Today started out at a but of a rush- I thought classes started at 8h30, but turns out I had to be there at 8h for an introduction to the school. The introductory presentation was good, pretty basic but afterwards we went on a small tour of the town which was nice. We got to see the train station, the lake, the old town, the market, and afterwards my friend Victoria and I looked around a bit longer and found a castle and a basilica way up on a hill. I tried some sausage at the market- very good and very regional! The architecture of the old city reminds me a lot of Lourdes, which is strange since they're both on very opposite sides of the country. Victoria and I also went to a bakery for a small lunch- I had a quiche and took a raspberry tartlette to go. I have class during most of the day so I have to eat my staple food when I can- I didn't come to France for nothing ;)
Class was good, I was surprised I guess at how different it was from the Catho from last year
. It was strange to be doing only EF classes (classes for those who are learning French as a second language) compared to normal university classes in Lille. It was good though and luckily the four hour class didn't feel that long at all. We did fun and beneficial activities and I was amazed at the teacher's creativity and energy. There are six others in my class- a girl from Johannesburg, a girl from Spain, a guy from Italy, a woman from Copenhagen, a guy from Japan, and a guy from India. They're all very nice and are intentional about speaking French all the time. I think I spoke English for 20 minutes total today, and I spoke a lot today. Donc beaucoup de français. I skipped my first class (it was a lower level class anyways) for the city tour, but I'm glad I did that so I could see Annecy in the daylight. I'm realizing maybe doing 8 hours of class during the winter might not have been the smartest thing if I wanted to get to know the town at all. I'll just have to make the most of my lunch break.
After class some friends and I walked around town to explore a bit, but then it was time for dinner so I hopped on a bus and went home.
Michèle made a delicious (and perfect for the weather) vegetable soup, along with a lasagna of spinach, goat cheese, and Gruyere. Oh it was so good and definitely something I'll be making myself later on this month. We also had some more regional cheeses, apple/pear sauce, as well as some desserts from Province. We finished out the night with a bit of chocolate and hot cup of tisé with herbs from Michèle's garden
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It was a very good day, but it made me miss Lille a lot. I think my French will improve here, even in this short week, but I miss my home in France. I told my teacher I was in Lille and she went on and on about how nice they are up there... As well as how terrible the weather is. I just miss my town and my apartment and my friends and my classes... Even the difficult stuff I miss. I'm never again gonna cry because a guy was rude about how I say hamburger and ketchup, or I'll never (hopefully) have to do all my laundry in the sink every night. I miss running errands and seeing my baker and saying hi to the man who sat on the street on the way to school. I miss the dumb 50¢ hot chocolates and the bank that was never open. I miss my lonely apartment with all of my things and I miss being scared every time I had to walk through a mass of smoking high-schoolers on my way to class. I miss the weirdly huge citadel park and the constant rain and the freezing cold churches the sound the metro makes when the doors close. I miss going to Carrefour and buying the biggest jar of Nutella to put on 1,000 Speculooses. I miss Lille a LOT. Today made me realize how much it really meant to me. Lille est vraiment MA ville :)
Day 1
Tuesday, January 03, 2017
Annecy, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France
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2025-02-08
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Mom
2017-01-04
Annecy looks like a beautiful place.
Enjoy every moment and remember each adventure as a very special point in time.