:(

I went to this awesome winery today, but I can't seem to find my camera to upload the pictures. Hopefully I didn't lose it and those great pictures. I'll tell you more if/when I find my camera.

New Family - Yesterday

Sorry for the late post. I couldn't get the internet to work last night...

I got adopted today! I live with a woman named Johanna, her son (who I will be meeting tomorrow), and their kitten. Johanna is a musician! She plays guitar and sings. She is a vegetarian for humane reasons, like me. J Her apartment is so cute and nice. I live right in downtown Bordeaux. This means I am pretty far from campus, but close to everything else.

My room has a giant window that overlooks the garden. It’s so gorgeous to have all this green in a city.

 

I Get Adopted Soon :D

They found me a vegetarian family!! All I know is it's a woman in her 40's with her 10-year-old son. I'm just excited to have a family. We're all talking about how we're at this orphanage and dying to be adopted. Anyways, I will keep you all posted about that :)

Class

Today was my first day of grammar class. We have a week of class then we get thrown in with the other French kids. It's kind of hard waking up and going to sleep listening and speaking French. I know it's necessary, but it's draining.

Errands

After class today, we went downtown to put money on our train/bus passes. After asking everyone and their mom for directions in our broken French, we finally found the place. It was crazy like the DMV. Okay, nothing is as crazy as the DMV, but it was pretty hectic. (I didn't take the above picture, but that's where we were minus the cold weather.)

After that, we went to the store to buy some necessary random items. Then we ate at a kabob fast-food like place. Our friend Bryan is sick so we searched for a pharmacy to buy some cold medicine. You can't buy it at the grocery store here. You have to go in and ask for it, but it's kind of nice because all of the pharmacists are doctors so they help you find the right medicine.

MacDo

Hey all,

So, I came back from the beach yesterday all excited to upload my pictures and my blog only to find the entire school internet was down. I was hoping it would be fixed by today. In France, on a Sunday, that was an impossible wish. Thus, I am at Mc Donald's trying to upload my blog. Since about 10 of us are all trying to use the internet at the same time, it is going to slowly. Hopefully it will be fixed at school tomorrow (Monday) so I can share my pictures and connect to the world without having to walk miles in order to do so.

Farmer's Market

This morning we woke up early to get to the farmer's market close to campus. They have fruits, vegetables, cheese, meats, desserts, bread and other delicacies. They also had clothes and other trinkets. It was nice because people are allowed to bring their dogs to the farmer's markets here. We bought a few things then went to the grocery store before they closed at 1 pm. We came back and made a poor excuse for breakfast burritos, and now I am here.

I will update when possible. Love you all!

Saturday - Arcachon

[Sorry guys, I am at Mc Donald's today, which is about a 2 mile walk from my dorm. The internet is down on campus, so I am here trying to post my blog. The pictures aren't uploading, so I will try to do it again at another time.]

Arcachon

We were informed we were going to the beach today and having oysters. None of us knew that was at two separate places. So, you could imagine our horror when we stepped off the bus and saw this:

Luckily. We were wrong.

Oysters

Our excursion started today at the Oyster Museum. We had a tour and everything. Who knew there were people so enthusiastic about oysters! After the tour, we had lunch at a local restaurant, which consisted of oysters, white wine, bread and cheese. So French, I know. I honestly tried to eat an oyster. You know, when in Rome? I couldn’t do it. I tried to just down it but my reflexes kicked in and my throat closed while my tongue proceeded to launch the gooey sea creature out of my mouth. Luckily there were tomatoes and olives for the vegetarians. A really filling lunch as you can see. We finished with apple pastries while the tide finally came in. It was really pretty.

Dune du Pyla

We hopped on our bus to see the Dune du Pyla. It is the largest sand dune in all of Europe. We stopped and got ice cream at the base of the dune, but it was the beginning of my demise. After about a fourth of the way, I didn’t think I could make it. My legs were burning from the pain and the ice cream in my stomach was weighing me down. Then, a little farther than the halfway mark, just as I was about to give up and turn back, an old little woman passed me. I stood shocked in disbelief. That was all the determination I needed. Man, oh man, it was pretty at the top.

Beach

After the dune we headed to a public beach. The Atlantic was much warmer than the Pacific in the California region. However, it was only warm enough to put my feet in.

Rainy Day

This Morning

Today is a dreary day in Bordeaux, France. I opened my window in the middle of the night because I was hot. I awoke this morning to a cold breeze and dark cloudy skies. The forecast is around 65 degrees Fahrenheit with showers. Tomorrow, Saturday, we are taking a beach trip to Arcachon (I believe that’s the town – I’ll update if I’m wrong) and I hope the weather clears up because I brought my swimsuit and sunscreen J

Food… Again

I am still getting adjusted to all things French. I just have to remind myself that this is an adventure and I really am in a completely different country. My new friends and I went in search for a Chinese restaurant yesterday. When we couldn’t find it, we walked into a Tex-mex place that we figured would satiate our non-French food cravings. However, we were looking at the menu and there weren’t any burritos or tacos or really anything of the sort. The only thing Tex-mex-y about the place were the little pictures of the state of Texas on the menu. L We were all laughing and being super FOB-y about it though. When we found Chinese it was amazing. I thought I could do bread for every meal. Nope. The noodles, veggies, and tons of soy sauce were such a nice change.

On a side note: I miss my mom and dad’s cooking. I was joking to Marina the other day when we were dying of starvation, that I would literally kill someone for some home cooking. It would be my last meal.

French Food (in particular)

• Why is there mayonnaise on everything??
• Yogurt is hella bomb
• Pastries are my shit

Beautiful Bordeaux

Today we took a tour of the town with the office of tourism. It was drizzling this morning but the tour was really nice. We stopped at a pub on the way home and ordered drinks. Lauren ordered an Orangina, which was the same price as our wine/beer – ridic. When we were sitting down it started to rain so we paid and ran out.

The Cuts… Again

The reason my blog is late is because this place is so jank that the Internet doesn’t even reach our dorm. (Speaking of the janky dorms, I have so many mosquito bites! Anyways…) I walked across to the closest campus buildings and they were all locked. You could see small groups of Californians huddled under the eaves of close by buildings. Less than a minute after arriving, it started to lightning, thunder and pour. I couldn’t keep my computer on because the rain. Thus, I am waiting for a chance for Internet to post this. 

Mes Amis Américains 

In the Cuts

Dorms


So I wish someone would have said "Everything goes in France; fend for yourself." Because seriously, we are out in the cuts. There is no refrigerator for us to use, or a close restaurant, or really anything. You have to take the train get anywhere, and we've only been able to buy non-perishable food unless we eat it right then and there. It's been an adjustment to say the least..

We finally broke down and bought some utensils so we will be trying to make some things with our limited resources. Shit is expensive out here. Here is some pictures of our very basic dorm:

Errands in Bordeaux

We bought some beans, a pot, rice, and tortillas.. Things we haven't been able to find at restaurants. So now we don't have to worry for a couple meals. We also bought some water for our undying thirst out here. It's seriously unquenchable. There aren't any water fountains here so you have to buy it when you're out or bring it with you.

I was running out of clothes so we took the train to the nearest laundry mat that we could find. Our dorms laundry mat is only one washing machine and no dryer... So we paid the 4 euro to wash and 1.50 euro for 12 minutes to dry. It was just nice to have clean clothes :)

So right now, I am trying to multi-task, but I am really bad at it. So I will let you all go. If you want my new number just send me an e-mail or facebook me.

Arrival Day Continued

Travel

Sorry for the short post yesterday. I was so exhausted from our travels. Marina and I took a cab from our hotel to the TGV but it was so stressful because our cab driver decided to take the most busy streets to the train station. We got to the train station, and like everything else in France, it was chaotic. After we figured out how to print our e-tickets, we went to the platforms but they don't list which until 20 minutes until departure. So everyone stands around this old school screen waiting to find out their platform. Then when it shows up, everyone runs to the train. Chaos, man.

So, in all the chaos, we ran into a friend from school named Lauren. She looked as if she was on the verge of crying. We were all so relieved to see each other. I was assigned to another car and I was freaking out to be alone for the whole ride but a nice woman told us if the train doesn't fill up they won't make me move. So we founds some seats by each other and prepared for the ride. It was smooth and had some really beautiful scenery. The train was too fast to take pictures though.

Arrival

When we arrived, as I already said, we were the last and tired from running around. This dorm is so old it doesn't have an elevator. We had to drag our luggage upstairs. Luckily we are on the première étage (the second floor in america - weird I know). We dropped our bags and met everyone for dinner.

After dinner we took their version of the metro/light rail to monoprix (their version of Target) because we all needed something. We are planning on going back today because we got there like 30 minutes before closing. Bordeaux is home to .75 miles of shopping, the largest in France, called Rue Sainte-Catherine. We will definitely be exploring that soon.

Initial Thoughts

• Bordeaux seems a million times more relaxed than Paris (more like home :))
• Our school is kind of dilapidated, and when I say kind of, I mean really - but it's all good
• I miss American toilets 
• It's nice to finally be around other Americans/Californians
• bare minimum baby (see picture below)

Bye Paris, Hello Bordeaux

Bordeaux

After another stressful day of travel, we made it to Bordeaux. Our taxi driver from the train station didn't know the building we needed so we were the last to check in after running around our campus for an hour with our luggage and all.

Random

• I got a cell phone!
• It is so nice to be with other UC students
• I am tired

Paris - Day 4

People Are Hella Rude

And I say people because it's not just the French or even Parisians, it's just people in general. I learned two new phrases today: boob bump and belly bump. Okay, maybe I made those up but both those things happened to me in a matter of hours.

• Situation 1: While waiting in line to get on the elevator of the Eiffel Tower, this woman attacked me with her giant boobs. Yes, attacked. So when I moved out of her way I thought I was safe. Little did I know, she was behind me again, and ready for another boob attack. With each bump a flew a couple feet. I think my feet actually lifted off the ground. Okay, maybe not. Really though, I thought that would be the last of my body bumps of the day.
• Situation 2: While waiting in line to get in to the Notre Dame an obese American man with a large beer belly used his stomach to push me forward in line. That's right, his belly. Then he said "scoot up" under his breath. I looked at Marina and yelled "this dude just f*ckin' belly bumped me! wtf??" And I think he didn't know we were American (for some odd reason) until that moment because he really backed up after that.
• Situation 3: Chopped and screwed. Actually, I don't really know what that means but we got owned by a Parisian beezy today. I am embarrassed to even tell you this story! I asked our waitress at a café for (literal translation): a glass of water. She straight cracked a bottle of the most expensive water, left it on our table and walked away. I know, I should have spoken up. But instead we drank it and paid 8 euro for it.

Furthermore, I really miss personal space. That does not exist here. Well enough ranting...

B.I.A.

Breakfast In America. Yeah, you heard right. I woke up this morning craving American food. Something I don't think I've ever given a second thought at home. You want it, you make it - or you drive (don't even get me started on how much we take cars for granted) to denny's, ihop or the nearest diner. Unfortunately, we have neither of those options so we took the metro out of our way to the only American diner we could find in Paris. Yes, we wanted it that bad. Pancakes, maple syrup, eggs, potatoes, oh and French café au lait. It wasn't nearly as good as home, except the coffee which is 10x better than home, but it totally hit the spot. I don't even want to tell you the price, so I won't. Just know the little taste of home (pun intended) was worth it.

Eiffel Tower

Since we took so long at the diner, we didn't make it to the opening of the Tower. Thus, we had a long wait in line. I was so scared to go so high but it was totally worth it and not scary at all.

Notre Dame

Probably my favorite thing in Paris. Construction started in 1163 and it wasn't finished until 1345. It's simply amazing it was able to withstand the destruction and mankind. They had a full choir there practicing while we strolled the church. I wanted to see this the most out of anything in Paris and it didn't disappoint. Flash wasn't allowed so the pictures are kind of fuzzy.

Paris, I Love You

We strolled the Seine and took the metro back to our arrondissement. We stopped by the patisserie by our hotel to get some dessert. We are planning on taking a walk soon to enjoy our last night in Paris. With the ridiculous crowds, rude people, no personal space, no vegetarian or American food, I love this effing city. I hope to visit it again.