bonjour!: A day in Toulouse!

The snow we had on Tuesday didn't even last a full day! Around 2 or 3, there was no snow left on the ground -- only a little bit on the mountain tops. Tim thought we would see a bit of snow this weekend, but from what it looks like right now it'll most likely be rain.

On Wednesday we had our last excursion with Eric, we were kinda bummed about that. We spent the day in Toulouse and saw two different Cathedrals. I can't remember the names off hand, but they were both beautiful. They were both different from each other too. It seems like all of the Cathedrals we see have a lot in common, but there are differences that set them apart from one another. For example, one has Romanesque style; while another has Gothic or one has sculptures on the outside and another lacks sculptures. All in all, they are beautiful and it is amazing to learn about how they were built and why.

We then headed to lunch. THIS was an experience to say the least. We went to the cafeteria at the university and I think we went at prime time. We couldn't move!! There were so many people and the cafeteria was so poorly designed. There were just random food stations every where in this tiny area. I wanted one thing, but for some reason I wasn't allowed to get it. We made our way through though and had a cafeteria style lunch to say the least, haha.

From there, we said goodbye to Eric and we went our separate ways. Gerry had arranged for us to visit Airbus. Airbus is a leading aircraft manufacturer. This was soo cool! First off, we went to a room that was designed as a testing room. Here we saw numerous screens that showed different information. We saw the videos of the pilots testing out their newest addition, the A380. We were able to view the different tests needed and see the information that was collected. The one screen allowed us to see the speed of the plane at different times and the different gauges that the pilot uses. Apparently, we were viewing what an engineer would view whenever the plane is being tested. From there, we went to the last part of the assembly line of a plane. This was held in the second largest building in the world, the first largest in Europe. (and I can say I was in it! ) This was crazy! We saw 3 A380s getting the final touches. Some were getting engines put on, some were having different parts installed, etc. This was one of the most interesting things I have seen so far. Just so you know what we saw, the A380 is a double decker plane that can fit over 800 people if the company wants and the list price is $380 million. It was very interesting to see and the first person I thought of when we were there was Uncle Duke, haha!

After Airbus, we visited a museum. Here we met up with some students from Dickinson college that are studying in Toulouse. The musuem was a small museum that was filled with information on the Holocaust and how France was affected. There were many objects that were using during this time along with uniforms that were worn both my Nazi soldiers and the Jews. Unfortunately, everything was in French and it was hard to see what everything symbolized and we did not have a lot of time because our bus got stuck in traffic on the way there.

Our day didn't end after that! We headed over the Dickinson center for refreshments and snacks. We met with the students and discussed the basics about each other. We learned about their majors, how long they are here for, and why they are here. It was interesting to see how the two programs are set up differently. Unlike our program, they are here a year, live with a host family, take whatever classed they want in the French university's classroom, and must have fulfilled a minimum number of years of French before arriving. It was neat to see how the two programs are alike and different.

We then had the night to do whatever we wanted. We split up into groups and walked around Toulouse. This is the 4th largest city in France and it's a pretty interesting place. Owen, Leah, Shelly and I went to an Italian restaurant for dinner. It was really good! Most of the shopping places were closed, so we found a sit down creperie. They were delicious!!!! We then just hung around the center of Toulouse and met up with other members of our group. It was getting close to 10 so we headed to the train station. We saw some interesting things while walking there; let's just say we knew we were in a city, haha. We caught our bus at 10:45 and headed back home. We did not get back until 1am and we were all pretty exhausted!

On Thursday we watched a really good video. It was called Life is Beautiful. It's about a concentration camp and the father trying to make it seem like a game for his child. It was so sad, but so good at the same time.

This weekend is going to be pretty low-key. I'm going to try and get some papers done so they are out of the way before we leave for Paris. Speaking of Paris, we leave this week! I'm pretty excited!!! We've already been here a month and it's already going soo fast!!!

Also, thank you to everyone for all of the cards:) I appreciate getting them and they make my day :)

I'll end with some pictures from my day in Toulouse!

The first Cathedral.