It's been nearly a month since I left France. It feels weird just typing that phrase. Because at this point, it's hard for me to grasp that I was there at all.
When I stepped off the plane onto Canadian turf for the first time in over 10 months, there was this feeling of having come full-circle; of ending where I began. Everything I had left behind came to greet me, unchanged. And it was not a glorious re-entry into my old life. There was no parade with blasting horns and dancing girls to celebrate my return. Was that what I had been expecting?
Eh. Maybe a little. My imagination tends toward the eccentric.
I was expecting to be the shiny stone hurled into the pond of my former life. Breaking the surface dramatically, sending ripples in all directions. But life is not a pond, it's an ocean, and we are really much more like pebbles, trying to find our place and make an impact in the endlessness of it all. This is a truth I find both terrible and inspirational.
I wanted to end this blog with a word of wisdom, a nugget of insight that might reward my readers in some miniscule degree for having followed me this far. The best I can leave you with is this:
Life goes on.
Not matter how bad or incredibly good a situation gets, no matter how far you manage to remove yourself from all you know, Life will find a way to move forward. Move with it. Don't try to beat it for time, and don't weigh yourself down to stay where you are, longer than you should. Wear sunscreen. Enjoy all you can, and endure all you must. Reach out when others swirl by, Life is best weathered with friends. It is also very short, so put little umbrellas in your drink whenever you get the chance. Don't sweat the small stuff, but never let the little things pass you by.
I might travel to Europe again, I might not. I might have a kid that goes on her own exchange one day, I might not. I might start another blog. I might not. But right now, none of that really matters. Because all that ever matters, is right now.
With all my love and pixie dust,
Sarah B
Tuesday 31 July 2012
Sunday 24 June 2012
Roll out the lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer. Dust off the sun and moon and sing a song of cheer. ~ Nat King Cole
Yes, summer is officially here, though as I write this rain buffets the window at my side. Peu importe, I'm willing to wait out the sunshine!
I guess the most exciting thing that has occured recently is the termination of my career as a french student in 1ere L. I did it! I have survived a full school year in a foreign school system. And while I wouldn't say I thrived, I finished the year with a decent GPA. More importantly, I met some people at les Cordeliers whom I shall truly miss upon my return, and who I feel will welcome me back if I ever got to travelling to France again. I know I'd be happy to have them sometime in Canada!
But the arrival of my favorite season of the year is cause for celebration in itself. So far I've visited a Texan friend, Manon, in Laval. And I leave this Tuesday for Aurey to visit Finnish Riikka and German Gerda on my last trip out of Dinan before my ride to Paris, to catch my return plane home.
I had not really thought about going home until late last night; it was then I realized: there are a mere 13 days left to me here in France. I'm still having trouble wrapping my head around so small a number; how can 10 months melt down to 13 days so fast?! Like butter in a microwave...
But it's a good thing I faced the reality of the situation now, because I still have a boatload of things to see to if I want to come home at all! So that will probably be all my news for the recent future; when I'm not with friends saying goodbye, I'm packing suitcases and writing thank-you cards!
I guess the most exciting thing that has occured recently is the termination of my career as a french student in 1ere L. I did it! I have survived a full school year in a foreign school system. And while I wouldn't say I thrived, I finished the year with a decent GPA. More importantly, I met some people at les Cordeliers whom I shall truly miss upon my return, and who I feel will welcome me back if I ever got to travelling to France again. I know I'd be happy to have them sometime in Canada!
But the arrival of my favorite season of the year is cause for celebration in itself. So far I've visited a Texan friend, Manon, in Laval. And I leave this Tuesday for Aurey to visit Finnish Riikka and German Gerda on my last trip out of Dinan before my ride to Paris, to catch my return plane home.
I had not really thought about going home until late last night; it was then I realized: there are a mere 13 days left to me here in France. I'm still having trouble wrapping my head around so small a number; how can 10 months melt down to 13 days so fast?! Like butter in a microwave...
But it's a good thing I faced the reality of the situation now, because I still have a boatload of things to see to if I want to come home at all! So that will probably be all my news for the recent future; when I'm not with friends saying goodbye, I'm packing suitcases and writing thank-you cards!
Sunday 3 June 2012
'Tis better to have loved and lost, then never to have loved at all ~ Alfred Lord Tennyson
How do you move on from the people that walked beside you as
you learned a new language and braved a new world? How do you say goodbye to the people you’ve shared
the most important year of your life with?
I think you never say goodbye at all.
This weekend was the last Rotary Exchange Student reunion of
my exchange year – an unmistakable sign that my adventure truly is winding
down. We kayaked and rock-climbed and
swam fully-clothed in the lake because we didn’t have our bathing suits
on. We signed flags and notebooks and
ate bread and slept shoulder to shoulder in sleeping bags on the hostel’s
corridor floor, because it kept us closer for longer. But as all things ultimately do, the weekend
came to an end, and we have parted ways.
Leaving us all with that awful ache of loss.
But the pain we feel upon leaving those we care about is the
acknowledgement of our love for them.
When the time comes that we may no longer take the relationship we have
with one another for granted, it hurts.
But I feel they never really leave us.
People may go separate ways, but the love between them remains. It is in this way that life teaches us to be
strong, to be brave enough to give away our hearts, and to love fiercely and freely. Even when it hurts. With this demonstration of courage, we come
to obtain a bond that may weather any storm and overcome every obstacle; that
transcends all distance and time. In
this way, we never need to say goodbye.
To the Exchange Students of District 1650: over this past
year we have become a team, with experiences and bonds that can never be
replicated nor matched. It has been a
pure privilege to share this defining slice of my life with you, and I wish you
all the best for your futures. Finally,
I hope you will always remember that my door is open to you forever: both at my home in Canada, and in my heart.
Tuesday 29 May 2012
The Year Gone By
While I should be composing a post illustrating the new host-family I have recently moved in with, plans for the future as summer rapidly approaches, and the fact that there remains a mere 9 days of my career as a french student, I have instead been struck by the creativity bug! I promise to do a proper update soon, but in the meantime I`ve been writing poetry!
In the year gone by, I've been to the top of the Eiffel Tower.
I've walked over sands leading to the Mont Saint-Michel
I've even gazed into the eyes of the Mona Lisa, and realized
This is not what living in France is about.
Listen:
Life in France is driving through the green tides of the countryside
And eating crêpes beside a dark-grey storm of a sea
It is asking friends over for just the appetizer
And discerning the importance of petits cafés
It is summer nights and live music calling from café doors
And wandering about a town gone dead come Wednesday
On Thursday, it is eating galettes at the morning market;
It is discovering always new things of an old town
It is passing a hand over a stone wall and thinking of
The number of centuries your fingers have just felt
Our river la Rance is more beautiful than the Mona Lisa
I prefer the castle on the corner to Mont Saint-Michel
And our little church inspires me more than the Eiffel Tower
Because this is what living in France is about.
Listen:
It is knowing it's everyday beauty
the slightest details that are what makes it great
Mostly, it is the sound made by sneaker soles on cobblestones
And the scent of fresh bread on the air
In the year gone by, I've been to the top of the Eiffel Tower.
I've walked over sands leading to the Mont Saint-Michel
I've even gazed into the eyes of the Mona Lisa, and realized
This is not what living in France is about.
Listen:
Life in France is driving through the green tides of the countryside
And eating crêpes beside a dark-grey storm of a sea
It is asking friends over for just the appetizer
And discerning the importance of petits cafés
It is summer nights and live music calling from café doors
And wandering about a town gone dead come Wednesday
On Thursday, it is eating galettes at the morning market;
It is discovering always new things of an old town
It is passing a hand over a stone wall and thinking of
The number of centuries your fingers have just felt
Our river la Rance is more beautiful than the Mona Lisa
I prefer the castle on the corner to Mont Saint-Michel
And our little church inspires me more than the Eiffel Tower
Because this is what living in France is about.
Listen:
It is knowing it's everyday beauty
the slightest details that are what makes it great
Mostly, it is the sound made by sneaker soles on cobblestones
And the scent of fresh bread on the air
Sunday 13 May 2012
When Exchange Students Come A'Calling
Last week-end 6 exchange students came to Dinan for a tour
of Brittany, hosted by my friend Marie.
Having been sick at the start of the week, I only got to meeting up with
them 3 days into their trip, but the 3 days we had left were PACKED!
It started with my calling up Marie Monday night, having
cancelled on a party minutes before, to see if they were doing anything the
following day. Turns out I didn’t have
to wait that long: It was bowling night!
I got to Marie’s at 8pm and settled down with the other
ESes; I heard about how the boat-ride had gone earlier in the day and helped
with dinner. And then we ate
dinner. And we took our time about
it. When we had finally cleared the
table it was 11pm and we were a little tired.
After a quick vote however, we decided to go anyway. It was the right decision. I haven’t bowled in forever and as the night
wore on my aim went increasingly off, but it was fun right through to 1am. Getting home, I stumbled into bed, got a
couple hours sleep and was up again at 9 the next morning. Off to Dinard!
Dinard is a small town beside the sea, much like the more
widely-known St Malo. It was an overcast
day and still way too cold to be frolicking on the beach, but Dinard does
feature an indoor salt-water pool. That’s
where we were headed.
To be honest, I didn’t really see the point of a salt-water
pool. It was just like any regular
swimming pool; only the water tasted bad and stung your eyes. But the Jacuzzi was as good as any, and after
swiping a couple floaties from the pool’s swim lesson stash, we had a good time
finding different ways to abuse them. (We
even named some of our methods, such as the Magic Carpet and the Drowning
Buddha.)
The rest of the day was relaxing; we ate, played with the
dogs, watched tv, ate. Normally, I would
have had to have been looking forward to school the following day. However, it being the last day the Eses were
in town, I convinced my host-parents to let me take the day off to visit Rennes
before they all caught their trains’ home. Another mostly overcast day, and we didn’t do
anything extraordinary – poked our heads into a couple shops and explored the
gardens, then waited together for the trains to arrive.
And this part was interesting. Because about half of the people I said good-bye
to at the train station, I would never see again. Some of them would be departing for their
respective countries within the month!
And then I thought, well that’s not so odd, I have less than two months
left now.
I still don’t know how I feel about this fact. Only that it is a short time, and I had
better make the most of it.
Monday 30 April 2012
When preparing to travel, lay out all your clothes and all your money. Then, take half the clothes and twice the money. ~ Anonymous
The gondolas of Italy, the UN building in Switzerland, snow
on the Alps. What do these three things
have in common? They were all included
in EuroTour 2012!
Yes, the second and final bus trip of the year has come and
gone, but what a week! It was on this
exchange that I entered Europe for the first time. Now, less than a year later, I can say I’ve
visited France, Spain, Germany, The Republic of Czech, Italy, Switzerland, and Austria. With tour guides and free time in a different
city every day and little to no sleep in between, “tiring” would be a suitable
adjective for the 12-day trip. But the
words “fun”, “intriguing” and “memorable” also make it on the list.
The weather was all over the place. Cloudy with rain; snow, even, in some parts
of France! Thankfully, the weather
cooperated for my favorite part of the tour:
Venice!
My idea of Venice was formed by the descriptions present in
two books; “The Thief Lord” by Cornelia Funke and “City of Masks” by Mary
Hoffman. The city I saw could have
waltzed directly from the pages. Streets
and buildings divided by robin-egg blue water.
Hand-painted masks and costumed street performers at every corner. Jet-black gondolas and live music at every café! The city is built of white stone and in the
sun that day the city shone. A
breath-taking daytrip that put Italy on my bucket list of countries I must
return to one day.
Another major part of
travelling like this, when one visits a new country every day, is the
food! Every day there was a speciality:
gelato and pizza in Italy, la tartiflette
in the Alps, chocolate in Switzerland. Everything
was so good, and I am intrigued to look up some recipes online. Needless to say, however, I added running
into my weekly schedule upon returning to France.
I am a person who likes to see what any given situation has
taught me, and how it has made me grow.
EuroTour 2012 taught me two things:
Any travel is good, because it always ends up
broadening your horizons as well as teaching you more about yourself and what
you want from your future. Even the
briefest stay has its benefits. I spent
a single day in any given country on the trip, but already I am looking into
job opportunities with the UN, learning new recipes with which to impress my
family and friends, and planning another trip to Italy for some time in my
life.
Sunday 25 March 2012
"Time spent with cats is never wasted." ~Colette
So in one week it seems as if France has jumped from able-to-see-your-breath-it's-so-cold winter to +20 ° celcius summer. I unwittingly spent yesterday in three-quarter leggings and as a result have a very defined tan-line about mild-calf. Will be spending today outside in bicycle shorts to remedy said situation. But I digress. On to more important issues!!
The biggest recent event in my life is that I have switched houses, and am now installed in my third (and last) family. The date of the change wasn't confirmed until about a week ago, and so I wasn't given a whole lot of time to mentally prepare for it, let alone physically!! (Meaning: procrastinating until the morning of the move to pack.) It was hard for me to "let go" of the last house; the three months I spent there were fun and they went by so so fast, I never considered the proposition of leaving until it was practically dancing naked in front of my nose.
But once I had come to grips with it, the excitement set in fast. The thrill and challenge of moving and integrating myself into a new family never gets old! My family consists of Frederic and Anne-Katherine, who are my dad- and mom-figures. I also have a host-sister, Hortense, who is in the same niveau at school as me. And then there's Pilou, the cat, and Lazzie, the pony. In the almost-24-hours I've been here I've attended my host-parents' cocktail party and I've been to the stables my host-mom and sisters ride at to meet their pony and eat lunch with the other riders.
Can I even begin to express how pumped I am about living with a cat in the house again? Let me just say that I miss my cat Rocco to DEATH, just seeing Pilou walk around the house makes me want to explode in joy, and if this exchange has taught me anything it is that, if I live to be old, I am destined to be The Cat-Lady.
Other than that: Sun. I'm going tanning.
The biggest recent event in my life is that I have switched houses, and am now installed in my third (and last) family. The date of the change wasn't confirmed until about a week ago, and so I wasn't given a whole lot of time to mentally prepare for it, let alone physically!! (Meaning: procrastinating until the morning of the move to pack.) It was hard for me to "let go" of the last house; the three months I spent there were fun and they went by so so fast, I never considered the proposition of leaving until it was practically dancing naked in front of my nose.
But once I had come to grips with it, the excitement set in fast. The thrill and challenge of moving and integrating myself into a new family never gets old! My family consists of Frederic and Anne-Katherine, who are my dad- and mom-figures. I also have a host-sister, Hortense, who is in the same niveau at school as me. And then there's Pilou, the cat, and Lazzie, the pony. In the almost-24-hours I've been here I've attended my host-parents' cocktail party and I've been to the stables my host-mom and sisters ride at to meet their pony and eat lunch with the other riders.
Can I even begin to express how pumped I am about living with a cat in the house again? Let me just say that I miss my cat Rocco to DEATH, just seeing Pilou walk around the house makes me want to explode in joy, and if this exchange has taught me anything it is that, if I live to be old, I am destined to be The Cat-Lady.
Other than that: Sun. I'm going tanning.
Tuesday 20 March 2012
The world is mud-luscious and puddle-wonderful. ~E. E. Cummings
There are robins hopping about in the garden and daffodils in the vase on the kitchen table. Happy 1st Day of Spring, everyone!! It's the time of year that makes me feel like I can't breath deeply enough, as well as super-guilty about being on the internet while the sun shines outside. According to the International Astonomical Union, I have officially experienced every season of the year while in France.
To celebrate, I have documented in list-form some of the best things I have discovered in this country inside of the four seasons I have spent here:
50 Things That Are Awesome About France
(in order of which they pop into my head)
1. Cappuccinos from the coffee machine at school
2. The shower at the Gonzalez's house
3. Cobblestone streets (but only when I'm not in heels)
4. Boys who wear pants that ACTUALLY FIT
5. The aisle at Leclair dedicated entirely to dark chocolate
6. Le Bois Butte
7. White cows
8. The ocean being 1 hour away
9. Les soldes in February
10. The artist's square in Paris
11. French fashion
12. Oral comprehension tests in English class
13. Festive baguettes still hot from the boulangerie
14. Bakeries distributed as densely as Starbucks in Vancouver
15. Randomly celebrating with ice creams at Le Pole Nord
16. Discovering great foriegn music
17. The Golden Tree in the Valley of No Return
18. Castles by the sea
19. Riding the Tibus on a sunny day through the countryside
20. Talking about someone right beside me because they can't understand in English
21. The bluntness of the French
22. Renewed appreciation for the English Language
23. Exchanging sketchbooks with classmates at lunchtime
24. Chocolate and pistachio macarons
25. Bike rides through town
26. The castle on a hill in Lehon
27. Receiving allowance at the beginning of the month
28. That hot chocolate in St Malo
29. Horse-back riding on Sunday mornings
30. The Christmas market in Nantes
31. The Red Light District in Paris
32. Active druidism
33. 3-hour art class on Thursdays
34. Access to all the coffee I want. Anytime. Always.
35. Live music in the restaurants
36. My classy, faux-diamond-studded Eiffel Tower lighter (before anyone comments, I do not smoke. It was just pretty.)
37. The last 5 minutes of school on Friday
38. Small dogs in bicycle baskets
39. French-style high heel shoes
40. Listening to my class speak English
41. L'assiette gourmande with an espresso
42. Watching the Eiffel Tower light up from over the Seine
43. The view of the river from the English Garden
44. Adopting trendy French expressions
45. Pimkie, the clothing store
46. Elle and Marie Claire magazine, french edition
47. Sour fruit-flavored Carambars
48. Les creperies bretonnes
49. The display window at La Fee Cabosse
Having saved the best for last, my absolute favorite thing about being in France as an Exchange Student is:
50. Other Exchange Students
To celebrate, I have documented in list-form some of the best things I have discovered in this country inside of the four seasons I have spent here:
50 Things That Are Awesome About France
(in order of which they pop into my head)
1. Cappuccinos from the coffee machine at school
2. The shower at the Gonzalez's house
3. Cobblestone streets (but only when I'm not in heels)
4. Boys who wear pants that ACTUALLY FIT
5. The aisle at Leclair dedicated entirely to dark chocolate
6. Le Bois Butte
7. White cows
8. The ocean being 1 hour away
9. Les soldes in February
10. The artist's square in Paris
11. French fashion
12. Oral comprehension tests in English class
13. Festive baguettes still hot from the boulangerie
14. Bakeries distributed as densely as Starbucks in Vancouver
15. Randomly celebrating with ice creams at Le Pole Nord
16. Discovering great foriegn music
17. The Golden Tree in the Valley of No Return
18. Castles by the sea
19. Riding the Tibus on a sunny day through the countryside
20. Talking about someone right beside me because they can't understand in English
21. The bluntness of the French
22. Renewed appreciation for the English Language
23. Exchanging sketchbooks with classmates at lunchtime
24. Chocolate and pistachio macarons
25. Bike rides through town
26. The castle on a hill in Lehon
27. Receiving allowance at the beginning of the month
28. That hot chocolate in St Malo
29. Horse-back riding on Sunday mornings
30. The Christmas market in Nantes
31. The Red Light District in Paris
32. Active druidism
33. 3-hour art class on Thursdays
34. Access to all the coffee I want. Anytime. Always.
35. Live music in the restaurants
36. My classy, faux-diamond-studded Eiffel Tower lighter (before anyone comments, I do not smoke. It was just pretty.)
37. The last 5 minutes of school on Friday
38. Small dogs in bicycle baskets
39. French-style high heel shoes
40. Listening to my class speak English
41. L'assiette gourmande with an espresso
42. Watching the Eiffel Tower light up from over the Seine
43. The view of the river from the English Garden
44. Adopting trendy French expressions
45. Pimkie, the clothing store
46. Elle and Marie Claire magazine, french edition
47. Sour fruit-flavored Carambars
48. Les creperies bretonnes
49. The display window at La Fee Cabosse
Having saved the best for last, my absolute favorite thing about being in France as an Exchange Student is:
50. Other Exchange Students
Tuesday 28 February 2012
"Boy, those French. They have a different word for everything." ~ Steve Martin
Since our arrival in France, the Exchange students in my region have been anticipating the Paris-Barcelona BusTrip 2012, an 8-day ride that would take us to the capital of France, then south until we reached Barcelona, and back again.
Arriving by train in Paris the 17 of February at 10am, we were off: 37 teenagers from around the world stuffed into a single bus and colored seven shades of Heaven because of it. It began in Paris. In three days we had climbed the Eiffel Tower, crowded the Mona Lisa in the Louvre, and snapped (albeit 'illegal') pictures of our country's flag in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles. After a night spent in the south of France, we were due west, for Spain.
The memories of the stay in Barcelona are a blur; I can't tell you what we did when without consulting my journal. For three nights we stayed in the fanciest hotel I've ever been in; huge pool (though we weren't allowed to swim...) buffet for breakfast and dinner, and there was a nightclub, too! Besides that, evenings in the hotel were spent dancing and ambushing an unassuming Exchange Student in the hall; consequently robbing him of entire macaron collection. The days were spent in a Soccer Hall of Fame (forgot the name), two art museums (The Museum of Picasso and the Museum of Dali, both of which I ended up enjoying more than the Louvre), at a Hard Rock cafe eating my first burger in 6 months and wearing a t-shirt outside for the first time in what felt like forever. Returning to the cold of France was about the worst part of ending the BusTrip, second only to saying goodbye to the other ESs. But I wasn't done travelling yet.
Most students on the bus went on home after returning to the Paris train station, but Cassandra LaMarche and I had the good fortune to spend a couple extra days with a parisienne family. That was brilliant, getting to know the city with the aid of a local, as opposed to a tour guide. The days were packed. We rode the metro, strolled about the Red Light district, browsed a couple shops on the street across from the Notre Dame, watched the Eiffel Tower light up from a bridge over the Seine, drank chocolat viennois at le Chat Noir and went out to a party with kids in the neighborhood.
Upon returning to Dinan, I was tired, had a LOT of laundry to do, and was generally happy to be home. I have done so much living in this past month, though. The voyage was great, now it's over. But the experience... Even as memory fails and photos fade, I will carry it with me always. :) Vive le Bustrip 2012!!
Arriving by train in Paris the 17 of February at 10am, we were off: 37 teenagers from around the world stuffed into a single bus and colored seven shades of Heaven because of it. It began in Paris. In three days we had climbed the Eiffel Tower, crowded the Mona Lisa in the Louvre, and snapped (albeit 'illegal') pictures of our country's flag in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles. After a night spent in the south of France, we were due west, for Spain.
The memories of the stay in Barcelona are a blur; I can't tell you what we did when without consulting my journal. For three nights we stayed in the fanciest hotel I've ever been in; huge pool (though we weren't allowed to swim...) buffet for breakfast and dinner, and there was a nightclub, too! Besides that, evenings in the hotel were spent dancing and ambushing an unassuming Exchange Student in the hall; consequently robbing him of entire macaron collection. The days were spent in a Soccer Hall of Fame (forgot the name), two art museums (The Museum of Picasso and the Museum of Dali, both of which I ended up enjoying more than the Louvre), at a Hard Rock cafe eating my first burger in 6 months and wearing a t-shirt outside for the first time in what felt like forever. Returning to the cold of France was about the worst part of ending the BusTrip, second only to saying goodbye to the other ESs. But I wasn't done travelling yet.
Most students on the bus went on home after returning to the Paris train station, but Cassandra LaMarche and I had the good fortune to spend a couple extra days with a parisienne family. That was brilliant, getting to know the city with the aid of a local, as opposed to a tour guide. The days were packed. We rode the metro, strolled about the Red Light district, browsed a couple shops on the street across from the Notre Dame, watched the Eiffel Tower light up from a bridge over the Seine, drank chocolat viennois at le Chat Noir and went out to a party with kids in the neighborhood.
Upon returning to Dinan, I was tired, had a LOT of laundry to do, and was generally happy to be home. I have done so much living in this past month, though. The voyage was great, now it's over. But the experience... Even as memory fails and photos fade, I will carry it with me always. :) Vive le Bustrip 2012!!
Saturday 14 January 2012
"Men are from Mars. Women are from Venus. Computers are from Hell." ~Anonymous
The bad news: My laptop screen busted just after Christmas and the long process of getting it fixed has caused me to virtually disappear from the net for the last couple weeks. The good news: I'm back! Though the laptop is still not functioning, I have braved the french keyboard to bring you Post #1 of 2012.
Two days after New Year's, I changed families. My four months as part of the Pillittu's family was so much fun - truly a great time. But I am loving it here at the Toublancs, as well. My new host-mom, Carol, is an incredibly innovative home-decorater. With the help of her globe-trotting daughters, plates from Rwanda, wooden elephants from India and decorative pasta from Italy are all fairly commonplace here.
I am a self-proclaimed movie fanatic, and so finding out Carol is a teacher at a cinema school in Rennes, where she teaches english to the future screenwriters and directors of France, was naturally very exciting for me. Almost as exciting as the discovery of her extensive DVD collection!
By sharing my passion for film with Carol and flipping through the books she uses in her courses (I recommend The Little Black Book of Movies to anyone else interested in the subject) I've been inspired to research a possible future career in the film industry. In the meantime, I'm going to continue plugging away through all the DiCaprio movies in the Toublanc's possession. The Departed is my favorite so far, even if it does have the saddest ending.
More Exciting Stuff:
Horseback riding!! There's a stable practically down the road from where I live now; I'll be signing myself up for lessons this week.
Soldes!! From the middle of January to the beginning of February, clothing stores throughout France host MASSIVE sales to get rid of last year's line to make room for the new one. This means prices slashed by 50% -75%, everywhere! Having recently developed a taste for french style, I cannot wait to hit Rennes next weekend with Cassandra and Marina.
Hot chocolate!! Cause we got frost this morning for the first time this winter - And when is hot chocolate not exciting, anyway?
Two days after New Year's, I changed families. My four months as part of the Pillittu's family was so much fun - truly a great time. But I am loving it here at the Toublancs, as well. My new host-mom, Carol, is an incredibly innovative home-decorater. With the help of her globe-trotting daughters, plates from Rwanda, wooden elephants from India and decorative pasta from Italy are all fairly commonplace here.
I am a self-proclaimed movie fanatic, and so finding out Carol is a teacher at a cinema school in Rennes, where she teaches english to the future screenwriters and directors of France, was naturally very exciting for me. Almost as exciting as the discovery of her extensive DVD collection!
By sharing my passion for film with Carol and flipping through the books she uses in her courses (I recommend The Little Black Book of Movies to anyone else interested in the subject) I've been inspired to research a possible future career in the film industry. In the meantime, I'm going to continue plugging away through all the DiCaprio movies in the Toublanc's possession. The Departed is my favorite so far, even if it does have the saddest ending.
More Exciting Stuff:
Horseback riding!! There's a stable practically down the road from where I live now; I'll be signing myself up for lessons this week.
Soldes!! From the middle of January to the beginning of February, clothing stores throughout France host MASSIVE sales to get rid of last year's line to make room for the new one. This means prices slashed by 50% -75%, everywhere! Having recently developed a taste for french style, I cannot wait to hit Rennes next weekend with Cassandra and Marina.
Hot chocolate!! Cause we got frost this morning for the first time this winter - And when is hot chocolate not exciting, anyway?
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