I am way, way too excited. In only 3 days I will be leaving Besancon and all its attendant memories of a long, dark, rainy winter forever. I know I'll miss France and the language and crepes and not having a car, but I have to say, I hate my apartment and I never really warmed up to this town.
But after a wonderful time travelling in April and with Bonn and Amsterdam scheduled as last hurrahs, this is turning out to be a pretty amazing experience. I'll miss my friends here, but it's time to go back to my people people back home.
May 8, 2007
April 11, 2007
Spring Thing
Well I had my last class EVER in Besancon yesterday and I finished Notre Dame de Paris this morning. I'm considering having the title changed to "Life Owes You Nothing-- NOTHING!"
Besancon is beautiful in the spring. There were people swimming in the river yesterday and there are flowers everywhere. The grass is white in some places with tiny little daisies. It has been sunny for a record week and a half now and life is looking good.
I am going to go see Segolene Royal speak on Thursday. She's the prez candidate for the Socialist party here in France and she's running a close second to the slightly more sinister Sarkozy. The French press is having a ball with Sego/Sarko comparisons and I think they'd be happy if the campaign lasted forever. Sarko will probably win; he's been groomed for the presidency since the inception of the Chirac Administration nearly twelve years ago. There are a million candidates and their posters sprouted all over town this weekend. My personal favorite is Olivier (!) who seems to be running as the Funny Candidate, based on the comic sans font on his posters.
On Friday, Will, Ivey, Sarah and I head to the south of France to chill with celebs and catch a few rays. We are planning to make forays into Monaco and Saint Tropez. I will be happy as long as I smell like salt water and sunscreen. I think there is a great Matisse museum there too.
From Nice, I'll be flying to Bonn, Germany, to visit Zach. We just had a wonderful weekend here in Besak, enjoying the ducks and the warm weather. There is a Haribo factory in Bonn that I am hoping to visit (I'm crossing my fingers for some deformed gummy alligators) and I'm hoping to see the Bonn orchestra. During the weekend, we might go to Munich!
But all this happens AFTER I take my Hugo final and write my Albigensian Crusade paper. Right. Hop to it.
Besancon is beautiful in the spring. There were people swimming in the river yesterday and there are flowers everywhere. The grass is white in some places with tiny little daisies. It has been sunny for a record week and a half now and life is looking good.
I am going to go see Segolene Royal speak on Thursday. She's the prez candidate for the Socialist party here in France and she's running a close second to the slightly more sinister Sarkozy. The French press is having a ball with Sego/Sarko comparisons and I think they'd be happy if the campaign lasted forever. Sarko will probably win; he's been groomed for the presidency since the inception of the Chirac Administration nearly twelve years ago. There are a million candidates and their posters sprouted all over town this weekend. My personal favorite is Olivier (!) who seems to be running as the Funny Candidate, based on the comic sans font on his posters.
On Friday, Will, Ivey, Sarah and I head to the south of France to chill with celebs and catch a few rays. We are planning to make forays into Monaco and Saint Tropez. I will be happy as long as I smell like salt water and sunscreen. I think there is a great Matisse museum there too.
From Nice, I'll be flying to Bonn, Germany, to visit Zach. We just had a wonderful weekend here in Besak, enjoying the ducks and the warm weather. There is a Haribo factory in Bonn that I am hoping to visit (I'm crossing my fingers for some deformed gummy alligators) and I'm hoping to see the Bonn orchestra. During the weekend, we might go to Munich!
But all this happens AFTER I take my Hugo final and write my Albigensian Crusade paper. Right. Hop to it.
March 17, 2007
Happy St Patricks Day to All
This year, I'm prepared for St Patrick's Day. I am swathed in green, armed with Guiness and heading off to my home away from home, Madigan's Irish Pub to (I hope) be rewarded for my fidelity to Madigan's and no place else with a FREE T-shirt (or, in French, a free ti-chieurt). Nobody's going to pinch me and I might get a free drink out of the deal.
The only thing that sucks is that the real Irish all decided to take a trip to Rome for Saint Paddy's. No jigs tonight I guess. And probably a lot fewer shenanigans.
The only thing that sucks is that the real Irish all decided to take a trip to Rome for Saint Paddy's. No jigs tonight I guess. And probably a lot fewer shenanigans.
March 13, 2007
No Drama Here
My life is drama-free. I love it. Without drama, here are the things on my mind:
1. Barkley died and I'm kinda sad. He was the most amazing fish.
2. Will my hair get chlorine damage if I swim twice a week?
3. How is my March stipend already gone?
4. Reading "Les Liaisons Dangereuses" and "Notre Dame de Paris" by the end of the month. The library is my new home.
5. Easter candy.
6. Dishes need to be done again.
7. The drama on Felicity, which I thought was the stupidest show ever at first, but can't seem to resist when it's just me and Season 2 in my apartment on a Sunday afternoon.
8. Salon.com, nytimes.com, pink is the new blog (trent.blogspot.com), npr.org, facebook.com
9. Will I have to dress preppy and stop having fun when I go to law school?
10. groceries/ bus schedules
1. Barkley died and I'm kinda sad. He was the most amazing fish.
2. Will my hair get chlorine damage if I swim twice a week?
3. How is my March stipend already gone?
4. Reading "Les Liaisons Dangereuses" and "Notre Dame de Paris" by the end of the month. The library is my new home.
5. Easter candy.
6. Dishes need to be done again.
7. The drama on Felicity, which I thought was the stupidest show ever at first, but can't seem to resist when it's just me and Season 2 in my apartment on a Sunday afternoon.
8. Salon.com, nytimes.com, pink is the new blog (trent.blogspot.com), npr.org, facebook.com
9. Will I have to dress preppy and stop having fun when I go to law school?
10. groceries/ bus schedules
March 8, 2007
Well the events of the day are as follows:
I went swimming with Sarah, Ivey and William.
I made a delicious omelette.
I took a nap
I applied for an internship at the Dole Institute. I'm now worried because there was a typo on my resume. Instead of "French" I had "Frenc." Oh well, there could be worse typos. Like instead of having "French" having "butt."
And later tonight I'm going to talk to the director of study abroad at KU about some of the problems we've been having with this program. And if, I'm not too deflated by that, I'll mosey over to a party at La Bouloie, although I think it's mostly the Spanish and Italians... I don't know about speaking that much French on a nap day.
I went swimming with Sarah, Ivey and William.
I made a delicious omelette.
I took a nap
I applied for an internship at the Dole Institute. I'm now worried because there was a typo on my resume. Instead of "French" I had "Frenc." Oh well, there could be worse typos. Like instead of having "French" having "butt."
And later tonight I'm going to talk to the director of study abroad at KU about some of the problems we've been having with this program. And if, I'm not too deflated by that, I'll mosey over to a party at La Bouloie, although I think it's mostly the Spanish and Italians... I don't know about speaking that much French on a nap day.
March 5, 2007
Carneval
Shock! It was sunny and beautiful in Besancon! For one day, at least. To celebrate, the entire town had a huge parade, much like villages do when their dragons are defeated. The Carneval parade featured children in costumes and elaborate face paint throwing confetti, rhythm groups in harlequin costumes throwing confetti, mimes on stilts throwing confetti, dads throwing confetti... and beauty queens waving primly from their float-temples.
Today everything is back to normal. Phew-- all that happiness was so taxing. It's so cloudy I'm not sure whether the sun has come up or if that's just leftover glow from the streetlights trapped by the clouds. I have class today and lots of reading to do... but until 9:30 I'm allowed to stay in my little bed and watch Family Guy while eating cornflakes. It almost feels like America.
Today everything is back to normal. Phew-- all that happiness was so taxing. It's so cloudy I'm not sure whether the sun has come up or if that's just leftover glow from the streetlights trapped by the clouds. I have class today and lots of reading to do... but until 9:30 I'm allowed to stay in my little bed and watch Family Guy while eating cornflakes. It almost feels like America.
March 1, 2007
Back in Besak
SO. Rain-ancon greeted me with... you guessed it: Rain. Getting off the train, I wanted nothing more than to stowaway to some warm, sunny climate, but barring that, I have decided to hide in my room with the internet and pajamas until bedtime.
Rome and Venice were lovely, and so was the company. Zach and I had a wonderful time scrambling over ruins, picnicking, reading aloud from our guidebook about the least street corner or column and beating a path between our hotel and the Forum in Rome and the Rialto Bridge in Venice. If Rome had a comment box, I would suggest making a bigger production out of the sluggish Tiber, but on the whole the city was the bustling ancient metropolis I always hoped it would be. Better, in fact, because it bristled with orange and lemon trees and charming winding alleyways. Our favorite part was probably the ancient Roman roads and we imagined Roman legions under Julius Gaius Caesar marching their way along, including, of course, our favorite characters from the HBO ROME series.
Venice was expensive and chock full of such heady delights as Tintoretto and Titian paintings for exorbitant admission fees. We enjoyed playing in the labyrinth of the streets, except at lunch time and taking roughly the same picture of a picturesque canal about fifty times. Zach secretly wanted a mask but managed to contain himself. Neither of us wanted any of the "revolting" murano glass figurines or Venetian dolls. The architecture was beautiful and the Venetian empire far more longlived and democratic than I ever imagined.
Zach is now in Germany and I am in Besancon. I hope it isn't raining in Germany. There's no way it could be-- there isn't that much water in the world.
Rome and Venice were lovely, and so was the company. Zach and I had a wonderful time scrambling over ruins, picnicking, reading aloud from our guidebook about the least street corner or column and beating a path between our hotel and the Forum in Rome and the Rialto Bridge in Venice. If Rome had a comment box, I would suggest making a bigger production out of the sluggish Tiber, but on the whole the city was the bustling ancient metropolis I always hoped it would be. Better, in fact, because it bristled with orange and lemon trees and charming winding alleyways. Our favorite part was probably the ancient Roman roads and we imagined Roman legions under Julius Gaius Caesar marching their way along, including, of course, our favorite characters from the HBO ROME series.
Venice was expensive and chock full of such heady delights as Tintoretto and Titian paintings for exorbitant admission fees. We enjoyed playing in the labyrinth of the streets, except at lunch time and taking roughly the same picture of a picturesque canal about fifty times. Zach secretly wanted a mask but managed to contain himself. Neither of us wanted any of the "revolting" murano glass figurines or Venetian dolls. The architecture was beautiful and the Venetian empire far more longlived and democratic than I ever imagined.
Zach is now in Germany and I am in Besancon. I hope it isn't raining in Germany. There's no way it could be-- there isn't that much water in the world.
February 12, 2007
Between Paris and Rome
Zach is here in Besancon, and after a lovely, if exhausting, adventure bringing him back to Besak, we are enjoying lots of rain, lots of cafe, and lots of relaxing time to read and watch Barack Obama speeches.
I am working on "Dangerous Liaisons" and "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" and have forbidden myself to read anything longer than an article in English until after I've slogged through my readings for class. I feel like a little kid-- I will be so proud when I actually finish these chapter books!
Having Zach here inspires me to take advantage of the more charming elements of life in France: cheese, wine, neighborhood bakeries and the farmer's market. We made delicious quiche the other night and had a delightful picnic of two of the local cheese that I LOVE: morbier and comte.
Only a week and a half until we set off for ROME! I'm pumped.
I am working on "Dangerous Liaisons" and "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" and have forbidden myself to read anything longer than an article in English until after I've slogged through my readings for class. I feel like a little kid-- I will be so proud when I actually finish these chapter books!
Having Zach here inspires me to take advantage of the more charming elements of life in France: cheese, wine, neighborhood bakeries and the farmer's market. We made delicious quiche the other night and had a delightful picnic of two of the local cheese that I LOVE: morbier and comte.
Only a week and a half until we set off for ROME! I'm pumped.
January 21, 2007
Dimanche Apres-Midi
Sunday afternoon here in France, the second week of the new semester. It's a new semester in every way: new weather (sunny, not rainy), new outlook (excited and optimistic, rather than depressed and misogaullic), new friends and new snuggly sheets (rather than the nappy old ones that came with the apartment that I once believed had a special breed of bedbugs that knew how to hide when I turned on the light).
This week was eventful. It was the last week at the CLA (read: preschool for foreign students) and the first week of classes at the Faculte des Lettres, which is the real 100% French university. On Wednesday night we took Juli to the hospital in an ambulance (my first time in one!) and she was released a couple of days later.
This week was eventful. It was the last week at the CLA (read: preschool for foreign students) and the first week of classes at the Faculte des Lettres, which is the real 100% French university. On Wednesday night we took Juli to the hospital in an ambulance (my first time in one!) and she was released a couple of days later.
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