Day 52: Monday, May 11, 2009: Today, we spent the day in Nice again! We were pissed at Katy and Christophe for not answering their phones. After we got up, we walked to the train station to try to get our tickets changed and explain the problem. It was so difficult! No one wanted to help us! They acted as if it wasn’t their problem. I finally demanded to speak to a manager who finally resolved our problem and reissued us new tickets at no additional cost.
So then we walked back to the hotel to get our bags. We had an hour before we needed to be back at the train station so we sat on the beach! There was no way we were going to make our grammar class. We text Christophe and he still never responded. Thanks!
We arrived in Avignon and took a taxi to Melissa’s house because it split the difference between my house and Lance’s. I walked home and explained the situation to my host parents. Jacqueline was really mad and suggested that I write a letter to the TGV and demand 25E for the cost of my hotel room for the night.
After dinner, I wrote a paper for literature class and studied for the grammar test that I have tomorrow. Lance text me and said that the test was moved and that it wasn’t going to be tomorrow – Christophe didn’t let me know, Lance did. I’m really glad that I’m paying him to be here on vacation with his girlfriend and he can’t communicate with me at all. It’s excellent!
Day 53: Tuesday, May 12, 2009: Today was busy; I had three classes. John got back from Germany. Yesterday in grammar, they watched the movie for the book that we are reading so I missed that. I have to watch it tomorrow with Lance and Melissa.
I had dinner with Jacqueline, Bernard, and John and did some homework. It was a pretty average Tuesday in France.
Day 54: Wednesday, May 13, 2009: Even though there was no class today, I still did a lot of work. I went to the internet café with Melissa to print our papers for our writing class tomorrow. Then we met Shawna and John at the university to work on our oral presentation that is tomorrow in our oral grammar class; topic: the language of the youth. We have to record a conversation between students our age, transcribe it, translate the slang terms that they use and present it to the class.
Shawna recorded a conversation with some of her French friends talking about a handball game but it wasn’t what we needed. We needed slang terms. John talked to his correspondent and we all decided that we could meet up at the bar tonight to do this.
Then I went to Melissa’s to watch our movie. Lance came too. After the movie, we had to write a film critique comparing the book to the movie. I went back to the university library to write and email mine to Christophe.
After dinner, we went to Red Sky to do our project. John’s correspondent brought a bunch of friends and it was really cool to just hang out with them. We are all basically the same age; some of them don’t speak any English so I have to speak French which helps me out a lot. We recorded our conversation and decided that we would write the presentation during our four-hour break between classes tomorrow.
Day 55: Thursday, May 14, 2009: Today in writing class, we talked about our book that the class is making with all of our poems from class. Each person has a job; it’s like high school yearbook. I’m the editor-in-chief. Each person gets to choose four poems, a picture and biography for the book and at the final dinner, we get to read one in front of everyone.
After class, we worked on our oral presentation. We decided that it would be way too hard to transcribe the conversation so we just typed up a page with the slang terms that they used and the meanings in regular French. Some were a little dirty but that’s how kids my age talk to describe things.
Then we had class and we had to present our project. The four of us – Shawna, Melissa, John, and I each read a section. We printed our handout and the professor copied it for us. After dinner, I decided not to go out because I went out last night and it was raining. So I stayed in and did lots of homework for next week.
Day 56: Friday, May 15, 2009: Today we had two classes again. When I was leaving my house this morning, I ran into the postman and I got a letter from Mamaw! It had some money that she had not spent while she was here.
In history class, we watched a film on the French Revolution. It is a really interesting part of French history. I sat next to Shawna and explained, in English, the events for her because the professor is a little difficult to understand.
I ate lunch in the cafeteria, had my journal meeting with Jenny, and had literature class. He explained another project for next week. We have to choose a French author and a short excerpt and explain the meaning in a presentation to the class. Everyone explained that we were all going out of town for the next Friday and only four people would be in class.
On our original schedule for France, it says that we have Thursday and Friday off school next week but then Christophe decided that that was wrong on Monday (when I wasn’t in class) and told everyone that there would actually be classes. Everyone explained that they wouldn’t be attending because we’d already made reservations for a four-day weekend (we hadn’t exactly made reservations yet but it would happen soon).
After class, I went to Melissa’s with Lance, Nina, Zoe, and Meghan so we could decide what we wanted to do for the long weekend. We thought we found really good plane tickets to Brussels, Belgium, but then the price doubled with fees and taxes so we decided against that. Finally, after much research and debate, we decided to go to Lyon. It would be Melissa, Lance, Meghan and I for two nights; leaving Thursday morning and returning Saturday afternoon. We found a hotel and train tickets and made all the reservations online.
After dinner, I decided to join everyone else at the bar for a while but I didn’t stay out long because we have an excursion tomorrow.
Day 57: Saturday, May 16, 2009: Today was really fun! We had an excursion to the village of Uzes and we went canoeing to the Pont du Gard, a huge ancient Roman aqueduct. The day was really fun!
Monday, June 15, 2009
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
days 47 - 51
Day 47: Wednesday, May 6, 2009: Today was very simple and relaxed after a stressful day yesterday. I slept late and ate lunch with Jacqueline on the terrace. After that, I met Lance and we walked to the train station to buy tickets for the weekend. It was 40E roundtrip.
Then we had two classes: history and literature again. We normally don’t have classes on Wednesdays but since there is no school on Friday, we have to make them up today. The literature teacher was absent… so we watched a movie. Can you waste more of my time while I’m in France please?
After dinner and watching the news with Jacqueline and Bernard, I packed a bag for the weekend and did some homework.
Day 48: Thursday, May 7, 2009: Today we went to Juan-les-Pins! We had our first class and we were told that our second class would be immediately following rather than four hours later. We were lied to yet again. Thus we had another four hour break. We bought train tickets planning on leaving right after class. Since the class was later, we decided to skip it because it was their fault for not giving us ample notice of the change. And we are allowed to miss one period of each class – no more. This was our first miss and we knew we would not skip again so we did it!
After the first class, I went to Casio with Lance and we bought stuff to make Skyline dip… or at least we tried to make it as best as we could with what we had. Note to the world: France is the capital of cheese yet cream cheese does not exist here. Cheddar cheese exists but you have to hunt it down. We got lazy and gave up on the cheddar. Also, Tostito’s scoops also are nonexistent or nearly impossible to find, thus we bought Doritos that served a similar purpose.
We went to Lance’s and tried our best to make authentic Skyline Chili Dip with his host mom: we basically failed. The chili was excellent but the cheeses did not do the job. After hanging out with her for a while, she offered to take us to the train station. I went home to get my bag and meet Melissa.
When my host parents’ son slept in my room the other night, he left the key in the door on the interior, thus when I tried to use my key it did not work. Jacqueline and Bernard were not home so I knocked on the neighbor’s door to see if maybe she had a key. Fail. Then I called Jacqueline. Fail. Then I called Bernard. He told me where Jacqueline was but I was confused. Finally, he just met me on the corner and gave me his keys.
So I finally had my bag and walked to meet Melissa. Then we walked back to Lance’s house. I did some homework on the train and we arrived in Juan-les-Pins at about 8 p.m. It was easy to find the hotel and the woman that worked there was very nice.
We put our stuff in the room then walked to the beach and saw the sunset. Then we walked around the town and found a restaurant for dinner. We decided not to go out; our friends couldn’t get on our train and are arriving tomorrow.
Day 49: Friday, May 8, 2009: Today was excellent! I went to Italy! We had heard about this huge outdoor market just across the French boarder on Fridays so we bought tickets and went. We took the TER and it took an hour and a half to get there.
When we were finally there, we found the market; it would have been hard to miss. There were tons of fake goods, sunglasses, belts, bags, whatever you wanted. But you could tell that it was fake. The only thing that I bought was a bottle of Dolce & Gabanna cologne for 6E50.
We walked around and found a restaurant for lunch. When in Italy, you have to have spaghetti. It was weird because we didn’t speak Italian but everyone thought we were French anyway. So at the restaurant, we got the French menu and ordered in French.
After lunch, we walked to the beach to see the sea in Italy; then we found our way back to the train station for the ride home. It was a fun day but we spent as much time in Italy as it took to get there and back. When we got back to Juan-les-Pins, our friends had arrived and we found them on the beach.
We had a light dinner and spent most of the night hanging out at the beach. Sparks flew between Lance and Melissa and I’m now in the middle of a honeymoon of sorts. Total third wheel over here… it is excellent to say the very least. (Sarcasm)
Day 50: Saturday, May 9, 2009: Day 50!? What!? Today was very relaxed and laid back. This is exactly why we came to Juan-les-Pins. It is like a resort vacation here. The sand is excellent and it was so sunny today. So sunny that wouldn’t you know it… I got an incredible sunburn.
After tanning all day, we took showers and got ready to go out. We had a big dinner together then visited a bar for a while before coming back to our room to hang out. I Skyped my family and friends in America. We ended up watching Aladdin on youtube before falling asleep. Yes, we are all actually six years old.
Day 51: Sunday, May 10, 2009: Today started off real well then went to hell real quick. Our friends checked out of the hotel and went to Nice for the day. Lance, Melissa, and I went to the beach again but thankfully, it was cloudy. I still was careful not to get more sun.
After the beach, we went back to the room to shower and change before going to the train station. I read online about the riots at OU’s Palmerfest! The nice woman at the hotel allowed us to stay in our room until 7 p.m. without paying more.
So we got to the train station on time and our train never came. It was cancelled without telling us. We missed our connection to Antibes and watched as our train to Avignon passed us. The woman at the counter was useless and told us that there was no way we were going back to Avignon tonight. Excellent and we have class tomorrow.
We called Christophe and Katy, our program director and his assistant and neither answered their phones. Excellent again! I’m so glad we’re paying you to be on vacation here for three months with your girlfriend and neither of you can answer your phones when your students are stuck somewhere.
We called Jenny, the grad student assistant and explained the situation. We decided to take the next TER train to Nice and try to exchange tickets. If we really couldn’t get home that night then we at least knew we had a place to stay at the hotel from the last weekend.
After failing to get new tickets, I called the nice old woman at the hotel and she said that she had a room for us. I recommend her hotel to anyone travelling to Nice, France! She is excellent!
So here we were back in Nice. But we love Nice! By this time, it was no earlier than 11 p.m. and we decided that we needed some of our favorite ice cream in Nice to make the day better. Then we went back to our room and we were beat. We went right to bed.
Then we had two classes: history and literature again. We normally don’t have classes on Wednesdays but since there is no school on Friday, we have to make them up today. The literature teacher was absent… so we watched a movie. Can you waste more of my time while I’m in France please?
After dinner and watching the news with Jacqueline and Bernard, I packed a bag for the weekend and did some homework.
Day 48: Thursday, May 7, 2009: Today we went to Juan-les-Pins! We had our first class and we were told that our second class would be immediately following rather than four hours later. We were lied to yet again. Thus we had another four hour break. We bought train tickets planning on leaving right after class. Since the class was later, we decided to skip it because it was their fault for not giving us ample notice of the change. And we are allowed to miss one period of each class – no more. This was our first miss and we knew we would not skip again so we did it!
After the first class, I went to Casio with Lance and we bought stuff to make Skyline dip… or at least we tried to make it as best as we could with what we had. Note to the world: France is the capital of cheese yet cream cheese does not exist here. Cheddar cheese exists but you have to hunt it down. We got lazy and gave up on the cheddar. Also, Tostito’s scoops also are nonexistent or nearly impossible to find, thus we bought Doritos that served a similar purpose.
We went to Lance’s and tried our best to make authentic Skyline Chili Dip with his host mom: we basically failed. The chili was excellent but the cheeses did not do the job. After hanging out with her for a while, she offered to take us to the train station. I went home to get my bag and meet Melissa.
When my host parents’ son slept in my room the other night, he left the key in the door on the interior, thus when I tried to use my key it did not work. Jacqueline and Bernard were not home so I knocked on the neighbor’s door to see if maybe she had a key. Fail. Then I called Jacqueline. Fail. Then I called Bernard. He told me where Jacqueline was but I was confused. Finally, he just met me on the corner and gave me his keys.
So I finally had my bag and walked to meet Melissa. Then we walked back to Lance’s house. I did some homework on the train and we arrived in Juan-les-Pins at about 8 p.m. It was easy to find the hotel and the woman that worked there was very nice.
We put our stuff in the room then walked to the beach and saw the sunset. Then we walked around the town and found a restaurant for dinner. We decided not to go out; our friends couldn’t get on our train and are arriving tomorrow.
Day 49: Friday, May 8, 2009: Today was excellent! I went to Italy! We had heard about this huge outdoor market just across the French boarder on Fridays so we bought tickets and went. We took the TER and it took an hour and a half to get there.
When we were finally there, we found the market; it would have been hard to miss. There were tons of fake goods, sunglasses, belts, bags, whatever you wanted. But you could tell that it was fake. The only thing that I bought was a bottle of Dolce & Gabanna cologne for 6E50.
We walked around and found a restaurant for lunch. When in Italy, you have to have spaghetti. It was weird because we didn’t speak Italian but everyone thought we were French anyway. So at the restaurant, we got the French menu and ordered in French.
After lunch, we walked to the beach to see the sea in Italy; then we found our way back to the train station for the ride home. It was a fun day but we spent as much time in Italy as it took to get there and back. When we got back to Juan-les-Pins, our friends had arrived and we found them on the beach.
We had a light dinner and spent most of the night hanging out at the beach. Sparks flew between Lance and Melissa and I’m now in the middle of a honeymoon of sorts. Total third wheel over here… it is excellent to say the very least. (Sarcasm)
Day 50: Saturday, May 9, 2009: Day 50!? What!? Today was very relaxed and laid back. This is exactly why we came to Juan-les-Pins. It is like a resort vacation here. The sand is excellent and it was so sunny today. So sunny that wouldn’t you know it… I got an incredible sunburn.
After tanning all day, we took showers and got ready to go out. We had a big dinner together then visited a bar for a while before coming back to our room to hang out. I Skyped my family and friends in America. We ended up watching Aladdin on youtube before falling asleep. Yes, we are all actually six years old.
Day 51: Sunday, May 10, 2009: Today started off real well then went to hell real quick. Our friends checked out of the hotel and went to Nice for the day. Lance, Melissa, and I went to the beach again but thankfully, it was cloudy. I still was careful not to get more sun.
After the beach, we went back to the room to shower and change before going to the train station. I read online about the riots at OU’s Palmerfest! The nice woman at the hotel allowed us to stay in our room until 7 p.m. without paying more.
So we got to the train station on time and our train never came. It was cancelled without telling us. We missed our connection to Antibes and watched as our train to Avignon passed us. The woman at the counter was useless and told us that there was no way we were going back to Avignon tonight. Excellent and we have class tomorrow.
We called Christophe and Katy, our program director and his assistant and neither answered their phones. Excellent again! I’m so glad we’re paying you to be on vacation here for three months with your girlfriend and neither of you can answer your phones when your students are stuck somewhere.
We called Jenny, the grad student assistant and explained the situation. We decided to take the next TER train to Nice and try to exchange tickets. If we really couldn’t get home that night then we at least knew we had a place to stay at the hotel from the last weekend.
After failing to get new tickets, I called the nice old woman at the hotel and she said that she had a room for us. I recommend her hotel to anyone travelling to Nice, France! She is excellent!
So here we were back in Nice. But we love Nice! By this time, it was no earlier than 11 p.m. and we decided that we needed some of our favorite ice cream in Nice to make the day better. Then we went back to our room and we were beat. We went right to bed.
day 44, 45, 46
Day 44: Sunday, May 3, 2009: Today was really fun too! We went to Eze village just outside of Nice. We took the TER again and when we got off, we found the bus line that runs to the village. But since it is Sunday, the buses only run every hour. So we decided that we would take the trail and hike to the village. We all only had on sandals and it was a nice, sunny day.
So we start walking up the mountain and have no idea how far we are going. We stopped to talk to a couple of people along the way. It ended up being over a mile and a half and took almost two hours to accomplish. So finally in the old village of Eze atop a mountain in the south of France, we decided that we needed a snack to reward ourselves. We had crepes at a little restaurant just inside the town walls.
The village was excellent! I bought a new belt from a leather maker that was custom cut to fit me. He also shortened by old belt. I also got a leather bracelet. Then we found another store where my mom and aunt bought a pair of shoes each. The storekeeper couldn’t speak that much English so it was fun translating for my family. I also bought a Picasso wall covering for my room next year and a gift for my other grandma’s birthday.
We took some pictures and wandered back down to the bus stop only to find out that it was done for the day because it was Sunday; it was no later than 6:30 p.m. So then we waited around to catch a taxi. Finally, we got one and shared it with these two other American girls from Miami, Florida. One of the girls was studying in Paris for the year and her friend was visiting for a long weekend.
We paid the taxi fare and waited for the TER to take us back to Nice. My friends had left to go back to Avignon because we have a class tomorrow but I am allowed to miss it since my family is here. After freshening up, we had dinner at an Italian restaurant that was close to our hotel.
Day 45: Monday, May 4, 2009: Today was the last day with my family so we went to Grasse, home of the finest perfumes in France! We took the TER train from Nice for the hour trip the small city. We met a couple from Connecticut that was on their honeymoon.
We started by going to the Perfumerie Fragonard. It was semi-interesting but my aunt and grandma were loving it. After that, we had paninis for lunch. After walking around the city for a while, we decided that we had seen enough and I needed to get back to catch my train for Avignon.
We got back to the hotel and I packed my stuff and gave some things to my mom to take home for me and then I was ready to leave for the train station. My mom walked there with me. She waited with me until the board posted my platform and then we said goodbye. I had an excellent long weekend with everyone! They are leaving France tomorrow.
On the train, I always have to sit by the screaming children that are never under control. Just my luck. I needed to read basically an entire book for the class that I was missing today too. It was a struggle but I did it.
Finally, I was back in Avignon at 12:30 a.m. I walked the 20 minutes to my house and my host dad was waiting up for me. I had to sleep in the salon because their son and his fiancée and their granddaughter were sleeping in my room. They are leaving to go back to Paris tomorrow.
In my room, I noticed that I had received a box in the mail! It was from Alexis Parker! What a surprise! It had a bunch of fun Cincinnati stuff in it: Busken’s cookies, Reds’ peanuts, Skyline Chili, water balloons, playing cards, etc. It was really nice of her!
Day 46: Tuesday, May 5, 2009: Today was really busy. I had an oral exam for my grammar class. My teacher said that he could tell that I had spoken English all weekend and that my progress had suffered. Well my family doesn’t speak French so was I not suppose to speak to them at all?! Maybe we could just look at each other all weekend and they could try to guess what I was trying to tell them. I wasn’t happy when he said that.
Then I had my two other classes: history and literature. After that, I needed to write a paper on the book I had just finished so I went to the internet café. After sending a less-than-par paper, I went to Melissa’s to decide on plans for the next long weekend coming up at the end of the week. May is filled with lots of holidays in France!
We decided to go to Juan-les-Pins on the ocean for a weekend of fun and sun. We booked a hotel 100 meters from the beach for three people for 20E/person/night. Juan-les-Pins is just outside of Antibes, France. My room is Lance, Melissa, and me; Nina, Caitlyn, and Kelby are also going and they have a room for three as well.
Also today, John left to spend the week in Germany visiting his girlfriend. He is missing a week of classes after missing one yesterday because he missed his bus home from Barcelona, Spain, this past weekend. After dinner, everyone went out to celebrate Cinco de Mayo even though we are in France…
So we start walking up the mountain and have no idea how far we are going. We stopped to talk to a couple of people along the way. It ended up being over a mile and a half and took almost two hours to accomplish. So finally in the old village of Eze atop a mountain in the south of France, we decided that we needed a snack to reward ourselves. We had crepes at a little restaurant just inside the town walls.
The village was excellent! I bought a new belt from a leather maker that was custom cut to fit me. He also shortened by old belt. I also got a leather bracelet. Then we found another store where my mom and aunt bought a pair of shoes each. The storekeeper couldn’t speak that much English so it was fun translating for my family. I also bought a Picasso wall covering for my room next year and a gift for my other grandma’s birthday.
We took some pictures and wandered back down to the bus stop only to find out that it was done for the day because it was Sunday; it was no later than 6:30 p.m. So then we waited around to catch a taxi. Finally, we got one and shared it with these two other American girls from Miami, Florida. One of the girls was studying in Paris for the year and her friend was visiting for a long weekend.
We paid the taxi fare and waited for the TER to take us back to Nice. My friends had left to go back to Avignon because we have a class tomorrow but I am allowed to miss it since my family is here. After freshening up, we had dinner at an Italian restaurant that was close to our hotel.
Day 45: Monday, May 4, 2009: Today was the last day with my family so we went to Grasse, home of the finest perfumes in France! We took the TER train from Nice for the hour trip the small city. We met a couple from Connecticut that was on their honeymoon.
We started by going to the Perfumerie Fragonard. It was semi-interesting but my aunt and grandma were loving it. After that, we had paninis for lunch. After walking around the city for a while, we decided that we had seen enough and I needed to get back to catch my train for Avignon.
We got back to the hotel and I packed my stuff and gave some things to my mom to take home for me and then I was ready to leave for the train station. My mom walked there with me. She waited with me until the board posted my platform and then we said goodbye. I had an excellent long weekend with everyone! They are leaving France tomorrow.
On the train, I always have to sit by the screaming children that are never under control. Just my luck. I needed to read basically an entire book for the class that I was missing today too. It was a struggle but I did it.
Finally, I was back in Avignon at 12:30 a.m. I walked the 20 minutes to my house and my host dad was waiting up for me. I had to sleep in the salon because their son and his fiancée and their granddaughter were sleeping in my room. They are leaving to go back to Paris tomorrow.
In my room, I noticed that I had received a box in the mail! It was from Alexis Parker! What a surprise! It had a bunch of fun Cincinnati stuff in it: Busken’s cookies, Reds’ peanuts, Skyline Chili, water balloons, playing cards, etc. It was really nice of her!
Day 46: Tuesday, May 5, 2009: Today was really busy. I had an oral exam for my grammar class. My teacher said that he could tell that I had spoken English all weekend and that my progress had suffered. Well my family doesn’t speak French so was I not suppose to speak to them at all?! Maybe we could just look at each other all weekend and they could try to guess what I was trying to tell them. I wasn’t happy when he said that.
Then I had my two other classes: history and literature. After that, I needed to write a paper on the book I had just finished so I went to the internet café. After sending a less-than-par paper, I went to Melissa’s to decide on plans for the next long weekend coming up at the end of the week. May is filled with lots of holidays in France!
We decided to go to Juan-les-Pins on the ocean for a weekend of fun and sun. We booked a hotel 100 meters from the beach for three people for 20E/person/night. Juan-les-Pins is just outside of Antibes, France. My room is Lance, Melissa, and me; Nina, Caitlyn, and Kelby are also going and they have a room for three as well.
Also today, John left to spend the week in Germany visiting his girlfriend. He is missing a week of classes after missing one yesterday because he missed his bus home from Barcelona, Spain, this past weekend. After dinner, everyone went out to celebrate Cinco de Mayo even though we are in France…
Monday, May 18, 2009
day 42 & day 43
Day 42: Friday, May 1, 2009: Today was really fun! We all got to sleep late. My family was really tired after the time change. Today, we decided to stay in Nice and explore the old city. We started by walking to the top of the mountain where we could see the whole city. There used to be an old military fort there that protected the port but it was destroyed by Louis XVI. There is also an artificial waterfall.
Today, my friends arrived. They called and said that they were going to the beach. Even though the beach is rocky, there was excellent weather and they got to lie out. After we were done at the mountain, we walked down and met my friends on the beach so my family could meet them. I changed my clothes and stayed with them on the beach while my family found a grocery store; our hotel room has a kitchenette with a fridge, hotplates, and a sink.
After a couple of hours, we all went back to our rooms to change and get ready for dinner. We all ate together. It was really fun. I had a Nicoise Salad and it was excellent! After dinner, we ot the best ice cream known to Nice – Finacchio. After that, we went back to the hotel to enjoy some wine before my friends and I went out for another drink.
Day 43: Saturday, May 2, 2009: Today, we went to Monte-Carlo, Monaco! It was really excellent! We woke up and took the TER train to Monaco. We got there just in time to see the changing of the guard at the Royal Palace of Monaco. Monaco is a principality of France, meaning that the citizens have dual citizenship. Basically, they are French and have a Prince of Monaco and the President of France.
After we saw the changing of the guard, we were able to see the view of the port. There are so many huge yachts! Money is everything in Monte-Carlo; I loved it! We saw a huge yacht with a helicopter parked on the stern and a Rolls Royce parked right on the dock – this is the life!
So we walked to the harbor and took a ferryboat to the other side where we were able to walk up and see the famous Casino of Monte-Carlo. Naturally, when in Monte-Carlo, one has to gamble a little bit. And so I did. We all did except for my mom. Outside the Casino, there are so many nice Mercedes, Porches, BMWs, Bentleys, Mazaraettis, etc.
We had a light lunch and went looking in a few stores on our way back to the train station. We went in Zara, but I didn’t find anything that I had to have. We took the TER back to Nice and met up with my friends to go to dinner again. Afterwards, we had excellent ice cream again. It was a really fun day!
Today, my friends arrived. They called and said that they were going to the beach. Even though the beach is rocky, there was excellent weather and they got to lie out. After we were done at the mountain, we walked down and met my friends on the beach so my family could meet them. I changed my clothes and stayed with them on the beach while my family found a grocery store; our hotel room has a kitchenette with a fridge, hotplates, and a sink.
After a couple of hours, we all went back to our rooms to change and get ready for dinner. We all ate together. It was really fun. I had a Nicoise Salad and it was excellent! After dinner, we ot the best ice cream known to Nice – Finacchio. After that, we went back to the hotel to enjoy some wine before my friends and I went out for another drink.
Day 43: Saturday, May 2, 2009: Today, we went to Monte-Carlo, Monaco! It was really excellent! We woke up and took the TER train to Monaco. We got there just in time to see the changing of the guard at the Royal Palace of Monaco. Monaco is a principality of France, meaning that the citizens have dual citizenship. Basically, they are French and have a Prince of Monaco and the President of France.
After we saw the changing of the guard, we were able to see the view of the port. There are so many huge yachts! Money is everything in Monte-Carlo; I loved it! We saw a huge yacht with a helicopter parked on the stern and a Rolls Royce parked right on the dock – this is the life!
So we walked to the harbor and took a ferryboat to the other side where we were able to walk up and see the famous Casino of Monte-Carlo. Naturally, when in Monte-Carlo, one has to gamble a little bit. And so I did. We all did except for my mom. Outside the Casino, there are so many nice Mercedes, Porches, BMWs, Bentleys, Mazaraettis, etc.
We had a light lunch and went looking in a few stores on our way back to the train station. We went in Zara, but I didn’t find anything that I had to have. We took the TER back to Nice and met up with my friends to go to dinner again. Afterwards, we had excellent ice cream again. It was a really fun day!
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Day 41
Day 41: Thursday, April 30, 2009: Today was my first day in Nice, France, with my family! But first, I had class. We are scheduled to have two hours of class, then a four-hour break, then two more hours of class. So I bought a train ticket to leave during the break at 12:15 p.m. So then Christophe decided that we were just going to have one long four-hour class. Because everyone loves that!
The class was creative writing. We began at school and went on another walk of the city. We wrote down everything that we heard, saw, smelled, tasted, and felt. We were then going to use this and write a poem. We ended at the hill of the Palace of the Popes to write. I only had about 15 minutes to write before I had to leave to walk back to my house and get ready and go to the train station. Bernard drove me there after insisting that I eat a ham sandwich.
At the train station, I expected that he would just drop me off and go. I know how to take the train. He was really nice and carried one of my bags for me and waited on the voie until the train arrived. Then I found my seat and began working on the four-hour ride there. I did some grammar homework and read a little. I didn’t want to write in my journal because I would need the dictionary and then people would not think that I was French. I hate being pegged as an American anytime I go somewhere because people don’t understand that I am studying here, they just assume that I am a tourist.
So then I arrived in Nice. The views from the train along the ride were excellent! The sea is so blue! I love the Cote d’Azur! I waited at the train station for my Mom, aunt, and Mamaw because they were flying into Milan, Italy and taking the train to Nice. The train arriving from Milan was only half an hour after I arrived and I figured that they were on that so I waited. The train arrived an hour and fifteen minutes late without my family. So then I waited for the next trains from Italy; nothing. I waited for three hours before deciding that I was done and I walked to the hotel.
The hotel was recommended by the program director. It doesn’t have a website and people only know of it by word of mouth. I got a room for us four for 100E a night. It was across the street from the beach! That is an excellent for that type of location in Old Town Nice. If anyone ever goes there, let me know and I will pass along the hotel info. The hotel is more than 100 years old and the rooms could use a little TLC but it was excellent nonetheless.
Well the woman at the hotel didn’t even take my name of credit card info when I called to make my reservation. It is that laid back. I also reserved a room for three of my friends – Melissa, Lance, and Meghan – who were also going to Nice for the weekend. They are arriving tomorrow. Tomorrow is May Day so there are no classes!
So I finally get to the hotel and I tell the nice old woman owner that my family’s train was late and I wanted to wait for them here. She gave me the room without paying. I also explained that I was studying in Avignon and from that point on she spoke French with me and didn’t treat me like an American tourist. I unpacked a little and decided that I wasn’t going to sit in a hotel and wait for them to arrive since they hadn’t even called me. So I left and walked along the beach. I walked all the way to the point by the port and sat to watch the sunset. Just then, the woman at the hotel called and told me that my family had arrived!
So then I walked back and met them. It was really nice to see them after six weeks in France. They freshened up and then we found a place to eat since no one had yet. We had Italian. I had my Mom try Pastis with me. It was a good day besides that wait at the train station but what can you do.
The class was creative writing. We began at school and went on another walk of the city. We wrote down everything that we heard, saw, smelled, tasted, and felt. We were then going to use this and write a poem. We ended at the hill of the Palace of the Popes to write. I only had about 15 minutes to write before I had to leave to walk back to my house and get ready and go to the train station. Bernard drove me there after insisting that I eat a ham sandwich.
At the train station, I expected that he would just drop me off and go. I know how to take the train. He was really nice and carried one of my bags for me and waited on the voie until the train arrived. Then I found my seat and began working on the four-hour ride there. I did some grammar homework and read a little. I didn’t want to write in my journal because I would need the dictionary and then people would not think that I was French. I hate being pegged as an American anytime I go somewhere because people don’t understand that I am studying here, they just assume that I am a tourist.
So then I arrived in Nice. The views from the train along the ride were excellent! The sea is so blue! I love the Cote d’Azur! I waited at the train station for my Mom, aunt, and Mamaw because they were flying into Milan, Italy and taking the train to Nice. The train arriving from Milan was only half an hour after I arrived and I figured that they were on that so I waited. The train arrived an hour and fifteen minutes late without my family. So then I waited for the next trains from Italy; nothing. I waited for three hours before deciding that I was done and I walked to the hotel.
The hotel was recommended by the program director. It doesn’t have a website and people only know of it by word of mouth. I got a room for us four for 100E a night. It was across the street from the beach! That is an excellent for that type of location in Old Town Nice. If anyone ever goes there, let me know and I will pass along the hotel info. The hotel is more than 100 years old and the rooms could use a little TLC but it was excellent nonetheless.
Well the woman at the hotel didn’t even take my name of credit card info when I called to make my reservation. It is that laid back. I also reserved a room for three of my friends – Melissa, Lance, and Meghan – who were also going to Nice for the weekend. They are arriving tomorrow. Tomorrow is May Day so there are no classes!
So I finally get to the hotel and I tell the nice old woman owner that my family’s train was late and I wanted to wait for them here. She gave me the room without paying. I also explained that I was studying in Avignon and from that point on she spoke French with me and didn’t treat me like an American tourist. I unpacked a little and decided that I wasn’t going to sit in a hotel and wait for them to arrive since they hadn’t even called me. So I left and walked along the beach. I walked all the way to the point by the port and sat to watch the sunset. Just then, the woman at the hotel called and told me that my family had arrived!
So then I walked back and met them. It was really nice to see them after six weeks in France. They freshened up and then we found a place to eat since no one had yet. We had Italian. I had my Mom try Pastis with me. It was a good day besides that wait at the train station but what can you do.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Day 37, 38, 39, 40
Day 37: Sunday, April 26, 2009: Today was really fun, even though it rained a little. The Zemmits told John and me that we could invite friends to go to L’Isle Sur Sorges. I brought Lance; John didn’t bring anyone. The five of us drove in their car.
At L’Isle Sur Sorges, we went antiquing. It was really interesting. Lance and I found Picasso and Matisse drawings; if I wanted to spend 2000E, I could’ve owned a Picasso. Maybe next time. We must have seen two million euro-worth of antiques (probably like $3 million USD).
Then we ate at a patisserie where Jacqueline knows the owner. She cuts her hair. I had a pizza and tarte aux fruits. It was excellent. Since it was only like 1 p.m., we weren’t really ready to go home and Bernard asked us if we wanted to go to Fountain de Vaucluse so we went.
It was really cool. It’s a little town on this river. But the river has no source; divers descended 300 meters and still couldn’t find the source. It begins at the base of a mountain. The water is crystal clear and there are rapids as it flows through the town. Later, we saw the old paper mills in town. After that, we returned home. The Zemmits dropped Lance off at his street then we drove home. I took a quick nap before dinner. After dinner, we watched the news and I had homework to do. It was a really fun day.
Day 38: Monday, April 27, 2009: Today, I got to sleep late because it was Monday! I had class at 12:45 p.m. so I ate lunch in the sun on the terrace. In class, we got back our last grammar test; I was satisfied with my grade.
After class, I went to Casino with Melissa. I bought really thin sliced ham that I imagined was bacon because I miss bacon. We went to her house and made lunch. I grilled my ham/bacon and made a sandwich; it could have been a BLT but I forgot to buy LT… oh well. It was still good. After lunch, Lance met us and we all went shopping. Melissa wanted a new bathing suit for the weekend and Lance and I went to Zara. We both bought a shirt and jeans. I really like Zara and we need one in Ohio!
We waited for Melissa and saw some of our other friends. After that, I went home and had dinner. After dinner, we watched the news and I read Fanny by Marcel Pagnol for class.
Day 39: Tuesday, April 28, 2009: Nothing significant happened today that I can remember.
Day 40: Wednesday, April 29, 2009: Today was not fun. Apparently it is impossible for the program director to coordinate class times with the profs and the university. Thus, our classes we cut short because the building was closing. Before class, I went to the internet café with Melissa to print our papers for writing class tomorrow. After class, we had dinner and watched the news.
Then, I had to do some homework and pack for the weekend. I am leaving tomorrow for a long weekend with my Mom, Aunt Holly, and Mamaw in Nice, France! So I packed for the weekend then I packed a bag for my Mom to take back home of stuff that I no longer need – like my North Face jacket.
At about 11 p.m., Lance called me and asked if I wanted to play cards with him, Kelby, Meghan, and her roommate Erin. I went there and we played Hearts. I can’t remember ever playing before so it was new to me. Maybe I did okay?
At L’Isle Sur Sorges, we went antiquing. It was really interesting. Lance and I found Picasso and Matisse drawings; if I wanted to spend 2000E, I could’ve owned a Picasso. Maybe next time. We must have seen two million euro-worth of antiques (probably like $3 million USD).
Then we ate at a patisserie where Jacqueline knows the owner. She cuts her hair. I had a pizza and tarte aux fruits. It was excellent. Since it was only like 1 p.m., we weren’t really ready to go home and Bernard asked us if we wanted to go to Fountain de Vaucluse so we went.
It was really cool. It’s a little town on this river. But the river has no source; divers descended 300 meters and still couldn’t find the source. It begins at the base of a mountain. The water is crystal clear and there are rapids as it flows through the town. Later, we saw the old paper mills in town. After that, we returned home. The Zemmits dropped Lance off at his street then we drove home. I took a quick nap before dinner. After dinner, we watched the news and I had homework to do. It was a really fun day.
Day 38: Monday, April 27, 2009: Today, I got to sleep late because it was Monday! I had class at 12:45 p.m. so I ate lunch in the sun on the terrace. In class, we got back our last grammar test; I was satisfied with my grade.
After class, I went to Casino with Melissa. I bought really thin sliced ham that I imagined was bacon because I miss bacon. We went to her house and made lunch. I grilled my ham/bacon and made a sandwich; it could have been a BLT but I forgot to buy LT… oh well. It was still good. After lunch, Lance met us and we all went shopping. Melissa wanted a new bathing suit for the weekend and Lance and I went to Zara. We both bought a shirt and jeans. I really like Zara and we need one in Ohio!
We waited for Melissa and saw some of our other friends. After that, I went home and had dinner. After dinner, we watched the news and I read Fanny by Marcel Pagnol for class.
Day 39: Tuesday, April 28, 2009: Nothing significant happened today that I can remember.
Day 40: Wednesday, April 29, 2009: Today was not fun. Apparently it is impossible for the program director to coordinate class times with the profs and the university. Thus, our classes we cut short because the building was closing. Before class, I went to the internet café with Melissa to print our papers for writing class tomorrow. After class, we had dinner and watched the news.
Then, I had to do some homework and pack for the weekend. I am leaving tomorrow for a long weekend with my Mom, Aunt Holly, and Mamaw in Nice, France! So I packed for the weekend then I packed a bag for my Mom to take back home of stuff that I no longer need – like my North Face jacket.
At about 11 p.m., Lance called me and asked if I wanted to play cards with him, Kelby, Meghan, and her roommate Erin. I went there and we played Hearts. I can’t remember ever playing before so it was new to me. Maybe I did okay?
day 35 & 36
Day 35: Friday, April 24, 2009: Today in history class, we had a walking tour of the city. It was really fun and interesting but everyone forgot that it was today so a lot of people had computers and heavy bags. We did that for two hours. Afterwards, I went to the university library and wrote my film review that was due at 5 p.m. that day. It only had to be a page so it was pretty easy.
Then we had literature class. The professor is so bizarre and the topics are really obscure. So then it was time for dinner. I went home and found that I had received a package from my Mommy! It was Easter candy from Graeter’s – a Cincinnati favorite. I had two chocolate bunnies and a dozen assorted eggs. I ate one bunny then and decided that I would share the eggs with my family and then I could talk more about Cincinnati. Jacqueline even looked it up in an atlas!
So after dinner, the four of us each got to choose an egg for desert. After dinner was over, I had to leave because I was meeting Melissa to walk to Place d’Horlodge where everyone else was meeting to go to the movies. We saw Coco avant Chanel in this one-screen theatre that used to be a church. It was really cool. The movie was really good; Coco Chanel is played by Audrey Toutou. She was in Amelie. The movie was in French without subtitles. It was a little difficult to understand the actors at times but I understood the movie and the story. I want it to come to America but I don’t know if it will be as big as it is here. Ten people went to the theatre.
Afterwards, six of us went to Red Sky – one of our favorite bars. We had a table outside and decided not to stay out too late because we had an excursion the next day and we had to wake up early to meet for the bus.
Day 36: Saturday, April 25, 2009: Today we had another group excursion. We went to Bories, Gordes, and Roussillion. We met the bus by the university at 9 a.m. The first stop was Bories. First, we waited in the parking lot for half an hour while we waited for them to open. Great planning here. We knew that this would be boring. It is a village where every house is built of rocks. It was restored in the 1970s to look as it did when it was built in the 4th century or something. Seeing one house built with rocks is okay but to see an entire village is a little much. We walked through it pretty quickly.
So then we went to Gordes. It was really cool. The bus let us off at an overlook where we took lots of pictures. Then we walked to the village. It was really hilly and there were really cool old houses. Gordes is for old, rich people. When we got to the village, we had time to walk around. It was cool but there wasn’t really anything to do.
Then we went to this Ocre reserve thing. Ocre is a red powder found only in France that is used in paints and dyes. The tour was a little interesting but it was in English, I speak French; I’ve been in France for six weeks; give me the tour in French. We all put the powder all over our hands and faces and it looked like we had fake tans.
So then we went to Roussillion. It was probably my favorite part of the day. We went to this National Park that we had to pay for; it should have been included in the excursion. The dirt was red and there were sandstone cliffs. It was really cool. After that, we had ice cream at a really unique place. I had lavender flavor.
So then it was back on the bus to return to Avignon. I took a little nap. Then we were home and I continued my nap until dinner time. After dinner, I played cards at Lance’s with him, Kelby, and Meghan.
(Google Bories, Gordes, Roussillion, Ocre)
Then we had literature class. The professor is so bizarre and the topics are really obscure. So then it was time for dinner. I went home and found that I had received a package from my Mommy! It was Easter candy from Graeter’s – a Cincinnati favorite. I had two chocolate bunnies and a dozen assorted eggs. I ate one bunny then and decided that I would share the eggs with my family and then I could talk more about Cincinnati. Jacqueline even looked it up in an atlas!
So after dinner, the four of us each got to choose an egg for desert. After dinner was over, I had to leave because I was meeting Melissa to walk to Place d’Horlodge where everyone else was meeting to go to the movies. We saw Coco avant Chanel in this one-screen theatre that used to be a church. It was really cool. The movie was really good; Coco Chanel is played by Audrey Toutou. She was in Amelie. The movie was in French without subtitles. It was a little difficult to understand the actors at times but I understood the movie and the story. I want it to come to America but I don’t know if it will be as big as it is here. Ten people went to the theatre.
Afterwards, six of us went to Red Sky – one of our favorite bars. We had a table outside and decided not to stay out too late because we had an excursion the next day and we had to wake up early to meet for the bus.
Day 36: Saturday, April 25, 2009: Today we had another group excursion. We went to Bories, Gordes, and Roussillion. We met the bus by the university at 9 a.m. The first stop was Bories. First, we waited in the parking lot for half an hour while we waited for them to open. Great planning here. We knew that this would be boring. It is a village where every house is built of rocks. It was restored in the 1970s to look as it did when it was built in the 4th century or something. Seeing one house built with rocks is okay but to see an entire village is a little much. We walked through it pretty quickly.
So then we went to Gordes. It was really cool. The bus let us off at an overlook where we took lots of pictures. Then we walked to the village. It was really hilly and there were really cool old houses. Gordes is for old, rich people. When we got to the village, we had time to walk around. It was cool but there wasn’t really anything to do.
Then we went to this Ocre reserve thing. Ocre is a red powder found only in France that is used in paints and dyes. The tour was a little interesting but it was in English, I speak French; I’ve been in France for six weeks; give me the tour in French. We all put the powder all over our hands and faces and it looked like we had fake tans.
So then we went to Roussillion. It was probably my favorite part of the day. We went to this National Park that we had to pay for; it should have been included in the excursion. The dirt was red and there were sandstone cliffs. It was really cool. After that, we had ice cream at a really unique place. I had lavender flavor.
So then it was back on the bus to return to Avignon. I took a little nap. Then we were home and I continued my nap until dinner time. After dinner, I played cards at Lance’s with him, Kelby, and Meghan.
(Google Bories, Gordes, Roussillion, Ocre)
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