salut!
i am halfway through my third week and surviving quite well. i have probably allready gained a few pounds because the food is so good and the language is beggining to improve. The other day when i was sitting in philosophy class i actually understood what the teacher was talking about for almost a total of 5 minutes!! be impressed. i have 9 hours of philosophy a week but still, right now 5 minutes is a big accomplishment.
Last week i went horseback riding with my sister sarah. Its quite enteresting being instructed in french. When we got out to the arena it was already really dark out because the sun sets at around 4:30-5:00. Even though i could hardly see the ground, we continued to ride for about 30 minutes! That was the first time i have been horseback riding at night in the pitch black. Of coarse the moon was not out because it is always cloudy here or raining so we didnt even have that light to guide us. After a while of this crazyness the instructor finally deemed the situation unsafe (about time) and we carefully made our way to the indoor arena.
Last night i attended a birthday party for a friend of my host parents. When i got there all was fairly calm and i made my rounds of bisous( kisses on the cheeks that is mandatory when you arrive.) The husband of the lady whos birthday is was is the chief of police in the chattellerault area. When he asked me if i wanted a drink i agreed not knowing what i was agreeing to. He served me a very strong alchoholic beverage "from tahiti" he said exuberently. Throughout the night all the adults tried to give me more of this drink but i politely refuesed seeing as one had already made me a little giddy. Before we left at around 11:00 (on a school night) the scene was very different then when we arrived. The glamorously dressed, skinny french women and men were quite loud and excited about one thing or another. Alchohol is always a neccessity along with cheese.
As time continues to pass i am adjusting to the habits and culture of the french. i am now quite an expert at social things such as bisous and greetings. I have learned to be ultra polite when eating and how to make a dinner last two hours. life is good.
-Nadejda
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Monday, February 9, 2009
first week
hello everyone!
sorry for not keeping you updated its just that everything has happened all at once and finding the time was virtually impossible.
hmm where should i start...
well my family is wonderful and very helpful although they do not speak a word of english..ok they can say "how are you" but that is about it. This however i believe will be a good thing in the end seeing as it forces me quite literally to learn the language quickly.
The school im attending is fairly relaxed and very helpful with people that are lost and dont understand anything (a.k.a. me) The students here are also very helpful and patient with my bad grammar and limited vocabulary.
ok so thats a quick background on where im living/attending school.
so i have grown to accept moldy things as food. we eat more cheese then i thought humanly possible but its not your average chedder. there is actually fluffy green stuff growing on it that in the US we would call mold but here they call it "bonne fromage" (good cheese)
this mold accompanies every meal and i have come to better terms with it as time goes on.
The french talk very fast. when i came i was feeling fairly confident in the comprehension department but i quickly learned that when french is spoken at 5000 miles per hour it is no longer french to my ears. It has been difficult to adapt to all the drastic changes but i think that it will all start to come together soon and the fast-french will eventually sound familiar...i hope=)
one of the drastic changes includes "bisous". these are little kisses on each cheek that you do when ever you meet someone, see a friend, or say goodbye. when i stepped off the train from paris to meet my host family i was bombarded with bisous. it was strange at first to kiss absolute strangers and to kiss your friends or be kissed all day but im getting used to it and its feeling more like a handshake as time goes on.
so i talked about moldy things earlier without speaking about the other eatables. the food is simply amazing. thats one of the things that also happens very often. eating is kind of like a hobby. dinners can last up to 2 hours and are always laboriously prepared. i dont know if im going to be able to ever eat school cafeteria food again when i get home. even the food at school si amazing. today i had sauted fish with garlick and lemon and a salad on the side. pastries for dessert and of coarse bread with the meal. the steriotype about the french always having a loaf of bread with them or with meals is absolutely true.
i miss maine a little but am having an exciting and wonderful time so far
love to all
nadejda
i will write more soon
sorry for not keeping you updated its just that everything has happened all at once and finding the time was virtually impossible.
hmm where should i start...
well my family is wonderful and very helpful although they do not speak a word of english..ok they can say "how are you" but that is about it. This however i believe will be a good thing in the end seeing as it forces me quite literally to learn the language quickly.
The school im attending is fairly relaxed and very helpful with people that are lost and dont understand anything (a.k.a. me) The students here are also very helpful and patient with my bad grammar and limited vocabulary.
ok so thats a quick background on where im living/attending school.
so i have grown to accept moldy things as food. we eat more cheese then i thought humanly possible but its not your average chedder. there is actually fluffy green stuff growing on it that in the US we would call mold but here they call it "bonne fromage" (good cheese)
this mold accompanies every meal and i have come to better terms with it as time goes on.
The french talk very fast. when i came i was feeling fairly confident in the comprehension department but i quickly learned that when french is spoken at 5000 miles per hour it is no longer french to my ears. It has been difficult to adapt to all the drastic changes but i think that it will all start to come together soon and the fast-french will eventually sound familiar...i hope=)
one of the drastic changes includes "bisous". these are little kisses on each cheek that you do when ever you meet someone, see a friend, or say goodbye. when i stepped off the train from paris to meet my host family i was bombarded with bisous. it was strange at first to kiss absolute strangers and to kiss your friends or be kissed all day but im getting used to it and its feeling more like a handshake as time goes on.
so i talked about moldy things earlier without speaking about the other eatables. the food is simply amazing. thats one of the things that also happens very often. eating is kind of like a hobby. dinners can last up to 2 hours and are always laboriously prepared. i dont know if im going to be able to ever eat school cafeteria food again when i get home. even the food at school si amazing. today i had sauted fish with garlick and lemon and a salad on the side. pastries for dessert and of coarse bread with the meal. the steriotype about the french always having a loaf of bread with them or with meals is absolutely true.
i miss maine a little but am having an exciting and wonderful time so far
love to all
nadejda
i will write more soon
Friday, January 2, 2009
Before departure
Hello!
I have created a blog for those who wish to visually tag along with me during my semester abroad. I will be leaving for France in a little over 3 weeks and am more than excited for this adventure to begin! I will be living in Vicq sur Gartempe which is halfway between Paris and Bordeaux. It is a small town but I will be attending school in a city of around 35 thousand. The cities name is Chatellerault and the school is called Marcelin Berthelot. My host family seems excited to have me and I am greatly looking forward to the experience.
I have created a blog for those who wish to visually tag along with me during my semester abroad. I will be leaving for France in a little over 3 weeks and am more than excited for this adventure to begin! I will be living in Vicq sur Gartempe which is halfway between Paris and Bordeaux. It is a small town but I will be attending school in a city of around 35 thousand. The cities name is Chatellerault and the school is called Marcelin Berthelot. My host family seems excited to have me and I am greatly looking forward to the experience.
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