Internet is patchy here in Tours, so I can't regularly check things or update things; thus, the lack of blog update.
The arrival in France was a little harder than I originally thought it would be. We spent the first day in Paris, and upon arriving at the hotel, I discovered I wasn't allowed to check in for about 4 hours, so I had to leave my very heavy bags in the restaurant (?) of the hotel and walk aimlessly around Montparnasse (not that that's a bad thing) until check-in. All I wanted to do was to take a nap, but alas. I had to content myself with wandering around the Cimitiere de Montparnasse, where people like Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, and Samuel Beckett are buried. I got a cafe creme down the street from the hotel and celebrated the fact that there I was, sitting in PARIS.
I did feel lonely, though, and meeting everyone was exciting but also a let-down, as there are only 8 people on the trip altogether. We'll be meeting up with a few more students back in Paris who are studying for the year. Right now we're seven girls and only one boy...
The first night, we stayed in Paris overnight and had galettes (savory crepes) for dinner, with cider to drink (YUM). We all went to bed early as the journey had tired everyone out, especially me who didn't get a wink of sleep on the six-hour flight.
The next morning we were up early to catch a train from the Montparnasse Station to Tours, which is a small city in the Loire region of France, southwest of Paris. The ride only took an hour and at the end of the line were our host families, with whom we would be living for the next three and a half weeks while here in Tours. I was really, really nervous about meeting my host parents and apprehensive that we would get along, but j'ai beaucoup de la chance (I'm very lucky)!
They're a retired couple in their sixties, whose children are grown-up and don't live at home anymore. Their names are Marie-Jo and Serge, and being in their house is like living with grandparents who spoil me all the time. They've given me a bedroom with a large double bed and my own sink and shower, closet space, and then a shared toilet. My "petit apartement" is on its own floor so it's very private. They really leave me alone unless I approach them, which is perfect, and they're amazing cooks! The husband, Serge, cooks most nights and Marie-Jo makes the desserts. They're very healthy, rarely cook with butter and use margarine and olive oil instead (a far cry from Paula Dean I'm afraid!) We talk a lot, and with host parents and class every day, I think I end up speaking French about three-quarters of the time.
Classes are very intense, and after taking a written and oral test, I have been placed in an Intermediate class, which is fair by French standards (apparently). We have a variety of activities every day, including a regular grammar class, "atelier" which is like current events, "periode active" during which we discuss contemporary useful things like movie times etc, "phonetiques", "expression orale", and "labo" which is reading and speaking exercises. It's exhausting and with the exception of Wednesday and Friday, during which I have free afternoons, we have French classes from 9-5, with a lunch break. Whew. I hope I learn as much French as possible; this had better be worth it!
Getting to know the people in my group is a little difficult, as we are so small in number and we each live with a different host family. We're starting to warm up to each other, though, and I hope by the time this month in Tours is finished, we'll be much closer and ready to take on the big city together!
I really am enjoying French life so far. The food is great, naturally, and Central College has organized many excursions during the day on weekends, like visits to the many chateaux of the region and a wine-tasting which we'll be doing this evening. Although I'm partly familiar with the region already, it's really nice to be here for an extended period of time and to take my daily 20 minute walk to the Institut. I showed my host parents photos of my life back home last night after dinner, and they admired my new computer so much that I think it detracted from the pictures!
I hope you are all well back home, and I think I might be able to get some wireless internet at the house from now on, so maybe my updates will be more frequent and include more little anecdotes that are amusing. My only one so far is that I almost left my cell phone at the Institut last night, but realized thankfully and could run back to get it before it closed at 6:30!
Well it's time to drop off my computer before meeting the group to walk to the wine tasting at a cooking school, and then we have plans to go out for a nice dinner and perhaps some boissons! Keep the emails coming...
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