Hello,
A heads up that we are in Sorrento now, we canceled Naples due to dangerous reports. This is our final stop until our flights on Monday. Relaxing and spending tomorrow in Positano at the beach!
Here are some more pictures:
08 August 2009
More pictures
Hello,
A heads up that we are in Sorrento now, we canceled Naples due to dangerous reports. This is our final stop until our flights on Monday. Relaxing and spending tomorrow in Positano at the beach!
Here are some more pictures:
04 August 2009
Tuesday, August 4th
I don't have time to write out a blog, but just wanted to let everyone know I'm safe-- Paris was exhausting but good, and I'm in Interlaken now!
27 July 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009
Bonjour tout le monde.
Last Thursday’s lake trip was pushed to this week due to bad weather, so instead I decided to go to the international food night. The only problem was that you had to bring a dish from your country, and I decided last minute to go, had no recipes, didn’t want to end up with leftover food or pay a ton, and didn’t know what kind of cookware Isabelle had.
I opted for bake and break cookies and some coke. Not my finest moment, but I did what I had to do. I was really glad I decided to go, the food was amazing!!! I tried things from Russia, China, Greece, France, and who knows where else. For the most part, I wasn’t entirely sure what I was eating, but it was good! I wish we could have made some kind of recipe book for everyone.
After eating, I started chatting with a 27 year old chemistry phD student from Texas (I can’t remember his name). Then this other older American named Joelle (? girl’s name?) came over, and he’s a theology phD student. So then the chemistry dude spurred a debate (though civilized) over the existence of God versus the scientific method.
I was interested in the conversation, although I found it a strange setting. I was also impressed by the lack of anger and accusation, and how much they respected one another. I also really enjoyed that Joelle always had a quick, very intelligent response to very tough questions posed by chemistry dude. I was obviously more partial to Joelle’s arguments, but I appreciated hearing someone explain it so eloquently and so intelligently. I felt a little out of place since I didn’t feel I had that much to add to the conversation. Their responses to each other were so quick and so intelligently expressed that it was all for me to really listen and concentrate on what was being said. I did enjoy adding my thoughts on Ben Stein’s documentary “No Intelligence Allowed” and on Pascal’s theory on the bet of the existence of God (which I’ve read in French!). Eventually, the music got so loud I couldn’t hear them very well, and after about an hour the debate came to a standstill. It ended up being the chemist (agnostic) admitting that there could be a God but he just isn’t sure in what capacity, and Joelle calling him noncommittal because if you’re willing to accept that there might be a God, there’s no reason not to believe and see where it goes. Anyway, this was when I made my exit.
I danced with the group, no one from my program was there. I made friends with a Korean and Spanish girl, they were nice. It was the kind of dancing where young kids and immature peers would be embarrassed, but where if you just let go and don’t worry about it, you have a lot of fun. So I had fun dancing with the girls, among a mix of African, Saudi Arabian, Scandinavian, and older Americans.
Friday I found out that my excursion to Chartreuse scheduled for Sunday was canceled due to lack of interest. I was very angry about this since that meant I still had a full day excursion coupon to use and no more excursions left. On top of that, you’re not allowed to get that money back, which I find ridiculous. So I had a little heated conversation with Hakim, one of the excursion leaders. Basically I ended up singing up for hiking (an “activity” worth 15 euro when the full day is worth 40) on Sunday because it was the only thing left to do.
Friday evening Nicki, Alex D. and I left for the TOUR DE FRANCE!!! It was in Montelimar, the second to last stage. I got stung by a ferocious bee on the bus, at which point my wrist swelled up and throbbed for the majority of the night. We avoided a creepy older man on the bus asking to see us tomorrow, and when we reached Montelimar after a 2 hour trip, it was dark and there was no sign that any such event was coming through the town in just a few hours. No signs, nothing set up.
Let me also now mention that we did not book any sort of lodging for the night (everything was booked), and we had full intentions of staying up all night camping out. We figured that others would do this too to get a good spot. Apparently that’s something only Americans do.
So first we set out to find places where we could stay for a long time. We opted first for a restaurant, where we ordered a bottle of wine. After that, we opted for a Kebab restaurant. They are ALL OVER France, and I had yet to try one. They were also open until midnight. It was rather tasty. Finally, when they closed, we headed to an Irish pub where we drank big (for Europe’s standards) cups of coffee with multiple sugar packets added. When they closed at 2 am the real adventure began.
We had asked several waiters where the Tour started. No one knew. It seems that in France, it’s pretty trivial if you aren’t interested in cycling. My host mom’s friend thought it was strange that we would travel to another city to watch it. On top of that, apparently the servers aren’t supposed to be knowledgeable about big events that attract lots of tourists to their town. I think this has to do with the fact that they aren’t tipped, and most of the time care much less about you.
So we wandered around and started to see some barricades that weren’t there earlier. We ended up setting up camp in front of the tourism office because it on the main road, but a little out of sight so that we weren’t targets, and also because we could see someone approaching and go the other way. It was also well lit, and the police and all of the Tour workers started setting up right by us. We whiled away 2.5 hours there until we had to move for the street cleaners. I then took the opportunity to use the payphone to call Tanner and my parents, why not? It was at this point that the workers asked us if we needed a cellphone. I said no thanks. Finally, we spent an hour sitting on a staircase until the sun started coming up.
Other spectators started arriving around 7:30 which I thought was pretty late. We got a hot chocolate to wake up, and continued making friends with the workers. They were like, “We’ve seen you around a lot”. After perusing the merchandise (not much left since it was the second to last stop), we took our spots to be in the front. We opted for the podium area instead of the start line to see more things. Around 9 people started handing out free stuff. It sounds good in concept, and at the time you really want whatever they’re giving out, but then in retrospect you think, “Why did I want a snap-on bracelet for this internet company?” There were two dancing yetis in front of us, and we also got free coffee and crackers, and a bunch of strange hats. Around 10 the parade of sponsors came through, which was interesting but too long. Then finally around 1115 or so the cyclists slowly started arriving. We watched them slowly ride up and sign in, they were just inches away from us at times. A lot of them had bad injuries on their legs.
During this time, a Sony media man stood in front of us. He asked the three of us if we wanted autographs. We said yes! When he asked who, we replied “LANCE!!” He said, “Ok, no problem, I’ll bring him over.” I almost peed my pants. We got our paper and pens all ready, and I was geeking out. Lance ended up being the last cyclist to come through though, so as soon as he signed in he was presented with a check, and then hurried to the start line, so no autographs for us. I was a little bit disappointed just from how confident the media guy was that we would meet him, but the trip was still awesome and totally worth it. After they started, we bought some nougat because apparently Montelimar is famous for it (and that’s about it), and then hightailed it out of there.
Sunday I ended up not going hiking in Vercors as originally planned because Alex M and Dmitri asked me to go hiking a little later to a waterfall. I decided to go with them because 1- I knew them, and 2- I could sleep later. However, the bus we needed to take there was canceled because the bus driver got sick?? Ohhh France, you are a bitch sometimes. You get frustrated here because it’s not that you are just homesick for America and don’t like the way they do things, but that you try to make the most out of being here, and they just don’t let you. It’s incredibly annoying and frustrating.
Anyway, we decided to randomly try to find some trails. We took a tram to the end of the line and then realized that there weren’t any buses coming to take us where we wanted to go. So we abandoned hiking and headed toward a nearby park. En route, we saw a sign for hiking trails! So we followed them and ended up walking forever in the middle of nowhere without seeing any more signs. Finally, we saw a sign for a chateau (castle), so we followed it. It ended up being really lame and you couldn’t go inside. So we went back and took a different road which ended up being up a mountain side with narrow lanes, no shoulder, and lots of curves. Finally, we found the paths we were looking for, and it was well worth our wandering.
It ended up being a series of small waterfalls descending several hundred feet in a canyon. And we climbed up it!! Not all the way up, but we would cross on dry boulders (although my foot slipped in twice and Dmitri nearly lost his glasses). I got a really good picture next to a waterfall I’ll have to put up.
On the way back, we realized there was a MUCH easier way to reach the trails, but at least we found it to take then. Overall, a surprisingly good hike.
I’m ready for classes to be done. Four more days left. Tomorrow our group is going to a very nice lunch in town with the money that was left over in our account. It’s supposed to be very good food and we’re to dress nicely. Thursday hopefully I’ll be able to go to the lake, and then Saturday morning I leave for Paris at 4:15 am to meet up with Kaitlyn to begin our whirlwind trip!
Can’t wait to see people starting in two weeks!
Love,
Katie
ps- will post pics soon hopefully!
Last Thursday’s lake trip was pushed to this week due to bad weather, so instead I decided to go to the international food night. The only problem was that you had to bring a dish from your country, and I decided last minute to go, had no recipes, didn’t want to end up with leftover food or pay a ton, and didn’t know what kind of cookware Isabelle had.
I opted for bake and break cookies and some coke. Not my finest moment, but I did what I had to do. I was really glad I decided to go, the food was amazing!!! I tried things from Russia, China, Greece, France, and who knows where else. For the most part, I wasn’t entirely sure what I was eating, but it was good! I wish we could have made some kind of recipe book for everyone.
After eating, I started chatting with a 27 year old chemistry phD student from Texas (I can’t remember his name). Then this other older American named Joelle (? girl’s name?) came over, and he’s a theology phD student. So then the chemistry dude spurred a debate (though civilized) over the existence of God versus the scientific method.
I was interested in the conversation, although I found it a strange setting. I was also impressed by the lack of anger and accusation, and how much they respected one another. I also really enjoyed that Joelle always had a quick, very intelligent response to very tough questions posed by chemistry dude. I was obviously more partial to Joelle’s arguments, but I appreciated hearing someone explain it so eloquently and so intelligently. I felt a little out of place since I didn’t feel I had that much to add to the conversation. Their responses to each other were so quick and so intelligently expressed that it was all for me to really listen and concentrate on what was being said. I did enjoy adding my thoughts on Ben Stein’s documentary “No Intelligence Allowed” and on Pascal’s theory on the bet of the existence of God (which I’ve read in French!). Eventually, the music got so loud I couldn’t hear them very well, and after about an hour the debate came to a standstill. It ended up being the chemist (agnostic) admitting that there could be a God but he just isn’t sure in what capacity, and Joelle calling him noncommittal because if you’re willing to accept that there might be a God, there’s no reason not to believe and see where it goes. Anyway, this was when I made my exit.
I danced with the group, no one from my program was there. I made friends with a Korean and Spanish girl, they were nice. It was the kind of dancing where young kids and immature peers would be embarrassed, but where if you just let go and don’t worry about it, you have a lot of fun. So I had fun dancing with the girls, among a mix of African, Saudi Arabian, Scandinavian, and older Americans.
Friday I found out that my excursion to Chartreuse scheduled for Sunday was canceled due to lack of interest. I was very angry about this since that meant I still had a full day excursion coupon to use and no more excursions left. On top of that, you’re not allowed to get that money back, which I find ridiculous. So I had a little heated conversation with Hakim, one of the excursion leaders. Basically I ended up singing up for hiking (an “activity” worth 15 euro when the full day is worth 40) on Sunday because it was the only thing left to do.
Friday evening Nicki, Alex D. and I left for the TOUR DE FRANCE!!! It was in Montelimar, the second to last stage. I got stung by a ferocious bee on the bus, at which point my wrist swelled up and throbbed for the majority of the night. We avoided a creepy older man on the bus asking to see us tomorrow, and when we reached Montelimar after a 2 hour trip, it was dark and there was no sign that any such event was coming through the town in just a few hours. No signs, nothing set up.
Let me also now mention that we did not book any sort of lodging for the night (everything was booked), and we had full intentions of staying up all night camping out. We figured that others would do this too to get a good spot. Apparently that’s something only Americans do.
So first we set out to find places where we could stay for a long time. We opted first for a restaurant, where we ordered a bottle of wine. After that, we opted for a Kebab restaurant. They are ALL OVER France, and I had yet to try one. They were also open until midnight. It was rather tasty. Finally, when they closed, we headed to an Irish pub where we drank big (for Europe’s standards) cups of coffee with multiple sugar packets added. When they closed at 2 am the real adventure began.
We had asked several waiters where the Tour started. No one knew. It seems that in France, it’s pretty trivial if you aren’t interested in cycling. My host mom’s friend thought it was strange that we would travel to another city to watch it. On top of that, apparently the servers aren’t supposed to be knowledgeable about big events that attract lots of tourists to their town. I think this has to do with the fact that they aren’t tipped, and most of the time care much less about you.
So we wandered around and started to see some barricades that weren’t there earlier. We ended up setting up camp in front of the tourism office because it on the main road, but a little out of sight so that we weren’t targets, and also because we could see someone approaching and go the other way. It was also well lit, and the police and all of the Tour workers started setting up right by us. We whiled away 2.5 hours there until we had to move for the street cleaners. I then took the opportunity to use the payphone to call Tanner and my parents, why not? It was at this point that the workers asked us if we needed a cellphone. I said no thanks. Finally, we spent an hour sitting on a staircase until the sun started coming up.
Other spectators started arriving around 7:30 which I thought was pretty late. We got a hot chocolate to wake up, and continued making friends with the workers. They were like, “We’ve seen you around a lot”. After perusing the merchandise (not much left since it was the second to last stop), we took our spots to be in the front. We opted for the podium area instead of the start line to see more things. Around 9 people started handing out free stuff. It sounds good in concept, and at the time you really want whatever they’re giving out, but then in retrospect you think, “Why did I want a snap-on bracelet for this internet company?” There were two dancing yetis in front of us, and we also got free coffee and crackers, and a bunch of strange hats. Around 10 the parade of sponsors came through, which was interesting but too long. Then finally around 1115 or so the cyclists slowly started arriving. We watched them slowly ride up and sign in, they were just inches away from us at times. A lot of them had bad injuries on their legs.
During this time, a Sony media man stood in front of us. He asked the three of us if we wanted autographs. We said yes! When he asked who, we replied “LANCE!!” He said, “Ok, no problem, I’ll bring him over.” I almost peed my pants. We got our paper and pens all ready, and I was geeking out. Lance ended up being the last cyclist to come through though, so as soon as he signed in he was presented with a check, and then hurried to the start line, so no autographs for us. I was a little bit disappointed just from how confident the media guy was that we would meet him, but the trip was still awesome and totally worth it. After they started, we bought some nougat because apparently Montelimar is famous for it (and that’s about it), and then hightailed it out of there.
Sunday I ended up not going hiking in Vercors as originally planned because Alex M and Dmitri asked me to go hiking a little later to a waterfall. I decided to go with them because 1- I knew them, and 2- I could sleep later. However, the bus we needed to take there was canceled because the bus driver got sick?? Ohhh France, you are a bitch sometimes. You get frustrated here because it’s not that you are just homesick for America and don’t like the way they do things, but that you try to make the most out of being here, and they just don’t let you. It’s incredibly annoying and frustrating.
Anyway, we decided to randomly try to find some trails. We took a tram to the end of the line and then realized that there weren’t any buses coming to take us where we wanted to go. So we abandoned hiking and headed toward a nearby park. En route, we saw a sign for hiking trails! So we followed them and ended up walking forever in the middle of nowhere without seeing any more signs. Finally, we saw a sign for a chateau (castle), so we followed it. It ended up being really lame and you couldn’t go inside. So we went back and took a different road which ended up being up a mountain side with narrow lanes, no shoulder, and lots of curves. Finally, we found the paths we were looking for, and it was well worth our wandering.
It ended up being a series of small waterfalls descending several hundred feet in a canyon. And we climbed up it!! Not all the way up, but we would cross on dry boulders (although my foot slipped in twice and Dmitri nearly lost his glasses). I got a really good picture next to a waterfall I’ll have to put up.
On the way back, we realized there was a MUCH easier way to reach the trails, but at least we found it to take then. Overall, a surprisingly good hike.
I’m ready for classes to be done. Four more days left. Tomorrow our group is going to a very nice lunch in town with the money that was left over in our account. It’s supposed to be very good food and we’re to dress nicely. Thursday hopefully I’ll be able to go to the lake, and then Saturday morning I leave for Paris at 4:15 am to meet up with Kaitlyn to begin our whirlwind trip!
Can’t wait to see people starting in two weeks!
Love,
Katie
ps- will post pics soon hopefully!
22 July 2009
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Last Tuesday we ‘feted’ Bastille day. In the morning, I slept in, did some homework, and then hiked the Bastille with Alex M. We decided to go behind it and explored some caves carved out by the army in 1844 to be able to attack the enemy if they tried to approach from behind. We then ate lunch at the top, and hiked back down. It was fun, Alex and I are a lot alike. She’s an education major, so we talked about how awesome learning language is, the effect technology has on children (this seems to be a recurring theme with me), and how we will raise our future kids
Around 5 a small group went to watch the military parade. For those who missed it, well…you didn’t. I’ve seen one before in high school, so it wasn’t an issue of something that the French just do differently. It was bad. And incredibly boring. After an hour of nothing, we left. We then got sandwiches and ice cream and wasted time chatting in the park. Around 9 we ran into some others in our group. They had gone to the nearby lake that day, and wound up having to hitchhike back home because their bus never showed up! I don’t know if I could have done it.
At 1030 we watched fireworks in the park. It’s interesting because everyone was standing, and no one was actually allowed in the park, but stood at the entrance to watch. The fireworks were not a letdown. They had music playing that fit the ‘mood’ of certain parts. Interestingly, they played several American songs, like Louis Armstrong’s “What a Wonderful World” and the theme to Star Wars. I feel like French fireworks are superior because they really have an aesthetic value that isn’t trying to just light off as many at once as possible, but it’s more artistic and tries to convey a message.
Afterward, we trotted over to the Jardin de Ville for the “ball”. It was just a band, and not a very good one, and no one was dancing. I was a bit upset with my grammar professor for having gotten my hopes up. So, we didn’t stay and instead everyone went home.
Wednesday was the soccer tournament. I was really excited, and didn’t know anyone who was doing it, so I was curious to see how it would all go down. When I got to the meeting spot, I took my survey of who was there, discreetly judging how good they might be. The only people there was a group of about 10 Spaniards with team jerseys juggling. And they were good. Real good. I started getting really nervous that if these were the only people playing, I would be really embarrassed. I then had an internal debate with myself whether or not to stay or to pretend like I hadn’t come for the soccer and just leave. But I stayed. And it was so fun! It turns out that a bunch of other random people were playing too, several of whom never even played soccer before. And the Spaniards ended up being not as intimidating in actual game-play. I was on a team with 4 guys- one from my program, one from Belgium and two from Denmark, and 2 girls- one from Germany and the other from Sweden. It was really nice to interact with people from other countries. We haven’t really gotten the chance because they are taking a different type of course here. Our team got 3rd place, and the two games we lost were only by 1 each. It was really fun, but difficult. It’s hard to play anytime you put new players together, but to have different countries’ style of play added to that, AND different languages and phrases for communicating expressions, it was interesting. By the end though, we were playing pretty well, despite the heat.
Thursday was the petanque (bocce ball) “tournament”. I put that in parentheses because we only played one game. I was partners with Alex M, and we lost in a close match against some Frenchies. Afterward, we ate lamb and sausage.
Friday I had planned to go to Chartreuse, but since the trip to Vercors on Sunday was cancelled due to lack of interest, I decided to use that whole day coupon for a full day of Chartreuse this coming Sunday. Therefore, what had once been a packed weekend ended up being only a trip to Marseille on Saturday. So, Friday I took it easy, didn’t do any homework, and did some light shopping. I ended up only buying one small thing for 1.50, so it was mainly just a way to use up time. That night I went to bed before 10 because I had to wake up at 5 the next morning.
Saturday was pretty good, not my favorite excursion so far. We stopped in Sisteron on our way, another waste of time. We got to Marseille around noon. It’s in the south of France, on the Mediterranean. It is also where the Chateau d’If is located, immortalized in the Count of Monte Cristo. However, since it was so windy that day, and the chateau is on an island, we could not go because it was too choppy for the boats. So instead, Nicki, Brittany, Alex PR and I went shopping for touristy things. We went in a Pastis shop, which is a type of liquor that smells like black licorice and is really strong. We also realized that Marseille is famous for soap. And crickets. I bought a few gifts, then we went to a chocolaterie which opened in 1760. I bought a few pieces, they were good. Finally, perused a craft marché where I bought a pretty bracelet. At 4 took the bus up the hill to Notre Dame de la Garde. It’s a basilica that was created in honor of Mary to protect the town against…some disease. It had an amazing view of the ocean, and the church itself was gorgeous, but very different from others in Europe. Instead of stone façade and gothic architecture, it was covered with gold mosaics, stripes, and lots of color.
Next we headed to the beach for a quick look. It wasn’t good weather to go swimming, so we just got our feet wet. On the way back to Grenoble we stopped in Aix-En-Provence for around 2 hours. A group of us opted for a sit-down dinner. I had shrimp and noodles since we were still close to the ocean, and I felt a need to get seafood. It was good. Stephanie also made a good rule that we only speak French the entire dinner. After we finished eating we “flâner-ed” a bit, and I ended up getting tiramisu gelato-so good! I didn’t end up getting home until 1:30 that night, so it was a long day.
I was kind of glad Vercors was cancelled so that I could sleep in Sunday. I had a very boring, homework-filled day.
This week has dragged by really slowly in terms of school. I’m ready to be done. I almost skipped today. I find that I’ve been getting really tired at around 930 at night—am I getting old?!? We started our second optional course though this week- Tourism and Business (the vocab class wasn’t offered…neither was translation….), so it’s been somewhat of a good change of pace.
Tomorrow I’m going to Lake Paladru after class, and Friday night I leave for Montelimar to watch Lance in the Tour de France!!!!
Things I miss about the US (besides the obvious friends, family, and boyfriend):
• Window screens
• Refrigerated milk in containers larger than a soda can
• Stores being open on Sunday
• Not everything being organic
• Meat that you can cut without cutting the plate first
• Pain that you can cut with a knife--- wowwww, pain means bread in French. I only caught this when reading it for the 3rd time
• Bathrooms that have both toilet and shower and sink in the same room. With more space than a closet
• Internet/tv
• Sunscreen not costing 25 dollars
• Things being open at lunch time
• Air conditioning. Or at least fans
• Not being begged for money every time I sit in a park
• Not everyone smokes
• More punctuality and organization
I’m not sure if I can think of much that the French do better:
• Fireworks
• Cheese
• Family dinner
• Working 35 hours a week for a higher minimum wage
• Taxes and tip already included in the price
• Gelato
• Not being fat
• Dressing somewhat nicer
• And of course, a rich history with amazing sights
That’s all for now, I hope everyone’s well!
Around 5 a small group went to watch the military parade. For those who missed it, well…you didn’t. I’ve seen one before in high school, so it wasn’t an issue of something that the French just do differently. It was bad. And incredibly boring. After an hour of nothing, we left. We then got sandwiches and ice cream and wasted time chatting in the park. Around 9 we ran into some others in our group. They had gone to the nearby lake that day, and wound up having to hitchhike back home because their bus never showed up! I don’t know if I could have done it.
At 1030 we watched fireworks in the park. It’s interesting because everyone was standing, and no one was actually allowed in the park, but stood at the entrance to watch. The fireworks were not a letdown. They had music playing that fit the ‘mood’ of certain parts. Interestingly, they played several American songs, like Louis Armstrong’s “What a Wonderful World” and the theme to Star Wars. I feel like French fireworks are superior because they really have an aesthetic value that isn’t trying to just light off as many at once as possible, but it’s more artistic and tries to convey a message.
Afterward, we trotted over to the Jardin de Ville for the “ball”. It was just a band, and not a very good one, and no one was dancing. I was a bit upset with my grammar professor for having gotten my hopes up. So, we didn’t stay and instead everyone went home.
Wednesday was the soccer tournament. I was really excited, and didn’t know anyone who was doing it, so I was curious to see how it would all go down. When I got to the meeting spot, I took my survey of who was there, discreetly judging how good they might be. The only people there was a group of about 10 Spaniards with team jerseys juggling. And they were good. Real good. I started getting really nervous that if these were the only people playing, I would be really embarrassed. I then had an internal debate with myself whether or not to stay or to pretend like I hadn’t come for the soccer and just leave. But I stayed. And it was so fun! It turns out that a bunch of other random people were playing too, several of whom never even played soccer before. And the Spaniards ended up being not as intimidating in actual game-play. I was on a team with 4 guys- one from my program, one from Belgium and two from Denmark, and 2 girls- one from Germany and the other from Sweden. It was really nice to interact with people from other countries. We haven’t really gotten the chance because they are taking a different type of course here. Our team got 3rd place, and the two games we lost were only by 1 each. It was really fun, but difficult. It’s hard to play anytime you put new players together, but to have different countries’ style of play added to that, AND different languages and phrases for communicating expressions, it was interesting. By the end though, we were playing pretty well, despite the heat.
Thursday was the petanque (bocce ball) “tournament”. I put that in parentheses because we only played one game. I was partners with Alex M, and we lost in a close match against some Frenchies. Afterward, we ate lamb and sausage.
Friday I had planned to go to Chartreuse, but since the trip to Vercors on Sunday was cancelled due to lack of interest, I decided to use that whole day coupon for a full day of Chartreuse this coming Sunday. Therefore, what had once been a packed weekend ended up being only a trip to Marseille on Saturday. So, Friday I took it easy, didn’t do any homework, and did some light shopping. I ended up only buying one small thing for 1.50, so it was mainly just a way to use up time. That night I went to bed before 10 because I had to wake up at 5 the next morning.
Saturday was pretty good, not my favorite excursion so far. We stopped in Sisteron on our way, another waste of time. We got to Marseille around noon. It’s in the south of France, on the Mediterranean. It is also where the Chateau d’If is located, immortalized in the Count of Monte Cristo. However, since it was so windy that day, and the chateau is on an island, we could not go because it was too choppy for the boats. So instead, Nicki, Brittany, Alex PR and I went shopping for touristy things. We went in a Pastis shop, which is a type of liquor that smells like black licorice and is really strong. We also realized that Marseille is famous for soap. And crickets. I bought a few gifts, then we went to a chocolaterie which opened in 1760. I bought a few pieces, they were good. Finally, perused a craft marché where I bought a pretty bracelet. At 4 took the bus up the hill to Notre Dame de la Garde. It’s a basilica that was created in honor of Mary to protect the town against…some disease. It had an amazing view of the ocean, and the church itself was gorgeous, but very different from others in Europe. Instead of stone façade and gothic architecture, it was covered with gold mosaics, stripes, and lots of color.
Next we headed to the beach for a quick look. It wasn’t good weather to go swimming, so we just got our feet wet. On the way back to Grenoble we stopped in Aix-En-Provence for around 2 hours. A group of us opted for a sit-down dinner. I had shrimp and noodles since we were still close to the ocean, and I felt a need to get seafood. It was good. Stephanie also made a good rule that we only speak French the entire dinner. After we finished eating we “flâner-ed” a bit, and I ended up getting tiramisu gelato-so good! I didn’t end up getting home until 1:30 that night, so it was a long day.
I was kind of glad Vercors was cancelled so that I could sleep in Sunday. I had a very boring, homework-filled day.
This week has dragged by really slowly in terms of school. I’m ready to be done. I almost skipped today. I find that I’ve been getting really tired at around 930 at night—am I getting old?!? We started our second optional course though this week- Tourism and Business (the vocab class wasn’t offered…neither was translation….), so it’s been somewhat of a good change of pace.
Tomorrow I’m going to Lake Paladru after class, and Friday night I leave for Montelimar to watch Lance in the Tour de France!!!!
Things I miss about the US (besides the obvious friends, family, and boyfriend):
• Window screens
• Refrigerated milk in containers larger than a soda can
• Stores being open on Sunday
• Not everything being organic
• Meat that you can cut without cutting the plate first
• Pain that you can cut with a knife--- wowwww, pain means bread in French. I only caught this when reading it for the 3rd time
• Bathrooms that have both toilet and shower and sink in the same room. With more space than a closet
• Internet/tv
• Sunscreen not costing 25 dollars
• Things being open at lunch time
• Air conditioning. Or at least fans
• Not being begged for money every time I sit in a park
• Not everyone smokes
• More punctuality and organization
I’m not sure if I can think of much that the French do better:
• Fireworks
• Cheese
• Family dinner
• Working 35 hours a week for a higher minimum wage
• Taxes and tip already included in the price
• Gelato
• Not being fat
• Dressing somewhat nicer
• And of course, a rich history with amazing sights
That’s all for now, I hope everyone’s well!
13 July 2009
Monday, July 13th, 2009
Before I recount an incredible weekend, I must say that I have at least 10 mosquito bites. I think I should be the one to introduce window screens to France.
The beginning of last week did not start well. On Tuesday I found out that I was placed in the level lower than where I would’ve liked. I was pretty upset, mainly because I feel like I got screwed while taking the test. I’m fine with being where I am if that’s where I’m supposed to be, but I’m not sure that it is, especially after seeing where others were placed. My Michigan professor said she was shocked and that I could switch. I still don’t know what to do because I like the professor I got placed with, and he’s pretty lax on homework, and it’s been an ok review so far. But we also don’t talk at all in class, which is where I’m lacking the most. It’s a tough call.
The oral class is also not what I expected. It’s frustrating because all of the levels are in it, so you have some people who speak nearly fluently next to people just learning. It’s very slow going. I have the same professor though, so he’s very nice.
The rest of the week passed by fairly uneventfully, trying to get ahead for the busy weekend. Friday I went shopping (for the first time!). I realized that there are far too many women’s clothing stores for me to handle. I ended up buying a dress, sweater (thinking ahead to Sunday’s excursion), and necklace. They are all from the same store- Etam. I was in there forever because I couldn’t find the dressing rooms, and I didn’t know the name for them (cabinets), so then I gave up but as I was standing in line I finally spotted them. I also bought a book, and attempted to buy a radio to have some form of media, but to no avail. I probably went in about 7 stores.
I also got upset last week because Isabelle told me that my French speaking ability has decreased since I’ve been here. She wasn’t trying to be mean, but she wanted to let me know. She thinks it’s a result of speaking to much English with the group. I’d agree with that. It’s really hard to keep speaking French when everyone else switches to English, especially in a large group. I also think though that it’s because I no longer have 4 hours of discussion-oriented class a day, now it’s more listening. Finally, I’m attempting more complicated sentences than when I first arrived. (She also mentioned my ability on the phone, but I didn’t tell her that I had written out what I would say beforehand). So that’s why I bought the book, and tried to buy the radio. I also spoke French all Friday night and for the morning on Saturday.
Friday night a few of us went to Bukana pub again because it was student welcome night for the CUEF (where we’re taking classes). However, not many people were there. I had a tequila sunrise, then Alex T. (from Puerto Rico), Emma (new friend from England), and I went to the short movie festival outside. We watched two films and then left because of the early excursions the next morning.
Alarm went off Saturday at 6:40 am. This was bad news, as I tried to set it for 6:15, and had to be at the meeting location by 7:30. The alarm clock is very unpredictable. I had looked up which tram to take, so I hopped on with not much time to spare. Then I decided to double check to make sure I was in the right place.
I wasn’t. I was on the right tram line, but going in the wrong direction. So the next stop I got off and luckily there was one that I hopped on right away. I made it in time, and then we departed for Annecy.
Unbeknownst to us, there was an hour-long stop in Chambery…where we had already spent an entire day with our Michigan class. So while the others took the tour that we already had taken, Alex T. and I got some breakfast (I got a baby quiche) and then perused the flea market. I’m guessing the French don’t know what connotations are associated with the Confederate flag, because I’ve seen them available to buy in more than one place.
Also, I would like to comment on French fashion of the moment. They say that Europe is ahead of America in terms of what’s popular, so let me just warn you in advance: Jasmine pants are coming. Yes, Jasmine, as in the Disney Arabian princess. They’re very baggy, except the crotch hangs below the knees. So watch out. I think I’m avoiding that one. Also, we’ve noticed a lot of women wearing white pants. Like white jeans. Not sure if I support that one either.
Then we stopped for a quick photo op at Lac Bruges (I need to double check the name, it starts with either a B or D, and is an incredibly huge lake). When we finally arrived in Annecy, it was around noon. A group of us decided to get lunch first and then head to the beach. We settled on a restaurant on the canal that runs through town- very Venetian, and incredibly quaint and cute. I almost ordered the Savoie meal- La Tartiflette, but opted for a pizza because it was cheaper and I hadn’t had pizza yet.
Afterward we headed to the beach. Lac Annecy is incredibly gorgeous; the water is unbelievable clear, and it is surrounded by mountains. We set up camp, and I headed straight for the water. The water was comfortable once you got used to it, and some others joined me later. You could swim out pretty far and still touch, but the bottom turned into a sort of net-like moss that really creeped me out because when you stepped on it lots of tiny bubbles would float up, leading me to believe that there were creatures living in it. I was terrified of getting bit/stabbed/stung/killed by some strange French lake monster.
I survived though. During a swim break, I got some ice cream (apricot and strawberry-so good!) and played Euchre with Christina, Nicki, and Brad. Christina and I lost, but we had a good comeback. After one last dip in the lake, we headed back to Grenoble. It was a very relaxing, beautiful day.
Saturday night I got back around 8, made dinner of a curry tofu “ball?”, rice, cantaloupe, a coke (first soda of the trip! Minus orangina), and what was left of some strange, but very good tuna dish that Isabelle had made. I also got to skype Tanner for a while.
Sunday I woke up at 5:45 am. Woohoo!! The excursion was to Chamonix, which is at the foot of Mont Blanc, the highest peak in Europe. We made stops that we weren’t aware of- like Albertville, the site of the 1992 Winter Olympics. We walked around the old village for a while, but I personally think it was a waste of time. We then stopped in St. Gsomething for a photo op. THEN we stopped at this pond which a lot of the other foreigners with us found terribly fascinating and none of us (Americans) could figure out why. It was a pond. There wasn’t even anything in it. So while we waited for the Japonese girls to finish taking pictures of them pretending to fall in, I ate my packed lunch. Then our tour leader person, Mathilde, told us that we had two options when we got to Chamonix: either go to the summit to see the view, which would cost 35 euro, or go to La Mer de Glace (the sea of ice), which would cost 20 euro. Good thing they told us this before we left. I had brought cash, so it wasn’t a big deal, but I haven’t been happy with the organization of the excursions.
I asked Mathilde if there would be time to do both, and she said no. So that was a huge bummer, because both are awesome things to do, how are you supposed to choose? And why did we leave at 7 in the morning (Chamonix is 2 hours away), and didn’t arrive until 12:30? I was also a little upset that we had to pay for the activities. But, nothing topped my fury than when we got off the bus, and maps in hand we set off for La Mer de Glace, only to be halted by the leader. She told us that we have to wait because they would buy the tickets for us. So then we had to wait for everyone to give their money to the leaders (with many clarifying questions that were already addressed on the bus…), and then for them to wait in line for the tickets. So we had to sit there, not able to even go look in the shops because we didn’t know when she would be back.
Wouldn’t it be logical to have us sign up for which activity we wanted to do when we signed up for the excursion? Or at least collect our money on the bus ride? This really pissed me off, excuse my language.
So we didn’t get to the train to go up until 1:30. And I woke up at 5:45. Cool.
Once on the train, all of my anger was swept away by the shiver-inspiring view going up the mountain. With a cliff-face next to me plunging into the valley with houses below, and mountains escalating up the other side, it was majestic. I started thinking about how privileged I am to be able to see what I was seeing, to go where I get to go. Not only in talking about family and friends, but the world in general, about people who will never be able to travel like I am able to. It was an emotional moment.
Once at the top (about a 20 minute train ride), we took the telepherique (lift) down to the grottes, or ice caves. The lift takes you down a certain amount, and then you have to walk down a bunch of stairs to get to it. It was really impressionable to see the plaques on the rock climbing down of the level where the glacier used to be. The difference between 1980 to 1990 was several hundred feet, and then distance to 2000 even more so. It was shocking and really made you believe in global warming.
Once there, I walked into a glacier. I WALKED INSIDE OF A GLACIER.
I’ve been to Alaska and Glacier National Park. I’ve seen glaciers before. But I’ve never gone INSIDE one. On the approach, you can hear the roar of nearby melting water. We walked through a tunnel carved out of the glacier, and they had carved rooms like a house, like ice sculptures. So, there was a kitchen table with some flowers on it, a bathroom, etc. The halls were also lit with very cool colors, changing from blue to green to pink. It was amazing.
Once we got back to the top, we took one of the trails down toward the glacier in another direction. We hiked down for a while until we reached a point where the trail stopped. We though, “Oh, I guess it ends here.” Wrong. There are ladders fastened into the cliff side to go down to the glacier. It was so steep you could only see the first 2-3 rungs before it simply disappeared from view. Some people asked if we were gonna do it. I said hell no. Everyone coming up had hard helmets on and every piece of mountain climbing gear imaginable. It was coo because you could see the dots on the glacier which was people walking on it. Matt in our group decided to try it. He went down the first ladder, then realizing that no one else was going to do it, climbed back up. He was very quiet until he stepped off back onto the trail, at which point he shouted, “OH MY GOD THAT WAS THE SCARIEST THING I’VE EVER DONE”. So I’m really glad I didn’t attempt it.
After taking the train back down, we only had around 20 minutes to look at some shops. I didn’t buy anything, and then we went back to the bus. We didn’t get back to Grenoble until 8 again, so I very quickly made dinner of scrambled eggs, bread and cheese, and cantaloupe. Then I did some quick skyping and printed off my paper at the internet café downstairs, and came back up to start the speech I had foolishly volunteered myself to give for the next day, a result of me wanting to speak more in class, and being upset about Isabelle’s comment, and wanting to prove something.
I went to bed around midnight, and today (Monday) was really tough, especially since we had the Michigan class after the two morning classes. I survived though, and the professor said my speech was pretty much perfect. After class I went to fnac and bought a radio/alarm (to listen to AND to wake up at the right time) for only 7.50 euro. I also bought a cd by a band called Big Mama? But they let you listen to any cd by putting on headphones and scanning the barcode of the cd you want, so I knew I liked it. Came back and fixed myself buttered noodles with cantaloupe and tomato/cucumber in olive oil and vinegar (Isabelle-style).
Tomorrow is the national independence day. Alex M. and I are going hiking in the late morning (totally sleeping in), then there’s a parade, fireworks, and a ball!!! Apparently you dance the waltz, so maybe I’ll get to put my new skills from my ballroom dance class to use! Wednesday I’m playing in a soccer tournament, Thursday I’m playing in a petanque (bocce ball) tournament, Friday I’m going to Chartreuse, Saturday I’m going to Marseille, and Sunday I’m going to Vercors. REALLY BUSY WEEK! Will update probably not until all that is over.
Sending my love from Grenoble,
Katie
The beginning of last week did not start well. On Tuesday I found out that I was placed in the level lower than where I would’ve liked. I was pretty upset, mainly because I feel like I got screwed while taking the test. I’m fine with being where I am if that’s where I’m supposed to be, but I’m not sure that it is, especially after seeing where others were placed. My Michigan professor said she was shocked and that I could switch. I still don’t know what to do because I like the professor I got placed with, and he’s pretty lax on homework, and it’s been an ok review so far. But we also don’t talk at all in class, which is where I’m lacking the most. It’s a tough call.
The oral class is also not what I expected. It’s frustrating because all of the levels are in it, so you have some people who speak nearly fluently next to people just learning. It’s very slow going. I have the same professor though, so he’s very nice.
The rest of the week passed by fairly uneventfully, trying to get ahead for the busy weekend. Friday I went shopping (for the first time!). I realized that there are far too many women’s clothing stores for me to handle. I ended up buying a dress, sweater (thinking ahead to Sunday’s excursion), and necklace. They are all from the same store- Etam. I was in there forever because I couldn’t find the dressing rooms, and I didn’t know the name for them (cabinets), so then I gave up but as I was standing in line I finally spotted them. I also bought a book, and attempted to buy a radio to have some form of media, but to no avail. I probably went in about 7 stores.
I also got upset last week because Isabelle told me that my French speaking ability has decreased since I’ve been here. She wasn’t trying to be mean, but she wanted to let me know. She thinks it’s a result of speaking to much English with the group. I’d agree with that. It’s really hard to keep speaking French when everyone else switches to English, especially in a large group. I also think though that it’s because I no longer have 4 hours of discussion-oriented class a day, now it’s more listening. Finally, I’m attempting more complicated sentences than when I first arrived. (She also mentioned my ability on the phone, but I didn’t tell her that I had written out what I would say beforehand). So that’s why I bought the book, and tried to buy the radio. I also spoke French all Friday night and for the morning on Saturday.
Friday night a few of us went to Bukana pub again because it was student welcome night for the CUEF (where we’re taking classes). However, not many people were there. I had a tequila sunrise, then Alex T. (from Puerto Rico), Emma (new friend from England), and I went to the short movie festival outside. We watched two films and then left because of the early excursions the next morning.
Alarm went off Saturday at 6:40 am. This was bad news, as I tried to set it for 6:15, and had to be at the meeting location by 7:30. The alarm clock is very unpredictable. I had looked up which tram to take, so I hopped on with not much time to spare. Then I decided to double check to make sure I was in the right place.
I wasn’t. I was on the right tram line, but going in the wrong direction. So the next stop I got off and luckily there was one that I hopped on right away. I made it in time, and then we departed for Annecy.
Unbeknownst to us, there was an hour-long stop in Chambery…where we had already spent an entire day with our Michigan class. So while the others took the tour that we already had taken, Alex T. and I got some breakfast (I got a baby quiche) and then perused the flea market. I’m guessing the French don’t know what connotations are associated with the Confederate flag, because I’ve seen them available to buy in more than one place.
Also, I would like to comment on French fashion of the moment. They say that Europe is ahead of America in terms of what’s popular, so let me just warn you in advance: Jasmine pants are coming. Yes, Jasmine, as in the Disney Arabian princess. They’re very baggy, except the crotch hangs below the knees. So watch out. I think I’m avoiding that one. Also, we’ve noticed a lot of women wearing white pants. Like white jeans. Not sure if I support that one either.
Then we stopped for a quick photo op at Lac Bruges (I need to double check the name, it starts with either a B or D, and is an incredibly huge lake). When we finally arrived in Annecy, it was around noon. A group of us decided to get lunch first and then head to the beach. We settled on a restaurant on the canal that runs through town- very Venetian, and incredibly quaint and cute. I almost ordered the Savoie meal- La Tartiflette, but opted for a pizza because it was cheaper and I hadn’t had pizza yet.
Afterward we headed to the beach. Lac Annecy is incredibly gorgeous; the water is unbelievable clear, and it is surrounded by mountains. We set up camp, and I headed straight for the water. The water was comfortable once you got used to it, and some others joined me later. You could swim out pretty far and still touch, but the bottom turned into a sort of net-like moss that really creeped me out because when you stepped on it lots of tiny bubbles would float up, leading me to believe that there were creatures living in it. I was terrified of getting bit/stabbed/stung/killed by some strange French lake monster.
I survived though. During a swim break, I got some ice cream (apricot and strawberry-so good!) and played Euchre with Christina, Nicki, and Brad. Christina and I lost, but we had a good comeback. After one last dip in the lake, we headed back to Grenoble. It was a very relaxing, beautiful day.
Saturday night I got back around 8, made dinner of a curry tofu “ball?”, rice, cantaloupe, a coke (first soda of the trip! Minus orangina), and what was left of some strange, but very good tuna dish that Isabelle had made. I also got to skype Tanner for a while.
Sunday I woke up at 5:45 am. Woohoo!! The excursion was to Chamonix, which is at the foot of Mont Blanc, the highest peak in Europe. We made stops that we weren’t aware of- like Albertville, the site of the 1992 Winter Olympics. We walked around the old village for a while, but I personally think it was a waste of time. We then stopped in St. Gsomething for a photo op. THEN we stopped at this pond which a lot of the other foreigners with us found terribly fascinating and none of us (Americans) could figure out why. It was a pond. There wasn’t even anything in it. So while we waited for the Japonese girls to finish taking pictures of them pretending to fall in, I ate my packed lunch. Then our tour leader person, Mathilde, told us that we had two options when we got to Chamonix: either go to the summit to see the view, which would cost 35 euro, or go to La Mer de Glace (the sea of ice), which would cost 20 euro. Good thing they told us this before we left. I had brought cash, so it wasn’t a big deal, but I haven’t been happy with the organization of the excursions.
I asked Mathilde if there would be time to do both, and she said no. So that was a huge bummer, because both are awesome things to do, how are you supposed to choose? And why did we leave at 7 in the morning (Chamonix is 2 hours away), and didn’t arrive until 12:30? I was also a little upset that we had to pay for the activities. But, nothing topped my fury than when we got off the bus, and maps in hand we set off for La Mer de Glace, only to be halted by the leader. She told us that we have to wait because they would buy the tickets for us. So then we had to wait for everyone to give their money to the leaders (with many clarifying questions that were already addressed on the bus…), and then for them to wait in line for the tickets. So we had to sit there, not able to even go look in the shops because we didn’t know when she would be back.
Wouldn’t it be logical to have us sign up for which activity we wanted to do when we signed up for the excursion? Or at least collect our money on the bus ride? This really pissed me off, excuse my language.
So we didn’t get to the train to go up until 1:30. And I woke up at 5:45. Cool.
Once on the train, all of my anger was swept away by the shiver-inspiring view going up the mountain. With a cliff-face next to me plunging into the valley with houses below, and mountains escalating up the other side, it was majestic. I started thinking about how privileged I am to be able to see what I was seeing, to go where I get to go. Not only in talking about family and friends, but the world in general, about people who will never be able to travel like I am able to. It was an emotional moment.
Once at the top (about a 20 minute train ride), we took the telepherique (lift) down to the grottes, or ice caves. The lift takes you down a certain amount, and then you have to walk down a bunch of stairs to get to it. It was really impressionable to see the plaques on the rock climbing down of the level where the glacier used to be. The difference between 1980 to 1990 was several hundred feet, and then distance to 2000 even more so. It was shocking and really made you believe in global warming.
Once there, I walked into a glacier. I WALKED INSIDE OF A GLACIER.
I’ve been to Alaska and Glacier National Park. I’ve seen glaciers before. But I’ve never gone INSIDE one. On the approach, you can hear the roar of nearby melting water. We walked through a tunnel carved out of the glacier, and they had carved rooms like a house, like ice sculptures. So, there was a kitchen table with some flowers on it, a bathroom, etc. The halls were also lit with very cool colors, changing from blue to green to pink. It was amazing.
Once we got back to the top, we took one of the trails down toward the glacier in another direction. We hiked down for a while until we reached a point where the trail stopped. We though, “Oh, I guess it ends here.” Wrong. There are ladders fastened into the cliff side to go down to the glacier. It was so steep you could only see the first 2-3 rungs before it simply disappeared from view. Some people asked if we were gonna do it. I said hell no. Everyone coming up had hard helmets on and every piece of mountain climbing gear imaginable. It was coo because you could see the dots on the glacier which was people walking on it. Matt in our group decided to try it. He went down the first ladder, then realizing that no one else was going to do it, climbed back up. He was very quiet until he stepped off back onto the trail, at which point he shouted, “OH MY GOD THAT WAS THE SCARIEST THING I’VE EVER DONE”. So I’m really glad I didn’t attempt it.
After taking the train back down, we only had around 20 minutes to look at some shops. I didn’t buy anything, and then we went back to the bus. We didn’t get back to Grenoble until 8 again, so I very quickly made dinner of scrambled eggs, bread and cheese, and cantaloupe. Then I did some quick skyping and printed off my paper at the internet café downstairs, and came back up to start the speech I had foolishly volunteered myself to give for the next day, a result of me wanting to speak more in class, and being upset about Isabelle’s comment, and wanting to prove something.
I went to bed around midnight, and today (Monday) was really tough, especially since we had the Michigan class after the two morning classes. I survived though, and the professor said my speech was pretty much perfect. After class I went to fnac and bought a radio/alarm (to listen to AND to wake up at the right time) for only 7.50 euro. I also bought a cd by a band called Big Mama? But they let you listen to any cd by putting on headphones and scanning the barcode of the cd you want, so I knew I liked it. Came back and fixed myself buttered noodles with cantaloupe and tomato/cucumber in olive oil and vinegar (Isabelle-style).
Tomorrow is the national independence day. Alex M. and I are going hiking in the late morning (totally sleeping in), then there’s a parade, fireworks, and a ball!!! Apparently you dance the waltz, so maybe I’ll get to put my new skills from my ballroom dance class to use! Wednesday I’m playing in a soccer tournament, Thursday I’m playing in a petanque (bocce ball) tournament, Friday I’m going to Chartreuse, Saturday I’m going to Marseille, and Sunday I’m going to Vercors. REALLY BUSY WEEK! Will update probably not until all that is over.
Sending my love from Grenoble,
Katie
06 July 2009
Monday, July 06, 2009
What an adventure-filled week. Vizille was a much better field trip than Chambery. The grounds of the museum were beautiful- gardens, flowers, with a river flowing through and mountains in the background. The museum itself was alright- we had to fill out elementary-school-esque worksheets that really detracted from looking at things, but it was still interesting. Afterward, Alex M. and I ate our lunches we had packed (I’m saving so much money doing that!) and then walked around the town while the others ate. Then we had class for a bit on the grounds.
Thursday Alex M, Alex T, Christina, Brittany and I hiked up the Bastille. It was beautiful! But also extremely hot. I wish there was some information explaining when and why it was created, but all we could find was how the mountains were created by shifting tectonic plates. It took us about an hour and fifteen minutes, but I suspect I could do it in around 45. At the top, I bought souvenirs galore, but I won’t disclose what I got there as some will be surprises. We then enjoyed a refreshing bottle of Orangina at the restaurant on top, and ended by taking the telepherique down (kind of like a lift).
Friday was also very busy- right after class we went to Monoprix to pick up groceries for the Geneva trip because we were told that Switzerland is very expensive. At 5:10 everyone was at the gare (train station), and someone asked, “Does everyone have their passports?” And a look of horror appeared on one girl’s face- who had booked our hotel. With our train leaving in less than 15 minutes, I quickly wrote down all of the hotel information she had with the confirmation code and directions to get there, and someone grabbed the tickets. It was decided she would catch the next train, but we had no idea when it was.
An hour into our trip we had a confusing “change” of trains where we moved cars and then the train separated- which we almost missed because we didn’t understand what people were saying. The scenery along the way was gorgeous- huge lakes with mountains surrounding them. However, the new car we were in must have had broken air conditioning, and it was like being in a sauna. I had to stand in the between-car-bathroom-area to be able to breathe.
Once we got to Geneva, everyone looked at each other with puzzled expressions. I then took charge. While traveling abroad, I have learned three things. 1- Things will go wrong, sometimes horribly. 2- Stay calm, don’t panic. 3- Be smart and think logically about the situation, like it’s a game or puzzle.
So, I gathered my thoughts and concluded that to we needed to get to our hotel by tram. To buy tram tickets we needed Swiss currency (Swiss franc), so the first order of business was to get money. After some searching we found an ATM. Now armed each with 50 francs, we went outside. I read the tram ticket machine and deduced that we needed to each buy a 24 hour ticket, but that if we put in our 50 franc bill, it would not give us any change. So, I marched everyone inside to buy something to get the correct change (there are no change machines or converters). With tickets in hand, we took a tram, and then made our connection successfully. Luckily (!), when we got off, we were right across the street from the hotel, so I didn’t have to ask a stranger where to find it.
We walked up to the doors to find them locked. A nice Belgium man named Faisel with his Californian friend David and English friend Indie let us in. We then discovered that the office was closed for the night (it closed at 8). So I used someone’s cell phone to call the number listed. I spoke with a man who luckily didn’t ask for a credit card number (it was the girl who left her passport!), and had me open a small safe which contained our room keys. Success!
The hotel was ridiculously nice! After setting our stuff down, a few decided to go meet the girl coming at the train station, because it took a group of 10 people an hour to get to the hotel, and we figured it would be extremely difficult for her, especially later at night. So we went back to the train station to wait for her. We waited…..and waited….and waited, until no more trains from France were coming. We were very worried, so we called our professor to get her host mother’s number. The host mother told us that she had, in fact, left that day, so for all we knew she could be anywhere. With no other options but to pray that she was safe, we made the long trek back to the hotel.
Where we were greeted by the girl! She had taken a train only 30 minutes after us, which had not been on the schedules we saw. So that was a big relief. The downside was that we had been invited to a rave and Bollywood music bar by the group who let us into the building, but by that time they had already left, and Friday night was wasted.
Saturday four of us woke up early and took a boat ride of Lake Geneva. We saw the Jet d’Eau, which means jet of water, and it’s in Lake Geneva, and just spouts up water very high in the air (tallest in the world). We also saw various famous buildings, like where Byron and Shelley lived, Napoleon’s wife, and the United Nations. We next walked to the UN to meet the rest of our group. It was a very long walk. I was very surprised by the number of free water fountains scattered all across Geneva. I guess it doesn’t seem that strange when compared to the U.S., but in Europe it’s very rare. And to add, the fountains are coming out of sculptures and the like (they aren’t your average bubbler).
Once at the United Nations, we took some pictures, and discovered there was nothing else to do there, so some of us went back into town and looked at the Basilica Notre Dame. Then we got some ice cream, and watched a gay pride parade (at least we think that’s what it was). If so, it was rather tame, and mainly consisted of floats with techno blasting and people in outrageous costumes dancing. Later that night we went out to eat at a very nice restaurant downtown. The food was very good, but can you imagine that we paid 6.60 francs per bottle of water! They have no free water, and it was more expensive than a soda. (Sidenote: the dollar is worth slightly more than the franc, surprisingly. 50 francs is around 47 dollars).
We tried to go dancing at a discoteque after dinner, but to no avail. The only club we found rejected us for not being properly dressed (flipflops=no good). That was a bit embarrassing, but other than the flipflops we were dressed nice! Oh well.
Then next morning I woke everyone up because it was near check out time. With backpacks strapped on, we walked up to the old part of the city and toured the archeological ruins underneath the Cathedral St. Pierre. It was constructed around the 3rd century, so its foundations are all still underground. We were literally walking in what was the old church. I saw bell casting molds, monk’s quarters, baptismal fonts, mosaics, wells (dating back to B.C.),etc. It was amazing. Next Alex M and I walked around (packed lunches again). We strolled through the park, up to the Grand Theatre, back into the old city where we listened to a talented violinist which was beautiful.
We searched for a chocolate shop (hello—we’re in Switzerland!) but to no avail. Note to all travelers: Europe is closed on Sundays.
The group then took a ride on a ferris wheel where we could see the entire city, which was awesome. There was one “gondola” that was ‘VIP’ and cost 100 francs. It had tinted windows and included champagne. Suffice it to say, we did not purchase the vip. Some people got Starbucks (!!!!!!!!!!!!!) next. I went inside….but only to use their bathroom, which I think is acceptable. We then had 50 minutes to get to the train station. We tried walking back to the tram, but did not realize that it runs on a diagonal, so we ended up walking a very long way to find it (in the opposite direction of the gare). Our walk turning into a swift jaunt, we reached the tram, and took what we thought to be the tram to the gare. Until the train turned and my eyes widened in panic as I shouted to everyone, “Get off at the next stop!” We did, and managed to run to the next tram. Some had already resigned to missing the tram (it left in 15 minutes!), but I wasn’t giving up. We called two others who were already there and they told us the train was at platform 7. Pulling up to the gare, we strapped down our backpacks tight and readied ourselves at the door. Luckily the old woman who had been in front of us got off at the stop before, or she would have been crushed. With three minutes to go, the tram doors opened, and the sprint began. I was in the lead as we dodged other citizens sprinting full force in flipflops. I flung around the corner into the entrance where the customs woman who saw us told the couple in front of me to let the young people through- the man moved for me in time, his wife….not so lucky. I ran into her a bit…nothing serious, but to be fair, she was warned.
Dashed up the stairs, and went up to the doors of the train, but panicked realizing we hadn’t “composter”-ed our tickets, we turned around but the conductor said to just get on because it was leaving.
We made it!
Today we took our placement tests for the CUEF grammar class. I first had an “oral exam” which was so easy I didn’t even know I was taking it- I just had to answer questions like “What’s your name?” while the woman filled out a sheet of paper. When she found out I was American, she was surprised, and said she thought I was Austrian. I took this as a good thing, I’m not sure why. She also told me that I have a very good accent (!!!), so maybe that’s why she thought I wasn’t American?
I then took the written/listening portion. It would have been helpful to know that it was being timed and what time it would end. All of the sudden the woman said, “15 minutes left!” and everyone panicked because no one was near done. I “finished” but I don’t think it was my best work, so hopefully I’m placed correctly. I then enrolled for my two courses that I pick. I chose “Perfectionnement Orale” and “Vocabulaire”, so oral perfection is conversational and vocabulary is…self-explanatory. I’ve taken enough literature classes at Madison, and in the long run what I want to keep is my speaking ability.
Tomorrow we don’t have class till 12, but just because they’re grading our exams- so I’ll find out tomorrow where I’m placed. Since we can sleep in, we’re going out tonight. That’s all for now, I hope everyone had a relaxing, fun Fourth of July, and I miss everyone!
Thursday Alex M, Alex T, Christina, Brittany and I hiked up the Bastille. It was beautiful! But also extremely hot. I wish there was some information explaining when and why it was created, but all we could find was how the mountains were created by shifting tectonic plates. It took us about an hour and fifteen minutes, but I suspect I could do it in around 45. At the top, I bought souvenirs galore, but I won’t disclose what I got there as some will be surprises. We then enjoyed a refreshing bottle of Orangina at the restaurant on top, and ended by taking the telepherique down (kind of like a lift).
Friday was also very busy- right after class we went to Monoprix to pick up groceries for the Geneva trip because we were told that Switzerland is very expensive. At 5:10 everyone was at the gare (train station), and someone asked, “Does everyone have their passports?” And a look of horror appeared on one girl’s face- who had booked our hotel. With our train leaving in less than 15 minutes, I quickly wrote down all of the hotel information she had with the confirmation code and directions to get there, and someone grabbed the tickets. It was decided she would catch the next train, but we had no idea when it was.
An hour into our trip we had a confusing “change” of trains where we moved cars and then the train separated- which we almost missed because we didn’t understand what people were saying. The scenery along the way was gorgeous- huge lakes with mountains surrounding them. However, the new car we were in must have had broken air conditioning, and it was like being in a sauna. I had to stand in the between-car-bathroom-area to be able to breathe.
Once we got to Geneva, everyone looked at each other with puzzled expressions. I then took charge. While traveling abroad, I have learned three things. 1- Things will go wrong, sometimes horribly. 2- Stay calm, don’t panic. 3- Be smart and think logically about the situation, like it’s a game or puzzle.
So, I gathered my thoughts and concluded that to we needed to get to our hotel by tram. To buy tram tickets we needed Swiss currency (Swiss franc), so the first order of business was to get money. After some searching we found an ATM. Now armed each with 50 francs, we went outside. I read the tram ticket machine and deduced that we needed to each buy a 24 hour ticket, but that if we put in our 50 franc bill, it would not give us any change. So, I marched everyone inside to buy something to get the correct change (there are no change machines or converters). With tickets in hand, we took a tram, and then made our connection successfully. Luckily (!), when we got off, we were right across the street from the hotel, so I didn’t have to ask a stranger where to find it.
We walked up to the doors to find them locked. A nice Belgium man named Faisel with his Californian friend David and English friend Indie let us in. We then discovered that the office was closed for the night (it closed at 8). So I used someone’s cell phone to call the number listed. I spoke with a man who luckily didn’t ask for a credit card number (it was the girl who left her passport!), and had me open a small safe which contained our room keys. Success!
The hotel was ridiculously nice! After setting our stuff down, a few decided to go meet the girl coming at the train station, because it took a group of 10 people an hour to get to the hotel, and we figured it would be extremely difficult for her, especially later at night. So we went back to the train station to wait for her. We waited…..and waited….and waited, until no more trains from France were coming. We were very worried, so we called our professor to get her host mother’s number. The host mother told us that she had, in fact, left that day, so for all we knew she could be anywhere. With no other options but to pray that she was safe, we made the long trek back to the hotel.
Where we were greeted by the girl! She had taken a train only 30 minutes after us, which had not been on the schedules we saw. So that was a big relief. The downside was that we had been invited to a rave and Bollywood music bar by the group who let us into the building, but by that time they had already left, and Friday night was wasted.
Saturday four of us woke up early and took a boat ride of Lake Geneva. We saw the Jet d’Eau, which means jet of water, and it’s in Lake Geneva, and just spouts up water very high in the air (tallest in the world). We also saw various famous buildings, like where Byron and Shelley lived, Napoleon’s wife, and the United Nations. We next walked to the UN to meet the rest of our group. It was a very long walk. I was very surprised by the number of free water fountains scattered all across Geneva. I guess it doesn’t seem that strange when compared to the U.S., but in Europe it’s very rare. And to add, the fountains are coming out of sculptures and the like (they aren’t your average bubbler).
Once at the United Nations, we took some pictures, and discovered there was nothing else to do there, so some of us went back into town and looked at the Basilica Notre Dame. Then we got some ice cream, and watched a gay pride parade (at least we think that’s what it was). If so, it was rather tame, and mainly consisted of floats with techno blasting and people in outrageous costumes dancing. Later that night we went out to eat at a very nice restaurant downtown. The food was very good, but can you imagine that we paid 6.60 francs per bottle of water! They have no free water, and it was more expensive than a soda. (Sidenote: the dollar is worth slightly more than the franc, surprisingly. 50 francs is around 47 dollars).
We tried to go dancing at a discoteque after dinner, but to no avail. The only club we found rejected us for not being properly dressed (flipflops=no good). That was a bit embarrassing, but other than the flipflops we were dressed nice! Oh well.
Then next morning I woke everyone up because it was near check out time. With backpacks strapped on, we walked up to the old part of the city and toured the archeological ruins underneath the Cathedral St. Pierre. It was constructed around the 3rd century, so its foundations are all still underground. We were literally walking in what was the old church. I saw bell casting molds, monk’s quarters, baptismal fonts, mosaics, wells (dating back to B.C.),etc. It was amazing. Next Alex M and I walked around (packed lunches again). We strolled through the park, up to the Grand Theatre, back into the old city where we listened to a talented violinist which was beautiful.
We searched for a chocolate shop (hello—we’re in Switzerland!) but to no avail. Note to all travelers: Europe is closed on Sundays.
The group then took a ride on a ferris wheel where we could see the entire city, which was awesome. There was one “gondola” that was ‘VIP’ and cost 100 francs. It had tinted windows and included champagne. Suffice it to say, we did not purchase the vip. Some people got Starbucks (!!!!!!!!!!!!!) next. I went inside….but only to use their bathroom, which I think is acceptable. We then had 50 minutes to get to the train station. We tried walking back to the tram, but did not realize that it runs on a diagonal, so we ended up walking a very long way to find it (in the opposite direction of the gare). Our walk turning into a swift jaunt, we reached the tram, and took what we thought to be the tram to the gare. Until the train turned and my eyes widened in panic as I shouted to everyone, “Get off at the next stop!” We did, and managed to run to the next tram. Some had already resigned to missing the tram (it left in 15 minutes!), but I wasn’t giving up. We called two others who were already there and they told us the train was at platform 7. Pulling up to the gare, we strapped down our backpacks tight and readied ourselves at the door. Luckily the old woman who had been in front of us got off at the stop before, or she would have been crushed. With three minutes to go, the tram doors opened, and the sprint began. I was in the lead as we dodged other citizens sprinting full force in flipflops. I flung around the corner into the entrance where the customs woman who saw us told the couple in front of me to let the young people through- the man moved for me in time, his wife….not so lucky. I ran into her a bit…nothing serious, but to be fair, she was warned.
Dashed up the stairs, and went up to the doors of the train, but panicked realizing we hadn’t “composter”-ed our tickets, we turned around but the conductor said to just get on because it was leaving.
We made it!
Today we took our placement tests for the CUEF grammar class. I first had an “oral exam” which was so easy I didn’t even know I was taking it- I just had to answer questions like “What’s your name?” while the woman filled out a sheet of paper. When she found out I was American, she was surprised, and said she thought I was Austrian. I took this as a good thing, I’m not sure why. She also told me that I have a very good accent (!!!), so maybe that’s why she thought I wasn’t American?
I then took the written/listening portion. It would have been helpful to know that it was being timed and what time it would end. All of the sudden the woman said, “15 minutes left!” and everyone panicked because no one was near done. I “finished” but I don’t think it was my best work, so hopefully I’m placed correctly. I then enrolled for my two courses that I pick. I chose “Perfectionnement Orale” and “Vocabulaire”, so oral perfection is conversational and vocabulary is…self-explanatory. I’ve taken enough literature classes at Madison, and in the long run what I want to keep is my speaking ability.
Tomorrow we don’t have class till 12, but just because they’re grading our exams- so I’ll find out tomorrow where I’m placed. Since we can sleep in, we’re going out tonight. That’s all for now, I hope everyone had a relaxing, fun Fourth of July, and I miss everyone!
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