rice, and they had special tea for me too. wow!!!! was it so tasty and awesome. everything was slow cooked to perfection. i used "chop-sticks" with ease. all the meat was so juicy and fall off the bone good. man that was a great dinner, and i got to pick up a couple more chinese phrases. anfter we ate we sat and drank wine and played some card games they know, can't wait to share them with you. it was definitely a fun night. and i consider this to be my 3rd thanksgiving dinner.

Thanksgiving

2008-12-13T17:15:00.000+01:00

So Sunday was the big Thanksgiving feast! (I know that this is 2 weeks late). So the church I go to here organized the whole thing. Everyone was supposed to bring a side dish or wine and baguettes. And the church cooked all the turkeys, 20 I think and 5 chickens. I rounded up about 10 friends from school and around town to come with me. We got to the fest about 12 and the smells were amazing. We found a table and just started chatting waiting for the thing to start. So after 200+ more people arrived we were finally ready. There was a little speech about Thanksgiving and being thankful (in English and French) and then it was time to dig in. My plate was piled high. I think I got 15 different sides and turkey all in one go. It was so gooood. And there was enough left over for seconds. Now it doesn’t compare to Thanksgiving at home with the family, but it was a good substitute. We ate and drank wine for a couple hours before it was time to go back.
When I got back I went and relaxed at a tea house with a couple friends. We got some tea and a shisha and just chilled and digested for a few hours. It was very relaxing. And after this I met up with some other people at The Bulldog, and we watched some Thanksgiving football! It was a great thanksgiving day.

Bowling and Billiards

2008-12-13T13:05:00.000+01:00

So Saturday started with laundry. I know not interesting but it has to be done sometime. I have to actually walk to another building to do it all. But it is fun to meet some French people while I am waiting the hour and a half.
The night was a blast. Two friends and I went out to Plan de Compagne, just 30 minute drive from Aix. This is like the little little Las Vegas of southern France. My friend Nizar, the one with the car, is the son of the Ambassador from Libya to France. Pretty cool, huh. And so we went out there and went to this huge bowling/billiards place. I think there were about 40 lanes and probably another 40 tables. It was a site to see, most everything in France it small. So we played “cut-throat” a couple of times, and then moved on to bowling. It was fun. I have not been bowling in years, I think. And I actually won the first game with a score of 115. And I had 3 strikes (not all in a row tho). So we played another and ordered another round from the bar. The night was good. We made it back to town by around 1 am. I can’t wait to go again.

Friday : wine and biking/ bottling

2008-12-13T13:02:00.001+01:00

So I have a friend here who owns a wine touring company. Small scale, but she does a biking trip for university students twice a year. So I signed up. We met up and got the bikes from a rental shop. It was me, one other guy, and about 15 good looking girls. I know my life here is pretty awesome. So…. We rode out to a vineyard about 20-30 minutes outside of town. It was a nice ride seeing the scenery change from “busy city” to “rolling countryside”. The one problem was that the Mistral (the wind force that blows in cold air at 20mph in this area, and usually for 3, 6, 9, 12, or 15 days straight) picked up right as we started. And most of the ride was uphill and against this wind. But alas we all made it.
So we got off the bikes and regained our breaths and hydration. The Vineyard was of small scale, and of course it is after season right now. But it was still really cool. We had the owner, a French guy, explain to us all the processes of growing the vines, harvesting the grapes, and then we moved onto the fermentation. For the last part we went inside to the room with the large steel holding tanks where the wine sits, and the sugars ferment, thus creating the alcoholic wine. And just so you know the reason red wine is red is because they leave the skins in the tank for a couple days and the color is pulled out into the wine. And rose/pink wine is pink because they leave the skins in for just about half a day. Interesting? After he explained everything to us, in French mind you, the tasting began. He passed out glasses to everyone and then poured us wine straight from the steel containers. It was a really neat experience to get the wine before it goes to a bottle.
So after we got all nice and toasty we had to get back on the bikes and head into town. It was a much easier trip, considering it was downhill and with the wind. But when we got into town we hit French traffic. And I was actually almost run over and had to try and get out of the way, which caused a fall/jump from the bike onto a sidewalk. I cut my finger open and scraped my knee, but I survived. So we got back into town and checked in our bikes. Then it was off to my friend’s house, Hilary, to bottle some wine of our own. This was pretty cool to do. We poured the wine out of big jugs into bottle and then used a hand press to cork the bottles. After we all got a bottle the fun was over. But it was a great time and for only 20 Euros I would suggest it to anyone.

Stuff i need to update you on

2008-12-10T07:18:00.001+01:00

finally a day to catch you all up.

2008-11-26T15:37:00.002+01:00

The BIG turkey. one of like 20 that we ate. so delicious

All the belle filles at my table. i'm a lucky guy
Me and the guys bowling and goofing off
Ahh. the vineyard
Getting ready for the 30 minute ride to the wine country

Sorry. it's been busy here

2008-11-22T18:00:00.007+01:00

So it has been a little while since i have updated you guys. Sorry about that. I must be having too much fun. But let me finally get this thing started.

so what like two Sundays ago is where i will begin. I had lunch with a small group of friends at that restaurant/pub the Bulldog (i believe i mentioned this place before. it has the American football). so we met and just all got caught up on each others lives in France. after this, we went to the international church here. it was pretty crazy. we actually had this really drunk beggar guy like right at the church door. and at the beginning of the service he came in and was shouting in French. so he was politely escorted out. after the service like 50 of us went back to the Bulldog for some burgers and Football. some of the guys here have a fantasy football league. and the true intention was for it to be just them going to watch the games and keep up with their points on the web. but it is just such a great pub that everyone wanted to come. so i think i was there until 12ish. then it was time for the long walk home. but all in all Sunday was a good day.

Let's move on to Tuesday. So in one of my language classes we were having our first test. I was not that difficult for me. but then again i have not received my grade yet. hopefully a 20 (but yeah right, nobody ever gets a 20. p.s. the french grade everything on a scale to 20 not 100) but after the test we had a really fun event planned in class. the day before we all organized to have a party! One of my friends in the class, Misha (pictured above in the bright blue, next to M. Tissot, one of the profs) has a fiance who happens to own a vineyard outside of town. so she brought a few bottles of the wine they make, and the rest of the class brought different cheeses and bread. we spent 2 hours or so just socializing and drinking and playing crazy french games that the teachers knew. It was so much fun. we really came together as a group. and now we are all much greater freinds. and i think we all did leave just a bit tipsy. but hey. can you say you ever got to drink wine with your teachers in class. you gotta love the french way of life.

On thursday me and some friends decided to do a soup night. Each person, outta the 16 that came, brought an ingredient of their choice. and we made up the soup as we went. The object was to make something really tasty and then take half of it out to the streets and feed the homeless. so we accomplished the first part. the soup was really good. But when we went out in search of homeless people we could not find hardly any. which is really strange since durring the day we all know where at leaste 10 are on our normal routes through the city. I guess they all have somewhere to go at night. this is a really good thing tho. And it also meant that we got to have more soup for ourselves. haha. oh, also i got to invite a friend from class to come. and before we went to the soup tasting we stopped by her appartement for a couple glasses of wine. and i really got to know her a lot better. we talked for a couple hours. it was really good. she has definitely had a very interesting and varied life so far. So yeah thursday was a success.

This is all i can right tonight. i will try and publish everything i did on the weekend really soon. and it was a jammed packed weekend. and i loved it. second favorite since i have been here. well i have got a test tomorrow so i shoudl get some rest. hope all is well

middle of the week.

2008-11-11T23:10:00.002+01:00

so we had today off of school for armistice day (veteran's day for all of you stateside). So i took advantage of this and went to a fun dorm party last night. we had pastis and smoked hookah. it was really cool getting to meet some more French people. i think we were up til like 3 am. so needless to say, i slept way in today. i woke up around 2 in the afternoon. that's the latest i have slept yet!

tonight some friends and i had dinner together at Loni's apartment. We bought a couple rotisserie chickens and some green beans, corn, mashed potatoes, and gravy. It was really good. It felt like a mini thanksgiving. we sat and ate and talked for a long time. then we played some cards. i actually learned a new game. It's called "Turrets" . I will try and explain it to you, because it was really fun and i think you would enjoy it. So you sit around the table and one person holds the whole deck of cards, just for convenience we will call this person the dealer. So the dealer will turn over one card and put it on the table. He is now in a battle against the person next to him. How you win the battle is to be the first person to say a word (no numbers or Proper nouns). this word must start with the same letter that the number starts with. For example: if a 5 (Five) is flipped over then you must be the first person to say something that starts with an "F". and no words can ever be repeated during the game. So if you win the battle you get the card. If you were the Dealer who won, then you keep the deck and you flip over the next card and are now in a battle with the next person (traveling around the table clockwise). you keep being the dealer until someone else wins the battle of words. and then they get that card that they won on and the deck transfers to them. they are now the new dealer, and will battle the next person in line. It is a really fun game and if you try it, you will find it is a lot harder to think of words than you might think. we came up with stuff like; tumbleweed, squirrel, flag.... The object is to get as many cards as you can, and the game ends when the deck is out. you can use multiple decks to get the game to last longer, and you can even use Uno cards if that's all you can find. but try it out and tell me what you think. you understand why it's called Turrets? you wind up yelling out the most random of words, and you studder a lot trying to think of stuff to say.

well i hope all is well, can't wait to hear from you guys!

So wait! the election already happened???

2008-11-10T00:29:00.002+01:00

hey, so yeah i guess a lot has been going on in the States since i left. I mean wow, now it looks like we are going to have Obama take over the white house... (I did actually get a text from a friend ia 5am with the announcement. moment of excitement, and then straight back to sleep.) i know a lot of you think that it's going to get crazy! But let's just see how these next 4 years go. ok, that's all i will say on that.

so i had a fairly mild week. i finally bought an umbrella!!! only after we had like 2 weeks of rain. very unusual for this area. and i got downpourred on going to class monday. so i knew it was probably time to cave in and spend the 10 euros. very good investment. i had to use my umbrella the next two day to get to class. but now we have returned to the bright and blue skies that i love. it really was the first weekend of great weather we have had in a while.

so i went on a jog this morning, Sunday, for a few hours. i walked some too. ok a good bit of it, but still it was good excersice. the path i took was awesome. i had never been to this area before, just heard about it. on the edge of town there is a little river. and there is a great running/biking cross cuntry type trail that follows it for a few miles thru the woods. it was very refreashing to hear the sounds of the rushing water and all the birds and such. a good time back in nature. and when the trail dead ended i took to some streets. i stumbled upon this cool neighborhood. and i took one of the roads that went up the side of a little mountian/ big hill. and man was this street just stright up the whole way. it was great though, because once i reached the top it offered some really extraordinary views. views of the city and of the famous Mont Saint Victoire. I also got to check out some really cool houses. in which i was totally jealous of the simplistic lifestyle of the mountain-side Frenchies. so lucky. but then again so am I. so, yeah, it was a pretty good run. i think i will go again soon.

oh yeah, and after church i got to see some NFL on the cable at a friends apartment. it was pretty fun hanging out with the guys for a few hours. I got to brag on my home state a little. Thanks Falcons. i got to watch the end of the New England game and the Titans (wow 9-0!), and the first half of the Steelers game (man were they showing up for that half). so it fun, and i got dropped off at my dorm which is always a bonus.

so i would say it was a good week. classes are going good, and getting better every week. I am still definitely enjoying every moment. and i hope all is going well for "y'all"

marseilles and the rest of my break

2008-11-03T18:45:00.005+01:00

well i am back in class now. i was ready for it too.

so i went to Marseilles on Thursday. if you don't know already, i am studying about 20 miles outside of this city. Marseilles is the 2nd largest city in France. I just caught a bus from here to there, it was 13 euros round trip. not too bad. i went for a bit of "faire du shopping". so, after i got off the bus i ran into some random French kids my age, and they helped me to find the shopping area of town. I had some good conversation with them. they told be about the mall, so i checked that out. it was a very chique mall, but still much smaller than thos in america. it was nice to see something that resembled the USA though. well, i didn't buy anything in the mall, so i went to the strip outside. there i found all of the same shops that i had just seen plus like 100 more. there were small particular clothes shops, and bigger ones too. it is crazy to be walking and pass by a gucci shop right next to a versachi one. but those were a little outta my price range. so i kept searching. eventually i found a couple pairs of pants, a couple light-weight jackets, a hat, and some shoes. so now i have got a little french style. all in all it was 150 euros. i now its a lot, by i have been dying bacause i look so american. and plus i haven't gotten new clothes in like a year.

on Saturday, i took a long walk all over town. i extended my knowledge of my surrounds. it was a good 3 hour walk i think. i found lots of shops and monuments i didn't know we had here. i even found a Subway and an Apple store. i bumped into a few people i know here, and i had lunch with one girl. after lunch i was back to a little walking, until i found a good place to sit and people watch. While sitting i was bombarded with 4 french girls i had never met. i guess they thought i was a good looking french guy. because they started talking to me in french really fast and asking me all these personal questions and stuff. i talked with them for a while. that was pretty fun, and then they asked for my number at the end before i said au revior. i didn't give it to them tho, because i think they might have been a bit young, but still very cute. so it made me feel like my purchases in marseilles were completely worth it.

on sunday, i had church which was good. it started porring cats and dogs while we were in service, but it was finished when we were. which was really good because i still have not bought an umbrella here. after church i went to eat with a group of about 20 if the church members. all families with little kids. so it was like 10 parents, 10 little kids (all under 9), and me. i had a great time. we had some charwarmas and tajine. and wine of course. we know the owner of this restaurant really well, so we got the whole top floor for our pleasure. and then after we ate the owner came up and played the drum for us, tunisia style. it was really cool.

after dinner i went and saw Quantum of Solice, the new James Bond film. yeah that's right! it came out here 2 weeks before y'all will get to see it. haha. it was a really action packed one. i think there was a chase scene with every possible means of being chased; car, boat, foot... I do think there was a bit less story line in this one than the old school bond movies. it was mostly blasts of action. but it was definitely good, and i will recommended it to all.

so that finished off my vacation, and like i said at the beginning i am back in school now. no more breaks for a while. but i did get to drop a couple classes, so now i don't have to wake up at 8 am except for on fridays. every other day starts at 12pm or later. isn't that nice?

oh yeah today i did change my room in the dorms. i have a moisture problem in my other one. so now i am in chambre 2124. so for any of you with my address, please note this!

i hope all is well in the "Etats Unis"=United States

Castle Weekend!

2008-10-28T15:44:00.004+01:00

Well, there are some pictures for you. 1st) is of the castle, it was huge. like 30 rooms. there were 41 of us who stayed there for the weekend, and everyone had a bed! i slept in the tower. 2nd) is of me in front of the largest Huguenot church in France. it is in Anduze. they made it in somewhat of a rebellion to the way cathedrals were being made at the time. 3rd) is the view from my castle window!! it was an awesome sight to see the sun come over the mountain to the left and burn off the fog that lays over the village below. 4th) is a huge cave about 10 of us hiked to. it is where the protestants had their secret meeting while being persecuted in the 17oo's. it was quite a hike straight up this mountain, with little to no real trail to follow. 500 people could easily fit in here. it was quite an amazing feeling standing in this place. 5th) is from the Musee du desert. this is one of the ways the Huguenots were torchered. it is in front of a list of of pastors who parished trying to further their values in religion. it was a great history lesson.

but i did have a blast on my castle weekend. we spent two nights there. it completely made me want to keep pressing towards my dream of one day owning a castle in France. Or maybe building one in america, and creating a small French-like village to rule over. lol. but it was a lot of fun. i think the best part might have been just being with families again. there were about 6 families on the trip, parents and kids, and then there were like another 15 university students. So i already knew most of the college age students, so i really focused my attention on the rest of the gang. It was great getting to talk to moms, and dads, and watch the little kids play. the atmosphere was always a happy one for the whole weekend. I felt like i was part of all the families.

and then we also went on the excursion to the cave. now that was interesting. there is no real path to this cave. so of coarse we got lost a bit on the way up. but i was actually the one to find the cave, it was a couple hundred feet (70 meters) from where everyone else was looking. so that was some good boy scout intuition at work. it was a really cool cave. and the acustics were amazing. some of the girls sang some old hymns for us. it was just a really cool thing to see.

i hope to get to visit the castle again in the spring. you really cant beat that experience for just 30 euros.

this week i hope to go and explore marseille a little bit for the first time. i need to get some clothes shopping done there too. Aix is about 4 times more expensive for everything than the rest of France. so wish me luck on that endevor. it is about time i start looking more French.

also i am planning on going to the coast some time this week. and hiking the calanques which make up the area between marseille and cassis. not all of it, but enough. they are finger-like cliffs that jet out and lead to some of the coolest beaches, with the bluest water on the limestone rocks. so hopefully these plans will come to fruition.

as always, i hope everything is well back in the USA, and i would love to hear from you!

sorry its been so long

2008-10-20T22:40:00.003+02:00

well i have done a little bit since i last wrote you guys.

ok, so i left you off last after i climbed the mountain. ok, yeah that was a lot of fun. so on monday last week i had my classes. starting at 8 am. fun stuff. but my afternoon one thats 4 hours long is pretty fun. we just chat in french and learn some stuff along the way. after class i had the last of my small group sessions for the month. pretty good discusion.

well tuesday is nice in the fact that classes dont start til 12, but they go until 7. (i am currently writing this on a teusday, i do get one hour of break in between classes, but thats it for the day) so in my afternoon class we had a real interesting conversation. we talked about alcohol in france. yeah like where and how to get it. the good prices and even the slang terms that you can use to appear as if you are a local. lol. but after class was over i had a fun night lined up. me and a group of like 15 guys had a guys night out. we took over the top floor of a charwarma restaurant. ate and drank and just had a good time. and then we brought out the poker chips. and the y were nice chips too, reclaimed from a casino in aruba that had closed. there were eight of us man enough to throw in the 10 euros to start. i have to say it was one of the funnest times i had playing. and i held the high chip count for the majority. i was still in for the last play. but the other guy called my "all in" bluff, and he just barely beat me. it was a bunch of fun, but ultimately the whole pot had to be donated to the cost of the meal and drinks. but it was a good night.

wednesday i had a wine tasting to go to at night. wow was it a blast. we tried 7 wines from white to the darkest red. all in two hours. there were like 25 people there. and the set up of the night was really relaxed. we would learn a bit about wine, and then taste one for like 15 mins and just chat. then we would ask questions and learn a little more, before we started that next wine. just so you know, i am in the best region of France for rosé wine. and 2003 was like the best year so far, and right now we have shifted to an even year=good year of wine timeline. so don't buy an '07, get an '06 or '08. that is if it is from france. it was a lot of fun, and totally legal for me in France. i met a few more people, and thats always good too.

Thursday was another fun night. me and some friends gathered at a house outside of town. and that felt good all on its own, just to bee in a house for once, instead of an appartment or tiny dorm room. and the mom there cooked us all a very hearty and comforting potatoe soup. it was the bomb! and then we all watch "lady in the water" by m. night shamalan. most of us had never seen it. i thought it was good. it gave the girls a good scare a couple of times. which is always good for the guys they grab onto, wink. but yeah so that was a really fun and chill night. and i was able to get a ride all the way back to my dorm, which totally beats the usual 20 min walk from down town late at night.

i had a pretty relaxing weekend after my 8am friday class was over. just took care of some errands, like going to the bank, and getting some groceries.

on Sunday i went to a movie in a French theater for the first time. they are pretty nice, but a lot less leg room. actually it was like the dollar theater but without all the dirt and sticky floors and sketchy people. it was me and 2 girls. one of which is single.lol. but yeah i made the mistake of letting them choose the movie. a total chick flick. "vicky christina barcelone". its a new woody allen movie. it was in english, and had french subtitles. so we got to learn some french while we watched. after the movie me and one of the girls , laura, the single one, just strolled around the town and explored some ares we had never been. it was nice. um, and then i had church and got to see some more friends.

ok so now i am back to monday. well i totally slept thru my 8 am class, but i think i might be dropping it anyways. my afternoon class, 4 hours long, was pretty good like always. and then it was time for a big dinner. it was American Breakfast Night!!! the best meal i have had in a while. me and 4 friends started cooking for the 15 others that would be showing up in an hour. we cooked; potatoes, bacon ( absolutely the hardest american thing to find in france), french toast, eggs. oh it was awesome. and we had freash cut fruit and syrup and oj. wow good night. after the dinner we all watched the latest 2 episodes of the office ( yes i am keeping up with this show, but its the only american thing i watch here) they were so funny, this is a good season.

so that should get you caught up to today. i might be frying some chicken with a couple friends tonight for dinner, so we will see how that goes. oh and this is our last week of school for a little bit. we get all of next week off for some crazy french holiday. awesome right? and i know for sure i will be spending a couple nights in a castle, and then i might go and explore some more of southern france; nice, cannes, ect...

well sorry this was so long, but as you can see i am still having a blst and staying busy. i hope all goes weel in the states. and p.s. what has happened to McCain, it looks like obama might take this thing.

wow. long week

2008-10-11T18:42:00.000+02:00

well, the first week of classes is over. i have to say most of my teachers are pretty good. they aren't to bad to understand either. but it is REALLY REALLY tiring to listen and concentrate in French for hours and hours everyday. but i think it will get better as the year goes on. it feels good to finally be back in school, and actually learning stuff again. i am also meeting more people and that's good too.

so i finally got all my stuff with the bank done here. like getting my debit card (yay, no more international fines). and i deposited my first meal stipend check. i am still waiting to transfer all my US dollars, i am hoping the dollar will get a bit stronger still. i have already "made" almost 200 euros by waiting this long. and i am surprised at that. but soon.

i climbed the mountain again today. we took a bit of a different path to the top. and it was a beautiful day. i mean really perfect. i will try and put of pictures of me and the gang soon. we came down a different way, and actully ended up in a really cool spot. a huge damn. we crossed over the damn. and i got to look down the damn walls. and see the damn water. they were generating when we were there, so we could see the damn water spurting out of the damn holes in the bottom. it was really cool. i have never been to a big damn before. it was like hoover, but much smaller than that. but sill a few hundred feet high. i'll put up some damn pictures soon. (haha. just having some damn fun. like in vegas vacation)

well, i will try and write again next week. sometime soon, i hope.

the first day

2008-10-06T18:11:00.006+02:00

well, today started really early!!! a 7am wake up call, i think that is a first since may. so i got ready, and was at the bus stop like 5 mins early, but when the bus showed up there was only room for 4 people. and even tho i was one of the first 4, i could not let the little girls who walked up miss it. So i walked to school. and it was a cold one this morning. i was definitely glad i gad on 2 shirts, a sweater, and my red winter jacket (which totally make me look like a foreigner here, i mean nobody really wears red). so i still was able to get to class a bit early.

So i sat down and met the other 14 students (yeah that is how big my class is all year). and the teacher (who is a very attractive french girl) started writing on the board. at first i thought it was a joke. was she really writing l'alphebet? you know A B C D E... yeah she was. we spent almost an hour learning letters, and then spelling words out loud. wow. so i guess this class will be easy!

after that i had 3 hours til my next class. i know a long break, right. well it was just perfect. i went back to the dorm and dropped off my jacket. check my blog for comments, and then my e-mail and such. and then i went to the cafeteria for a cheap lunch. met a friend there and ate. and then it was back to class.

i have got 4 hours of class in the afternoons on monday. all with the same professor. he's pretty cool. i can understand everything he says. i think i might be one of the more advanced in this class. it gave me some extra confidence. we went over some simple listening, speaking, and writing exercises. and we actually change rooms 3 times durring this class. its pretty neat. i feel like i am getting a good refreasher today. and it was not too hard for me, so that made me feel good. i think i should pass!!

so keep wishin me luck.

i got small groups tonight, which is what i am studying for now. but i am sure i might get some real homework sometime soon.

last day of summer

2008-10-05T19:06:00.000+02:00

Today was my last day of summer, officially. Now, i did not make it to the mountain like i had planned. you want to know why? i stayed up until 2am waiting on my Skype appointment with my family. and they did not get on the internet til 2:45, and then skype didnt even work for them. so it was a total bust. but i got to facebook chat with them for a little while. After this i was pretty awake, instead of tired. and i did not get much sleep. so when 8:30 rolled around and i t was time to get up, I hit the snooze button a few too many times. Its ok tho. I have been up the mountian once, and i already have plans to do it again next week. so no harm done.

well my classes start tomorrow! yay. just kidding. but i am ready to start really learning the language here. and i will get to meet some new people, so it should be good. oh, and i have got a free student bus pass for this month, so that will make things easier! my two 8 am classes are on monday and friday. what a bummer. but it will keep me on my toes.

also, i just got offered an opportunity to spend a weekedn in a castle with some friends at the end of the month. that would be really cool. and for like only 30 euros. thats a cheap 2 and a half day trip. yeah, we get a week off here at the end of october. some sort of French holiday. (Toussaint). so that might be a lot of fun. i hope i can get my name on the list.

well, i will let you know how classes are going soon. wish me luck!!

passed the first test

2008-10-03T17:37:00.003+02:00

OK. so i got put into a middle level group for this semester. that is right where i want to be, and i think it is where the majority of the students are. I wanted to let you know what classes i would be taking/offered this semester. each week I will take 12 hours of French language classes, 2 hours of French phonetics, and 6 hours of electives. This gives a total of 20 hours/credits for this semester. The electives i can choose from are as follows and are 2 hours each: Translation (i will probably take this), short stories of French lit, general lit, knowledge of Press (i want this too), French politics (maybe), and French business (i was thinking of this one too). So what do you think? looks like a un semester, right? well at least i will learn a whole bunch. and i have met some of the teachers and they are deffinitely here for the students, and they completely understand that we are all foriegners. so i think it will be good, well except that some of my classes start at 8 am acroos town. but for the most part they are after lunch, so itll be warmer!

Well i am going to be climbing the mountain again on sunday! should be fun. i will try and put up more pictures.

i hope america isn't boring you too much! lol. oh, and i see the $$ is getting stronger, what a relief

some pictures

2008-10-02T05:39:00.001+02:00

ok. so i have got a photbucket site working for some pictures. but my internet is only strong enough late at night, so i am not sure how often i will put some up. i have got 100 up now. so check it out if you want

http://s47.photobucket.com/albums/f178/caleb1326/france/

the first taste of school

2008-10-01T16:48:00.004+02:00

Today we had our placement tests to decide what level of french classes we can take this year. It was at 10am, so i met up with a couple of friends and we walked there early in the morning. We got there with plenty of time to sit and have a nice cafe au lait (coffee with milk) and then we walked into the courtyard outside where the test would be. and there were like 80 other people out there waiting, and they were serving free coffee and biscuits (like a type of cookie). man that would have saved us each 3.50 euro. but anyways, we all find seats in the auditorium, and the speakers tell us what will be happening, and they did it in 4 languages (French, of course, Chinese, Japanese, and English). this was pretty cool to here. the test was like 15 pages, and actually not too bad. it covered everything from comprehension to grammar to listening and writing. mostly basic stuff i think, or at least my answers were pretty basic.

after the test, which took about 1h30, we had 3 hours to kill until we had to go back for an individual verbal test. so my friends and me went to a cafe on main street and got some food for an hour. i had a croque madame (bread with ham and cheese toasted on it and an egg sunny side up on top) very good! then we just walked the streets for the next hour or so, and even checked out a big cathedral, which i actually remember visiting in '06. so i t was a lot of fun for all of us to show each other the neat places we had found since we have been here.
the verbal test was only like for a few minutes each with one of the professors. they asked simple questions like about family, college, and life in aix so far. it wasn't too bad. i think i will be put in a middle level of classes, which sounds perfect. we get our results on Friday morning.

well Thursday i am turning in some paper work in the morning for my resident permit, and then doing laundry. in the evening i have an international student party to go to. there is supposed to be like 400 people. so it should be a good social. i am thinking of wearing a nice sports jacket. and after this party, i am going to a friends apartment in down town to watch the premiere of the Office! so it'll be a good night.

talk to y'all later

almost two weeks gone

2008-09-29T17:03:00.003+02:00

so last friday i had some meetings for the school. i had to actually wake up early, and set my alarm for the first time. but i have to say france looks good in the morning. there is a lot of stuff that happens before 12. and the markets that pop up in the streets and courtyards around town are awesome. you can find anything and everything fresh and made local. it is quite a site. and on sundays they even have an open air antique market that fills one side of the main street. and the other side stays busy with all the cafes full of french people and tourists. there are actually a lot of tourists here, so you would fit right in.

i am still loving the views i have from my window. and every now and then i get to watch a storm front move over the mountains. its pretty cool.

well i have got a big 3 hour placement test on wednesday. it will decide what level of french classes i should take here. and then i will be able to pick my classes and meet some professors on friday. and the classes are supposed to start on monday. hopefully i can get some later starting ones. its like a 35 minute hike from my dorms to the building all my classes are in. so wish me some luck!!

tonight i am going to bible study across town. it should be good, it is the first of a 3 week series. its great to chat over wine and cheese. and then all go out to the 2 euro bar that we found. haha, it should be a good night. and i hope i meet some more people.

a bientot, talk to you soon!

Mont Saint Victoire

2008-09-24T21:02:00.006+02:00

wow! this mountain is huge. i definitely can see it from my dorms and it is like 10 miles away. it is like stone mountain but on the alps scale.
so i met up with heather and a couple of her friends at la rotunde, in the middle of the city, and we hopped on the bus for st victoire. it only cost 1.10 euro each way, and was like a 20 min ride. petty good price i think. well so we had no map of the mountain but we could see the top from the bottom. its way up there. The climb started off nice and easy for like the first 20 mins, and then we really hit the mountain. i mean it starts going at like a 70% grade up. crazy! we were climbing over boulders, sliding on the rocks, and trying to take pictures all at the same time. one rigorous climb. but we made it to the top. oh yeah, while we were climbing there seemed to be a huge storm on the horizon. and guess what? it started to head right towards us. but we got to the top first, and got a bit of shelter. but it was soo cold and windy, and now wet. but eventually it passed, well just the rain. and we explored the peak a bit. there is a huge cross up there that you can see for miles, and we were now standing right next to it.
the views were spectacular to say the least. just when we were really enjoying our mountainous feat, some french people came over one of the cliffs. they had climbed the even steeper part by way of ropes and caribeaners. man that had to be hard. maybe next year. lol, no way. the part we did was hard enough.
but we started to head down, we had to catch that bus back to town. the climb down was about 30 mins quicker, but none the less treachorous. we made it all in one peace, and with nothing but a few scrapes and some great memorioies.
this was a lot of fun, i would love to take any of you up it if you visit me. there are some easier trails to the top, fyi.

still having fun

2008-09-21T23:41:00.000+02:00

ok so i know it has been a couple days, sorry.

friday .
i met up with my isep coordinator, emily and we went and got me set up with a french bank account and a cell phone. after that i went to here office and filled out some paper work for my residence permit. and boy was here office far away from everything, i mean a good 30 minute walk. i also got some things like a blanket and some silverware and pans and stuff from her for free. that was awesome. also on this afternoon i found the bus to carrefour, the french wal mart (which is not easy because there are like 25 different bus routes, and they all pick up in different places around the city, and make several stops) but i figuredit out just in time, and the busses were actually free friday and saturday ( it was transportation services weekend here) so that was lucky. i met some interesting people on the bus ride there and back. all in all it was a good day, and i had some good interactive experiences.

on saturday i woke up late, and bummed around in the dorms all day. i did help an asian girl who only speaks russian and english move a fridge. she didn't tell me that she didn't live in my dorm building until i was already holding the fridge. it was a few hundred yards away. but luckily we found a shopping cart out side, and just pushed it the whole way, well except for the 5 flights of stairs up to her room. ugh. but once we got to the top, she said that she would cook me some diner later. she did. it was really good. we sat in my room (chambre) and ate and drank some red wine for a hour or so. it was fun. and now i got another friend here.

let's see. today, sunday wasn't too interesting until around 5 tonight. i went to an international church that speaks in english. this was with some of those people i told you i met on the streets thursday. it was good to get to see everyone again. and after the singing and the sermon, a big group of us went out for dinner. we ate and talked for a couple hours. it was a lot of fun. and now that i have a cell phone here, i was able to exchange some digits. tomorrow we are all meeting up for a home cooked dinner at one of the guys apartments. it should be fun. these are mostly all exchange students. but from all over. i think we will make a good group.

this is all for now. i hope you all are having fun in lame america. just kidding.

my computer works again

2008-09-19T16:08:00.000+02:00

you might not know it, but my laptop crashed in the atl airport right before i got on my plain. i have been using the campus computers for the past couple days, and man are they slow. but now my laptop is back up and running. I have got SKYPE! my name in it is caleb_alexander so look me up!

i hope to hear from some of y'all soon.

a good night

2008-09-18T23:32:00.000+02:00

so all of today i walked the town. looking in shops and checking out some cafes. i still hadn't really met any people i could talk/relate to. until tonight! it was a stoke of luck. i decided to go back out of the dorms and head to main street and hope that i find someone/something to do. I heard a couple girls speaking english, and i introduced myself. it turns out that they were meeting up with a local youth group that was meeting for the first time tonight. perfect timing, i was suddenly meeting around 20 people (18 were girls) who were all exchange students. they were having a social game/ meet and greet in someones apartment tonight. it was just what i needed. a couple hours of conversation( ones that i could understand). it turs out that we all have the same doubts in our capabilities abroad.

it was fun we drank wine and played catch phrase. it might be a good group of people to get involved with, a couple of them even live near me here. so hopefully i will be able to stay in touch.

other that... tomorrow i am supposed to get a phone. it will do me wonders i think.

well thats all for tonight, its almost mindight now.

p.S. the keyboard here is one of the most confusing things ever!!!

Im HERE

2008-09-17T20:50:00.000+02:00

So i finally made it to France. It's a bit different than i had expected. It took over 18 hours to get to my school. I got a first class seat with my buddy pass, thanks robert. It was awesome! free drinks, food, movies (with the complentary noise reduction head phones) and anything else i could think of. my first challenge was trying to find where my luggage was going to be at the airport and then how to buy a train ticket. let's just say it was a good thing we caught a huge tailwind and arrived in paris in only 7 and a half hours. the train ride was really cool although i was tired. i had plenty of room for ny legs and the veiws were great! it was a 3 and a half hour riddes with about 4 stops. the scenery of france changes so much as you travel cross-country. Provence is amazing. the sky is blue, and it is still summer here, but without so much humidity.

My room is reqlly nothing special. kinda feels like the size of a closent. and my laptop is not working right now, a big bummer for me and everyone i wanted to "skype". hopefully i can get it fixed. I walked down into town, which is about a half mile or so. Its a great pedestrian street front shop/cafe place. After walking all over the main downtown and peeking into shop and checking out the many fountains, i sat down at a cafe and had a beer. a 1664 to be exact. it was 3 €. i sat and people watched for a while. I think i could get used to this. I just hope i can learn some French quick and find a group of college kids to hang out with. I only overheard like 5 or 6 kids speaking english all day. but i have got hope.

well i am going to try and get some much needed rest. i will keep you posted on what happens tomorrow and this weekend.

p.s. you won' t believe it but the keyboards here are completely different than in america. so knowing how to ten finger type is no good (its good i never learned how to)

a bientot,
caleb

The Day Has Come

2008-09-16T16:17:00.000+02:00

Well the French consulate pulled through for me. I picked up my visa this morning!! it looks like i will be getting on a 3:30 flight for Paris! so my next blog should be from France. I am a bit under the weather right now, but i am betting that a cool Mediterranean breeze will be all the healing i need. Wish me LUCK!

Almost there

2008-09-10T03:41:00.000+02:00

So today i went to the French Consulate in Atlanta to ttry and get my visa. I know it might seem like i should have done this a long time ago, but i forgot. So now i am doing a mad dash to get a visa in order to be able to leave on the 16th. It looks hopeful. I can't hardly wait to get over to France.