2009 in pictures*

So, needless to say, 2009 has been quite a year. It was filled with big moments, good as well as bad. Instead of focusing on the bitter moments, which are not lacking in '09, I decided to create a post with some of my favorite pictures from this year. (*note, I obvi don't have access to all my pictures, so I had to steal them from FB. Sorry)

2009
started of with some of my favorites. This is a picture from visiting Leila with Ginny in Fairfax in January. Yay best friends!


This spring was my last semester at the University of Maryland. Sadly, it was time to say Farewell to college life and college friends. But, we had a heck of a time doing it! Spring semester shenanigans consisted of: playing Hide and Seek in CSPAC, visiting President Mote's house, muumuu party, smoothie nights, roadtrip to Raleigh to see the girls play bball, family dinners, one last hurrah in the View, and (pictured here) swimming in the fountain on McKeldin. I love my Ellicott 8 Fam <3


Oh yeah, there was still school work. I was a student-teaching intern from Jan-May which had ups and downs. Plus, I juggled at least 2 more classes and an Honors Senior Thesis Project. Amy, Katlyn and I co-wrote 80 some pages about Financial Incentives that matter to future teachers. It felt great to be done with such a huge project! Woohoo!


Graduation! Graduating was a bittersweet event. But, what an accomplishment! I now have a Bachelor's Degree. Good thing I'm still putting off the real world. This pic is my 2 year roommate, Emily!


Then came SUMMER! My absolute favorite 3 months of every year. I got to spend one last summer at my favorite place ever: Camp Westview on the James! I became instant besties with my other support team members: Meredith, Daphne and Collin (or as we lovingly called each other: Courtney, Daphanondrea, and GUUUUUUURL). There were many good times at camp this year including countless youtube clips, many trips to Bdubs, and so many laughs. The last weekend was Daphne's birthday and she invited us out to her lake house. We spent the full day out on the water and then had a huge delicious bbq feast that night. It was so much fun! Here's a pic of Lingerfelt, Daphne and I on the tube :D


October brought about the biggest adventure as of yet. I moved across the pond to teach English to little French kids, my dream of 3 years at least. Things have been great so far and I'm lucky to have found a wonderful group of friends. Sure, they're mostly Americans, but what can I say, we're the best :) haha. This is from the Thanksgiving celebration at my house which was so much fun!


Well, Farewell to 2009, its highs and lows. I am already aware that 2010 will have its own challenges. Et's going to be another major transition year which includes buying a computer (wait, I thought I did that last year...), finding a *gulp* real job, finding an apartment, etc etc. But, 2010 definitely has potential and will hopefully bring more happiness :D

Holidaze

Ahhh... the sun finally came out on Christmas day and it was upper 50's, which was the only thing I really wanted on Christmas. Hooray. I had dinner with Oana and her boyfriend Dan that night. I got there just as they were beginning preparations, and because of her incompetent microwave/oven, we didn't really eat until 10. But, what a good dinner it was! We had Duck a l'orange, pissaladiere (Nicois specialty, kinda like a pizza only with caramelized onions), roasted potatoes (weren't ready until later) and eggnog. It was really delicious, and I had great company. Then, we ended by watching Elf.

Yesterday I did not do very much, but I did go to the Christmas markets and I finally bought myself the Nativity santons (figurines) that I've been wanting. There are 2 booths at the market dedicated to santons, and I wanted to get more, but they are expensive. I did end up buying a baby Jesus, Mary, Joseph, and the 3 wise men figurines, and they are hand painted! Definitely something that I will have for years to come, and therefore a good investment.

Today was another beautiful day and so I went for a walk/jog. Everyone in all of Nice was on the promenade today, it was so crowded! And, even when not exercising, the French saunter, and it gets on my nerves. I've been rushing to class for 4 years now, so I'm just conditioned to fast walking. Luckily, by sticking to the edge of the bike lane I could avoid most of the annnoyances. I speed-walked to the Colline, went up the steps and walked around a little (whew, those steps were the worst part), then I jogged from the Colline home. I was proud that I was able to run that far without having to stop because the rain has made me lethargic and I have not gotten any exercise in a while.

Also, while walking around, seeing the beautiful views, the first thing that came to my head was I feel like I haven't been living in Nice for the past 2-3 weeks. I haven't been to see the sunset/ see the beautiful parts of the city in a long time. It felt good to be back to walking around outside seeing the sun and the Med. The second thing to go through my head was how excited I will be to show my Dad all my favorite parts about Nice in person in February!!! I know that he's seen all my pictures and heard the stories, but he's coming to see it for himself and I'm psyched!!! :D

ps. I finished the last 3 episodes of Glee-- SO GOOD! And, I'm about to finish My Sister's Keeper, which is SO GOOD too. Then, I'll probs start some David Sedaris.

Bleak Midwinter

Merry Christmas Eve everyone!

There's nothing like the bazillionth day of rain to get you in the Christmas spirit (can you taste the sarcasm?). Yep, it is still absolutley miserable outside. I can't remember the last time I saw the sun. It has been raining non-stop since after the snow last friday. Before the snow, it was windy, cold and cloudy for days. Spring needs to get here, Pronto!

I started catsitting yesterday. Bootsey has warmed up to me a lot, but I don't think she's a lap-cat or very snuggly. Also, I'm now realizing that it's not the most comfortable of environments, living in someone else's house. I think I will try to split my time between, although Bootsey gets fed 2x per day. No exciting discoveries yet. I think my apt is generally warmer, and I had a hard time falling asleep and staying asleep because their window is on the first floor (rez-de-chaussee) and its so noisy. Oh, and I'm finally using an American QWERTY keyboard again, and it feels so foreign (har har).

Tomorrow's festivities include dinner with my one friend who will be around, Oana, and her boyfriend. She's making a wonderful menu of duck a l'orange, roasted potatoes, etc. I feel a bit intimidated, so I'm offering up some sugar cookies and maybe eggnog if it turns out alright. Then, we may convene to my apt to enjoy Love Actually or Elf, my personal favorite. Tonight, I'm baking(!!!) a quiche lorraine. Mmm.

There will be no Bah Humbug tomorrow, although I do quite wish I were at home celebrating a White Christmas. But, I acknowledge that this will merely be one lackluster Christmas among many spent with my family. I have already thought about people who are not as fortunate as I am, who never get to spend the holidays with their family. Next year, hopefully all will be back to the norm.

Merry Christmas, Ya'll!

Snow among the palms

Friday after school I invited several of my friends to come over as I tried to make crepes. We had so many toppings, and my crepe-making had somewhat of a learning curve. We were going to head out afterwards and all of the sudden we heard rain outside. I was surprised and opened the door to look. Only, it wasn't rain, it was SNOW! This is Nice, on the French Riviera, and its snowing. I was told it never snows here! So, at first it was really hard snow/sleet mixture which eventually turned into real, fluffy snow.

Mari Carmen and Sandra walked home in the snow, but Lauren and Tom's bus quit running, and Oana did not feel up to walking in the snow, so I had company for a sleepover! I was actually really happy because my roommate left on Thursday and I want to take advantage of my friends while they're still around. We watched Scrubs in English until around 2 and went to bed, it was lots of fun :) The next day I went out and there was only a little bit of ice on the sidewalk, but no other signs of the snow.
I do have to admit that I'm disappointed to be missing such an epic snow at home. I know snow sucks when you have to go somewhere, and my mom is probably still stuck at work, but so much snow is magical. And, I'm such an anti-winter person that the only time I tolerate the cold is if its snowing. The last time VA had such a snow (22") was in '96 and I wish I had been there for blizzard '09. Plus, it might be the first white Christmas in my 22 years. Oh well, I'm going to pretend to be snowed-in today- watch some TV, look at others' snow pics, and not go out in the cold.
Here's another picture for you, taken from Place Massena (the main square in Nice) where there are lights and decorations everywhere. Maybe later I can add some more pictures from the Christmas markets.

Story time, part deux (sans photos)

A few anecdotes from recent:

°First of all, I told Mme Letzter (the program director for Maryland-in-Nice when I was here last) about the incident with my computer. She is lending me an old laptop to use for a while. Ive already been calling it my dinosaur because it even has a floppy disc drive and it is really slow. I dont think Ill be able to watch TV on it, but at least I can check my email, etc. Also, it has no sensor pad for the mouse, so I had to go buy a wireless mouse instead of dealing with the horrible finger joystick thingy.

°Last night my TV was absolutely possessed. It wzs acting like it was resetting the channels, but it lasted for at least 2 hours. I would turn the TV off, it would turn back on. I would put it on digital, and it would switch back to fuzzy and set a timer for 5 minutes. It was very strange. I guess eventually it finally stopped because it's fine now.

°They showed a commercial for American Pie 5 which was going to be on TV later this week. I was really surprised because it showed topless women, and the commercial was on at like 6pm. I guess their view on nudity really is different in Europe.

°I was doing my lesson on replacing teachers with computers in which my students debate their side. As with all my lessons so far, I've had some pretty good reactions, and then some classes that just don't want to work. The other day I had a class that really didnt want to work. This one girl was writing her argument on the board and I couldn't help but laugh at her horrible grammar. She wrote "No, because with the teacher we understand more, and too for speak with you in the face. But, the computer not interesting for student just for distracting, game, msn, etc..." I really wanted to laugh out loud, but I think I held it in okay. And, I felt okay taking a picture of the board to laugh at it later because they were being annoying.

°I had a really nice weekend. The christmas markets are really nice. Im going to try to not spend all my money there... but then again I still dont have any grand Christmas plans save probably baking and playing with the Bootsey, who Im catsitting.

°Addition: I remember that I did not want to get up on Tuesday morning, and so between snoozes, I convinced myself that if I got up and got ready quickly, I could go get Starbucks. Too bad there are no starbucks in Nice... I was disappointed when I realized this upon actually waking up.

Méfiance

So this is the story about how I will have a hard time trusting anyone from now on.... This week with the grey weather and ants raiding my apt, I began to feel fed up with Nice. I'm just a bit bored, feeling like I've done all of this before. Then, a friend is upset because her boyfriend was cheating on her, and its just not a good week for believing in humanity.

Yesterday, while I was at school, I got a text from my roommate asking if I had a virus on my computer. I was a bit confused, thought maybe it was making noises. I got home an hour later and my roommate tells me that a man came to the door saying my computer had a virus and he had come to fix it. The man said "your blonde roommate" and "her white computer" so Hessina took him as legit. He left the apartment with my computer.

There was no problem with my computer, and so we were scammed. She described the guy to me, and I'm 90% sure it's this man who came to our apt twice while I was there. The first time, he asked if the apartment was to rent. I said no, that I'd be there until april, and he left. The second time he asked the same question-- which struck me as weird. Now, I know that he was following me; he knew the color of my laptop, he knew I was not at home. He knew that my roommate would practically give him my laptop.

The kicker is that we turned down theft insurance because we were poor and it was more expensive... so now I'm up the creek without a paddle. Its been a long year with technology with my cellphone getting stolen, my old laptop dying and a month and a half of picking out a new one. I know Im lucky to be safe and whatnot, but Im just bitter that I cant seem to catch a break. Hrmph.

Happy Thanksgiving

Or, with a french accent, appy sanksgeeveeng!

Today feels like Friday to me, as I had my Thanksgiving celebration yesterday on my normal day off. Today I had 2 classes and ate some leftovers for dinner. I didn't feel too bummed though, because yesterday was a blast.

The day started with some light cleaning and rearranging to welcome guests. Then, around 12:30 I started cooking. It was meant to be a potluck, but I supplied (some) turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, and green beans. I had bought 2 turkey thighs at the supermarket and found a recipe to braise them "until the meat falls off the bones." It actually wasn't too complicated. First, you brown the thighs in a pan, then you add celery and onions and cook them for a little longer. Next you transfer into a pot with about an inch of water or stock. I added a bouillon gel to give it a little more flavor. Let it simmer for an hour and a half, and it's pretty much done. I used the left over juices to reduce down and turn into gravy. I have to tell you I am pretty proud that I pulled off this dish (as well as mashed potatoes) because I'm not at all experienced in cooking!

Around 4 people started showing up and we started trying to get things ready around 5ish. Tom and Lauren brought some turkey breast to contribute, so Tom and I were bickering while deciding how to cook them. At one point I left the kitchen and heard a Boom! and a scream. When I went back in, the sweet potato pie that they were trying to warm on the burner (only stovetop, rememb?) had broken the dish. I intervened b/c I thought it was about to catch fire. But, half of the casserole was salvaged, and Sandra had brought two. It wouldn't have been Thanksgiving without the comical mishap, right?

We finally sat down around 6 to eat. We had [almost] all of the Thanksgiving fixins: Turkey (breast, braised thighs, roasted thigh), mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, sweet potato casserole, bread, dried cranberries, wine for those who partake, coke (america!) and water. As we sat down in my apartment, we reflected on how great it is to get together and share a Thanksgiving meal with friends.

As we were finishing eating, a few latecomers came, bringing our total of the evening to 16 people! With the table cleared, we made room for course number two: dessert! Let me tell you, these ladies were so impressive. We had homemade apple and pumpkin pie! It was delicious! Plus, many people had brought other forms of sweets so we had tons to go around.

The night waned and ended around 9pm. It was super successful and I'm very grateful to my friends who came to celebrate Thanksgiving with me.

Left to right: Moi, Julien*, Valerie, Hessina*, MariCarmen*, Jenny*, Marylene*, Margaux*, Tom. next row: Oana, Lauren, Kelly, Sandra, Shannon, Connor, and Emily.
*those celebrating their first Thanksgiving. Countries of origin: France, Spain, Colombia and England :)

Last, in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I wanted to list some of my blessings:
-a loving Family and friends
-the opportunity to be in France this year
-12 hour work weeks!
-my diploma
-America :)
and many other things I take for granted.

English Pronunciation

Yesterday during lunch, this one teacher, Nicolas, called me over to the computer to show me something. He teaches Italian, but may speak some English, I'm not really sure. Anyways, he showed me this poem which was written to show all the difficulties in English pronunciation. At first, he wanted Jenny (who is Columbian, and doesn't speak english) to try, but then had me read some of the lines. I thought I'd post it so you can appreciate what others go through to learn our language.

The Chaos

Excerpt taken from "The Chaos" by G. Noist Trenité

Dearest creature in creation,
Study English pronunciation.
I will teach you in my verse
Sounds like corpse, corps, horse, and worse.
I will keep you, Suzy, busy,
Make your head with heat grow dizzy.
Tear in eye, your dress will tear.
So shall I! Oh hear my prayer.

Just compare heart, beard, and heard,
Dies and diet, lord and word,
Sword and sward, retain and Britain.
(Mind the latter, how it's written.)
Now I surely will not plague you
With such words as plaque and ague.
But be careful how you speak:
Say break and steak, but bleak and streak;
Cloven, oven, how and low,
Script, receipt, show, poem, and toe.

Billet does not rhyme with ballet,
Bouquet, wallet, mallet, chalet.
Blood and flood are not like food,
Nor is mould like should and would.
Viscous, viscount, load and broad,
Toward, to forward, to reward.
And your pronunciation's OK
When you correctly say croquet,
Rounded, wounded, grieve and sieve,
Friend and fiend, alive and live.

Ivy, privy, famous; clamour
And enamour rhyme with hammer.
River, rival, tomb, bomb, comb,
Doll and roll and some and home.
Stranger does not rhyme with anger,
Neither does devour with clangour.
Souls but foul, haunt but aunt,
Font, front, wont, want, grand, and grant,
Shoes, goes, does. Now first say finger,
And then singer, ginger, linger,
Real, zeal, mauve, gauze, gouge and gauge,
Marriage, foliage, mirage, and age.

Finally, which rhymes with enough -
Though, through, plough, or dough, or cough?
Hiccough has the sound of cup.
My advice is to give up!!!

ps. This is just an excerpt, as I noted. The whole 274 line poem can be found here: http://www.spellingsociety.org/journals/j17/caos.php

Fashion!

Today I officially retired a nice lesson that I am proud of. Seeing as Paris is the capital of fashion and teenagers are always interested, I centered an English lesson around fashion. I am especially proud because my lesson was rather popular, and even went over well in my class today which was six 20 year old boys.

Lesson: Fashion

1. First, I would put the terms Fashion Icon and Fashion Victim on the board. I ask the students if they know what the terms mean, and then ask them to come up with a definition of each word.
Then, I use characteristics that I've found online to enhance the definition of Fashion victim: they wear unflattering trends, go "overboard" on trends, wear has-been trends, and wear age-inappropriate clothes. I kind of explain each of these (unflattering, overboard) and ask them for their own examples.

2. Then, I ask them for celebrities who fit these 2 descriptions, and write those in the respective columns. Then, I have pictures of some celebrities and ask them to help me categorize them. I was always amused, b/c they don't always have the same opinion. The celebs are: Britney Spears, Paris Hilton, The Beckhams (David and Victoria), Pete Wentz, Lady Gaga, Michelle Obama and Rihanna. I think I came up with a few more victims than icons, but whatevs.

3. Then, I ask them to help me write advice on How to Avoid Being a Fashion Victim. This didn't always go as planned, but was important b/c it made them invent in English.

4. Next, I ask them where they get ideas for fashion, and ask them to be specific. Magazines, brands, etc.

5. Lastly, I have them weigh the advantages and disadvantages of being a fashion model. And, I usually finish by asking them to state their opinon: "If a modeling job was offered to you tomorrow, would you take it?" For the most part, I would say 80% of my students said no. I wonder what their american counterparts would say? Would they be so strongly against it too?

There you go, that's my 55 minute lesson plan for fashion, just to give you an idea of what I do. Feel free to use/adapt this plan for yourselves (if you have the outlet).
ps. I always felt the need to be semi well-dressed when I taught this lesson, so my students wouldn't ask themselves why I'm trying to teach them about fashion (haha).

Storytime: now with illustrations!

Last night was a crazy night. It started with a puddle in the bathroom floor at 10pm and ended with a plumber asking me for 800E right then so he could come fix it in the morning. I panicked, but eventually he had to leave since I had nothing. Things got straightened out when I went to see the agency tomorrow and they should be here any minute to replace the hot water heater that blew its lid.



To make me feel better, I engaged in my favorite hobbies today; sunset watching and pet store window shopping. I will never get tired of beautiful sunsets, especially on the promenade.



Also, this pet store is about 2 blocks from my apt. I stop by almost daily and coo over the puppies. Something about this summer with my favorite maltze-poo Bailey and all the adorable little French doggies has converted me. I've always wanted a cat of my own, and I still do, but I think I might get a dog too. Plus, in France it's much more socially acceptable for people to have little dogs, which is not always the case in America. I'm also looking to start a fund called "Franny wants a puppy." I have barely enough money to feed myself, but with help from you I can buy and feed a puppy! Totally a worthy cause!

American Vibes

So, last night another assistant had a little Halloween costume party for those of us still in town. I was on the way there with Sandra and got the usual French guys on motorbikes yelling random things in English. This time took me a little by surprise though, as they yelled "Hello ladies... blah blah.... TEXAS!" (really? texas?!) Even on Halloween dressed in all black and wearing heavy makeup, I gave off American vibes.

This brings me to my point. Some of us, but ESPECIALLY me, give of a strictly American vibe. No French person has ever or probably will ever mistake me for French. And, usually I just blame it on the red hair, but that can't be all. So, In the next 6 months, I'll be trying to nail down all the different aspects that makes French people talk to us in English first.

I was given another clue last night. At the party, one of the French guys was talking to Sandra and said "Whyyyy do all the american girls wear ponytails in their hair?!" Aha. I had never really noticed, but I think women here rarely wear their hair up, and if it is, it's more than a ponytail.

Also, I'm told that smiling in general, while walking around, is rather American. Apparently in France we don't let people know we're happy. And, it can be hard to talk to people. Luckily, I think a lot of young french people are more open to making friends and talking to you, especially if you're english or american.

Oh, and I may have mentioned this before, but the French don't wear colors. Sandra and I were discussing, b/c we're both pale and look better when you pair colors with our skintones, but the French wear black, white, beige, black and more black. Not so many colors. Never pink or yellow or green or anything "loud". I can't wait to break out my red winter coat and pink scarf... hah.

Recap: American vibes are: smiling, ponytails, pale skin/red hair, wearing colors...

Toussaint

I've successfully completed 2 weeks of my teaching assistantship, and in true French fashion, I now have a week and a half of vacation for the Toussaint (All Saint's Day) holiday. Wonderful! The only problem is that I can't really travel because I have yet to get paid. Plus, my bank has yet to confirm my address so I haven't gotten my carte bleu yet.

In the spirit of doing free things, Sandra and I spent the day at the beach. It was a gorgeous day-- mid 70's, not too hot. Since it is fall, however, we did not get any color whatsoever. That's fine, a lovely day spent by the Mediterranean still ranks high on my awesome list. We might take a day trip later this week to Antibes or Villefranche.

My latest adventure in the kitchen was pasta with sausage (was supposed to be breakfast sausage; substitute was 2 sausages from toulouse... still v. good) eggplant, feta, and tomato sauce. It was really good! I got the idea to try fondue so I might experiment with that this week. It could be disastrous since I don't have a fondue pot, but we'll see. Then, Friday is Sandra's birthday so I think we'll either make mexican or eat at Poco Loco (amazing mex restaurant) this week.

The water is being bizarre in my 'flat.' Yesterday black, soot-like specks came out while I was showering. Gross! But now I have hardly any water pressure for the hot water. I used to have amazing water pressure! I think there is some sort of construction upstairs. But, now I think I'm going to have to call/go see my landlord and see what's going on. Dread.

p.s. I'm really glad I didn't get a studio. It's already a little lonely here without my roommie. She gets back on Saturday though, so I should enjoy the peace.

Mediterannean Sunsets

I finally have internet in my apartment! But, I did have to wait an hour in a laundromat b/c the flower shop (yep) where I had to go pick up the neufbox takes a 3 hour lunch. La France is so weird sometimes.

Anyways, Sunday night I went for a run on the prom right at sunset and it was gorgeous, so I went back on monday with my camera. So, now I'm here to entice you to come visit... I promise more beautiful sunsets like this one. Book your flights now :)

Previously on Franny's Belle Vie

Sorry for the disappearance from the blog; it was not for lack of desire. Hessina and I have moved into our little “appart” but have yet to get the internet box installed. France Telecom is supposed to come next Wednesday, but the sheet of paper they gave me also mentioned something about 3 weeks to get internet… I don’t really understand and will have to bring these things to school to get some of the English teachers to help me out.

Along the same lines, I opened my bank account last week. I had the pleasure of having a rather attractive banker who has actually visited Virginia and did an exchange in a school near Richmond. We chatted about Virginia and the difference in school systems between him spouting off banker French which I had no hope of understanding. Never in my 14000 lit classes did they teach me how to open a bank account, etc. But, from what I could understand the French banking system is strange (as is everything else). For example, I can only have upto 1600 Euros in my bank account at a time??? Je ne comprends pas. But alas, I will have to find more reasons to go to the bank and practice my French with William.

My job seems ideal so far. As I mentioned before, the teachers are really great. Marylene and I became fast friends and she invited me to her appart for dinner last Friday. She had 2 other English teachers (from different schools over as well as a friend from home, and I found out this is only her first year teaching. We had fajitas and her friend Seb did card tricks. Then, we went to see the Informant in French, which was just as confusing and complicated to the French as it was to me…..

But, I was talking about my job… The other teachers are super nice too and Simona took care of my schedule and has really taken me under her wing. She now signs her emails with “bisous”—French for “kisses” but in the French manner of 1 per cheek. The students like coming to work with me so far. For the most part I take 6-8 students from their normal class and hold ‘intensive conversation sessions’ with them. So far it hasn’t been so intensive, but later I will work on themes such as violence, fashion, addictions, etc. This is all to prepare them for their oral Bac (baccalaureate exam) at the end of the year. Ps. Every(both) times that I’ve come to France I can immediately do the French-speaking-English accent amazingly, so you’ll have to ask me when I come home.

One thing I have yet to catch up on is the gates. My school and all other schools are surrounded by gates that remain locked. Students and teachers function on a weekly schedule that is similar to American colleges as they show up when they have class and don’t show up otherwise. But, the gate remains locked except for between bells (as far as I can tell). So, in order to get in and leave each day I have to get the guardian to let me in and out. I think teachers have some sort of key/something to let themselves out, but their exit leads to the parking lot within the gate, so that doesn’t interest me. I hope that I’m not inconveniencing anyone by needing the door opened for me.

As not to lose reader interest, I will have to conclude for now. Oh, and I have fixed it so that you can leave comments now without signing up (thanks mark) so…
A bientot!

The Challenge

I have just finished reading and being inspired by the memoirs of Julia Child. I love the way she writes about food and France. But, alas I am an inexperienced chef. And, my kitchen is ill equipped. So, my challenge that I extend to you is to send me recipes. Keep in mind that my apt lacks both oven and microwave—we only have stovetop. So, it’s a twofold challenge: recipes, and modified for stovetop only. Voila.

Panne d'electricite

So, I was all excited because today was a good day....

I observed in some of my classes today, and I really like the school. The students seem pretty nice and interested. The first class had some very eager kids, which was fun. "Is France famous in America?" And they all wanted to know if I spoke French. In reality, it's hard for me to switch from hearing their french to speaking my native language. Some classes have to practice talking about a picture, describing, etc. for the oral exam at the end of the year. Others were doing a debate. Also, I met more of the teachers and they are all very nice.

In America, there's a definite movement for teaching to be taken as a "real profession," so you may see jeans on a rare casual friday. On the contrary, in France on of my "english team colleagues" wore jeans and a tank top today. So, I can use all the wardrobe that I have here, and I don't have to dress up for work. Awesome.

Also, the friend that I made in one of the young teachers yesterday- Marylene-- She texted me this morning and it started with "Hey gurl" which is just adorable. Plus, I'm going to have dinner at her place Friday night.

THEN...
I went to Giletta to pick up our keys, I was very excited to move in this afternoon. We picked up our keys right after school at 5. Then, we rode up to the villa, picked up all my luggage in one fell swoop (which I was very proud of) and we got back down around 7. Opened the door to our apartment, and there is NO ELECTRICITY. I'm 95% sure they should have already turned on the electricity; I even think it was on when we visited yesterday. So, I called Sandra and Maricarmen, some other assistant friends, and we are crashing chez elles tonight. Zut alors! Just when I got my own place.

Well, considering I'm a guest, I won't spend too much time on the internet.

Future post: adorable children I see on the tram (who make me want to steal them away!)

Come and knock on our door...

Cheesy, I know, but I'm just so excited to have found a place. I knew that none of the places from Friday or Saturday that we visited would be good enough for the price. Today, we went to the agency that usually deals with the Maryland in Nice program and asked them about a 2 room apartment. We went to see it at 5 and had signed the contract and everything by 7. It's very central- Boulevard Victor Hugo. We have our own entrance, as it's on the first floor. You walk into the common room, a small kitchen/dining is on the right. We have 2 couches that pull out (I think) and then Hessina and I share the bedroom. We each have our own bed, so it shouldn't be a big deal. Although we had to pay the agency fees, it still works out to be about the same as the other peoples' apartments and I think it's totally worth it. Plus, the pull out couches mean that anyone can come visit and have a free place to stay! Book your flights now!

Rewind, the first part of my day I went to present myself to my school. It's right off the tramway, a 10 minute walk. I met the secretary and then a few people from the English department. They are really nice already. One teacher that I met said that if she had known I'd been in a hostel, she would have put me up and then offered to go out to dinner later this week since I do not know many people in Nice yet. Then, I went around with another teacher, meeting more teachers, seeing the library, etc.

Tomorrow I will go observe some classes. Then, I hope to open a bank account and at 5 o'clock we move in!!! No more hostel!

ps. leave me some love people, I like to know who is reading my blog :)

Homeless

What a frustrating day... and just the beginning of a series of frustrating days, I'm sure.

All the assistants met up for dinner at the Relais de Jeunesse last night. Then, this morning we were all escorted to the Rectorat de Nice to have an orientation of sorts. First of all, there are 187 language assistants in the Nice region, but hardly any are actually placed in Nice, as I was. 111 of the assistants are English language from the US, England, Ireland, etc. etc. I've made friends of several american girls/english girls, and a spanish girl.

Anyways, we met up and sat in a room all morning while some people introduced themselves. Then, they proceeded to list all the hoops we will have to jump through in the first couple weeks to get everything we need including: bank account, carte de sejour, housing refund, health insurance/security. And, all of these are quite impossible without housing. Well, some other people have secured housing and I'm feeling desperate since I don't even have any leads. I will probably be living with one of the british girls, but I just want to have housing like yesterday. I was also stressed all day because I don't have a cellphone, which is essential to call landlords to see apts. Luckily, after everything I ran down to Jean Medecin and got a prepaid phone from Orange. The woman was clearly unhappy b/c they were supposed to close in 3 minutes, but I was desperate. So, yay cellphone. The afternoon portion was a little more relaxed as we talked about our actual role in the schools, it should be fun.

Emily left today, and the first day and a half I was a pretty good host, but today had to suck for her since I was gone all day. Sorry Em! We hope to look for housing tomorrow (although we don't have much as far as leads) and maybe not be homeless by this weekend. I'm hardly optimistic.

Prayers and good thoughts are appreciated. I knew this was going to be stressful at first, but that doesn't make it any easier.

Jetlagged Haze

Showered, napped, and ate-- now I can update my blog.

Loooong trip. Sat beside a sweet newlywed couple to Frankfurt. Couldn't sleep despite Benadryl. Landed in Frankfurt. Loooong line at passport check at 5am local/11pm est. Extremely tired for flight to Nice. 100+ lbs over 3 bags = really rough time getting on a bus etc. to get to hostel. I think my arms may fall off. Villa St. Exupery is a really nice hostel. Emily joins me tomorrow and we move hostels on wednesday. I slept, despite all advice not to; may have to take 2 benadryl tonight, but I needed the sleep. Am glad that was able to communicate in French without too much difficulty thus far. Reading about Julia Child keeps me optimistic; she adored France even more than I do.

Thought I would have more to say, but I am still rather foggy.
A plus mes amis!

Expatriation

Well, in 48 hours I will be boarding a plane headed for Frankfurt and then Nice where I will be for the next 8 months. I'm not even done packing yet, but I do have a place to stay for the first 3 nights.

I'm looking forward to: living by the Mediterranean again, poulet sandwiches, living my life, finding a cute apartment and hopefully roommates and friends, possible travels, seeing old friends all over Europe (Paris, Lyon, Italy), vacations

I'm anxious about: snobby french people, not finding apt, roommate, friends; monetary issues, missing friends, family; how teaching will go, etc.


I will try to keep stories on this blog so if my plans of recording my adventures in a diary fail (as they did last time), then I at least have you, dear internet.



"But here, upon this bank and shoal of time,/ We'd jump the life to come" Macbeth I, vii, 6-7