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