bonjour!

tomorrow's gonna come too soon!

2009-05-01T01:22:00.000-07:00

I CAN'T believe it's packing day! This week went just as fast as the whole trip! I'm really going to miss this place. We had our last days in Albi Wednesday and Thursday. Wednesday was ALL shopping -- I basically finished up my money:) haha Yesterday, we participated in a round table event at the Springfest in Albi. Afterwards, Owen and I got dinner and then we headed back to the festival to see some bands play. It was pretty interesting to see some French punk rock! haha

It was kinda sad to leave Albi. It was a nice little city with plenty to do. Oh & I got my last crepe -- cinnamon and sugar! It was sooo good!

This past week was a pretty busy one. We had our French final on Monday; surprisingly, I didn't do too bad! :) I also have been finishing up my website and economics paper for Tim. One thing I learned is that I hate trying to figure out the WTO! haha

On Tuesday, we took a little excursion! We first headed to Roquefort. Roquefort is one of France's famous cheeses. It's factory is located in a cave in one of the bluffs that was a result of collapsed rocks. The tour was really cool, there was a part with effects to show how the place came to be. The tour guide was very informative and we learned how Roquefort is produced and how it came to be. We missed our English tour, so we joined in on a French tour. The tour guide was very nice though and translated it for us! Oh and I already knew that I hated the cheese, so I only tried a VERY tiny piece! haha

After the tour, we went to Millau. This is the home of the largest suspension bridge. It was built less then 5 years ago and it is amazing! It is soo big!! We got some pictures at a view-point and also watched a video on the creation of it. Then we got to drive over it!! Owen tried to hold his breath for the whole ride over, buuut it was too long.

We then headed to a little medieval town; I can't remember the name off the top of my head! It was cute; it has some little shops with different things in them -- like glass blowers, jewlery makers, leather, etc. It was nice to just walk around in this old town. Oh & it is set up so odd. It's inside a town wall and then the buildings are scattered around so it was difficult for the enemies to attack.

It was a pretty nice last week here in Ambialet. Time goes so fast because we do so much! I'm excited to get home and see everyone, but I will miss Ambialet. I'm really glad I was able to participate in this. I really learned a lot.

Now it's time to pack!:( and I'm the WORST packer ever. I just hope my suitcase isn't over the limit! haha

it's raining and it's sunday.. what's new?!

2009-04-26T12:20:00.000-07:00

As the title mentions, it rains EVERY Sunday here!! We counted and we think we really only had one nice Sunday! However, I was able to get some work done because of the crappy weather!

We had our last Mass today; it was really nice. We sang On Eagle's Wings after Communion for the church; they seemed to really enjoy it. Pere Jean also said some nice words about us in French to the congregation (that Margaret translated, of course!). But, he said that we were a lovely group and they enjoyed our company and participation and he welcomed us back whenever! Everyone there is so welcoming and delighted to have us there.

After Mass, we took some photos as a group and with Peter and Margaret. It was sad because it seemed like the first of our goodbyes here in France. :( Hopefully, this week will unfold slowly and I'll be able to take in every last minute I have left!

Still having upload problems; pictures will come soon:)
I reached my limit on Picassa too, sooo I have to pay for it then I'll have that updated:)

Time to study French! booo:( haha

Ohh and HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM! <3

And we're down to a week!

2009-04-25T12:43:00.000-07:00

I can't believe this time next week I'll practically be home! This time has really flown by; I feel like I just wrote the 2 week blog! I'm really going to miss this place! We've all gotten to be like a big family here and we really feel apart of Ambialet!

This past week has been pretty much focused on school work. We had our last two French classes and we conclude that this Monday with our final -- kinda nervous for that! We also had our final paper and presentation for our Art class with Gerry and our paper for Sandrine due. I still have two more papers to go though! But hey, I can't complain.. we didn't have too much work all semester!

The weather is starting to look up! We had some pretty nice days the past couple of days. One day, Dan took Owen, Matt and I out to take pictures for the website we were creating. It was a really nice drive! We also saw sheep and cows being herded; I was so excited! I never thought I'd see that!

Speaking of seeing things for the first time, I saw my first shooting star!! Three to be exact!! On Thursday night, we had some fellow Albi students, along with other studying abroad students over for dinner. We had a nice dinner out on the terrace and the night continued with talking and jokes until about 11PM or so. The stars were amazing -- all of our guests loved them! There were 2 French students, 2 students from London, 1 from Turkey, and 3 from China. They were all very nice and we had a wonderful time!

We went to two castles yesterday! The first one was Brousse a la Chateau. It was amazing. We had lunch there and it was delicious. I wasn't a big cheese person before I came to France, but I think I'm really going to miss having a slice of good cheese with my meals! Then we took a tour of the castle. However, we were sidetracked with some people who were there to act out a jousting tournament. We took some pictures with the swords and then he challenged some people to joust him. Owen went first -- I video taped it with my camera! He was followed by Matt, Eric, and Ian. It was pretty amusing. Oh, and Gerry ended it all by being knighted! haha.

Wellll, I've been trying for the past twenty minutes to upload some pictures, but it won't work! I promise I'll post some tomorrow to procrastinate while I study French! :)

Au revoir! :)

only 2 weeks left!!!

2009-04-18T03:19:00.000-07:00

Wow, I can't believe we are down to 2 weeks -- this time has FLOWN by!

It's been nice here in Ambialet, we've had class and also had a lot of free time to ourselves. A couple of the students took a trip this weekend; some went to Barcelona and 2 went to Corsica. However, I decided to stay here and get some work done and enjoy Ambialet!

Two days ago, Tim took us on a little adventure! We saw two of the most beautiful towns in France -- Monesties & Najac. Monesties was pretty tiny and pretty unique. Najac was a bit bigger and had ruins of a chateau. We were able to go inside the chateau and we climbed the whole way to the tallest tower! It's so cool to say I've been in some pretty old castles!.. Oh and the trek up to the castle is FOREVER long! haha It was a nice day out though & we learned one thing especially -- the French LOVE their bocci! haha

We've had some oookay weather -- we get some sun and nice days, but there always seems to be at least an hour's worth of rain in there! Yesterday Owen and I took off for a little exploring -- we ended up hiking up this huge hill/mountain. It had a wonderful view and we were able to get some great photos of Ambialet; however, I won't be able to post them yet because I haven't uploaded them to my computer yet! haha But, on the way back we decided to make a couple different stops to see some things we've heard about -- like a 14th century stone cross that is still standing here today! We also chose to go the long way back, and just as we start up the hill it starts POURING! We made the best of it though and I think it made the walk up the hill go a little faster.

Last night we had some company for dinner! There were a group of 6 guys who came and played their horns for us. They were really good & it wasn't like any horn I've seen before. They just use their breathing capabilities to make the sounds, there are no valves or anything. It was really entertaining. Also, there are a lot of people who own homes in Ambialet, but they only come during vacations and summer. So, there is a couple down the road and he has a twin brother. They are actually the brothers that played the trumpet at Easter mass. They also joined us for dinner and we had a little fun with them afterwards! Since they are English, they pride themselves on their drinking. We challenged them to a couple drinking games! haha We decided to teach them flip cup and they didn't like it because they said there wasn't enough drinking involved. So they taught us one and it was basically a game of who could chug faster. Let me just say, that I'll stick to the American games! haha And I think I can speak for all of us! They had to leave after the game because they were waking up VERY early to head back home. They were a lot of fun and really nice people!

Other than hanging out and doing some work, I've been trying to see as much of Ambialet as possible. Owen and I just take random walks and see where we go. Everything is so beautiful and so serene. There are so many wonderful views, especially of the monastery!

We have a lot planned for the next 2 weeks and I think it'll be a great way to end it. We're going to start barbecuing outside and help plan the Springfest at the University in Albi! As for today, I'm going to enjoy some barbeque, do some homework and maybe explore Ambialet some:)

2009-04-15T12:51:00.000-07:00

The second trip to Paris was pretty fun. It seemed like we had more time to ourselves to do our own thing and that was fun! I actually did a lot of stuff in this last trip to Paris.

One of my favorite things was seeing Paris from above. We did this twice -- once by the Eiffel Tower & then from the top of the Arch de Triumph. Both of them were beautiful!! We only went up two floors of the Eiffel Tower though. We walked 668 steps though!! The elevator line was SOOO long & I thought the view was beautiful from the floor we were on. The Arch de Triumph also had an amazing view because we were able to see the Eiffel Tower in the distance. It was really interesting to pick out the buildings and places we've been. Also, the Arch was neat because all of the cars driving around it looked like matchbox cars. There are like no set lanes or anything, so it literally looks like a kid placed them there! haha

Eiffel Tower:)

From the top of the Arch de Triumph

We also visited La Defense. Gerry told us this is where the 20th century began. It was really different from the rest of Paris. There was a lot of modern art involved and the buildings were more like sky-scrapers here; they also had really cool designs. La Defense is home to the Grand Arch -- it's a new landmark and it has a quote on it about bringing all types of people together. Also, the artist we met during our previous visit had a lot of his sculptures here. It was really interesting to see them after meeting and talking with him.
Some of us girls at the Grand Arch

La Defense also had a HUGE mall! Like 3 or so floors and there were duplicates of stores. I left the people I was with because they were leaving and went to find Owen and Ian thinking the mall wouldn't be that big. I COULDN'T find them! After walking the mall for about an hour & TRYING to work a pay phone, I finally had to ask a cell phone store to put minutes on my cell phone. That was the solution & I met up with them after that!

Owen & I went to a couple different things that are worth mentioning. One thing was that we went to see the tomb of Napoleon. Legend has it that he is buried in numerous tombs because they were afraid of him escaping and I believe it after seeing the size of it!! Along with this museum, we walked around for a bit looking at different arms, armor, etc. from the different wars.

Owen saw signs all of the metro that talked about a Graffiti Exhibit. So, we looked it up and saw that it was in this one building that we kept passing. It was pretty neat; it was definitely a change from the museums we've been going to. Our favorite part was that the first piece we saw said "I love Philly."

We also had our share of museums with Gerry. One we went to was an exhibit on an art named Seraphine. It was also linked to a film that we went and watched. It won a ton of awards & told the story of her life. The downside of it, it was all in French! However, there wasn't much dialogue so it wasn't that hard to follow along. We also visited the Picasso museum. We had a wonderful tour guide there that walked us through the different stages in Picasso's life. It was so interesting to see how his style changed, but there were always similarities. We also went to an exhibition based on a famous cartoon. It was really interesting. Again, the cartoons were in French -- buuut the pictures def. told the story!:)

Obviously I did a lot more in Paris -- but this is basically the gist of it and the things that we saw! I feel like we did so much more, but I feel like I'm just writing and writing! haha I will definitely share my pictures and more stories will unfold:)

Joyeuses Pâques!!

2009-04-12T13:11:00.000-07:00

Joyeuses Pâques everyone!! -- Happy Easter:)

It's been kinda rainy and gloomy here in Ambialet, but that didn't stop us from having a good Easter!

I've been to Mass the past three days -- it was kind of interesting to see how the Easter services are here compared to in the US. Friday afternoon was the Stations of the Cross. This was pretty neat because we hiked up the hill and stopped at each station to say a little prayer. Also, a different person would carry the cross from station to station. After stations, we proceeded to the Church where veneration of the cross and Eucharist took place. The Easter Vigil service was nice. It started at 9:30 with a bonfire outside. We then made our way into the church by candlelight. There were trumpet players and guitarists -- it was a pretty service. The same with Easter Sunday, the trumpets and guitars were there and even though we don't really know what they are saying, you could tell it was the Easter atmosphere!

We had a big Easter feast here in Ambialet! It's 10:18 PM and dinner started at 4:30 and I'm STILL full!!! We started dinner with shrimp, deviled eggs and white wine. After that was the main course -- duck, green beans, another type of bean, corn pudding, mashed potatoes and a red wine. I was definitely full after that portion of the meal! haha Buuut we had more to come!! The salad was then brought out; I don't know if I mentioned this before or not, but they eat their salad after the main course. Following the salad was the traditional cheese and bread! And then TWO desserts!! -- raspberry tart and chocolate cake with ice cream!! It was a very very good meal and it was in good company! We all dressed up a little and had a good time! Gerry, Olga, and Daniel joined us for dinner!

I just talked to my family back home, it was nice to get to talk to everyone on Easter! I'm excited to get home and see them all, but I'm also trying to drag this time out because it's obviously a once in a lifetime experience! Buut it was really nice to talk to them on the holiday! They seem to miss me:) hahah

It's been pretty relaxing here, not much class since we have a 4 day weekend. But, I've been getting some work done so that has been good!

Oh & I'll update you tomorrow on how my recent trip to Paris went!

Happy Easter <3 Joyeuses Pâques

Rome!

2009-04-10T08:10:00.000-07:00

Okay, so it's time to hear about Rome. First off, I was pretty surprised with it. The sites and the history were beautiful, buut I couldn't believe how dirty it was. There was graffiti EVERYWHERE. Also, Rome had the most beggers, street vendors, etc. One night Owen and I were sitting at a pub outside and literally 6 or 7 people came up to use and tried to sell us stuff. They would NOT leave you alone. I got pretty frustrated by the end of the trip.

Our first day there we got tickets for a bus tour, like the one we did in London. Our ticket was good for two days. We rode it part of the way and decided to get off. We thought we were in the direction of the Spanish Steps, but we ended up following a group of people to the France vs. Italy rugby game. Italy had some crazy fans for being a crappy team!

After we realized we messed up with directions, we turned around and found the Spanish steps and some other sights!

The next day there was a huuge marathon in Rome. There were thousands and thousands of poeple running in both the 4k and 40k. We made our way to the Colosseum and that's where the race began and had a route. We saw some racers and it was pretty neat. We decided to go into the Colosseum that day -- it was soo cool! You can see the underground tunnels where the animals and fighters were kept. You can walk all around and see it from every view. It was pretty nice because it wasn't that crowded due to the race. With our Colosseum tickets we were able to get into the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. I thought we saw Palatine Hill, but we didn't:(... However, the Forum was really really interesting. There are just random remains of all different types of buildings. I loved the old pillars that are still standing. There are also many places that give you a good view of the Forum.

We also visited the Pantheon that day, I didn't expect what it was. It was just one big round room with the cool open window at the top. There were altars, pews, etc in there too!

The Trevi Fountain was my favorite thing in Rome I think! It was soo pretty. It was HUGE! and I didn't expect it to actually be built into a wall! It was also very very pretty at night.

Some other things we saw were the Capitoline Hill Museum, the Unknown Soldier's Tomb, different churches, etc. Capitoline was full of different works of art that I've learned about in school and it's neat to say that I remembered learning about that. The Unknown Soldier's tomb was really neat too. We could climb tons of steps and get a pretty good view.

One thing I fell in love with in Rome was Gelato!! It was sooo good; we searched all day to find this one really good place. We finally found it and it was definitely worth it. Mixing the flavors is my favorite!

On our last day in Rome, we visited the Vatican. It was huge!! The Pope returned to Rome on Monday, we visited Tuesday and he gave his speech on Wednesday -- the day we were leaving, sooo we missed out:( haha We went into St. Peter's Cathedral and looked all around. We saw Michelangelo's famous dome, along with many other famous pieces of art. We got a little lost here. We left the Cathedral thinking we could get to the Sistine Chapel. However, we didn't! So, we got back in the line for security because we thought we had to -- the map made it seem like it was right inside the square. So, we go back in and we end up going into the room with the tombs of the popes. This was interesting; Pope John Paul II's tomb was very nice and there were candles and flowers all around it; there were also people just kneeling and praying.

After we realized we were wrong, we decided to ask! We realized we had to walk a good 10 minutes to get to the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel. Soooo, we walked there and went in! There is a maze of museum to find the Chapel. So, while looking for it we went through the Raphael Rooms, Egyptian art, sculptures, tapestries, and many more! However, the Sistine Chapel was amazing! Pictures were not allowed, but I was able to snap one! The artwork was amazing! It was just full of scenes. After the Chapel, we headed back to the center of Rome. We walked there and it surprisingly didn't take too long ANNND we didn't get lost! haha

We walked around for a bit and decided to eat dinner out that night. We had gorgeous weather ALL break and all day we said we'd thought it'd rain. As soon as we sit down to eat, it starts to rain! Good thing we picked an indoor restaurant! It ended up hailing REALLY bad. However, when we were ready to go back outside - it stopped raining! It was a miracle! haha

We got some gelato for the last time and headed back to pack for our trip to Paris!

We enjoyed Rome for the most part, but it wasn't my favorite. I'm glad I went and saw it, but I'm not sure if i would go back and visit! That's basically the gist of my trip; there are obviously little stories in between that I'll most likely share at some point when I remember them:)

More on Paris soon:)

Spring has arrived!:) -- A little about my travels aroud England!

2009-04-06T10:02:00.001-07:00

Spring has arrived!!! The weather has been gorgeous!! I haven’t really checked the temperature, but it has to be in the 60’s. We all have been taking advantage of it and spending as much time as possible outside. Yesterday Owen and I went for a walk and before we knew, 3 hours had passed. It’s just so beautiful, both the weather and the scenery. When we returned we rounded up some other people and played a game of bocce! It was a good way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

I realized I never told you about our visit with Owen’s family, so I will do that before heading onto Rome. They were soo nice and soo welcoming. It was really nice to be able to meet them and it was also very nice for Owen to spend some time with them. Even though our time was short, I could tell that he was very happy for getting there.

We mostly stayed with his Aunt Carol and Uncle Graham. They did soo much for us! Everything from planning our days, getting train/bus tickets, having pizza ready for us as soon as we got off the train, and doing our laundry! I felt so bad and wanted to help, but they wouldn’t have it any other way. Unfortunately, his Aunt had to work so his Uncle took us around. Our first day there was spent visiting Silverstone & Oxford. Silverstone is a major racetrack in Europe. The Grand Prix is held there along with other events. We lucked out with our tour because the track was supposed to be closed that day. However, Owen’s uncle talked the lady into a tour because that was the only day we would make it. So, we went from no tour to being able to see a Force India car being tested. It was sooo loud and soo fast! This was really neat and it was probably Owen’s favorite thing we did! He found out that he could drive cars for around 90 euro or so, so he is definitely trying to do that. After Silverstone, we headed up to Oxford. This is a major university in England. It was absolutely gorgeous. There are about 20 some colleges within Oxford and they each have their own courtyard, chapel, buildings, dorm, etc. The different colleges is basically equivalent to the majors we choose. All of the buildings were so old and extravagant. It was really pretty.

Racetrack!

F1 car!

Oxford University -- one of the colleges

The next day we visited Strafford upon Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare. We took an open bus tour and saw where Shakespeare was born, where he lived, where he died, where his mother lived, where Anne Hathoway lived, where his plays were performed, etc. It was neat because most of the buildings were somewhat new in the town but then there were the famous buildings that were soo old looking! It was neat to see because now I can say I saw Shakespeare’s hometown:) Also, we got a full English breakfast that day! (At a French restaurant!) haha It was really good though. After Strafford, we headed to the Jaguar plant. We got a tour and saw how the SFR is made. It was pretty cool; they took you through every part of the process and we saw real cars being made. Owen loved that they incorporated cars into this trip!

My new car- duH!

Anne Hathoway's house

We then headed up to North Wales! Here we stayed the night with Owen’s Nan, she was so sweet! I met more of his family and they took us out to dinner. They were all so nice and so funny! We spent a good two or three hours at the restaurant just talking; it was nice. The next day, Owen and I headed to Chester for a few hours. It had a lot of shops and old Roman buildings like the Roman amphitheater. We got a little confused with the bus schedule here and had to run to one. While running, I wiped out and made a fool out of myself – hey we made the bus though! Haha

We went back to Owen’s aunts that night because our time there was coming to an end. We had some train troubles and broke down for an hour 2 stops away – ahhh! We were told “welcome to London!” haha Overall, it was a really nice trip around England. Owen was able to see his family and I was able to meet them. They were all so nice and so welcoming and we did A LOT with them!

Well, I’m going to go enjoy the good weather – enjoy the snow you might get tonight:)

DISNEYLAND:)

2009-04-01T13:35:00.000-07:00

Before you hear about Rome, you gotta hear about ... DISNEYLAND!

We had a day off in our schedule on Sunday & Owen and I decided to head to Disneyland in Paris! It was about an hour ride on metro & RER to get there. Owen was sooo excited; he was like a little boy on Christmas morning!

The park opened at 10 so we planned to get there right when it opened and that's what we did! We woke up early and headed out. We had a little trouble with the RER ride, but it all worked out good and after paying 25 euro for an RER ride we were at Disney! haha

Owen ran up to the park with a big smile on his face -- it was pretty cute. haha We loved our day at Disney though! It's a lot different but also very similar to the one in Florida. First off, there are only 2 parks -- Disneyland & Walt Disney Studios. Disneyland was pretty much like Magic Kingdom & Studios was like MGM. However, they were A LOT smaller. We did pretty much everything we wanted to in one day there. We got park hoppers and went back and forth.

It was a pretty nice day, but it was a little cold. We went to the Motorama Stunt Show & pretty much froze! haha I had seen it before in Disneyworld, but Owen hadn't. I figured he would love it, so we went! There was a good crowd there, we didn't have to wait too long in lines - but there were still lines. It wasn't too bad though.

Funny story about fast passes -- We got a fast pass for the Aerosmith Rock n' Rollercoaster and when we went to use it there was a little line. We were about a ride away and the ride broke down! Instead of waiting and unknown amount of time, we decided to leave the line & not ride that rollercoaster. We also got a fast pass for another ride, but didn't even use it. However, we were handed a fast pass for Tower and Terror and got RIGHT up! It was awesome! We rode a good bit of rides and saw a good bit of shows. Mostly everything was in both English and French. The one show Mickey spoke French and Donald Duck spoke English; it was funny. aha

We waited in line for a roller coaster at night & it was definitely worth it. It went very high and we saw all of Disney lit up. It was so pretty. However, they didn't have much at night like the fireworks and the parade.

We did see the Dreams come True parade during the day though. It was kinda short, but good. The characters were out & that's about the only time we saw them. They don't roam around like they do in Florida.

We opened and closed the park and had a good time. It was not really what we expected, but it was worth it. It was nice to say that we've been to Disney Paris:)

Adventures in London!

2009-03-30T13:33:00.000-07:00

Alright, it's time to tell you a little about London! London was so fun -- it was everything I expected, had like a movie-theme to it. I felt like I was in a movie! There were so many times that I walked across the bridge towards Big Ben and I just said, "Am I really here?!?" Our time was somewhat short in London, but we were able to get everything done and see a great deal!

The first day in London we just walked around and kind of explored. We came across many of the main attractions like Big Ben, the London Eye, Trafalgar's Square, Piccadilly's Circus, and some stores. We just walked around and explored this day and we did a lot of walking! London is kind of spread out, so there is a great deal of walking done.

I was soo excited for fish n' chips in London -- Owen talked them up a great deal. Consequently, our first day out in London was a Friday. Soo, I thought what better time to get fish n' chips than a Firday during Lent in London! We looked and looked for this meal. We came across one and decided to eat there. I was pretty impressed with it... at first. Then I saw they keep the scales on them under the breading --- ewwwww! I still ate them though because it's fish n' chips from London! We left and started exploring again and I felt sick - sooo sick. We ended up heading back to the apartment and ending our first day in London pretty early because of the much anticipated fish n' chips! However, we were able to get some much needed rest.

We decided to take a bus tour the next day. This was pretty interesting. We were able to go all over London in an open-top tour bus. Not going to lie, I always saw them on movies and wanted to do it. haha I was really excited, it was windy and cold up there, but I made Owen sit up there! Our tour guides were really interesting and very humorous. They showed us the major sites of London while informing us and making us laugh at the same time. A good thing about the tour was that you could get off and certain stops and catch a bus back whenever you wanted -- the buses stopped every 15 minutes. This was a really good way to see London; we were able to get acquainted with the city and learn how to get around. We stopped and walked around such things as Buckingham Palace, St. Jame's Park, St. Paul's Cathedral, London Bridge, Tower Bridge, and many others! Don't worry - I have TONS of pictures:) There were soo many people by Buckingham Palace it was crazy! However, the Queen was not in residence; the flag that represents her absence was flying. On the other hand, we were informed the Britney Spears, Michael Jackson and some others were currently staying in a hotel that we passed. I was pretty excited and thought every limo was one of theirs. haha We saw some night life in London that night -- pretty expensive!!

Oh, I also had fish and chips that day -- got sick again! It was a deal with our bus tour at Sherlock Holme's Pub. It was a neat little pub, but didn't go over well with me. I didn't get as sick, but a little bit. haha I realized that London's fish n' chips didn't go over well for me. Some good news though, Owen's family bought me some from their favorite place to eat and that worked out much better! Must be the downfall of London! haha

Our ticket was still good until noon the next day because it's vaild for 24 hours. We decided to do the Changing of the Guard tour. This was a walking tour and again, the tour guide was so nice and so funny. He took us to the spot where the guard change begins -- which is at the old residence of Princess Diana and her family. We saw the guards march out, get inspected and the band march out. Once they were ready to take off, we walked along with them but at a little faster pace to get to the spot where they came to. We were able to see them again, but it was hard to see them actually change positions because there were SOOOO many people there. I think all of London was there to see the changing of the guard. However, our tour guide took us to where Prince William and Prince Charles live now and we saw their guards change. We got a bit of a laugh out of it, the one guard went to the wrong side and got yelled at. haha It was a really good tour and was definitetly a good experience. It's a pretty big thing in London. Oh, Prince Charles and Prince William were also out of London:(

The crowd at the Changing of the Guard..

We took part in a St. Patrick's Day celebration on this day. Trafalfar's Square, where they hold a lot of events, was PACKED with people celebrating St. patricks' day. We were told that there is a bigger Irish population in London than there is in Ireland. There was a parade and a big celebration to celebrate this. There were St. Patty's Day bards and souveniers everywhere; I wanted a shirt, but they didn't have my size:/ Owen got a green balloon & a Guinness and he was set! We also took a stroll through Hyde Park on this day -- absolutely gorgeous. So full of life, but peaceful at the same time.

Our last day in London was short. We only had the morning to finish up and we knew saved the London Eye for this day! We got our ticket at the tourist center and didn't wait in any line! It was so neat. I think it's the largest ferris wheel in the world and each capsule thingy can hold 25 people. It took you above London and you can see everything. It was gorgeous; it was definitely a good way to end the London trip!

Oh & I got my picture for Pap!

Overall, I loved London! It was so pretty and full of life. I don't even know how to explain it. We had limited time, but I feel like we did pretty good. Well, that was the London trip in a nutshell!

Rome will be soon:)

spring break's over:(

2009-03-25T07:55:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile since I updated and I'm sorry! I was just too busy having fun on spring break:) aha Anyways, the internet wasn't always accessible & I just didn't really have the time to sit down and write a blog.

The two weeks went SOO fast, but I feel like I did and saw so much! I saw soo many things that I never thought I would see. Don't worry, I'm not going to bore you all at once; I will write random blogs describing the trip for ya. I'll just give a little preview right now.

Anyways, the trip started out with London -- loved it!! Some of the sights we saw there were Big Ben, the London Eye, 18 million dollar houses (Madonna has one), Hyde Park, Buckingham Palace, and many many more. London was so beautiful. It was so full of life and we had perfect weather, some days we didn't even wear a coat! One of my favorite things about London was ... ENGLISH LANGUAGE! haha I felt so much more comfortable there.

Owen's family was soo nice. They did soo much for us and it was nice to be able to meet them and for Owen to spend time with them. They planned out all of our adventures and we had a blast. We went to Silverstone, a race track where an F1 car was being tested, Oxford, Strafford Upon Avon(where Shakespeare was born and lived), and a Jaguar plant. It was a lot of fun.

From there we were off to Rome. Rome has great history and the sites we saw were beautiful. However, Rome wasn't my favorite. To me, it was kind of dirty and was FULL of graffiti. I felt like it just ruined the atmosphere. Also, there are soooo many people trying to sell you things and it just got annoying. Owen and I were sitting out at a pub one night and 5 guys came up to us trying to sell us flowers. The one wouldn't leave either, he was like "you bought beer you have money." It got kind of old and ruined the city to an extent. Our landlord of where we stayed was so nice. She spoke English very very well and was very helpful. She had maps all marked out for us upon arrival at midnight and was so happy to see us. She definitely helped to make Rome a memorable trip. Some sights in Rome were: The Vatican, Collesseum, the Forum, Capitaline Hill, Pantheon, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, and many many more!

I'll update later with some pictures and I'll add pictures to my picassa. I'll try and do it soon, but I just arrived in Paris today so I probably won't have that much free time!

Spring break, here I come:)

2009-03-12T09:13:00.000-07:00

Just finished packing!! I'm becoming a pro at the "under the weight limit" thing. haha. I hate packing though, especially because we're gone for a little over 3 weeks and the weather will probably change a good bit. Anyways, I packed & saved some room to buy some stuff:)

The bus will be here in a little over an hour & then we're off! Most of us are flying out tonight. First destination -- LONDON! I'm really excited; London always looked so neat in pictures. I can't wait to see it! and get my picture with Big Ben & my poster:) After a few days there, Owen and I will head up to his family's house. This will be fun, he says they are a lot like some of my family.. (Aunt Deb!) haha So I'm pretty excited. Annd then we head to Rome! It's going to be a blast, but the time will probably fly by:/

I'll try to update throughout spring break:)

oh how i love the french language.

2009-03-09T09:01:00.000-07:00

Not much has happened since I last updated. Saturday we went to a rugby game! Some of our group painted their faces and were the Albi fanatics of the game! haha Before the game, we were in Albi for a bit. We were in the supermarche (supermarket in French) and we came across some fellow English speakers. They were from London and we talked with them for a bit; it's nice to communicate with people we don't know in a familiar language, haha. But, when we were getting to say goodbye the one kid goes to Owen, "hey i remember you! You were the one kid yelling at the rugby match!" haha Needless to say, we have made our faces known in Albi.. and the rugby games! haha

On to the French language.. we had our first quiz/test today! Ahh! It's a pretty tough language. I either did okay or really bad. Let's hope for the best! It's such a tricky language and there are so many options for one word! Annnd my Spanish is hindering my ability again. Quick story on that! So, I thought I remembered how to say, "How do you say ___ in English?" in French and there was a word written on the board that I didn't know. Well, I confidently raised my hand and blurted out "Comment se dice ___ in anglias?" Sandra, our teacher, looked soo confused and every one started laughing. I was like guys I just tried it in French. Leah and Owen look at me and go .. "Lynds, you said it in Spanish!" haha I got all embarrassed and just said, "At least I tried!" haha Soo I quickly learned that I should have said, "Comment on dit.." haha Almost the same, but not really! There are many similarities, but MANY differences at the same time! I don't think I will ever confuse those two again!

Well, I'm working on a paper for my Pilgrimage class. It's due on Thursday and that's the day we leave for spring break so I'm trying to get it done today! Oh & I'm soo excited for London -- English is the language:):):)

a la karaokeee!!

2009-03-05T11:30:00.000-08:00

We found a new hobby in Albi.. karaoke!! Tuesday night Tim and Gerry took us to a local bar in Albi called L'Estabar. Here we met up with some Albi and Brens students. Everyone let loose and had some fun!! Of course, Owen and Ian started off the karaoke by singing "I Will Survive." They turned this song into a hardcore screaming session. Needless to say, everyone was entertained. And after their performance, I wasn't afraid to get up there and sing. haha We piled everyone into Tim's van around 12:30 AM and headed back to Ambialet. We had a really fun night and hope to do it again!! The Albi and Brens students also had a blast! I feel like we were able to socialize with them more and get to know them on a more personal level.

Before karaoke, we had a pretty busy day! First, we went to Cagnac de mines. This is a mining museum that used to be home to a mine. We got to wear hard hats and go on a little tour of a stimulated/fake mine. Quick story about that.. we were told we were going down 200 meters to visit the mine. We go into an elevator and it's all old and kinda scary. I started getting scared, haha. The elevator ride was very bumpy and the lights would go on and off. We finally reached our destination and I was like "wow that was crazy!" ...and then I found out, we didn't go anywhere. haha It was a stimulated elevator ride. Obviously, it would be too dangerous to go into a real mine. haha That was my blonde moment of the day!

After that, they took us to some old castle/ruins place. I completely forget the name because Tim didn't know much history about it. However, it was built in the 14th century and was the tallest building in the South of France until some building dominated it in Toulouse. This place was beautiful and had an amazing view of Albi. The tower was soo soo high and we climbed it!!! It was a little scary because it was a very narrow spiral staircase and there were a lot of dark parts. I feel like I conquered my fear of heights a bit and it was definitely worth the climb!

Next, we went to Notre Dame de la Derche. Here we met some Franciscans and they showed us around the church. It was very very pretty! One guy did all of the paintings and it took him about 17 years. It was so pretty. We also had the opportunity to climb the bell tower and play the bells. I forget the name of it, but it was the type that had a series of bells and you played them like a piano! It was a lot of fun! Then we got another view of Albi by walking around the top of the church. Again, it was gorgeous! The Fransicans then hosted us for dinner. We had a very good dinner of soup, chicken, green beans, salad, and dessert!! It was very very good!

Tuesday was a pretty busy day, but we had tons of fun!! Yesterday was a pretty laid back day and I caught up on some sleep! We had no class or anything, so it was a pretty good day for relaxing!

We made some soup tonight for tour de table! It was really good!! I like cooking here on Thursdays and learning different types of recipes. The stuff we make isn't very hard either, so I'm excited to bring the recipes back home for everyone to try:)

I hope the pictures are working out for everyone who wants to view them! I update that site quite a bit, so check back if you're interested:)

a very french weekend!

2009-03-02T12:26:00.000-08:00

Owen and I had the opportunity to spend a weekend with some of the students from Brens. Benjamin offered his apartment to us for the weekend. He picked us up in Ambialet Saturday afternoon and from there we ventured to Toulouse. He showed us around a bit and then we visited Geoffrey's work placement. This was a very big wine store and there were so many wines. My favorite part of the store was probably seeing the 16 liter wine bottles!! I can't believe someone buys those!! haha. We also tasted a few wines there and they were very good.

From there, we went to Benjamin's work placement. I really, really liked this place. It was a wine store, but also a restaurant. The restaurant is only open on certain days though. It was two levels and it was very relaxing and sociable. Many people come in there just to drink a glass of wine. It had a very modern style to it and I really liked it.

That night, Benjamin and Geoffrey showed us what they do on weekends. Of course, it consisted of drinking some wine! haha. So, we drank some wine and we met some of their other friends. They then took us to a discotech and it was a fun time! I thought it was crazy that we don't go out to the discotech until about 1am and it's open until 6am. Also, there were tons of older people there. And by older I mean people in their 40's and stuff; I was completely surprised! I would never catch my parents at something like that! haha

On Sunday, Geoffrey's family invited us over for a lunch. They were very very nice. His father and his brother spoke English VERY well; I was very impressed. I kind of feel bad that my French is so poor. His 13 year old sister spoke a little bit of English, but she said she is still learning. They cooked us a HUGE lunch. For the apperatif, we had muscles and a glass of sparkling wine. That was the first time Owen and I ate muscles and we really liked them! For our meal we had tomatoes and mozarella, pork and some type of potato. For dessert we had homemade cake and fruit salad. Not to mention, they had 3 different wines during the meal. Everything was very good! The family was very nice and welcoming. They showed us around their house and explained many of their traditions. Geoffrey's father also taught us French billiard. It was interesting; there are no pockets in the pool table and there are only 3 balls used. The que ball is hit and it must touch both of the other balls in one turn. It looks very difficult and you must be able to distinguish different ways to ricochet the ball. Owen and I were invited back whenever and they definitely want us to go back in April for some pork. They hang and dry their own pigs and they say it is very good that way.

We returned to Ambialet last night and finished up our French homework!! Overall, we had a very good weekend and got some good insight of life in French. And I must say, the lives we encountered were based around wine!

I'M FINALLY 21:)

2009-02-28T02:05:00.000-08:00

Weeellll, I'm not officially legal to drink in BOTH countries:) Yesterday was my birthday and I never ever thought that I'd be turning 21 in France!!

Yesterday was a pretty busy day, but it was a good day overall! We had class in the morning from 10-1 and it was our last class with Sandrine. We learned about French cooking and spices they use. We then used some spices to create Hypcras(i'm not sure if I spelled it right). But it's a wine with all of these spices, oranges, sugar, etc. and you let it sit for a week before you are able to drink it. After class, the Brens students started arriving and we worked on a presentation with our group. This was interesting because even though there was a language barrier, we were able to work together and create a good presentation on our vineyard that we visited. After all of the presenations, we had our wine tasting! We tasted about 5 different wines, some white, some rose, and some bubbly. It was fun! Everyone figured out that it was my birthday and they all sang to me and presented me with a bottle of wine. The Brens students thought it was funny that I was now able to drink at home.

After the wine tasting, more guests joined us and we had a dinner party. I told everyone that it was my birthday party and they just didn't know! haha The French families who took some students came and joined us. Also, the students from Albi attended. They brought me a French birthday cake!! I was so excited and it was so nice of them!! So yesterday I had TWO cakes because Owen and Leah also made me one! The dinner was nice and to just socialize with different types of people!

So, I didn't have the traditional 21st birthday celebration, but I had a very good birthday! It was interesting to celebrate it in France and just do the things that we did on my birthday. Oh & Owen got me a very cute bracelet and now I'm just patiently awaiting it's arrival in the mail along with my packages from Mom & Nan!!

Thanks for all of the birthday e-mails and cards! I loved them:)

A day of good weather & good wine!

2009-02-26T12:33:00.000-08:00

First off, I hope the link to the pictures worked & you are enjoying them!! Don't worry, I don't expect you to look at them all! haha

Today was an interesting day! We traveled to Brens, about 45minutes to an hour away. Here, we met 6 students who are studying to be in the wine business. First, let me talk about their campus. It is a technical school and there are 3 main divisions: social sciences, agriculture, and the wines. Students spend two years getting their degree there and they spend about 2 weeks in the classroom and then 2 weeks in a job placement and they repeat this throughout the remainder of the year. Compared to our 30some thousand a year, they pay around 5thousand, if that!! They couldn't believe our numbers!! Also, I was able to see one of the "dorm rooms." They are basically VERY tiny cabins that consist of a tiny kicthen/living room combined, a tiny bathroom and two tiny bedrooms. I couldn't believe it! I won't take the size of a room in St. Joan for granted!! haha

Anyways, we had lunch with the students from Brens and we were put into groups. Owen, Leah and I were paired with two very nice students. One spoke pretty good English, but the other struggled a bit. We were able to communicate pretty well though. After lunch they took us to visit a vineyard in the Gaillac region, this is a major wine region in France. The specific one we went to was called Sarrabelle. It is owned by two brothers who took it over in 2000 and they are the 8th generation to do so. They have about 80 acres of vines. It was neat to hear about the process and see some of the equipment used. We saw huge tanks that the wine is processed in, the grape smashing machine ha, and the barrels the wine is stored in until it's ready. It was pretty interesting. After the tour, we had a bit of a wine tasting. We tried about 6 or 7 wines. The students that took us were pros at this and we had NO idea what to do. First you have to smell the wine, then swish it around in your mouth like mouthwash so it reaches all of the pallets on your tounge & then you can spit it or swallow it. We mostly spit because we were trying a good bit of wines. I tasted some I like and some I don't like. haha I'm more of a white wine person I believe!

Tomorrow is another day with the Brens students and we have wine testing as a group here followed by a large dinner; how appropriate because it's my birthday tomorrow:) The big 2-1 and I"m going to be wine tasting! Who knows, maybe I'll drink it then so I celebrate the right way:) haha just kidding, mom!

Picture time!!

2009-02-25T04:49:00.000-08:00

I FINALLY took the time to figure out Picasa! It's this website through google where I can upload my pictures to and you will be able to view ALL of them very easily. It will save me a lot of time because I will not have to put them on my blog one by one annnnd you will be able to view all of my pictures & not a select few!! So, I hope this works! :) Don't worry, I'll still want to explain them all when I get home:)

So, here's the link! ..
http://picasaweb.google.com/oxlyndsayxo

I'm about to head to class soon, but I'll just update you real quick. It's GORGEOUS out today!! We had lunch at Nadine's, so we had to walk down and hike back up and we were sweating by the time we finished. We all have our windows open & it feels like spring in Ambialet!!

Okay, time for class!

Back at Ambialet

2009-02-22T08:41:00.000-08:00

Our first trip to Paris has come to an end and we are now back in Ambialet. I wasn't really ready to leave Paris because the time went so fast, but I was ready to come back and relax!! The trip to Paris consisted of never-ending days. We were constantly doing something. If I caught myself sitting down to relax I thought to myself, "what am I doing sitting inside?! I'm in Paris!!" Needless to say, it was nice to know that I would come back to Ambialet and have a nice relaxing weekend ahead of me. And that's exactly what this weekend has been!! I had actually gotten sick the last few days of Paris. This was probably due to lack of sleep and just being outside a lot. These past two days were good for me to recouperate and rest up!

So, I haven't written here a lot in the past week and I feel like there is still SO much to say about Paris. I'll do my best and fill you in on the rest of my Paris trip.

Monday morning was quite interesting. Owen had this brilliant idea of going to a flea market. Well, this was an experience! haha Owen, Eric, Matt, Ian, Leah and I got up early Monday morning and ventured to this open market. It was the last stop on the metro and wasn't a very nice part of Paris. We got to the market and we were impressed with what they had. There were tons of clothes, shoes, jewlery, etc. We were expecting antiques and what not. Leah and I got scarves for 5euro a piece and I got a pair of sunglasses. Owen, however, found himself bartering with the shady salesmen; haha. He got what he wanted though -- his fake Rolex! haha. The people there were very shady and Leah and I were a little scared. We left as soon as we were done with the open market. However, the metro station wasn't much better. There were more beggers and crazies in that metro stop that I had seen my whole Paris trip. We tried to get through there as soon as we could and came to the conclusion that we probably wouldn't return there, haha. Monday afternoon we traveled with the group to Montmarte. Here there is a beautiful church up a huge flight of stairs. The story is that a saint was matryed at the bottom of this hill and carried his head to the top. From this spot, we got a GORGEOUS view of Paris!! Around this area, there were tons of painters and little shops. It was really neat. Here is where I had my first real gelato! It was sooooooo good!!!

After the excursion part of the day, we were able to explore a bit. We walked around and came across the Red Light district in Paris. I never ever imagined that there was such a place like this. First off, Moulin Rouge was on this street and it was soo cool to see it. We went into the gift store and saw some of the costumes that the dancers wore; it was really neat. However, there were many provactive and dirty stores, clubs, buildings, etc. that lined tihs street. It was quite distrubing, but I guess it was better that we saw it during the day! haha

Tuesday was the day we traveled to Versailles. This place was AMAZING!! It was the place that King Louis XIV built because he didn't like the rustle and the bustle of the city of Paris. This place is SOO big. We were able to walk through the palace and see all of the different rooms including the king's chamber, the queen's chamber, the hall of mirrors, and many more. We also got a private tour that allowed us to go into the chapel and the king's apartment. It was so neat to see these old rooms and furniture. Most of the furniture, rugs, etc. were the originals that the king used. The gardens were probably the most amazing part. There are SO many! It would really take a few days to walk through them all. The day we visited was pretty cold and windy and nothing was in bloom yet. So, we made a decision to take a day on our next trip to Paris to visit the gardens; I'm pretty excited for that!

On Wednesday, we had the opportunity to visit the Rodin Museum. This museum consisted of many different types of sculptures. One of the famous works we focused on was The Thinker. We all had our chance to pose like the Thinker and get our picture taken. Also, the Gates of Hell was at this museum. This was interesting because it was full of such intricate detail and design. I think it's so crazy to see how one person can create this with the work of his hands.
From the Rodin Museum, we went to the workshop/home of Schlomo Salinger. He is a famous sculptor that has had a pretty interesting life. He is now in his 80's and is a Holocaust survivor. He ultimately survived five deaths during his life and now creates many works to reflect on his past. His works were amazing. He had many at his workshop that we visited and many had been named such names as "The Holocaust" and "The Survivor." He has been commissioned to do many works and many of his works are showcased at some museums. It was so touching to see how someone with such a difficult past was able to overcome the struggles and succeed in life. When we left, his wishes to us were to live a good life and to make the best of it. I realized that he is truly someone who appreciates life and all that goes with it.

Thursday was a free day for us!! We first woke up and headed to the Catacombs. This was actually about a 10 minute walk from where we stayed. However, the Catacombs consists of over 6 million bodies that were thrown undergrown when the cemetries were thought to be unsanitary and over-crowded. We walked down a long flight of stairs and walked a good bit underground through halls and halls of millions of skulls and bones. It was quite disturbing to say the least.

We also decided that we wanted to visit the Science Center in Paris. Well, we reached this building that we thought was the Science Center and we were pretty certain it was correct because of it's design. We later found out that it was the first building to be created from the outside-in I guess? It showed the tunnels and pipes on the outside and it was so interesting. ( I have pictures!) However ,when we got inside we realized that we went to a museum! Needless to say, we were all museumed out. But we stayed for about an hour or so to just check it out. We were pretty upset that we missed out on the science center. After that, Owen and I went off on our own and explored Paris. We walked for about 3 or so hours and it felt like we covered every corner of Paris. We re-visited many of the landmarks we had seen throughout the week. It was a very nice day out and it made the walk even that much better. We also ventured into many name brand stores like Gucci, Channel, and Ralph Lauren. I was so tempted to buy something, haha! We had a really good day just exploring the city and seeing everything at our own pace.

One night we decided to go to the Eiffel Tower to see if sparkle; every hour on the hour, the tower sparkles for ten minutes. This was gorgeous!!!!!! We were there for over an hour just admiring it and taking pictures. We had a lot of fun taking the jumping pictures in front of the tower. Owen almost lost his camera though! haha Apparently people will volunteer to take your picture and then just run off with your camera. This group of kids were begging to take our group picture and said it was their speciality. But, we weren't stupid and Owen practically hugged his camera and we kept telling them no until they left us alone. It was kinda humerous.

We met a good bit of Americans in Paris. Many people recognized we were from America because of Owen's Phillie's hat. It was nice to talk to them and see their outlook on Paris.

It was also really simple to get around in Paris. SO many people knew English making it easy for us. However, the last night we were there we were headed to the metro and this group of kids yelled stuff at us. One started following us then and we were pretty scared so we went into the closest restaurant. The waiter kept asking if we wanted seated and I tried explaining that we were being followed and we wanted to get away. Well, the waiter kept saying, "Ohhh, take your food away?" haha We eventually gave up, sat down for 10 minutes, and then just walked out without ordering.

We didn't really encounter too many scary situations in Paris. That story was pretty much the extent of it. To me, it seemed like there are so many more people walking around and being crazy in NYC. However, there are a lot more beggers in Paris. I noticed if you don't bother them, they won't bother you!

I really enjoyed my time in Paris and I can't wait to get back! I get to go up the Eiffel Tower when I return and I can't wait!!! We have about 2.5 weeks until spring break, so we will be travelling a lot this coming month.

This week we have a lot planned and it's my birthday soon! So, it should be a good week! I'm going to try and get the picture website up and I'll put the link up as soon as I do! I'll update later this week:)

Overall, the Paris trip was a blast!! I'm pretty glad we aren't there the whole semester because I would be broke!! haha.

J'adore paris:)

2009-02-15T12:01:00.000-08:00

Well, I haven't really written here for awhile and I feel like there is SO much to tell. Paris is simply amazing. There is so much to see and soo much to do. You can't really go anywhere without something interesting going on. We have been here about 4 days now and I feel like I have already seen SO much. I love it. I will try my best to share my experiences with you and talk about everything that I can.

Anyways, we are staying in a place called the FIAP. It's a pretty interesting place. We were told we would be with all types of students from across the world that are sharing the same experiences with us. Well, we were bombarded by 1st graders Wednesday night at dinner. But, the longer we were here, the more we realized that this place houses all types of people. So there is a variety of ages here, from 1st grade to about 60 years old. It's pretty interesting, haha. The place in general is pretty nice. There is a cafeteria where we eat breakfast and dinner and a bar that we can grab a drink from at night.

Thursday was a really interesting day. I think it was the best way to start out because we were able to see the Eiffel Tower, the thing that I couldn't wait to see! First off, we learned how to do the metro system. At first I was really nervous because it was complicated and I was a little wary. However, the more and more I ride it, the more and more comfortable I get. I actually like riding it -- it gets us to our desired location pretty quick! Thursday was a pretty busy day. We came to a bridge where we had a perfect view of the Eiffel Tower. It was nice because no one really goes to this spot. So we were able to get as many pictures as desired with a beautiful view of the river. Later on that day, we actually walked THROUGH the tower. This was sooo amazing. I NEVER thought I would be doing this in a million years. It's HUGE and so gorgeous. Owen and I are planning to go some night to see it all lit up.

From there, we went and saw the replica of the Statue of Liberty. This was neat because I have never even see OUR statue of liberty up close! haha I learned that the two statues are actually facing one another! We also went to this Opera house. We watched a video of Paris and how it came to be.

On Friday we ventured to the Louvre. This was AMAZING. It was soooooooooo big. It is the world's largest museum and it goes on for blocks and blocks. We actually only went through ONE portion of it and we were there for a good 3 or so hours. Here I saw the Mona Lisa and many other famous works. I saw many statues like the Woman of Victory, the no-armed lady and others. It was really neat. However, I was pretty sick of art after about 3 hours.

Yesterday was another museum day. It was called hte Musee d'Orsay. It was an old train station that was transformed into a museum. It was a huge transition fromt the Louvre. This was much smaller, but still consisted of so much. Since I'm not a big art person, I'm not really sure of everything I saw. However, I do know some of the painters from hearing about them in class and just hearing about them. It is very cool to say that I've seen many of these famous works.

Today was a pretty intersting day. We saw the St. Chappelle church. This is famous for it's stain glass windows. There was only one room open for viewing here, but the stain glass was gorgeous. It was full of stain glass and was so pretty. From there, we ventured over to Notre Dame. This was sooooooo big and soo pretty. We went to 11:30 mass. It was interesting. We went to the international mass, so there were different languages used. Most of it was in French in Latin, but there was one reading in English. It was interesting because the people came and went; it was kind of a tourist attraction and not mass. Also, as mass was going on people we making there way throughout the church. This was basically how the pilgrims did it in the middle ages. The congregation area was roped off and the tourists just made their way around.

Gerry took us to a very good restaurant today that served couscous. We tried four different meats. It was soo good. We had sausage, beef, lamb and chicken. It was soo good!

Shopping here is pretty good! There are stores and shops EVERYWHERE. I haven't really bought much, but I really want to! The other day, we ventured off and found the richy part of Paris I guess. Here there was Louis Vuitton, Dior, Aramani and many others. It was heaven! Too bad I couldn't get anything:( haha

We went out a couple times this weekend. Friday night was our night to go out. We heard of this club called Duplex. It was a four story club with different types of music on each floor. It was kind of pricey, but we said this was our only time to do that. We just wanted to experience the discoteques of Paris, haha. We had a pretty late night, but we were able to get a taxi and get back stuff! It was a really fun experience. Last night, we went to a smaller bar. We didn't really drink; we just went out to see the night life. This was a block of different types of bars and there were soo many people out. It was really interesting. There is so much life in Paris and I'm having a blast!

Yesterday was Valentine's day and I had a really good day! Owen surprised me with flowers and chocolate! I must say, I was VERY surprised! The flowers were sooooo pretty and I'm pretty upset that I have to part with them come Friday:( He also got me a pretty memorable card. It's basically 3-D and folds to stand like a box. When you open it up, there is the Paris skyline with the most important buildings. And the coolest thing is, I will have seen everything on that card by the end of this visit. We also had a very nice dinner together.

I guess this is all I'll say for now. I feel like there is SO much to say, I just don't know WHAT to say. haha But, I'm loving Paris! I was kind of nervous, but there was nothing to be nervous about really. It's so nice and there's so much going on.

I have been taking TONS and TOns of pictures, but I haven't really uploaded any. The internet sucks and I don't get on my computer a lot. I am going to try and figure out how to make a website where you guys can see all of my pictures without me having me to upload them here. I will try to update more often so they aren't so lengthy. That's all for now though:)

Bonjour from Paris!

2009-02-13T11:27:00.000-08:00

Just a quick little post to say that I arrived in Paris!! I actually arrived on Wednesday, but I haven't really spent much time on the computer. I will write a formal post later this week about what I've been up to. But so far I would like to say that I love it! We have only had two days of excursions and I feel like I have seen so much! The Eiffel Tower was simply AMAZING & the Louvre is outrageously big! As I walked under the Eiffel Tower, I still couldn't believe that I was actually there. Here's a quick picture!

Photo courtesy of Owen -- who else?! haha

More later!

Paris here I comeeeeee! :)

2009-02-10T16:08:00.000-08:00

It's pretty late here, but I just wanted to write a quick post to say .. I'm going to Paris tomorrow!!! I'm all packed and ready to go! (Dad, you'd be proud -- I didn't even fill a suitcase!! haha) Anyways, we won't have internet available to us all of the time; we will be limited on the amount of time we can use it. We are staying in an international dorm, called FIAP, and I don't believe they offer free wifi. So needless to say, I won't be posting as often as I should be. I will post when I get a chance and I'm sure they will be pretty lengthy posts because we are going to be doing soo much.

I'm pretty excited for Paris; I never thought I would get to see this city. As much as I'm excited, I'm a little nervous though. I'm just nervous because it's a biiig city and there are so many 'horror' stories about everything. However, I will have Owen with me and he knows what he's doing for the most part, haha. We are going to be doing soo much. Everything from the Louvre to private meetings with artists and their studios. We will also have free time to see the city! I'm sure it'll be a great time!

Well, it's a little past 1:30 AM here and I have to be up somewhat early. Our flight takes off at 2:30 I believe and we are leaving here around 10:45. So tomorrow at this time I will be in Paris:)

A day in Toulouse!

2009-02-07T01:36:00.000-08:00

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.

The second Cathedral

The reflection from the stain glass

Looking in the mirror

Outside in the cloister

Owen & I with Eric :)

Some random pictures of Toulouse

The Capitol with open markets in front of it.

The only pictures I could take at Airbus

The 2nd largest building in the world; largest in Europe

Me with the largest building in Europe:)

snow day in ambialet ! :)

2009-02-03T02:47:00.000-08:00

A little bit of home decided to visit us today -- SNOW!! We woke up to a white ground and falling snow. I actually looked out two different windows to make sure I wasn't seeing things wrong. haha

We delayed getting ready for class a bit because we figured there was no way we were getting off of this hill. Tim told us we still had class because it wasn't that bad out and the bus driver was on his way. Weeellll, when the bus driver arrived he and Tim decided that it was probably not the best idea for us to go to Albi for class. They were afraid of it getting cold later and freezing over.

We ended up having a short French session with Tim so we didn't lose our French time and we didn't have French last week. Tim called it "Survival French" and it definitely helped a lot. It was nice to have an English speaking person teach us French for once. We learned the most important sayings that we will need to get by. When in doubt, Tim said to make sure we just "sound" French and stress different accents on American words. haha

Okay, here's the snow!..

Pittsburgh Steelers -- Superbowl Champs:)

2009-02-02T13:06:00.000-08:00

First off, I'm SO happy about the Steelers!!! :) We created our own little event to celebrate the super bowl. We had an American feast around game time that consisted of wings, bacon & cheese fries, nachos & salsa and brownies! Tim was nice enough and bought a package so we could get the game via internet, with commercials and all! We hooked the computer up to the TV so we could watch it full screen. Kick-off wasn't until MIDNIGHT here in France, but we were determined to watch the game. As the game went on and the later it got, we kept losing people. At around 4 AM, there were 5 of us left and Dan. The game was intense with only a minute to go and a time out is called. And then the unimaginable happened, THE GAME FROZE and we NEVER got it back! We were losing at that point and were all VERY angry. We sat there in disbelief and then realized we better whip out our computers. We googled places to watch the final minute of the game, but had no luck. We were stuck with watching the play by play on espn.com. However, when the Steelers pulled off the victory, we pushed the technical difficulty aside. It was definitely worth staying up until 4:30 AM to see the Steelers get their 6th super bowl ring:)

Needless to say, I was dragging today. I attended a 3 hour French class at 9:30am on 3 hours of sleep. haha.

On to another sport topic, we attended our first rugby game this weekend!! It was held on Saturday night in Albi. Albi was hosting Bourge. It was soooo interesting and a lot of fun! When I first walked in, I felt like it was a lot like the atmosphere of a high school football game. The game is so intense. I didn't really know the rules of rugby or how it was played, but I feel like I caught on pretty well. Owen helped to explain a lot too haha. The fans are crazy! They cheer the WHOLE time. We joined the bandwagon and cheered right along with them. As a matter of fact, their mascot loved us! He would come to our section often and have us do a cheer with him. We really had a good time at the game and plan to attend another soon!

Yesterday we had our debut at Mass. We have been attending choir practice with Peter and Margaret down the street and we were able to "show off" yesterday. haha We sang a hymn after Communion for the Church. They seemed to love it. I felt like I was in a grade school play again. haha

I guess I'll end on a funny story to let you guys know that I still don't always have the best common sense. After the game, some of us REALLY had to go to the bathroom. Most of their bathrooms are unisex. So we found one and to our knowledge, we thought it was only urinals. We moved on to another bathroom and still only thought it was for men. Finally, we come across a bathroom that has a sign with a lady on it and there are plenty of ladies in line. As I enter the stall, I see what I thought was for men and I quickly realized that the women use these..

I had NO idea what to do. hahaha but I REALLY had to go to the bathroom. So, I saw the spot for your feet so I was like okay apparently I stand there, but I didn't want to put my feet in the actual thing so I stood on the side. And without getting into TOO much detail, I somewhat squatted facing the wall and holding my jeans away from my body. For a second, I thought I was going to have to take my pants off. haha I was certain that I was going to make a mess or get it on me. Surprisingly, I didn't and I went to the bathroom. Well, the next day I am uploading the pictures and it dawns on me that you are supposed to squat with your back to the wall. haha sooo, leave it to me to find the most difficult way to do something! However, I was pretty successful with it:) haha.

So, between the rugby game and the Steeler victory, I had a pretty good weekend! :) We have our last excursion with Eric on Wednesday and I'll be sure to post information and pictures after that!

pictures!! finally!

2009-02-01T05:25:00.001-08:00

Here are the pictures that I promised! I'm not sure what pictures I need to post, so I'll just start posting:)

Here we are making dinner on one of the Tour de Table nights. We are making the crust for little appetizers.

Owen and I at the Inauguration celebration.

Just a rainy day in Albi!

The next photos will be of our second excursion to Conques.

Here is the town of Conques.

The Cathedral at Conques.

Me!

A crazy view.

The Cathedral inside Conques.

Inside the Church

The alter

An amazing view -- everywhere you go, there is a pretty view

Here are pictures from our 3rd excursion, Carcassonne. It was a sunny day, so the pictures are not that great! haha sorry!

Here is the town of Carcassonne from the distance.

Me in front of it; it was so windy!

Owen's turn.

Part of the castle!!

The view from inside the fortress wall.

The Cathedral inside the town.

Beautiful stain glass

More of the castle

All of the girls:)

Owen & I:)

Walking across the draw bridge.

Crazy clouds

That's all the pictures for now! Enjoy:)

adventure to Carcassonne!

2009-01-29T12:26:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was an excursion day! We traveled to Carcassonne, about 2 and a half hours away from Ambialet. This place was amazing!! I never ever thought I would ever get to see an old castle like this up close and personal. Carcassonne is now a town where many tourists visit. There are shops, restaurants and houses that now exist in the town. Before, it was a fortified castle that dates back to about 3500 BC. It was a gorgeous day out! The sun was shining, but it was a little chilly with the wind. Buut, I won't complain because I heard there is another snow/ice storm back home! I will post some pictures below, but the sun played a part in ruining some pictures. (Look at Owen's for good ones! haha) However, I did take TONS of pictures at this place because I looved it. It was my favorite by far. There was also a Cathedral that was part of this town. The stain glass windows were the main attraction of this church. It was crazy! There were three different types and they were gigantic. I was amazed at how beautiful they were from thousands and thousands of years ago.

Because of the weahter, we were unable to make two more stops yesterday. We were to see two more castles. However, the one sets on top of a mountain and the mountain had been snow covered. They'd figured it'd be best if our bus didn't venture up that. We are hoping to visit it at a later date.

Today was a typical Thursday. I was able to sleep in!:) We went to Nadine's for lunch and I bought the first 4 of my 100 post cards. I'd figure it'd be best to do it in chunks. haha So, don't worry everyone -- they are coming! :)

Tonight was also the night where we cook dinner! Tonight was rabbit! It actually wasn't that bad. We aren't really big fans of rabbit because there is barely no meat! And the reason why I dont like rabbit is because they are so defined. When you eat a chicken leg, it doesn't really look like a leg of a chicken. However, you can really tell it's the leg of a rabbit when it's on your plate.

I got a card from Aunt Nancy & Uncle Charlie the other day -- I was surprised:)

Oh, some good news. I was able to download the Bachelor on i-tunes. So I'm currently catching up on the episodes and will be able to see who gets the final rose! It's nice to have a "TV show" to watch occasionally and not just movies. Speaking of movies, we watched our French film tonight. It was an animated film called The Triplets of Belleville. It was very interesting. There was no dialogue what so ever. Owen fell asleep. haha

Alright, well I think that is all for tonight. Tomorrow we have class at 9 with Sandrine. It is a medieval history class. And then we have choir practice with Margaret and Peter in the afternoon.

Oh, and congratulations Mom for winning the trip! :)

PS. I PROMISE I will post pictures tomorrow. I have to see what ones I need to post still. Buut, check back tomorrow for pictures:)

sprinnggg breakkkk planns!

2009-01-26T12:59:00.001-08:00

After searching, booking, internet failure, etc. we FINALLY have spring break FULLY booked!

We will leave Thursday night, March 12th, and head to London. There we will stay for 3 nights and explore London. We will then go to other parts of the UK to visit Owen's family. On the 20th, we will take off to Rome! We will remain in Rome until the 25th! I'm excited!

Here is where we are staying in London:
(The other website had better and more pictures, but it wouldn't load!)

http://www.eurobookings.com/london-hotels-gb/so-sienna.html?label=gg_en_bh_36200-united-kingdom-london-so-sienna&gclid=CIbv_P-RrZgCFUwb3god5kQomQ

Here is where we are staying in Italy:

http://www.hostelworld.com/availability.php/NightandDay-Rome-9618

& we're back!

2009-01-26T07:43:00.000-08:00

Well, it's been awhile since I updated. There's a story for that! First off, I wrote a short post and added tons of pictures Friday afternoon, but somehow I pressed a button and lost the whole page. Adding the pictures took at least 30 minutes and I really didn't feel like sitting there doing it again that night. I was planning on doing it Saturday afternoon, buuuuuuut we lost electricity, power, water, internet, everything!

We experienced the worst storm that hit France in about ten years. The rain was coming down soo hard and the winds reached up to 120 miles per hour. It was crazy! The power went out sometime Saturday morning and because our water is pumped up the hill by an electric motor, we were out of water. Tim brought us lunch and had us wait around til about 4 to see if the power came back on. To pass the time, we all took part in an exciting game of pictionary! This literally killed about an hour and half of time. After our game, Tim came back and told us that over 1 million people in France had lost electricity. He said it might take anywhere from 2 or 3 hours to 2 or 3 days to regain ours since we are a small village.

Soooo, we were booked in a hotel for the past two nights. It was located in Albi and we were able to walk into town. I had my first "bar" experience, but the drinks were SO expensive and no one was there. haha We went out around 8:30-9 and we forgot that is when people eat dinner here. So, we just headed back to the hotel early.

I had my first McDonald's experience here in France. There was one located right beside the hotel and we literally ate this for lunch and dinner both days. Needless to say, I'm sick of McDonalds. haha But, it was crazy! It gets SO packed at dinner time; we figured this was because there are only 2 in Albi and we are used to having like 10 where we live. Also, this McDonald's serves beer! haha Finally, we discovered the French make better McFlurry's than Americans.

This weekend was quite an experience, but we seemed to make the best of it!

Oh and I just recieved a card and a letter from Nan and Pap! I wasn't expecting it and it made my day:)

Pictures soon, promise!:)

procrastinatingg!

2009-01-21T12:22:00.000-08:00

Well, I'm procrastinating so I'd figure I'd write a quick update. I have a presentation due tomorrow on an artist and I don't really want to start it! haha!

Anyways, since the last time I wrote a couple things have went on. We had our regular schedule of classes on Monday and Tuesday. French is still a little tricky but I'm catching on to a few key phrases I guess. However, my five years of Spanish is definitely hindering my French capability.

Monday was a pretty crazy day. We knew we had class until 12:30 and lunch at the university, but we then found out we had the afternoon in Albi to do whatever we wanted. However, it was a pretty rainy and ugly day!! I didn't dress for the occasion and had on flats with no socks and did not have an umbrella. I ended up buying an umbrella, but I was already drenched. Also, the bad thing is most shops and stuff are closed on Mondays. So, we just walked around the town for the day.

Oh, an interesting note about France is that almost all stores, restaurants, etc. are closed for the lunch hour. If you go into Albi between 12-2 you wouldn't expect to see many places open. I find that very interesting.

Yesterday was pretty eventful! Being inauguration day, the press was excited to hear our thoughts. Also, we found out that the French are soo excited about Obama and are happy for our country. Some news reporters came up to our monastery and just questioned us as a group asking us about our stay here and our thoughts about Obama and the future of America. They also photographed us and will create an article about it. After that, we were given the opportunity to watch the ceremony. However, we don't have cable up on this hill and the quality on MSNBC.com was not very good! So needless to say, we only saw bits and pieces! After that, we had a wine and cheese celebration with some students from the university in Albi and some other people. It was a very interesting day because the French were so excited for us and Obama. It was like a little piece of home here last night. Also, not many people could say they were celebrating the inauguration in France!

Today was our second excursion! It was also rainy today. However, we did drive through a part of France that was covered in snow! It was neat to see the different weather patterns from town to town. Today we visited Conques. I will post some pictures later. It was soo pretty! It was a village and contained a Church. There was also a building that used to be a castle. However, the main reason of the visit was to see the relics. These were gold encasing made with precious stone that contained bones, artifcacts, etc. of saints or religious findings. It was interesting to see.

Alright, well I think I procrastinated enough! haha! Well, that was the sum of the past few days. It's going on two weeks of being here and I feel like I learn something new every day!

Oh, spring break plans are in the making! I think I will be seeing London, Wales, and possibly Rome or Greece!! It should be exciting!

Pictures soon:)

First shopping experience!

2009-01-18T08:47:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we took a bus into Albi and were able to do whatever we wanted! We basically walked around for six hours shopping, eating and just taking everything in. It was an interesting day.

First off, shopping was crazy! There were so many sales! Every store had a sale and it was anywhere from 30-70% off. I got a really cute jacket that was originally 40 euros for 12! There was so much I wanted to get, but I held off because I don't want to spend my money all at once! Haha!

Shopping was a little tricky though! When I went up to purchase my jacket, the cashier started asking/telling me stuff. I had NO idea what she was saying. I just looked at her, looked over at Owen, looked back at her and just smiled. She realized I knew no French and started laughing. The language is obviously a barrier, but everyone seems to be eager enough to help you. For example, Owen and I wanted to purchase cell phones. The guy helping us knew like no English, but he was patient enough to help understand what we wanted. And we got pay-as-you-go cell phones in case they are needed! (Happy Mom?! haha)

Also, I tried my first crepe yesterday. Sooo good! It was a nutella one! Nan, if you're reading this.. I'll probably have you learn the recipe when I come home! :)

Oh, one last thing! I learned yesterday that the French do not have to go to the bathroom frequently?! We walked all over yesterday trying to find a public restroom. The supermarket didn't even have one. Finally, we had an hour left until the bus came so we decided to have a drink at a restaurant so we could use their bathroom! And they are mainly unisex bathrooms!

Overall it was a good day! It was nice to get out and explore on our own. It was also fun to shop some:)

Here are a few pictures from yesterday!

Owen and I in the center of one of the shopping streets in Albi.

Leah, Owen, Shelly and I with our crepes!

Some pictures:)

2009-01-16T08:42:00.001-08:00

Well, we have been here a week! Last night we cooked dinner and watched a movie in French (with subtitles of course). Today was a pretty easy day. We had a class this morning and have had the afternoon free. Owen and I went on a walk and enjoyed the weather! And instead of rambling on, I'm going to post some pictures for you to see!

By the way, Owen brought along a mascot that will be appearing in our pictures. His name is Mr. Frenchie Toast. So if you happen to see a stuffed french toast, that's who it is:)

Here is the monastery that we stay in on top of the hill.

Here is a closer look at the half we stay in.

Here is the chapel that is connected to the monastery.

The girls in Albi.

The Cathedral in Albi

The Pyrenees Moutains

The Basilica at the excursion

Part of the village that surrounds us & Mr. Toast haha

& last but not least, a picture of Owen and me:)

Classes have begun!

2009-01-14T11:53:00.000-08:00

Well it's been a few days since I've written, but I'm still here! We've been pretty busy. Classes began on Monday and they are going well. First off, we started French first thing Monday. Our teacher is very nice, but she knows very little English. This makes it kinda rough, but it pushes us to really focus and learn it. So far I can count to twenty, spell my name, and say a few random sentences. Let's just say, five years of Spanish is definitely impacting my French. Haha.

Also, on Monday, we got a tour of Albi. This is the nearby city that we go to for French class and to eat lunch at the university on some days. It is a pretty interesting city. The architecture of the buildings and bridges are so different than back home and very pretty. We were able to see the Cathedral in Albi and it was amazing! The artwork inside was so intricate and beautiful. Also, there are tons of little shops and food places all over the city! Everything is pretty much in walking distance because there's so much to see. It is definitely different from Altoona!

Today we took an excursion to these old Roman ruins. I can't remember the name because it was in French! We saw the remaining foundation of the first church in France. We also saw a Basilica and other random buildings. Besides all of the shops and stuff being closed, it was a good day!

The weather has been pretty nice. It is in the 50's and sunny. I guess it beats the snow back home!

I'll update later with some pictures. (I need some help from Owen!)

Au Revoir! :)

well, i'm here!

2009-01-11T08:57:00.000-08:00

First off, I would like to say that the very first post that is on here is from Owen - of course! He helped me set this up and he felt it was necessary to add his own touch to it!

Anyways, I'm in France!! Who would have thought?! So far, it's been nice and relaxing. We haven't done much besides eat, sleep, walk around the village and go to church. Class starts tomorrow and that should be interesting because we start learning some French!

The flight here wasn't all that bad. I'm not a big fan of flying, but I made it! I didn't sleep much at all on the plane ride and I'm still trying to get used to the time difference.

The monastery is very nice! I happened to pick the number for the biggest room and knowing how I pack, that was a plus! The view from the monastery is breathtaking! Owen and I walked around for about two hours today just taking it all in and taking pictures. I'll post some later.

Oh, we have some pets here! We have a goat named Blanchette and two dogs, Brune and Jay-z. I'm not a very big dog lover, but they are pretty friendly.

Church was interesting this morning, everything was in French except the Gospel was translated for us. It was kind of neat because I knew what was going on, but then again I had no idea what they were saying!

Like I said before, tomorrow is going to be an interesting and exciting day. We will have class, meet some students from the university of Albi and tour Albi. I'll be sure to let you know how that goes!

Greetings from France!!!

2009-01-11T08:52:00.000-08:00