Finally Home

I'm home! And soooo happy to be here. My trip home was quite long but I didn't have any major issues. I got out of Avignon just fine, and Corine took me all the way to the platform. I was sad to say good-bye to her; she truly has been so nice and hospitable. But the train to Paris felt like it didn't take as much time as it did on the way down. I think it was because I wasn't as anxious, like I had been on the way down 6 weeks ago. I made it to Charles de Gaulle airport just fine, found my gate, had a sandwich, and got on the plane. Thankfully I had a really good seat-buddy, a 17 year old girl who was coming back from a backpacking trip in Spain with her aunt and grandpa. I had a really good time chatting with her. On the plane they played the movie 'Date Night' which was hilarious, so I watched that, read for awhile, and even did the unthinkable: I took a nap! I can never sleep on airplanes. I thought that because it was an afternoon flight I'd be even less likely to be able to sleep, because with the time change the sun never sets on the plane. But I nodded off for a bit, which was really nice.

We landed in Atlanta around 7pm Eastern, I got through customs pretty quickly (shocking), and got to my gate for my connection to Cincinnati. But then, when I got to my gate I was told that my flight was an hour late due to the fact that none of the flight attendants were there yet. So we didn't get off the ground until 11pm! So by the time I got to the Cincinnati airport I was starving, exhausted (it was 6am France time), but I could not have been more overjoyed to just be HOME!

So we got home, I gave Mom and Dad their presents (a Provencal tablecloth, lavender honey, truffle olive oil, herbes de Provence, some CDs), and I took a shower and plummeted gratefully into my bed. Today I think I'm recovering pretty well from jet lag, and getting re-acclimated to American culture. I did some unpacking this morning, but for lunch I made a desperate beeline for Skyline. Cheese coneys have never tasted so good! Now I am catching up on the whole season of So You Think You Can Dance. I really am just so glad to be home.

That's all, I guess. Thank you to all my friends and family for being so supportive and sending their love to me while I was abroad having this incredible experience. It really has been unforgettable. Thanks again to everyone!

Love you all so much!!!
Natalie

Le Dernier Jour

The last day. It's true. It's sad. I'm in denial.

I started out the day by getting my very last pain au chocolat at my favorite bakery stall at Les Halles, and I said adieu to the baker. Then I took my history exam, during which I wrote an epic essay about the major social changes in France from 1945-1975. Then came time for lunch. I had been in the mood for a panini, but fate brought me to a kebab stand where I got the BEST kebab I've ever had. They're pretty much the same thing as a gyro, but this one was one of the best things I've ever tasted. Then it was time for my phonetics exam, a quick one-on-one with Madame to do a little dictation test and some reading. Quick and relatively painless. So exams were fine. After my last one I ventured back out to stock up on Kinder Bueno at the grocery store, because I need a supply of them to tide me over until I can get to Jungle Jim's to see if they sell them. And of course, to buy one last chocolate eclair.

I got back to the Center and just hung out with people for awhile, then it was time for our little farewell celebration. We had cider and cookies, and some of the host parents came, and also our friends from Carpentras from the American/French alliance. Very cute. After a little socializing and a few good-byes, my 3 good friends from the program and I set out in search of flowers for our respective hosts. But after that, the reality hit us that this was our last goodbye. That was tough. But of course we all promised to stay in touch, and I really hope to. I've met so many kindred spirits here and I don't want to lose them all forever.

On my way home I stopped inside the antique store I pass everyday just to have a look. Turns out it's a dozen tiny rooms full to the brim with antiques! It was like a museum. And I found this adorable vintage necklace, not sure what time period it's from but I like it anyhow. But then it was time to go back to the house and face the music: packing. And it was indeed a struggle, to say the least. After several attempts I got everything in there and had to throw my whole body weight on top to get my suitcase to zip. Of course, I have to open it tomorrow to cram a few more things in, so that should be another adventure in itself.

Around 7 or so Corine got home from work and I gave her the flowers and a little card I found for her with this quote: "Ne perds pas l'opportunite de voir quelque chose de beau. La beaute c'est la preuve d'existence de Dieu," or something like that. Translation: "Never miss an opportunity to see something beautiful. Beauty is the proof of God's existence." I found it in Nimes and thought it really just summed up her view on life. Every night she prays before dinner, "Thank you Lord for all these good things, all these beautiful colors, for this lovely day. Bon appetit." But in French, of course. She really liked both the card and the flowers, so I was content.

But tonight was definitely a celebratory occasion, being that it's my last night, exams are over, and incidentally it's also the feast of St. Natalie. So Corine took me out to dinner in town! We went to a creperie and had, of course, crepes, with some salad and cider. Then we went and got soft-serve. After that we just sort of strolled around, talked a little bit, then it was time for me to meet my friends. We went to our usual haunt, Bar Les Celestins, where I had a kir (white wine, cassis, and some kind of syrup). We just had a low-key sort of night, definitely bittersweet, and when it was time to go home and go to sleep nobody wanted to say good-bye. I will truly miss these kids, and I will certainly never forget the times we have shared here in this beautiful place. But again, I'm trying not to process it all right now. I have to focus on my long day of travel tomorrow (technically today, since it's past midnight here). Oh boy...July 28th is going to be one long day!

Speaking of which, I had better get some sleep.

Love and miss you all, and see you soon!
Natalie

Only 36 or so hours left here in Avignon! Absolutely crazy to think about. I've been gone for so long, but it's been so short! It's getting to the point now where I am just so ready to be home, to be with my family and friends, that it's almost okay that I'm leaving this beautiful place. Almost.

But I didn't blog on Sunday because nothing happened that was worth reporting. I slept in, did a little homework, organized some things, and started packing. But that was all. Today was more eventful. It was my last day of classes, and it was pretty fun today. Everyone was in a good mood because it was the last day...even if everyone is dreading our final exams tomorrow. They really shouldn't be too bad, it's just that I don't feel much like studying. But that's what's on the agenda for tonight: studying and packing.

Anyhow, phonetics class today was especially fun. At the end of class we got Madame Sliwka to do some tongue twisters in English, since she had made us do a bunch in French. Things like "She sells seashells by the seashore" and "How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood." Some she did really well, but some she really struggled with. But she's an actress and a great teacher, and probably only in her late thirties so she was a good sport and played along. And we gave her a round of applause for trying, anyhow. It really is funny to hear the French try to say English words, brand names especially. Abercrombie & Fitch and Tommy Hilfiger become "Ahbearcrumbie ay Feesh" and "Tummy Illfigair." It must be similar to how we sound speaking French, if our accent's bad. We got a laugh out of Madame today by telling her how Americans pronounce things like "Merci beaucoup"--in French, it sounds like "mair-si boh-coo," but we told her Americans might say it like "mercy bo-cup." She thought that was pretty funny.

In between classes I was able to get a last bit of souvenir shopping in. I also bumped into some tourists--one Canadian couple near Palais des Papes, and a British couple at Amorino (this incredible Italian gelato place where I tried the almond and hazelnut flavors...so good). But there's a sense of solidarity with other English speakers when you're in a foreign country. I was walking along and I heard the Canadian couple talking about the best picture to take of the palace, so I backed up a few steps and asked if they wanted me to take a picture of them together. I've done this a few times and they always look surprised, like, what is an American doing here? But they always seem grateful to chat a little in their native tongue. It's nice.

Tonight Corine had a friend over for dinner, Mireille, who has visited before with her little dog, Kiki. Corine made lasagna, and it was sooooo goooooood. It had eggplant in it, so it was a little bit more of a mix between lasagna and Greek mouscaca. But it was quite yummy. Tomorrow will be my last dinner here, and that is truly strange to think about. I think I'll be in denial about it for awhile instead.

Miss and love all of you!
Natalie

La Lune Pleine

The full moon. It really does make the crazies come out. But more on all that later.

Today was our last Saturday, and 5 of us girls decided to do a day trip. The original plan was to go to Aix-en-Provence, but it turns out that on Saturdays it is both very tricky and very expensive to get there. So we opted for a city a little closer to home: Nimes. Only about a half hour train ride, not bad at all. Such a beautiful city!! So peaceful, clean, and quiet compared to Avignon at the height of the Festival. Definitely a more modern city, as well. More grand boulevards, less twisty-turny streets, beautiful churches and cathedrals built in the last 300 years or so (that's recent, for France). But there are also a lot of very well-preserved vestiges of Roman times, like the "Square House" (an ancient temple) and the ampitheatre, and others that are not as intact but are nonetheless incorporated into the city, like old pieces of ramparts or dilapidated temples. So we got to see some of these monuments, we ate lunch at some little place, walked around for awhile, did some shopping, had some ice cream, etc. But the highlight of the day in Nimes was the time we spent at Les Jardins de la Fontaine (Gardens of the Fountain). It is this huge park where there are these beautiful fountains and sculptures and everything, and if you climb this grand staircase you can get to little grassy areas with flowers and cave-like things and even a little waterfall. So beautiful! And so many great photos.

We spent a good deal of time at the park and just wandering around, but we finally made it back to Avignon around 7 or so and went in search of a worthy restaurant. I decided that for my last Saturday night dinner, I'd go all out and get just whatever I wanted. After quite awhile of searching we chose a restaurant called New Ground which is literally around the corner from school. Possibly the best meal I have eaten here!! I started out with gazpacho, which was incredible. Just the right amount of garlic and a little kick in there too. Then...holy mother of pearl...duck with a glaze of lavender honey. With pistachio potatoes. And some artichoke/zucchini deal that was so yummy. But the duck...it surpassed them all. My mouth is watering again just thinking about it! And of course wine, and opera cake for dessert. Dinner took about 3 hours, which was just fine by me. However, though the food was great and the street was just lively enough with actors and street performers, the service was incredibly bad. They flat-out ignored us for long periods of time. Of course, when you only have 2 waitresses at the height of the dinner hour, it's bound to happen, but this was just awful. If the food wasn't as divine as it was, I would have been truly angry. But that duck...it saved the night!

But as I mentioned before, the full moon was out tonight. And the crazies were out in abundance. Of course, as a woman here in France, I experience this to some degree every day. Men here are very blatant about staring at you, making comments, trying to get in your face, wolf-whistling, all of that. But tonight was worse than usual. It's like a group of 5 young women can't even feel safe eating outside at a restaurant. Well, we felt safe enough, but we were especially creeped out by one guy in particular. He was clearly very intoxicated, and seemed to be not quite right in the head. But he came up to our table and stood behind Dawn for several minutes, and at first we thought he was just going to advertise a show to us--around Festival time you get used to all sorts of people coming up to talk to you about this show or that, give you a flyer, whatever. But he just stood. And he sort of mumbled a few things and made some possibly obscene gestures until Caitlin finally told him to leave us alone. He did, but he stumbled up and down the street a few more times. Thankfully he did not grace our table with his presence anymore after that. But it definitely weirded us out a little.

Other than the full moon bringing all manner of weirdos out this evening, it was a delicious dinner and a very, very good day. I don't even want to think that I have to leave this part of the world. I will be back, absolutely. I am promising myself that. That's the only way I can bear to leave it.

I think that's all for now...tomorrow I'm going to sleep in and just relax, probably get a little studying done.

Love and miss you all!!!
Natalie

Final Countdown

What a weekend it has been so far!

Yesterday for Phonetics class, instead of meeting for a normal class, we went to the Jean Vilar House, a museum of Festival history. They had a special exhibit on Chekhov that we explored, and we will have to write a short paper about it. It was a really neat exhibit, full of photos, set designs, costumes, books...everything. After we'd finished looking around we were free to go, so I wandered down towards the Palais des Papes area and did a little souvenir shopping for the family. On my way back to the Center I tried some lavender ice cream, which was downright delicious and I want to learn to make it. But it turns out I made it back to the Center just in time, because I hadn't been back but for a few minutes before it started POURING. It was the first real rain I've seen since I've been here. It only lasted a few minutes but it was really storming. It was so odd to see rain here. It just doesn't rain here in the summer. And when it does it's like the Avignonnais don't know what to do with it.

Once classes were done for the day, a big group of us headed over to another American Institute nearby. Apparently a program from Bryn Mawr has been here for as long as we have and we never met any of those students until yesterday! But they are going home this weekend, so I guess it's too late. Anyhow, they were putting on a little talent show type deal, showcasing what they'd learned in their theatre, phonetics, music, and Provencal language classes. Some of it was pretty interesting, and a handful of the kids were really talented. Of course, there were some who completely and horribly destroyed French when they spoke...painful to listen to. But the best thing about it was this parody of Papperlapapp, that awful absurdist plot-less mess of a show I went to see a few weeks ago. It was a hilarious spoof, and I was so glad I wasn't the only one that thought the play was total nonsense!

After the show, I went home to eat and shower. Since Corine is out of town, she made me some food before I left. There was a gratin of salmon and spinach, and another of artichokes and potatoes. Really quite good, and different than what I'm used to. It will be the same thing tonight, with the addition of fruit, salad, and some bread I bought on the way home. Anyhow, after dinner I headed back into town to see a clown show with 3 other students. It was called "Fruit" and it was just one clown being goofy and interacting with the audience. Only about an hour long, and very entertaining. Once the show was over, we headed back to the Center to meet up with everyone. There were a couple of young guys sitting on the steps in front of the building, which is pretty typical, but only after we had been there for a few minutes did we discover they were British! So we chatted with them till the rest of the group got there. Real nice guys. We had a similar experience moments later, as we waited in line for crepes (messiest/most delicious crepe ever, by the way), with a group of Australians. So funny how we keep running into so many anglophones.

After our little snack, we all headed over to Isle Berthalasse, the little island in the Rhone, and spent the rest of the evening sitting on the grass and talking. A very chill night. Of course, I didn't get home till really late, but it was worth it to spend some time with everyone before we have to leave. I'm trying not to think about the fact that I have so little time left here.

Moving on to today, I slept in a little and headed over to the Center around noon-ish, stopping along the way at Illico, this little pasta place on the way to school that I've never tried. I got three cheese pasta and it was awesome--there was definitely goat cheese involved. So I got to the Center, ate with everyone, and then about an hour or so later it was time for our excursion to Villeneuve-lez-Avignon, the small town across the river. We took the bus there and stopped at Fort Saint-André, a huge fortress used in the Middle Ages to protect the abbey, within the fort itself, as well as the papal palace across the river in Avignon. Very well preserved and just very beautiful in general. I took A LOT of pictures.

We toured the fort for a couple of hours and then caught the bus back to town. A couple friends and I stopped to browse through the open air world market on the banks of the river. Lots of interesting things! Vintage swords, giant hammocks, jewelry, crafts...just tons of stuff. We had a good time exploring it all, but as the afternoon wore on and just got hotter and hotter, we decided to call it a day and go home. On my way back to the house, I stopped in Place de l'Horloge to see 2 street dancers doing a hip-hop type medley, very comical and with a couple pretty cool break dancing tricks. They were a lively bunch, to say the least. But I finally made it home and decided to have a quiet night. I need to do laundry, organize school stuff for my upcoming exams, and start thinking about packing. So I'm looking forward to some "me" time.

Tomorrow 3 of the girls and I are going on a day-trip...where we are going has not yet been decided. Maybe Aix, maybe Nimes, maybe some little village nearby...it all depends on how crazy the train and bus schedules are being. It's all very unpredictable, especially on weekends. But wherever we end up, it's guaranteed to be beautiful--it's Provence!

I think that's all I have...

Love and miss you all!
Natalie

Epic Lunch

...it really was. Think massive quantities of fruit. So good. The nectarines are perfect right now, as are the cherries. I eat so many fresh fruits and vegetables here, I wonder how I could possibly be gaining weight. Which I'm not sure if I am. If I am, I am in denial about it. And nobody better say anything when I get home (that means you, Dad).

Anyhow, it was a good day. I did a little shopping the afternoon, checking out 2 stores of French cultural importance: le FNAC and Etam. The former is a little like a Barnes & Noble, but with more music and DVDs. The latter is a clothing store, somewhat like an H&M. Both are quite popular here, and you're likely to find one in most cities. Anyway, I browsed around, took advantage of some of the Soldes, etc. It was quite relaxing.

After class, my friend Emily and I went to see a dance show called "Tradition to Transition," which was really interesting. There was one woman, the dancer, and two men who were musicians. It was traditional dance and music from India, and even though the show was less than an hour, it was just incredible. I couldn't believe how fast that lady could move her feet! Parts of it were like tap dancing, but she was barefoot and had bells around her ankles. Truly a great show.

After that I came home and had some dinner. Which was delicious, as usual. And accompanied by my second white nectarine of the day. They are just so good!

Anyhow, I have classes tomorrow and Monday, and my two finals on Tuesday. My history exam will be an analysis of a source document I've never seen before, and then an essay that will have to synthesize some aspects of what we studied. No idea what those will be. But we did our presentation on the Cold War today, and it went pretty well, so I'm not too concerned with my grades at this point. For our Phonetics final, it will just be a one-on-one meeting with the teacher to take a dictation test and read some small texts. Pretty straightforward. So all in all it shouldn't be too bad.

This last week is going to be the hardest, I can tell. Tonight when I was making dinner Corine walked past and sort of rubbed my back a little, a maternal gesture. And it hit me all at once in that moment just how much I miss my mom (and I'm not just saying that, Mom!). So I will be happy to come home and see everyone.

I think that's all for tonight.

Love and miss you all so much,
Natalie

Il n'y reste qu'une semaine...

It's crazy that there's only a week left! There's still so much I want to do! It has been amazing so far, though, that's for sure. I will definitely have to come back to Avignon, hopefully sometime soon. I was thinking maybe taking a summer off right after graduation and spending it here. I have my whole life to work, why start the moment I graduate? That would be silly. If anything it would be a fun trip to plan, even if it never comes to fruition.

Though I really don't want to leave Provence, I must admit the homesickness gets a little worse every day. For the majority of the trip it hasn't been too bad, but now that it's so close, it has become more difficult. However, thanks to my wonderful, generous, fantastic Uncle Nick, today I was surprised with a taste of home--another care package filled with American goodies! Things like Oreos, animal crackers, more peanut butter, granola bars, fruit roll-ups...the list goes on and on. There's just so much food I couldn't possibly eat it all! Which ends up very well for my fellow students, of course, as they get to share it. So with the kitchenette shelves at the Center stocked with American snack food, everyone was quite content today.

The past two nights at dinner we have had something a little different: barley. Just boiled and served warm with olive oil and soy sauce. No-frills and surprisingly delicious, actually. I think I might try it at home, especially in my kitchen at my school apartment. Among other things. There's definitely going to be some kitchen experimentation when I return to the States. Mom, Dad, prepare yourselves.

Anyhow, I don't really have any homework tonight. I might actually get a chance to read a little. How nice!

Love and miss you all,
Natalie

Ca roule, ma poule?

"How's it rollin', chickadee?" or somewhat less polite but more accurate to the slang, "What's good, ho?"

I kid you not. I learned this amusing greeting today in Phonetics. Hilarious. And one of my new favorite expressions. Others include "trop classe"--too classy; and "tres spec" which is an abbreviation for "tres special," very special--used to describe someone who's a little crazy. Ah, the French and their cute little sayings. Oh, and we learned a proverb today in class: "Un balai neuf glisse mieux, mais le vieux connait les coins"--a new broom glides better, but the old one knows the corners. Not entirely sure what it means. I have an idea. It's a nice saying, though.

Anyhow, that was one of the most eventful things today. I actually had a lot of homework tonight...I have most of it done now, but there's a little left. We're presenting our big history project tomorrow afternoon, so my partner and I are exchanging emails about that. I didn't get a nap today because I was working on homework (sad story, right?), so I think I'll just try to finish what I can and then relax the rest of the evening.

The other big thing I had for homework tonight was to interview Corine for Phonetics. I asked her some questions about the theatre festival, and basically just had to take down verbatim what she said--like a diction test in class. But more fun. It was really interesting to get a local opinion on the Festival. She talked about how all the Avignonnais hate the Festival because it makes the town noisy and dirty, and how she only likes to see the world music and dance shows because she's not really that into theatre. It was pretty funny, hearing her talk about how she barely goes into town in the summer to avoid all the craziness. I can see what she means. It is truly crazy here during the Festival. But fun!

Well, I think that's all I have for now...

Love and miss you all so much,
Nat

Le Mistral Retourne

The vicious Mistral wind is back again. It was really making a racket last night; I finally had to resort to shutting my windows. But the wind is oh so lovely during the day! It's definitely a nice break from the heat.

Since it's Sunday, it was my day to sleep in and do a little homework. That's basically all I have done all day. And when I say "do my homework," I mean mess around on the Internet until I feel I can put it off no longer. But it gets done--these are skills that college has taught me.

Just got back from eating dinner. I was at the table alone this evening, as Corine had a big lunch and wasn't hungry. So I warmed up some salmon (and drenched it in lemon juice, of course), made a HUGE salad, had an apple, some bread, and that mock-tiramisu thing that has become my new favorite thing ever. It was so peaceful just to sit and enjoy a meal on the patio in the lingering warmth of the day, and not have to make conversation or anything. Just sit. Since the Mistral rolled in and chased away the clouds, the sky has become this deep deep blue color I have only seen in this part of the world. It's breathtaking.

I can't believe I've been here over a month. I only have a week and half left! I love it here. I never want to leave. But I also miss home, my family, my friends, my pets. I'll be glad to go home, but part of my heart will always live in Provence. I'll just have to come back, that's all.

I think that's all I have for now.

Love,
Natalie

L'enfer, c'est les autres.

"Hell is other people." A famous quote from No Exit ("Huis Clos") by Jean-Paul Sartre, which I just got back from seeing. Excellently done, and a great drama. I understood enough of it, I think. Thankfully I saw it at home once in high school, so I could remember some things. But though this quote sometimes sums up exactly how I feel about the world, today that was not the case. It was a really great day and I took tons of pictures!

We started off the day with our visit to Arles. First, we went to a museum of Roman artifacts, which had some cool stuff, especially models of what the city was like during the Roman empire. Apparently it was quite an important town, commercially, because it is right on the Rhone river (like Avignon). The Romans built a huge arena there, which was used for fights between men and wild animals, the occasional gladiator battle, and also more folk-type events. Today they use it for bullfights. But the coolest thing I learned at the museum this morning was what became of the arena during the Middle Ages: the town was invaded by barbaric tribes after the empire fell, and the majority of the population was killed. So the remaining citizens of Arles moved inside the walls of the arena, as it was better constructed than their own city walls and was the only thing that could keep the barbarians out. So within the arena they built houses and watchtowers and everything, and lived there for many years--click here to see an illustration. Pretty cool stuff.

After the trip to the museum we visited the arena itself. Crazy to think this entire structure was built without mortar, and has seen so much history. So our prof gave us a little historical background on the arena, and I admit I drifted a little, as I was starting to get hungry. Thankfully our tour was quick and then we were free to eat lunch. On Saturdays in Arles there's a big open air market, and that is where we went to find food. So many delicious things, so little time! I got some chevre (goat cheese), a white peach, and this tomato-y thing that's really hard to describe. I also got a mille feuille, which involves many layered sheets of pastry and a lot of custard. So I loved it all, needless to say.

After lunch we wandered a bit, eventually coming to rest by the obelisk in the main square. Soon everyone had gathered and we had a little tour of the Cathedrale St. Trophime and the accompanying cloister. Then before we know it, it's already 4pm and time to catch a train back. I made some plans with my friends to meet later in the evening, then went home and had a quick nap. Four of the girls and I had dinner tonight in a very artsy district of town, Rue des Teinturiers. So cute! We found a little restaurant called Intramuros, and we were at the table for the standard 2 hours, at least. Very nice. A bottle of white wine, some bread, eggplant puree, salad, steak, ratatouille, pommes frites, and...the BEST chocolate dessert I may have ever had. Ever. Which is saying something. It didn't look like much, but when I tasted it...heaven. As if chocolate mousse and fudge made a beautiful, beautiful baby together. It was so good. I almost licked my plate clean.

One of the main marketing ploys used by all the theatre companies here is to have their actors walk around in costume handing out little postcards and talking to people. Even if you're sitting at a restaurant, like we were tonight, they come right up and talk to you. Some fairly throw their postcard at you, while some stop and talk for several minutes. The latter is more prevalent in the artsy district. We had one man in particular who stopped and talked for at least 5 minutes. Very very sweet old man, clearly full of passion for the story of the play. He was pleased that we spoke French "so well," and he definitely convinced us to come see his show.

Since dinner took so long (as it usually does), we literally had to power-walk/run to the other side of town to make the show on time. As it was, we were about 5 minutes late. I did have to make a quick stop along the way to snap a photo of a man in a bear costume. This town is bizarre during Festival season, that's for sure. But as I mentioned, the show was quite good. After it was over, I walked with the others up to the train station to catch a taxi home. On the walk there I witnessed something the likes of which I have never seen and hope to never see ever again: a three-piece Canadian tuxedo. For those of you unfamiliar with the term "Canadian tuxedo," it's when someone wears jeans and a denim jacket that are of the same or similar wash, resulting in a heinous denim suit-like effect. Well, this lady one-upped everyone else I've ever seen by adding a denim VEST to the mix. It was truly hideous. And they say all Frenchwomen are stylish. Ha.

Anyhow, that basically sums up my day. Tomorrow is devoted to sleep and homework!

Love and miss you all,
Natalie

Psycholove

That was the name of the play I saw this afternoon. It was quite funny...about a young couple that seeks couples counseling, the crazy exercises their therapist puts them through, like anger management and group therapy. And it turns out that the therapist, a middle aged man, ends up falling in love with the woman. The audience sees the therapist talking into space, to what we presume to be HIS therapist, talking about how he dreams about her, how he hates the boyfriend, and all that. So that added another element of humor to the story. It sort of ended without much resolution, though, and a little bittersweet. Not sure I liked the ending. But nevertheless it was pretty good.

Other than that it was a quiet day. Very hot, as usual. I had vanilla macadamia ice cream on the walk home--possibly a new fave. I was feeling sort of out of it today so I ended up taking a long nap. I actually woke up around 8:30 pm and went downstairs to find Corine eating alone, and I felt sort of bad but explained that I hadn't been feeling too well, and she was sympathetic, having been feeling a little off lately as well. I put together my dinner and joined her and we had another good long dinner with lots of conversation. It seems with each passing night I am able to communicate better and better with her. Some sentences are still pretty hit or miss, but at least I'm trying. Oftentimes we compare expressions, things like "having a song stuck in your head," "sleeping like a rock," "empty-nesters," things like that. I'm often surprised at the ones that are the same, and it's fun to learn the ones that are different. Like, the French say "sleeping like a trunk," as in a tree trunk, to describe sleeping really deeply. A lot of times I'll transpose an American expression into French and it will work because they say the same thing, and sometimes it will be totally different.

Anyhow, tomorrow is the excursion to Arles, which is only about 20 minutes by train. We're going to see the Roman ampitheatre and baths and things like that. It was also the town where Vincent van Gogh made hundreds of paintings over a few years, and stayed in a mental institution there for awhile. I'm sure I'll learn all about it tomorrow.

That's all I have for now!

Love,
Nat

Le Quatorze

Bastille Day was so much fun! I got to sleep in late and then go get lunch with 3 of my friends, which was quite nice. Then we headed over to the artsy district of town to see a musical called I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change ("Je t'aime, tu es parfait, change") which, if you haven't been lucky enough to ever see it, is absolutely hysterical. Even in French. Each song is a little vignette about an aspect of relationships between men and women: the awkward first date, marriage, having kids...everything. Basically about how we change ourselves to be with someone, how that someone changes us. This idea is summed up by the last line of the show (I've never seen it in English so this is my translation): "Try to find some who you love, who is, in your opinion, perfect; then spend the rest of your life trying to change them." Very very funny. All 4 actors were incredible. I'm so glad I went!

After the show I had my 3 friends over for dinner (Corine was out for the night so she told me I could have people over to eat), and after we had finished it was time to go try to find a place to sit on the riverbank to watch the fireworks. We had to search a little but we ended up with a pretty good spot. The show was incredible...the way you could see all the fireworks reflected in the waters of the Rhone river. Very pretty.

Once the fireworks were over we got in the huge crowd trying to get back into the city walls. Total nightmare. Took us probably 20-30 minutes just to get back inside. Once we were there we had some wine and some dessert on the Place Crillon. I tell you, the whole city of Avignon was out last night celebrating. It was fun to see and to be a part of. But I'll admit I did get home pretty late...thankfully I took a taxi with some of the other girls. It was a little too rowdy out last night to walk home alone.

Anyhow, classes today were fine with one exception: my history class, which meets in the mornings, had to spend 2 hours this afternoon watching a movie about the war in Algeria during the 50s. The movie was made right after the war, and it was largely very dull. Some parts were sort of exciting. Sort of. But mostly boring. After we got done with that little adventure, I treated myself to a search for new black sandals, as mine are near falling apart. Well, it was my lucky day because I found a new pair for FIVE EURO. Which is like $7-8. Which is awesome. And they are very cute and pretty comfy. So that made up for the boring movie.

When I got home I just sat in front of my fan for about an hour. Then I got up to take a shower. Sweating all day does not tend to make one smell like a bed of roses. But right after that was dinner, which was particularly delicious tonight, for whatever reason. There was ratatouille, salad, cheese, bread with oil and balsamic, melon, fromage blanc/marscapone/cocoa powder amazingness, and this candy I have never seen before called "Tete de Negre" which, despite its...unique name (yes, it means just what you think) was delicious. A big piece of oeuf blanc--which is very slightly akin to a marshmallow--covered in dark chocolate. Oh so good. So I ate well tonight. And since I don't have classes on Friday, I really have nothing to do. It's nice, after such a hectic week. So I'm just going to take it easy, figure out which plays to see tomorrow. Then Saturday is our excursion to Arles...more to follow on that one. But that's all for now!

Love and miss you all,
Natalie

Les Ventilateurs Sauvent Les Vies

It's true. Fans do save lives. And right now one is saving mine! Corine broke down and bought fans for both our bedrooms and it is just lovely to not have to sit here and sweat like crazy anymore! Sitting here with a full stomach and a new fan is really making me just want to go to sleep and not do my homework. But alas, I must! Thankfully I only have to write a little essay. Nothing too bad.

Tomorrow is the 14th, "le quatorze," or Bastille Day. It's a "jour ferie" here in France, meaning a national holiday so people get off work, and more importantly, off school! So some of the girls and I are going to meet up for lunch then go see the musical "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change," in French of course. Then we'll all come home and eat, then head back out for the evening's festivities. These include a famous fireworks show down on the riverbanks (they're famous because fireworks were actually first used in France in a town not too far from here), then afterwards there are dances pretty much everywhere. People take this holiday seriously. It's very similar to the 4th of July in the States, but the traditional celebrations are different. They do, of course, have fireworks in common. So it should be a pretty awesome day.

I think the addition of fans to the household really brightened Corine's mood today. She was more talkative and jovial than usual tonight; she even confided in me about her personal life, which I wasn't expecting. It's nice to know she trusts me with certain things, even though I'm not her daughter or anything. But we had some great conversations, some laughs, and for the most part my French was better tonight. I seem to improve just a little every day. I don't think I'll have enough time here to achieve fluency, as I had previously hoped, but I will definitely return to the States with more confidence in the language, better pronunciation, and more vocab.

Anyhow, onward to my little bit of homework then I may read a little. Thank goodness I don't have to get up early tomorrow!

Love and miss you all,
Natalie

Procrastination

It happens. And it happens to me frequently. These past couple of weeks I have been putting off working on my Cold War project for history. Tonight I really have to buckle down and get some work done. But we'll see.

Though I did accomplish something today: I wrote down the places and times of various shows I want to see, and looked through my schedule to see when I can go to them. There are all kinds of things going on...dance shows, circuses, dramas, comedians, concerts. You name it, it's in Avignon right now. I also organized my collection of stolen show posters. Turns out only 2 of the 6 would fit in my suitcase, but I did manage to detach 2 of the bigger ones from their cardboard-box backing so I could roll them up. It worked quite well. As for the other two, they weren't ones I particular liked anyhow, so no harm done.

Tonight for dinner I had a couple discoveries. One, I love blackberries. Who knew? Two, we had lentils and "boudins," or little pork sausages, which were soooo tasty. Three, for dessert was "riz au lait," a type of rice pudding that was surprisingly delicious. This was mainly due to the addition of sweetened condensed milk, which over here is much thicker and comes in a tube, and in familiar language is known as "miel des vaches," or the honey of the cows. A fitting description, in my opinion.

Anyhow, I better get back to my research. Who thought summer vacation could be so much work?

Love and miss you all!
Natalie

Ce Dont J'ai Eu Besoin

Today, I did just that: just what I needed. Which was, of course, nothing at all. I slept in late, ate some cereal, did a little homework, read a bit, ate dinner, and now I'm going to do a little research for my history project. After such a busy weekend, I needed a little break.

Corine did something a little different for dessert tonight that I'm definitely going to try when I get home. It was sort of a mock-tiramisu. She mixed sugar, fromage blanc (which I won't be able to find in the States, so I'll substitute Greek yogurt), and marscapone. In a small dish she layered the cheese mixture, then cocoa powder, then the cheese again. Simple enough, right? "Trop bon"--too good. Most delicious thing we've had in awhile.

So that was basically the culinary highlight of the day, and considering not much else happened today, it was extra special. Now I have to go research Cold War France...I'd rather be eating more dessert!

Love and miss you all,
Nat

Quel Week-end!

What a weekend, indeed!

Friday afternoon a bunch of us got together and went to Pontet, a small town close to Avignon, notable mostly for the municipal pool. Avignon had to pick that day to be cloudy, of course, but it was still hot out so the pool was quite nice. Funny story though: this pool, though pretty cheap to get into, is very strict. So strict, in fact, that there is a dress code of sorts for bathing suits. One of the "maillots interdits," or prohibited bathing suits, is none other than swim trunks! Apparently there's some sort of hygienic reason that I don't understand. However, this restriction meant that the two guys in our group, Chase and Kong, couldn't come into the pool unless they purchased other (thankfully inexpensive) suits. Easy enough, right? Well, there's a catch. These suits were tiny black shorts--not quite speedos, but close. And clearly meant for 12 year olds. But the guys suffered it admirably. We even got some pictures of them modeling their new look. Very funny, if not a little disturbing.

That night was the Festival show for which the Center got us free tickets. It was called Papperlapapp and it was the most nonsensical event I have ever witnessed. No plot, nothing to keep you interested in the action except a sort of dull curiosity about whether or not it was going to get any better. An absurdist play with religious nuances that were buried too deep to comprehend. Basically, after the first 15 minutes people started to walk out...and continued to walk out for the rest of the time I was there. And apparently in Avignon, during the Festival, if you don't like the show you're supposed to leave and leave with gusto. Stomping out, booing, waving to friends. Anything goes! We braved it for an hour and a half, and it was an outdoor venue so when it began to sprinkle a little (the first time it has rained since I've been here), we used that as our excuse to leave. Then we went out to one of the little restaurants down a small street and had a much better time than we did during those 90 minutes of utter confusion.

Today was our girls' trip to Marseille, which is the 2nd most populous city in France, after Paris, and the 3rd biggest in area, after Paris and Lyon respectively. The four of us left on the bus at around 10 this morning, so we got into Marseille around 11:30 and hopped on the metro to get to the historic part of town, the old port. It was lovely, we got some nice pictures and took a look around. Only after we had had lunch, of course. We picked an Italian place right near the port with the best tiramisu I have ever tasted. But then we explored an open air market, as well as the French version of Macy's which was quite swanky.

After that we were all ready to hit the beach. We had to walk a couple miles to find one, but it was worth it when we got into that clear Mediterranean water. The beach was crowded today, lots of kids playing in the water and people getting some sun on the beach. A few topless bathers, as usual...generally older women. I can see the appeal of not having tan lines, but that is where my comprehension of this practice comes to an abrupt end. Anyhow, we spent about 3 or so hours there on the beach, then rinsed off and headed back to the metro to get back to the train station to try and find a train back to Avignon. We found one that took us through the countryside and made stops in numerous tiny, quaint villages, thus explaining why it took 2 hours to get back. But we really didn't mind. We passed the time laughing and talking and just generally having a fantastic time. Between our fatigue, hunger, and the heat of the sun, we were all a little slap-happy. Which was hilarious.

When we finally did get back to the city, we decided to go to the restaurant next door to school that we've all been curious about for a while, given that we all pass it every day, called L'Hermitage. Well, our curiosity payed off! It was arguably the best meal I've had since I've been here. Something akin to chevre spring rolls, which was divine, and then tandoori chicken with these two incredible sauces I can't begin to describe, and a lemon creme brulee for dessert. For about 20 euro. Delicious. Of course, when you go out to eat in Avignon during the dinner rush, namely 9pm, be prepared to spend a long time at the table. Which I prefer anyway. Eating and drinking and laughing with friends over a 2+ hour dinner? Nothing better. And it was the perfect ending to a perfect day.

Whew! It really was a busy weekend, but incredibly fun. Now I'm pretty worn out, a little sunburned, and ready for a good night's sleep.

Love to you all,
Natalie

Examen

Today was my history midterm. I think I nailed the first half, but the second half was a mess. It was the same for some of the other girls, too. Hopefully Monsieur Charrier will have pity. But that was the first class of the day, so at least I got it over with!

After class Gloria and I ventured out in search of sandwiches. Then I finished off the last of my cherries and chevre. A good lunch, but they always are here. We made some plans for the weekend, chiefly meeting up to go to the pool tomorrow (a different one that before, thank goodness) and going to Marseilles on Saturday to hang out on the beach. But tonight a bunch of us are going out. There's no excursion tomorrow, and I don't have any classes, so it's just like another weekend night. I will be wearing the wedges I bought today, which are just what I was searching for in the States and couldn't find. And for 10 euro, a good deal. But after the shopping sprees of yesterday and today, I'm going to cool it for awhile. Thankfully I'll be traveling a lot tomorrow and Saturday, and then Sunday will be devoted to homework. So the Soldes will not tempt me again until Monday! Then the battle recommences.

This weekend's goal is not to get sunburned, but still get a little color. Shortly after I return, I'll be going to Florida so I need to fit in with all the tan beach bums down there (ahem, Adam). It's hard to believe 3 weeks have passed already, and that only 3 remain. The time has gone by so quickly! But in the time I have left, I plan to see a little bit more of the country and catch a couple of the shows at the Festival. Oh, and pick up a few more show posters. They're all so creative!

Anyhow, I have to get ready to go out...put my contacts in, etc. Should be a fun night of letting off some steam after midterms!

Love and miss you all,
Natalie

Soldes Mania

Les Soldes have officially begun! Which means practically every store is packed with people trying to take advantage of the sales. And today in between classes, I proudly joined the ranks of the bargain-hunting Avignonnais. I got two dresses, a skirt, and a jacket for about 40 euro, which is seriously cheap. Before the sales started, I would have paid 40 euro for the jacket alone! So I feel accomplished, needless to say.

Other than the sales, not much else happened today. I woke up a little late but made it to class on time. I ate lunch with my usual gusto, did a little shopping, tried the French version of a milkshake, which was pretty good, except the way they pronounce it is quite funny (un "meelkshek" pour mademoiselle! vite vite!), went to my next class, studied a little, saw a little bit of the festival kick-off parade, and did a little bit more shopping on the way home. All in all, a good day. And though the wind has helped cool things down a little, apparently it's supposed to hit 100 degrees this weekend. I'll be in Marseilles on Saturday, which is even further south, but I'll also be right by the sea so hopefully the breeze will make up the difference.

I really should get back to studying for my history exam tomorrow. I'm not thinking it's going to be toooo hard, but it helps to look over it and figure out any pertinent vocab or famous people or really important dates. So that's what I'm going to be doing most of the rest of the night, I think.

I guess that's all for now!

Love,
Natalie

La Voleuse

Today's Tuesday, so I had a late start at school. It's nice to be able to sleep in a little and then take my time getting ready in the morning. Then I don't have to powerwalk to class...I can just walk like a normal person. On the way to school today, I made good on my plan to nick one of the cardboard posters. There are a couple more I have my eye on. There are more and more everyday, and they're always falling off or getting knocked down by the Mistral wind (which is starting to really whip up again), so hey, will they really miss a couple? I think not.

Classes were fine...we're coming to just about the middle of the "semester," so I have several projects and assignments to do. I have to memorize a poem for Phonetics for Thursday, and I'll have a mid-term in History the same day. Then in the week after I have projects due for both classes. None of these things should really be too complicated, it's just that when the weather is so nice and there's so much to do...shoes to buy, pastries to eat...who wants to do homework? Not me.

On that note, the Festival starts tomorrow. Friday night I'll be going to see one of the shows, the Center got some free tickets that I'm going to take advantage of. Hopefully I'll be able to see a few more...I went through the programs and picked out a few that looked interesting. There are two program books: one for the more formal festival shows (called "In"), and the other for the hundreds upon hundreds of more informal shows (called "Off"), for which the program is definitely over an inch thick. They take this theatre stuff seriously!

Corine and Enzo have gone someplace for the evening, I think it's Corine's father's house, and they actually still aren't back and it's half past ten. But it's the summer so it's not like the little one has to go to bed early. But basically this means that I have the house to myself tonight. I got to make and eat dinner alone tonight, which was sort of a nice break. She already had some wild rice prepared, so I ate that and I made a salad, some fromage blanc, and my first attempt at an omellette. It turned out pretty well, but I think my next try will be better. It ended up a little dry, for which I think the high heat was to blame. Next time I'll try a lower heat and it should preserve some of the moisture. We'll see.

Anyhow, I'd better get back to reviewing for my history exam. I feel like I'm learning more French political history than an American ever really needs to know. Ah well. It might come in handy someday.

Love,
Nat

Le P'tit Fils

"The grandson." What a cutie! Enzo pretty much hung out with me most of the night, even said hi when I Skyped with my parents and Aunt Merrie. He is just the cutest kid. He just came in to give me a kiss goodnight. More on him later.

This morning I was a little late to history class, being that I had to stop at a little bakery on the way there to buy a baguette. But the prof wasn't mad when he saw that I was late because I had to buy bread. He made a comment about my being "truly French"...hey, if it got me out of getting in trouble for being late, totally okay with it. But class was a struggle today: we're studying nitty-gritty politics from the 70s and 80s, so it's not particularly interesting. But after was lunch, which is always a highlight of my day. I got to talk with everyone a little, get a little web-surfing in, and chat about upcoming weekend plans. Four other girls and I are planning to spend all of Saturday in Marseilles. More details on that later, as we have yet to figure it all out.

In anticipation of "les soldes" (the big national sales), my friend Dawn and I ventured forth after our last class to check out some of the prices. When les soldes start on Wednesday, most of the prices will drop, but we wanted to stake out the goods first. Of course, some stores have already started, including a shoe place nearby. Got some black patent-leather flats (which I desperately needed--I can't wear heels to my business stuff all the time, they hurt after a while) and I only paid 8 euro! So like 10 bucks. Pretty good deal, if you ask me.

After our little shopping reconnaissance mission, it was about 6pm and time to head home. On my walk to and from school today, I noticed a slight change in the scenery: since the Avignon Theatre Festival is starting this Wednesday, there are show posters up everywhere! Because you're usually not allowed to stick them on the walls of buildings, the M.O. here is to paste the signs ("affiches") onto pieces of cardboard and tie them with twine onto rails, posts, pipes, etc. I need to remember to take a picture. Also, I want to nick at least one of the posters to put in my apartment next year. Shouldn't be too hard...the wind knocks some of them down. Then they're fair game, right? Right.

Anyhow, after school I performed my ritual of laying on the tile floor of my room in an effort to cool off. I started reading Dune, which is pretty darn good so far, but I may have nodded off because of the heat. I was soon awoken by the sounds of Enzo having his pre-dinner bath, a quite noisy affair. So then I knew it was time for dinner. Tonight we used a tiny little grill to cook pieces of salmon and chicken, and also to melt cheese. There was also tabouleh (like a cous-cous salad) and melon. After dinner, I did my usual chore of loading the dishwasher, then sat and chatted with Corine for a little while. Enzo would intermittently show me whatever he was playing on his Nintendo DS. He followed me to my room, where I showed him on a map where Cincinnati was, in fact, where the US was, because, at 6 years old, he doesn't really have a grasp on world geography yet. I managed to kick him out for a little while to do my homework, which did not take very long, and he soon rejoined me in my room, still playing on his DS. So we made a pretty cute picture sitting on my cliq-claq (futon), him playing his video games and me reading Dune. Then it was time to Skype with my parents and Aunt Merrie, and I got Enzo to say "Bonsoir" to everyone. He's a talkative kid but not in annoying way...I really don't mind him hanging around. I think half of it might be his curiosity at work; he must rarely hear any English spoken. Anyhow, a cute kid. I might miss him when he goes home to his dad in Marseilles on Friday.

Well, I guess that's all, folks!

Love to you all and bonne nuit,
Nat

Sleepy Sunday

It was so nice to have a break from the hectic, but fun, weekend. I had been planning on going to the pool, but I woke up to a Facebook (which the French call "fehz-boook") message from Gloria telling me that she'd just found out the pool was way outside the city. As I had no way to get there, I couldn't go. I guess I'll just swim another day. But I did get a chance to take a shower, have some breakfast, and finally meet Enzo, Corine's grandson who's staying with her for awhile. He's six and a half and was a little shy with me at first, and still can't seem to quite figure me out, but he's very talkative--over breakfast he excitedly showed me his new soccer ball. The thing is, though, he doesn't enunciate very well, which is apparently the same problem his father (Corine's son) had when he was young. So sometimes he's a little tough to understand.

Anyhow, while they went to see How to Train Your Dragon (3D!), I had the house to myself all day. I got my Phonetics homework done, then tried to read my assignments in my history book. In the process I fell asleep several times. Just can't seem to get interested in the manifold party shifts and political policies of various French presidents. Right now I'm up to Mitterrand. Still working on it.

But I did finish reading Ender's Game--fantastic read! I would recommend it to anybody. I see why Orson Scott Card has such a huge following. So that's what I spent most of my day doing: reading and sweating. This whole no air-conditioning thing is starting to get to me...not so much because of the heat but because we have to shut all the windows from noon until sundown, so there's no air moving. I think I'm going to break down and buy a little fan. That can be my gift to the next student that comes to stay!

Anyhow, it's back to work with me. More tomorrow!

Love and miss you all,
Natalie

Crazy Day

It truly was. I started out the day by meeting two friends at a pool over on the little island. It was ten euro to get in, which was dumb, but it was a reeeeaally swank pool, so hey, for a one-time thing I figured it was okay. And it was all very pretty and we swam for a little bit, then got out to lay out in the sun. We'd been in our chairs for about twenty minutes before one of the pool employees came over and asked to see our receipts. We were a little confused, like maybe they thought we snuck in, so we went to get them. But he shook his head and said that he had meant the receipts for the pool chairs....another 5 euro! Finding this ridiculous, we gathered our towels and things and put them in the locker room, then just stayed in the pool the rest of the time. But after a couple hours I had to head back to the house to change, pack up my potato salad, and make it to the bus station.

We took the bus to the small town of Carpentras, only about half an hour away, where Monsieur Patris met us at the stop. He's the current president of the French/English Alliance here. At the stop we had our picture taken for the local paper. After that, he showed us around the city for a couple hours, stopping by a cathedral, a book store with an art exhibit in the back (the artist was actually an 89-year-old Ohioan), and a converted chapel that was housing a photography show. Then we divided ourselves up among a few cars and were driven to his home outside the town.

There awaited us a big porch festively decorated with American and French flags. Inside the house were several people, including one American high-schooler, a few English couples, and some older French people. Except for the one other American, it was us students and then Frogs and Brits ranging 40-90. Despite the age gap, it was a lively time. Everyone was excessively friendly and hospitable, and the food was delicious. My real American potato salad was a big hit.

They set it up so all 5 tables had 2 American students each. My friend Amanda and I were seated with Madame Patris' parents, an elderly couple that had been married 54 years! We were later joined by another couple, maybe in their fifties, and the husband was a real talkative guy. Very funny, too. Between he and the Patris' son, Frederic, there were plenty of jokes and banter. As the night wore on, everyone got more and more crazy and funny. My friend Chase had brought along his guitar and we students treated everyone to a rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner (primarily led by me, I have to admit...I know all the words). Then we attempted the Marseillaise, the national anthem of France, but thankfully that's when the Frenchies took the lead because hardly any of us knew it. After that, we had about an hour-long sing-a-long, French songs and American songs alike. The Beatles, the Eagles, Aretha, even a little Lady Gaga. It was so much fun! Just one of those moments you wish you could film and keep forever. I know I'll never forget ten American students and twenty-odd French and British adults singing along to Simon and Garfunkel, mumbling the words they don't know and belting the ones they do. It was truly a wonderful night.

Tomorrow we're going to try a different pool, and after that I might think about starting the homework I've been putting off all weekend.

Love,
Natalie

Pont du Gard

Today was our outing to Pont du Gard, which is a bridge over the river Gard constructed by the Romans between 40-60 BC as part of a huge aqueduct. It's amazing how well preserved it is, that it has survived 2 thousand years of damage, weather, and even an earthquake. If you click this link you can see a picture of it. But we started off by crossing the bridge and going down on the rocky riverbank. There two of my fellow students each did a little report on various historical aspects of the site. After that we headed up into the nearby wooded area to see the aqueduct from above. Then a visit to the Pont de Gard museum, which was a little anti-climactic but blissfully air-conditioned. Due to some, um, inefficient planning on the part of the professor, we only had about half an hour to swim in the river, which is what we had all been looking forward to all morning. Ah well. After our little dip it was back on the bus and back to Avignon.

We all had lunch on the Place Corps-Saint, which is my new favorite square. It's very authentic and not too expensive, with a lot of young people around. It's also really close to school. We got to enjoy lunch and little shade and a little rest, which was a nice change from the high energy, super-sunny morning. After that we wandered around a bit, and I headed home to rest for a little while. Had to go to the grocery store to find ingredients for my potato salad, which turned out quite well. Then it was our usual quiet dinner, and a shower, and some reading--still Ender's Game, I'm halfway through and I love it! But most nights I feel like taking it easy. The heat and the activity of the day can be really draining. I thought about going out with some of the other students tonight, they were going to meet at ten, but by the time we'd finished with dinner it was already half past nine and I needed to shower still. So I decided to skip it for tonight and chillax a little. Definitely a good choice.

Tomorrow morning a bunch of us are going to a pool on the little island, then in the afternoon we will head over to Carpentras for our barbecue! Should be pretty fun. More details to come!

Love,
Natalie

Le Grand Dejeuner

Definitely went all-out with making lunch today (hence the title). I had a melon, cherries, strawberries, salami, bread, and I made this Greek-style salad with cucumber, tomato, chevre (goat cheese), shallot, balsamic, and olive oil. Basically it was all fresh and delicious but I just ate so much!

Speaking of making salads, I have quite a task facing me for the weekend: making a real American potato salad. This Saturday the students are traveling to the nearby town of Carpentras to celebrate the Fourth of July with a "barbecue," which should be interesting to see how exactly the French interpret that. But they asked us to each bring a dish to share and I thought, hey, why not make a little taste of home? So I will try to the best of my ability to recreate that American institution, even though I have never made it in my life. Should be simple enough. The question is always what ingredients I won't be able to find here. But we shall see.

But other than that, it was a pretty normal day. Hotter than blazes. My history class was actually quite entertaining today, as we spent it comparing the presidential portraits of all the French presidents from Charles de Gaulle onward. Some are downright ridiculous. So it was good to have a laugh in history class. That doesn't happen too often.

After class a bunch of us students went to see a movie called Les Petits Roisseaux, about a middle-aged widower who loses his best friend and fishing buddy, then struggles to find himself and ends up finding new love in the process. It was incredibly funny and featured a lot of nudity (hey, it's French), but it was tastefully done. All in all, a good choice. I understood the plot well, but it's hard to catch all the jokes and wordplay. Maybe in a few more weeks it will be easier to understand.

Tomorrow we're going on an excursion to Pont du Gard, another Roman site, and thankfully we're going to get to swim, too! It hits the nineties every day and that sun is brutal. Despite this, I've already lost some of my tan from last weekend's "coup de soleil," or sunburn. Ah well.

Anyhow, that's all folks!

Love,
Natalie

"Bon Appetit"

The cutest thing happened to me on the way to school today. I was walking down the street eating an apple for breakfast, and there was this adorable old man walking just in front of me. He seemed to sense I was in a hurry (which I was, having left the house a little late), so he stepped aside to let me pass. I had my mouth full but I covered my mouth with my hand and managed to say "Merci." He smiled and replied "Bon appetit," gesturing to my apple. What a nice guy!

But people-watching as I walk around town is pretty entertaining. The other day I saw a teenage guy, shirtless and wearing basketball shorts carrying a Louis Vuitton man-purse. Guess that's acceptable here. Apparently, what is also bizarre but culturally acceptable is venturing forth without a bra, and what's more, being very obvious about it. Sometimes it's not too pretty. But I am noticing more and more familiar faces. Avignon is pretty small and I walk the same route to and from school every day. There is one man I pass all the time on my way home...he walks with slow, halting steps and sort of has a weird expression on his face, as if he's not quite all there. And he's always smoking some sort of noxious cigarette. But I pass him every day.

Most everyone here is pretty nice about letting you by if you're walking faster than they are, but I did encounter one guy today who was a total jerk about it. It was one of those things where you are approaching someone on the street and you have to move to the other side of the sidewalk to pass them, but you both simultaneously move to the same side and kind of do that awkward back-and-forth a few times until you figure it out. Well that's what happened to me today with a middle-aged man wearing cover-alls. We did our little awkward oh-I-need-to-move-to-the-other-side-of-the-sidewalk dance a couple times before I realized he was doing it on purpose just to mess with me. I managed to smile graciously and say, "Excusez-moi, monsieur," and get past him, but he was just laughing idiotically. Apparently deliberately blocking the path of a young woman was funny to him. Like I said, total jerk.

But the rest of my evening has been quite pleasant. I began reading the book Ender's Game, which was sent to me by my boyfriend, and so far I love it. Then I took a little nap until Corine called me down for dinner. Joining us for the meal were Corine's friend Marie and her tiny adorable dog, Kiki. Pretty calm night. But the highlights from dinner were ratatouille, which was absolutely delicious, and bananes flambes for dessert, which are basically very very very ripe bananas cooked in cognac with a little butter and sugar. The technique also involves caramelizing them with a lighter, but I was setting the table outside when she did it so I missed it. But they were excellent.

Now back to doing research on Franco-American relations during the Cold War for my history class...what fun!

Love,
Natalie

And We Have Our First Casualty...

...in the form of my bottom retainer. I have a tiny metal wire glued to the back of my bottom 6 teeth, a vestige from the golden years of orthodontia. Tonight I took a bite out of a white nectarine to discover it was not as ripe as I had thought and I heard a sickening crunch as some of the glue broke loose. The retainer is still intact but probably a little crooked. Oh well, I had been meaning to get it taken out anyhow. I really don't need it.

Anyhow, other than that today was pretty normal. I started the day off right by hitting up Les Halles on the way to school to buy some produce for lunch. I got a Cavaillon melon, which tastes exactly like cantaloupe but is about the size of a large grapefruit and with a rind more like a watermelon. I also got some carrots and some dark cherries. All for less than 5 euro, I'll have you know. I love how cheap and abundant fruit is here...and so many choices! Plus things I've never even seen before. And while I was at the market of course I had to drop my favorite bakery stall and get a pain au chocolat, which is basically a croissant with little pieces of dark chocolate inside of it. The guy behind the counter definitely recognizes me by now.

Phonetics class was more hilarious than usual today because we did some diction exercises, a.k.a. tongue twisters in French. Example: Didon dina, dit-on, du dos d'un dodu dindon. Rough translation: Dido (as in the character from Greek mythology) dines, one says, on the back of a fat turkey. But try saying that one ten times fast!

But speaking of eating, I have discovered why the French love it so much. Everything's just so good! The bread, the fruit, the veggies, the omelettes, the pastries....just everything. I don't think I'm consuming any more food that I would at home, it's just a different sort of food. Fresher, maybe. But I know of two things in particular that are going to jeopardize my waistline: pastry (of course) and the best candy on earth, called Kinder Bueno. Basically if a Kit-Kat bar and a jar of Nutella had a baby and that baby was beautiful and radiant and all things wonderful, it would be a Kinder Bueno. All of us students are addicted. I wonder if I can get them in the States. I'll find a way.

The other exciting thing that happened today was a discovery I made about an upcoming event. In France during the months of January and July, there is something called the "Soldes," where in practically every store everything's on sale! They start out at 15 or 20% at the beginning of the month, and by the end of the month things could be as much as 80% off! So needless to say I will be taking advantage of these epic sales.

Anyhow, I think that sums it up for today.

Missing you all,
Natalie

I Have Done The Unthinkable

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have consumed...GIBLETS. From a chicken. Confit, but still unmistakably giblets. So far I have been good about trying everything Corine prepares, even if it does come from the sea (yuck), and usually everything ends up okay. Not tonight, dear friends, not tonight. I worked my way through as much of it as I could. But horrible images of Dad trying to get me to eat turkey giblets at Thanksgiving overwhelmed me and I just couldn't finish. The taste wasn't really too bad, it was just strong and, uh, giblet-y. But I fought the good fight. Even if my stomach feels a little violated.

But that's probably the most eventful thing today. Just classes all day. I did have my first experience with a French pharmacy...I had to get re-wetting drops that I could put in while wearing contacts--called "larmes artificielles (artificial tears). The guy was very nice and humored my broken French quite well. And they were cheap, which I like.

Tomorrow is Tuesday so my classes don't start until 11:00. So tonight I'm just basically going to do some homework and just chill a little. The heat during the day really saps the ambition and wears you out. But I am getting used to it. And good news: my sunburn has mostly faded and I now officially have something like a tan. Hooray!

Love and miss you all,
Nat

Lazy Sunday

After such a busy weekend, today has been nice and chill. I woke up, took a shower, met some friends for a movie, had lunch, then came home and watched a couple episodes of Family Guy online. The movie was really excellent, though. It was called L'Illusioniste, it was animated, and it was about a sort of washed-up magician in 1959 who can't seem to compete with newer kinds of entertainment. It was very touching and beautifully drawn. There were definitely a few tearful moments.

But after the movie we all got some sandwiches and ate in the park--in the shade, thankfully. It is truly hot here. But at least there's no humidity, so it's easier to bear. But there's no air moving today. It's funny, either there's no wind or way too much. Not really a happy medium. But the scenery is so beautiful I guess I can deal with it!

Tonight is looking to be pretty quiet. A little Skype time with Mom and Dad, a little homework, a little dinner. Then tomorrow, school again. I'm beginning to develop a routine...it's nice.

That's all for now, I think.

Love,
Nat

A La Plage

Today was our excursion to Camargue, which is a smallish town on the Mediterranean. Unlike yesterday, today was more about fun and less about scholarly pursuits. Although we did visit an 11th century Romanesque church, and even got to climb on the roof to take some pictures. But after that it was lunch and then off to the beach! The water is still pretty cold, but it provides a good break from the sun when you need it. So mostly we just hung out on the beach all day, got sunburned, joked around and played in the water, etc., until it was time to get on the bus to come home.

We made it back around 6, then found a little brasserie on the Place Pie (which is where most of the young people hang out) and the whole group ate dinner together. I had duck with some sort of mousse of vegetables, which was pretty good. Our waiter was awesome, joking around with us and basically just being a nice guy. All in all, a very good day.

After I nurse my sunburn, I'm going to head out with the other students to check out the nightlife a little. More details to follow.

I think that's all for now.

Love to you all!
Natalie

Vaison-la-Romaine

Today I visited the most picturesque little town that ever walked the earth: Vaison-la-Romaine. I went along with the art/architecture class, which was nice because I wasn't obligated to listen to the prof the whole time, and I could just sort of look around at everything knowing I wasn't going to be tested on it. But we started off at 9 in the morning at the Avignon bus station, and we had to drive about an hour northeast to reach Vaison. As soon as we got there we climbed up through the oldest part of the town to a rocky cliff that had an ancient chateau at the top. After a little lesson on the history of the town, we headed down into the town itself, went on a bridge over the tiniest river ever, and towards the excavated Roman ruins at the heart of town. We spent the rest of the morning here, as they were pretty extensive, and I must admit I had been following the prof's lecture up to this point but he had a very quiet, sort of lull-you-to-sleep voice that couldn't hold my attention. Plus he was one of those teachers who can literally talk for an hour about one tiny detail. So some friends and I explored the ruins mostly on our own and took some pictures.

But soon it was past noon, everyone was hungry, tired, grouchy, and a little sunburned, and he kept just droning on and on and on and on...then finally gave us and hour and a half for lunch. Some of the girls and I plopped down in a nearby cafe that was offering a set 3-course menu for 12 euro (appetizer, entree, and dessert). So I had a salad with some sort of souffle which basically was a seafood muffin (oddly enough not that bad, but I was also starving at the time), lamb, and some sort of delicious caramel-apple type tart. Good choices, and some of the nicest waiters around.

Then we met up with the rest of the group to have a look at the museum of Roman artifacts. Would have made a very interesting 45 minute walk-through. It wasn't very big. But Monsieur le Professeur seemed to want to give a 10 minute (at least) lecture on every single item. Eventually myself and some of the other students (the ones who weren't in his class but just along for the ride, like me) just gave up and sat down on a bench. It had been a long day in the heat and we just wanted to nap. Some of us nodded off right there. But after what seemed like an eternity it was 5pm and we were on the bus headed back to Avignon. This bus is best described as the perfect imitation of the sauna room in an old Roman bath house. That is how much we were sweating on the sweltering, hour long, non air conditioned ride home.

But we arrived in one piece, if not a little soggy. I made the 20 minute walk home and promptly jumped in the shower at an attempt to feel human again. It worked, and soon after was dinner. A little abbreviated tonight, as Corine was meeting a friend to catch a movie--Avatar. I found this funny. But it was a quick dinner tonight, after which I took a little nap. And now here I am.

Tomorrow will be another excursion (to Camargue), but one whose purpose is more for fun and less for lecturing. I mean, we even get to go to the beach! I can continue to work on my pitiful excuse of a tan. I did get a little sun today though...so it's a start.

Love to you all,
Natalie

Un Autre Jour

Another hot day here in Avignon...when I leave for school in the mornings it's a little chilly, so I wear a cardigan and a scarf, but by midday it's too hot for either. I had my classes at 9 and at 1 today, so I was done pretty early. My friend Dawn and I ventured out into unknown territory in the afternoon to see what we could see...but we did a little shopping first, of course. There was this dress she wanted to check out at this tiny store called Casting, and they had some great shoes for veeerrry cheap, so of course I couldn't help myself. Awesome heels for less than 20 bucks US? I can't resist! I fell in love at first sight. But after that we sort of meandered about, eventually discovering an antique fair. I saw a WWI helmet complete with the spike on the top and the first thing I thought was, now THERE's a party hat. Alas, there was no price listed, which means it was out of my price range. Dommage.

But after we just got too hot to continue walking, we went back to the Center to hang out for a bit, and then I came home and finished re-reading 1984. Unusually for me, I wasn't tired enough for a nap, so I went ahead and started another book. It's called Hemingway's Chair, by Michael Palin (of Monty Python fame) and is very entertaining so far. Definitely a nice change from the heaviness of Orwell.

Today I also made sure to post my most recent pictures...you can check those out on Facebook. There will be more after this weekend, I'm sure. Tomorrow the art and architecture class (which I'm not in but I can still go with them on field trips) is going to Vaison-la-Romaine, a town with Roman ruins that's situated higher up into the Alps. We'll stay there all day and come back to Avignon in the late afternoon. Saturday the whole group goes on an excursion to Camargue, which is at the delta of the Rhone River and also nearby the Mediterranean Sea. So hopefully I can get a tan on the beach!

I have just now had my first experience with French laundry. The machine is tiny. And of course, nobody has dryers here, so I just finished hanging up my wet clothes on this clothes rack contraption. Don't really know how long that takes to dry, but it's not urgent. Now I just have to figure out where to put the rack so I can pull out my bed to sleep. Arranging everything to fit in tiny spaces over here is like a game of Tetris. Adventures galore.

Anyhow, that's all I have for now!

Je vous aime,
Natalie

Il Fait Chaud

Finally, the hot weather has arrived. Meaning the Mistral wind has died down a little, so the full force of the sun in the cloudless sky really hits you. But it was a great day nonetheless. Probably something to do with the fact that it's Wednesday, which means my classes were only 90 minutes instead of 2 hours, and no homework tonight! Though I do have a paper due next Wednesday for my history class which I could start, but I think I'll end up procrastinating. The University of Dayton has trained me well: "never do tomorrow what you can put off until the day after tomorrow."

So it was a quiet day. Tomorrow will be the opposite. It's "une greve generale," meaning a general strike, so basically people just skip work and go protest in the main square. Apparently this is normal and periodic. One of the teachers tomorrow is participating, so the students taking the art/architecture class won't have class tomorrow! Unfair. Also, the buses won't be running, the post office won't be open, and who knows what other insanity will go down. Luckily I live close enough to school, but for the students who usually take the bus it's going to be an early morning tomorrow, because they'll have to walk. Oh well. C'est la vie.

But today I had a great surprise--when I got back to the Center after buying some things for lunch, I had 2 huge boxes waiting for me at the office. Turns out it was a care package from my Uncle Nick! Just chock-full of goodies...peanut butter (I almost cried for joy), cereal, granola, tic tacs, pens, everything I could possibly need. It was incredible. I was so excited. Nick, if you're reading this, thank you so much and you'll be getting a note in the mail as soon as I can figure out how many stamps I need. I'm a long way from California!

Anyhow, the main event for dinner tonight was one of the most interesting combinations I've ever beheld, and I can't wait to try a variation of it at home. Corine cooked mushrooms in soy sauce, then added tomato paste and fresh coriander. When it was almost done, she scrambled 3 eggs in there with it. It was delicious, and I'd love to try it at home substituting pasta for the mushrooms (I'm not a huge fan) and basil for coriander, and with a little parmesan on top would be delicious. And with the egg in there, which just sort of adds to the texture but doesn't have a strong taste, you also get the benefit of the protein. So yes, add it to the list of things to try when I get home.

That's all for now. This weekend I'll have a couple of excursions with the program, so those will be cool. Also, coming up this weekend, my first experience with a French laundry machine!

Love,
Natalie

Omelettes for Dinner?

Weird, right? Not for the French, apparently. Oh well. It was delicious anyway. You bet I'm attempting that when I get home.

This morning I had yet another adventure with a European shower, which I'm still getting used to. I have to sponge down the whole tub and everything when I'm done because water gets everywhere. Very complicated.

After that was just another day at school. Pretty quiet day. I had a falafel for lunch, which was both cheap and delicious. Good combination, in my book. I got home from school around 6pm and Corine got home shortly after, so we ate dinner a little early tonight. Our usual, except with the addition of walnuts, which I cracked open myself, and those glorious omelettes, so fluffy and filled with fresh basil. It looked about as easy as anything and really, really good. Corine told me, "Il n'y rien chose assez facile qu'une omelette"--there's nothing as easy as an omelette.

And now here I am. I do have some homework tonight, but nothing too serious. Just looking over maps of French colonies for history and picking a small text to read for phonetics. Easy stuff. But both classes are difficult in their own right (no, Dad, no "bunny" classes here).

A demain,
Natalie

First Day of School

I awoke at 8am to get ready for school, ate an apple (for the record, produce is generally much smaller here...but what the hell, everything is smaller here!) on the way to the Center, and had my first experience in a French classroom. First was my history class, "La grande mutation francaise," meaning the great French change. It's French history post WWII. So far, pretty interesting stuff. The teacher is this sort of youngish guy, and might I add veerrryy cute, and he seems nice but clearly takes his subject very seriously. We're studying all the political, economic, and social factors of the post WWII period, so yes, it's intense.

My class was from 9-11, and afterwards I got on the Internet for awhile and then a group of us ventured out for lunch. We had intended to go buy bread, cheese, and fruit at Les Halles (the indoor market) but apparently it is closed on Mondays. Dommage. So instead we grabbed some paninis from a place nearby. Mine was tomato and mozzarella, so I was definitely a happy camper. A few of the students went to the supermarket, but my friend Emily and I returned to the Center to eat. And after lunch and a healthy dose of exchanging Youtube videos with everyone, it was time for my other class, French phonetics. This was a lot more fun than the other class, partly because the subject matter isn't as depressing and the instructor is a tall, graceful actress who clearly has a passion for the language. So it's a lot of imitating her and getting the right sounds to come out of our mouths, with the right intonation, the right nuances, etc. It's tough work! But rewarding and informative...and it's quite funny to have everyone in the class spitting away as we try to make the French R sound, which is in the back of the throat like the Hebrew word "chutzpah."

After that I spent a few minutes talking with all the students, and then headed home. I got here around 5:30 and took a quick nap, then got up to make dinner with Corine. Our usual fare: soup, salad, bread, fruit, and fromage blanc, but tonight the main dish was something I'd never tried before: rabbit. Yup, I ate it. It was slightly gamier than chicken, but pretty mild. She mad a spicy, savory sauce from "soy cream," which I think is a little like soy milk but thicker and used in making sauces and broths over here. Apparently it's better for you. But we ate our dinner in front of the TV tonight (as we did last night, when we watched Sister Act 2), which is par for the course when it's so windy out. When it's nice we eat out on the patio. But tonight's show was a French-dubbed episode of "Murder She Wrote." Very cute. And after watching it and absorbing at least some of what was going on, I did my usual chore of washing the dishes, and now here I am.

I'm really beginning to love this town. It's very easy to walk around in, and somehow just about any road will lead you somewhere familiar. It's so small you could probably explore every single street in just a day, and cross it in only 20 minutes. And it's very picturesque. And pretty quiet, at the moment. All that will change in July when the theatre festival begins--then there will be something going on every hour of every day!

Tomorrow I don't have class till 11am, so I'm going to "faire la grosse matinee" a little, which means to sleep in. Looking forward to it!

Love and miss you all,
Natalie

Dimanche

The town is so much quieter on Sunday. Still, it was a good day for exploring some museums. Some friends and I met up in the morning to check out Musee Calvet, the fine arts/archaeology museum on the west side. They let you take photos so we got some good ones of the weirder paintings and sculptures (expect those on Facebook, complete with captions). After that we discovered the joy that is Zorba, a kebab/sandwich stand on the main street, so not too far from school. Delicious. A kebab (which over here means lamb and vegetables in a huge pita pocket) and the orange I had in my purse made a lovely picnic in a nearby park.

After we had eaten, it was time to see the cathedral up by the Palais des Papes. And we had all been wanting to see the new Gerard Depardieu movie, La tete en friche (the head/mind in wasteland), so we went to a nearby movie theatre to take it in. Movie theatres are very different here, smaller rooms and very plush seats. They even had renaissance paintings on the walls. And no ads or previews. Though none of us understood the majority of what was said in the film, we got the gist of the plot and it was very entertaining and touching.

Once the movie was over we headed down to a smaller art museum, Musee Angladon, which unlike the ritzier Musee Calvet is in what used to be someone's home. That was a considerably shorter trip, which was good because at this point in the afternoon we were starting to get a little tuckered out. The Mistral, the crazy wind that blows here for days at a time, has finally arrived, and walking around in it all day can really wear you out.

Having said that, I think I'll take advantage of the quiet afternoon and catch a nap.

A tout a l'heure,
Natalie

Une Journee Avec Les Filles

Just now got back from being out and about all day (it's 8:30pm here). I left the house this morning around 10:30 to meet some friends at Les Halles, the big indoor gourmet market. There was supposed to be a food festival there this morning, but the square is under construction at the moment. Oh well. We enjoyed walking around Les Halles just the same. I had to resist buying this eclair that was calling my name ever so softly. Little tease.

After that we literally walked ALL DAY. It was fun though, and we sat down to enjoy various gardens and such now and then. We took the tour of Palais des Papes, got a little history/architecture lesson, then meandered about various streets and alleyways. One of the girls lives down the street from the Center, and I live just outside the city walls, but the other two are way out in the suburbs. Oddly enough, even though I'm not the closest to the middle of town, I seemed to lead the way in our little walks. My internal compass is coming in handy here. But we explored the whole west side of the city, passed through Place Crillon and out to the river. On our way we encountered a gay pride parade--very fun, lots of costumes and dance music. With a thumping techno beat to accompany us we made our way across the bridge to the island, Berthalasse, where we sat on the grassy banks and chatted away for some time. We had long since switched to English. We figured one day out of the week wasn't that bad, and it helps us get to know each other's real personalities because in French our vocabularies are still limited enough to hide this insight.

Around 5pm we headed back across the river via the ferry and went to the touristy Place de l'Horloge for dinner. There we were met yet again by the gay pride parade! Having as much fun as they were several hours ago, which must have been exhausting. With this backdrop we sat down for dinner at Le Lutrin, a cafe a little removed from the square. Dinner was sauteed eggplant, beef stew, and caramel and chocolate mousse for dessert. This was delicious, of course, and much richer fare than my host mom, Corine, normally prepares. Don't get me wrong, I love Corine's lean cooking, but it was a nice change of pace. Usually dinner chez Corine consists of a small salad of fresh veggies, cheese, and an olive oil/soy sauce dressing, some kind of soup, a bowl of fruit, a main dish which usually involves rice, and for dessert some fromage blanc (which is a little bit like plain yogurt) mixed with sugar and lemon juice complemented by fruit, preserves, coulis, or what have you. Very light and fresh with lots of raw fruit and vegetables, since she's lactose intolerant and allergic to gluten. I really like it. Plus I get to help prepare it, and thus absorb some French kitchen wisdom.

All in all, it's been a really good but really busy day. The girls (which includes Caitlin, Gloria, and Emily) and I happened to discuss possible weekend trips. We're thinking of doing day trips to Marseille, possibly Fontaine de Vaucluse, or other cities in Provence. It's all up in the air right now but I'm glad to have already made friends who I can travel with. It'll make everything a lot easier, I think.

Missing everyone back home,
Natalie

Petites Explorations

Salut tout le monde!

Today was pretty relaxed...I intended to get up and go to Les Halles, the huge indoor market in the city that's only open from 7am-1pm, but I overslept a little (jet lag still refuses to let go) and ended up leaving the house around noon. By then I figured some of my classmates were gathering at the Center and ready for lunch, so I decided to leave Les Halles for another day and join them. We went to the biggest and most tourist-y square in the city, Place de l'Horloge (Clock) for a bite to eat. We pretty much stuck out as Americans...we're still learning how everything works and how to blend in. Give it a few weeks and we'll have it down, I think. But we stuck to mostly sandwiches, croque monsieur, and quiches for lunch. That's the way to go for lunch, very inexpensive. After that we wandered around the more "chic" part of the city, and then into new territory. Just quaint street after quaint little street with cafes, shops, bars, etc. etc. We ended up looping back up to the main street and bumping into some more classmates, and then as we walked down the street we spotted a sale at Jennyfer (which is a little like Forever 21) and couldn't resist, being that we were all girls with only one guy in the group. So we did a little shopping. Very good deals, very cute clothes.

Two friends and I broke out of the group to wander towards Palais des Papes, but ended up not having enough time to go through the museum before one of the girls had to be home. So instead we followed a twisty path (well in France, most streets are pretty twisty) through this ravine-type deal and ended up in a little orchard where we could sit in the shade for a minute. Then back off to the Center to hang out with the others for a bit in the big library on the top floor of the building, which is quickly becoming a second home.

So once the Center closed for the day I wandered homewards. I think there's a bunch of schools on my way home because I always see students waiting for the bus, etc. But once you're off the main street it's pretty peaceful. I took some photos of my walk to and from the Center so those will be on Facebook soon, and maybe even some on here.

That's all for now, I think.

Au revoir!
Nat

Le Premier Jour

What a day!

I started off the morning by sleeping through my alarm and waking up an hour before I had to be at the Center. So between getting ready and having to walk 20 minutes or so, there was no time for breakfast. Whoops. But I remembered the way to the Center from my walk last night and got there with no trouble.

All the students have arrived except one, who we expect tomorrow. There are 14 of us, 12 girls and 2 guys. I didn't expect it to be so few! But it's a good group. Everyone is good-humored and fun. I think I'm going to get close to quite a few of these kids--of course, when there's only 14, that's not hard.

Sylvie, the program director, went through all the orientation stuff, where she emphasized heavily how important it was to speak French among ourselves, even though we're all American and it's much easier to speak English; and then Giselle, the administrative assistant, talked to us about living in France. After that we took a quick break, and a few of the other students and I went to a nearby patisserie for croissants (breakfast for me!). We all came back and socialized for a bit, then it was off across town to lunch. Across the Rhone river from Avignon is an island, Berthalasse, so we took a ferry across to go to a restaurant called Le Bercail. Tomato salad, lamb chops, potatoes, and some divine mixture of vegetables in a savory marinara-type sauce. And ice cream, of course. Don't worry, I took a picture.

Then we began our tour of the city. Avignon (within the walls) is not a big city, and takes only about 20 minutes to walk from end to end. We saw all the main sights, like the Papal Palace, la Place de l'Horloge (the main square), and countless other picturesque quartiers, churches, boutiques, and gardens. After all this, around 4:30pm, we returned to the center to wrap things up, and then I was free to make my way home. Feeling a little hungry I stopped at the supermarket to pick up some things I could snack on the rest of the week, like oranges and yogurt. And now here I am.

Classes don't start till Monday. Tomorrow I think I'll just explore the city, figure out where things are. There are a few events in the city this weekend, but it will remain pretty quiet here until the international theatre festival starts in July. Better figure out the city now before it's flooded with les touristes.

Love and miss you all,
Natalie

Finally Here

The trip over went pretty smoothly; on the plane I sat next to a very nice older Israeli lady named Netty. We sort of hit it off, talking about world travels and that. Not a wink of sleep on the plane, as usual. We got into Paris around 6:30 am, disembarked, and rammed smack-dab into 6 planes-worth of a customs line. Took about an hour to get through. Hundreds of new arrivals and like 5 people working behind the desks. Verrrrry efficient. Not. Finally got through to baggage claim, which was a cinch for once! Then it was off to the train station...I got to the platform with a few minutes to kill. I felt lucky to have got through everything and made it to the train on time--I was cutting it close there for a while.

On the train I sat next to a nice Belgian woman, maybe 50 years old or so, and we made conversation. I understood about 90% of what she was saying to me, and she even complimented me on my French. I tried to sleep a little on the train but that was unsuccessful as well. Finally arrived in Avignon, sweaty, tired, hungry, but proud to have made the journey without any problems. I recognized Corine immediately from photos she had sent and we gathered my things and drove to her house. I'm only a couple blocks from the Rhone River, which is great. On the way there she pointed out various places and I recognized a bunch of them from our last visit. While the Belgian woman on the train definitely bolstered my confidence in my French prowess, for some reason I have a much harder time understanding Corine. But she gave me a tour of the house, which is very very small but adorable. My room is about the size of a dorm room with a desk, a huge window, a futon (here they're called 'cliq-claqs' because of the noise they make when you move them), and a rather large closet. The student who was here before me left me a nice note, a purse, and some sunscreen. I'm going to Facebook her later.

After Corine led me around and showed me the bathroom, my bedroom, the kitchen, how everything worked and what the quirks were, most of which I think I absorbed, I was pretty tuckered out. I crashed for a couple of hours, then got up to take a shower (an interesting episode involving one of those detachable shower things), get cleaned up and start organizing all my clothes. I'll take plenty of pictures and post them on Facebook at the end of the week. Corine is very practical and organized, she claims because she has trouble remembering where she puts things so she has to keep everything she needs in the right place. What chores I have will be pretty easy, mostly just cleaning up after myself, sweeping the upstairs (all tile=easy), and washing dishes after dinner. She said she really likes to cook because her dad and brother used to own a hotel-restaurant and her brother, the chef, taught her to cook. Apparently that's why she also likes having company. All in all, she seems really sweet and hopefully as I'm here longer I will be able to understand her better. I think my fatigue and how fast she talks are to blame.

Tonight is devoted to unpacking, preparing for orientation tomorrow, and possibly going for a walk around the city. Oh, and dinner. I have yet to eat anything other than a banana and a granola bar today. So I'm really looking forward to the dinner part. Get this--Corine is allergic to gluten, caffeine, and lactose! She can have a little of each thing, but our meals are looking to consist of mostly fruit, veggies, and protein. So you can guess I'll be eating plenty of bread at lunchtime!

Please email me/write me on Facebook! I miss everyone already. The few moments after I said my final goodbyes to my parents and walked into security at the Cincy airport, I realized I was utterly alone for perhaps the first time in my life. It was thrilling but terrifying. But I suppose travelers are never really alone, because there are always other travelers to talk to. I met quite a few people on the plane, in the customs line, even chatted with some Americans on the train. It seems the act of traveling can relax people; you can commiserate with and confide in strangers, and it doesn't feel weird to do so. Anyhow, back to unpacking. More updates to come!

Love,
Natalie