Au revoir

Fin

Everything around me is wrapping up, yet it doesn't feel like it at all. I'm down to 11 days left here and to me it feels like I have a month left. It will feel really strange to try and pick up where my real life left off, but after 4 months I am definitely ready for it. Class has dragged on bigtime lately, but the free time has been more fun this last month than really any other point of my trip. I'm certainly not feeling the same as I was when I came here and almost everything has changed for the better. I feel complete and good about it all and plan on taking my enhanced adventurousness with me as long as I can.

I have to wrap up finals and pack up and be back to my good life in the States!

Pictures from Spring Break

Katherine lent me her camera so I can finally put some pictures up from it (remember to copy and paste if it doesn't give the blue hyperlink!)

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=37688208&l=f1b0f&id=16804725 *Belgium and Germany*

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2236013&l=cd06c&id=16804725 *Strasbourg and Annecy*

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2236012&l=051dc&id=16804725 *Prague*

Dans le sud de france

I remembered why I wanted to be in France in the first place over this weekend. I met Katherine and her parents down in Avignon, close to the Mediterrean and full of vineyards. The area, Provence, has 300 + days of sunshine a year, and the people's attitudes reflect it. We stayed in a B&B with a private terrace overlooking vineyards and a village. The first day I was there everything was closed for some holiday (surprised?!) so we laid out by the pool sampling wines and relaxing. We ate at one of the best restaurants I have ever been to in my life the next night. Katherine and I made our way all the way up north of Paris in about 5 hours on a TGV the next day and we stayed in the Champagne region. We explored the G.H. Mumms Champagne Caves, and today she's on her way back to the US.
In a way, I'm definitely ready to have a home again. The other side of it is that I will always have a home to be in, and this quick 4 months is a great amount of time to take everything in. There is a reason this is the most visited country in the world, everytime I go somewhere new I come back impressed. It's in the final 3 weeks now, and I actually have to quit daydreaming of the south and get through my boatloads of class with finals yet to come.

French National Laborday

So Thursday is France's big day off, where they close everything to honor their hard work...No? Okay, they close everything for convenience sake. We are all getting a kick out of "French National Laborday" because the way things run on a Monday through Friday here are similar to the feeling of a late Sunday evening in America. They have the lowest amount of hours for any industrialized nation at 35 per week, and take around 5-6 weeks of vacation a year. So tomorrow should be a nice day off it would seem, but everyone (including me) is dreading it. It's going to be cold & rainy and nothing is open! It's like Sundays here, where if the weather isn't good you just hull up and pass the time. Last Sunday evening I was about ready to just go to sleep when I realized I still had about 2 hours before the sunset. Tomorrow, who knows, maybe I will count how many times I can bounce a ball without losing control of it.

I am still here!

Okay, I have made it back from Spring Break and it was exactly what I had expected, and that's going into it with high expectations. I met Katherine in Brugge, Belgium for her birthday weekend, and then made my way to Brussels. I would've probably traded away the rest of my trip to be in Kansas for the Brussels part of the trip because KU won the national championship...Still does not seem real to me over here, but needless to say I am pretty bummed about missing out on it.
I met up with Owen and we explored Germany (Dusseldorf, Cologne, Munich). We flew to Prague and stayed in the ultimate youth hostel, it seemed like I could live there. They had the greatest people and breakfasts, and the city itself is like nothing I have ever seen. It's certainly Eastern Europe, and it felt good to see something so different.
One of my favorite towns was Strasbourg, France, right next to Germany. It has all the structure and perfection that Germany carries but with the beauty and charm of a French village. To be honest, the streets were stone silent at night but at that point of the trip it was great to be in such a peaceful town. We stumbled across a great park and climbed a cathedral to the top to overlook everything. That was sort of a theme for Owen & my trip, we climbed everything: a gigantic cathedral in Cologne, a couple giant hills in Prague overlooking the city, and then two mountains in the Alps.
I finished the trip in the Alps, probably one of the neatest places I've ever been. Katherine, Owen, and I hiked around and explored. We wanted to paraglide but the potentially bad weather and cost kept us away, at least until the next time I get to the Alps.


And now I am back...in Angers...again. I guess I am settling back into it but I have probably hit one of the hardest parts of the trip. It feels like I should be finished with traveling and I really just need a dose of my own things. Instead, I remain at the whim of the buses and being treated like a high schooler as I sit through countless hours of French classes. I still have 6 weeks, so I am staying active, social and as busy as I can.

Ireland Pics

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2222302&l=b2e51&id=16804725

Ireland

I'm finally back from my Ireland excursion and somewhat settled in again. I must say it was one of my favorite places I have ever been in my life. Katherine and I stayed in Cork City down south and got to stay in a nice bed and breakfast the whole time. The room reminded me of the "Red Room" at my (former) house in the Ozarks and each breakfast rivaled the Schaumburg Royales' that we ate every morning there. The owner's were an unlikely couple: A friendly old Irish man with a thick accent and his talkative wife with a dramatic sense about her (Bringing up how "treacherously laaaaaazy her kids were and cultural genocide in the first conversation). The house was on the top, and I mean the very top, of a gigantic hill overlooking the city.

We explored the city and found some very nice and helpful people along the way. The college there looked like a work of art and we later found out that people all over the world come there to master the art of brewing beer. We found some great restaurants around the town and a great Easter beer festival with a ton of microbrewers showing off their beer.

To finish up we stayed in Dublin (the popular Temple Bar area) and we toured the Guiness Factory. I thought it may be a little touristy but it turned out to be great, I had never been to a brewery that big. The city was pretty cool but didn't have half the charm of a city like Cork. It's funny because it is the biggest city in Ireland and it is about 1/4 the size of Kansas City as far as population goes. There was a lot going on and next weekend I start my nearly three weeks traveling so I definitely need to rest up and organize this week before I get ready.

Grenoble and Bruges

Let the vacation begin

I've just about made it to the day I have had circled on my calendar since I got here. This weekend I am going to Ireland with Katherine for 5 days. After that, I have a quick week of class and then in early April I start my two week Spring Break. I've been booking and planning like crazy when I can, and if it all goes to plan it should be great. Basically, it's looking like:

Bruges Belgium for Katherine's B-day and the Tour Of Flanders cycling race
Brussels Belgium by myself for 2 days
Cologne Germany with Owen
Prague for 3 days
A night in Munich
Strasbourg for 2 days
Down to Grenoble (capital of the Alps)
and back to Angers

Street Toughs

Ha so last night I walked into yet another new situation. In Angers, there are several groups of teenagers of slightly middle eastern descent (North Africans) who basically travel around in gangs. They grease their hair, move in really quick and jerky motions, yell at girls and hold down some areas not letting people into them.
I took the night bus and they all got on, trying to cheat the driver by sneaking on but he caught them. So they got on and decided to start spitting spit wads at everyone on the bus. They were going in people's hair and nobody did anything so I turned around and yelled 'Knock it OFF!'

This set em' off pretty well as they all started insulting me and spitting more at me. I just got up and moved seats to ignore them. One of them smacked my head right before getting off the bus and then ran off. They caught up to the bus at a stop light to taunt me some more and bang on the glass pounding on their chests.

It reminded me of that disturbing movie 'Kids' or 'City of God', just some bored messed up kids full of hate.

My advisor for this program has traveled France and she specifically said to us, 'Don' even talk to North Africans, especially you girls.' Pretty bold thing to say as an academic advisor, so obviously the stereotypes of them ring true in person. Nobody even tries to discipline them because they will all just rally around and protest it.

Kids in France...they need jobs. Nobody in high school works here, they just travel in packs to the McDo or go to the bars. There is either a profession or someone who does nothing. The kind of jobs we may work in high school and college seem below them, so they just don't do it.

Elementary School

As I go through this process of stripping down all that I know and rebuilding it I can't help but notice I am in 'elementary school mode' again. The other day there we got a nice, sunny, warm day and there was a slight air conditioning like draft in the computer lab. I got that overwhelming exciting feeling that school is almost out, it is almost summer. It wasn't just almost summer though, this was that sort of excitement you only get (often) when you are little. In class minutes later, I was drawing one of my deer to pass the time and I notice the table shaking a bit. I look left and notice Akihisa, my Japanese friend, shaking with laughter and his eyes were watering. I lost it...but when the teacher came over to see what was so funny she lost it too. It was classic, but I thought haven't I had this happen before? Mr. Pete's 6th grade class?

Everyone touts studying abroad as one of those 'magnificent wonderful amazing' (insert another overused adjective here) type experiences. The whole first month I sat there waiting for it to kick in. Okay this building is old and that one is pretty, but magnificent? It begun last weekend as I took a slow train to a nearby town to rendez-vous with Katherine. I was listening to a Neil young CD my friend made me and I was able to feel what everyone talks about. Finally, yesterday, as I had a long conversation with some friendly people from Venezuela and Vietnam that feeling came rushing in. As I sat in class comprehending everything like it was my own language and watching how quickly my brain is taking in the littlest details I realized I am living the life I imagined.

Sometimes I try to pose new interesting questions to people to switch up the "How's it going?" phrases that are too vague to get a good answer. The other day I brought up what is one of the best feelings you can think of quickly? I thought: That feeling when you have either had an idea or plan and it is in fruition, happening at that moment. Accompany that with having it be something you picture your life as in the most detailed of your imaginative sketches and there you have a very good feeling.

Right now, I am really enjoying myself here. Sure I am no longer looking at things in Angers with new eyes or trying to wrap my head around what people are saying on the bus next to me. I am in the groove I need to be in and it seems like I've laid the blueprints for adapting anywhere else I go to in my life and for now, and for now a little extra recess.

One month of French life down..

This weekend Katherine came and visited me. What is weird is that for whatever knowledge I have of living in a French world was knocked down over this weekend so that I may start again. Over two days I: Crashed my bike (totaling it) when I realized I was going down the wrong part of the road and attempted to get up a curb, accidentally ordered slices of raw beef for dinner, asked for the check and ended up with two beers (?) and collided with countless French natives on the sidewalks as the aimlessly wander about. Oh and then the bike was stolen the next morning.

The frustration I sometimes feel is beyond what I am used to because it's not even easy to just grab a tylenol for a headache over here. Everything is carefully plotted and, as expected, entirely different than the daily errands and routines I am used to. There are always going to be growing pains when adapting to something...I have adapted to my all-French classes so the daily street life is the next thing to get after.

Instead of getting upset that things are different I am deciding to just get quiet, get focused and start adapting even better than I previously thought I could. This week is a challenge because it's full of tests, nasty and drizzly weather and the financial challenge keeps widening with the weakening dollar. I am staying positive, meditating, and trying to embrace the culture instead of compare it as I did in the early phases of the trip.

Photo Album

http://ku.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2214836&l=9d84f&id=16804725

The best dinner yet..

I just finished a dinner with my host family that was easily the best yet. They had company over, a timid girl from next door so they were out to impress. They opened the night by giving Jun and I whiskey, but unfortunately for Jun he had never had it before. He took one sip and spent about five minutes reeling in agony before just finishing the rest out of politeness. He turned dark red and my host dad couldn't stop laughing. ''I asked you what you wanted, you said WHISKEY!''
So then they brought out the wine and the American politic talk and everything else you can imagine (big portions in America, movies only about money etc) and for once I was carrying a real conversation in French. My host Dad knows a few words in English and most of them are animals of some sort and they sort of appear from nowhere. We will be watching the news and it's a story on bees, there are several pictures of bees and he will mutter 'Bees.' Tonight he asked me a question while my mouth full and said, 'Hampster.'
After dinner they brought out Cointreau because it is made in France and I had inferred about it earlier. At this point Jun is swaying, silent and dark red. He very openly refuses the Cointreau but Mr. Palomba insists it is less strong than the whiskey. Jun takes a sip, reels in discomfort again and then Monsieur reads the label and says, ''Oh wait, it IS the same amount of alcohol as the whiskey.'' I thought Jun would fall asleep on the table but he somehow managed his way up the stairs. I would love to read Jun's diary on French and American culture at this point. He is probably praying for his departure date to arrive at this rate.

le weekend

This weekend I ventured off to a few quaint towns with the C.I.D.E.F. (International Students). We went to St. Malo which is an old fisherman town on the beach and after that we went to Mont St. Michel which is an Abbey and little village on an island. The trip was okay, at first they plopped us down into the town of St. Malo and it really just seemed like they wanted us to purchase something. I can do without a pink and white "St. Malo" airbrushed sweatshirt or dragon sword so my friend Josh, Lauren and I made our way to the beach for the whole time. Some of it was truly great. We stumbled upon an old swimming pool perched up on the beach and numerous little islands surrounding the town.
I think the best moment of the entire day came when we were all walking quietly looking at the rocks. I was looking for a heart shaped rock to add to the collection my brother and I have going for our Mom (Boulder, CO and the Virgin Islands). That was the most sincere moment of the day because the rest of it felt so contrived it was basically unenjoyable. Earlier I said, "Well this is a quaint town." Josh responds, "It is...and they know it is." I think that's a great way to sum it up. They turned a fantastic place into a shell of a fantastic place. As soon as you begin talking about the beauty of something you start "framing it" so that you are no longer taking it in but instead rationalizing it and trying to capture it. As for Mt. St Michel, a grand tower and town on and island almost have to be taken in by yourself to be truly enjoyed I think. Nonetheless it was very amazing to see and I have never witnessed anything like it.

What does Kansas have to compare to these ancient, ascetic places? Us Kansas kids asked that question as we were all marvelling at the castles and giant walls. Kansas is sort of like anything in the sense that if you had never seen anything like it before it is pretty amazing (except for Manhattan/Topeka/Wichita). How beautifully open is Kansas on the whole? How neat is it to witness nearly every weather phenomenon in the course of a year? It is conversely interesting to see a "new" place like Kansas in a strange comparison to Europe. The beauty of a place can vary greatly and I love to see the various versions. It is difficult not to compare the new things I find to what I know as familiar. I don't think I am necessarily going to be spoiled by the beauty of Europe when I return, instead I will be looking for it with my eyes open wide.


For Sunday I went jogging with my roommate Jun who is getting the hang of being here (he actually just came back from the wine caves and is full of slurred things to say!) and our communication has switched over to a form of French/English and telepathy. Well it is either telepathy or apathy from me I haven't decided! He is a nice guy to have around and he has made his own friends very quickly. My vintage velo is finally fixed up and ready to go and I feel like the cool kid in class who has a car before turning 16. It feels too easy to get around town not having to rely on the bus and I now that the bike is working it has been the best 50 Euros I have ever spent.
When I bought the bike the older gentleman insisted my host mom and I come in for drinks, snacks and conversation. It wasn't like purchasing a used item in America where it's a handshake, a quick monetary exchange and you're off. This was a process to be sure. Fortunately the minute the pedal broke my host mom called him back and he offered to come out on his day off to fix it! I am basically covered with a warranty on this bike during my stay because of the friendliness of the seller. He threw in a 12 euro lock as well.

This week I have a much better idea of what to expect out of classes and my schedule so I look forward to being alert and ready for them. I was caught off guard nearly all of last week because it was my first full load and I wasn't ready for classes taught ENTIRELY in French. It is tough because when I need to know the meaning of a word I can't just be told it in English, it usually entails some charades and confusion. Foreign language has the potential to be very frustrating so I am working overtime to keep from getting worked up. I have this obscure but clear visual of two sort of test tubes connected to my ears when I am in class. As soon as I get lost in a sentence or frustrated at all they begin to fill with blue liquid. If I get completely frustrated the liquid rises rapidly. So basically I have to keep my mind open and the tubes empty (or at the least keep it from rising) if I am going to learn anything. As soon as they fill up I stop taking things in.

Weekend excursion

Dream

At the point in the morning when you are just slightly aware you are awake I realized I was thinking in French this morning. What an encouraging way to begin the day because now I feel ready to take more risks with it. Yesterday we talked with a professional French handball player (yeah I didn't really know what it is either) at lunch and I hunkered down and ate muttering about two words. Today I feel ready to take on the next challenge: trying to get my broken phone repaired with the fast speaking French salesman.

ma petite amie

My Host Family

I really couldn't picture having a better host family. They are a couple of the most amusing people I have ever seen in real life. my host Dad talks about an inch from your face when he is excited about something and is actually half Italian half French. My host Mom squaks from the phone at all hours of the day. She talks so loud I always think something is seriously wrong and then see she's just discussing the day. The are animated to say the least.

Luckily the food is always good. It's all pretty French too like lamb, baguettes, soups, cheeses, etc. The other night they tried to serve me some silvery fish creature for an appetizer and I sort of pushed it away. My host Dad laughed and put up one finger, "Dernier fois!" (Last time!) When he asks if I am going out at night he just acts it out. He just points to me and then acts like he's suavely combing his hair and putting cologne on.

Just two days ago a new housemate moved in from Japan for me to babysit..er hang out with. I feel bad because the guy doesn't speak much English OR French at all and that's being polite about it. We have very caveman-esque conversations and I always see him wandering the lonely streets lost. The conversations can be such a headache I saw him walking around campus and I put a newspaper in front of my face. We have a three hour trip to Mt. St Michel this weekend and he wants to sit by me. I'm thinking of just buying a costume and mask and sitting in the back of the bus so he doesn't spot me.

premiere post

Finally, I am on an American keyboard and I am able to get some of my thoughts about the first two and a half weeks down. Luckily I would say about one day of growth here is the equivalent to one week of being on 'autopilot' in my daily routine in Lawrence. It's funny though because this feels so much like a vacation at times. I had a cup of coffee at a cafe and a pain au chocolate and felt like, "Ok well I've done that." I felt that vacation mindset that you want to do cultural things once or twice and that will do it, but I forget sometimes that these things will become my habits because I am actually living here. All the natives in Angers is on their 'autopilot' and are certainly not viewing everything with new eyes. I feel like E.T.

The first day was strange because I was left in my new room and my family left to go do errands while I just sat in there with no internet access and nothing to do but think about what was on the horizon. It was definitely a sense of panic..not being able to communicate or having a question that you don't know how to ask. I just sat in my room and listened to The Beatles probably for comfort because they've been around my whole life. Culture shock is definitely something else, but I feel even more sorry for someone coming from an Asian country into this setting. France is different but not that much more than America really.

The shock for me really just lies in seeing tons of dog poop on the sidewalk and watching old people ride bikes in the heart of a city carrying baguettes and groceries everywhere. Their are also very fashionable people here but that requires an asterisk* They are fashionable and especially would be in America but EVERYONE wears the same thing. Darker colors, pea-coats, scarves and the women wear some form of boot. So they're fashionable here but they are also clones.

Speaking French is the biggest high or low. After successfully doing something new with the language I feel confident and happy and ready to risk it again. There are way too many times though when I feel like I have it down and then I get reprimanded and have to basically just throw a conversation out the window because it goes nowhere. I had the bus driver tell me I was going the right direction only to take me in literally the farthest place from where I could go. Sometimes at the end of the day I want to just hide from my host family to avoid the chatter but they always find me, it's a small house. It is completely beneficial to practice speaking though and it's the only reason I am making strides to this point.