I don’t have to go to my classes tomorrow because they are watching a movie or something before the break, so I am finished teaching until March 12…SCORE!!
I also realized I am now just over halfway finished teaching in France. It has gone by quickly, but I think my French has really improved. My vocabulary has grown, and my listening comprehension is a lot better. I can now catch a part of someone’s conversation and understand it. When I first got here it was hard to understand when people were speaking directly at me, but now I can understand even if they are just passing by. Although there have been some improvements there are still times when I have to rack my brain to try to conjugate an irregular verb in the right tense, but I am starting to do that much quicker now. I hope I keep improving in the second half of my stay in France.
I leave for Paris on Saturday morning. I am really excited about the rugby game. I am excited to see what a real European sports fan is like. I like sports probably more than the next person, but I have a feeling I am not going to compare to the people over here!!
The weather has been so nice the past few days. Nothing but sunshine with the temps in the mid 50’s, but it is supposed to rain this weekend at the game. I hope it doesn’t rain too hard because the game doesn’t start until 9 pm, so it will be cold. But I guess that is just all part of the experience...so bring it on!
Thursday, February 22, 2007
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Just a few more days...
I have less than a week of teaching left before I have a two-week break. I am so excited!
I have just about every day of the two weeks planned out. Next Saturday I am going to Paris with Sarah, and we are going to watch a Six Nations Rugby game. It is between France and Wales at the Stade de France in Paris. I can’t say I know a whole lot about rugby, but I have been watching some on the TV. I am slowly catching on to the game.
We are then spending Sunday looking around Paris. Then Sarah leaves to go back to England on Monday. I will probably head back to Belfort until Thursday when I leave for the South of France.
I fly from Bale to Nice on Thursday to meet up with my other roommate, Mandy. We are staying in Nice for three nights and taking some day trips from there. On Friday we are going to Monte Carlo, and on Saturday we are headed to San Remo, Italy. On Sunday we head down the coast to Saint Tropez and Aix-en-Provence. Monday we are looking through Marseilles, and then we are then taking a night ferry to the island of Corsica. We will spend three days looking at some of the places on the island. Then we take another night ferry on the 8th back to Nice, and Friday night we fly back to Bale.
We are trying to fit in a lot of stuff on this trip! It will probably be scary the amount of photos I will take. I have 3 gigs of space on my memory cards. I hope that is enough! :)
Now I just have to make it through the next 5 days. I think I can…I think I can…
I have just about every day of the two weeks planned out. Next Saturday I am going to Paris with Sarah, and we are going to watch a Six Nations Rugby game. It is between France and Wales at the Stade de France in Paris. I can’t say I know a whole lot about rugby, but I have been watching some on the TV. I am slowly catching on to the game.
We are then spending Sunday looking around Paris. Then Sarah leaves to go back to England on Monday. I will probably head back to Belfort until Thursday when I leave for the South of France.
I fly from Bale to Nice on Thursday to meet up with my other roommate, Mandy. We are staying in Nice for three nights and taking some day trips from there. On Friday we are going to Monte Carlo, and on Saturday we are headed to San Remo, Italy. On Sunday we head down the coast to Saint Tropez and Aix-en-Provence. Monday we are looking through Marseilles, and then we are then taking a night ferry to the island of Corsica. We will spend three days looking at some of the places on the island. Then we take another night ferry on the 8th back to Nice, and Friday night we fly back to Bale.
We are trying to fit in a lot of stuff on this trip! It will probably be scary the amount of photos I will take. I have 3 gigs of space on my memory cards. I hope that is enough! :)
Now I just have to make it through the next 5 days. I think I can…I think I can…
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
In the Dark...
So we have been living without electricity for 5 whole days.
It all started last Friday when we got home from working. It turned out that when we moved in we were supposed to change the name on the account, but we never did it. We tried quite a few times, but we were given about three different numbers and either they didn’t work or no one answered. We should have continued, but of course we didn’t. In the end we made it 4 and half months without a problem.
We called our landlady and got a different number. When I called that one I finally got through. I changed all of information, and they told us that it would be 48 hours until it was turned back on.
Everything in our apartment is electric including the water heater and our stove, so we had no way to cook food or a place to store it. We put our refrigerated stuff out on the balcony to stay cool, and took very quick freezing cold showers. We were quite proud of ourselves on Sunday night because we had made it a whole weekend without electricity.
But by Monday morning we still didn’t have any electricity, so we called again and they told us that 48 hours does not include the weekend. (I am not sure why they didn’t tell us that before. I guess in France it is assumed that people don’t work on the weekend.) They said someone would come out and fix it by Tuesday afternoon. When we got home yesterday we still didn’t have any lights, so we called again and this time they said they didn’t have an open appointment until February 21, which didn’t go down too well with us. The poor lady got an earful from Sarah. She said she would put an urgent notice on our name, so hopefully it would get done faster.
Today a man called and said someone had come by yesterday and fixed the line downstairs, so there was something wrong with our apartment. We then had to call our landlady and she came by and called the people up again because there was nothing wrong with our fuse box. They then sent a repairman out, and they found that in fact when someone came by yesterday they didn’t actually turn the current back on…so they flipped the switch and just like that we had LIGHT!
It took 120 hours, 40 euros worth of phone calls, 16 candles, and lots of spoiled food but we made it through. It was such a headache. Granted we could have figured out the whole name change thing earlier, but it was still very drawn out.
In the end I also found I can still be creative when it comes to finding stuff to do, and that it is still possible to go five days without Internet. Difficult but still possible.
Playing Yahtzee by candle light.
It all started last Friday when we got home from working. It turned out that when we moved in we were supposed to change the name on the account, but we never did it. We tried quite a few times, but we were given about three different numbers and either they didn’t work or no one answered. We should have continued, but of course we didn’t. In the end we made it 4 and half months without a problem.
We called our landlady and got a different number. When I called that one I finally got through. I changed all of information, and they told us that it would be 48 hours until it was turned back on.
Everything in our apartment is electric including the water heater and our stove, so we had no way to cook food or a place to store it. We put our refrigerated stuff out on the balcony to stay cool, and took very quick freezing cold showers. We were quite proud of ourselves on Sunday night because we had made it a whole weekend without electricity.
But by Monday morning we still didn’t have any electricity, so we called again and they told us that 48 hours does not include the weekend. (I am not sure why they didn’t tell us that before. I guess in France it is assumed that people don’t work on the weekend.) They said someone would come out and fix it by Tuesday afternoon. When we got home yesterday we still didn’t have any lights, so we called again and this time they said they didn’t have an open appointment until February 21, which didn’t go down too well with us. The poor lady got an earful from Sarah. She said she would put an urgent notice on our name, so hopefully it would get done faster.
Today a man called and said someone had come by yesterday and fixed the line downstairs, so there was something wrong with our apartment. We then had to call our landlady and she came by and called the people up again because there was nothing wrong with our fuse box. They then sent a repairman out, and they found that in fact when someone came by yesterday they didn’t actually turn the current back on…so they flipped the switch and just like that we had LIGHT!
It took 120 hours, 40 euros worth of phone calls, 16 candles, and lots of spoiled food but we made it through. It was such a headache. Granted we could have figured out the whole name change thing earlier, but it was still very drawn out.
In the end I also found I can still be creative when it comes to finding stuff to do, and that it is still possible to go five days without Internet. Difficult but still possible.
Playing Yahtzee by candle light.
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
"Cuz We're on Strike"
Tomorrow there is a teachers’ strike in France. I guess a couple of teachers wanted some more money and decided to strike. Then teachers all over the country decided to join in, so now it is pretty much in every school in France. Three out of the four classes I teach tomorrow will not be there because their teachers are participating. Then I talked to the other teacher who will still be there, and she said not to worry about coming in. Now I have another day off this week, but I still get paid. Not too bad…
I am sure the kids don’t mind too much either.
From what I heard the French like to go on strike a lot. In the four and a half months I have been here I have seen two train strikes and one in the schools. I think they like to go on strike because they are so effective. I read in a book that if one group goes on strike lots of other people will join in even if they are not directly affected by the strike. So sometimes if teachers go on strike then transportation workers will also strike.
I guess I will have to be careful and not plan on going anywhere tomorrow, or I might now end up getting back!
P.S. I have put up my pictures of Versailles on my Web site if you want to check them out.
I am sure the kids don’t mind too much either.
From what I heard the French like to go on strike a lot. In the four and a half months I have been here I have seen two train strikes and one in the schools. I think they like to go on strike because they are so effective. I read in a book that if one group goes on strike lots of other people will join in even if they are not directly affected by the strike. So sometimes if teachers go on strike then transportation workers will also strike.
I guess I will have to be careful and not plan on going anywhere tomorrow, or I might now end up getting back!
P.S. I have put up my pictures of Versailles on my Web site if you want to check them out.
Monday, February 05, 2007
Weekend in Paris
I had another busy weekend! We left at 6 pm from Belfort Friday night, and we got in to Paris at about 10 pm. Then we met up with a few of Sarah’s friends who are assistants there. We stayed in a hostel, which was not very nice…it was actually pretty disgusting! There were only three showers available to about 100 people, so they were just as dirty as you would think. It also looked like they didn’t clean them during the day, so the next night they were even worse. I decided I would rather have greasy hair than to shower in that thing.
Saturday we went to Disneyland Paris. It was interesting to see how much they blended French and English. There were a lot of things that were in both languages. For example on the Star Tours ride the little robot guy spoke French, but in the movie part on the screen they spoke English. I guess they couldn’t change everything because it would cost too much. All the cast members spoke both languages as well. I was disappointed to find that their Indiana Jones ride was only a little roller coaster. It was nothing like the ride at Disneyland where you go on the jeep tour. It had been almost 5 years since I went to Disneyland, so it was fun. I also screamed so much on the rides that I lost my voice!
Yesterday we went to Versailles. It is free on the first Sunday of every month, so there were quite a few people there. We had to wait in a really long line to get into the chateau, but it was worth it.
The line from HECK!!! This is only about ¾ of it too!
Inside everything was so elaborate. In the castle there is a two-story chapel, a theater and so many other rooms. It would have been really neat to be able to walk through on your own.
The grounds were the best part of the trip, even in winter. They didn’t have the fountains on though, so again a little disappointing. I guess that is what happens when you go to places in the middle of winter. The grounds are so large. It can take up to an hour to walk from one end to the other. There is also a huge canal where they have boats in the summer. It was so nice to walk around, and the weather was perfect. It was a little cool, but there wasn’t a cloud in the sky the entire weekend.
We caught the 6 pm train back to Belfort, so we got home at about 10:15 pm. I was in bed by 11, completely exhausted.
I didn’t get to watch the Super Bowl because they are showing it tonight here, but it still doesn’t start until a quarter to midnight. After my classes this afternoon I think I will take a nap. I still want to watch even though I already know who won. It will be another long night!
Saturday we went to Disneyland Paris. It was interesting to see how much they blended French and English. There were a lot of things that were in both languages. For example on the Star Tours ride the little robot guy spoke French, but in the movie part on the screen they spoke English. I guess they couldn’t change everything because it would cost too much. All the cast members spoke both languages as well. I was disappointed to find that their Indiana Jones ride was only a little roller coaster. It was nothing like the ride at Disneyland where you go on the jeep tour. It had been almost 5 years since I went to Disneyland, so it was fun. I also screamed so much on the rides that I lost my voice!
Yesterday we went to Versailles. It is free on the first Sunday of every month, so there were quite a few people there. We had to wait in a really long line to get into the chateau, but it was worth it.
The line from HECK!!! This is only about ¾ of it too!
Inside everything was so elaborate. In the castle there is a two-story chapel, a theater and so many other rooms. It would have been really neat to be able to walk through on your own.
The grounds were the best part of the trip, even in winter. They didn’t have the fountains on though, so again a little disappointing. I guess that is what happens when you go to places in the middle of winter. The grounds are so large. It can take up to an hour to walk from one end to the other. There is also a huge canal where they have boats in the summer. It was so nice to walk around, and the weather was perfect. It was a little cool, but there wasn’t a cloud in the sky the entire weekend.
We caught the 6 pm train back to Belfort, so we got home at about 10:15 pm. I was in bed by 11, completely exhausted.
I didn’t get to watch the Super Bowl because they are showing it tonight here, but it still doesn’t start until a quarter to midnight. After my classes this afternoon I think I will take a nap. I still want to watch even though I already know who won. It will be another long night!
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
The French Smoking Ban
Yesterday I was reading about the new smoking ban that goes into effect tomorrow in France. Smoking will no longer be allowed in places of business (like shops), schools, and hospitals. Then in January next year it will not be allowed in any public places including restaurants and bars. (They wanted to give people a year longer to adjust to the idea.)
I also read that in France about 1 in 3 people smoke. It is a large number, but I believe it after being here for 4 months. People smoke everywhere including the teachers at school. When I first started working here I was startled to see the teachers light up in the teacher’s lounge. I though it was strange to see them smoking at a school where children might see, so imagine my surprise the next day when I saw a teacher smoking on the playground while the kids were at recess! I just couldn’t believe what I was seeing!
There is one teacher in particular who is always smoking on the playground, so it will be amusing to see what happens tomorrow. He will probably have to leave campus 10 times a day to get his nicotine fix.
It is a little sad that the smoking ban for bars and restaurants doesn’t go into effect until next year. The smoke is one of the hardest things I have had to deal with here. Even if I sit in the nonsmoking area, I still go home stinking like smoke. Most times I have to go wash my hair because the smell is so strong it makes me sick.
It will be interesting to see how French culture is changed because of the smoking ban. It seems that smoking a cigarette is as French as wearing a beret.
I also read that in France about 1 in 3 people smoke. It is a large number, but I believe it after being here for 4 months. People smoke everywhere including the teachers at school. When I first started working here I was startled to see the teachers light up in the teacher’s lounge. I though it was strange to see them smoking at a school where children might see, so imagine my surprise the next day when I saw a teacher smoking on the playground while the kids were at recess! I just couldn’t believe what I was seeing!
There is one teacher in particular who is always smoking on the playground, so it will be amusing to see what happens tomorrow. He will probably have to leave campus 10 times a day to get his nicotine fix.
It is a little sad that the smoking ban for bars and restaurants doesn’t go into effect until next year. The smoke is one of the hardest things I have had to deal with here. Even if I sit in the nonsmoking area, I still go home stinking like smoke. Most times I have to go wash my hair because the smell is so strong it makes me sick.
It will be interesting to see how French culture is changed because of the smoking ban. It seems that smoking a cigarette is as French as wearing a beret.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Winter Wonderland
We ended up getting about 4 inches of snow. It made everything look so pretty. It has also been REALLY cold, so not much has melted in the last two days. The highs have only been in the 20’s. Also in Belfort they don’t shovel the sidewalks, so they have become ice rinks. I almost fell about five times going to my classes this morning. It really makes me miss Boulder, where you had to have the sidewalks shoveled by 12 pm the next day!!
We are supposed to have another chance of snow tomorrow night. I guess it is a good thing that we aren’t going anywhere this weekend. It might be a little too cold for sightseeing.
The first weekend of February we are going to Paris. We are going to Disneyland on Saturday, and then go to Versailles on Sunday because in winter the first Sunday of every month admission is free. We would be saving like 18 or 20 euros, so that sounds good to me.
Here are a couple of pictures of the snow from my bedroom window.
Just a couple of hours after it started…
This is a view of the castle in the morning.
We are supposed to have another chance of snow tomorrow night. I guess it is a good thing that we aren’t going anywhere this weekend. It might be a little too cold for sightseeing.
The first weekend of February we are going to Paris. We are going to Disneyland on Saturday, and then go to Versailles on Sunday because in winter the first Sunday of every month admission is free. We would be saving like 18 or 20 euros, so that sounds good to me.
Here are a couple of pictures of the snow from my bedroom window.
Just a couple of hours after it started…
This is a view of the castle in the morning.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Let it snow...
Well, it has just started to snow in Belfort for the first time this winter. It looks really pretty falling down in the lights.
I knew it was going to snow today because the kids were so crazy today. It was tough to get through all the lessons, but I made it. I don't have to work tomorrow, so if we get enough snow maybe I can go take some pictures. I hope it isn’t all melted by then.
Also, I have just updated my Web site with my pictures from Neuchâtel, so check them out.
web.mac.com/downinga
I knew it was going to snow today because the kids were so crazy today. It was tough to get through all the lessons, but I made it. I don't have to work tomorrow, so if we get enough snow maybe I can go take some pictures. I hope it isn’t all melted by then.
Also, I have just updated my Web site with my pictures from Neuchâtel, so check them out.
web.mac.com/downinga
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Neuchâtel, Switzerland
We had a good time in Neuchâtel. It is an absolutely gorgeous town. It sits right on Lake Neuchâtel, which is the biggest lake entirely in Switzerland. It also has spectacular views of the Alps. They are just on the other side of the lake. They were all covered in snow. I even saw Mt. Blanc for the first time!
On Saturday we decided to go on a hike to see this gorge thing called Creux-du-Van. It is located in the Jura Mountains to the west of Neuchâtel. We asked at the information place, and they said it was a little hilly and it would take about an hour and a half to get to it.
That was not the case at all. It was the HARDEST climb I have even done in my life. It had about 2100 feet of elevation gain. In the end it took up 2 hours and 45 minutes. Then we got to the top, and this is all we could see…
Here is what it is supposed to look like. Just a little different…
We worked so hard, and all we saw was fog. It was such a bummer!! At least we all made it. That night we came back completely exhausted and sore, but we went out to dinner and had fondue. It was fun to have real Swiss fondue in Switzerland, and I didn’t lose a single piece of bread in the pot!
Today we saw some more of the town. There is a really beautiful castle, but we could only see it from the outside because it is closed in the winter. (It is hard to travel in January, I guess) I still got some neat pictures of the outside though. We also walked down to the lake on a little promenade. It was a nice weather the entire time, cool but sunny.
I really liked Switzerland. Before this trip I had only passed through it a few times in Bâle. This was the first time I had spent any real time there. The Swiss people are all really nice and friendly, and they keep everything so clean. Plus they actually stop to let you cross the road, which is nice.
Even though we didn’t get to see the gorge it was still a fun trip. Now I have to go back in to work mode. This week I will be teaching all the kiddies about animals. Good times!
I will put up pictures on my Web site soon.
On Saturday we decided to go on a hike to see this gorge thing called Creux-du-Van. It is located in the Jura Mountains to the west of Neuchâtel. We asked at the information place, and they said it was a little hilly and it would take about an hour and a half to get to it.
That was not the case at all. It was the HARDEST climb I have even done in my life. It had about 2100 feet of elevation gain. In the end it took up 2 hours and 45 minutes. Then we got to the top, and this is all we could see…
Here is what it is supposed to look like. Just a little different…
We worked so hard, and all we saw was fog. It was such a bummer!! At least we all made it. That night we came back completely exhausted and sore, but we went out to dinner and had fondue. It was fun to have real Swiss fondue in Switzerland, and I didn’t lose a single piece of bread in the pot!
Today we saw some more of the town. There is a really beautiful castle, but we could only see it from the outside because it is closed in the winter. (It is hard to travel in January, I guess) I still got some neat pictures of the outside though. We also walked down to the lake on a little promenade. It was a nice weather the entire time, cool but sunny.
I really liked Switzerland. Before this trip I had only passed through it a few times in Bâle. This was the first time I had spent any real time there. The Swiss people are all really nice and friendly, and they keep everything so clean. Plus they actually stop to let you cross the road, which is nice.
Even though we didn’t get to see the gorge it was still a fun trip. Now I have to go back in to work mode. This week I will be teaching all the kiddies about animals. Good times!
I will put up pictures on my Web site soon.
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Life in France
We finally got our heating back last night. I guess our landlady forgot to put something in the main boiler thing downstairs, so all four apartment in the building didn’t have any heat. Somehow that just isn’t too surprising…
Yesterday we went to an exposition on the city of Belfort. This year the town is celebrating its 700th birthday, so the exposition was about the history of the town. It is hard to believe this town is 700 years old. There is just nothing in the States that is that old!
Also Sarah writes a short article for her college newspaper about her adventures in France. This time she wanted to write about some of the differences in everyday life we have noticed. The three of us brainstormed. We came up with a lot of funny things, so here is a copy of the article. Sarah wrote it , but the ideas are all of ours. I left it just how she wrote it because the phrases in “real” England English are also amusing. Here are some translations:
1.Chave = the best translation I have come up with for this word is a person who is a “tool”
2. Zebra crossing = cross walk
3. brollies = umbrellas
Pourquoi…?
Pourquoi do the French male chavs all follow the fashion of having either a
burberry handbag (no really) or a pastel coloured bumbag (or fanny pack as my housemate calls it) with some kind of animal depicted on it.? (the baby blue kangaroo is the best we’ve seen)
Pourquoi is there poo everywhere?
Pourquoi do the French dance with their hands facing down whilst clutching said pastel elephant handbag?
Pourquoi is it necessary to say “Bon appetit” anytime you see someone (usually a stranger) eating anything, however small (on the train, sitting on a bench, walking down the street on your own…)
Pourquoi is it fashionable to have one trouser leg rolled up to your knee and the other tucked into your sock?
Pourquoi do the French always feel the need to push in the queue?
Pourquoi do the French have no concept of time e.g. discussing their husbands’ hemorrhoids with a stranger when buying tickets at the train station, despite knowing there are 27 people behind them who want to catch the train leaving in 34 seconds. E.g.2 stopping the bus when I need to get to work so that a little old lady can get off to buy the bus driver breakfast.
Pourquoi does a green man mean nothing on a zebra crossing?
Pourquoi do they not sell salt and vinegar crisps/peanut butter / baked beans/ bacon/ decent chewing gum?
Pourquoi do the French tramps prefer to hold their brollies over their dogs rather than themselves in the pouring rain?
Pourquoi does a baguette only last for one day before the only thing left to do with it is to throw it off the balcony to see how far it will go?
Pourquoi is everything shut for 2 hours every lunchtime and all day Sunday and Monday when this is the only time anyone has off work?
Pourquoi have I not seen anyone wearing a beret or with a string of garlic round their neck?
Pourquoi do the French never smile when the sky is blue most of the time? They are probably trying not to step in the poo!
Yesterday we went to an exposition on the city of Belfort. This year the town is celebrating its 700th birthday, so the exposition was about the history of the town. It is hard to believe this town is 700 years old. There is just nothing in the States that is that old!
Also Sarah writes a short article for her college newspaper about her adventures in France. This time she wanted to write about some of the differences in everyday life we have noticed. The three of us brainstormed. We came up with a lot of funny things, so here is a copy of the article. Sarah wrote it , but the ideas are all of ours. I left it just how she wrote it because the phrases in “real” England English are also amusing. Here are some translations:
1.Chave = the best translation I have come up with for this word is a person who is a “tool”
2. Zebra crossing = cross walk
3. brollies = umbrellas
Pourquoi…?
Pourquoi do the French male chavs all follow the fashion of having either a
burberry handbag (no really) or a pastel coloured bumbag (or fanny pack as my housemate calls it) with some kind of animal depicted on it.? (the baby blue kangaroo is the best we’ve seen)
Pourquoi is there poo everywhere?
Pourquoi do the French dance with their hands facing down whilst clutching said pastel elephant handbag?
Pourquoi is it necessary to say “Bon appetit” anytime you see someone (usually a stranger) eating anything, however small (on the train, sitting on a bench, walking down the street on your own…)
Pourquoi is it fashionable to have one trouser leg rolled up to your knee and the other tucked into your sock?
Pourquoi do the French always feel the need to push in the queue?
Pourquoi do the French have no concept of time e.g. discussing their husbands’ hemorrhoids with a stranger when buying tickets at the train station, despite knowing there are 27 people behind them who want to catch the train leaving in 34 seconds. E.g.2 stopping the bus when I need to get to work so that a little old lady can get off to buy the bus driver breakfast.
Pourquoi does a green man mean nothing on a zebra crossing?
Pourquoi do they not sell salt and vinegar crisps/peanut butter / baked beans/ bacon/ decent chewing gum?
Pourquoi do the French tramps prefer to hold their brollies over their dogs rather than themselves in the pouring rain?
Pourquoi does a baguette only last for one day before the only thing left to do with it is to throw it off the balcony to see how far it will go?
Pourquoi is everything shut for 2 hours every lunchtime and all day Sunday and Monday when this is the only time anyone has off work?
Pourquoi have I not seen anyone wearing a beret or with a string of garlic round their neck?
Pourquoi do the French never smile when the sky is blue most of the time? They are probably trying not to step in the poo!
Monday, January 15, 2007
Football in France
Last night I watched my first live American football game in France. They had the live feed from FOX for the Bears and Seahawks game with French commentators. There are a lot more commercials in America, so we got to look at the crowd when FOX went to a commercial in the US.
It was interesting to hear what the commentators were saying. They didn’t do any play by play because they spent a lot of the time explaining everything for the people who don’t understand the game, which is pretty much everyone in France. Sarah joked that I was probably the only one watching the game in the entire country of France. I told her that Matt, the other American assistant in Belfort, was probably watching it too, so it wasn't a complete loss.
It was really the best of both worlds because I was able to watch football and practice my French at the same time. It doesn’t get much better than that!!
I am still working on the roomies. They didn’t want to watch the game. Maybe in a couple of weeks when the Super Bowl is on they will realize how great football really is. There is still time!
In other news every radiator in our apartment has decided to stop working, so it is getting quite cold in here. We pay 150 euros a month just for heating, so it is really annoying that they are not working. Our landlady is coming by tomorrow, so hopefully we can get them working. Right now we are just bundling up as much as we can, but it is still really bad when you have to get up early and to shower!!
It was interesting to hear what the commentators were saying. They didn’t do any play by play because they spent a lot of the time explaining everything for the people who don’t understand the game, which is pretty much everyone in France. Sarah joked that I was probably the only one watching the game in the entire country of France. I told her that Matt, the other American assistant in Belfort, was probably watching it too, so it wasn't a complete loss.
It was really the best of both worlds because I was able to watch football and practice my French at the same time. It doesn’t get much better than that!!
I am still working on the roomies. They didn’t want to watch the game. Maybe in a couple of weeks when the Super Bowl is on they will realize how great football really is. There is still time!
In other news every radiator in our apartment has decided to stop working, so it is getting quite cold in here. We pay 150 euros a month just for heating, so it is really annoying that they are not working. Our landlady is coming by tomorrow, so hopefully we can get them working. Right now we are just bundling up as much as we can, but it is still really bad when you have to get up early and to shower!!
Saturday, January 13, 2007
Shopping French Style
Every January in France there are nation wide sales, les soldes. All stores have huge sales on their clothes, shoes and other accessories, and everyone goes crazy.
Sarah, Mandy and I decided today that we were going to hit up some of the sales, so we went to the town of Montbéliard, which is about 15 minutes by train. We went there for a Christmas market in December. While we were there we noticed they had a lot more shops than Belfort, so we wanted to give it a try.
There are some really good deals out there. Almost everything is at least 30 percent off and some stuff is as high as 70 percent. In the sales I bought a two purses for about 17 euros because they were 50 and 70 percent off. It is amazing how cheap things were.
I think everyone in France just waits until January to buy their clothes for the whole year. Every store is so crowded, but I guess you can’t blame them. They just want to save a little money like me!
I think I read somewhere that it is actually a government-mandated sale, and it goes on for about 6 weeks! I wish the US had something like that every year. It was so exciting to see how much money you were saving (but I guess you aren’t really saving much when you buy more stuff ☺).
It was a nice way to spend the afternoon because this morning we had another meeting with the other language teachers. They are so bad because we have to meet at 8:30 in the morning on a Saturday, and sit around and do nothing. It would be really nice if we actually learned or discussed something. O-well, at least it is only once a month.
I think next weekend we are going to go to Neuchâtel, Switzerland. Someone recommended it to me, and when I looked it up it looked really nice. It isn't far from here. Just a little south of Bale. I guess I will spend my Sunday doing some more research on the Internet. It should be fun!
Sarah, Mandy and I decided today that we were going to hit up some of the sales, so we went to the town of Montbéliard, which is about 15 minutes by train. We went there for a Christmas market in December. While we were there we noticed they had a lot more shops than Belfort, so we wanted to give it a try.
There are some really good deals out there. Almost everything is at least 30 percent off and some stuff is as high as 70 percent. In the sales I bought a two purses for about 17 euros because they were 50 and 70 percent off. It is amazing how cheap things were.
I think everyone in France just waits until January to buy their clothes for the whole year. Every store is so crowded, but I guess you can’t blame them. They just want to save a little money like me!
I think I read somewhere that it is actually a government-mandated sale, and it goes on for about 6 weeks! I wish the US had something like that every year. It was so exciting to see how much money you were saving (but I guess you aren’t really saving much when you buy more stuff ☺).
It was a nice way to spend the afternoon because this morning we had another meeting with the other language teachers. They are so bad because we have to meet at 8:30 in the morning on a Saturday, and sit around and do nothing. It would be really nice if we actually learned or discussed something. O-well, at least it is only once a month.
I think next weekend we are going to go to Neuchâtel, Switzerland. Someone recommended it to me, and when I looked it up it looked really nice. It isn't far from here. Just a little south of Bale. I guess I will spend my Sunday doing some more research on the Internet. It should be fun!
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
The New Year in France
Yesterday was a really hard day because I have been suffering from some really bad jet lag. Sunday night I couldn’t fall asleep until about 5 am, and I had to get up at 7 am. Then I had to teach six classes and tutor on two hours of sleep. I was pretty tired. I wouldn’t allow myself to rest at all during the day, so last night I went to bed at 10 pm and slept until 8 am. It was so nice. I felt a lot better when I woke up. It is also good to know that the worst of it is over. It is definitely easier when you travel west because you just get up earlier. Instead of just being in bed thinking that you should be asleep.
I know it wasn’t this bad when I came out in September. My friend, Tamar, said it was because we were both in survival mode when we arrived in France the first time. Now I am used to being here, so my body is not so shocked.
Yesterday I must have been whished happy New Year by about 25 different people. I was really amazed so many people said it to me even a week into the New Year. I asked the lady I tutored about it, and she told me that it is the custom in France to wish all your acquaintances “Bonne Année” up until the end of January. If you don’t, some people might see you as being rude. She is a hairdresser, and she said she only says it for the first two weeks because it starts to get annoying after a while. I think this is a really interesting custom because in the US you really don’t hear the phrase uttered past January 3.
I will have to remember to say it to everyone, so I won’t be seen as the rude American.
So…Bonne Année everyone!!
I know it wasn’t this bad when I came out in September. My friend, Tamar, said it was because we were both in survival mode when we arrived in France the first time. Now I am used to being here, so my body is not so shocked.
Yesterday I must have been whished happy New Year by about 25 different people. I was really amazed so many people said it to me even a week into the New Year. I asked the lady I tutored about it, and she told me that it is the custom in France to wish all your acquaintances “Bonne Année” up until the end of January. If you don’t, some people might see you as being rude. She is a hairdresser, and she said she only says it for the first two weeks because it starts to get annoying after a while. I think this is a really interesting custom because in the US you really don’t hear the phrase uttered past January 3.
I will have to remember to say it to everyone, so I won’t be seen as the rude American.
So…Bonne Année everyone!!
Saturday, January 06, 2007
Back in France
Well, somehow I made it back to France. It was another long 24-hour trip. I guess it takes me exactly one day from door to door.
This time I had a layover in Detroit. It was only about an hour, so it wasn’t too bad. We also had a really good tailwind on the trip to Paris, so we landed about an hour early.
Even though I was early I barely made the train to Belfort. First it takes forever to get off the plane because they put you on a bus to take you to the terminal. I was in the back of the plane, so I had to wait even longer. Then after getting my luggage I had to take the train into Paris. Then I had to take the metro to another train station, and by the time I bought my ticket and got on the train I had 6 minutes to spare. At least I made it. I really didn’t want to wait another 3 hours for the next train!
There seemed to be a lot of people everywhere I went yesterday, so it was really hard to move with all my luggage. When I came back to California I only brought Christmas presents, so I could bring some more clothes back with me. I had a lot of stuff, and I must have looked pretty funny because everyone was staring at me.
Sarah gets back today and Mandy comes in on Sunday. I am looking forward to seeing them. I go back to teaching on Monday. Right now I really don’t want to think about planning lessons, but I will probably just do review the first week. I am sure the kids will need it after having 2 weeks off.
It was a lot of traveling but well worth it. I had a good time, and I am happy to be back in Belfort speaking French again!
This time I had a layover in Detroit. It was only about an hour, so it wasn’t too bad. We also had a really good tailwind on the trip to Paris, so we landed about an hour early.
Even though I was early I barely made the train to Belfort. First it takes forever to get off the plane because they put you on a bus to take you to the terminal. I was in the back of the plane, so I had to wait even longer. Then after getting my luggage I had to take the train into Paris. Then I had to take the metro to another train station, and by the time I bought my ticket and got on the train I had 6 minutes to spare. At least I made it. I really didn’t want to wait another 3 hours for the next train!
There seemed to be a lot of people everywhere I went yesterday, so it was really hard to move with all my luggage. When I came back to California I only brought Christmas presents, so I could bring some more clothes back with me. I had a lot of stuff, and I must have looked pretty funny because everyone was staring at me.
Sarah gets back today and Mandy comes in on Sunday. I am looking forward to seeing them. I go back to teaching on Monday. Right now I really don’t want to think about planning lessons, but I will probably just do review the first week. I am sure the kids will need it after having 2 weeks off.
It was a lot of traveling but well worth it. I had a good time, and I am happy to be back in Belfort speaking French again!
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
Home for the holidays
After traveling for exactly 24 hours I finally made it home safely. It was a long trip, but I didn’t have any big problems. I was pretty lucky.
Now I have until January 4 until I have to go the 6000 miles back to Belfort. In that time I will probably be watching lots of football and eating lots of good Mexican food to get me through the next 6 months.
I had a good Christmas. I received a new macro lens for my camera. I am so excited to use it in my travels next year. The macro lens allows you to get really close up shots. It should be fun to mess around with it.
Jet lag has not been my friend the last two days. On Christmas morning I woke up at 6 am. Then last night we were watching a movie. I just couldn’t keep my eyes open, so I went to bed at 8:30. Then this morning I was wide awake at 5:30 am, so I had to sit around waiting for everyone else to get up.
I am definitely not looking forward to it again when I go back to France. It really throws you off for a few days! O-well it has been more than worth it to see my family for Christmas!
Now I have until January 4 until I have to go the 6000 miles back to Belfort. In that time I will probably be watching lots of football and eating lots of good Mexican food to get me through the next 6 months.
I had a good Christmas. I received a new macro lens for my camera. I am so excited to use it in my travels next year. The macro lens allows you to get really close up shots. It should be fun to mess around with it.
Jet lag has not been my friend the last two days. On Christmas morning I woke up at 6 am. Then last night we were watching a movie. I just couldn’t keep my eyes open, so I went to bed at 8:30. Then this morning I was wide awake at 5:30 am, so I had to sit around waiting for everyone else to get up.
I am definitely not looking forward to it again when I go back to France. It really throws you off for a few days! O-well it has been more than worth it to see my family for Christmas!
Friday, December 22, 2006
Let's Party!!!!!
I am finished teaching for the next two weeks. I am so excited that I don’t have to deal with the little French kiddies for a while.
Tonight we had a Christmas celebration at our place. We made a really good dinner and opened our presents. Mandy had brought over some crackers (which I found out are not like the ones you eat!!!). They are a tradition in England at Christmas. They are little popper type things, and inside is a terrible joke, a toy and a really goofy hat. We wore our hats the whole time, and I can say that I am glad we don’t have them in the US!
We had a good time and here are some pictures.
Here we are after we opend all our presents. (I made them the scarfs they are wearing.)
Now you see what I mean about the hats!
I am leaving early Sunday morning to make my way back home. I am catching the train at 2 am from Belfort to Paris. Then I have to catch the metro to another train station in Paris to take the train to the airport. My plane leaves at 11:30 am. Then it is a 12 hour flight, and I get into LAX at 2:30 pm because of the time change. I am then taking the SuperShuttle to my Grandparents’ house where we are celebrating Christmas Eve.
All said and done it will be about 22 hours of traveling!!! It will be a really long trip, but well worth. It will be so nice to be back in the US for a while!!!! I will just have to work on getting out of my French mode!
Tonight we had a Christmas celebration at our place. We made a really good dinner and opened our presents. Mandy had brought over some crackers (which I found out are not like the ones you eat!!!). They are a tradition in England at Christmas. They are little popper type things, and inside is a terrible joke, a toy and a really goofy hat. We wore our hats the whole time, and I can say that I am glad we don’t have them in the US!
We had a good time and here are some pictures.
Here we are after we opend all our presents. (I made them the scarfs they are wearing.)
Now you see what I mean about the hats!
I am leaving early Sunday morning to make my way back home. I am catching the train at 2 am from Belfort to Paris. Then I have to catch the metro to another train station in Paris to take the train to the airport. My plane leaves at 11:30 am. Then it is a 12 hour flight, and I get into LAX at 2:30 pm because of the time change. I am then taking the SuperShuttle to my Grandparents’ house where we are celebrating Christmas Eve.
All said and done it will be about 22 hours of traveling!!! It will be a really long trip, but well worth. It will be so nice to be back in the US for a while!!!! I will just have to work on getting out of my French mode!
Wednesday, December 20, 2006
Christmas in Belfort
Yesterday I went on the little tourist train that goes around town. In the summer it goes up to the castle, but in December it just goes through the town, so you can look at all the Christmas lights. It was absolutely freezing, and we went so slow!!!! The train went through the pedestrian area, and people were passing us on foot. It was one of those times when it would have been nice to just get out and push.
Despite the cold and slow pace it was still fun to see all the town decorated. It took them about a month to put all of the lights up, but I think their hard work paid off!
Here are a few of the pictures I took.
This is the pedistrian area. I can see these lights from my apartment.
This is the town hall.
Here the gazebo in the "Old Town"
All the buildings in town have yellow and red lights, so everything matches. It looks pretty amazing.
Despite the cold and slow pace it was still fun to see all the town decorated. It took them about a month to put all of the lights up, but I think their hard work paid off!
Here are a few of the pictures I took.
This is the pedistrian area. I can see these lights from my apartment.
This is the town hall.
Here the gazebo in the "Old Town"
All the buildings in town have yellow and red lights, so everything matches. It looks pretty amazing.
Saturday, December 16, 2006
The craziness that is French television
We finally have a working TV. The TV connection is included in our Internet cost, so we were looking for a cheap TV for a while. Then last week our neighbor, who just bought a new TV, let us borrow his old, crappy one. It was really nice of him. The power button doesn’t stay on, so I had to use like 8 pieces of tape to keep it in place. Then just as you get settled and into a show it will come lose, so you will have to walk back over and try it again. It still has a good picture, so it really isn’t too bad considering it was free.
There is not a whole lot to watch. A lot of the shows are ones that were cancelled a long time ago in the United States, and after watching about 5 minutes of them it is apparent why. They do have “Friends” though. It is a lot of fun to hear the dubbing voices because it sounds nothing like the actual person. Ross actually sounds like he is a little bit Japanese to me.
I have caught a cold, so last night I didn’t want to do anything. I turned on the TV and watched a little of “Alert A Malibu,” which is the French name for “Baywatch.” I could only stand it for a while because I remembered just how bad that show is. (In this episode there was some kind of huge octopus thing that was attacking people!) I heard that at one time “Baywatch” was the most popular show in the world because it gets so much play all around the world. Go figure…
This afternoon they had actual American football on TV. I couldn’t believe it! Sure it was only a thirty-minute recap from a few of the games last week, but it is the most I have watched in three months. Maybe this means that I will be able to watch the Superbowl at like 3 am come February. I can’t wait.
I am going to be doing Christmas stuff with all my classes this week. It should be a lot of fun. I think I am going to teach them Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town.” Then I am going to have them make Christmas cards with the new vocabulary words I am going to teach them. It should make the week go by really fast if they are all well behaved. I am thinking that will not be the case, but I am hoping for the best.
There is not a whole lot to watch. A lot of the shows are ones that were cancelled a long time ago in the United States, and after watching about 5 minutes of them it is apparent why. They do have “Friends” though. It is a lot of fun to hear the dubbing voices because it sounds nothing like the actual person. Ross actually sounds like he is a little bit Japanese to me.
I have caught a cold, so last night I didn’t want to do anything. I turned on the TV and watched a little of “Alert A Malibu,” which is the French name for “Baywatch.” I could only stand it for a while because I remembered just how bad that show is. (In this episode there was some kind of huge octopus thing that was attacking people!) I heard that at one time “Baywatch” was the most popular show in the world because it gets so much play all around the world. Go figure…
This afternoon they had actual American football on TV. I couldn’t believe it! Sure it was only a thirty-minute recap from a few of the games last week, but it is the most I have watched in three months. Maybe this means that I will be able to watch the Superbowl at like 3 am come February. I can’t wait.
I am going to be doing Christmas stuff with all my classes this week. It should be a lot of fun. I think I am going to teach them Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town.” Then I am going to have them make Christmas cards with the new vocabulary words I am going to teach them. It should make the week go by really fast if they are all well behaved. I am thinking that will not be the case, but I am hoping for the best.
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
I think I am making progress….
Today I had to call a delivery place because my I am waiting for a package, and I had to set up a time for them to deliver it. I was so proud of myself because the conversation went really well. I understood everything she said, and more importantly she understood everything I said. When I first got here I hated talking to people on the phone because it is so difficult, and I used to write everything I was going to say down before hand. Now I can just call them up and talk…I guess I have improved my French in the last three months!! (I can’t believe it has been that long)
We had a good time when Sarah’s first group of friends was here. They left on Sunday. There were three of them, so we had 6 girls here. It definitely got a little tight at times. I was also amazed at how much toilet paper we went through in about 4 days!! Anyway they were all really nice. I am still amazed that there are so many different accents from a county that is so small!! You can tell a difference with every one.
She has another friend who arrived here today and is leaving Friday. Then she has two more friends coming on Saturday, and they are staying until next Wednesday. So we will have a full house until about the time we all leave for Christmas.
Yesterday was also a really good day because I bought plane tickets to travel in March on our next break from school. On March 1 I am flying down to Nice to meet up with Mandy. I think we are going to try to see Corsica, Monte Carlo, Marseille, and Saint-Tropez in the nine days we have down there. I fly in and out of Bale, Switzerland. The tickets were only 65 euros roundtrip. It was such a good deal I just couldn’t pass it up. I have never been to the South of France, so I am really looking forward to it.
I am also looking forward to going back home to California for a while. I leave in exactly 11 days...YEA!
We had a good time when Sarah’s first group of friends was here. They left on Sunday. There were three of them, so we had 6 girls here. It definitely got a little tight at times. I was also amazed at how much toilet paper we went through in about 4 days!! Anyway they were all really nice. I am still amazed that there are so many different accents from a county that is so small!! You can tell a difference with every one.
She has another friend who arrived here today and is leaving Friday. Then she has two more friends coming on Saturday, and they are staying until next Wednesday. So we will have a full house until about the time we all leave for Christmas.
Yesterday was also a really good day because I bought plane tickets to travel in March on our next break from school. On March 1 I am flying down to Nice to meet up with Mandy. I think we are going to try to see Corsica, Monte Carlo, Marseille, and Saint-Tropez in the nine days we have down there. I fly in and out of Bale, Switzerland. The tickets were only 65 euros roundtrip. It was such a good deal I just couldn’t pass it up. I have never been to the South of France, so I am really looking forward to it.
I am also looking forward to going back home to California for a while. I leave in exactly 11 days...YEA!
Friday, December 08, 2006
The Crazy Little French Kids
I don’t know what has gotten into all the French kiddies, but they have been a riot the past few days. In one of my young classes there is this little boy named Hugo who is always causing problems. When we did Thanksgiving he raised his hand, and proceeded to tell me that he “hated the United States.” Not quite sure why he felt it was necessary to tell an American that, but he did it anyway. He is always causing problems, so I am constantly moving him and sending him out of class.
Well, yesterday he came up to me with a piece of paper all wrapped up. He told me it was a gift and to open it. Inside was a pen that said New York. He then told me that he loved New York, and I wanted to ask him if he knew that it was in the United States. I know the pen was just to get on my good side, but I don’t know how long it will last with him.
Anyway so the rest of the kids saw him give me the pen, so they started to rummage through their pencil cases to find something to give me as well. In the end I came home with a pens, two colored pencils, a little stub of a pencil and what I think is a crayon pen thing. I haven’t quite figured it out yet.
Then today in another class, some kids start making noise and yelling because someone farted in class, and it smelled. They then all denied it was them, and started accusing someone else. It took me forever to get them settled again. A little later I was reading a book, and one little boy, Jeremy, another troublemaker, moved to another seat. I turned the page, and when I looked up every kid sitting next to him was covering his or her nose and pointing right at Jeremy…so we had finally found the culprit! I started laughing so hard because the look on all the other kids’ faces was so amusing. They all had looks of pure disgust...it was that bad. I couldn’t even discipline Jeremy because all I could do was laugh. In the process all the kids started to laugh at me. I am glad the class was almost over because we weren’t going to get much more done. I am still laughing about it as I write this. There are just some things that are always funny!!!!
I guess kids are the same wherever you go, no matter what language they speak!
Well, yesterday he came up to me with a piece of paper all wrapped up. He told me it was a gift and to open it. Inside was a pen that said New York. He then told me that he loved New York, and I wanted to ask him if he knew that it was in the United States. I know the pen was just to get on my good side, but I don’t know how long it will last with him.
Anyway so the rest of the kids saw him give me the pen, so they started to rummage through their pencil cases to find something to give me as well. In the end I came home with a pens, two colored pencils, a little stub of a pencil and what I think is a crayon pen thing. I haven’t quite figured it out yet.
Then today in another class, some kids start making noise and yelling because someone farted in class, and it smelled. They then all denied it was them, and started accusing someone else. It took me forever to get them settled again. A little later I was reading a book, and one little boy, Jeremy, another troublemaker, moved to another seat. I turned the page, and when I looked up every kid sitting next to him was covering his or her nose and pointing right at Jeremy…so we had finally found the culprit! I started laughing so hard because the look on all the other kids’ faces was so amusing. They all had looks of pure disgust...it was that bad. I couldn’t even discipline Jeremy because all I could do was laugh. In the process all the kids started to laugh at me. I am glad the class was almost over because we weren’t going to get much more done. I am still laughing about it as I write this. There are just some things that are always funny!!!!
I guess kids are the same wherever you go, no matter what language they speak!
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