Orientation and Paris!

Hello all!

My blogging has been slacking this past week, so i will try to catch you up with what has been going on around here.

Last week was all dedicated to orientation. We went through rules and maps and bus passes and every possible ligistic necessary to live here until may. We also took a tour of the University of Nantes to get our bearings and ate at the cafeteria there to get a taste of University food. It wasn't too bad. It was a full hot meal, complete with bread and cheese and dessert, of course. It's very cheap to eat there though, about 2 Euro, so i will probably be back there at some point. The week was also full of grammar review classes, up to 4 hours a day. That got to be very tiring and boring... but i guess it was good for me. I haven't been able to look back and appreciate it quite yet though. The week was also dedicated to finding our way around Nantes. I succesfully located the Monoprix (the French equivalent of Target), the post office and all my necessary bus stops. During the month of January there are also major sales all over France, most things being 50 to 70 percent off. Thus, i have done a little bit of shopping as well :)

This past weekend I went to Paris with my host family for the engagement lunch/ceremony/party of their daughter, Ségolène. Her fiancé's name is Nicolas and they actually live here in Nantes as well. The lunch was held at the Military School in Paris, right in front of the Eiffel Tower. The dad of my host mom was in the military, and apparently a big shot, so he has access to some pretty great venues. Everyone kept telling me how lucky i was to be able to see the inside of the building we were in. The ceilings were decked zith chandeliers and there were fresh flowers everywhere. There was also a lot of very shiny silverware next to our plates, and i had a little bit of trouble understanding which fork was for which course. The military school was built by Louis the 14th in the 17th century, so everything about the building is very intricate and gorgeous. The family of my host family was enormous, with there being almost 50 people there, and i had a lot of trouble keeping names straight. They also had a little trouble with me, in that after they learned i was Americain and got past the normal 'is this your first time in France?' and 'how long are you here for?' they didn't quite know what to do with me. They also kept forgetting that I understand French, so they kept trying to speak English to me, which proved to be a very difficult task... Afterwards we walked around the Eiffel Tower, and even though it was my third time seeing it, I continue to be impressed by its presence. It really is an awesome sight. Very French, very cool. I'm glad they decided to keep it after the World Fair in 1889. Originally they were just going to tear it down afterwards, but the French people weren't happy with that and fought to save it :) Can you imagine France without the Eiffel Tower?

There was a ceremony at a church in Montparnesse in Paris for their engagement. It was basically so that Ségolène and Nicolas could get a blessing from the priest for their marriage which will take place in August. It was short, maybe only 20 minutes, but it was very cool to witness. Apparently not very many people do this anymore, as it is very traditional, so once again I had the chance to do something very unique in Paris.

Guillome and I spent the night with another daughter of my family, Emmeline, who lives in Paris. It was cool to see the apartment, though i could have done without the smoking inside the house with no open windows... Sunday morning, well afternoon by the time we got up, we had lunch at a café and then walked around the Opera and the rue Royal where you can find some of the most expensive stores and restaurants in all of Paris. I saw the equivalent of our White House, where Président Sarkozy lives, and all the government buildings and embassies that surround it. We also saw the Champs-Elysées, la Place Concorde, le Louvre, and the lovely Seine River.

It was a quick, but eventful weekend. I have to say I almost thought it would be my last weekend after witnessing the ridiculous Parisien driving habits. I almost died multiple times, both in a car and as a pedestrien.... no lie. But here I am, still living. Wooo! I will fill you in on classes and other fun things later! Salut!

Kelsey